California Firsts

Daughter and Granddaughter at the Movies!

Anyone who reads this blog regularly, or better yet, knows me, is well aware of my absolute fanaticism when it comes to movies. I’m at a loss to fully explain it other than to say I’m completely unrepentant about it. Both of my children inherited whatever defective gene resulted in this fascination with the world of cinema. While my son shares my attraction to films where lots of things blow up spectacularly my daughter enjoys “message” films more than I ever will. Both of them love going to the movies so I know the past couple months have been a chore for the Cali-Daughter since my granddaughter’s arrival put a serious crimp in nights out to the movies. Anybody with children remembers those first post-natal months when your social life undergoes a dramatic transformation. A movie theater near my daughter has a program with matinees designed for babies and moms where the sound is lowered and a crying baby won’t get the rest of the crowd angry. Yesterday they took advantage of the opportunity to see The Revenant which was appropriate since Leonardo DiCaprio shares his birthday with the First Blog Reader. Unsurprisingly reports are coming in that my granddaughter passed this test with flying colors (I guess it’s a dominant gene), sleeping though most of the movie. After watching the film myself (see below) I’m glad she did.

On Our Way to the Movies!

Too Cute not to Repeat

Sharing her Thoughts Afterwards

Starting to Fill Out Those Early Outfits

Play Date Also, Busy Day

And Exhausted

The Revenant is an updated version of the old Richard Harris movie Man in the Wilderness. It recounts the incredible survival story of Hugh Glass after he was mauled by a grizzly bear in the 1820s. He’s left for dead but somehow travels hundreds of miles through the frozen Upper Missouri River country pursued by Indians and an occasional Frenchman. I’d heard all the hype about this movie and DiCaprio’s performance. I’ve never been a big fan of Leo, especially in tough guy parts, because I’ve always thought a fit teenage girl could probably kick his ass. I have to admit though, in this, probably the toughest of tough guy parts, he nails it.

He and Tom Hardy as the repugnant villain tower over the movie which is difficult because the cinematography is nothing short of breathtaking. Wear an extra layer of clothing to watch this because you’re going to feel cold as Leo never meets an ice laden stream he doesn’t want to wallow in. The director Iñárritu is back with his usual hijinks with innovative camera shots. While those shots were one of the best things about Birdman, here they felt a little more distracting. For once the buzz about a movie is well founded, especially DiCaprio and Hardy. This is one of those flicks where you want look away from the carnage but it’s impossible to do so; a great movie. Who knows I may even become a Leo fan. That would make my daughter happy.

They're Back!

I’d like to say that I saw the movie to honor my granddaughter’s first movie (and that will be my story going forward) but it had a lot more to do with the snow storm supposedly inbound tonight that will make climbing the hill to the house problematic. When I did return from the movie I was confronted with a dual entertainment conundrum. The most appropriately named TV series, ever, Shameless, had its season premiere. The other threat came from the college football national championship game. After catching up with the infamous Gallagher clan I figured the football game would be virtually decided as these things are usually blow outs. How wrong I was! Instead of being able to head up to bed I was “forced” to endure a nail biting game that kept me up well after midnight. Kudos to the players from champion Alabama and Clemson, they both left everything out on the field in an immensely entertaining game.

There was a major ISIS terrorist attack yesterday which barely registered on the national news. This is probably because it occurred in Turkey and not some of the more fashionable (read white) locations. Maybe interest will ramp up with the news that 9 out of the 10 dead were German tourists. It’s also an object lesson for the Turkish government which hasn’t stepped up as much as it is capable of doing, not to mention turning a blind eye to the ISIS oil trade smuggled across Turkish borders. Hopefully this will engender a dramatic military response. You don’t want to be across from a pissed off Turk.