Movies & Books Into Movies

[BarbStAubrey]

Tomereader my take it has to do with loosing control over so much and the one thing we can control without any repercussions is how we think and act at home - it is not just control but many things we loose as we age - the ability to do what we want when we want and how we want - our body lets us down - things change all around us - we loose things that was never an issue and now seems to be - or we forget the water was running and 2 hours later we finally go back into the kitchen or bathroom and see the waste we just spent money on...

Then who wants to start making new friends as one by one our friends move on to the cemetery - new friends will never match or replace the years of history that went into the friendships that are with us no longer.

Just all the being alone after so many years of marriage that brought familiarity -

All those losses are quietly grieved even if polite society does not talk about them - we cannot all soldier on being courageous to travel around the world or hike mountains and all the other adventures that are given as examples to the now 'modern' elder.

What is really going on is we are constantly at one stage or other of the Grief process - we just about get over one loss and another pops up from not seeing so well to not hearing so well to not being able to garden like we used to and not even able to clean house as quickly or thoroughly as we used to - and it is tiresome night after night eating alone.

One stage of the grief process is anger and so welcome to what we live with after we have lived many years - the litany of steps in the Grief process that now they say 7 steps that had been 5 steps for decades. here is a link to a pretty good article using the 5 steps

https://www.verywellmind.com/five-stages-of-grief-4175361       

[ginny]

Me, too, Tome, and I am not sure why. Very short fuse. With things and other people. At the same time I think I'm happier personally.   How strange, they don't go together.

This is a good topic and I'm glad you introduced it.


hahaa I am glad to hear that somebody else, your late husband, like me, talks to the  TV. hhahaa I don't watch much TV which requires talking to but boy when something  worthy of it  comes on, it gets the full blast.  hahaaaaaaaaaaaaa  I am SO glad the election is  over, I think my poor husband thought I was losing it, there was MUCH talking to the TV!!  Like that does any good, but I feel I am somehow able to reject what I'm seeing.

Throwing stuff on floor? Cool.  I don't, I'm too lazy,  I'd have to pick it up.  And I am tired of picking up things, period.

It really is surprising the affect this shut down has had on so many people. Small things become mountains, because it's just too much on top of everything else!! TOO much! It seems unfair. And then you think about those with real issues and you feel guilty so you don't say anything.  And there are a lot of anxieties, real, and imagined. Just trying to schedule a Covid shot for a lot of people is extremely frustrating. One becomes outraged at the people in the grocery without masks. And there are lots of them here.

 I find it fascinating how people try to cope. Some people are really now into physical fitness.  Some like me have kind of let that ease away.  I  feel entitled to that snack I  would never have touched otherwise. Cake!  Until last March I had not eaten a piece of cake in years except for birthdays. Forget that. Will  probably emerge 90000 lbs.

  I'm really lucky I guess in some ways because I actually enjoy solitude, and the online and the zoom classes provide a lot of interaction with interesting  people. In fact the 4 zoom classes on Wednesdays to me are almost the same as being there, more than once I have said, now when you get home... or when I get home..... but we are all "home."  hahaha  oh man.  I feel lucky, I guess that's the bottom line, and it's made me appreciate more what I actually have.   It really has.

At the same time it takes NOTHING to set me off. It's strange.

[ginny]

 Vesta, we are very glad to welcome you here! Pull up a chair! I agree with everything you said, too.

To me The Dig was about celebrating the unsung, the  enthusiast, the volunteer (although if you read up on Basil Brown he was amazing. Entirely self taught, Latin, German, astronomy, wrote a book, archaeology) who doggedly keeps going and ends up accomplishing something others do not. And of course Rafe Fiennes with an accent and demeanor unlike his own, amazing performance.   Archaeology is full of such examples, think Schliemann, who doggedly with a copy of the Iliad in his  hand discovered Troy, that Troy did exist, all 9? Levels of it.  It previously had been considered a myth.  But whose lack of understanding ruined several layers and whose treatment of the artifacts made his name mud, I'm afraid, now. Brown was not such a man. Think of the Mildenhall Treasure, also war years, also in the UK also kept, fascinating story, used as dinner plate by the finder till one of the guests noticed early Christian iconography on a spoon and turned him in.

I had been watching Jurassic Park movies, running, screaming, dinosaurs every minute killing, blood, and the Men in Black Series (Sci Fi, lots of robots, the Future), getting the angst out that way, with imaginary demons, so The Dig was like an oasis full of normal decent people, to me. De gustibus, sometimes  you feel like a nut, sometimes you don't, as the old Almond
 Joy/ Mounds candy bars  jingle used to go.

I loved it. I've got the book now, but have read of the real family's outcome and what happened to Robert, but maybe for another time.


I came IN to say to fans of the  Shakespeare and Hathaway series and one called Murder in Paradise which I've never seen, that there is to be a special episode this Saturday on PBS which apparently has not been seen (in the US) in which Frank plays tennis, here's the  Trailer!

They say:
"Special productions of two light-hearted BBC murder mysteries Shakespeare & Hathaway and Death in Paradise will air on Saturday night at 9 p.m. and 10 p.m., respectively. Can you figure out 'who-done-it' before the inspectors? Mark your calendar for Saturday evening, Feb. 27 on SCETV! "

[rosemarykaye]

I’m glad you all enjoyed The Dig really I am.  But we all like different things, no? And I think we all like different things at different times.

I also felt impatient, years ago, when watching The Girl with the Pearl Earring. This was at the cinema, and I had something else on my mind that day. In that situation I just do not have the stillness, if that is the right word, to appreciate slow things. That, of course, does not mean that they are wrong, or that I don’t understand how much other people appreciate them. I think that when my own anxiety levels are rising, I need something fast and preferably funny to get me out of that state - so Queer Eye worked well for me that night, and - as you say Ginny - Derry Girls never fails to cheer me up. How could it not?!

But just a few days before The Dig I watched the film of Carrie’s War, which is set in a small village in Wales in the early 1940s, and is at times as slow as slow - and I absolutely loved it. Similarly the fairly recent TV adaptation of Picnic at Hanging Rock is very slow, with lots of Looks - I thought it was brilliant, and was irritated by the people I knew who immediacy wrote it off because it wasn’t the same as the old film. It wasn’t supposed to be. Natalie Portman was superb.

As I mentioned last night,  I finished Unorthodox - watched two episodes back to back (which made for a very late night by my standards) as I just could not wait to see what happened. I think episode 4 was even better than the first three. The acting was simply superlative. Shira Haas as Esty was perfect throughout, but as I said, I was equally impressed with Amit Rahev as her young, inexperienced husband Yanky - in the final scenes we really saw his suffering too, as he tried to reconcile his devotion to his extreme version of a faith in which he had grown up with his love for this woman who had decided it was not for her. One of the many things I liked about this series is that it was not one-sided. Whilst it was, of course, primarily about Esty, even she did not see things in black and white. And she did not, I think, renounce her faith, just the exceptionally strict interpretation of it by the community in which she grew up.

My daughter-in-law is going to lend me a book she has read,  The Marrying of Chani Kaufman, about the Orthodox community in Golders Green, North London. She said Unorthodox sounds similar.

I find the best cure for my own anxious or tetchy feelings is to get out and walk. I know I am extremely lucky in having so many beautiful places to do just that. This week our weather has improved so much, after weeks and weeks of snow and ice, that I have been able to walk at Castle Fraser (National Trust estate), Dunecht House (vast private estate) and today along the Dee with a friend. It’s been a glorious spring day, we saw so many snowdrops and crocuses, and there were little birds flitting about everywhere.

I shout at the television all the time.  What’s worse is when I start shouting at, or even disagreeing out loud with, podcasts and downloaded radio programmes when I am out walking. If someone suddenly hoves into view, I have to pretend I am on the phone.... There is one book podcast in particular on which one of the two presenters drives me round the bed. I usually broadly agree with his views, but unfortunately he delivers them in such a patronising, mansplainy way that I am constantly yelling ’oh for goodness sake!’ Or ‘I suppose you think you’re clever?’ as I wander along the lanes. Or if they can’t remember an author’s name and I can, I am of course shouting ‘It’s (name) you idiots!’

Oh well, small pleasures.

[jane]

Tome...you are not alone in whatever this weird place is now.

  I'm angry at our Governor for promising to get the vaccine appts set up and she's bragged about two programs...a call site and then a Microsoft website...and then two weeks later she cancels both contracts.  Our County Health Dept and local Clinic finally went from "call us now for 100 doses."..and it filled quickly and I got only busy signals...to DON'T call us, we'll call you.


She took off ALL restrictions on gatherings and since I'm still in the 40% who hasn't been able to get even the first shot, I'm very wary of going out, though most older people are still wearing masks or places are still asking them to do so.

So this grumpy old lady also talks back to the TV and does a lot of reading of things that don't upset me. 

Now to get all the tax "stuff" I need so I can get that monkey off my back. 

jane

[rosemarykaye]

My goodness Jane, that sounds terrible.

I understand that NHS Scotland has now vaccinated almost everyone over 65.  We get called in - usually by letter - so the onus is not on us to book. I know friends in other parts of the US and in France have to take the initiative themselves, and that it is extremely difficult for them to get appointments. I think by calling people in the NHS probably ensures that far more people get the vaccine. Of course some people will decline, or just not turn up, but if people had actively to make their own appointments I feel far more of them would forget, feel too busy, or just not bother.

I still await my blue envelope with anticipation!

Mask wearing is still absolutely mandatory in shops, on public transport, in hospitals, etc unless you are exempt. I am not sure how that is defined, and I know people are not asked to prove it, but in my area I'd say almost everyone is complying.

Jane Godley, a Scottish comedian, has been doing voiceovers for Nicola Sturgeon's (Scottish First Minister) daily updates. They are absolutely hilarious (I think most are on YouTube). The latest words of wisdom she confers on Nicola are 'Now remember about social distancing - that's TWO ALSATIANS away' (Alsatians, or German Shepherds, are the dogs traidtionally favoured by a certain element of Glaswegian society [though these days it might more likley be Staffies]. They are beautiful dogs, and are a

I hope you (and I!) get your vaccine soon.

[ginny]

 How can you tell if you need a vacay?

Here's one way: if you woke up this morning in some anxiety over an email which was possibly misplaced.

This email contained 4 links to Virtual Covid19 Shots which, if Julius  Caesar failed to take advantage of, he would then have to  present himself in person.

He's only been dead 2000 years.

The WORST part? I spent maybe 5 minutes after awakening looking for the email JUST TO BE SURE!

Time for a vacay!

[ginny]

 Finally finished watching the last of the 2nd season of Derry Girls, and I swear I'm getting that Irish intonation? The patterns of speech? It would be very difficult to live there and not take that up? hahaha

And OH yes Gillian Anderson with a Golden Globe AND Josh O'Conner and Emma Corrin if I've spelled those names correctly,  who played Prince Charles and Diana in the Crown, They are all spectacular. I  am especially happy for Gillian Anderson whom some critics were somewhat negative about concerning  her portrayal of Margaret Thatcher.     

Where are the Derry Girls in these award shows? Probably the most perfectly cast of the bunch. And where is Delroy Lindo (The Good Fight) in anything he's been in lately?  I am not sure who is eligible for those awards and who is not.                     

[rosemarykaye]

#ReadingIreland month starts today Ginny - so you are already well prepared by the Derry Girls if you want to take part! 

And yes, you do eventually get your ear in for the NI accent - I can understand my daughter-in-law no bother these days, but of course she has lived in northern Scotland for 5+years now, so she’s probably unconsciously changed her tone too.  The Belfast accent is one of the hardest for people from other parts of the UK to get - the other one is Glaswegian. The southern Irish accent is, I think, easier, though the Dublin one is a thing on its own. And as ever, I find older men the hardest to understand, it’s something about their speech.

The programme’s Wikipedia page does list the awards it has won so far:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Derry_Girls#Accolades

And just in case anyone does want to take part in Reading Ireland week:

https://746books.com/2021/03/01/its-reading-ireland-month-2021/

[ginny]

 Boy that Read Ireland is something else, isn't it? The woman is very well read.  I looked at a couple of suggestions. Midnight seems  not quite what I want now, though when I was younger all I read was things of the off at boarding school themes, I remember sitting in the crook of the stairs of our local library with book after book on that subject.

No idea why the subject appealed. Never went to boarding school and had no desire to go. It may have been the atmospheric library itself (odd for NJ) which appealed. It was a small part of that complex which looks a lot different today actually, I hardly recognize  the right side, the little porch but it looks well kept up now,  it was old and  sort of...atmospheric.

Then I thought perhaps the one about The Feast of Lupercal but  (1) it's been done and (2) I made the mistake of reading to the end of the review given,  and it sums his life up as a "wasted life." That review, I will bet anything, is by  a young woman.  I recommend for her The Palace Thief by Ethan Canin.  Whether the character be male or female, the notion that one must find a perfect person of the opposite sex at ANY age,  or their life is wasted  irritates me to death.

I had no idea there were so many books about life in Ireland or the culture of Ireland.And some of them do look good and I think would be instructive.   I'll keep looking.

[BarbStAubrey]

Wow got lost for hours in the 746 book site - thanks for that link Rosemary - I've read many but so many more I have not read - I have yet to read a book by an Irish author that disappointed so the lists will be good to hang onto...

Wonderful looking library Ginny - Living in Lexington Ky when my children were little they had the advantage of spending many an hour reading and being a part of the children's dramas in a memorable Greek Revival structure with lovely gardens - those old buildings are so pleasing to the eye but I bet cost a fortune to maintain.

Today is Texas Independence Day - flags flying all over and tra la the sun came out - here is a good very short video of what we are celebrating
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOo0FxktiPA

[Frybabe]

HAH! I read Kathy's intro to 746Books (What's 746 Books all about then?). There must be a lot of us out there who have more books (and continue to buy or borrow more) than they can read in a lifetime.

What a lovely building for a library, Ginny. I've never been that lucky. The first public library I ever was in was at the front of a one story building that housed the police department. The current branch library I visit is in an old high school building that now houses the municipal offices and the police department. It is a large room with a side room for children's books and activities. Originally we were to get the whole of the first floor, but the township authorities decided they wanted half the space for a large meeting room. So, in the end, when we moved down to the first floor with an outside door all our own, we actually lost space instead of gaining.

[ginny]

It IS a beautiful building, isn't it? But it was,  as you say here,  a very small library, that's a Community House and was used for many things.  It had everything: a full gym on the main floor in the back (it's very deep), a huge almost Olympic  pool in the basement,  tennis courts behind the building, but this little  two story library was tucked off to the right,  on the first floor with its own door of entry with  window seats at every level of the broad stairs to the top floor. It was small and dark and  atmospheric  and quiet. I loved it.  We lived behind it, so it was nothing to walk there. It really was perfect for a myopic introverted book lover.

[ginny]

SHRIEK!

BIG NEWS! (Or it is to me, am I the only one who did not know?) DISH now has Amazon Prime on it!

That means all these shows I like I can now see (takes 1/2 second to set up) on the big screen! Instead of a small screen. BIG screen, all of them and BritBox too! And Acorn!

I went in to see another Derry Girls, saw Amazon Prime next to the Netflix Symbol, followed the directions and before I could even turn around I was logged in  on the big screen!

OH BOY!  Seaside Hotel on the big screen, Poirot, OH and more...PBS documentaries, a HUGE menu of stuff.

Wow.

[BarbStAubrey]

Good for you...

[Frybabe]

You are going to love it Ginny, especially with shows with lots of scenery.

[Tomereader1]

Ginny, I have Dish.  I get Prime, I guess thru my SmartTV, it was a sign up/registration thing for which I pay.  It's not thru Dish, nor is Netflix.  The BritBox and Acorn are subscription channels, extra $$ even with Amazon Prime.  I would love to have both BB & Acorn, but I think I'm paying enough with my Dish Subscription, Netflix & Prime.  And then again, TV is my only entertainment (besides books), so I guess I shouldn't gripe. 

[BarbStAubrey]

For heaven's sake did I find an oldie - trying to remember when we read it in school - I'm thinking 8th grade but maybe earlier - The House of the Seven Gables by Longfellow - and of all things I found it on Prime as a Shirley Temple movie - Robert Culp and Martin Landau as Clifford and the wonderful Agnes Moorehead - to think we would get scared watching this. The movie almost appears now as a grade school acted production - trees blowing in a stiff wind was enough back then to send shivers up our backs -

I was thrilled with anything Shirley Temple and was the loving caretaker, you could not own, a Shirley Temple doll. She was nearly 2 feet tall and had tied to her wrists with ribbons the tightly pleated skirt - oh she was beautiful - I believe I still may have a photo - I remember mom suggesting I take a photo of her with my bedtime animals with my new black box camera I received for my 7th Birthday.

I remember not being very impressed with Robert Culp. I did not think he was especially good looking and therefore not at all good enough for Shirley Temple as Phoebe. I thought she deserved someone far more dashing where as to me Robert Culp had a sneaky untrustworthy look about him. To me he seemed to wheedle out her trust and liking for him.  When, after they found the secret compartment the end of the movie came so quickly I thought for sure the movie was going to deviate continue with someone dashing and honest knocking on the door and rescuing Shirley Temple from the house and from Robert Culp. Having seen the movie when I was younger is probably why I was so bored and skipped reading as homework part of the story. Haha I think I was still angry that those who made the movie allowed Shirley Temple to accept Robert Culp

[Frybabe]

I had to look that one up, Barb, since I don't think I ever saw that. So, it a TV production and not a theater movie. Huh! Wonder if I ever saw any of them. I doubt it. I remember Shirley Temple best in The Little Colonel, Captain January, and Heidi. Mostly, I can only snag bits of scenes. I only remember seeing one when she was a bit older, but don't remember what it was.

[BarbStAubrey]

hmm maybe my memory is mixed up but we did not have a TV till I was married - about a year later when I was due with my first was when we had our first TV - maybe the movie theater somehow figured out how to show early TV programs - I do remember Shirley Temple was 5 years older than I was - well whatever - I do remember this was a story we read in grade school -

Watched a fabulous Italian movie last night - Spettacola - small hilltop town in Tuscany is a wonderful synopsis of today and how we have all felt the cultural shift in society and how we are moving further away from the land depending more and more on banks and credit and how the young are not following in the traditions that were the glue for communities - really worth seeing - if you are a Prime member it is free -

https://www.amazon.com/Spettacolo-Jeff-Malmberg/dp/B071GM3KGR/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2TTVIZAQGT12T&dchild=1&keywords=spettacolo&qid=1615492327&s=instant-video&sprefix=spett%2Cinstant-video%2C201&sr=1-1

[ginny]

Tome, I think I misunderstood you earlier (not difficult for me). I should have gotten a Smart TV. I think Dish feels sorry for me out here in the  hinterland. But I am thinking I don't need the Smart TV now.

Thank you for that recommendation of Spettacola, Barbara, I like Prime a lot.

Talking about old movies, though, I am just still  totally immersed in the old original  Poirots on Prime,  and am on episode 6 of the first season of  6 seasons, they are all there. I think this is BINGE watching at its best.

Last night we were in Rhodes.  The clothes!!! The CARS!!  (What period IS this supposed to be, the 30's? 20's?)

A scene occurred in a bazaar. I suddenly realized that there was not ONE tourist in shorts, or a ball cap,  and I couldn't get over it. How travel has changed! (For the better?)  And then we went to the beach. The dresses! And I suddenly realized that if I had been there I would not have that 18 inch waist nor be 5'2" nor get my  foot in one of those dresses but it made me rethink my entire wardrobe.

Where have all the pretty clothes gone?

[Tomereader1]

And  the gentlemens' attire is fantastic too!  Love Poirot's gorgeous suits & accessories!
If you have watched Miss Scarlet and the Duke on PBS, they are well dressed too.  The main characters especially.

[BarbStAubrey]

Its getting more and more difficult to justify a wardrobe of smart clothes with staying at home becoming the sole reason to chose an outfit - although Poirot dresses beautifully even at home - always liked a scene in one of his stories where he is settling in on a rather straight back chair, upholstered but certainly not cushy, with a book and a piece of chocolate candy being served some tea by the butler only to be interrupted by someone needing his assistance - there had been a murder...

Have a quote somewhere that I need to pull out - it shows a well appointed dining table for one and say 'What you allow persists'  and so we could bring back some style to even our at-home wardrobe couldn't we - I tend towards Tshirts under a long sleeve shirt and knit slacks. At least it is not jammies or sweatpants that have become for many their home wardrobe - wouldn't a couple of stylish caftans worn in the evening be wonderful - even changing after dinner to something comfortable for reading or watching a movie.

Just thought - what a blast - dress as if attending a live baseball or football game while watching a game on TV - really get into it with popcorn and such - calling out just as if we were in a ball park or stadium - nutty living alone but hay it would be fun and out of the ordinary however, it is the glamour that we want back in our lives - hmm we need to share ideas...

[Frybabe]

This morning I watch a trailer for Apple TV's production of The Foundation. I remember reading the book and at least one sequel, but I don't think I fully understood what was going on at the time. It was one of the few science fiction books I read when I was a teen. Now I feel like I need to read it again. Not likely to happen with all the other books I have stacked to read. I don't subscribe to Apple TV. Maybe I will just to watch it. Still waiting for Showtime to show up with it's HALO series.

Meanwhile, I eagerly await the opening of the Great Lakes shipping season, am watching the SpaceX and NASA launches, and keeping an eye out for new Perseverance and volcano videos on YouTube.

[PatH]

The Foundation series is highly admired by Asimov fans, but it's one of his earliest works, and it's so poorly written that I've never been able to get very far into it.  Maybe it improves as one reads on.  If you do read it, Frybabe, I'll be interested to see your reaction.  It's an interesting basic idea.

[rosemarykaye]

For those who have Netflix, I have just found an article listing the best 100 films on it this weekend.

https://www.vulture.com/article/best-movies-on-netflix-right-now.html

I must admit I haven’t even heard of most of these, and many sound interesting. If anyone has any recommendations from this list (or others for that matter) I’d be interested to hear them.

Tomorrow we have the final of the Great Pottery Throwdown and the final episode of Jed Mercurio’s Bloodlands - we are going to have to eat specially early to make sure we are on the sofa by 8pm, as normally we would watch the pottery programme the next day, but as it is the final we don’t want to find out the result from our friends, or via social media, before we’ve seen it!

Rosemary

[PatH]

I've heard of about a fifth of them, but my few recommendations are probably things you've already seen.

Howard's End is a really good job, well worth watching.

Julie and Julia is somewhat amusing if you're a Julia Child fan.

Monty Python needs no comment from me.  You either like him or don't.

Pan's Labyrinth is surreal, extremely well done, and deeply disturbing.  Don't know if I advise watching it or not.

Total Recall is of interest to Philip K. Dick fans, not otherwise.  But it's not true that Arnold Shcwartzenegger can't act.  He has three distinctly different facial expressions, which he rotates appropriately.

[Tomereader1]

So many of these movies have such violence in them.  Unfortunately, several of the Award Winning movies do:
"The Departed"; also, overdone bad language.  I'll list some of the others I found terribly violent, after a bit. Have to do a bit of "reality" here, and some housecleaning.  I'll accept any volunteers who'd like to come and grab a mop or feather duster!  LOL

[rosemarykaye]

Thanks Pat and Tomereader - I agree, violence is exactly what I do not want to watch.

I’ve seen Julie and Julia more than once, but would happily watch it again - unfortunately my husband is rather less enthusiastic.

I’ve not see the film of Howard’s End, so thanks for that. I saw the more recent TV series and enjoyed that.

Good luck with the dreaded housework Tomereader. I did vacuuming yesterday but I’m afraid I ran out of steam before the bathrooms got a look in. They can wait.

[Tomereader1]

I had to stop and come back in here for a moment.  More violent ones: The Irishman; There Will Be Blood; Bonnie & Clyde.  There are some I've not seen, but various reviews elsewhere specified violence, and thus, I have not watched.
There are so many on this list that are "family friendly", or just flat good movies (and I won't try to list them all) but if you've not seen "Hugo", it is a beautiful, well-made movie (family friendly).  Then there's "The Half of It" which is a more modern tale and very sweet.  Theoretically, a loose re-telling of Cyrano.
I can see I'd better get this cleaning done, because there are 3 or 4 that I need to watch tonight/today, which I haven't seen before, that pique my interest!  Happy Bingeing All!

[rosemarykaye]

Thanks Tome - I have not seen Hugo or The Half of It, so they are great tips.

I always thought There Will Be Blood would be violent, so although it is, I think, about the oil industry, I have not suggested it to my husband!

[PatH]

And unsurprisingly, Pan's Labyrinth and Total Recall are violent.

[Frybabe]

Talk about violent movies, I had two movies in my watch list, Dredd, and 2047 Virtual Revolution. I had to remove them. They seem to be wall to wall violence, sex, drugs etc. Nothing to recommend them at all.  I saw Judge Dredd with Silvester Stallone years ago, but don't recall it being near as violent as Dredd. Instead, I watched Aeon Flux, which did had violence, but not wall to wall; it actually had a story to it.

[ginny]

Talk about violent movies, each one of the OLD Poirots comes on Prime with a TV rating and I wondered if the people rating it were watching the same program: almost always it says drug use, violence, language....I have finally figured out the drug use must be the cigarettes that some characters smoke.

 But we were in an Opium Den in Season two.

I agree, Tome, the men's clothes!!! I sometimes, watching at home,   in some movies pause it, to just take in the splendor of the bespoke suits, vests and layers.   Poirot is a peacock, love Suchet's portrayal of him. He's a dandy. Love that cane he flourishes.  Silver handled (it appears) walking stick.  He doesn't seem to need it for support, I wonder why he carries  it? Was it the style?  They used to say clothes make the man. I wonder if some day some of the old patterns of dress will return for men. I recall my father used to have one of those long black coats, dress coats. I can't think I've seen them recently except upon one notable exception who shall remain unnamed, but that's a throwback to an older generation I think (or the cold urban NE weather).

I used to have a tradition (LONG gone) of buying my husband a gift on Christmas Eve Day. I remember going into a fine  men's store and buying him one, gosh,  must have been  50 years ago, the store is long gone. Our weather here does not exactly call for such  coats, nor does my husband's personal taste, but he wore it sometimes,  if I recall it properly. I wonder what happened to it. I BET it's still in the closet.

[PatH]

I don't know if Prime shows the off stage interviews, but I remember them from the original TV showing.  It's hilarious what a different personality Suchet has (or projects) off stage than when he's being Poirot.

[jane]

My Dad called that long men's winter coat his "top coat."  I don't know if everyone did.

I haven't seen one in ages, but then I don't often even see men in suits, anymore, except some "older" men at church on Sunday.

 However, before the pandemic shut things down, I did see a number of young men (20s-early 30s) in suits in the city.  They seemed to be going into buildings where there were a lot of bankers and investment types. 

[rosemarykaye]

Until last March my husband wore a suit to work every day.

Over the past 12 months the suits haven't seen the light, and over the winter he has been huddled up in enormous sweaters as he works away in our rather Baltic spare bedroom/study.

One of the lockdown's small pleasures for me has been not having to pay any attention whatsoever to my appearance. I must say I am looking forward to getting a hair cut, but apart from that I could not care less. Comfort is all 

[ginny]

 I agree! Nothing like comfort.  People seem to dress depending on the demands made of them by  lots of external sources, and how and where  they live.

I was thinking the other day of the clothes I am not sure I am going to wear again when this is over, the  lined dress slacks, the dresses, the heels.

Of course I spend most all my time out in the country, so it would be odd if one dressed like that to dig in the mud.

I wonder, looking at poor Italy closing again, if we'll EVER go back to the way things were.

Still enjoying the old Poirot films, how many DID he make? They are short so I am now in series 3 and they are addictive. I hope somebody has the newer ones, too.

I will try to find those interviews, Pat, I love things like that. I especially enjoyed the ones on the original Brideshead Revisited.  Splendidly done, and they add so much to the experience.

On Books into Movies I'm reading Nomadland, which was the inspiration for the new movie whose female director, Chloe Zhao,  has won so many awards recently.  I mentioned it in the Library.   It's a great book, have not seen the movie but it's streaming I think. I would like to finish the book first and see what the movie, which is not a documentary but fiction  "based on" some of the characters, (in other words art in its own right, as they used to say about Metro Goldwyn Mayor, Ars, Gratia Artis) ...But here in my last day of vacay I think I'll indulge myself with Piorot and I, Robot, which finally came in DVD form.

[ginny]

 
Also I've developed a habit in this Quarantine time I'm going to have a problem getting rid of: "granny" socks. The supermarket here back before  Christmas had these plush patterned (Norwegian type designs) cheap soft socks in lots of colors and they are warm and soft and I keep forgetting I've got them on. I must cut quite a figure in public with the red ones but hey!

[Tomereader1]

Don't you get rid of those "granny" socks.  If they're warm and comfortable to your feet, keep 'em, wear 'em and when they get holes in the toes, then you can trash 'em.

Nomadland is on Netflix, I think.  Can never remember between Netflix & Amazon Prime what is on which channel.