Fried Green Tomatoes redux

The film at The Estates (formerly the Forum) on Sunday was Fried Green Tomatoes, a very popular 1992 retelling of Fannie Flagg's best setting novel (1987). All four of the women who star in it are winners--Kathy Bates (as Evelyn), Jessica Tandy (as Ninny), Mary Stuart Masterson (as Idgie) and Mary Louise Parker (as Ruth). It takes place in two eras, the 1920-30s and 1980-90s. Ninny tells Evelyn the story about Idgie and Ruth, thus bonding them as Evelyn slowly gathers the strength to become as strong as the two women in the story

 
It was funny in a sly way. Maybe more relevant in the 80s. In some ways it was a bit off putting because the story telling takes place in Ninny's residence--a nursing home, and Ninny is 83. It reinforces the image of the elderly--need I tell you what that image is? Or the image of blacks being victims, who rise up and destroy the dim witted, nasty white men. And women can't be real women with authentic friendships unless they are lesbians or brow beaten closet feminists with stupid, bumbling husbands (named couch).

I'm not playing the victim here, but the book is almost 40 years old and the movie almost 35. No wonder generations have grown up with this vision of race relations in our country. It's been a theme in their culture.

New Film for churches about abortion

  https://youtu.be/1TA8ebssiLc

Tracy Robinson, the producer and director of a new pro-life film shares her conversion story and why she felt compelled to create a documentary that dives deep into the abortion debate. Many women sitting the the pews of believing churches are choosing abortions, and many churches never speak out, or their leadership is not informed. Robinson had formerly been a "pro-choice" Christians, but

"a presentation on the topic of abortion at a church in 2016 changed her mind. The topic of the presentation was the case against abortion, she said.

“In less than two hours the message just clarified for me the true humanity of the unborn child, from the moment of conception and the whole reality of what abortion does really struck me,” Robinson said.

She continued, “and so I immediately felt compelled to make a documentary because I knew there were so many people in my shoes — young adults, who had never heard the message before clearly.”

STORY OF HOPE AND HEALING, UNBRIDLED OPENS IN SELECT CITIES JANUARY 18

UNBRIDLED will open on January 18, 2019. UNBRIDLED tells the powerful story of an abused girl who teams up with an abused horse on a journey of healing. A full list of January 18 opening cities is below; learn more at unbridledtickets.com. ABOUT THE FILM Sarah (Tea McKay) is a 16-year-old girl who is abused, emotionally abandoned and written off as just another hopeless causality of this world. Karen (Dey Young), her single mother struggling with alcoholism, looks the other way when her abusive boyfriend Roger (Eric Roberts) secretly involves Sarah in an illicit sex traffic ring. Meanwhile, Roger toys with Mitchell (TC Stallings), the detective assigned to his case, who is himself desperate to find the missing daughter he believes may be involved in the same abusive circumstances. Convinced she is beyond redemption and unworthy of love, Sarah is sent away from the house that defined her horrors when Roger is finally arrested. At Unbridled, an equine therapy academy where young women like her find hope and healing, Sarah meets Dreamer, a horse who has also suffered abuse and lost all trust in humans. Together, Sarah and Dreamer walk the difficult road to healing as Sarah gets her life back on track. But when Roger is released, he tracks her down at the academy and threatens to derail it all. In the face of every hardship and terrifying obstacle, Sarah finds redemption through the family she rebuilds around her, ultimately learning that love is the most powerful force on earth. Drama / 115 minutes / PG-13 / www.unbridledtickets.com         Cast: Eric Roberts, T.C. Stallings, Dey Young, Tea McKay, Director: John David Ware [member of our church] Screenplay by: Bonné Bartron Story by: Christy McGlothlin, Bonné Bartron Produced by: Christy McGlothlin Executive Producers: Gerald McGlothlin, Troy Buder OPENING THEATERS | January 18 Tucson, AZ — Galaxy Tucson | 100 S. Houghton Rd, Tucson Los Angeles — Galaxy Mission Grove | 121 E. Alessandro Rd, Riverside San Luis Obispo, CA — Galaxy Colony Square Atascadero | 6517 El Camino Real, Atascadero Colorado Springs, CO — ICON Colorado Springs | 1818 Spring Water Pl. Chicago — Emagine Frankfort 10 | 19965 La Grange Rd., Frankfort Detroit, MI — Emagine Royal Oak | 200 N. Main St, Royal Oak;      Emagine Hartland | 10495 Hartland Sq., Hartland St. Paul, MN — Emagine White Bear | 1180 County Rd. EE, White Bear Township Minneapolis — Emagine Lakeville 21 | 20653 Keokuk Ave., Lakeville;      Emagine Rogers | 13692 Rogers Dr., Rogers; Reno — Galaxy Victorian | 1250 Victorian Ave., Sparks Las Vegas — Galaxy Cannery | 2121 E. Craig Rd., North Las Vegas Austin — Galaxy Highland | 6700 Middle Fiskville Rd. San Angelo, TX — ICON San Angelo | 2020 N. Bryant Bl. Filmmaker John David Ware, producer Christy McGlothlin and select cast members are available for interviews; a screening link as well as press kit, images and poster, are available upon request. Contact Lisa Trifone (lisa@11thstreetlot.com or 317.362.5378) for materials, interview availability and screener access.  ABOUT CINESPOTS Founded in 2005, Cinespots is a Silicon Valley-based film-distributor that delivers content that allows exhibitors to serve their local communities. ABOUT MOVING VISIONS ENTERTAINMENT Founded by UNBRIDLED producer Christy McGlothlin & Gerald McGlothlin, Moving Visions Entertainment is committed to creating and distributing visually appealing, emotionally captivating and utterly unforgettable feature films with wholesome, uplifting messages. ###

1957 Mt. Morris documentary now on YouTube

In 2009 I was blogging about class stuff and found out from Nancy F. that there had been a documentary filmed in Mt. Morris in 1957 and that she and her family were in it.  I was in California that summer so had no recollection of it.   So I went looking for it on the internet and found it in an archives of old films, called AV Geeks, contacted the owner, but never heard anything, so we dropped it.  I came across that blog the other day, reread it, and decided I'd try again, and so told Linda Miller of Mt. Morris about it and she put my request for information on the Mt. Morris Facebook page site, “Do you remember this in Mt. Morris.”   I also through Facebook am friends with Nancy's brother, so I told Don Snodgrass about the database of old films.  He did what I did in 2009, but got an answer and the owner provided a link to YouTube. Although I'm not sure how it works, it's possible that unless they have a demand, they don't transfer the film to YouTube. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5GTRdPsZxrc#t=68

Here's how it lays out: There is a town named Spring Valley (most of the scenes are Mt. Morris.) Opening scenes of a quiet town showing Brayton, Wesley, the high school, Trinity Lutheran, either Sunset or Hannah ranch homes, and two scenes of industry, which do not seem to be from MM.  Then Ralph Zickuhr, possibly Harvey Miller, then Richard Butler, Mike Babler (wearing their FFA jackets) and other teens building something on the campus. You'll see Lila Baker, Marilyn and Eddie Miller, and Les Lundgren. The doctor and his father are actors, and scene at the medical clinic looks like Oregon to me. In the community meetings the setting is the Mt. Morris high school, which was only a few years old then.  I recognize Marilyn Muller, Mrs. Marge Long in white dress, Phil Orr, Mr. Snodgrass, Nancy's father, Sybil Dohlen (what a gorgeous smile), and a very young Don Snodgrass in a flat top. I don't know the minister (an actor?), and one farmer in a straw hat in the interview phase sort of looks like Forrest Kinsey, and Kinsey is the name on the questionnaire.

Lew Behrens is hired in the film as the recreation director and shows up around 16:36 and he's in a number of scenes, and I suspect probably his children. I think I spotted Ron Duffy of our class in the scene of the young people who volunteer labor to build the center, which I think is the current senior center in the construction site.  Bill Lundholm is in the car wash scene (to represent raising money by teens). The scene at the end of the large family piling into a Buick station wagon, looks like it was in front of the Behrens home.

I recognized no one in the square dance, singing group or drama group and wondered if those scenes are from another effort, or actors. But if you do, please chime in.  Perhaps others might recognize someone. All the sport scenes of tennis, golf, and baseball show both sexes--such a progressive town. The machine shop instructor didn't look familiar.  The lake scene is from Byron, since Mt. Morris didn't have one. At 21:02 in the film you see people sitting in what looks like a park, I spotted Dave Dillehay.  Interesting that Mt. Morris does have parks named both for Zickuhr and Dillehay.

Needless to say, our classmate Nancy is thrilled to finally see this film, and especially the scenes with her family. Plus others in the community are having a lot of fun identifying the townspeople. You'll all have a good time looking at it.  I looked today and it already had 318  views even though it was only posted yesterday on YouTube.

This is cross posted at MMHS1957.blogspot.com

"Brainwashing of my Dad" (film)

I’ve heard of this film and was only mildly interested, but given the chatter on left/right, conservative/liberal and the conversation about not being civil in tongue, I’d like to propose this advertising blurb as an example of brainwashing about brainwashing. It came in my e-mail—I get a lot of unsolicited advertising since I have blogs and review books.

“Right-wing cable news and "conservative" talk radio attract older Americans like graying moths to an angry flame. But why would someone who was either apolitical or a Democrat in younger days become addicted to conservative talk shows in their twilight years? Filmmaker Jen Senko wondered how her WWII veteran and Kennedy Democrat father had been transformed into a Fox News Fanatic, suddenly and inexplicably railing against minorities, homosexuals, poor people, and Democrats. Using her dad as an entertaining example, Senko pulls back the curtain to expose the tools and tricks of the wizards behind the right-wing media revolution. And in discovering what happened to him, Senko reveals the all-too-chilling bigger picture of what’s happening behind-the-scenes to influence our national discourse.”

Note the use of hot button inflammatory words and memes (I’ve marked in yellow). Right wing is always a pejorative, and the scare quotes are around the word conservative to warn you that even that isn’t a truthful term. Even the term talk radio is code for fanaticism since there has been no successful talk radio on the left. (The crazies on talk radio are usually the listeners, not the hosts.)  Addicted is always a negative term. Pulling back the curtain is a Wizard of Oz reference—a bumbling shyster who uses tricks. There is no right-wing media revolution except in the sense that the media is no longer the play ground exclusively one party or philosophy, which controlled it even before Walter Cronkite, and there is one channel on cable that is always called right wing, Fox News. The only one, because all broadcast and all other cable are liberal. But note the positive allusions to solid, good old, warm fuzzy Democrat ideas like WWII veteran and Kennedy Democrat, even father. Chilling bigger picture—must be a conspiracy so stay tuned and buy a ticket so she can recover her investment (seems to be an evil capitalist). See how Fox News is linked, without any evidence, to speaking out against minorities, homosexuals and the poor. I’ve watched Fox for years, and have only seen a keen reliance on celebrities, the wealthy, and well spoken Congress members of both parties. Fox has far more minorities and women in front of the camera than the other cable stations. It also carries the usually silly stuff in the morning like recipes and exercise.

This may be one of the most biased blurbs about bias that I've seen in. . . , well, since the last thing the left wrote about how the right wing news treats Hillary.  The author/writer/director never considers that the left may have brainwashed her! All the people she interviews about language and media are academics--all from the left.

Trailer for film