My 2 Cents

Like almost all Marvel movie fans, I sadly read about the recent death of Chadwick Boseman, the actor who played T’Challa (the Black Panther) in the Avenger movies and in the recent (2018) stand-alone movie.  I have read that as a measure of respect for Boseman, the role should be abandoned and / or perhaps taken up by the character of his in-film sibling:  Shuri.  While I am confident Letitia Wright, the actress playing Shuri, could step into this type of role and do a great job, there is the “little” matter of ascension to the role is performed via challenge and ritual combat.  Does anyone seriously think Shuri could defeat M’Baku in hand-to-hand combat – particularly without the Panther “power” from the orchid?
I would like to suggest a different path.  I would like to see Aldis Hodge take up the mantle of T’Challa / Panther and just “pretend” he’s the same actor.  Just as we’ve been substituting actors for “James Bond” and “Peter Parker / Spiderman”, we just use a different actor.  To be clear, I mean no disrespect to Boseman’s portrayal of T’Challa – I thought he was brilliant – I just don’t want something from real life to take away from us a character we’re already invested in and who has so much more room for cinematic growth.
My reasons for suggesting Hodge are simple and practical:  1)  we already know he can act;  2)  he has the strong, athletic build for the role (he’s 6ft 1in and has already played roles of multiple athletes);  and, 3)  he’s a good age (currently 33 years old), so he could be in the role for at least 10 years (three movies:  two Panthers and one Avengers).  Many of the other actors are already beginning to age out of their roles and will also need to be “replaced”.   Of course, this is just my two cents worth…
If the decision is made not to replace the Black Panther or to modify the role for a female (Shuri), then I would like to see at least one prequel / backstory of one or more of the Panthers who preceded T’Challa or his father (T’Chaka).
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On This Day In:
2021	First Ask For Courage
	Shadows And Darkness
2020	My 2 Cents
	You Do It
	Must Be Why I Like Dreamin’
2019	The Opening Step
	Day 17/18: That Didn’t Take Long
2018	I’ll Trade You…
2017	Luv Me Some Meat Loaf
2016	Unless Your Name Is #AmnestyDon
2015	A Tentative First Step
2014	Making People
2013	On Reading Books
2012	On America
2011	Shiver, Me Timbers!
2010	Fiduciary Breakdown

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The City Is Our Studio

“Begin Again”  —  movie review
Today’s review is for the 2013 musical-drama “Begin Again“.  The movie stars Keira Knightley as Gretta James, a songwriter who has recently broken up with her boyfriend, Adam Levine as Dave Kohl, Gretta’s ex-boyfriend and a recently “hit” musician who cheats on Gretta, Mark Ruffalo as Dan Mulligan, a music producer who “discovers” Gretta in a dive-bar on an open mic night, Catherine Keener as Miriam Hart, Dan’s estranged wife – who cheated on him, (sensing a pattern here?), Hailee Steinfeld as Violet Mulligan, Dan and Miriam’s teenage daughter, James Corden as Steve, Gretta’s best friend from England, who has also moved to New York City to seek his fortune, CeeLo Green as Troublegum, a successful rapper who was discovered by Dan and who supports / funds Gretta’s (and Dan’s) album, and Mos Def (credited as Yasiin Bey) as Saul, Dan’s long-time business partner, who has pushed Dan out of their business because he (Dan) turned into an alcoholic flake.
The movie starts with an interesting (but confusing) sequence of Gretta singing and then flashes back to Dan hearing her sing.  This produces the most interesting (to me) scene in the movie where instruments begin to play themselves (much like the mop-cleaning-the-laboratory scene in “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice“) and we get a feeling for what a “gifted” music producer must hear / feel when he is helping to create a “sound” / song.  I’d never seen this done this way before.  Normally, we see producers sliding knobs on a big panel and voila – a hit single.  This was (to me) a truer window into creativity.
Anyway, Gretta and Dan agree to make an album in NYC and most of the rest of the movie revolves around that.  And, it works!  The characters are fleshed out and there is a progression / growth across Dan, Gretta, Miriam (the wife), Dave (the cheating boyfriend), Violet (Dan’s daughter) and Steve (though he’s more in the background).  Spoiler Alert:  the movie ends with one person forgiving an “ex” and starting over together, and one person moving on and starting over on their own.  Hence, “Begin Again“.
So, I already said the movie worked for me.  The two other questions I normally ask / answer are: Was it any good?  And, was it entertaining?  The answer to both is yes.  I will say, I’m not a big Adam Levine fan.  I’ve seen him as some kind of music coach on TV and I guess he used to be the lead singer in a band at some point.  In any case, while his acting was okay, I didn’t think much of his singing performance(s).  Truth be told, I was surprised by Keira’s singing, which was much better than I thought it was going to be.  Not that I would ever pay money to hear her sing on an album, but as part of the movie performance, I thought she was pretty good.  I will add I felt Knightly looks (sadly) a bit anorexic in this film.  I don’t know if it was “just” makeup or if it was really her, but while she is almost always slim, her cheeks were positively hollow in a few closeups.  It was more frightening than attractive (IMHO).  Again, nothing to do with acting or talent, just a comment…
I thought Ruffalo basically steals the movie.  He carried the weight and most of the humor of the movie and he did it well.  Between his roles as the Hulk and some of the other films I’ve seen him in, I’m really becoming a fan.  Steinfeld (the actor who played the daughter) and CeeLo Green were both very good in their respective roles, too.
Final recommendation:  Strong.  A little bit of full disclosure here: I re-watched the BBC and movie version of “Pride & Prejudice” and was discussing Keira Knightley with my sister over the weekend.  I’m trying to get her to read the novel.  She said how much she loves Knightley and that this (“Begin Again“) is one of her favorite movies of all time.  We both agreed about the bar / music “imagination” scene being great and I told her: “Now I have to go back and re-watch the movie.”  The movie is rated “R” for language, but I did not find it egregiously so nor particularly offensive.
Dear Readers:  My apologies for not following up with a review (here) after my initial viewing last year.  To tell the truth, over the last 18 months, I’ve probably watched over 100 movies which I’ve not reviewed due to “life getting in the way.”  That’s my excuse, and I’m sticking to it…  I guess I’ll just have to re-watch them and get on with the reviews.  (Darn!)
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On This Day In:
2019	The Opening Step
	Day 17/18: That Didn’t Take Long
2018	I’ll Trade You…
2017	Luv Me Some Meat Loaf
2016	Unless Your Name Is #AmnestyDon
2015	A Tentative First Step
2014	Making People
2013	On Reading Books
2012	On America
2011	Shiver, Me Timbers!
2010	Fiduciary Breakdown

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You Do It

The Way You Do The Things You Do
Comment(s):  Even in a poor quality video, The Temptations look good!!  Update:  13 Sept. 2021;  my prior video was deleted at source.  Hopefully, this (audio only) will stay up on YouTube.
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On This Day In:
2021	First Ask For Courage
	Shadows And Darkness
2020	My 2 Cents
	You Do It
	Must Be Why I Like Dreamin’
2019	The Opening Step
	Day 17/18: That Didn’t Take Long
2018	I’ll Trade You…
2017	Luv Me Some Meat Loaf
2016	Unless Your Name Is #AmnestyDon
2015	A Tentative First Step
2014	Making People
2013	On Reading Books
2012	On America
2011	Shiver, Me Timbers!
2010	Fiduciary Breakdown

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Must Be Why I Like Dreamin’

Life without a daily dream is not life at all.  It is, at best, an excursion into boredom.
—    Joan Chittister
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On This Day In:
2021	First Ask For Courage
	Shadows And Darkness
2020	My 2 Cents
	You Do It
	Must Be Why I Like Dreamin’
2019	The Opening Step
	Day 17/18: That Didn’t Take Long
2018	I’ll Trade You…
2017	Luv Me Some Meat Loaf
2016	Unless Your Name Is #AmnestyDon
2015	A Tentative First Step
2014	Making People
2013	On Reading Books
2012	On America
2011	Shiver, Me Timbers!
2010	Fiduciary Breakdown

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