Well, dear readers, I hope everyone had a lovelier than lovely Thanksgiving Day and that included lots of comfy and warm food and nice people. For the first time in years, I had no place to go – the usual Barry Pearl Thanksgiving dinner had to be cancelled due to a death in the family. So, I had a nice, cozy and comfy day and evening all by my lonesome and that was fine. I slept a little over nine hours, then got up, answered some e-mails, actually responded to the problem e-mail of yesterday and got a nice response, printed out a few orders, and then went and did a two-and-a-half mile jog. I must say, and will say since I must, that the streets were pretty devoid of people, save for a few cars driving hither and thither but mostly thither.
When I got home I sautéed some chicken and made six ounces of pasta and did the Wacky Noodles with chicken thing, which was my Thanksgiving meal. Once cooked, I sat on my couch like so much fish and over the next ninety minutes I ate it all up and it was very good indeed.
Yesterday, I watched two motion pictures. The first motion picture was a screener for the new version of The Jungle Book, which I know was a critical success and did really well at the box-office. Most of you know I don’t care for these redos, and this one, for me, was fairly cookie-cutter and just what I suspected it would be – lacking in humor, a bit preachy, and like that. One of the things Mr. Disney was so adept at was NOT being preachy, but being entertaining, delivering lessons certainly, but subtly and always organically, and he knew humor was a major part of that. The wall-to-wall CGI was well done, certainly, but I would never call this a live action version of The Jungle Book since the only live action in it is the young lad playing Mowgli. They did use the Sherman’s I Want to Be Like You, which came out of nowhere and seemed odd in this version, but boy did it perk things up – same with The Bare Necessities. They obviously recorded the snake’s song by the Shermans, but it runs over the end titles rather than being used in the actual scene where it should have been used. Richard adjusted a few lyrics to I Want to Be Like You. The voice talent is all fine.
Then I watched a motion picture from 1940 entitled Night Train to Munich, directed by Carol Reed, and starring Rex Harrison and Margaret Lockwood. The package from Criterion goes over the top in describing the film, making it sound like some undiscovered masterpiece and that it gives Hitchcock a run for his money. Um, no, it doesn’t. It’s a serviceable wartime effort written by the team that did the screenplay for the much superior Hitchcock film, The Lady Vanishes. I enjoyed it, certainly, but it never really reaches heights more than ordinary. The cast is certainly good and it co-stars Paul Henried prior to his coming to Hollywood – so in this film he’s billed as Paul Von Hernreid, which I assume is his real name. Basil Radford and Naunton Wayne reprise their somewhat annoying characters from The Lady Vanishes. It’s a little long but there are good scenes along the way, but it’s not the brilliant lost film of Carol Reed that Criterion’s copywriters would have you believe. The transfer is pretty good.
I listened to some music, some not to my liking and instantly nuked, and then I finally got around to something I’ve been putting off for a week – the wonderful Brazilian composer, Heitor Villa-Lobos. While I haven’t listened to his music in two decades, save for the beautiful Modhina, which is featured on jazz guitarist Jan Akkerman’s album with Claus Ogerman, I remember absolutely loving everything he did. I must have, because I found about twenty CDs in the closet. I began with Stokowski conducting two pieces – the aforementioned Modhina and Uirapuru, both wonderful. Then I began conductor Enrique Batiz’s stereo recordings of all the Bachianas Brasileiras, for me some of the greatest music ever written – you probably know the tune to number five as it’s very famous. But what music – I just sat at this here computer like so much fish, enthralled, as I worked my through that wonderful set. Then I began uploading the six-CD set of Villa-Lobos conducting the Bachianas and a lot of other stuff – that’s a mono recording but I remember it being very good – haven’t gotten to it yet. And I also listened to Forest of the Amazon, which I believe may be the only stereo recording that Villa-Lobos conducted. The music is great – what it actually is is his film score for the MGM movie, Green Mansions – in the end, Bronislau Kaper revised the Villa-Lobos music and wrote much of his own. So, Villa-Lobos took his music and fashioned it into a concert piece – the recording was on United Artists and came out in 1958. Villa-Lobos passed away a year later. If you don’t know his music, I can only tell you it’s worth discovering.
Today, I have a work session for the Kritzerland show, I’ll write the commentary, jog, hopefully pick up some packages, maybe go to a post-Thanksgiving partay (not looking like I’ll have time, though), and then listen to more Villa-Lobos.
Tomorrow I think she of the Evil Eye comes, but then I’ll just relax and have a ME day and Sunday will hopefully be the same. Then we begin the busy Kritzerland rehearsal week, which will also include rehearsals for the Richard Sherman event.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, have a work session, jog, write, hopefully pick up packages, maybe attend a partay, and then relax. Today’s topic of discussion: It’s Friday – what is currently in your CD player and your DVD/Blu and Ray player? I’ll start – CD, a LOT of Villa-Lobos. DVD, some screeners, Blu-ray, Hush, Hush, Sweet Charlotte. Your turn. Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, hoping everyone had a lovelier than lovely Thanksgiving Day and that the post-Thanksgiving day will be equally lovely and that you find excellent Black Friday deals abounding – there will be some right here on the discussion board.