Well, dear readers, I’ve just had the other half of a chicken breast on an onion roll – excellent – and I’m now ready, willing, and able to write some damn notes. And as I’m writing some damn notes, I’ve gone back to listening to the gorgeously gorgeous music of Howard Hanson – his Bold Island Suite is playing now and I must say his music always moves me – his harmonic language, his beautiful melodic lines, all of it – next up, his fourth symphony. I did watch two motion pictures last night, a documentary and a “horror” movie – Mad About the Boy: The Life of Noel Coward” and Maxxxine, the third in a trilogy that includes X and Pearl. I’ll let you decide which was the horror movie. Only kidding. I enjoyed very much the Noel Coward documentary – it’s quite old-fashioned in presentation and it got knocked for it – I suppose those critics missed pointless shots of leaves with dripping rain and drone shots of London, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and Jamaica. Well, thank goodness for old-fashioned. It’s not a great film, but there’s so much wonderful interview footage with Coward, narration featuring Rupert Everett reading from Coward’s various memoirs, as well as Alan Cumming doing the main narration, of which there’s just the right amount. There are some marvelous clips, a few songs and it never overstays its welcome. On the other hand, I missed seeing clips from Bunny Lake is Missing or what is for me Coward’s greatest song, If Love Were All. Anyway, if you’re a Coward fan, it’s well worth watching. Then I watched Maxxxine, the sequel to X but the third film in what has become a trilogy – the middle film was a prequel to X. The first two films got very good notices, the kind that eventual cult films get. Maxxxine takes place in 1985, and like the first two films, Ti West, the director, embraces the decade with fervor – it looks just right, like a 1985 exploitation film. It mostly takes place on Hollywood Boulevard. I saw bits of Pearl and X – didn’t finish because I’d heard the violence was so disgusting. And that’s what I’d read about this. Well, there are far more disgustingly violent films than this and none of the violence here is the least bit believable. I checked the imdb parent’s guide and that’s why I hadn’t watched it. Thankfully, we get the worst of it first, you know it’s coming, and it’s so ridiculous that even if you watch it you’ll laugh. The rest is, frankly, mild, in that you barely see anything for longer than a second or two. Mia Goth is fine, but the best performance is by Kevin Bacon, so seedy you can practically smell him. The last twenty minutes of the film just doesn’t deliver and is very disappointing, but the whole film is missing the kind of giddy fun of what I’ve seen of X and Pearl, especially Pearl. It received some good and some mediocre reviews. I didn’t hate it.
Other than that, yesterday was certainly a day. I got almost ten hours of sleep, arising at noon-thirty. It was good sleep, too. Once up, I answered e-mails, ignored some texts, finished up my notes on the play I’ve been mentoring and sent those off, made a good batch of Wacky Noodles and ate them all up, checked with the mail place but there was nothing, began writing thoughts on the other play I read, had the rest of my tap tap tapioca pudding, and then watched the two movies. After that, I made the other half of the chicken breast and had it on the last of the onion rolls – it was a good snack. And now I am listening to Hanson’s fourth symphony, inspired by his father’s passing. It’s stunning. Hanson conducted its premiere with the Boston Symphony Orchestra – the very first radio performance was conducted by Stokowski and that’s what I’m currently listening to and it’s a wonderful performance. Hanson won the Pulitzer Prize for this symphony and it was his favorite work. Of course, I have Hanson’s own stereo recording and that will come up in a bit. I think Hanson would have made a terrific film composer.
Today, I’ll be up when I’m up, I’ll finish up my thoughts and get them to the author of the play, then it’s back to choosing songs and gathering music, I’ll eat something fun, I’ll check with the mail place, and then I can watch, listen, and relax.
Tomorrow will be a ME day, then this coming week is VERY busy and we’re still hoping the modern major miracle comes through sooner than later.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, be up when I’m up, finish my thoughts and get them to the author, choose songs, gather music, eat, check with the mail place, and then watch, listen, and relax. Today’s topic of discussion: What are your favorite Noel Coward plays and films and songs? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, missing a time when style and wit were the order of the day.