Today marks John William's 90th birthday. He has produced some of the finest scores and musical moments over his prolific career. To celebrate, I'm sharing one of my all-time favorite cues. This is one of those sublime cues that soars and crescendos with all the beauty and emotion a composer can pack into a short cue. The first half builds and lets the choir carry the power until the horns come in and really kick off the goosebumps. The second half of the cue is gentler, but when the string section takes over the melody, it's still stirring and full of emotion. I never tire of hearing John William's genius at work in the composition of this cue.
This is "You are the Pan" from John William's 1991 score to Hook.
I first saw this movie in 2020, at the recommendation of a friend, and loved it. It stuck with me and I've been waiting for it to reappear on Prime so I could watch it again. I found it's back the other night, so dove in immediately.
While The Seven-Percent Solutionremains my favorite Sherlock Holmes film, The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes now takes second place. It ticks all the boxes of what I personally look for. I must have an off-center idea of who Sherlock Holmes is, as what I think of as non-mainstream portrayals satisfy me the most. What surprises me is that it took me this long to discover this movie.
The basic plot involves Holmes and Watson taking on the case of a woman suffering amnesia after an attempt on her life. As her memory returns, she hires them to find her missing husband. Of course, a lot more is at stake than a missing person. The mystery takes them to Scotland, involves the Loch Ness monster, state secrets, spies, and Queen Victoria.
Things that stand out for me about this version.
1. Holmes often seems to be portrayed as stern, even cranky a lot of times. This Holmes, played by Robert Stephens, is neither. Serious, yes, but he's also good-natured and outright witty. He's probably the only serious version of Holmes who makes me laugh. Given this movie is co-written and directed by Billy Wilder, Sherlock being witty should hardly be a surprise. Wilder's dialogue is always a joy. All of the writing is sharp in this.
2. Christopher Lee as Mycroft Holmes is highly amusing. I love him sternly warning Sherlock off the case, and how that simply provokes Sherlock to dive in deeper. Of course, if he just told his brother what was going on up front... sure, he'd be divulging national secrets, but he would have saved himself a lot of headaches and Sherlock a lot of heartache. Of course, we'd also have no movie. (It also fits with his rigid stubbornness in this film not to say anything.)
3. Miklos Rozsa's score is beautiful, and the theme for Gabrielle is lovely and haunting.
4. Parasols and their uses.
5. On location castles.
6. Mrs. Hudson is wonderful. I love her long-suffering cry of "what have I done this time?"
7. The epilogue, and how Watson doesn't even attempt to stop Holmes, because he knows.
I understand that this movie influenced the Benedict Cumberbatch series, and I can see that. This is one I need to pick up on blu-ray so I'm not dependent on Prime's schedule to watch it again.
This was a strange, memorable year, filled in equal parts with wonder and horror. So many amazing things happened this year and, yet, that was balanced by the awfulness of the state of the world. Yin and Yang.
As for movies, I saw exactly one movie in the theater this year. That was Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. I loved it, and it shot immediately into the top five of my favorite Marvel films.
Seeing only one theatrical release taught me I really didn't miss going to the theater as much as I thought I would. Now, a big part of that is that nothing was released this year that I really wanted to see, other than Shang-Chi. I suspect 2022 will bring out more movies I'm genuinely interested in, but we'll see.
At home, either on DVD, blu-ray, or streaming services, I watched over 130 movies. Slightly less than half of those were new-to-me movies; the rest were re-watches.
Favorite new-to-me movies:
1. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021) - fun and beautiful, with characters and a storyline I loved
2. Patton (1970) - not at all what I was expecting, and I loved it so much I watched it twice in a row.
3. Capricorn One (1977) - not sure how I never saw this one previously, but it was a good conspiracy theory movie that I really enjoyed. I did not expect Telly Savalas to be so much fun. He stole all his scenes.
4. Romeo and Juliet (2015 2-part series) - this one took a few liberties with the story and characters, but those changes enriched and helped make the story even better. I was not expecting to enjoy this so much
5. The 300 Spartans (1962) - because, reasons
Worst:
1. Futureworld (1976) - why oh why was this made?? After how good Westworld is, to turn this clunker out? And that dream sequence... what the?????
2. Prometheus (2012) - one of the very few movies I wish I could unsee. Except for the part in the beginning where Michael Fassbender imitates Lawrence of Arabia, which was great. I should have realized it was going to attempt to explain things and steered well clear. I love Alien and Aliens, but this was pretty much the opposite of what I would have wanted for a prequel.
Best movie-viewing was running through a host of dystopian films. I'd seen them all previously, but in light of where the world currently is, they were even more frightening than in the past. Rollerball (1975) was my unexpected favorite, but also, surprisingly, the most terrifyingly realistic of all of them. Why? Because its future is ruled by large corporations, because of the censorship and how very few think for themselves, because individuality has been wiped out, and, most importantly, because the people have willingly given up their freedoms for security and comfort and they think that was the right choice to make. Gee, none of that resonates right now, not at all. *shudders*
Favorite tv series was the incomparable WandaVision, which currently tops all other Marvel movie/shows for me. Brilliant, wonderful, satisfying.
I only picked up a couple new-to-me film scores this years. Come Away by John Debney and Cliffs of Freedom by George Kallis are the two I've been listening to regularly, as they're part of the playlist for my new novel.
Favorite song from 2021 is off the new Duran Duran album. The rest of the album did nothing for me, but I purchased this one immediately.
However, my favorite new-to-me song of the year is an older song, the Eagles "Waiting in the Weeds." I'm not ordinarily a slow-song type girl, but this one is on its way to becoming my favorite song of all time. It kept me sane this year whenever things got too bad. (Runner-up song was Aerosmith's "Livin' on the Edge," which I also fell in love with. Weird Al's parody "Livin' in the Fridge" is priceless.)
And so, 2021 draws to a close. Good-bye! Bring on the 2022!
I'm stealing this from Hamlette, even though I wasn't tagged, cuz it looked like a lot of fun. I'm also not tagging anyone for the same reason... I'm just a backdoor tag-answerer.
RULES:
1. Include the graphic somewhere in your post! 2. Answer the questions! 3. Tag two fellow fandom fanatics!
What’s the first fandom you remember becoming a part of?
Star Wars in 1977. Oh, there were television shows before that I now know had groups of fans, but at the time, I thought they were just something my own family loved and watched. There was no sense of fandom. It was only when Star Wars came out that I personally became aware of how many fans there were out there for the movie.
What’s the newest fandom you’ve come to enjoy?
Queen. I mean I've always liked a few of their songs (and that they had a Roger Taylor who was also a drummer, just like my Roger Taylor from Duran Duran), but it wasn't until Bohemian Rhapsody came out that I truly became a fan, learned all about the band, bought various albums and a Queen hoodie to wear, discovered all kinds of new-to-me songs, etc. John Deacon's my favorite band member.
What’s a fandom guaranteed to give you feels?
My music fandoms: Opera and orchestral soundtracks. Nothing hits my emotions harder or faster than an opera or soundtrack I love. (ie: 2:50-4:30 from this cue...)
What’s a guilty pleasure fandom of yours?
Nah, I don't feel guilty for loving something. If something made me truly feel guilty, I wouldn't enjoy it.
What’s the weirdest fandom you’ve heard of/are a part of?
I really don't know any weird fandoms, soooooo, not sure how to answer this.
Favorite popular/widely-known fandom?
MCU. The Marvel movies (and now WandaVision in the series area) have given me so much pleasure over the years. Spending time with most of these characters just makes me exceedingly happy. Even the movies that aren't my personal favorites are still very well done.
Favorite bookish fandom?
The Atlantis Grail series by Vera Nazarian. It's the only book series for which I joined a FB group in order to follow and talk about the stories/characters with other like-minded fans. I binge-read the entire series in 4 or 5 days. The author just released a novella about one of the main characters, and I devoured that in an afternoon.
What do you consider your ‘homebase,’ a fandom you can always come back to?
Duran Duran. They say that what you obsess over in your teen/high school years is what you will always go back to, and so far, I've found that's pretty true. The movies I loved then, and more importantly, the music. Growing up in a classical-music-only household, living through the Duran Duran craze changed my life. No internet back then, so I really had to rely on friends who were also obsessed fans to bring me the latest magazines, watch MTV at their houses to catch the videos, etc. My first completed novel was a Duran Duran adventure novel (a la the Beatles Help!), so the band was instrumental (hah!) in getting me to reach The End on a long writing project. So yeah, the band members and their songs and their 80's videos will always put me in a happy, homebase comfort zone.
What’s a fandom you know all about…but aren’t actually into it?
Harry Potter. I've read the books, seen the movies, but the series really doesn't do anything for me. I like the characters, but don't love them. I even donated all my copies of the books to the library cuz I knew I'd never re-read them.
Which fandom has the best characters?
Combat! (1962-1965). Saunders, Hanley, Kirby, Caje, Littlejohn, Doc, Billy, even all the secondary and guest characters represent, hands-down, the best set of characters.
Name your all-time favorite ship.
That darned "ship" question. I hate this question cuz I just don't "ship" characters.
However, I don't know if they're my all-time favorite, but Nick and Nora Charles are just meant to be.
What’s a fandom you’re curious about joining
None.
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And there we have it. Feel free to play along if you haven't been tagged and want to join in on sharing your favorite fandoms!
Hamlette is hosting the We Love Pirates Week. Check out the link for lots of fun stuff, including a giveaway, some quizzes, and lots of other reviews, etc.
Here are my answers to her tag questions:
1. What are your favorite pirate movies or books?
Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)
The Adventures of Tin-Tin (2011)
Cutthroat Island (1995)
The Black Swan (1942)
Captain Blood (1935)
2. Who are your favorite fictional pirates?
1. Red Rackham (Daniel Craig, The Adventures of Tin-Tin, 2011)
2. Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp, Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl, 2003)
3. Morgan Adams (Geena Davis, Cutthroat Island, 1995)
4. Jamie Boy (Tyrone Power, The Black Swan, 1942)
3. What do you like best about pirate stories? (Themes, costumes, aesthetic, etc.)
Sword fights! The Ships! The costumes! Sword fights! Floggings! Walking the plank! Treasure and maps to said treasure. Did I mention sword fights?
4. If you were going to play a pirate on the stage or screen, what would your costume look like?
Any of Morgan Adam's outfits. I love her costumes and I covet those boots.
5. What pirate ship would you like to serve on?
The Morning Star, Morgan Adam's ship in Cutthroat Island.
6. Any favorite sea shanties or pirate songs?
Many! I particularly love "A Rovin'" and "Early in the Morning," which is the Drunken Sailor song. Also, of course, Yo Ho Yo Ho a Pirate's Life for me!
7. Have you ever participated in International Talk Like a Pirate Day?
Passingly, with a quick arrrr if somebody reminds me of what day it is.
8. Would you like to go sailing on a real tall ship?
Only if I was shanghaied. And I would jump ship in Tahiti or somewhere in the South Pacific first chance I got. Submarines are my thing. Not overly fond of being on top of the waves.
9. Have you ever learned anything about real pirates, or do you tend to stick to the fictional kind?
Yes. I'll stick with the fictional ones, thank you.
I thought I'd send 2020 on its way with a list of the 5 new-to-me movies I most enjoyed last year. Interestingly, these are all new movies. That's rather unusual. I watched a fair amount of classic movies last year, but none grabbed me.
5. Terminator: Dark Fate
I'd wanted to see this one when it came out, but just never had a chance to make it to the theater. I watched it on Amazon Prime and loved it. Yes, its plot is basically Terminator all over again, but that didn't bother me. This movie is a direct sequel to Terminator 2, disregarding all those other movies, and I loved that. It came back to the characters and situations I loved about the first two movies. Having Linda Hamilton back was awesome. She rocked. So did Arnold. But most of all, I have discovered Mackenzie Davis. I adored her! She was wonderful, and she made the movie for me.
4. Frozen 2
One of the very few movies I saw in the theater last year, when it came to the discount theater. No one in my family liked this one but me. They love the first movie. I had the opposite reaction. I like the first one, but don't love it. This is the one that spoke to me and really hit my sweet spot points. I loved the songs more, I loved the characters more, I loved the plot, the scenery, basically everything... This one just works for me. I can't say I was much of an Anna fan before, but here, her arc was amazing, and I was so happy with where she ended up.
3. Onward
This Pixar movie was so much fun, not at all what the previews seemed to make it out to be about. I loved all the characters, really related to the sibling relationship, and cried at the end. This one goes up high on my personal favorites list of Pixar films.
2. 1917
Another of the few movies seen in the theater, and one I saw more than once in the theater. I loved everything about this movie. So well-done, so powerful, so moving, and the score is my favorite score I bought last year.
1. Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga
This movie is my favorite movie of last year, and I know, that seems absolutely crazy. This is not a movie I suspect anyone who knows me would think I would watch, let alone love so much I've watched it multiple times. It's my most re-watched movie last year. Whenever I needed a pick-me-up, I put this on. There are so many reasons this shouldn't have worked for me. I'm not a Will Ferrell fan. I'm not a modern music fan. I'm not even a Rachel McAdams fan. Nor a Pierce Brosnan fan. But this movie is magic. This movie is gold. Are there a few moments of crude humor I could have done without? Yeah... but they didn't detract enough to matter. I loved Will Ferrell and loved Rachel McAdams. They were perfect and wonderful together, and who thought I'd ever love Will Ferrell in anything? The songs are great, and it was freaking WEEKS before I could get Ja Ja Ding Dong or Double Trouble out of my head. Probably just mentioning them here is going to get them stuck all over again. Biggest earworms of last year. The movie was uplifting in just the way I needed in the middle of 2020, and I will continue revisiting this movie whenever I need something happy to watch.
I am deeply saddened by the news this morning that Sir Sean Connery has passed away. He has given the pubic so many great roles and movies over his career. The Untouchables, The Wind and the Lion, The Hunt for Red October, Outland, Darby O'Gill and the Little People, and, of course, his James Bond films are all much loved movies I will never tire of watching. My thoughts go out to his family and friends. RIP, and thank you for leaving such a legacy behind.
I love ships. Physical ships, that is. I don't "ship" characters. Either a relationship happens in a movie/show/book or it doesn't. I don't EVER wish two characters who don't get together would get together. But a physical seagoing or aircraft or space-traveling craft can be a thing of sheer beauty, and I love them immensely. The Nautilus from 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea was probably the first ship I fell in love with. Followed by Seaview (Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea). Followed by the Romulan Bird of Prey and the original Klingon ship design from Star Trek.
Then Star Wars came out, and the ships that movie introduced me to are still my favorite space-traveling ships to this day. The Falcon, TIE Fighters, and original Star Destroyers all rocked my world and have never been surpassed.
So, favorite ships? These:
#1. The Falcon
#2. TIE Fighters from the original trilogy
#3. Star Destroyers from the original trilogy
#4. Poe's X-Wing in The Force Awakens
#5. Obi-Wan's Jedi Star Fighter in Revenge of the Sith
#6. Krennic's shuttle in Rogue One.
How do you know I love all of these? Besides the fact that I said so? I have them all as models or toys (and only these). I still have the large Millennium Falcon and TIE Fighter toys (large enough to hold action figures) my parents got me in 1979, I have a Star Destroyer model still in the original box (never put together, though, cuz I have zero patience for building models) from 1980. Those are stored in boxes in the garage.
However, my Obi-Wan's Jedi Star Fighter is displayed on my shelf in the library, and Poe's X-Wing sits under my monitor at my work computer desk where I can look at them daily. I also have a little TIE fighter from Force Awakens that matches Poe's X-Wing in size, and it is displayed on one of my DVD shelves. Krennic's shuttle is the only one I love and don't own, and that's only because I never found a version of it for sale that I liked. I will hopefully remedy that some day.
Star Wars: Rebels came out in 2014, back when my family was still getting cable tv, so I was able to go to their house and we watched each season as it aired. We had not really been interested in the Clone Wars animated series at the time, but the Rebels trailers were intriguing, and we got sucked into the show. The half hour episodes made it a nice, show easy to watch, and we liked that it was set before A New Hope.
I ended up rewatching the entire series after the first season of The Mandalorian ended, because there was so much from Rebels that appeared in The Mandalorian. Seeing a live-action Loth cat was awesome. Seeing the dark saber made me literally cheer out loud. Seeing live troop carriers in the Rebels design was thrilling. Seeing live blurrg! The Mandalorian just increased my Rebels love ten fold.
So, what appealed to me about Rebels? The characters, of course, always come first. I love these characters, though I still have a hard time with Ezra in the early seasons. The kid just doesn't listen! I want to slap him. I didn't start actually liking him until he eventually matures in the fourth season. Finally, he came into his own, and then I was able to appreciate him. My favorite characters of the Ghost crew were always Kanan and Sabine, but when I rewatched the show earlier this year, Hera jumped up higher on the list. And Zeb is amusing.
But as much as I like our heroes, my favorite character has been, and always will be, Agent Kallus. I adore Kallus. He ranks high on my top favorite Star Wars characters of all time list. I'm a sucker for a redemption arc, and he has a good one. He's a smart adversary and I just dig him.
Which brings me to my favorite episodes. None of the first season episodes make my favorite list. As with most shows, it was still finding its footing in the first season, the characters were still settling in. All the meaty stuff was still to come. That said, the season one finale is probably my favorite episode of season one. Which is part of a trend, as you'll see, because each season's finale show is pretty darned spectacular.
Fave episodes:
#1. “A Fool’s
Hope” and “Family Reunion and Farewell” (season 4 series finale)
These two eps roll right into each other, so it’s hard
to separate them. Not only are they the best eps of season four, but they are the best eps
of the entire series.They’re also the
very last eps, not just the season finale, but the series finale. Everything that was set
up over the four seasons comes to a head here.Characters reappear, characters we’ve been waiting to face off against
each other finally face off.The Loth-Wolves are
awesome as always, and instrumental in events. Everything resolves Just So. After getting next to no Kallus in season four, he finally gets to do a lot. These last eps are just plain great. (This series finale is not something you can cheat and just watch without having seen everything that came before, though. What makes it so fantastic is the payoff after the build-up to get there.)
#2. “The
Honorable Ones” (season 2) – A Kallus episode, is anyone surprised? Kallus and Zeb are stranded and forced to work together to survive. It's one of my favorite themes – enemies who have
to put aside their differences to make it out of some life-threatening situation.This ep is really well done and marks a turning point in Kallus’s arc.
#3. "Twilight of the Apprentice" (season 2 finale) – Without plot spoilers, this episode features Darth Maul, Darth
Vader, Ashoka, Kanan, Ezra, Inquisitors... all facing off on
an ancient Sith world.This season
two finale has it all. Love it.
#4. "Zero Hour" (season 3 finale) –
Surprise, surprise... another season finale makes my favorite list.Admiral Thrawn arrives to
wipe everyone out, the Bendu gets to shine, and I’ve never adored Kallus
more.
#5. "Twin Suns" (season 3) –
I love this ep solely because of Obi-Wan and Darth Maul. Ezra's disobeying orders as usual.
Runners up:
"Heroes of Mandalore"
"Through Imperial Eyes"
"Warhead"
"Fire Across the Galaxy"
"Blood Sisters"
There are plenty of guest appearances by familiar Star Wars faces. Princess Leia, C3PO and R2, Mon Mothma, Tarkin, Darth Vader, Darth Maul, and Obi-Wan all appear. Some characters from the Clone Wars also get some good parts, like Saw Gerrera, Bo-Katan, and, of course, Ahsoka.
This has been an entry in the Everything Star Wars Blogathon, hosted by Eva and Katie.
2. What Tolkien character do you wish you were more like?
Galadriel.
3. What would your dream home in Middle-earth be like?
Beorn's home from the movies. Love the isolated location, love the terrain, love the house itself.
4. You get to make a movie of the story of Beren and Luthien! Who do you cast as the leads?
This is an ancient tale, so I believe it would be the coolest if it had been made back in the day as a silent movie. When you read the version in the Silmarillion, it reads rather like a silent movie with occasional dialogue that would be perfect as dialogue cards. And so, I would cast Ramon Navarro as Beren and Maude Fealey as Luthien, (with Rudolph Valentino playing Thingol, cuz Valentino just needs to play an elf).
(If I did have to make the movie today, I'd cast Dominic West as Beren and Rebecca Ferguson as Luthien...but I prefer the silent movie version.)
5. Have you ever marathoned the LOTR or Hobbit movies?
Yes, both.
6. Do you have a favorite song or track from the movie soundtracks by Howard Shore?
Multiple, but I'll go with "The Lighting of the Beacons" from the complete recording of Return of the King.
7. Which of Tolkien's characters would you like to be best friends with?
Elrond, specifically from the Hobbit movies.
8. Who of the people in your real life would you want in your company if you had to take the ring to Mordor?
Hamlette and Cowboy, my sister, her husband, and my nephew, Doc B, and three of my co-workers: HR, AB, and JT.
9. Have you read any of Tolkien's non-Middle-earth works?
No.
10. Is there a book by Tolkien you haven't read yet, but want to?
Here are their questions for this year's event. I found some of these quite hard to answer, so it took me all week to figure out responses.
1. What's the last western you watched? Custer of the West, (1967). Still in the middle of it actually. It's an interesting movie, but it's taking me awhile to work through cuz it's not that interesting. Last completed western would be The Lone Ranger (2013).
2. A western of any stripe (happy or tragic) where you were highly satisfied by the ending?
I'm not quite sure what this question is looking for, cuz every single one of my favorite Westerns obviously meet this criteria. A highly satisfactory ending is critical to me loving a Western (or any movie). Let's go with For a Few Dollars More, because it's one I haven't really talked about, and the ending, both the finale and the wrap up are awesome.
3. The funniest western you've seen? Cat Ballou or Rango, I guess? Depends on my humor mood. Both make me laugh throughout.
4. What similar elements/themes show up in your favorite westerns?
Ack, this question is too much like school work. Okay, fine. I like a lot of end-of-the-West movies, where the old-fashioned cowboy heroes/lawmen are outdated/no longer needed/wanted. Or just Westerns set in the early 1900s, like Big Jake, Ride the High Country, The Wild Bunch, The Professionals... Lonely Are the Brave fits that theme too, even if it's set in more modern times.
5. Favorite actress who made 1 or more westerns?
Barbara Stanwyck
6. Favorite western hero/sidekick pairing?
Sam Boone and Whit (Robert Pernell and James Coburn) in Ride Lonesome.(1959). Their relationship is my favorite part of this movie and I adore how Whit follows Boone around, always deferring to him. Their partnership conversation at the end is one of my favorite moments and never fails to make me grin in sheer delight.
7. Scariest villain/antagonist in a Western?
Liberty Valance (Lee Marvin) in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance or Grimes (Richard Boone) in Hombre.
8. Favorite romance in a western?
None? Romance isn't my thing. None stand out to me. Okay, one does: Matthew Quigley and Cora in Quigley Down Under.
9. Three of your favorite westerns? Big Jake, Hour of the Gun, The Lone Ranger (2013)
10. Share one (or several!) of your favorite quotes from a western.
Since this was asked last year, I'm going to try to avoid repeating all my favorites already listed and try to find new ones, which is rather hard. So, I'm going to cheat and go with my nephew's two favorite quotes from Westerns that the two of us say to each other constantly.
"What's that? NOTHING!" - John Reid, The Lone Ranger (2013)
"You son of a---*timely hawk screech interrupts* - Toad in Rango.
