Sons of Anarchy

Sons of Anarchy     An FX series created by:  Kurt Sutter

I  have a habit of getting into a series and not sleeping or moving until I watch every available episode.  Mad Men was last month (and worth every waking moment); Sons made the cut this month.  'Play next episode' on Netflix instant is dangerous and way too easy. 

Sons of Anarchy is about a Motorcycle Club that watch over the people of Charming, CA, and kep the drugs out. They also sell firearms and could more likely be referred to as a biker organized crime syndicate.   Or as the "white trash Sopranos" to quote a friend and fellow fan.

Katey Sagal plays Gemma, the bad ass matriarch of SAMCRO (Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club Redwood Original). The show wouldn't have the success that it does without her and she won the Golden Globe this year to prove it.

Ron Perlman plays the president of SAMCRO aka Clay Morrow, with Charlie Hunnam as Jax Teller his VP, 2nd in command.  They are the leaders of the club and have many biker thugs in their command to strong arm every decision.   Not one episode short of drama with all of the backstabbing, explosions, gun fighting, and scheming against and alongside other gangs and law enforcement. The one part that really bugs me is the voice over from JT Teller, Jax's dead father, Gemma's dead husband. His voice is all wrong and the tone and timing  doesn't always match in with the other writing.   Other than that I remained entertained for about 6 days and wanted to buy a leather jacket and get into fist fights.  Season 3 is about to start....and the finale of Season 2 left a lot of crazy open loose ends.   

Jax Teller (Hunnam) is the blonde in the middle and the main character of the show.  Just for kicks I put his IMDB headshot below...unbelievable.

The Help

The Help    directed by Tate Taylor

This story is about a young white woman, Ms. Skeeter (Stone), an aspiring author in the 1960s. She sets out to write a book from interviews with the black women who work as hired help taking care of the housekeeping and childcare for white families. Although frightened by the prospect of being punished, one woman, Aibileen (Viola Davis) decides to share her stories and take a stand against the severe racism and falling tower of injustice it brought.  Then, following the arrest of one the the help from a charge by her white employer, most of the black women decide to come forward and contribute their point of views as well.

I guess we should tip our hats to Bryce Dallas Howard and Ahna O'Reiley; they must of nailed their characters since I was absolutely disgusted by them and excited to see them pay for their small mindedness.  Ms. Skeeter, played by Emma Stone, was one of only a handful of white folks that believed the world should be viewed on a more even keel.

Now, even with such a serious subject matter this film still demands laughter from the audience, and it got it from me and my friends. Some of The Help's stories are not to be missed, but I encourage you to experience them with with the film. My written renditions will no doubt fall short of their hilarity.

Opinion note: How people ever harbored enough unsolicited hate to treat another person in the way that some of these people did is beyond me. Let this story also show that the harshness of the racism reality may have somewhat diminished over the decades, but is in no way dead and gone from society.

I also wouldn't be surprised if Viola Davis is nominated for another Oscar for this performance as Aibileen Clark,  maybe not a win, but 2 Academy noms is only be the beginning for her.

Cowboys and Aliens

Drive by Blog: Cowboys and Aliens

I really couldn't have been more pleased from the movie Cowboys and Aliens if they tried!  Action, comedy, amazing casting, fun storyline, special effects, explosions, not to mention there are actually COWBOYS AND ALIENS.

The previews give you just enough, showing that Daniel Craig has this mysterious iron cuff that we know is somehow connected to the aliens. Turns out he is an outlaw, gang leader that was abducted by the aliens, and while being held captive, attacked one and stole his dynamite bracelet. Jack (Craig) wakes up in the middle of the desert with no memory except that he can easily take down multiple men in one go, and so does repeatedly. Thumbs up. :)

Favreau may be an action movie genius by playing off the personas of Ford as Indiana Jones, and Craig as James Bond. You bring your beliefs of them with you and immediately accept that they are extreme Badasses.   I even felt the presence of Terminator II in the moment where the alien was submerged into the molten gold machine, and we see him dissipate.....  Very clever Favreau.   Oh and did I mention hell yes, this is what summer movies are suppose to be about!