barryrd Reviews

Now, Voyager (1942)

Bette Davis Reaches For The Stars

[9/10 · 6 May 2024]

I didn't have any desire to view this movie on reading the reviews. The whole idea of an adult woman, played by Bette Davis, giving up her independence to cater to her mother seemed too far fetched. However, I did view it and was drawn into the story, which became a suspenseful drama as to whether Bette Davis could in fact follow her instincts and set out to make a life for herself. Although she never intended to give up her independence, she did play her cards right and kept in touch with her new found romantic interest, played by Paul Henreid. She also found herself taking his own daughter under her wing and showed her how to blossom as she herself was able to do. The movie had an excellent cast, including Henreid, Gladys Cooper, and Claude Rains. The movie has some interesting visual effects and photographic nuances. It also shows how to find fulfillment in surprising ways. As Davis says to Henreid: "Why have the moon, when we can have the stars."

Paths of Glory (1957)

The Brutality of War

[9/10 · 4 May 2024]

This movie shows brutality of war and the callous attitude the top brass who conducted the Great War in early 20th century Europe on the backs of the men in the trenches. This war resulted in a huge loss of life that scarred millions for decades to come. The key part of the movie is the trial of three men for cowardice in battle, which was a total mockery of justice. Kirk Douglas was a man of principle who defended the three against the generals who cared nothing for the lives and hardships of their own men in battle. The best and most moving part of the movie comes at the end when a beautiful German girl is forced to sing to an audience of French troops. What happens is almost magical. This is a great anti-war movie and a triumph for director Stanley Kubrick.

When in Rome (1952)

Touching Story of Conversion During the 1950 Holy Year in Rome

[8/10 · 1 May 2024]

In this movie, Paul Douglas as Brewster meets Van Johnson as Father Halligan, on a cross Atlantic boat to Italy. Brewster is an escapee from San Quentin although his friend Father Halligan knows nothing about this. When getting off the boat, he impersonates Halligan by stealing his clerical garb. Brewster makes friends with an Irish priest from Dublin who offers him accommodation at a religious residence in Rome. He thinks it is a perfect spot to elude the police. Despite himself, Brewster seems moved by his experience in Rome to the point where he becomes a changed man. There are some touching moments such as the boys choir singing Panis Angelicus and Brewster recalling his days as a choir boy. At another point he takes up the heavy cross of an elderly priest in a procession. Halligan noticed this and other signs of Brewster's good nature. Brewster decides to go to confession and obtain a plenary indulgence for his sins by visiting the four cathedrals in Rome. Paul Douglas fits this role perfectly. The ending is quite a surprise but in a way, it shows the underlying character of one human being whose life has changed. There is a lengthy chase scene towards the end and scenes of authentic processions from the 1950 Holy Year are spliced into the movie. The streets and backgrounds of Rome are beautifully highlighted. This is a very good movie with great on-location shooting and a wonderful performance by Paul Douglas.

Alice & Jack (2023–2024)

Simply beautiful!

[28 April 2024]

I have watched many PBS series over the years and this one is unique in a strangely beautiful way. The two people, Alice and Jack, are good friends who become very close. There was never any intention to become lovers; it just happened eventually, in an understated way. They remain close almost effortlessly without expecting too much in return. I was touched by this series, particularly the last episode which was very moving. Of course, they had joys and sorrows, which they shared. They were there for one another. The whole series was relatively low key and emotional highs or lows flowed naturally. Life can be a roller coaster so it is a pleasure to view a story about a relationship that is strong and caring and speaks to the heart.

Agatha (1979)

The Disappearance of Agatha Christie

[7/10 · 27 April 2024]

The well publicized disappearance of Agatha Christie, legendary crime writer, is the subject of this mostly fictional movie. The disappearance of Christie has always been a mystery, given her loss of memory during the episode so this movie tried to fill in those blank pages of her life. It is a splendid production with Vanessa Redgrave in the title role and Dustin Hoffman as the journalist who pursues her and falls in love with the mysterious and elegant woman, as portrayed in the movie. Timothy Dalton, looking very distinguished, is her husband, who had made it clear that he wanted a divorce. Dalton and Redgrave together are enormously impressive. As the journalist, Dustin Hoffman pursues Christie and we see them on the dance floor and in private moments at the spa where Christie is hiding away. The costumes and settings are beautiful and evoke the 1920's in this classy and highly visual movie. I've always found Vanessa Redgrave to be one of the most riveting women in the world and this role highlights her tremendous stage presence. However, she is not a woman I would associate with Agatha Christie. The movie is not spellbinding; however, we do see a very shocking episode towards the end which is nerve wracking. This movie is well worth a viewing and while it is fictional it adds an interesting sidebar to the life of the world's best selling mystery writer.

Dynasty (1981–1989)

The entertainment world's backlash against 1960's idealism

[6/10 · 27 April 2024]

It was fun revisiting this TV series from the 1980's to relive my addiction to the show. Hard to believe that I would bother with such a shallow program based on ruthless business, the lust for money, adulterous relationships and family treason; not to mention acting and script writing that was so appalling.

Now, many years later after watching many fine TV shows on Masterpiece Theatre, the films of Alfred Hitchcock, and great movies on TCM, Dynasty seems like cheap fodder for viewers who never experienced great cinema; only a weekly fix of escapist entertainment.

I think that assessment is too easy a way to judge shows like Dynasty and that other1980's soap opera, Dallas.

We can become much too pretentious about our viewing pleasures and overlook what was happening in our culture in the 1980's. Baby boomers were raising families and abandoning their idealism in the race to get ahead, bring up gifted children and make money. Thus the attraction of those who embrace money and reject family loyalty as the boomers were finding life more at odds with their lost idealism. Add to that the desire for a dose of the reality they were encountering in their own lives.

All this tells us that television mirrors what is going on in our own world and what we make of it. The Carrington-Colby rivalry with the two protagonists personified by Blake Carrington and Alexis Colby was the new normal in a world that had gone from the early idealism of the boomers to to their bumping into the reality of life in a flawed world.

The Windsors: A Royal Dynasty: A New Generation (2020) Season 1, Episode 6

Post-Diana Royal Family Takes Shape and Deals with Controversy

[8/10 · 20 April 2024]

With the passing of Diana, Princess of Wales, the Royal Family was left with an enormous gap. She had been not only the most popular member of the family but had also become something of a superstar. She had a natural rapport with the British public and her death not only left a gap but created a huge public relations problem. As shown in the documentary, the public perception was that Prince Charles had caused their separation and therefore her death in the company of her new companion. To make matters worse, the Queen was on holiday in Balmoral, Scotland and had no inclination to get involved in the national grief that erupted in the wake of her death. She didn't feel it was part of her official duties.

In the meantime the public was wondering why the Queen had not issued a public statement and returned to London to lead the mourning. Prime Minister Tony Blair stepped into the void and mourned the loss of the "People's Princess". I recall her death and the documentary was right in this assessment. Within a few days the Queen returned to London from her Balmoral hideaway, viewed the huge display of floral tributes and paid tribute to Diana in a televised address. She left the palace to go out for the funeral procession where she bowed when the funeral cortege passed. It seemed that the Queen an unprecedented situation as well as could be expected. Many of her subjects must have felt that it was handled as well as could be expected. So the event was played out with due respect to Diana and the Royal Family was able to move on.

The balance of the program dealt with issues arising after the passing of Diana, including the Queen agreeing to the marriage of Charles to Camilla Parker-Bowles. (Although not mentioned in this documentary she also agreed to Camilla assuming the title of Queen when Charles assumed the throne.) Then there were the Queen's grandchildren William and Harry; how William was the more dutiful and well-behaved one. William married Kate Middleman and had three children and took on the duties as second heir to the throne. Harry, who suffered greatly from the loss of his mother at age 12, had a difficult adolescence but had a very successful tour of duty in Afghanistan. He later founded the Invictus Games to aid disabled veterans. His marriage to Meaghan Markle, like William's, was an outstanding television spectacle but the two suffered tremendous intrusions from the paparazzi.

The documentary doesn't reach any particular conclusions about the path forward. It was made in 2020, two years before the death of Elizabeth. With her death, and the departure of Harry and his family to live in the United States, the slimmed down House of Windsor has found itself dealing with some health concerns that were totally unexpected and may well be resolved before long. There is no doubt that the House of Windsor will continue to evolve as it has but could take on a very different look in the next generation.

Seance on a Wet Afternoon (1964)

Excellent acting and eerie atmosphere

[8/10 · 20 April 2024]

Seance on A Wet Afternoon is a great movie to take in on a rainy day. The length and slow pace of the movie wouldn't be to everyone's liking as Kim Stanley plans and rationalizes the kidnapping of a child to her placid and beleaguered husband, performed by Richard Attenborough. Although Stanley dominates the dialogue, Attenborough's worries and fears are well acted out in his frowns and wide eyed wonderment. I found the movie very riveting. Stanley's character needs money to springboard her to success as a medium. The photography is in black and white which is very effective for the closeups of Stanley and the drops of rain on the windows of her Victorian house. Attenborough becomes the pawn in Stanley's insane plan. The cast includes parents, the kidnapped girl, the police detectives, visitors to the séances etc. This movie has great acting and photography that highlight this unusual but very watchable story.

The Incident (1967)

The Incident A Major Disappointment

[5/10 · 18 April 2024]

I was looking forward to viewing this movie based on the storyline and the interesting cast of well-known actors but it just didn't register with me at all. It started off well with the black/white photography and the street scenes that seemed to typify New York in the mid-1900's; however, once the movie became a serious case of physical and mental harassment on a subway, it had no impact whatsoever. It was all too exaggerated and unbelievable to make any sense. In the end, the plot took a sudden turn that made the subway scene look all the more ridiculous. I did like the appearances of Ed McMahon, Thelma Ritter, Beau Bridges, and Martin Sheen - in his first movie role. Other than that, I could have easily taken a pass on this one.

Midnight Cowboy (1969)

Great Friendship in 1960's New York City

[8/10 · 17 April 2024]

Dustin Hoffman and John Voight give tremendous performances in this classic movie as outcasts in New York City. Voight plays a naive young Texan new to New York who thinks his good looks will attract women and their money. He soon learns otherwise and the one person who helps is Hoffman who is streetwise enough to eke out a living through petty theft and trickery. They come to rely on one another and even form a strong friendship. For Hoffman the movie was a major departure from his previous film The Graduate and it proved he was a major talent who remains to this day, a great character actor. Voight was outstanding and has also left his mark in a number of major roles. Director John Schlesinger, who usually directed in Great Britain, showed his talent in movies like Darling and Far From the Madding Crowd. His ability to create stories and realistic backgrounds was put to great use with the on location shooting in NYC. We see the gritty street life and the 1960s drug culture well presented in this movie. This movie for me marked a new wave in American cinema that continued through the 1970's. This great movie is somewhat dated but still ranks high in America's film history.

What's Up, Doc? (1972)

One hilarious classic comedy!

[10/10 · 15 April 2024]

I first saw the movie shortly after it came out in 1972 and thought it was the most hilarious movie I'd ever seen. It was the third top box office hit of 1972 and its major stars - Barbra Streisand, Ryan O'Neal and Madeline Kahn, all young and relatively new on the scene, delivered superb performances. Each of them added their own unique spark to this movie. I saw it again on TCM recently with hardly a break in the laughter, until the final scene, which was rather touching. The comedy is not dated. The final chase scene up-over and down the streets of San Francisco was so well choreographed, it stands as an outstanding piece of film making. This movie stands as one of the greats of the 1970's, a decade of many wonderful movies. Hats off to director Peter Bogdonavitch and the whole cast.

The Last Metro (1980)

An Oasis of Entertainment Amid Wartime Occupation

[8/10 · 15 April 2024]

A beautiful film with an outstanding cast, set in occupied France in 1942, it was a pleasure to watch recently on TCM. On the streets outside a live theatre, the Nazi forces are ferreting out Jewish people who are routinely dispatched to death camps. Inside the theatre operated by Marion Steiner people can get a break from the nightmare in their city. Little is shown of the brutality outside while Madame Steiner, played by Catherine Deneuve, carries on her work managing and acting inside. We do experience scenes where the occupying forces come by to check what is going on. Madame Steiner has taken on the management while her husband who is Jewish is hidden away in the cellar of the theatre. In her double role, she also continues to act in the performances while her husband is hidden away. Gerard Dépardieu, a resistance fighter, is hired as a leading man early on in the movie and he and Madame Steiner fall in love. Out of loyalty to her husband, hidden from the public, she avoids involvement with the leading man. She tries to keep her husband comfortable and acts as the mediary with the police, who are led to believe he has fled the city. However they have ongoing suspicions that something is amiss. The theatre draws huge crowds who hanker for diversion from the Nazi occupation. There is a good dose of humour in the script and with the beautiful costume design on display and the enjoyable entertainment, the theatre defies the wartime atmosphere. An elegant movie well worth watching!

Time (2021– )

Great television drama

[9/10 · 15 April 2024]

The three episodes of Season 1 with Sean Bean as a prisoner and Stephen Graham as prison guard were disturbing while also showing a human side to life in prison. Bean, serving a four year sentence, was shown as a gentleman prisoner who suffered because of his good nature. He also took time to tutor another prisoner, an act that paid off later on. Graham was a tough as nails guard who compromised his position trying to help his own son in another prison. The viewer gets a look at how prison life has its own rules that make life behind bars even worse if you don't play the game and tough it out. A great drama with some fine acting that shows the worst of prison life with some touching scenes of humanity beneath the surface, Great viewing.

Scoop (2024)

Great drama with Prince Andrew in the spotlight

[10/10 · 10 April 2024]

I caught this movie on Netflix and found it to be a very sad but highly professional recreation of a true life event. I never felt that Rufus Sewell resembled Prince Andrew but when I watched "Scoop"', it was as if I was viewing the Prince. The makeup made Sewell look more pale and puffy, like the Prince. The hesitations and diversions into silly details were a reminder of how the opportunity to clear his name became a total blowout. I saw the actual interview with the Prince and this came very close to recreating the mood, with the behind the scenes drama a bonus.

My interest in the Royal Family is similar to following a soap opera. Prince Andrew has added a new and unwelcome dimension to the saga, more nefarious than anything before. As the favourite son of his mother Queen Elizabeth and with his wartime experience in the Falklands, he could have leveraged these assets into becoming a true model for the British public. Instead, as shown in this movie, he is totally isolated from reality. His acceptance of the interview gave him a tremendous opportunity to clear his name which he didn't do other than utter rather feeble denials.

Sewell showed the astonishment that the Prince must have felt when faced with questions that he seemed totally unprepared for. Andrew and his staff strangely miscalculated the benefits of an interview in front of millions as if he could waltz his way through a major scandal, which were allegations of sex with minors. Gillian Anderson is a tremendous talent. As the interviewer, she demonstrated the clear thinking of the professional journalist who was also on the hot seat in that she had to be fair while not straying from the serious allegations that she had to raise.

Extraordinary viewing about a very sad event. One can only lament what the real life interview had on his dutiful mother Queen Elizabeth in her final years.

The Crown: Sleep, Dearie Sleep (2023) Season 6, Episode 10

Excellent Summing Up

[10/10 · 6 April 2024]

This was a terrific finale. I'm glad I finally took time to see it. During Elizabeth's reign of 70 years, the Queen and the Crown became inseparable and this final episode uses an unexpected plot to show just that. It seems reasonable to assume that at some point following the death of the Queen Mother and the Golden Jubilee in 2002, the Queen came to the realization of her own mortality and was able to look back on how she grew into the role and also became the embodiment of it. This is not a stretch; after 70 years, only a relatively few could remember the country without her at the helm. In this episode, we see how she knew that she had inherited a position that she could execute far better than anyone else in the realm. We see the Queen, performed superbly by Imelda Staunton, conversing with her younger self - Claire Foy and Olivia Coleman, as the more youthful Queen in earlier episodes. In this finale, we see the fallout from the death of Diana, Princess of Wales and how the monarch had to rise above the controversy. She also had to deal with the problem of Charles and Camilla and steer her way through the protocols of the Anglican Church to place their personal lives on a secure footing. Diana's two boys reach adulthood with all the attendant problems of young Royals with the paparazzi, not to mention the lingering sorrow of Diana's passing. Jonathan Pryce as the Duke of Edinburgh was excellent as the Queen's most able and trusted confidante. Dominic West as Prince Charles and Ed McVey as Prince William were both excellent. In fact, the cast for the whole series drew many fine acting talents too numerous to mention. Some very accomplished ones played minor roles for a variety of prime ministers, aides, politicians of all stripes, ladies in waiting etc. All in all, an excellent ending for an outstanding series.

The World Seen from the Vatican (2022– )

Vatican News in this regular EWTN Update

[9/10 · 31 March 2024]

The comings and goings of Pope Francis are highlighted along with regular events in the church year. Viewers learn who is visiting the Pope and often interesting background information about them. We see the Pope interacting with visiting dignitaries and learn about the many causes the Pope espouses. We see him asking for prayers for the people who caused the recent fire at a major concert hall in Moscow where numerous lives were lost. Francis asks that hearts may be converted to more peaceful solutions. He also prays for victims of war, particularly the Ukraine. We hear homilies in which he addresses people in a way that he might talk to friends. We get updates on his health and events he has attended or plans to attend. In a recent program, we learned about the rise of Catholicism in South Korea and Asia in particular. We witness film of the Pope offering his Urbi and Orbi blessing (to the City and the World) from the balcony overlooking St. Peter's Square. There is no shortage of news about the Pope and it is truly inspirational to see how active and involved he remains despite his age.

Egypt Speaks (1951)

Pointless Show A Waste of Time

[1/10 · 31 March 2024]

Part of a People on Parade series by James Fitzpatrick, this is far from the Travel Talks series by the same narrator. Here we visit Egypt, "the land of the pyramids", as the short begins with a few words by an Egyptian businessman employed by an American motor company who welcomes American enterprise. This is followed by a tourist police officer who welcomes Americans to his country. We then see two teams playing soccer at the University of Alexandria. Women on the sidelines are taking law at the university, a trend we are told towards a more modern Egypt. We then meet young women training as nurses. Soon after, we see a traditional view of Egyptians working the land using customs from time immemorial with the inference that these will soon be obsolete. We then return to views of mounted soldiers trained in the British military tradition, including a band playing Men of Harlech and kilted riders on horseback to the tune of Scottish music. The show is not only dated but has none of the historical interest of Fitzpatrick's Travel talk series. In fact, it is hard to fathom what the point of the show actually is.

Officer Pooch (1941)

Officer Pooch to the Rescue?

[6/10 · 31 March 2024]

This 1941 cartoon from Hanna-Barbera shows what passed for entertainment animation in an era that produced great movies like Rebecca, Gone With The Wind, A Love Affair and other classics. The quality of the animation is good but it catered to audiences that were more impressed with cartoons than storylines. In fact, there is little to it other than a dog playing a police officer who is foiled by cats, little kittens and a woodpecker who pecks his baton into little pieces. It was a mindless way to pass time while waiting for the main attraction or giving the customer time to grab a coke or popcorn. Hanna-Barbera did go on to make the long running Flintstones, a great success in the history of television animation so we can look back and see its roots in cartoons like Officer Pooch.

Creed (II) (2015)

Continues the Rocky Saga

[8/10 · 14 March 2024]

I enjoyed the film and liked the transition that the older Sylvestre Stallone makes from retired fighter to mentor. He and Michael B. Jordan team up well as he teaches the young man how to fight and most of all, how to push yourself to the limit. The movie also shows Stallone as an older guy who has settled into a new life and gets taken back to his roots as Jordan's trainer. Stallone, the city of Philadelphia, Creed's widow etc. All relive an old story in a new way. We see the punishing training and the determination to win. So inspiring to see the Rocky character come back in the son of his opponent. Another great movie!

Gremlins (1984)

Full Blown Visual Effects In Small Town Spectacular

[6/10 · 3 March 2024]

Gremlins is a movie that I saw in the early 1980's with my kids and saw again recently. The character played by Zak Galligan is a teen who receives a cute little pet from his dad. The small pet with cute ears and eyes is certainly unique and as innocent looking as a small kitten. The pet came with warnings which were largely ignored. Before long, the gremlin began to multiply and terrorize the town. There is a comforting setting in a small town in upstate New York with an assortment of characters, including the boy's father, an inventor whose gadgets usually don't measure up. Things go totally out of control with the gremlin producing numerous other gremlins who are definitely not meek and cute. The explosion of mishaps from these little monsters is very much in the style of executive producer Steven Spielberg. Phoebe Cates stars as the young friend to Zak, who is a hard-working and conscientious young man who eventually has to deal with the horror unleashed by his pet. The technical wizardry takes on a life of its own but becomes too much for the viewer and I found myself hoping it would all come to an end. While it is an amusing movie with a string of astonishing visual effects, it does wear itself out. The movie is a part of Spielberg's cinematic chronology but not a high point among his many great efforts.

Lincoln (2012)

A Great Portrait of Lincoln - Civil War President and Great Emancipator

[8/10 · 3 March 2024]

Lincoln, directed by Steven Spielberg, is a movie that shows the character of the man who was President of the United States and also the temper the era when America was divided against itself. We get a sense of Lincoln as a down-to-earth man with a gift for story telling glazed with some bawdy humour. We also see that he could wheel and deal with members of Congress to get what he wanted; in this case, the passage of an amendment to the Constitution to abolish slavery. The details seem to fit as we see the US Capitol appear gleaming white in cutaways as it had only recently been built. The viewer sees the President and his cabinet members wearing heavy clothing to keep warm during winter without indoor heating while meeting in the low light of candles and oil lamps. It appears that the President had time for many people who came into the Executive Mansion. Whether this is accurate is hard to know but it certainly was part of the character of the man shown in the movie. The buildup to the historic vote was met with opposition from some members of Congress who said they disliked slavery but were concerned about the results, including the right to vote - not only for blacks but for women. The President held firm that the vote was about slavery and nothing else. The cast deserves full credit including David Straithern as William Seward, the Secretary of State and Sally Field as the President's wife Mary Todd Lincoln; Tommy Lee Jones performed as a Congressman strongly opposed to slavery who fended off attacks that blacks and whites would be treated as equals, noting that his white colleagues were not equal. In the end, the vote was very close but Lincoln had won the battle. I was sorry I hadn't seen this movie earlier, which would have helped me appreciate Gettysberg and the house in which Lincoln died, not to mention the Lincoln Memorial. The movie also gives a warmer and more realistic image of Lincoln than the iconic character in the previous Lincoln movies. Steven Spielberg has another feather in his cap with this great cinematic history lesson.

The Cassandra Crossing (1976)

Escapist Thriller Well Worth the Watching

[7/10 · 29 February 2024]

The Cassandra Crossing is a 1970's thriller with a cast of box office stars that was watchable while keeping me fixed to the screen. The movie presents a train that has orders from the US military to divert it from its Paris destination to the abandoned site of a concentration camp in Poland. One of the passengers has come down with a highly contagious disease that has already infected passengers. You get the sense of travelling on a runaway train as it hurtles from one destination to another. At each stop we view lights and barricades alongside the rail tracks to prevent escape. There is some beautiful scenery along the way with passengers enjoying the fun until word seeps out and more succumb to the disease. I found the cast very entertaining as the viewer takes in the interaction on board. Richard Harris is the medical doctor who takes charge while Burt Lancaster sends orders to shoot and kill any passenger who tries to escape. Harris and Sophia Loren are a divorced couple who have rekindled their romance, which takes on new life at the height of the action. Martin Sheen, Lee Strasbourg, Ava Gardner, Ingrid Thulin, OJ Simpson, and Valli are among the cast. One of the many watchable movies from the 1970's, I was glad to catch it on Britbox.

Henry V (1989)

Shakespeare Play Made into a Brilliant Movie

[10/10 · 19 February 2024]

Kenneth Branagh was exceptional in the title role as Henry V, King of England; he also wrote and directed the movie. The closeup shots of Branagh as he delivered his lines and speeches was a great technical enhancement. This British historical movie also featured stalwart actors like Paul Scofield, Derek Jacobi, Brian Blessed, Emma Thompson, Judi Dench and a youthful Christian Bale. With the excellent photography and acting, I found this movie to be far more compelling than a stage play. Kenneth Branagh has gone on to direct and act in many movies and roles, including his film adaptations of Agatha Christie's mysteries where he assumes the character of Hercule Poirot, no easy task. Certainly one of the great talents in movie history, this movie was a splendid sampling of many successful films from Kenneth Branagh.

Steel Magnolias (1989)

Steel Magnolias Outstanding

[8/10 · 19 February 2024]

It is hard to think of a movie that made me laugh so much, only to be reduced to tears later on. Shirley MacLaine, Olympia Dukakis, Darryl Hannah and Dolly Parton are a group of neighbours of Sally Field and her daughter Julia Roberts. These women bond together in small town where they often meet at the local beauty parlour. They really do seem to be enjoying themselves on the set. Among the supporting cast, Shirley MacLaine was the best. However, the movie does take a sudden turn that caught me off guard. This was the first Julia Roberts movie I had seen and I thoroughly enjoyed her performance. I was delighted when she won an Oscar years later for "Pretty Woman". Hats off also go to Tom Skerritt and Dylan McDermott as the father and boyfriend in her life. Great entertainment!

Outback Quarterback NFL: The King's Christmas Message (2022 Podcast Episode)

Christmas Message from King Charles Thanks All Who Care for One Another and Our Common Home

[8/10 · 16 February 2024]

King Charles' Christmas message was a departure from the messages that his mother Queen Elizabeth II usually delivered. Her messages of goodwill and best wishes often highlighted her visits abroad or in the United Kingdom. Her Majesty would also restate the values of peace and goodwill to all, while stressing the importance of faith and family life in the Christian context.

King Charles talked about the values of service and thanked all those who show care for others and our common home. He noted that service to humanity is a foundation for all faiths. King Charles also mentioned caring for our common home as part of that calling, reinforcing the words of Pope Francis in regard to respecting the earth. While not specifically referring to combatting "climate change", it is clear that it is a key part of his message.