by Sam Juliano
June has arrived, and many are plotting their course for the summer. Temperatures have reached the mid 80′s on the east coast, and more of the same seems a certainty. Right now for some its about weekend visits to the shore, baseball games and barbecues, and for teachers it is a matter of three more weeks before summer vacation commences. This does not apply to yours truly, and some other colleagues, who must soldier on in the summer program, which begins June 26th and runs through August 8th. Lucille and I are planning to drive up to Prince Edward Island Island for a five day trip in mid-August, but I know I am getting ahead of myself here.
The romantic countdown is moving along beautifully, with some fabulous essays and active comment sections to prove its success. The venture will be running all the way until October 6th, with Monday to Friday postings.I want to take this opportunity to thank our very good friend John Grant over at NOIRISH for his regular updates on the progress of the countdown. Some of John’s own superb essays for the countdown are literally right around the corner.
In any event Lucille and I (and the kids for the Sunday evening movie) saw three movies in theaters this past week, and the slant was uncharacteristically commercial. The results was pretty lukewarm at best:
Cold in July ** 1/2 (Saturday night) IFC Film Center
Godzilla ** (Friday night) Edgewater multiplex
Meleficent *** 1/2 (Sunday afternoon) Ridgefield Park
COLD IN JULY features Don Johnson as a bounty hunter and an unbearably tense and riveting opening 45 minutes or so, but the typically over-the-top extended violent set piece spoils the mood and leaves on shaking their head in disgust. GODZILLA owes some debt to “Transformers” but not a very good way. After a while one asks ‘who cares?’ and the realization sets in that a valuable block of time has been squandered. Yet some people I respect really like it, so go figure. The best of the three surprisingly is MALEFICENT, largely for the fabulous set design and Angelina Jolie’s lead performance. There are some narrative issues, and the film jarringly shifts tone, but still all in all a decent film that has divided the critics right down the middle. Jolie and Brad Pitt’s daughter played Sleeping Beauty as a young girl.
Melanie’s high school prom photo with date Chris Aquino before trip to Rockleigh Country Club on Thursday night.
