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On Broadway, I revisited the revival of Fiddler
on the Roof, book by Joseph
Stein, music by Jerry
Bock, lyrics by Sheldon
Harnick, at the Broadway Theatre. It features
the original cast, directed by Bartlett
Sher. It is a wonderful production. The acting,
singing and dancing is superb, and Danny
Burstein steals
the show as Tevye. It is one of the finest musicals
on Broadway. Do not miss it before it closes on
December 31!
Off-Broadway, How
To Be An American, by T.
Cat Ford, at
the York Theatre, is a political cabaret about
George Washington Plunkett (a wonderful Tim
Jerome) of Tammany Hall, a corrupt politician,
who dispensed jobs to his cronies. With songs from
the early twentieth century, the four member cast,
directed by Bill
Castellino, give us a 70-minute election rally
with the audience as would-be voters. It is an
entertaining show.
Origin's 2016 1st Irish Festival
Mid-Festival party was
held at the Irish Consulate, 345 Park Avenue. Many
of the artists attended, and wine, beer and light
food was served. It was a lovely, festive occasion. New
York's Annual Festival of Irish Theater continues
until October 2. Origin's Artistic Director George
C. Heslin is
to be congratulated for his splendid achievement.
Newtown,
by Kim
A. Snyder, USA, 2016, is a well made documentary
about the aftermath of the deadliest killing of 20
6- and 7-year-old first graders, plus six adults, at
Sandy Hook Elementary school in Newtown,
Connecticut, on a December morning, 2012, by a
deranged 20-year-old young man, who killed his
mother, before embarking on his deadly rampage with
an assault rifle, which ended when he committed
suicide. A number of families of the innocent
victims are interviewed, and show photographs and
videos of their children. We see how they were
affected for the four years following after this
senseless crime. Viewers of this tragic film will be
equally affected.
Film Forum presented Sand Storm,
by Elite
Zexer, Israel,
2016, a fascinating film about a mother and daughter
who rebel against their traditional roles in Bedouin
society. The husband has just taken a second young
wife and the daughter has fallen in love with a
young man from another tribe. We are given an inside
look at life in a traditional Bedouin village in the
desert, and how women are totally dominated by the
men. The photography is excellent, and the acting is
superb. It is a magnificent film.
Moonlight, by Barry
Jenkins, USA, 2016, is a long, overlong film in
three parts. A 10-year-old boy is living with a
single mother, who is a vicious drug addict, in
a dilapidated housing project in Miami. In the
second part, he is in high school, where he smokes
marijuana and is kissed by a friend, who touches his
penis, and makes him discover his sexual
orientation. In the third part, he is a grownup man,
and is a drug dealer. The film is grim, with brutal
scenes, where he is bullied in elementary and high
school, and he is violently attacked in one
repulsive scene. |
The story is rather
unbelievable. As a child, a kind couple (the man is
a drug dealer) give him shelter, and in the final
part, his mother, in rehab, tells him how much she
loves him after ruining his early life. The film
ends with a sentimental reunion with his first and
only lover, who is now a chef. There is not a trace
of humor or happiness in this film. One comes away
with a depressed feeling about the life young blacks
experience in Miami.
Film Forum presented Christine, by Antonio
Campos, USA, 2016, based on true events. A
reporter (a brilliant performance by Rebecca
Hall) at a Sarasota television studio is
frustrated in her professional and home life, and
commits a tragic act on live television in 1974. It
is a serious, intelligent film with a realistic view
of how local TV news functions. The entire cast is
marvelous, especially Tracy
Letts as
Hall's tough boss. It is one of the finest films of
the season.
I, Daniel Blake, by Ken
Loach, UK, 2016, is a realistic film. It is so
real that the actors seem to have walked off the
screen. It shows the inhumanity of bureaucracy,
which, in this case, deals with the welfare system.
A carpenter (Dave
Johns) is
a lonely widower with a heart condition in
Newcastle. He cannot work. His problems with
bureaucrats are driving him almost insane. He meets
a single mother (Hayley
Squires), who moved from London with two young
children, who also is unemployed and needs money to
survive. They becomes friends, and the scenes of him
helping her and her children are the warmest part of
the story. The film is honest about the problems of
the people, who have to deal with a brutal, uncaring
system. It is an important film, with wonderful
acting by all the cast, especially the two leading
actors.
The Sky Ladder: The Art of Cai
Gou-Qiang, by Kevin Macdonald,
USA, 2016, is a lovely documentary about a Chinese
artist, who use gunpowder to create his brilliant
art. The film is fascinating and educational. We
learn so much about the modern history of China
following the brutal cultural revolution, and we see
modern China with the country hosting the Olympic
Games and the APEC conference. The fireworks display
that Cai
Guo-Qiang created
on these occasions are spectacular. His desire to
create a ladder to the sky for his grandmother is
the main part of this documentary, and after three
failed attempts in other countries, he manages
to complete his glorious achievement in his home
town. The photography is marvelous, and the colors
are luminous. You will not forget the effect
gunpowder can contribute to a majestic Art.
The Mid-Manhattan Library, 455 Fifth
Avenue presented The Children's Hour, by William
Wyler, USA,1962, based on a play by Lillian Hellman,
starring Audrey Hepburn and Shirley MacLaine, about
a lie told by a12-year old girl. She claims that
they are engaged in an unnatural relationship. The
result is that their lives are destroyed. Although
the acting is powerful, the film is slow moving and
the plot is far-fetched.
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