Stream of the Week- Cuban Fury

"How can you take something so seriously that's named after a dip?"

There is nothing better than a dance battle in an empty parking lot with a Simon Pegg cameo. Bruce was a child prodigy to the salsa circuit. He had the salsa flames in his feet, until he was bullied by some neighborhood kids over his dancing. That was it; he quit. It was over. 25 years later, Bruce is in a desk job and has absolutely no passion whatsoever. He has a coworker that disgusts him, but there's nothing he can do about it because he's stuck. But as in any story, all it takes is a girl. A new boss comes into the company. To Bruce she's a beautiful, unobtainable being. However, they do share one common area. His boss, Julia, has a mild obsession with salsa. I know, lucky. Bruce decides to get back into the salsa game to impress Julia. He buys the shoes, makes the mix tapes, and finds his old mentor. His former teacher is wary of giving him lessons though because he had given up so easily at his peak. Through some friendships he forms in his basic refresher salsa courses, Bruce is able to get his groove back. Drew, the disgusting coworker, is also in pursuit of Julia. His tactics are far less cordial, but they remain effective in at least holding Julia's attention. It isn't until Bruce enters the local salsa competition that he finally gets up the confidence to tell her how he feels. Gosh, I'm a sucker for a sap comedy.

Nick Frost plays the one and only Bruce. He's fantastically average as a human being. Nothing stands out about Bruce, but when he starts to dance, and I mean really dance, it's amazing. It's important for everyone to find what they're good at and what they are passionate about doing. Otherwise, we would live in a world of Bruces before Julia. Regardless of how cheesy this form of plot can be, there is a point. We, as a society I mean, have an obligation to find our purposes, and it can be the oddest of things that trigger our need to find it. Or you could see this movie and think "hey, dancing gets the girl." And you would be right. It does get the girl.

Capture of Culture- The People vs. George Lucas

Of the fundamental questions that we are forced to ask ourselves everyday, one of the most important questions regarding cinema is this- When does art no longer belong to the creator?

I have never been a fan of Star Wars, but Star Wars has changed the movie game. Fans waited years in lines to get the tickets, to watch the films, to get their hands on the merchandise and to be part of the universe. However, when George Lucas took back his ownership of the franchise to reedit the films and make new prequel episodes, the fans were utterly gutted. Because they were not satisfied with the new material,  the fans revolted against Lucas and condemned him in his cozy million dollar corporation. They turned, not on the content, but on the creator himself, arguing that he ruined their childhoods by expanding the Star Wars universe in the way that he did. Though Lucas claimed he was attempting to appeal to a younger audience, fans were outraged at the appearance of new characters and new ideas that did not fit into the realm that had been previously created. This documentary collects some of their opinions along with some of their fan work to create an overall summary of the fan base and creative space. There are those that make feature length fan films based on Star Wars; there are conventions all over the world that are well attended in honor of George's work. There is no end to the love/hate relationship between Lucas and the Star Wars fanatics.

One of the interviewees discusses that if Leonardo Da Vinci came back in a delorean based time machine and attempted to fix the Mona Lisa smile because it wasn't what he wanted, there is no way we would let him touch it. The Mona Lisa belongs to the people. Does Star Wars deserve that much respect? Does Star Wars have a responsibility to the people as a work of art, or is it a figment of Lucaus's imagination and therefore his to tamper with? I don't know, and I believe that the answer to that is a bit of both to be honest. If Cinema was simple, anyone could do it.

Stream of the Week- There's No Business Like Show Business

I believe in the power of song and dance baby. Also, never doubt a coat check girl.

Mom and Pop Donahue were vaudeville stars, and their life kept them too busy to raise their children, so at a young age Katy, Tim, and Steve were sent away to a Catholic school. But, after a runaway attempt orchestrated by (tiny) Tim, the Donahue kids were back on the road with Mom and Dad. Each kid was uniquely talented, and each had a desire to entertain. Before they knew it, the two Donahues became a 5 person show. Their songs and sketches were gracing the most popular stages, but when the kids got old enough to grow up they all started to pull in different directions leaving parents, Molly and Terrance, very frustrated. Steve, always the introvert, had a knack for making songs sweeter, but his personality was not fit for the stage. Steve would rather be behind the pulpit so he packed up his duds and went into the church. At first his parents were mortified that he would give up the stage, but quickly they found themselves to be proud of their oldest son. Katy was always a dancer, and her love of the stage kept her close to home and in the family business. Tim, however, would always be a trouble maker. One night after a show, Tim found himself face to face with an up and coming singer working as a coat check girl at a local club named Vicky. She was blonde and had a great set of pipes. Tim was hooked, but a girl like Vicky knows who she has to be friendly to in order to get a spot on the marquee. Later on when the Donahues are in the Florida circuit, Vicky reappears as the opening act for their show. Tim is completely head over heels in love with her, and Vicky is beginning to return the sentiments. When she returns to New York, Vicky invites Katy and Tim to be in her new show. While in rehearsals, Vicky and Tim grow very close, but after a rough night and a misconstrued situation involving the show's producer, Tim decides Vicky doesn't love him. He goes completely off the deep end, and ends up in a car accident. Before the family can all get together to be with him, Tim vanishes. He goes missing for an entire year, leaving the Donahues to search for their 5th member.

I have always enjoyed musicals, but what I really enjoyed about this one was the set up. Almost all the songs, save for one, occur on some form of stage or in front of an audience of some kind on screen. Almost all the songs do not relate to the current situations, but are more like a collection of tunes that would normally appear in a vaudeville act. The singing is fantastic and even the color saturation adds to the effect of the film. Also shout out to Marilyn Monroe- that girl can sing! The costumes are fantastic and the songs have a tendency to get stuck in your head, so enjoy!

Capture of Culture- Spinning Plates

There is more to a restaurant than the food because food is an extension of the people making it, and if you learn nothing else from me learn this- people are fascinating.

Spinning Plates follows the stories of three very different restaurants run by three very passionate groups of people who each have a unique style and take on food with one commonality- they all love what they do. Alina is an art based form of dining which challenges its customers with small bites and in depth concepts from their micro established kitchens. Their lead chef has been considered one of the world's best chefs and they strive for their goal of being approved by various well established reviewing groups. Breitbach's Country Dining is the quintessential down home style restaurant which serves its community as much as it does its customers. After two tragic fires, the community came together to build back up their historic family tradition and gathering place. After 100 years in the family, Breitbach's wasn't going down without a fight. And then there is La Cocina de Gabby. A struggling year old restaurant, Gabby's is a traditional Mexican restaurant run by a passionate, but down on their luck family who love what they do, but struggle to get customers in through the door.  Each story is unique and separate, but entirely relatable to the other two. It's not about the food. It's about the people, as documentaries always should be.

I go crazy for cultural documentaries like this one. I love fashion documentaries and food documentaries, even though I only wear sweatpants and can only barely make cereal properly. There is something wonderfully exciting and intriguing about getting an inside look at a totally different field from everyone. You get the experts, the traditionals, and the new kids on the block in hopes that you will learn a little bit more about each topic. By mixing history, interviews, and footage of the restaurants, Spinning Plates completely engages the viewer through its skills at combining all three storylines. It doesn't make me hungry, but it does make me appreciate people in a new way.

Stream of the Week- How to Marry a Millionaire

I'm a classic kinda gal, and nothing is more classic than a Lauren Bacall, Marilyn Monore comedy.

To a young model, the world only runs on dollars and cents. In the bustling city of New York, three models band together to buy a fancy apartment in order to snatch rich husbands so that they can set themselves up in life. Schatze is the ring leader who has the big ideas and plans while Loco and Pola attempt to keep up with her schemes, but somehow they never seem to catch the right kind of fellas. It's been months since they've had any real buzz on the men and they've been forced to sell everything in their apartment to keep up with the rent. Then straight out of the mink department in Bergdorf's, Loco brings home a winner who introduces the three girls to oil and cattle tycoons. Schatze grabs a Texan cattle man, while Loco gets herself a rich married New Yorker who wants to go for a long weekend in Maine. Loco's long weekend gets traded in for a several week stay in Maine where she instead falls in love with a ranger who has no cash and not a scrap of land to his name. Pola doesn't do much better when she boards a plane to go meet her rich beau and instead falls into the arms of a poor fella who is in a bit of trouble with the law regarding his income taxes. Schatze is the only one who has had any success when she basically has her billionaire on the hook. However, he slips off when he decides to go back to Texas because he's fallen in love with her and he's just too old. With the other girls gone Schatze struggles to make ends meet, and she has an on again off again relationship with a person she believes to be a gas pump jockey named Tom. She claims she doesn't want a thing to do with him because he hasn't got any dough, but slowly and surely she falls completely head over heels with him, leaving her unsure of how it's all gonna pan out for her and her million dollar plan.


I am always a fan of witty people and comedies. The older comedy films have a much better way about them. They can make the crass jokes if they want to, but they have to do it through hints or veiled sarcasm whereas comedies today just come out and say it loud and proud and painfully obvious. I also adore the writing. Everything Lauren Bacall says in this film is absolutely wonderful through her dry humor and sarcastic tone. Marilyn Monroe is a hoot with her silly oblivious delivery of lines and is paired nicely with Betty Grable for the comedic parts of the trio of girls.


From the music to the spectacular outfits, this film is classically humorous and worthy of any Friday night.

Capture of Culture- Please Subscribe

There is such a thing as an internet celebrity. It's called a YouTube partner.

What do a drunk chef, a comedic blonde, a sunglass wearing guitar player, and a waiter with a respiratory issue all have in common? Ask the internet. These popular channels (MyHarto, dailygrace, Mystery Guitar Man, and Weezy Waiter) are all examples of how to live off the revenue generated by homemade, everyday, semi-amateur video content. Please Subscribe interviews these stars, and more, in hopes of getting to know the routine and the reasoning behind their lifestyles. It's not an average job, you have to make your own content, and decide how to complete your own tasks. No one is standing over you with a paycheck telling you that you have to do your job, but everyone knows that you have to do it somehow otherwise no one will click on the ads next to your video to earn you that cash. There's a balance that must be achieved in each video for each channel between business and fun that more and more are finding in their respected markets. YouTube is beginning to replace TV. It has viewers from all over the world (maybe even the universe, who knows if aliens get cable or not) and has creators from all different points of view. No one is alone on the internet; no matter how strange or weird or different you think you are there is bound to be someone out there making a YouTube video about the same things you like. Each of these interviewed YouTubers have different takes on what it's like to live that way, but one thing is for sure, making internet content is now a profession; who knows what the jobs of the next generation will be.

Some documentaries don't teach you anything, but serve rather as collections of information on the same topic. That's what I see Please Subscribe as- a film that collects various YouTubers comments and presents them in a very slick manner. It doesn't solve any fantastic mysteries, or give you the meaning of life, but it does serve as a very nice base for discussion about the influence of the internet on the modern consumer. I'm not saying Please Subscribe is going to change your life. I'm saying maybe it will be a cool thing to watch on a Saturday night with a couple of friends before you have a huge intellectual debate in a Starbucks and solve all the world's problems by Sunday morning. Stranger things have happened, like people making 6 figure salaries from sitting in front of a camera and talking about their feelings.

Stream of the Week- In a World...

In a world where voice overs are competitive, and women are breaking new barriers...

The king and titan of the trailer voice over realm has died leaving an empty space in the circuit for the classic phrase "in a world". Film production companies want to bring it back after the long hiatus due to its creator's death in the form of trailer for the newest, hottest, dystopian future film series. Everyone expects Sam Sotto to get it because he's next in line to the thrown and the number two guy in the business, but Sam has decided to retire throwing all his support behind well established voice actor Gustav. There's a dark horse, however, in the form of Carol Solomon. Daughter of infamous Sam Sotto, Carol has been struggling to fit in to the world she so desperately wants to be a part of- the world of trailer narrators. Carol has been gaining recognition in the business through small odd job narrations and has brought attention to the lack of female participation in the field. With two trailers under her belt, the production company has decided to give the gig to Carol, but when he hears about this, Sam goes nuts and ends his retirement just so that he can get the gig. From the very beginning, Sam did not support Carol in her various efforts to enter his domain, claiming it was not woman's work. Gustav, Sam, and Carol are all forced to fight for the opportunity to bring back "in a world" and put their names on the map.

I am always a fan of quirky, off beat comedies with weird plot material, so this one is kinda a given. Lake Bell wrote, directed, and starred as Carol in this film which means she's got her whole heart and soul into this piece, and it shows. Carol is definitely socially awkward, and she has a lot to overcome before she is ready to voice for something this huge in the industry. It's not that Carol ruins things, but she's so immature and almost dependent that she tends to get other people in trouble without even realizing it. In contrast, you have her dad, who is the successful guy. He knows what he wants and he takes it without asking. He doesn't depend on other people for everything. Through this contrast, the film shows that a blend of the two is definitely necessary to be both successful and a good person.

Capture of Culture- Print the Legend

There is like a whole not-so-secret society of mega geeks out there building 3D printers in their basements and growing companies. Gosh, office politics can really ruin their startups.

In the beginning, there was MakerBot. Built with an open share format, MakerBot was made by geeks for geeks. Their system was cheaper than the systems of 3D systems and Stratasys and was made for personal use so that regular people like me could go home and make plastic models. There format was fun, their team was strong, and their idea was cool. People compared them to the early days of Apple. However, they probably shouldn't have taken that to heart because all of the sudden their CEO, Bre Pettis, started pulling the Steve Jobs routine of firing random people and becoming a corporate business guru. Meanwhile, a little Kick Starter company known as Formlabs starts to gain popularity by taking on a totally new way of producing  plastic 3D models. This new way of forming their products, however, is using a very similar system to the 3D systems software. Being the big fish in the pond, 3D systems sued Formlabs. While all these companies went around playing politics, people continued to reinvent the uses of 3D printers. Cody Wilson was printing plastic gun parts using his various 3D machines in hopes of raising awareness to both his anarchist cause and the power that can be achieved through these machines. Cody's designs were taken off the open share networks where other designers were placing their work, but his media exposure was huge. It didn't matter what his cause was; the fact that he was making something dangerous out from a system that was intended for good was fascinating to the people. In the end, nobody came out victorious. Bre Pettis has been replaced as CEO, Formlabs is still being sued, and Cody Wilson had his printers taken away.

 

This documentary didn't do what I was hoping it would do, which was explain the entire history of the process or go into details on the innovations, but it did shed some light on what goes on behind the scenes when happy big personality CEOs are really running a company. It's business. We can't always be fun, creative people, and hope that everything works out so that we get millions of dollars. That's not how these things work. That is what this documentary examines. Here is a space where creativity and science should reign free, but we've allowed business to get in and ruin it for everyone.

Stream of the Week- The Duchess

I know that it seems that I only ever watch historical dramas with female leads and romance. I can't help that Netflix makes them so easy to access.

The Duchess is the story of Georgiana, the Duchess of Devonshire who as a young girl was married to the Duke of Devonshire under the pretense that she would bare a son for his line to continue. Georgiana soon found that her husband was distant and emotionally detached. Georgiana's quick mind and sharp tongue made her an instant favorite among high society and the political world. Her presence at every part was noted as were her fashion and image related trends. After two daughters, Georgiana's promise of a male heir was still unfulfilled which leaves the Duke very distressed. The pressure of producing a son is weighing on G when she meets Bes, a noble lady who has recently separated from her husband due to his various affairs. G and Bes become quick friends over the similar natures of their husbands until the Duke himself has an affair with Bes. This wedge between the two of them leaves G extremely vulnerable and lonely. She finds herself falling into the outstretched arms of friend and politician Charles Grey as a comfort and the two fall deeply in love. Unlike the Duke's affairs, Georgiana's relations with Grey cause her to put her entire life in jeopardy. Her newly born son and three daughters (only two of which are hers) will be taken away from her if she continues to see Charles as under the order of the Duke himself. Georgiana is quite torn between love and her personal duties as a mother and figurehead.

I adore Keira Knightly as an actress. Her performance in this film is beyond engaging as she makes any viewer feel sorry for her the beautiful bird stuck in her gilded and jeweled cage. Georgiana was an excessive gambler and (implied in the film) a bit of a drunk. She has no responsibilities except for that of having a son, and her public image which needed to be regularly reinvented and upheld. She has an endless supply of money and doesn't even have to physically care for her own children if she doesn't want to, but G becomes a humanized by her love for a man that she cannot have. Her husband is vulgar and unrelatable. His depiction by Ralph Fiennes (who does in fact have a nose) is one that almost appears like he has no life in his being. Even his eyes appear dead much like that of a shark.

If you are interested in the history behind this film, there is another film on instant streaming entitled "The secrets of Chatsworth" which dives into the history of her life and the house in which her family of Dukes lived. Be advised this film does have some nudity. Sorry. Hollywood does that sometimes.