win win

Desperately searching through our redbox choices for entertainment, Barrett and I happened upon the movie Win Win with Paul Giamati. It is kind of about wrestling, kind of about family, and kind of about moral dilemmas. Win Win tells the story of a lawyer in New Jersey who doesn't quite have enough business to keep his practice open and support his family. He decides to become the guardian of an elderly client to earn some extra cash when the client's wayward grandson shows up and needs a place to stay.

The story is very interesting, and the characters are well acted. Paul Giamati is the quintessential normal guy, and in this movie he is not grumpy or cynical which is a lovely change of pace for him. His wife is played by Amy Ryan, who does a wonderful job.

The movie is funny and the characters interesting and lovable. It has a great sports side plot as the grandson turns out to be a star wrestler and Giamati coaches the loosing high school wrestling team. But the moral dilemma in the movie is interesting. I laughed out loud and loved the ending.

exporting raymond

The other weekend, my husband and I rented Exporting Raymond and enjoyed every minute. It was light, smart, and fun, and those three things rarely meet in a single film.

The movie is a documentary about Philip Ronsenthal, the creator of the show Everybody Loves Raymond, and his struggles and success in trying to adapt and sell the American sitcom in Russia. Rosenthal, like Raymond, is rather dry but very likeable, relate-able, and funny. And his Russian colleagues are equally intriguing.

The most compelling parts of the film are watching Rosenthal try to explain humor that is at once uniquely American and universal to the Russians. Watching them try to cast the Russian version of these beloved American stereotypes was hilarious. And even if you don't like Everybody Loves Raymond, like my husband, I think this movie may surprise you.

winter in wartime

I feel like I have talked about a movie in a long time, and that is not because we haven't been watching movies, we have just had a long string of either bad or so-so ones. But last weekend, the streak was broken with Winter in Wartime.

Winter in Wartime is a Dutch movie about the young son of a small, Nazi-occupied town's mayor. He happens upon a wounded British soldier whose plane has crashed in the woods and decides to help this soldier escape no matter what the cost.

The movie is beautifully filmed in greys and blues. The characters are interesting and dynamic, and the movie is full of nuance and subtlety. This is a great coming of age story with a dramatic twist at the end. I highly recommend this movie!

Italia!

Last night, Barrett and I returned from a beautiful two weeks in Italy. It was the trip of a lifetime, and I am so grateful we were able to do this. There will be many more posts about the trip, but here are a few snapshots.Lake Como: our first stop

Agriturismo outside of Venice: some of the best food and wine I have ever had!
Venice: so enchanting at night
Florence: definitely our favorite city. How could you not like the birthplace of the Renaissance or hanging out with friends in our favorite square eating pizza and drinking prosecco?
Siena/Tuscany: such a respite
Rome: the Sistine chapel, beautiful nightlife, fountains, and so much more

culinary art

While I never condone children playing with their food, I must admit that I was impressed to find these two unique and creative pieces of edible art in our dining hall.

I call this one Two Paths Diverging in a Yellow Wood.
Media: mashed potatoes, broccoli, breading

I call this one The Man with the Chocolate Earring. I think the hi-lights in his hair really set this piece apart.
Media: Chicken patty, spinach, gravy, potatoes, maraschino cherry, and chocolate pudding accents

inception

Last night Barrett and I watched Inception and I liked it way more than I expected. Barrett's description, which I though was very apt, was "It's is an action movie but smart."

The movie is about a group of what are basically dream hackers. Using a method called collective dreaming, they can go into your subconscious and extract hidden information. While I know this sounds cheesy: (a) it is a movie so you automatically have suspended reality and (b) they way they explain it is the movie is pretty clever and not fantasy-sounding at all. Leonardo diCaprio's character has some very dark secrets surrounding the death of his wife; in a last attempt to be reunited with his family, he takes one last very difficult job: to plant an idea in someone's head--inception.

The movie is well acted and well written. I was impressed by the characters that assemble the heist's "dream team" (sorry, I couldn't resist). The entire world of the movie is very interesting and intriguing. All of the strategy that goes into building dream then inserting yourself into someone else's dream was fascinating. The whole idea that the subconscious know when you are an intruder and will become suspicious then attack like white blood cells I thought was really clever.

Christopher Nolan's direction of this movie made it really special. Inception was not overly reliant on computer generated images, and the cgi it used was very tasteful. Most of the action sequences were just good, old-fashioned awesome. In one scene, which you probably saw on previews, there is a fight in a hotel hallway in which the hall is rotating so that the brawl takes them from floor to ceiling to wall, etc. Other scenes anti-gravity coolness. To make this scene, they actually built a rotating set and anti-gravity chambers. This gave the movie a "hands-on" creativity, ingenuity, and experimentation that so many modern movies lack and coincidentally is what I love so much about silent films. Over reliance on computer generated images I think puts distance between the director and the medium which causes you to loose something of the artistic nature of film.


The other thing I loved about the movie is that one of the central themes was the power of ideas. As a teacher of history and literature, this is something that I feel often but have difficulty communicating to my students. It was very cool to watch a very modern and exciting movie that believes in the power of ideas to "define or destroy us" as DiCaprio says in the movie.

somerset maugham

I was recently introduced to the novels of Somerset Maugham and have really enjoyed it. First, I read The Razor's Edge. The Razor's Edge is about rich Americans living in Europe prior to and during the Great Depression. It is an interesting look at the society of that time and people's search for meaning and happiness in all kinds of different, and mostly wrong, places. The characters in this book are rich, dynamic, and very compelling, but I found the plot a little slow even for my taste. Then I read The Painted Veil. Having loved the movie, I looked forward to reading the book and was not disappointed.

The movie came out in 2006 and stars Naomi Watts and Edward Norton. It is definitely the best love story I have seen in a while and is absolutely beautiful. I highly recommend it.

The book follows the movie almost exactly until the end. And even though it is certainly not as happy, I must say that I loved the book as much as I loved the movie but for different reasons. The movie is compelling because it tells a beautiful love story between Kitty and Walter. An ill-matched couple from the start, Kitty, the socialite, and Walter, the bacteriologist, hit rock bottom when Walter finds out that Kitty has been having an affair with am English diplomat in Hong Kong. Walter refuses to allow Kitty a divorce and requires that she follow him into a cholera epidemic in rural China. In the movie, Walter and Kitty begin working alongside one another in a convent and slowly grow in respect, friendship, and then love for one another. But the book is quite different.

The book examines Walter and Kitty's relationship much more realistically and is more about the effects of sin and heartache and the weight of forgiveness than it is about love. Even though it was not romantic at all, I found the story in the book very compelling as Kitty begins to search for meaning in a world where she is surrounded by death and is eventually forced to start over all alone in the world.

You absolutely must see and read The Painted Veil. I got through it in about a week and was sad when I finished--always the sign of a good book--but both books are worth reading.

stones into schools

I just finished my book o' the month for October: Stones Into Schools by Greg Mortenson. The book was a Christmas gift from my precious aunt that I just got around to reading and really enjoying.

Stones Into Schools is a sort of sequel to his previously popular, Three Cups of Tea, and chronicles his experiences and obstacles building schools particularly for girls in the most rural parts of Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The parts of the book that I found most fascinating were the brief summaries of the history of the area. While I knew a lot of what Mortenson wrote about from documentaries and the news, it seemed like the horrors and complexities of the Middle East became real for the first time. On top of that, the destruction of thirty years of war and some of the most rugged terrain in the world has made the country a very isolated and difficult place.

Mortenson and his crew work extremely hard in an effort to rebuild Afghanistan and Pakistan through offering education to the people, especially the women who were prohibited from schools under Taliban rule. Mortenson's philosophy for focusing on female education is simple: "If you educate a boy, you educate an individual, but if you educate a girl, you educate a community." The sheer logistical gymnastics that Mortenson and his team have to face building schools in the most remote areas of the world surrounded by the most treacherous political and geographical landscapes is staggering--from transporting construction supplies on yaks to building relationships with communities that have not welcomes foreigners in generations. I found the practical aspects of these stories fascinating. In one instance, Mortenson and team were struggling with building the trust of a community whose school had just been demolished in the earthquake in 2005. Children were anxious to attend the temporary tent school, but when teh permanent structure was finished, they had trouble with attendance. After speaking with a girl in the community, they discovered that students were wary to attend because the building did not have desks. Desks would not only provide a sense of seriousness and structure to the academics, but also offered structural safety in case of another earthquake. Also, the personal struggles of the Afghan people were inspiring. The obstacles that these students face are harrowing. In what particularly stomach turning episode, Mortenson writes about extremists would harass female students by squirting battery acid from water guns into girls' faces. The only complaint I have is that Mortenson goes on at times about the popularity of his first book, Three Cups of Tea, talking about all of his speaking engagements, etc. leaving me with a little of an "Alright already" feeling.

Overall, I am left with a few thoughts. First, I am very thankful for my beautiful beautiful classroom and my teaching job which now seems quite cushy. Also, I am very thankful that America was willing to step into such an impossible situation and at least attempt to make things better for a people that have suffered tremendously. Certainly things were not handled perfectly, but at least they made an effort.

If you are at all interested in these civilian efforts to rebuild Afghanistan from the inside out, I would recommend this book.

All of this begs the questions: What will I read for the rest of October? That, my friends, is an easy one--Jane Austen's Persuasion. Starting it tonight and really looking forward to it.

alone in my principles

In my experience, there are a few movies that are actually better when enjoyed alone, and these I go to when I am by myself and loving it but wanting another character to empathize with as we are both "alone in our principles" (line from That Thing You Do--love it!).

1. Mansfield Park

In this Jane Austen adaptation, the film's main character, Fanny Price, and intelligent and creative young woman, has been raised in the home of her wealthy aunt, uncle, and cousins because her family could not afford one more mouth to feed. Fanny is quiet but very intelligent and playful. She has strong opinions and will stand up for them when necessary, but she is always treated as an outsider. When she is finally invited into the social circle through the attentions of gentlemen, she is not sure she wants to be a part of this rather sordid society. This is probably the darkest of the Jane Austen movies becoming almost an Austen-Bronte hybrid. The cinematography is very artistic, and the love story between Fanny and Edmond is fabulous.

2. Jane Eyre

This is my favorite books of all time because the character of Jane demonstrates such moral fortitude and strength of character throughout the book. Jane encounters hardships after hardship from the abuse of her aunt to the death of her friend Helen in school to the life of a governess in a home full of secrets. In spite of her circumstances, Jane holds fast in her humility and faith. As for movies, there are two good adaptations: the 1996 version with Charlotte Gainsborough and William Hurt and the 2006 Masterpiece Theater version starring Ruth Wilson as the title character. Both are good, but I think the Masterpiece Theater version is better. This character is so close to my heart, I feel like we are kindred spirits. (I know that is incredibly cheesy, but I was an English major so what do you expect?)

3. Persuasion

This movie is new to the "alone in my principles" repertoire. I watched it Thursday night while Barrett was at class, remembered how much I loved it, and had to add it to the list. Also a Jane Austen adaptation, Persuasion tells the story of Anne Elliot who does not quite fit is with her class-obsessed family. Anne is tenderhearted and treats everyone with kindness. Pretty soon we find out that Anne was once in love with the charming Captain Frederick Wentworth but was persuaded against the match by a family friend who thought she had Anne's best interest in mind. Many years later, Anne meets Captain Wentworth again. This movie is very slow and very subtle, but the love story is beautiful as Anne learns to stand up for herself for the first time. Ciaran Hines is the quintessential Captain Wentworth just like Colin Firth is the quintessential Mr. Darcy. He is perfectly cast and absolutely amazing. I remember seeing this movie for the first time when I was about in the 5th grade, and I hated it. I could not get passed all of the unspoken dialog in just the looks that Anne and Capt. Wentworth exchange from across the room not to mention the old school BBC stylings--not quite as polished as we expect in a typicla feature film. But going back, I simply love it. (BBC recently did a new version of Persuasion that is also pretty good, but it ends with the most awkward on-screen kiss I have ever seen which kind of undercuts the rest of the movie.)

book club

A few years ago, I made a resolution to read a book a month in order to keep my mind fresh and to develop the habit of reading. I so enjoyed this new hobby that I decided to offer the same challenge to my students. And thus started Mrs. Freeman's 8th Grade Book Club. At the end of each month, those students that completed a book during that month get together during study hall, talk books, and partake of a little snack.

This month I made gingersnaps (yum) and read David McCullough's John Adams.

I loved the book and was somewhat said to finish it and say good bye to Adams. McCullough is an amazing story-teller and an awesome writer. He blends Adams correspondence into the story beautifully making vivid and dynamic portraits of real people in history. There were a few parts where I felt the book dragged a little. By far, the most compelling parts were about John and Abigail's marriage (a remarkably faithful and loving relationship) and Adams' relationship with Jefferson (very on-again-off-again). Adams was truly a remarkable man with an amazing amount of integrity. At the end of the book, McCullough cites the inscription that Adams had engraved on his family's sarcophagus: "This stone and several others have been placed in this yard by a great, great, grandson from a veneration of the piety, humility, simplicity, prudence, frugality, industry and perseverance of his ancestors in the hopes of recommending an affirmation of their virtues to their posterity." Adams' humility and willingness to sacrifice everything for virtue and patriotism is truly admirable.

(I heartily recommend the companion book to John Adams also by David McCullough, 1776. It is one of my favorite books and an easier/shorter read than John Adams.)

historical fiction

studious

not so studious

I love some good historical fiction in my life. My seventh and eighth graders are currently reading Johnny Tremain and it is nothing less than fabulous. My mom read us this classic when we were kids before taking a vacation to Boston/New England. While I think I liked it then, as an adult and teacher I LOVE it! This being my fifth year in the classroom, I am estimating to have read Johnny Tremain's story about 7 times, and each time it gets better and better.

For those of you that are not familiar with the childhood classic, Johnny Tremain tells the story of a young, cocky Boston silversmith who suffers a terrible accident and as a result gets swept up in the activity of the Revolutionary War from the Boston Tea Party to the Sons of Liberty to the Battle of Lexington and Concord. The book does an excellent job of drawing readers into the colonial era and introducing them to the real players of the Revolution like Paul Revere, John Hancock, Sam Adams, James Otis, and Dr. Warren, but it also tells a very compelling story about a boy that learns to think outside of himself and grow up. And if that is not a ringing-enough endorsement, my kids all love it.

Several months ago, I read another historical fiction book that I really liked called The Heretic's Daughter by Kathleen Kent. Kent tells the story of Sarah Carrier Chapman whose mother was accused of witchcraft in Salem in 1692. I really enjoyed this book as it brought the hardships of colonial life to light and drew you in to the hysteria of the Salem Witch Trials. I read the court scene to my seventh and eighth graders to give them a sense of what it was really like; they were entranced. It is a great story and a well-written book.

So there you go. If you start feeling a little colonial--which I always do this time of year--pick up one of these great historical fictions and be transported.

two thumbs up

I realized recently that I have done a surprisingly small number of movie posts of late in spite of all the good movies I watched in the recent past. I intend to remedy this tonight!

Recommendation numero uno: Me and Orson Welles
Barrett and I heard about this movie back in December but missed it in the theater and have been waiting for it to come out on video. When that day finally came, we were not disappointed. We both agreed that this is one of the best movies we have seen in a long time.

The movie is about Orson Welles' early career in theater (post-radio and pre-film) directing Shakespeare's Julius Caesar in the early 1930s in New York. The acting in this movie will knock your socks off. Orson Welles is played by Christian McKay who we recognized in a Masterpiece Theater later (which proves he is actually, really good). More than once throughout the movie we had to stop and remind ourselves that we were not actually watching Orson Welles. The movie also stars Zac Efron who does an impressive job as a young high schooler who dreams of being an actor/singer/writer/artist, and his role in Wells' play is supposed to be his big break. Efron is both likeable and very believable in this role. I loved him! The plot of the movie centers around Welles' eccentricities professionally and personally as you watch the director of theater develop into the man that will direct the greatest movie of all time. There are some wonderfully smart references throughout the film to Orson Welles' work in Citizen Kane and The Third Man. The only complaint that I had with the film is that I think Richard Linklater (the director of the film and one of my favorite directors) could have done more artistic choices with the cinematography, but Barrett disagreed with me on that point. The movie is well-written, interesting, and engaging. I highly recommend this movie especially if you are a film history buff or a Citizen Kane fan.

Recommendation numero dos: The Messenger
We heard about this movie watching the Oscars and loved it.

The Messenger stars Ben Foster and Woody Harrelson and is about the soldiers in charge of informing families when they have lost loved ones. As the subject matter suggests, the movie is very intense and very personal. The camera work, while hand-held, is effective at creating an up-close and personal tone at very intimate, intense moments. The chracters in teh movie are complex and dynamic, and the acting is stellar.

Recommendation numero tres: An Education
This was another one we saw on the Oscars and had to see.

An Education takes place in England in the 1960s and tells the story of a young, naive girl who befriends a cultured, worldly man, falls in love with him, and gets a jarring lesson in life. The plot of the movie is very intriguing and takes a few small but unexpected turns. One of the best parts of this movie is definitely the sets and costumes; the clothes are to-die-for. The cinematography is also beautiful. Carrie Mulligan and Alfred Molina are awesome in this movie, but the real star of the show is Peter Sarsgaard as the playboy. His charisma wraps everyone in the movie including the audience around his little finger. Plot-wise, I think there were a few things that would have made th movie stronger: namely spending more time developing Jenny's (Carrie Mulligan's) relationship with her teacher and her relationship with her friends. But some of the deleted scenes help solve this. This movie is very enjoyable and engaging--a must see.

grading movies

This weekend I was rudely awakened to the worst part of going back to school for teachers: grading! I loved evenings at home during the summer with no grading hanging over my head. Alas, (sigh) those carefree days are no more. But in order to lighten the burden of the red pen, I turned to some of my staple grading movies. A few months ago my mom posted about her "down comforter" movies (i.e. those movies that you know you can curl up with on a rainy day). Well the educators need a list of movies that they can turn on when the grading gets laborious.

My criteria for grading movies is simple.

1. The movie must be of the highest quality, especially the music and the script. A truly excellent film can inspire the most uninspiring tasks. The music and script are of particular importance because your eyes will not be on the screen but on paper so the sounds must be captivating.

2. It must be a movie that I know so well that I am not even tempted to lift my eyes to the screen because I have seen it so many times that I know it by heart. When you know a movie this well, you are not distracted by what will happen next or by the images on film. It is like sitting in silence in the car with an old friend, just perfectly content being together.

Without further ado, my grading movies are. . .

1. Sense and Sensibility: This is my number one go-to grading flick. The movie is perfect and so comforting and inspiring.

2. Little Women (with Winoma Ryder): This movie is great in the winter since it open at Christmas and always reminds me of hanging out with my sisters. (These two movies make up a sub-genre of films that I am a sucker for. Barrett lovingly named the genre "Women Writers Overcoming All Odds." I always like those flicks.)

3. Meet Me in St. Louis: This movie is a favorite from my childhood and always makes me happy (except the Halloween sequence which still scares me). The colors, costumes, and music are classically awesome. I love popping this movie in around any holiday since it goes through all four seasons.

The longer list. . .
If I had to add a few more to the list, they would be Oklahoma, Princess Bride (can't go wrong with a 90's classic), Much Ado About Nothing, Singing in the Rain, Master and Commander, and Say Anything.

secret garden

This summer I went on a little British literature kick with Dickens, or course, and The Secret Garden. Perusing through the library, I found this children's classic and don't remember reading it (although my mom claims she read it to us and I am sure she is right. . . sorry, mom). I was totally transported by this beautiful story of an ugly, ill-tempered girl growing up and learning to care for people and creation and losing her ugliness and ill temper in the process.

Reading this lovely story made visiting my mom's precious garden in Nebraska even sweeter. Every evening we went to her garden or Neighbor Bill's garden and picked our veggies for dinner: asparagus, eggplant, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and my favorite--Swiss Chard!

This is my favorite salad in the whole world. The sad this is that I can't replicate it--mom specialty.

sweet land

Ok, this summer Barrett and I have watched A LOT of movies, and I have not done a very good job of keeping up with my recommendations. But here is an attempt to get back on track. Last night we rented the movie Sweet Land, and as the title implies, it was very sweet.

The movie is about a Norwegian farmer in Minnesota and his German mail-order bride. Inge, the bride, does not have the right paperwork so the couple cannot be married right away. Olaf, the would-be-husband, is a very quiet man, but he tries to help Inge integrate into this small Lutheran community as best as he can. While Olaf is very upright, the couple faces persecution for cohabiting even though Olaf sleeps in the barn and for Inge's German heritage. After dealing with a difficult harvest and the town's scrutiny, Olaf and Inge grow an intense bond, and eventually the town comes around them, gets Inge the paperwork, and they are married.

What I loved about the movie: First, the actors playing Olaf and Inge are tremendous. They truly carried the film, and they had fabulous chemistry. I also loved that the movie was very clean (rated PG for goodness sake). Even though Olaf and Inge develop some serious sexual tension, the most we ever see on screen is holding hands. I love when movie makers can deliver all the intensity without the skin. And, of course, I loved the setting. The Midwest is a wonderful place.

What didn't work for me: The movie opens with some scenes from the present and more recent past that include Olaf and Inge's grandchildren. While this is a good idea in theory, it was very confusing, disjointed, and felt forced. I was also not a big fan of the casting choice of Alan Cumming as Olaf's friend. I do not believe him as a Minnesotan farmer for one second. Lastly, I really did not like the portrayal of the Lutheran minister. While he had some good lines, he was the most closed-minded and least loving person in the film. I am so sick of movies portraying Christians as the bad guys and the church as the problem with society. I would love to introduce the writer/director to the Lutheran minister at my mom's church in Oakland, Pastor Mark, because then they could have seen how wonderful and kindhearted real Lutheran ministers are.

Overall, Sweet Land is a sweet romance with a few problems. I give it a 6.5 out of 10.