More from "The Queen"

I forgot to mention this last night.

I thought that they portrayed Prince Charles (or Charles, Prince of Wales as I had referred to him last night who was played by Alex Jennings) as somewhat sensible. While the rest of the royal family such as his mom, The Queen and his dad Prince Philip and even his granny Elizabeth, Queen Mother were dumping on Princess Di (or Princess Diana or Diana, Princess of Wales as I also referred to her last night) Prince Charles stood up to them. Especially since Diana was the mother to the childen who are the future heirs to the British throne.

Of all the royals Charles seemed to have taken this news the worse. See the movie he definitely had that emotional reaction and we could see at various points his eyes welling up with tears. See that whole thing about showing the royals in a very human light?

Prince Charles was also portrayed as something of a tricky person. He had to find ways to get his mother to see his point of view and tried to be on the right side of public opinion. He told his mom, The Queen that he thought that he was in danger and she immediately changed her mind about taking a drive in the country. He seemed to be trying to really cozy up with Tony Blair who in 1996-97 was the new British Prime Minister (the head of government in Britain). He really wanted his royals to get out there to mourn with the rest of their people.

I really like the portrayal of Prince Charles who unfortunately isn't a very sympathetic figure. When I watched that whole episode with Diana back in 1997 I couldn't have seen or known how much of a role he had. Notwithstanding the fact that he used to be Diana's husband and he is the father to their children (Princes William and Harry) who just so happen to be the future of the Windsor dynasty.

So that should end my review of The Queen.

The Queen

I saw The Queen tonight. There were quite a few slow moments but it was a generally good story and we see the British royals in a much more human light than I would have imagined them.

Queen Elizabeth is referred to as "Cabbage" by her husband Prince Philip. Both the Queen and her son Charles, Prince of Wales, display emotion. Also we see the reaction the royals had towards Diana, Princess of Wales. She figures a lot in the story because most of the plot revolves around her death and the events surrounding that up until her funeral.

Well it's great to say that even if the royal family is held up to much higher standards than us commoners, that the fact is they are human. Thankfully they got people around them who might be able to keep them in touch with everyday people. Tony Blair is as important as the secretaries the royals have.

Other than that, you should pick this movie up when you get the first opportunity.

Related post: More from "The Queen"

Miami Vice: The Movie

I just finished watching this movie. It was hard to keep up with it, but it certainly had a 21st Century flavor to it. I really loved the cinematography with the very liberal use of video.

The action in this movie was brutal. A man had his arm shot off when he was ambushed and thankfully the movie doesn't get any worse on violence. Yeah there were some romance too, I could live without it but it didn't cause a distraction.

I liked it for the artistry though I wish I had been able to keep up better. Maybe their won't be a sequel, but as to whether this film makes me nostalgic for the 80's TV series well now I wish there was a new TV series. And I only wish that I was able to see this in the theaters instead of watching an unrated director's edition DVD.

I have always wanted to know how popcorn became a movie snack

No where else in the performing arts are the patrons allowed a snack. I remember going to symphony hall a few years ago that there were some cough drops in some bowls in case during a performance someone had to cough. I imagine that if you went to a theater downtown (like the LaSalle Bank Theater or the Oriental or the Chicago) they wouldn't let you carry a snack let alone offer you some popcorn.

So how did popcorn came to be sold at the cinemas. Check this out...

No trip to the movies is complete without an overpriced tub of popcorn covered in goo. Good thing, 'cause popcorn sales are responsible for a substantial portion of theater profits.

To learn how the tradition began, we first consulted the Encyclopedia Popcornica. According to this industry-supported site, the salty snack was very popular "from the 1890s until the Great Depression." Even during the Depression, popcorn remained "one of the few luxuries down-and-out families could afford."

Kidz World writes that popcorn first became available at movie theaters way back in 1912. They don't explain why, but Buzzle.com came through with many kernels of truth (none of which remained unpopped).

Apparently back in the old days, popcorn vendors would "set up shop" outside theaters. The theater managers didn't like this, thinking it was a distraction. But moviegoers disagreed, frequently ducking out to buy popcorn and then ducking back in to see the movie.

As Buzzle further notes, "it wasn't long until the theatre owners realized they could set up their own popcorn popper." That's exactly what they did, and popcorn's been associated with movies ever since. Kind of like Cracker Jacks and baseball games or gruel and orphanages.

I hope you like the new look.

I had no idea Doctor Who airs on WTTW now

I just saw it in the TV guide tonight and I switched immediately. Usually I'd watch Beyond the Beltway on WYCC, but now I have a reason to watch WTTW again. I haven't watched in years because now I don't have Wild Chicago to watch at the 10:30 timeslot anymore.

I didn't get to watch any Doctor Who tonight but what I did get was the behind the scenes segment.

BTW, this is how Doctor Who looked when it aired on WTTW back on July 15, 1984.

BTW, I intend to get back to watching movies this summer. I've just been sluggish. Hopefully I can check out what we just bought yesterday from Target.