Filed on 6.15.12: Thomas Schultze of the Munich-based G + J Media Entertainment was kind enough to take me around Munich this evening, giving me the grand tour, etc. Three hours worth, scratched the surface, took some notes, etc. I was last here in ’92 — it’s a much richer, brighter and more gentrified city now and yet with pockets that are quiet, leafy and serene. Far more beautiful, historic and captivating than Berlin. The vibe feels more like Italy than Germany.

Filed on 6.22.12: The Eisbach (German for ‘ice brook’) is a small man-made river in Munich. Just past a bridge near the Haus der Kunst art museum, the river forms a standing wave about one metre high, which is a popular river surfing spot. The water is cold and shallow, making it suitable only for experienced surfers. The wave has been surfed since 1972.” — from the Eisbach Wiki page.

Straight from Wikipedia: “In May 2000, Marvel Studios brought Artisan Entertainment to co-finance an Iron Fist film, hiring Ray Park to star and John Turman to write the script in January 2001. Park read extensively the comics Iron Fist had appeared in. Kirk Wong signed to direct in July 2001, with filming set for late 2001/early 2002. Iron Fist nearly went into pre-production in March 2002. Wong left the project in April 2002. By August 2002, pre-production had started but filming was pushed back to late 2002, and then to late 2003. In March 2003, Marvel announced a 2004 release date. In April 2003, Steve Carr entered negotiations to direct.In November 2003, the release date was moved to 2006. In March 2007, Carr placed Iron Fist on hold due to scheduling conflicts. In 2009, Marvel announced they have begun hiring a group of writers to help come up with creative ways to launch its lesser-known properties, such as Iron Fist along with others such as Black Panther, Cable, Doctor Strange, Nighthawk, and Vision. In August 2010, Marvel Studios hired Rich Wilkes to write the screenplay. In November 2013, Disney CEO Bob Iger stated that if Marvel’s Netflix TV series such as Iron Fist become popular, ‘It’s quite possible that they could become feature films.'”

I haven’t paid any attention to Theodore Melfi‘s Hidden Figures (Fox 2000, 1.13.17), which has to be one of the most unattractive titles of this or any other year. Right away you’re thinking, “I have a sneaking feeling this movie is going to reveal and celebrate these ‘figures’ but is it okay if they stay hidden? No offense. It’s just that I can see the scheme of this thing from a mile away.”

Kevin Costner, Octavia Spencer in Theodore Melfi’s Hidden Figures.

Set in the early ’60s and based on a forthcoming non-fiction book by Margot Lee Shetterly, the film recounts the tale of three African-American women — mathematicians Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan and colleague Mary Jackson — who helped NASA “catch up in the space race.” They are played, respectively, by Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer and Janelle Monáe.

Kevin Costner plays the head of NASA who (just guessing here) initially fails to recognize their brilliant calculations but begrudgingly comes to recognize their value to the space program, particularly after they help out big-time with John Glenn’s 1962 orbital flight. Or something like that.

Hidden Figures will be given a limited platform release sometime in December to qualify for awards consideration. This will provide yet another opportunity for guild and Academy members to “get their black on,” as a friend puts it.

I’ve been ducking screenings of Stephen Frears‘ Florence Foster Jenkins (Paramount, 8.12) because, as I’ve muttered over and over, I don’t want to watch a film about a real-life rich socialite (played by Meryl Streep) who insisted on singing opera at a 1944 Carnegie Hall concert despite the fact that she couldn’t sing any better than you or me in the shower. (And perhaps worse — listen to this.)

But I’ve decided to man up and see it next Friday because of three reasons: (a) I’ve heard that Streep’s voice isn’t atrocious in the film. A friend who’s seen it says her singing-as-Jenkins “isn’t completely embarassing…she can’t sing but she almost gets there“; (b) Older audiences are lapping it up, and the afore-mentioned friend speculates that Streep “will probably be [Best Actress] nominated, which happens almost every time”; and (c) the theme of Florence Foster Jenkins is that the love of singing is what counts, and not whether you’re any good at it.

Alternate slogan: If singing makes you feel good, do it in front of others. Even if you murder every song you interpret.

I beg to differ with that. Most of us would, I think. If you can’t sing you should stick to the shower or your car — period.

What previous films have subjected audiences to singing that’s difficult to handle? Claire Trevor‘s pathetic a cappela scene in John Huston‘s Key Largo (’48). Gwen Welles‘ grotesque singing scene in Robert Altman‘s Nashville (’75). Elizabeth Olsen‘s country music singing in Marc Abraham‘s I Saw The Light (’15). Who else?

The last time I looked movie dragons were part of the reptile family. Over 60 U.S.-produced movies and at least one HBO series (Games of Thrones) have featured big dragons over the last half century or so, and they’ve all had standard scaly reptile skin. And yet the dragon in David Lowery‘s Pete’s Dragon (Disney, 8.12) has green Dr. Seuss fur. It’s probably safe to say this will be the first Seussy dragon in movies, ever. (For the record, Disney’s 1977 animated version featured a traditional scaly beast.)

Obviously Lowery (Ain’t Them Bodies Saints) decided he wanted to create a more fanciful dragon — a big E.T.-like creature, a friend of a young boy, a protector, etc. And that, to Lowery, meant no lizard-like skin.

Pete’s Dragon, which is not animated and is fully realistic save for the dragon FX, costars Bryce Dallas Howard, Oakes Fegley, Wes Bentley, Robert Redford, Karl Urban and Oona Lawrence. Press screenings are beginning next week.

I never liked Hillary Clinton. Millions feel the same way. Ask any hinterland bubba. But I was ready to hold my nose and vote for her anyway. But now she’s reportedly ready to flip the bird to the Sanders/Warren movement by picking Tim Kaine as her vice-presidential running mate. Now I hate her.

An HE commenter wrote last night that Hillary has to play her cards cautiously with Kaine or she might conceivably lose to Trump. I posted the following in the comment thread three or four hours ago; here it is front and center:

You don’t get it. Many voters are riled, scared. They don’t want “straight down the middle”, which to them feels the same as “hold the course” and “same system & same social/political order that has been scaring them.” They want the apple cart overturned (Trump vs. multiculturals, Bernie vs. oligarchy), things re-ordered, the 1% challenged, the deck reshuffled.

With the Kaine pick Hillary has assured these scared voters that this can’t / won’t happen under her administration. She’s underlined that she will govern with a cautiously liberal, more-of-the-same approach — a measured, practical-minded, incremental application of moderate liberalism. She may win with Kaine — I certainly don’t want Trump — but I’m sickened by the lack of fire that the Kaine pick signifies — the guardedness, the caution, the lack of arousal.