WHAT WOULD I DO ON A DATE WITH JUSTIN BIEBER?

When the email offer came from my local movie theater, I wondered. "What if I win? What will Justin and I do on our date?"




It seems the date will be planned for us. I will get to watch Justin's latest movie with him and my friends at my local movie theater. Problem solved!

AFTERNOON MOVIE

Another warning: Spoiler commentary ahead.

My afternoon movie yesterday was "The Kids Are All Right" with two wonderful actors, Julianne Moore (again!) and Annette Bening, playing a lesbian couple, Jules and Nic, with two children, Joni and Laser, played by Mia Wasikowska and Josh Hutcherson, both of whom were conceived by the same sperm donor, one each by the two mothers.

The kids decide that they want to meet their biological father. Laser is under 18, so the pursuit of the identity of the donor falls to Joni, who has just turned 18 and is getting ready to head off to college.

The children meet their biological father, Paul (Mark Ruffalo), and then their moms agree to meet Paul, and - surprise! - complications ensue. Nic and Jules are going through a rough patch in their relationship, and Jules begins an affair with Paul, and how's that for a complication?

But, we've come a long way, in that the point of view in the film is that the situation is of the sort that could possibly arise in any family with children conceived by donors and is not at all unique to families with same-sex parents. And the kids are all right.

Again, my time was well-spent, with my mind distracted from the Anglican soap, "As the Anglican World Turns", which world continues to turn whether I pay attention, or not.

Hey! I could do this every day, if I had the time, and I found enough good movies.

MY MORNING WITH "A SINGLE MAN"

Warning: Spoiler commentary follows.

Yesterday morning, I watched "A Single Man", a fine movie, in shades of dark comedy. The film is set in the early 1960s in southern California. Colin Firth plays a gay British professor of English literature, George Falconer, who grieves for his partner, Jim, played by the hunky Matthew Goode, who was killed in a car accident. Jim appears only in flashbacks in the film.

Back in the day, before it was safe to be fully out as gay or lesbian in almost any occupation, conversations about a person's sexual orientation were, for the most part, necessarily tentative and suggestive, rather than straightforward, and included meaningful glances and eye contact to convey messages that must not be spoken. The movie captures well the stifling atmosphere of the times of covering up and hiding, which - alas - has not entirely dissipated today.

George, a precise, fastidious type decides he will kill himself. Before going to see his best friend, Charlotte, wonderfully played by Julienne Moore, who can't quite accept that she and George can't be more than friends, he practices his suicide scene. With the unloaded gun in his mouth, he tries out the bed, propped against pillows that won't stay in place, a sleeping bag in the bed, and the shower, none of which turn out to be satisfactory settings for blowing his brains out.

To me, the funniest line in the movie comes in the scene when George accidentally bumps into a gay hustler, Kenny, outside a liquor store. The two begin a conversation, and George tells Kenny the story of his lover's death; the young man says, "My mother always said, 'Lovers are like buses. If you wait long enough, another one will come along.'" (From memory - perhaps not a direct quote.) Not true, of course, but in the context of the scene, Kenny's mama's words made me laugh out loud.

As I finished watching the movie, on a morning with driving rain and heavy wind outside, I thought my 100 minutes were well-spent.

The film is based on a novel of the same name by Christopher Isherwood.

ZACH WAHLS SPEAKS ABOUT FAMILY

Zach Wahls, a 19-year-old University of Iowa student spoke about the strength of his family during a public forum on House Joint Resolution 6 in the Iowa House of Representatives. Wahls has two mothers, and came to oppose House Joint Resolution 6 which would end civil unions in Iowa.

From On Top:

The Iowa House on Tuesday approved a bill that seeks to repeal gay marriage in the state, the AP reported.

How sad. Zach Wahls' words will live on toward a better day.

PLEASE PRAY FOR IT AND HER FAMILY

From Ann at Friends of Jake:

IT's father passed away last night.

Notes from her:

I am currently stuck in Washington DC by the storm, and just found out that my dad died last night, unexpectedly. I will not be doing any blogging for a while. My wife is trying to get me a flight home and thence to the Bay Area to be with Mom. Expect me to be out of touch for a while.
....

BP managed to re-route me ... and I should get home late tonight, leaving first thing tomorrow for the bay area.

Surround those we love with prayers and support at this time. May IT feel our love as she walks this path.

Best to leave comments at Friends of Jake. Thanks.

AT THE MOVIES

The weather here is terrible, with hard rain falling and a heavy wind blowing. I'm spending the greater part of the day watching rental movies, because the films are due back today, and I hate paying fines. It's a thing with me.

I'm weary of thinking and writing about the Anglican Communion, the Anglican Covenant, and Anglican primates. I'll take a break, maybe short, maybe long, and the Anglican world will continue to turn whether or not I take note and be little or not at all affected by my refusal to take note.

I'll report back on the movies, but I will probably not do my usual full-fledged, professional review of either film. One good movie down and one to go, and then a quick trip to Blockbuster for the returns.

JESUS AND MO - AWAY

author says:

It's another X-factor strip....

From Jesus and Mo.

ALLEN TOUSSAINT AND ELVIS COSTELLO

"Who's Gonna Help the Brother Get Further" from the album The River in Reverse

LIFE ON THE RANGE

Sven and Ole were talking one afternoon when Sven tells Ole, "Ya know, I reckon I'm 'bout ready for a vacation. Only dis year I'm a gonna do it a little different."

"Da last few years, I took your advice about where to go."

"T'ree years ago you said to go to Hawaii. I went to Hawaii, and Lena got pregnant."

"Den two years ago, you told me to go to the Bahamas, and Lena got pregnant again."

"Last year you suggested Tahiti, and darned if Lena didn't get pregnant again."

Ole asked Sven, "So, what ya gonna do dis year dat's so different?"

And Sven says, "Dis year I'm taking Lena with me!"

Don't blame me. Blame Doug.

ARE YOU WATCHING DOWNTON ABBEY?

The Downton Abbey estate stands a splendid example of confidence and mettle, its family enduring for generations and its staff a well-oiled machine of propriety. But change is afoot at Downton — change far surpassing the new electric lights and telephone. A crisis of inheritance threatens to displace the resident Crawley family, in spite of the best efforts of the noble and compassionate Earl, Robert Crawley (Hugh Bonneville, Miss Austen Regrets); his American heiress wife, Cora (Elizabeth McGovern); his comically implacable, opinionated mother, Violet (Maggie Smith, David Copperfield); and his beautiful, eldest daughter, Mary, intent on charting her own course. Reluctantly, the family is forced to welcome its heir apparent, the self-made and proudly modern Matthew Crawley (Dan Stevens), himself none too happy about the new arrangements. As Matthew's bristly relationship with Mary begins to crackle with electricity, hope for the future of Downton's dynasty takes shape. But when petty jealousies and ambitions grow among the family and the staff, scheming and secrets — both delicious and dangerous — threaten to derail the scramble to preserve Downton Abbey. Created and written by Oscar-winner Julian Fellowes (Gosford Park), Downton Abbey offers a spot-on portrait of a vanishing way of life.

I'm watching and enjoying the series here in the US on PBS Masterpiece Theatre. If for nothing else, the series is worth watching for the presence of the always delightful Maggie Smith in the role of the Dowager Countess of Grantham, who steals every scene in which she appears. I was fortunate to see Dame Maggie on the stage in London some years ago in the wonderful play "Lettice and Lovage" from a second row seat, and I will never forget the experience.

But the series, a sort of Upstairs Downstairs redux, is not for nothing else, for all the actors do fine jobs. It's high-class soap opera with superior writing (Julian Fellowes, of "Gosford Park"), characters and acting. All is done properly, including the lavish sets, the lighting, which is sometimes quite dark. The series was filmed at Highclere Castle. What more could you want?

My favorite characters after Maggie Smith are Mr Carson, the butler, who is terrific in his part, and John Bates, Lord Grantham's valet. But all the characters are well-written and well-acted. None really disappoint.

You Brits have probably already watched the series if you cared to. For those of you who want more, ITV1 has scheduled a second series of the show for sometime this year.