Tag: War

Game of Thrones: Season 6, Episode 1 (“The Red Woman”)

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SPOILERS: Don’t read this review if you have not yet seen or don’t want to know details from the Season 6 premiere of Game of Thrones.  

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Castle Black:

I saw him in the flames fighting at Winterfell. -Melisandre says despondently re: Jon Snow

I can’t speak for the flames, but he’s gone. -Davos replies solemnly

The wait is over… BUT Jon Snow is STILL dead!  Davos (Liam Cunningham) finds the body, perhaps wondering why there isn’t MORE blood on the ground.  Edd (Ben Crompton) and a few other men (who were loyal to Jon) lock themselves inside (the Lord Commander’s chamber?) and think of what action to take next.  Melisandre (Carice Van Houten) is nearby (in an interior room); she doesn’t come off as her usual self- arrogant and bossy- having suffered setbacks in S5 (incl. the loss of Stannis). 

Winterfell:

Your pain will be paid for 1,000 times over, I wish you could be here to watch.  -Ramsay says to the dead body of Myranda

Ramsay (Ioan Rheon) takes some time to mourn Myranda before declaring that her remains will be fed to the hounds (YIKES)!  Roose (Michael McElhatton) tells his bastard that there will be NO future for Ramsay if he doesn’t get Sansa (a noble gal from Northern fam) back and produce an heir.  We know from S5 that Walda is already pregnant (possibly w/ a son, according to the local maester). 

The ep really kicks into gear when “I’m no lady” Brienne (Gwendolyn Christie) and trusty squire/sidekick Pod (Daniel Portman) come to Sansa (Sophie Turner) and Theon’s (Alfie Allen) rescue. “Brienne is, at this point, the most heroic character in Game of Thrones who actually gets things done… she’s motivated pretty much entirely by the desire to be honorable and find someone worthy to protect. She has no ambitions of her own, no greed, no selfish agenda,” as TV critic Charlie Jane Anders wrote.  I esp. liked how Pod had to help Sansa w/ her side of the oath.   

Kings Landing:

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I don’t know where she came from. She was nothing like me. No meanness, no jealousy – just good. I thought if I could make something so good, so pure, maybe I’m not a monster.  -Cersei comments re: Myrcella to Jaime

Cersei (Lena Headey) runs out to see the Dornish ship, but soon sees that the boat coming toward shore carries Jamie (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) and a golden shroud (covering the coffin of Myrcella).  In the next scene, she looks defeated, depressed (having lost 3 kids, as the witch prophesied MANY years back), and tired.  Surprisingly, Jaime is the one that vows revenge (though he doesn’t get the BEST lines here).  

Dorne:  

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He is weak.  Weak men will no longer rule Dorne.  -Ellaria declares re: Trystane (while Doran lies dying)

Doran (Alexander Siddig), his personal bodyguard, and a messenger are killed by Ellaria and Tyene in the water gardens.  Trystane is brutally killed by Obara’s spear (while a bemused Nym looks on) in his chamber onboard a ship.  It ALL happened so fast!  I REALLY wanted to see more of Doran.    

Meereen:

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You can’t fight an enemy you don’t know.  -Tyrion explains to Varys

Why are the streets SO quiet!?  The smartest guys in the realm have a walk and talk. They come upon a mother begging w/ her baby; she misunderstands Tyrion (Peter Dinklage) when he speaks in Valyrian, so Varys (Conleth Hill) has to help out. 

On a wall under “Kill the Masters” someone has scrawled “Mhysa [meaning Dany] is a Master.” Are the Sons of the Harpy former slaves or former slaveholders (masters)?  Hmmm… I think they were slaves; after all, they brutally/quickly killed Hizdahr in S5 E8.)  We see a small group of former slaves who have gathered in an alley where a man dressed in a red robe is preaching re: the Lord of Light.  A few moments later, there is smoke coming from the harbor- ALL the ships have been set on fire.

On the road (w/ a Dothraki horde):

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Dany (Emilia Clark) assumed that the Dothraki would be respectful towards her- WRONG!  When the horde that captured her reach Khal Moro, she learns that widows of khals must live out their lives in Vaes Dothrak (“the city of the horse lords”).  Um, why didn’t Dany know this BEFORE!? 

Castle Black:

Mutton.  I’d like some mutton.  I never was much of a hunter.  -Davos provides a light moment when telling Thorne what he’d like for his journey

You haven’t seen her do what I’ve seen her do.  -Davos tells Jon’s friends in the Night’s Watch re: Melisandre

What to make of that final image of Melisandre transformed into an old woman? Was she a crone in disguise all along? Or had she lost her faith in the Lord of Light?  As Steve Buja wrote in his recap: “Given the blood nature of her god, perhaps one of the components to her witchcraft is her own essence. Whatever happens in this game, Melisandre is the turning point…”

SELECTED VIEWER COMMENTS (from NYT.com recap)

He’s only mostly dead.  [This one’s for The Princess Bride fans!]

Regarding Jon Snow’s fate, I think it won’t be determined until episode 3/4, as I think Dan and Dave want to develop other Stark plot lines, and delve into Arya, Sansa, and Bran. 

My current theory: Jon Snow’s spirit is inhabiting Ghost. But he needs a viable human body to warg into, and relatively soon, since to remain wolf too long risks losing the human to the wolf. Melisande is somehow going to donate her vitality to Snow’s corpse and heal it, so Jon Snow can warg back into it. This won’t be easy, of course. A trace of the wolf is likely to remain.

GOT is increasingly a womans’ world, at least plotwise. The men fail to rescue, and at best, like Tyron, strive to serve.

My guess is this new Khal is going to be killed by Drogon, who will obey Dany (for once). This will cow all of the Dothraki because they believe in strength. If anything would make a khalasar follow a woman it would be if she showed she can command dragons. My feeling is that Dany will then lead this khalasar back to Mereen, where she’ll clean out the Sons of the Harpy in short order.

Danaerys being sent to a place reserved for widows of Dothraki leaders. Smells to me like a place where angry women warriors decide to kick ass.  Everywhere Danaerys goes she ends up with an army.

The Melisandre revelation was a bit of a wow, and we got some brief but quality time with Davos and Jorah (whose faces are much more interesting than those of many of the beautiful younger actors). I even felt a drop of pity for Cersei.

 

Othello (Shakeapeare Theater Company)

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Though an active and talented member of Venetian society who has started to assimilate, he is never fully accepted—and it makes him all the more susceptible to the machinations of Iago, the one person he feels that he can trust. 

…Iago’s hatred of Othello stems from his own jealousy.  He resents the fact that Othello promoted Cassio over him, believes that Othello slept with his wife and cringes at the idea that a foreigner—whom he considers inferior—has the success and recognition that he has been denied.  It is a personal vendetta, and he makes the audience complicit. 

-Katherine Peterlin (STC’s Young Professionals Consortium)

As my regular readers know, Othello is my favorite Shakespeare play.  The themes of this play are relevant today (as we heard in the video above).  I saw it back in 2011 at the Folger; you can read that review here.  I went to see this new adaptation, starring Pakistani-American actor Faran Tahir, at STC on SUN, FEB 28 (7:30PM); it was just 5 days after the play opened.  I had a seat in the 3rd row (rare for me); three 20s gals sitting behind me had free tickets (how lucky)!  Sitting beside me were a middle-aged couple who also enjoyed the show a lot; the husband made some comments that proved that his wife was the Shakespeare expert, but he enjoyed it, too.  As for the desis (South Asians) in the audience, I didn’t see more than a handful (including myself).         

Some of you may be thinking: Isn’t Othello supposed to be black (as in African-American)?  But remember that in The Bard’s time, “black” may have had a different meaning.  “Renaissance representations of the Moor were vague, varied, inconsistent, and contradictory,” as E. A. J. Honigmann, editor of The Arden Shakespeare, noted.  “The term Moor referred to darker-skinned people in general, used interchangeably with similarly ambiguous terms such as African, Somali, Ethiopian, Negro, Arab, Berber, and even Indian to designate a figure from Africa (or beyond). Various uses of the word black are insufficient evidence for any accurate racial classification; that could simply mean swarthy,” Honigmann concluded.

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Abd el-Ouahed ben Messaoud ben Mohammed Anoun, Moroccan ambassador to the court of Elizabeth I (some consider him as the model for Othello)

Original Line:  She gave me for my pains a world of… sighs.

Changed Line: She gave me for my pains a world of… kisses.

Above is one of the lines that was changed from the original (I noticed it right away); it’s more suited to the WWI setting of this play.  This is the kind of adaptation that grows on you, though I quickly noticed that the lighting was very well-done (from the 1st scene).  Iago (played by Jonno Roberts, a New Zealand native) is a very strong villain; he’s matter-of-fact, yet funny.  One of his tactics is to tightly embrace several of the individuals (Rodrigo, Othello, and Cassio) who he has ensnared in his web.  Since Roberts is tall, broad, and muscular (like a modern-day military man), this comes off as potentially scary.  I especially liked Iago and Othello’s scenes; the actors obviously have good chemistry and a great command of the text.  All the supporting actors did well, especially the two who played Desdemona and Emilia.

There were two moments in this play that I thought were particularly good.  One was Othello grabbing Iago, pulling him down, and choking him (when the villain first accused Desdemona of unfaithfulness).  The other scene was when Othello went into a fit of epilepsy, falling to the floor, and shaking for several seconds (everyone leaned forward in their seats).  I was sure that this play would get better w/ time; it has been extended through April 2.  Go check it out if you have a chance! 

Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

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NOTE: This review contains MILD SPOILERS. 

Five minutes into the movie, you were probably marveling, as I was, at the way production designer Colin Gibson created an entire civilization that looked (dys)functional to every last detail. (Gibson and his team also created the movie’s insane lineup of vehicles.)  -Detroit Free Press

I know what you’re thinking (esp. if a regular reader): Why did YOU watch this movie!?  It’s definitely NOT my type of film, BUT I heard several positive reviews (podcasts, radio,  online folks, etc.)  Also, I know almost nothing about the Mel Gibson films- played Max first.  I wanted to see Tom Hardy (who appeared in Wuthering Heights shown on PBS years back).  I  saw this reboot on HBO this past SAT, when the channel premiered it. 

In those days, we were far removed,  They’d ship everything over, so you’d get magazines like four months after they’d been released in the United States and Europe, so we were always quite a way behind the trends. But Kiwis are really innovative people, and we try to make up a lot of our own things.  -Lesley Vanderwalt (Hair & Makeup Designer)

The FIRST thing you will notice is the wild, wacky look of the film- TRULY like nothing I’d seen before!  As for ALL that sand- it was shot partly in the desert of Namibia.  The music is quite effective, and unusual.  Over time, you discover that Imperator Furiosa (Charlize Theron) is the REAL lead of the story; she is seeking some sort of redemption after years of being the right-hand of the warlord, Immortan Joe (Hugh Keays-Byrne, an Australian veteran actor who also appeared in the original films).  Nicholas Hoult (a young Brit) does a fine job as a Nux, a formerly fanatical supporter (“War Boy”) who learns that there is MORE to life than fighting to get into “Valhalla” (Heaven).  

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Mad Max: Fury Road should be recognized for the ground it broke: slipping in a feminist, elaborately constructed world in a moment, and a genre, where those things are typically at odds.  -Katharine Cusumano (Bustle)

So, is this a feminist film (as MANY critics have commented)?  Well, that’s up to YOU to decide!  Max (the loner) helps Furiosa (a take-action gal w/ NO apologies) on her quest to get the wives of Immortan Joe (including Zoe Kravitz) to a place of safety.  There is NO romance between them, BUT a gradual growth of respect- how refreshing!  This film was mainly about world-building (Ali Mattu, a fan of this film, agreed w/ me on that); he replied (tweeted) that there will be sequels in the near future.  Even if you’re skeptical, give Fury Road a shot. 

Bajirao Mastani: The Love Story of A Warrior

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Background & Trivia

The film was first announced in 2003. Sanjay Leela Bhansali initially wanted to cast Salman Khan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, but plans fell through when the real life couple had a messy, highly publicized breakup. Bhansali then kept Khan on and approached Kareena Kapoor to play Mastani and Rani Mukerji to play Kashibai, but shelved his plans and moved on to other projects. Over the following decade, several major actors were rumored to be linked to the project (Shahrukh Khan, Ajay Devgan, Hrithik Roshan and Katrina Kaif).

Coming out on the same day as Dilwale (2015), this marks the third time that a Sanjay Leela Bhansali directed film and Shahrukh Khan starring vehicle were released on the same day after their common Devdas (2002) in July 2002, and later the competing Saawariya (2007) and Om Shanti Om (2007), both released on Diwali 2007.

Production designers created more than 21 sets, which required extensive research.

Priyanka Chopra (star of the ABC drama Quantico) followed a 15 day coaching course to learn the Marathi language as spoken during the time of Peshwas.

The narrator of this film (Irrfan Khan) may sound familiar to some viewers; he has appeared in many American/English language films (including Life of Pi; The Namesake; New York, I Love You).

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Disclaimer

This film begins and ends with a lengthy disclaimer:

The Filmmaker fully acknowledges and respects other perspectives and viewpoints with regard to the subject of the film. The Filmmaker does not intend in any manner to belittle, disrespect, impair or disparage the beliefs, feelings, sentiments and susceptibilities of any person(s), community(ies), society(ies) and their culture(s), custom(s), practice(s) and tradition(s).

SPOILERS: Don’t read from this point if you don’t want to know details from this film.

Set-Up of the Film

Love is its own religion.

In early 18th century India, a proud/respected/ young warrior Bajirao (Ranveer Singh) is chosen as the new Peshwa (the equivalent of a modern day prime minister) by a Maratha king.

While traveling, an emissary (dressed as a soldier) infiltrates Bajirao’s tent and demands his help in fighting invaders to her land.  She is a bold/gorgeous/warrior princess called Mastani (Deepika Padukone).  The audience soon learns that she is the daughter of a (Hindu) Rajput King and his (Muslim) consort.  Since her parents are of different faiths, their union is illegitimate, as is Mastani herself.   Also, she is considered a Muslim, like her mother.  (Here lies the crux of the controversy of this film-  Muslims  and Hindus in love relationships.) 

Impressed by her skills as a warrior, Bajirao assists her with his army and defeats the invaders to her land.  Mastani and Bajirao develop feelings for each other and he presents her his dagger, which is always at his waist. This is also a symbol of marriage among her people, the Rajputs.  Of course, Bajirao doesn’t know this tradition!

After this battle, Bajirao departs for his opulent estate in Pune, where his beautiful/childlike/adoring wife Kashibai (Priyanka Chopra) awaits him.  When they joke about her husband being away so much, she proudly declares to her servants that “he has never looked at another woman.” No wilting wallflower, Mastani (with only one complaining young handmaiden), decides to pursue Bajirao- a love triangle is formed!  

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My Thoughts

I went to see this film in my neighborhood Regal theater (rare to see Bollywood films there) w/ one of my gal pals (also Bangladeshi-American and near my age) and my mom (who rarely watches these types of films; she prefers Indian indies).  The theater was nearly packed- a BIG surprise to us!  Being desis, we knew it was going to be long (duh!) and have dance/singing (a staple), BUT were still impressed w/ the scale of the production, costuming, and even the acting (Chopra can’t ruin this).  I’d never seen Singh or Padukone before, but they did a good job w/ the material.  Padukone is very graceful and strong in her role, but also has a VERY innocent/other-wordly aura about her (maybe it’s her FAB skin).

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One of my other gal pals (South Indian heritage) LOVED the film and all the 3 leads; she saw it the week after it debuted on DEC 18th. This is one of those epic films that knows it’s an epic, so the music can be bombastic and lines are proclaimed (not merely spoken in a natural manner).  However, I think that it’s a LOT better than Bollywood films I’ve seen in the past (several years ago, so may NOT be the best judge).  I liked the dances, BUT my friend wasn’t impressed w/ the songs (she watches Bollywood films once in a while).  I suggest you check it out IF you have an interest in Bollywood (BUT take it for what it  IS, don’t put TOO much interpretation into this genre)!

Related Links

New Year, New Shows: Billions & Mercy Street

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Billions (Showtime)

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Series Premiere: SUN, 1/17/16, 10PM EST

Cast: Damian Lewis (Homeland), Paul Giamatti, Maggie Siff (Mad Men), & Malin Ackerman

Synopsis: U.S. Attorney Chuck Rhoades (Giamatti) goes after hedge fund king, Bobby “Axe” Axelrod (Lewis) in a battle between two powerful New York figures.

Trailer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_raEUMLL-ZI

 

Mercy Street (PBS)

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Premiere: SUN, 1/17/16, 10PM EST

Cast: Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Hannah James (newcomer), AnnaSophia Robb (The Carrie Diaries; Charlie and the Chocolate Factory), Josh Radnor (How I Met Your Mother), Gray Cole (recently on HBO’s Veep), Norbert Leo Butz (Bloodline; theater actor), Donna Murphy (theater vet), & Jack Falahee (How to Get Away with Murder).

Synopsis: This 6-part miniseries follows the lives of two volunteer nurses at a Union hospital during the Civil War- New England abolitionist Mary Phinney (Winstead) and Confederate supporter Emma Green (James), along w/ the Greens (whose mansion houses the hospital), doctors (including Dr. Jedediah Foster, played by Radnor), and two young black characters (one free, one slave).

Location: This series was shot primarily on location in Richmond, VA.

Related TV Spots:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWQk4NYEIJo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t5XOW0PTmKY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkj_LsEqhcs