The Last Movie You Saw On DVD or VHS or TV.

I'm watching "Seven Samurai," the Japanese version. I stopped where it looked like the intermission, so I turned it off and went to sleep.

I watched The Sand Pebbles the past two nights with Steve McQueen, Candice Bergen, Richard Crena and Richard Attenborough. I've watched this movie several times, but it's the first time I noticed that Gavin McLeod is the gunner in the movie. I had Mako sign my VCR box, and it's still one of my favorite movies.

I watched Midway last night. My childhood friend, Sab Shimono, is a Japanese pilot in the movie. Lots of great actors in the movie including Charlton Heston, Henry Fonda, James Coburn, Glenn Ford, Hal Holbrook, Toshiro Mifune (named our son after this actor), Robert Mitchcum, Cliff Robertson, and Robert Wagner. My friend signed his autograph on the VCR box.

Watched A River Runs Through It last night with Craig Sheffer and Brad Pitt. It was directed by Robert Redford, and tells the story about two sons of a minister who loves to fish that become a family event for the rest of their lives.
It was filmed in the Montana wilderness that captures what it was like for American families in the early 20th century. The boys grow up to be as wild as their environment, and manage to get into their share of troubles.

The story moves along very well, and the fishing in the rivers of Montana are spectacular! A classic worth watching.

Watched a real interesting movie last night, the House of Sand and Fog with Ben Kingsley and Jennifer Connelly. The story is based in the San Francisco area, about a home that is sold by the government as a repossession of unpaid taxes - which was a mistake, because she didn't owe any taxes. Kingsley buys the home, and the problems grow from that point. Connelly gets involved with a local sheriff who threatens the Kingsley's about legalities and deportation. The ending is a shocking resolution that nobody can imagine or anticipate.

Highly recommended.

I watched The Sand Pebbles possibly when living in Kansas City. My brother Sam and I liked it very much. Particularly the scenes involving live stem and dead stem.

I found a VCR tape with "Musashi" on it that was copied from tv - with enough of the movie to understand what happened in his dual with Sasaki.

Gangster Squad with Sean Penn, Josh Brolin and Ryan Gosling. I expected stupid. Ends up it was spectacular entertainment with good guys and bad guys and suspense. A little bloody and not suitable for kids, but definitely worth the 'on demand' fee.

Saw Green Zone with Matt Damon about the search for WMD's immediately after the "shock and awe" aggression against Iraq. The high brass, the administration, and the CIA were at loggerheads about finding WMD's in Iraq. Nicely done!

Watched A Few Good Men with Tom Cruise and Demi Moore last night. Tom Cruise and Jack Nicholson were excellent in the movie; they both performed their parts with excellent acting.

The only failing I found in the story line was the fact that Nicholson ran Gitmo with an iron fist, which meant "everybody" followed his orders - good or bad. If that story line is true, then why did he order the removal from the base of one soldier "to protect him," after he told "everybody" not to touch him?

That conflict alone made the story a weak one - for me.

Watched A Few Good Men with Tom Cruise and Demi Moore last night. Tom Cruise and Jack Nicholson were excellent in the movie; they both performed their parts with excellent acting.

The only failing I found in the story line was the fact that Nicholson ran Gitmo with an iron fist, which meant "everybody" followed his orders - good or bad. If that story line is true, then why did he order the removal from the base of one soldier "to protect him," after he told "everybody" not to touch him?

That conflict alone made the story a weak one - for me.

BE WARNED: (((spoilers)))


You're missing the point. His order to remove the soldier was the coverup scandal that was the colonel's downfall (Nicholson). He in fact issued the transfer orders after the soldier was killed but made it look like the orders to move the soldier happened before the incident.

I "know" all that! The commanding officer made conflicting statements about honor, code, loyalty. If he commanded that nobody touch the soldier, but he ordered him shipped out for his own safety, that's a conflict.

Watched An Officer and a Gentleman with Richard Gere last night. The last scene always chokes me up!

His actions and what he claimed just means he's a severely flawed individual who wasn't as powerful or stately or authoritative as he thought he was.

Not true! The officers below him followed his orders regardless of knowing some of the commands were lies/wrong. That's the reason why the Lt Col committed suicide.

Just watched Dirty Dancing on television. Corny old film, but it always hooks me in!

Watched "The Snows of Kilimajaro" last night with Gregory Peck, Susan Hayward, and Ann Gardner. It was written by Ernest Hemingway, and I believe it's autobiographical. Good movie.
My many jaunts to Cuba and visits to Ernest Hemingway's house and the many bars he frequented enhances the appreciation for Hemingway's story-telling.

That's a wonderful film - years since I saw it, but remember it well. Was it Ava Gardner with Peck and Hayward?

Cuba - lucky you. Must be a fascinating country to visit.

Yes. I took "Ann" off the VCR box, but it was Ava.

My friends and I were supposed to go to Cuba at the end of this month, but my friend owns a realty company in Mexico, and was waiting for a close on a big deal, so he couldn't commit the time. Since I couldn't find flights this late, I cancelled. I know we'll be returning some time later this year.

You can visit my travel blog at www.travelpod.com/members/c.i.222. It has several blogs on Cuba.