The Gang's All Here

Summer re-runs are fun, aren't they? Here's one from a couple of years back.

With THE SOPRANOS becoming a distant memory and the next season of BOARDWALK EMPIRE months away, my appetite for gangland drama has been voracious as of late. I've been jonesing like a Droogie for a bit of the old ultraviolence, either cinematically or broadcastically.

JUSTIFIED really does fit the bill. Them country boys down in Butcher Holler (or whatever holler they holler in) are more than a barrel full of wiseguys with a side of grits. It's also fueled my interest in the written works of Elmore Leonard, creator of Raylan Givens and the rest of these dangerous hillbillies.But damn it, season 3's over and gone as well (with a super duper villain turn by Neil McDonough) and I need more more more as Andrea True once sang.

So I've delved into the international market. Yakuza (the Japanese equivalent of the Mafia) films always foot the bill, particularly those by Kenji Fukasaku whose work includes SYMPATHY FOR THE UNDERDOG and the five part saga BATTLES WITHOUT HONOUR AND HUMANITY. I've been gaga for French crime mellers since the late great Jules Dassin's RIFIFI. My favorites among these have been Jacques Becker's TOUCHEZ PAS AU GRISBI (the English translation being DON'T TOUCH THE LOOT. Love it.) and Jean-Pierre Melville's LE CERCLE ROUGE. Oh, in case you didn't know: Jean Gabin is God. There's also the Danish mob as portrayed in DRIVE director Nicolas Winding Refn's sensational PUSHER trilogy, tales not for the squeamish but the squeamish shouldn't be here anyway. They should be watching TWILIGHT.

But lately, I've been caught up in Chinese director Johnny To's films about the Triad gangs, ELECTION and its immediate sequel TRIAD ELECTION. These two cold-blooded tales are intricate in their story telling as well as crash courses in modern Chinese culture, particularly since the end of the British occupation. They are also extremely devious by nature. At one point, you're almost led to believe that a main protagonist is quite benign and almost humane in his depiction as the story unravels until he suddenly becomes the most sadistic character of the bunch. Chilling, thrilling and always fascinating, Johnny To's movies always deliver. Also check out To's FULLTIME KILLER with Andy Lau and EXILED with one of the coolest of the cool, Simon Yam.

Give Johnny To's gangster dramas a look see and soon you'll be saying: "Leave the gun. Take the potstickers."

Emmy Nom-Noms

I've gone on record here (the equivalent of a tree falling in the forest with no one around) concerning my distaste for the Emmy Awards. With the bounty of excellent programming from just about every platform imaginable, the members of Academy of TV Arts and Sciences have attempted to atone for past sins and woken up to smell the K-cups if the recent nominations for this year's awards are any indication. It's still a circle jerk, but at least it's more of an inclusive wank-fest than ever before.It became a matter of "adapt or die". If there's anything Hollywood hates, it's to not be considered hipper than thou instead being the torchbearer of the old guard, that being the major broadcast networks who are about to lose that adjective any day now.

Though one wrong has finally been made right (the inclusion of Tatiana Maslany from ORPHAN BLACK in the Best Actress category), some glaring oversights cannot go unnoticed.

Where the hell is JUSTIFIED? This has been a critics' darling since Day One and its complete shut-out is baffling. While those that agree with me are mostly complaining about the lack of  recognition for stars Timothy Olyphant, Walton Goggins and Joelle Carter, I myself would have love to have seen an acknowledgment for Nick Searcy. As Raylan Given's boss at the US Marshall Service, Searcy gave a shop-worn character (the firm but fair boss) such a fresh coat of paint it seemed brand new.

Melissa McBride as Carol in THE WALKING DEAD had a stand-out year and should be the poster child.for Actresses of a Certain Age and their obvious potential. McBride brings such a quiet strength to Carol, making her a phoenix rising quietly from the ashes to become the strongest and most fierce member of that pack of post-Apocalyptic survivors, doing so with grace, subtlety and occasional cold-blooded honesty.

ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK has only a couple of acting noms this year-Uzo Aduba (Suzanne, the artist formerly known as Crazy Eyes) and Pablo Schreiber (Pornstache). No Taylor Schilling or Kate Mulgrew this go-around, which is unfortunate, but the absolute travesty is no love for the best performance given by any actor on television this last season, Lorraine Toussaint as Vee. Toussaint just ruled the roost as that devious, reptilian, yet seductive inmate of that wacky and tragic women's prison. It was a one season role so Toussaint is out for the count for next year and more's the pity for both the Emmys and the show itself.

BETTER CALL SAUL got plenty o' noms, possibly due to BREAKING BAD fall-out, though it could have come up a goose egg with a lesser show (AfterMash, anybody?) Bob Odenkirk really upped his game and it certainly shows, so good on him for his nod. Better yet is Jonathan Banks, repeating his role from BB, particularly for his character's back story episode Five-Oh, as good as the best of the Walter White saga. Ignored however is Michael McKean in a career defining performance as the agoraphobic (among other maladies) stricken lawyer brother of the main character. His scenes with Odenkirk have been heart-wrenching, occasionally recalling the Michael/Fredo scenes from GODAFATHER II.

There have been other shows that have passed over once again such as THE AMERICANS and RECTIFY, but overall they seem to be moving in the right direction. It was either that or head off the edge of that cliff they've been perched upon for the past decade. 

Sad Men

And thus, Mathhew Weiner's MAD MEN ends not with a bang, but with an "Ommmmmm..."

The finale of AMC;s first successful foray into series television had the feel of a greatest hits album with additional previously unreleased tracks. High notes abounded, giving closure to some characters, new roads to travel for others and for Dick Whitman AKA Don Draper, a round trip ticket. Some elements seemed too pat, like a fairy tale ending for Peggy Olsen, but those who are familiar with the Weinerverse now full well that pitfalls are right around the corner. But that final coda put it all in perspective with a wink and a jab to the ribs to make it all worthwhile.

2011: All God's Chillun Go to Hebbin

Gosh, an honest-to-blog year-end wrap-up complete with Top Ten lists and everything...

Let's not and say we did.

The truth of the matter is that I'm not really feeling reflective at the moment, odd given the time of year. I suppose my lack of interest in this matter is given to the fact that I engage in this on a daily basis and frankly, I need a bit of a break and so do the rest of you. Can't we just forward with out looking back for a change? I'm not saying "Let's ignore history!" and embrace the ephemeral like the rest of society. No, I'm not conforming to the status quo. I'm just a little sick and tired of instant nostalgia. I want to earn my memories, not cater to them. As for those that I have, I'll wear them like badges of honor, leaving for more as times goes by because it ain't over 'til I sez it's over.

As for what I consider the Best of 2011, I feel ambivalent even mentioning them since it's just more of the same. I can say that the best movie I saw in theaters this year was Woody Allen's Midnight in Paris, but the ambiance and my frame of mind had just about everything to do with that choice. I saw it in Brooklyn (Woody's hometown) and I was on one of the best vacations of my entire life. The Book of Mormon was the best live theater event for me this year but once again, I saw it on Broadway and it was the only show I attended this year. (It's still superb, by the way) Do you need to know that I believe Breaking Bad had to be, hands down, the finest TV show of the year and one of the greatest entire seasons in broadcast history, every single episode a knockout? Well, now you do. I also echo just about the entire critical conclave when I say that TV outdid movies AGAIN this year, especially with shows like Treme, Justified, Louie, American Horror Story and Game of Thrones. Music-wise, I stand by my own assessment and choose as my favorite song Dig a Little Deeper from Moonshine Willy's 1998 album Bastard Child and if I hear Adele's Rolling in the Deep one more time, I am going to totally lose my shit. At my age, that's no idle threat. Book-wise, I'll gladly mention Michael Chabon's The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay and hey, an actual title from 2011- Laura Hillebrand's brutally brilliant World War II survival non-fiction work, Unbroken. (Okay. I cheated. I didn't list a Top Ten, just some highlights. I guess I just couldn't resist. Old habits die hard.)

I will look back on 2011 fondly and with gritted teeth. The hardships have increased but it really does make the blessings that much sweeter. And no blessing was greater than the new girl in my life, my incredibly beautiful granddaughter Aefa, born May 31, 2011. It is because of Aefa and what she represents that I will greet 2012 with arms wide open. And that something is hope and with that, I can endure.

To you and yours out there, I wish the same. If you've never had it, find it. If you lost it, reclaim it. Hope will makes us stronger. Hope will allow us to move on. Hope will help us survive. It beats the holy hell out of surrendering.

As always, be good to each other and please be good to yourselves. You deserve it. We all do.

Happy New Year, gang. See you on the other side