Capitol Hill Blue Forums Misc. Topics Book, Movie & Podcast Reviews The Netflix Thread

Thank you, Julia.

I started reading this thread, starting from the last first, and kept working my way back page by page to see what I'd missed - and I'm sure glad that I did!

(seems to me the 'Big Muddy' is more than a river dividing this country - and the big fool is, well, you know...)


May I offer, in the same vein, this tune, "Your Flag Decal" from John Prine , complete with editorial comments (in 2004) about 2/3 of the way through...

I've always appreciated John Prine, Arlo and all the other protest songwriters of the 60s and since, but I've not gone back far enough to take a closer look at Pete and Woody and others... thanks, I'll do that now!

[p.s. I never thought of the Smothers Brothers as anything but entertainment but, watching his introduction to Pete it occurred to me that, in their way, they did some courageous things too]

When I was a kid, the Smothers Brothers were just a comedy hour - I didn't know there was anything else going on. In the last year or two, some of their shows have been released on DVD. These guys were incredible. The things they tried to do, and the fight they put up, and the huge chunk of a$$ CBS took out of them.

I wrote a thank you note to them after I watched it - that's how impressed I was.

If you get a chance, rent it. (For one thing, I had no idea Tommy was the brains of the two!)

By the time the Smothers Brothers show appeared, I was already a dropped out radical. They were one of the very few TV shows I was willing to watch -- and of course for that they were cancelled

Oh yeah they were incredibly brave and edgy for the time.

LOL, yep.

Anybody can be 'edgy' (remember 'Laugh-In', about the same time?), but to be brave AND edgy does take some cajones... (although, honestly, I wasn't allowed to watch 'Laugh-in' at the time, and I was only becoming aware of the larger issues (10 years old), so THEY may have been brave and edgy as well!)

Anyway, thanks to all for the recommendations, I'll definitely check out all these suggestions, they sounds inspiring, and that's something I think we all need!

Laughin looks like fluff, but if you pay attention to what actually is being said and can place it into historical/cultural context, it was very edgy. Would guess they had at LEAST as much trouble with the sensors as the Smothers Brothers. They pushed the boundaries around sexuality harder and farther, but the political satire was pretty far out there.

Wondering, in the context of the earlier discussion about Pete Seeger, how many folks understand the important role he played, and continues to play in the environmental movement in America. See, for example, http://www.observer.com/2008/green/pete-seeger-green-hero-our-time . When we lived on the Hudson and rode the train up and down its banks to work, Pete was commonly viewed as the savior of the river.

In the documentary there's a very good section on Pete's work to rescue the Hudson.

He's really spooky -- I don't think I've ever heard or read a bad word about him, aside from the fact that being on the road so much he was probably less of a devoted father than any kid might have wished. And that's not a minor thing, but it is to some extent understandable for a traveling performer.


(I consider his run-in with the red-baiters to be a badge of honor!)

Saw a very nice Japanese movie last night. I'm not big on samurai movies, although I've seen most, if not all, of Kurosawa's work, especially with Mifune. But I'm not sure "The Twilight Samurai" is really a samurai movie.

Seibei Iguchi is nicknamed Twilight because he always goes home after the day's work is done - never goes out drinking and carousing with the other samurai. But Twilight goes home because he is the only functioning adult in his household - his wife is dying, his mother is doddering and doesn't always know who he is, and his two daughters are too small to run the household.

As the movie opens Twilight's wife has just died, and he has impoverished himself to give her the funeral her family believes she deserves. As the movie progresses Twilight realizes that he is not interested in fighting, if he ever was, and would much rather farm and care for his family. Of course, samurai movies being what they are, Twilight must engage in one great battle -- to death? With death?

This movie is beautifully filmed, with all the traditional misty, rainy Japanese scenes (including pretty falling blossoms) and the deep greens of the landscape really stayed in my mind. The detail is great, too, down to the hole in Twilight's tabi sock toe.

Oddly enough, in the final scenes the actor playing Twilight (Hiroyuki Sanada) reminded me of Johnny Depp - who would be great in an American remake.

There is also, of course, a love story line.

Made in 2002 and subtitled.

I didn't know he "testified" there. Anyone know of a good book that covers the HCUA?

Now I'm deciding which Pete Seeger CD I want for Christmas.

And checking netflix for the Smothers Brothers' Show.

He was convicted; the conviction was overturned in 1962. He didn't do much jail time - I'm thinking it was only one day - but it killed his performing career and his family went hungry for awhile.