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Meet the Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

Amy Sherman Pallidino, the creator of The Gilmore Girls brings us another Emmy Award-winning hit series, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. 

In this Amazon original series set in the late 1950s,  a woman’s place was at home supporting her man. That’s why Midge Maisel was at home making pot roast to help her husband, Joel a part-time aspiring comedian get a prime at ‘The Gaslight’,  a Greenwich Village comedy club.

Do you know how long it takes to make a pot roast? Hours, seriously…hours in a hot oven.

The Hilarious Mrs. MaiselMrs. Midge Maisel doing stand up

Miriam (Midge) Maisel 

Rachel Brosnahan (House of Cards) stars as the vivacious and funny  (and marvelous) Midge Weissman-Maisel. Midge is a college educated woman, during a time when a woman only went to college to find a good husband. And she found Joel. 

Midge is the perfect 1950’s housewife. They have two lovely children and live in a gorgeous upper Westside high-rise apartment in New York City. Midge has a closet full of fabulous clothes. She goes to bed every night in full makeup (including false eyelashes) just to please her husband. The children are always fed, put to bed and dinner is on the table just as Joel arrives home from work.

What else could a woman want? 

A faithful husband who is not having an affair with the dumbest secretary in the world would be nice.

It would also be great if he didn’t decide that flopping at the comedy club is no reason to pack a bag and leave the night before the Rabbi is coming to dinner. Bad timing!

That is where the story starts for the Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. She drinks a bottle of wine, heads down to Greenwich village and takes the stage at The Gaslight with a hilarious (and a bit raunchy) comedy routine.

The Husband – Joel Maisel 

Joel Maisel (Michael Zegan) has a boring day show working for his father manufacturing business. But his dream is to be a famous comedian, along with the lines of Bob Newhart, Lenny Bruce or Joel’s problem is, he NOT funny. But Midge has a sharp wit and she is naturally funny. 

Professor Abe Weissman, Midge’s father

I loved Tony Shalhoub in Monk. He has an understated style, but he’s very funny. Tony Shalhoub won an Emmy Award for his role of Abe Weissman, Midge’s father. He is a mathematics professor at Columbia University. Abe is a man with deeply entrenched habits and is not happy when anything disrupts is routine. 

The Lovely Rose Weissman

Marin Hinkle plays Midge’s elegant, helpful mother and Abe’s long-suffering wife. Rose is busy trying to please everyone. She wants her family to be happy. 

Enter Susie Meyerson

 After she sees Midge’s drunken, but hilarious comedy routine at the Gaslight, Susie Meyerson thinks Midge actually has ‘the goods‘. Meaning she could be a  female comedian. Sounds silly now, but back in the olden, golden 1950s, there weren’t many women stand up comedians.

Alex Bortstein plays Susie, the wannabe manager who reluctantly helps guide Mrs. Maisel through the seedy, late-night world of comedy clubs.

Also starring  Kevin Pollak as Joel’s dad, Moishe Maisel, Luke Kirby as legendary 1950’s comedian, Lenny Bruce, and  Jane Lynch as Sophie Lennon.

Emmy Award Winner

  • Outstanding Comedy Series
  • Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series Rachel Brosnahan
  • Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. Alex Borstein
  • Outstanding Writing and Directing for a Comedy Series – Amy Sherman P
  • Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series – Jane Lynch
  • Outstanding Period Costumes – For all of the gorgeous 1950’s outfits.

Catch up with Season 1 of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel on Amazon Prime before Season 2 debuts on  December 5, 2018.

More great TV series for your binge-watching pleasure.

*Adult language, nudity, and adult situations. Some scenes of drug use.

*Affiliate Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. That means if you purchase these products or services via these links I will receive a small commission. Hopefully, it will be enough to pay for my monthly Amazon Prime bill and maybe pay for one of those cute vintage coats and dress ensembles like Mrs. Maisel. I only recommend or suggest movies,   products and/or services that I use or think will you will like. This does not affect or influence my views and opinions on the articles I write about.

Trailer: The Hate U Give

In The Hate U Give, Amandla Stenberg (Hunger Games) is Starr Carter, a high school girl who tries to balance a life lived between two different worlds: the poor, mostly black, neighborhood where she lives and the rich, mostly white, prep school she attends.

The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Facing pressures from all sides of the community, Starr must find her voice and stand up for what’s right.

Directed by George Tillman, Jr, The Hate U Give is based on the critically acclaimed New York Times bestselling novel by Angie Thomas. Also starring  Regina Hall, Russell Hornsby, Issa Rae,  Common, and Anthony Mackie.

In Theaters October 19.

*Affiliate Disclaimer: This page may contain affiliate links

Trailer: A Star is Born

Take a look at the trailer for the remake of A Star Is Born. 

In this new telling on the tragic love story, four-time Oscar nominee Bradley Cooper (American Sniper, American Hustle, Silver Linings Playbook) plays seasoned musician Jackson Maine, who discovers — and falls in love with — struggling singer-songwriter, Ally (played by multiple award-winning, Lady Gaga).

Jackson Maine for A Star Is Born on TrailerAddict. Bradley Cooper, Lukas Nelson (Willie Nelson’s son) and Mark Ronson discuss how Jackson Maine found his voice and his sound. And watch a featurette – Finding Ally’s Voice for A Star Is Born about how Lady Gaga vision for Ally’s character and music.

A Star is Born is playing theaters now. Rated R for language throughout, some sexuality/nudity and substance abuse.
Listen to the A Star Is Born Soundtrack (Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper)

Are You Watching Timeless?

Why You Should Watch Timeless

The season 2 finale of Timeless aired Sunday evening and fellow Timeless fans like Leslie Jones, Kelly Clarkson,  William Shatner and I were left gasping.

The 2-hour finale led us on a time-traveling chase from South Carolina during the Civil War with Harriet Tubman to Chinatown in San Francisco during the Gold Rush and back to modern times. The episode ended with the possibility of traveling to the future. 

If you haven’t been watching NBC’s Timeless, you have missed one of the best and most original shows on TV.

Yes, there’s been time traveling shows before. Quantum Leap, Time Machine, and others, but Timeless is different. 

Mason Industries and the Mothership

Connor Mason, a British tech genius builds a pair of time traveling pods. Why? Why do tech geniuses do anything? Because they can.

Like all science experiments, something always goes wrong. In this case, ex-CIA agent, Garcia Flynn (Goran Višnjić) steals the Mothership and takes it on a time-traveling mission to change history for his own nefarious plans. 

The Timeless Team

Lucy Preston (Abigail Spencer) is a history professor following in her mother’s illustrious footsteps as an expert in American history.  Wyatt Logan,(Matt Lanter) is a special forces military man, still mourning the loss of his wife Jessica. His job is to protect the team and hunt down Flynn.   Rufus Carlin (Malcolm Barrett) is Conner’s protege, the time machine pilot and one of the engineers who helped to design the time machine. They all join forces to find Garcia Flynn. 

This is not your typical cast. Besides having plenty of diversity, the cast has interesting characters. There are smart, intelligent women like Lucy, Agent Christopher and Jiya who can take care of themselves and don’t need a man to save them. People of colors like Mason, Rufus, Christopher, and Jiya have fully fleshed out characters with their own backstories and motivations.

Timeless and Other Stuff You Missed in History

On a Mission to Save History

FBI agent Denise Christoper and Conor Mason put together the team to catch Flynn before he changes history in unknown and catastrophic ways.

Of course, there are lots of unsolved mysteries and secrets…

  • What is Garcia Flynn’s plan for the Mothership?
  • Who or what is Rittenhouse?
  • What is Connor Mason hiding? More secrets.
  • And where the heck did they find all of those gorgeous vintage outfits that Lucy wears on her time traveling trips? The period clothing is great and helps to make each episode feel and look authentic.

Not only does Timeless travel back to well-known dates in history like the explosion of the Hindenburg, the assignation of Abraham Lincoln and the battle of the Adamo, but they also meet some of the interesting people that helped shape history, like Hedy Lamarr, the Lone Ranger, and Ian Flemming.

No.  You don’t have to be a history buff to love Timeless. 

While watching episode The World’s Columbian Exposition the team ends up in H.H. Holmes’ Murder Castle, I thought ‘where have I heard about this before?” Oh yes, on one of my favorite podcasts, Stuff You Missed in History Class. That is not the last time that little-known characters and facts about history are featured on Timeless.

I’m binge-watching Timeless, on Memorial Day (May 28th) starting with episode one. Come along with me and the Timeless time traveling trio on our adventures to save history.

Watch Timeless on Amazon, Hulu, NBC app, and iTunes
*Affiliate Disclaimer: This page contains affiliate links. That means if you purchase these products or services via these links I will receive a small commission. Hopefully, it will be enough to pay for my monthly Netflix bill and maybe pay for some cute new shoes. I only recommend or suggest movies, products and/or services that I use or think will you will like. This does not affect or influence my views and opinions on the article I write about.

 

 

The Iron Orchard: World Premiere at the Dallas International Film Festival

My first movie at the 2018 Dallas International Film Festival was The Iron Orchard, a movie with a true Texas feel because it was made in Texas by Texans.  The Iron Orchard was directed by Ty Roberts and stars North Texas native, Lane Garrison. 

Based on Tom Pennington novel of the same name, The Iron Orchard follows the rise to power and success of Jim McNeely (Lane Garrison).  Jim is a young man thrust into the vibrant and brutal West Texas oilfields in 1939, who works his way through the ranks to become a powerful wildcatter.

Jim leaves everything behind, including his beautiful, young girlfriend Mazzie. He sets off to go seek his fortune in the hot and dusty West Texas oil fields.

Black Gold, Texas Tea

The Iron Orchard movieSpending his days digging ditches and laying out the pipes in the oilfields under the hot Texas sun with the other wildcatters, Jim meets a bunch of rough and rowdy guys who work hard and drink hard. But they all dream of the day when they will make their fortunes in oil.

Along the way, Jim learns the oil business and eventually becomes friends with a few of the locals and an eclectic bunch of wildcatters.

After a chance encounter with Lee, his abused boss’ wife, Jim develops a friendship that will change his life.

Success in the oil business means you have to be a risk taker and a deal maker. Risk BIG the oil comes gushing out of the ground. That is how Jim lives. It doesn’t matter who or what you have to do to make it happen. 

With help from his friend and business partner Dent Paxton (Austin Nichols), Jim’s ambition takes him to the heights of success in the oil business.

Even with the best of luck you never know if the well will be worth all the hard work and money invested. Years pass and Jim learns the art of shady deal-making and his fortune continues to grow. 

But will that be enough? 

Devastating disaster, betrayal, and loss will lead Jim to realize what’s important in his life and what he truly values. 

Will success make you happy?

How much money is enough?

The Iron Orchard was filmed in Big Spring and other locations including Austin. There’s plenty of Texas landscapes, as well as some lovely Art Deco decor, and cute 1950’s fashion.

Rated R (some strong language) Made in Texas, 2018, 110 min., Color + B/W, English

Yeah! It’s Film Festival Time!

New York City has Tribeca and Colorado has Sundance. You’ve heard of these famous film festival, along with Cannes, Toronto, and others. These film festivals are the events where some of the year’s best movies will first appear on the big screen

Even though I am here in North Texas, I can still enjoy a bit of ‘filmfesting’. Here are a few local film festivals that will feature a variety of film genres.

North Texas Film Festivals

Women Texas Film Festival logo
Women Texas Film Festival: August 16 – 18, 2018 at the Studio Movie Grill. This woman-focused film festival showcases a wide variety of range of female filmmakers and storytellers.  The Studio Movie Grill also hosts the Pegasus Film Festival, a fest of films from North Texas high school students.
USA Film Festival: April 25-29, 2018 at the Angelika Film Center. The 48th year of this popular film festival will feature The Last Wave, A Salute to Richard Chamberlain, along with The Gospel According to André, Tully, and loads of short films and documentaries. 

FantasticFest: September 20 -23 in Austin, Texas. Fantastic Fest is all about horror, fantasy, sci-fi, action, and other scary movies, so you know I’m not going. But if movies like Brimstone & Glory, My Friend Dahmer, and Vampire Clay are your thing, then this is the film festival for you.

Dallas International Film Festival

My favorite is the Dallas International Film Festival. The 8-day fest starts Thursday, May 3 and runs through Thursday, May 10 at the Magnolia Theater in Uptown’s West Village.

This year,  the Dallas International Film Festival (DIFF), will screen over 110 films from 25 countries. There will also be a  25th-anniversary event for Steven Spielberg’s Academy Award-winning blockbuster,  Jurassic Park at the Studio Movie Grill on Sunday, May 6.

That right! Eight fantastic days and nights of nonstop movie watching fun. Followed by writing back to back movie reviews and maybe even a few interviews with a filmmaker or two.

Seriously! It’s a lot harder than you think. Fortunately, I have a method to my movie madness.

First: Get my festival badge. DONE! You can get yours HERE.
Second: Browse the DIFF film guide to make a list of the movies I want to watch. I try to keep an eye out for chick flicks or any other movies you might enjoy. I have already spotted a few titles that look interesting.

I’m also looking forward to Won’t You Be My Neighbor, a documentary film on the legacy of Mister Rogers by Academy Award-winning filmmaker Morgan Neville (Twenty Feet from Stardom).

Third: Charge up my iPhone, wear comfortable shoes, grab a Venti Iced Tea and head to the movies.

Stay tuned for my reviews of these and other movies, from the DIFF. Follow me on Twitter @clarabela #DIFF

Dallas VideoFest presents Women and the Movies They Make

Women Who Made the Movies headerAs The Women’s March, #metoo, #TimesUp and #blacklivesmatter generate new waves of feminist activism, Dallas VideoFest takes a look back at the ways women have used their creativity and passion behind the camera. In this program, they will screen films from the Women Make Movies catalog that highlights the power and persuasion of feminist cinemas across the ages and across the globe. [Read more…] about Dallas VideoFest presents Women and the Movies They Make