Bright spots, in an otherwise down year for Indie cinema

Before I begin, let me salute Bill Paxton and Harry Dean Stanton, two vastly underrated actors that appeared in one of my favorite shows, 'Big Love'. I'm glad the DIFF (Dallas International Film Festival) honored Paxton, after all he grew up in Fort Worth. Stanton was a superb character actor, as his recent cameo in 'Twin Peaks' proved. They will be missed...

2017 was an average year for Independent cinema. I blame the dumbing down of society, where the aim is to keep your head down via plastic gadgets, watching inane clips or god forbid tweeting out racist drool, instead of leaving the house to appreciate the arts. When society attacks critical thinking and craves the quick fix it become a race to the bottom of humanity.

In all the doom and gloom, there were 10 gems that restored my faith in film making. Maybe one day I will find a spot for them in my all-time favorite list (refer below).

A Ghost Story - one of the greatest eating scenes in cinematic history. Shot locally in the DFW area on a $100,000 budget (a rarity in today's money hungry climate).

Buster's Mal Heart (Sarah Adina Smith) - I'm not embarrassed to say it: I have a man crush on Rami Malek.

Call Me by Your Name (Luca Guadagnino) - three languages, sublime cinematography and peaches (you'll never look at this fruit the same way), what more do you need!

Get Out (Jordan Peele) - darkly comic tale exposing racism. The film America desperately needed in the wake of bigots crawling out of their bunkers.

Good Time (Benny and Josh Safdie) - teen heartthrob Robert Pattinson makes the indie transition and it works. Take a bow Safdie brothers, true definition of what it means to work outside the studio system.

Hjartasteinn/Heartstone (Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson) - as an avid supporter of Icelandic film this film doesn't disappoint. I was fortunate to see this at the 2017 DIFF, goes to show that the bond between Texas and Iceland is booming! Come May, 2018 it will grow even more when Icelandair and WOW air begin direct flights between Reykjavik and DFW.

Lady Bird (Greta Gerwig) - no, it's not about Lyndon Johnson's better half. Nothing Hollywood about this film, it's directed and written by a Sacramento native, loosely based on her coming-of-age experiences in California's capital.

The Florida Project (Sean Baker) - Willem Dafoe automatically makes any film better, but he's overshadowed in this one by amazing novice child actors. Powerful portrayal of what it means to live on the poverty line (in the shadows of Disney World), it perfectly encapsulates that the American Dream for many is just that, a dream.

The Shape of Water (Guillermo del Toro) - del Toro comes close to topping his masterpiece, Pan's Labyrinth. Together with Alejandro González Iñárritu, both are showcasing the rich tapestry of creativity coming out of Mexico.

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (Martin McDonagh)- Frances McDormand is a national treasure, very few can match her ability as a character actor. She has not sold-out for a paycheck or succumbed to the surgeons knife to appease sleazy executives. If she doesn't win the 2018 Oscar for Best Actress, than the Academy should dissolve.

*For those that missed it the first time around.

https://globaleditorial.blogspot.com/2017/07/the-best-films-according-to-yours-truly.html

Tickle me pink: Hollywood's harsher on predators than Washington

Two steps to start the process of wiping the political slate clean of deviants. Step one: throw the 25th Amendment at the sexual predator in chief (I will never type his name, as subhumans deserve the utmost disrespect). Step two: bulldoze the William Jefferson Clinton Library, my apologies to oily men! Now that Hollywood is giving the boot to sexual predators (albeit belatedly), politics needs to follow suit.

Bizarre times we live in when the entertainment business is harsher on deviants than politics is on taxpayer funded representatives. Full disclosure: I'm an extreme feminist, I will never open my door to anyone who mistreats woman or supports anything or anyone involved in this repulsive disorder. Yes, I include churches and political parties in this list. It's more evident than ever when you have religious types going out of their way to admire a full blown pedophile (I won't mention his name, but he stalks underage girls in Alabama). First of all the GOP should be discredited for backing a sexual harasser as President, secondly they should be disbanded over backing a child molester.

Now, now I'm apolitical, especially in this country where we have two backward conservative parties, not a progressive in sight. My above comments stand, Billie's library must be removed and every other pathetic Democrat that sits idly by allowing to be walked over, too scared to actually fight for a liberal democracy. We get it, conservatives in this country hate Muslims and minorities. Classic lines: I hate the gays and those brown folk praying weirdly. Hate to break it to you, but Islam isn't exactly pro-gay, so maybe deep down you're lovers. The so-called liberals allowing these hypocrites to getaway with murder are scared of being seen too Scandinavian. You know, those people from a part of the world that create world leading companies, yet maintain a social welfare system that is the envy of thee world. Next time you shop at IKEA, remember, you're supporting a "socialist" country that gives equal footing to promoting strong business development and maintaining a safety net for all, not just for the millionaires club.

In lieu of Christmas gifts, we should all tell our loved ones to disown everyone in their life that abuses woman or supports an organization that does. Funny, I thought only Hollywood types would defend sleazy men who major in abusing young girls, didn't think a bandwagon of baptists and evangelicals would be rolling out the red carpet for a pedophile. Maybe they're basking in the glory of voting for a thrice-married bigoted maniac that has rubbed himself onto countless woman forcefully. Sorry to put that image in your head, but I want you to think about supporting a predator for President and a child molester as a Senate candidate. Just to reiterate, there's no difference between American Christian conservatives and ones of the Muslim variety, they both lose sleep over the gays and get off on supporting filth that spit on woman.

PS. I also support the bulldozing of every Presidential library that honors war criminals, including the one that stands down the road from my residence (hint: named after an illiterate bumpkin that slaughtered some 500,000 innocents). This man went to Yale and has the same grade-three intellect as that Wharton educated tangerine sociopath. Sincerest apologies to 8-year-old's, I still trust you more with the nuclear codes than the aforementioned simpletons.