Month: November 2011

“The Descendants” –Decent But Not Great

Written by diana on November 30, 2011. Posted in movie reviews. 3 Comments on “The Descendants” –Decent But Not Great

I recently saw “The Descendants” at the Napa Valley Film Festival. I had high expectations. What’s not to like about either George Clooney or Alexander Payne? Both of them are very talented entertainment superstars. However, neither George Clooney’s pretty face nor Alexander Payne’s mastery of comedy and...

“J. Edgar”—Investigating the Investigator

Written by diana on November 20, 2011. Posted in movie reviews, Unhealed Wound. 4 Comments on “J. Edgar”—Investigating the Investigator

Based upon a script by “Milk” screenwriter, Dustin Lance Black, and directed by Clint Eastwood, “J. Edgar” is a biopic of the controversial FBI director, J. Edgar Hoover. In this spellbinding movie, Leonardo DiCaprio, who plays Hoover, ages five decades, as he grows from an ambitious young law enforcer to the most...

Napa Valley Film Festival–Is this the next Sundance?

Written by diana on November 15, 2011. Posted in Film Festivals, Local travel, Unhealed Wound. 2 Comments on Napa Valley Film Festival–Is this the next Sundance?

Last week (November 9-13) I attended the inaugural Napa Valley Film Festival (NVFF) with a friend who lives in Calistoga and has volunteered in the festival’s planning. Over 100 films were presented, many for the first time at any film festival, in 12 screening locations from Napa to Calistoga. Along with viewing films we had the ...

Profile in Scribbles–“All About Me”

Written by diana on November 7, 2011. Posted in Blogging, Writing and Blogging Tips. 3 Comments on Profile in Scribbles–“All About Me”

I will be reviewing some movies from the upcoming Napa Valley Film Festival in the next few weeks. But in the meantime, I am posting a recent interview profiling my background writing “scribbles” in the newsletter by the same name distributed by my writers’ group, Central Coast Writers. Some of you have been asking for more...

“The Mayor of Casterbridge”–A Victorian Drama for Today

Written by diana on November 2, 2011. Posted in movie reviews, Unhealed Wound. 3 Comments on “The Mayor of Casterbridge”–A Victorian Drama for Today

Victorian values seem remote — the language is obtuse, the character development Shakespearean in complexity. However, I adore Thomas Hardy. As the master of labyrinthine plots, Hardy surprises when the viewer least expects it. And the BBC/A & E mini-series, “The Mayor of Casterbridge” (2003), capitalizes on every...