Movie Review: Roseville Pottery Historical Marker

Let's face it; there are plenty of places where you can go to read a review of the latest movie in theaters. GMLH is meant to be an informative resource to the public, so rather than just adding to the noise with another tired old review of the same movie that everyone else is talking about, today you are treated to a unique review of a film that has been given far less public attention. "Roseville Pottery Historical Marker" is an independently filmed documentary distributed by youtube.



The plot can be tricky to follow, with lots of twists and turns; this is like the LOST of historical-marker documentaries, so let's begin with a review of some key points.

1. The marker commemorates the former site of the Roseville Pottery Company, but the location is in Zanesville, not nearby Roseville, just south on state route 93.
2. Notable attendees include the Mayor of Zanesville (the honorable Howard Zelling), and representatives from the Iowa Art Pottery Association (IAPA), the American Art Pottery Assocaition (AAPA), and the Pottery Lovers (PL). Also notably present, is the very disruptive wind, tire and engine noise from passing traffic.
   
3. Zanesville and Roseville are cities in Ohio, not Iowa. The Iowa Art Pottery Association is just visiting, on some sort of recurring pilgrimage.
4. You're not seeing Roseville, you're not seeing Iowa, and you're not going to get to see any pottery factories. The actual factory here had been razed "a number of years ago", according to IAPA President Ted Priester, who long ago discovered the crumbled remains of the loading dock, which also no longer exist. Priester emphasizes that the Roseville Pottery Works is completely gone; "nothing exists now".

With this background, sit back and thoroughly appreciate the video. Things begin with Ted Priester, who recounts the joyful series of events that led to the discovery of the former site of the pottery works. Ted next graciously introduces the mayor, who issues a rousing pep talk, themed around pottery and Zanesville. "Enjoy Zanesville! We're a town on the move!"

This transition, from Priester to the mayor, has an elegant air of respectful ceremony, but at the same time is contrasted by unrelenting and intensely disruptive road noise from traffic, including an 18 wheeler and a tow truck. The viewer does not know what to make of this: do we celebrate the roadside marker, or mourn the scornful indifference the world shows to it from the very moment of its dedication?

In the next act, the film is infused with an emotional charge, and takes on greater depth. This charge is supplied by Arnie Small, President of the AAPA. "The American Art Pottery Association is just what it is: it's an association of people who just have a passion or a love for art pottery", begins Small.

He goes on to deliver a moving testimonial about what the Roseville Pottery Company means to him and all who call themselves lovers of pottery. He implores pottery enthusiasts to minimize the commercial aspect of pottery; "(I)t's not all about just selling pottery! It's about teaching my son, and the future generation, what the history is of, um, Roseville Pottery".

We are then brought to the final act, in which we hear from the whimsically rural Joe Tunnell. He is president of the Pottery Lovers, who reunite annually in Zanesville. Says Tunnell, with a delivery style reminiscent of Jim Nabors, "For me, and I think I speak for most pottery lovers, I've been coming myself to Zanesville for 18 years. Every year in July, I've been here. You know, I said the first year I came, that I will every single year for the rest of my life, I will be in Zanesville, unless I'm not able to come."

After going from the fist-pounding adrenaline highs of the mayor's speech, to the soul searching and challenging words of Arnie Small, the film brings the viewer softly back to the refreshingly easy subject of the pottery-loving everyman, using a warm touch of comedy. Masterfully done.

Arnie Small sums up this film himself during his memorable speech, by saying "When I heard about this at first, I didn't quite understand the significance of it, and I, um, I think now I understand a little bit more the history of it".

In saying this, Small represents the audience, who come to this film questioning the significance of Roseville Pottery, or the entire genre of art pottery for that matter. The success of this film will be measured by how well it can bring the viewer to think that they understand, a little bit more, pottery and what it means to their own lives.

Recommended Film: Mongol

Mongol is a Russian-made film in Mongolian language that traces the early life of Genghis Khan, or as he was called before coming to power, Temudjin.

The epic wonderfully presents the thirteenth century Mongolian culture. Before the stunning landscape of the Mongolian steppe, you meet Temudjin in a way different than in the history books. While witnessing the brutality he was capable of, you also see him as human.

Warning for those sensitive to violence: although this movie is primarily a love story, the battle sequences appear to be a showcase in the "blood-splatter" effect.

Mongol is shot and directed in a masterful style. It has the elegance and mystery of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (minus the magic), with a touch of Braveheart.

The style of this prequel is quite a departure from the original Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, but it works. The complexity of Genghis' character in Bill & Ted's makes so much more sense now after seeing his childhood struggles in Mongol.

It's good to see the franchise revitalized after the disappointing Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey. I'll look forward to similar prequels highlighting Napoleon, Abraham Lincoln, and Socrates.

4 Stars.

Movie Review of the Week: Wall-E

Summertime is full of traditions - baseball, fireworks and outdoor grilling, to name a few - and it seems like new traditions emerge all the time. For instance, every summer, when the corn stalks have just grown to reach knee height, and right after Brette Favre indicates that he intends to come out of retirement, Pixar studios releases an excellent film.

It has happened again this year. Wall-E is on par with everything else Pixar has produced, which means that it is a blue-ribbon movie. And unlike other Pixar movies, this one has a real, live, in-the-flesh appearance by none other than Fred Willard. Yes, in a pioneering move, real Fred is inserted amidst the animation, a la Mary Poppins, playing the role of president of BuyNLarge (a fictitious corporation with a very convincing website).

The entire film is, unfortunately, set to a dramatic backdrop of man-made, corporate-sponsored, environmental armageddon. The term "unfortunately" is deliberately chosen here in place of "tragically", because the politically sensitive theme doesn't kill the movie, and the plot-line and overall message of Wall-E aren't really what could be called "AlGorey". Just the same, promoting any sort of environmentalist message, no matter how tame, seems in today's society to be analogous to promoting an anti-witchcraft message in colonial Massachusetts. In a vacuum, both messages are potentially valuable; but in context, they're just problematic. I am sorry, but I have to dock Wall-E one star just for flirting with the subject. So that's 3 stars to Wall-E. Could have been 4, Pixar! Good thing for you, nobody cares about my opinions...

Movie Review of the Week: "I Am Legend"

One of the nice things about Christmas is that we get to spend time with loved ones we don't often see. The hours with them always seem to fly by like minutes as stories are shared and lost time together is made up for. After a while though, the conversation does eventually slow, and loved ones start dropping off; some disappear to the bathroom, while others begin to snoop around the host loved one's kitchen for snacks. The TV inevitably goes on and people enter into the early stages of napping.

Precious holiday moments intended to be savored with loved ones are suddenly threatening to diminish into boredom, naps and TV. This is when the host should suggest that everyone go out to see a movie.

The question now becomes, "Which movie to see?". To which, the answer is, "Huh?". And the question is now rephrased more properly, "What movie should we go see?". To help answer this question, I have screened a movie for review.

The movie is "I Am Legend". It has been quite a winner at the box office and when you think about it, this should be no surprise because "I Am Legend" combines two crucial ingredients for quality cinema:

A: Will Smith

B: A professional acting German Shepherd

The premise of the movie is that a virus swept the earth and turned 90% of the population into what I will call rabid zombies. The zombies' favorite pastime is attacking the remaining 10%. Will Smith is immune to the virus, and suspects that he is the only one left on earth after years of zombie attacks. He fills his days searching for survivors and also attempting to develop a cure to zombie rabies. Disappointingly, at no point does he consider organizing a 5k Fun Run for zombie rabies awareness.

This is a violent, suspenseful movie, so do not attend if you are expecting a heart-warming holiday classic for the whole family. I myself was reeled in by the promising trailer for "I Am Legend" in which viewers are flashed an image of a German Shepherd running alongside Will Smith on a treadmill. Intriguing behavior from a German Shepherd; if the dog can run on a treadmill, they could certainly train it to accompany Will Smith rapping during the closing credits, and so it is safe to say that the preview left me wanting more.

"I Am Legend" doesn't disappoint, with regards to canine content. The German Shepherd "Sam", played by "Abbey", has a key role in this one, and is magnificent. She has earned herself a "Best Actress" nomination this year, or at least some Beggin' Strips or Pupperoni.

This may seem premature, but my review is drawing near an end. Most of my notes from the movie pertain to Sam, I'm afraid. Seems I was a little preoccupied with the fact that there was a doggy onscreen, and a lot of the finer points of the film may have escaped me. As best as I can recall, "I Am Legend" was a pretty good movie though, dog or no dog. I give it two stars.

If You Can't Beat the System... Break It!

MOVIE REVIEW: BREAKIN' 2: ELECTRIC BOOGALOO

You will have to work to find your copy of this week's movie for review. However, "Breakin' 2: Electric Boogaloo" is worth searching for. I've never actually seen "Breakin' 1", but the important thing is that Lucinda Dickey, Adolfo "Shabba Doo" Quinones and Michael "Boogaloo Shrimp" Chambers were all able to make it back to star in the sequel.

Early on we are introduced (reintroduced?) to two enthusiastic break dancing youths named Ozone and Turbo. Ozone and Turbo love to dance, and they dress just like Michael Jackson does, so of course they are two very cool guys. Much of the plot (there are only about 4 minutes of total plot, so take that for what it is) centers on the relationship between Ozone and leading lady Kelly. Kelly looks like Mary Lou Retton, and is on the fast track to a promising career in theatre. She comes from wealth, and her parents spend most of their time sitting around a pool, as wealthy people love to do, plotting and scheming on how to convince their daughter to spend less time with Ozone and Turbo, whom they hold in low regard.

As if Kelly's pressures at home weren't enough, back in Ozone's neighborhood a developer wants to build a shopping center on the site of a beloved community center where the break dancing community tends to gather. I suppose that it goes without saying that the developer is an evil developer. Everyone knows by now that developers are the scourge of civilization.

Can Kelly, Ozone, and Turbo save the community center? Will Kelly's parents learn to accept her friends? I won't give you the answer - you have to watch for yourselves - but I will tell you that the answer involves a cameo by Ice-T.

Movie Review: Live Free or Die Hard

LIVE FREE OR DIE HARD: PERHAPS ONE OF THE BEST "DIE HARD" MOVIES YET!


I attended a showing of Live Free or Die Hard this last Friday night. Of all the Die Hards there have been, this one is by far the most recent. Here are some points of interest about the movie:

• Previews: One movie worth mentioning stars The Rock as a pro-football QB. Following a surprise visit from the young daughter he never knew he had, he needs to adapt his lifestyle to accommodate the kid. Hijinks ensues. There is one particular fact about this preview that struck me as peculiar: Rock's little girl's name is Peyton (I don't know if it's spelled that way but it should be). Will there be a scene where "Peyton" misbehaves and Bill Belichick happens to show up to bend "Peyton" over his knee and administer a spanking? We will have to wait and see, but in a movie about pro football and quarterbacks, "Peyton" is an interesting choice of name for a bratty little girl.

• Commercials: There is a great anti-drug commercial running before the previews in theatres lately. Please follow the link and watch it - I think you will really like it.
  
  
• Villain-to-Hero Drastic Disparity in Marksmanship: A phenomenon commonly found in movies of this genre is present again in Live Free or Die Hard. McClane rolls a fire extinguisher down a hallway and shoots at it to deter some villains with the explosion. He nails a hostile aircraft with a disruptive jet of water by breaking a fire hydrant at just the right moment, and finishes the chopper off later by catapulting his car into it. He even fires a weapon held in someone else's hand, through his own shoulder backward, survives and gets the kill behind him. The villains, for their part, have no luck. At one point, they are firing a heavy-duty machine gun at McClane's stationary car from about 15 feet away. McClane survives by ducking. "Duck", he instructs his sidekick, who takes heed and survives.
  
  
• Prolonged Scene Depicting Bruce Willis Beating Up a Woman 1/2 His Size: What the villains lack in accuracy, they make up with resiliency. There is a long scene in the movie where McClane fights a small woman in fierce, furniture-throwing, glass-breaking, bar-room-brawl, Ultimate-Backyard-Fighting-style combat. It seems absurd already to see Bruce Willis throw a brutal array of haymakers at a Lucy Liu-sized woman, but then the movie forces us to accept that she is able to sustain this attack and keep fighting for something like 10 minutes. She just keeps getting up and coming back for more - even after McClane assaults her with an SUV. I'm not sure what to think about the whole thing.
  
  
  Also worth mentioning, the personification of a Macintosh computer co-stars with Bruce Willis in this movie. I don't care for the guy's work. Never have. His characters annoy me. I've always used PC's and have no real complaints. So, going in I was afraid that he would drag this movie down, but he doesn't. He was a nice fit for his role in Live Free or Die Hard. Unlike the Mac commercials, the movie never condoned his annoying little attitude, rather his whole personality seemed meant to contrast and accentuate Bruce Willis' tough guy shtick. Much to my disappointment though, the PC never makes an appearance.

Live Free or Die Hard will probably insult your intellect: The action sequences are impossible, the villain is a ridiculously evil jerk, the script is just silly, and all law enforcement other than John McClane is slow and/or incompetent. But we should expect these things in a mindless action movie, and appreciated as such, Live Free or Die Hard is worth watching. If you're bored.

** 1/2

George's Movie of the Week

This week's movie is Spiderman III. Spiderman III can best be described as 140 magnificent minutes of unadulterated entertainment. The only way to improve upon this movie is to buy some Skittles at the theater and eat them while viewing the film, thereby extending the euphoric experience to a wider range of sensory receptors.

The stunts, fights and scenery are worth the price of admission on their own, but Spiderman III goes beyond the call and delivers an engaging plot as well. More than just a special effects action extravaganza, this movie has a clear and uplifting moral theme about the virtue of forgiveness and the chaos of vengeance: as glamorous as the black spidey-suit of vengeance is, we are all better off in life to don the red spidey suit of justice.

There have been complaints that Spiderman III is too long, but this critic was not bothered by the film's length. I could watch Spiderman III twice standing on my head, except that other people in the theater would probably complain about that, and I don't think I'd keep my balance standing on my head for 4 hours and 40 minutes.

I give the film three out of four stars (***).