The Night Clerk is a crime drama film written and directed by Michael Christofer.  The cast includes Tye Sheridan, Helen Hunt, Ana de Armas, and John Leguizamo.

Sheridan plays a hotel night clerk who is afflicted with Asberger’s Syndrome and has a rather unusual method of trying to overcome the social mishaps that come with disorder.  He has wired up cameras in the various guest rooms and mimics the conversations he overhears in an attempt to be more in tune with those around him.  One night, Bart witnesses a murder in one of the rooms and is understandably reluctant to share his rather unconventional pastime.  Anyway, Bart ends up being reassigned to another site and comes across another pretty girl with whom he sort of connects. Meanwhile, a determined and wily detective has Bart in his sights.

The movie has an interesting premise and is not all that long, but it is a slow moving train.  The performances were pretty good and long time veteran actors like Hunt and Leguizamo does help.  I did like seeing Leguizamo in something other than the goofball he often portrays.  He is the shrewd detective on the case and delivers a pretty solid performance here.  Helen Hunt is also interesting to watch as well.  I don’t know much about Asberger’s, but Sheridan seems to have studied up on it enough to be convincing.  The actors were fine, but the story seems to be burdened by a lot of coincidence at times. There is not much direct conflict between Bart and the killer except toward the end.  There are times where the actions taken by some of the characters fail to make much sense.

In spite of the talent among the cast, I found this movie rather disappointing.

Nightmare Country is a Doctor Who audio drama produced by Big Finish Productions.  It is an episode from the range known as The Lost Stories, which were intended for the television series but for some reason never produced.  Stephen Gallagher is the writer with Ken Bentley in the director’s chair.  Peter Davison stars as the Fifth Doctor and is joined by Janet Fielding and Mark Strickson, reprising their roles as Tegan and Turlough, respectively.  The guest cast is comprised of Beth Chalmers, Ian Conningham, Edward Dede, and Tracy Wiles.

The story pretty much starts in the middle of the action with the Doctor finding himself on what is apparently a dead world with no memory as to his identity or why he is there.  The Doctor has a mission inside a simulator known as the Reality Engine.  He is in a shared virtual reality with an alien menace known as the Vodyani bearing down on him and the other visitors.  It is up to Tegan to enter the madness and help job the Doctor’s memory.

I ended up liking the episode in spite of some confusing elements.  The performances were all solid enough.  The Fifth Doctor, Tegan, and Turlough is favorite team for me, and I found that their chemistry together was as reliable as ever.  This was a pretty creative idea, and I enjoyed having the Doctor face an adversary unfamiliar to the fans.  Probably one of the main reasons for this story not actually being filmed was due to the production budget being too limited for the visual effects called for.  The sound effects were of high quality as expected from Big Finish.  Davison seemed pretty well engaged with this one.  The story is interesting in spite of some lack of clarity.  Some of that will probably come to light once I get around to listening to this one again.

The Ginger Man is a novel written by J.P. Donleavy and was first published in 1955.  Donleavy was an American who immigrated to Ireland much like the main character in this novel.  He actually died not all that long in 2017.

Anyway, Sebastian Balfe Dangerfield is the protagonist or anti-hero, or just the cad at the center of this story.  He is attending law school in Dublin and marries a woman.  Then he cheats on her.  There are some bar fights and affairs peppered throughout.  There is a rather strange blend of first and third person prose which does not help present a very clear story.

I will always have a soft spot for Ireland and its people since I have been there a few times.  I really wanted to like this novel, but I just couldn’t stay engaged with it.  I did finish reading it, but not much of it stuck with me.

Apparently, this work is very highly acclaimed, but perhaps a more notable literary critic will have to explain to me what I missed in order to garner some enjoyment out of this. I could not bring myself to care about the characters.  I did somewhat enjoy picking up on the landmarks that I knew from my previous sojourns over to the Emerald Isle.

I found it rather unfortunate that I found this work so unsatisfying.  Fortunately, it doesn’t dent my affection for Ireland one bit.  I may not rush out to collect another Donleavy novel, however I will certainly be willing to explore other works by Irish authors.

I will be returning to American soil with my next reading indulgence, however like The Ginger Man, this one will take place just after World War II.  Easy Rawlins is introduced to crime fiction readers in Walter Mosley’s Devil in a Blue Dress.

Relic is a horror film recently released and is directed by Natalie Erika James, who also co-wrote the script with Christian White.  The main cast is comprised of Emily Mortimer, Robyn Nevin, and Bella Heathcoate.  The film takes place in Australia, which I rather enjoyed since I have not seen many films in that locale.

Kay and her daughter, Sam go out to visit Kay’s mother and are soon alarmed when it seems she has not been seen in several days.  The house seems to be invaded by a peculiar black mold.  A shadowy presence lurks just out of eyesight.  Strange sounds also disturb the night.  The grandmother makes a sudden appearance but is behaving oddly. Kay is having strange dreams about a decrepit old man in an isolated cabin.  It’s just a very strange movie.

Anyway, the film is not long but it has a bit of a slow burn at times.  I am not sure the explanation for these bizarre occurrences was all that clear to me.  I was not familiar with these actresses, but I did find their performances to be convincing enough.  The movie did have some genuinely disturbing moments which I relished since I do have an appreciation for the genre.  I thought it was one of the better films of this nature in recent years.  I also rather liked not knowing much about the main cast much although they are likely well known in Australia for the United Kingdom.  I sort of found the title to be somewhat perplexing since there did not seem to an actual relic that this thing revolved around.  The title could have been better considered.

Although a bit more clarity as the story unfolded would have been appreciated, enough was done right as far as casting and the mood that I didn’t end up disliking the film.  My fellow horror film aficionados should be able to find some enjoyment here.

In Defense of Elitism by Joel Stein has a long subtitle that I am going to just people read in the little picture.  It is one of my few efforts to read nonfiction, but I hope to do better with branching out of my usual reading preferences.

Joel Stein is former contributor to Time magazine who was fascinated as to why Roberts County, Texas had the highest percentage of Donald Trump voters and decided to spend a week among the residents of Miami, Texas.  He was expecting certain unflattering characteristics about these folks and made uncovered some surprising truths about them.

Stein has probably many of the unflattering characteristics of those many assign to those who live in California.  Mainly he is a liberal elite writer who considers those of more conservative opinions to be backward, uneducated, and incapable of any reasonable coherence.

Stein discusses various types of elitism and is even brave enough to sometimes look upon his own peers with a critical eye.

I read this volume after it was selected in a book club in which I participate.  Just to be a clear, I am an unapologetic conservative Republican voter, so I was not sure if I was going to appreciate this particular selection.  It turns out that I could get through it without wanting to pitch it across the room.  Stein has an enviable wit in his prose.  One of the purposes of this blog is to work on improving my own style of written expression.  One of the purposes of the book club is work on improving on my range of reading preferences.

Did I get a little rankled at some aspects of this book?  Sure, but not as often or as severe as I expected.  It didn’t convince me to change my political leanings, but it did challenge me to examine them from a different perspective, and not everything Stein concluded is wrong.  I will allow other readers to come to their own conclusions or impressions as to what I may have agreed or disagreed with Stein about.

I also currently live in Amarillo, Texas which is not far from Miami, Texas so it was kind of amusing to read of a populace in close proximity to my humble abode.  Anyway, I would recommend a perusal of this book, even for those of us unapologetic Republican voters.

Next up, I am going to read a book I had picked up on my last trip to Ireland.  I will see what J.P. Donleavy has to tell about The Ginger Man.

Miss Meadows is a rather peculiar thriller film released in 2014.  Karen Leigh Hopkins write and directed this film.  Katie Holmes plays the title role and is joined by a cast that includes James Badge Dale, Cullan Mulvey, and Jean Smart.

Mary Meadows is a sweet, naive substitute teacher in a small town elementary school.  She also keeps loaded gun in her purse for those moments when she encounters those who do not want to act with any courage or kindness.  She also has a strange fondness for tap dancing, which I don’t mind.  I love watching that kind of thing.  She also just shoots people who are obviously a threat to her or the community.  The local sheriff has also fallen for her without realizing her more dangerous tendencies.  Miss Meadows also meets a more formidable adversary when a recently paroled child molester sets his sights on her.

Now, the basic plot is intriguing enough. The cast seems well chosen, but there are problems with how events unfold.  Miss Meadows encounters Mulvey’s creepy pervert, Skyler, and for some reasons gives him fair warning as to her intent should he target any child in her vicinity.  That was not a courtesy afforded to the other miscreants she dispatched in the film.  This was just a strange movie where some decisions by the characters were just baffling.  Also, the climax of the film was a letdown.  Holmes seemed to be reasonably good casting for this role, but the writing just didn’t serve her very well.  Miss Meadow’s eccentricities were plentiful, but I didn’t find her as fascinating as I would have expected.  There is a lot here that I should have enjoyed instinctively, but I was a bit disappointed when it was all over.

I just don’t think this piece lived up to the potential of what was actually a fairly clever story idea.

The Sleepers In The Dust/Snake Bite is a Doctor Who audio book double feature from BBC Audio.

The Sleepers in the Dust is written by Darren Jones and read by Arthur Darville.  Darville is known to us Doctor Who fans as Rory Williams, husband of Amy Pond, and companion of the Eleventh Doctor.  The Doctor, Amy, and Rory arrive on a planet where they have to contend with a sentient form of bacteria.  Amy is stricken, and the Doctor and Rory have to travel back to the past to save her life.  The story is a little more complicated than I make it sound.  It’s not to be rated as anything on the level of classic, but it’s competently written.  Darville’s delivery is also compelling enough.  It’s a pretty solid effort here.

Snake Bite is written by Scott Handcock and also has some interesting pieces in the plot.  Frances Barber is the presenter here and she does pretty well.  The TARDIS lands in the middle of an experiment with wormholes, and the Doctor and Rory have to go rescue Amy yet again.  In another dimension, they find a race trapped and willing to split the fabric of reality to gain their freedom.  In case you couldn’t guess, this particular group of aliens resemble snakes.  I also enjoyed this story.  Barber does a good job in the presentation.

Neither story is really awesome, but both are enjoyable enough for me to not regret the purchase.

Cry of the Vultriss is a Doctor Who audio play from Big Finish Productions and is written by Darren Jones.  John Ainsworth is the director of this episode which stars Colin Baker alongside Miranda Raison and Lisa Greenwood.  Nicholas Briggs returns as the voice of the Ice Warriors as well.  Natasha Cowley. Adele Lynch, and Caroline Lawrie are part of the talented guest cast as well.

The Sixth Doctor is once again accompanied by Constance Clarke and Flip Jackson or Ramon, since she does have a wedding to which to return.  The TARDIS is forced out of the space/time vortex and crashes to a planet ruled by bird-like inhabitants known as the Vultriss.  The Vultriss have recently had a coronation and the new queen is set to welcome a diplomatic team comprised of the Ice Warriors, a race the Doctor has not always been able to trust.

There are some interesting aspects to this story.  The main villain is a female Ice Warrior played by Adele Lynch.   For some reasons, no voice modulation was used on the cast members playing the Vultriss characters.  I sort of found the effort to imagine these bird-like creatures sounding completely human to be a little off-putting.

Overall, I did find this episode to be well done even if I have some misgivings about not making the voices of the Vultriss more distinctive.  This particular TARDIS team makes a welcome turn.  The two women traveling with the Doctor are Big Finish original creations.  Constance Clarke was a WREN serving at Bletchley Park during the Second World War while Flip is a twenty-first century Londoner with an overdeveloped taste for adventure.  The relationship between Mrs. Clarke and Flip works very well with this particular Doctor.  Colin Baker continues to display an impressive energy now that he has been able to perform much better material than he had gotten on the television series over thirty years ago.  He has now been playing the role for Big Finish since 1999.

All of the basics were covered well.  The sound effects were convincing.  The performances were solid.  The business with the Vultriss sounding completely human is a minor issue, but I would still say that Darren Jones delivered with a gratifyingly intriguing story.  Of course, having this particular TARDIS crew is always going to help.

The Outpost is a recent war drama directed by Rod Lurie.  Eric Johnson and Paul Tamasy adapted for the big screen from a book by Jake Tapper.  Scott Eastwood, Orlando Bloom, Milo Gibson, and Caleb Landry Jones.

The film tells the story of the Battle of Kamdesh, which took place in Afghanistan in 2009.  It culminates into the assault from about 400 Taliban soldiers onto an outpost manned by just over 50 United States soldiers.  I had not heard of this particular event, but it did result in two army soldiers receiving the Medal of Honor a few years later from President Obama.

There apparently was some controversy surrounding this because the base is badly placed surrounded by mountains, which allowed the Taliban to descend from on high. There apparently was a hold up with supplies.  Air support was not readily available.  Some people in command took some serious reprimands.  The actions of the soldiers at the base are unquestionably heroic though, and that is most important takeaway from this film.

This is pretty intense and gritty cinematic experience.  The performances were about as genuine as anything I have seen in a while.  There were some moments where it was hard to figure out who was doing what during the battle sequences, however it’s a war movie, so even that’s a little hard to criticize too much.

The movie is pretty jarring to watch at times.  The gore of some of the wounds is explicit, but fortunately the camera does not linger too much on that.

This is a true story where some US soldiers die terribly, so it seems strange to declare this as something to enjoy.  I will say that this is something to see and appreciate for not only skilled movie making, but also the depiction of true heroism.  The men are shown to be a little argumentative and flawed at times, but when it’s time to fight, the camaraderie is truly inspiring as well.  We all hear about the brotherhood experienced among those who choose to serve and experience combat, but I think this is one of the best films to truly capture it in recent years.

This was a film that I only happened upon when I was curious as to what was being offered for the first trip to a movie theater since the pandemic restrictions were imposed.  I didn’t know much about it going in, but I was glad to have seen it after I left. This is one worth checking out for both the technical achievements and for the emotional impact of the storytelling.

House of Cards is a Doctor Who audio drama from Big Finish Productions which takes place during the early days of the Second Doctor’s era.  It is written by Steve Lyons and directed bu Lisa Bowerman.  Anneke Wills and Frazer Hines return as Polly and Jamie, respectively and also provide narration.  This is also an episode in the range known as The Companion Chronicles.

The TARDIS has brought the Doctor, Polly, Jamie, and Ben to a casino in space in the far future.  Gangsters with heads resembling snakes are a menacing presence and represent the Sidewinder Syndicate.  The local crime boss is a woman named Fortune, and the Doctor plays for the highest of stakes.

It’s a fairly interesting story and setting.  Wills and Hines play well together here.  It is interesting to note that Wills actually says the Doctor’s lines even though Hines really can conjure up a pretty uncanny impression of the late Patrick Troughton.  Ben  kind of lets his taste for gambling get the better of him, which I thought was an interesting addition to his character.

Steve Lyons has written for Doctor Who in various forms for a lot of years.  I sort of thought his snake creature was a bit of a repeat of the race known as the Selachians, which he created many years ago.  I found that a little distracting, but the story itself was actually pretty decent.  The sound effects and the energy Hines and Wills mustered for  their performance are compelling enough for me to still find more than acceptable amount of enjoyment.