where: EDWARDS FAIRFIELD STADIUM 16 & I-MAX in Fairfield, CA
when: Friday, April 22nd, 2011
show: 10:20 p.m.
costs: $11.00 Ticket + $1.00 medium upgrade on a Free Small Popcorn ( movie watcher reward card freebie ) + $4.75 small Diet/Zero Coke = $16.75
auditorium: 13
seat: 4th row, 8th column
synopsis/overview: During the Great Depression, a veterinary student, Jacob Jankowski ( Robert Pattinson ), loses everything. To get away from it all, he hitches a ride on a train, a train that happens to be that of a traveling circus. His veterinary background gains him a job looking after the circus menagerie. He soon finds himself falling in love with a married woman, Marlena ( Reese Witherspoon ). And her husband, the brutally abusive ringmaster, August ( Christoph Waltz ), will stop at nothing to put an end to the illicit affair.
noteworthy scenes: 1.) Rings; 2.) The story; 3.) Car accident; 4.) "Your father was an irresponsible man"; 5.) "He ain't no bum"; 6.) Banzini Brothers Circus; 7.) "What smell"; 8.) Signal; 9.) Strip-tease; 10.) The Big-Top; 11.) "Don't ever mention Ringling Brothers"; 12.) Veterinary Sciences; 13.) Laminitis; 14.) Rex, the lion; 15.) "As long as we can walk, we play"; 16.) "Nobody stops or dies until August says so"; 17.) "You break my law, you have to pay the penalty"; 18.) Canceled shows; 19.) Rosie, the Elephant; 20.) Shakespeare's Histories; 21.) "'Can't have my Ivy League vet smelling like one of his patients"; 22.) "The world's run on tricks"; 23.) "Don't Tell Them What Happened ..."; 24.) "I'd like you all to make him feel at home"; 25.) Applause; 26.) Bull-hook; 27.) Rosie's wounds; 28.) Lemonade; 29.) Abusive act; 30.) Runaway; 31.) "Stay down! I mean it"; 32.) "We need to get a lot of whiskey; 33.) "I have debts to pay"; 34.) Command words; 35.) Raid; 36.) Kiss; 37.) "Something's wrong with Camel ( Jim Norton )"; 38.) "Everything is an illusion"; 39.) "Traditional Banzini baptism"; 40.) "I've always known the kind of woman you really are"; 41.) Fight; 42.) "You've got to get out of this train right now"; 43.) Hotel; 44.) Knife; 45.) Rocks; 46.) Stampede; 47.) "That was the life"; 48.) "Work is the best thing for age"; and 49.) "I'm coming home."
audience reaction: The audience liked this Romantic Drama.
recommendation: I liked it. It was quite a refreshing change from the plethora of Rom-Com "chick flicks" which have gratingly assailed my senses with their overly-promiscuous, implausible plot scenarios these last few years. Go see it. But be forewarned: It might be a tear-jerker for those of you who love horses and elephants.
spoiler alert! This is not a faithful adaptation of the book; it's a Hollywood interpretation of it. A lion will usually turn its head to the side and bare its fangs at you first to try and intimidate you. Then, it will look you straight in the eyes as it, once again, bares its fangs at you to warn you should you try and press your luck. So, Jacob, a veterinarian, should have known what kind of lion he was dealing with right away. What idiot would want to buy a circus animal without asking first of the seller what kind of tricks it can do and what kind of commands it obeys? After all, it is a circus animal, and circus animals usually are trained to do tricks. Duh .... Why was a lioness just sitting around in the Big-Top instead of mauling someone like the other big cats were doing? Bad acting on the lioness' part. They should have fired her--better yet, "red-lighted" her. Ha, ha, ha--snort!
fyi: Apparently, all circus elephants, whether male or female, are called, "Bulls." And someone who "carries water for elephants" is someone who doesn't know much about circus life.
It was shocking for me to see that a "bull-hook" with a sharp, pointy end was used on the elephant. That thing looked more like a Fireplace Poker than anything else. A "training tool" like that is just an instrument of provocation to an elephant.
According to an April 10th, 2010 article in http://news.change.org/stories/animal-advocacy-group-says-circus-death-was-no-accident, circus elephants caused 14 deaths and at least 140 injuries in the last 20 years because they were provoked into doing so by their abusive handlers.
I went to a circus only once. When we lived in Oakland, CA, ( or was it San Leandro, CA ) many years ago, my mom took me and my siblings to see a Ringling Brothers Circus show at the Oakland Coliseum. At the start of the show in the Big-Top, when the curtains were parted and the performers made their grand entrance, the entire place was permeated by the unmistakable smell of animal manure that wafted in as soon as the curtains were parted. That was it for me! 'Been there, done that! I don't ever want to see a circus show anymore.
word of advice: An elephant never forgets.
tidbits: When Jacob was walking on the road at nighttime, I was half-expecting werewolf Jacob to jump out of the woods and pounce on him. "Edward, you stole my girl and, now, you steal my name, too? Time for you to die, you bastard!"
After work, I shopped for the things that I will need for tomorrow's stir-fry because I promised some of my co-workers that I will whip-up a batch of food using, as a main ingredient, broccoli stems that people would otherwise throw away. You see, a broccoli stem may look tough on the outside but it cooks-up quite tender on the inside. All you have to do is slice-off the tough outer layer in such a way that you end-up with a rectangular piece. Then, slice the rectangular piece into thin slices so that it ends up looking like green pieces of sliced bamboo shoots. Then, you use it in a stir-fry with the Sliced Bamboo Shoots. The other ingredients that I bought were a can of Baby Corn, Extra-Firm Tofu, Snow Peas, Green Onions, Yellow Onion, Ginger ( to grate ), Garlic ( to mince ), Carrots, Sliced Mushrooms, Eggs ( to scramble, just need two ) and Boneless & Skinless Chicken. For the Stir-Fry Sauce, I will use a 14 oz. can of Chicken Broth, 4 Tablespoons Sweet Cooking Rice Wine, 3 Tablespoons Cornstarch, 2 Tablespoons Oyster Sauce, 2 Tablespoons White Soy Sauce ( milder and better tasting than the dark variety), 1 1/2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar and some sprinkling of MSG ( Vetsin ) and Black Pepper. And I will pour some Sesame Seed Oil over the whole thing once it is cooked to give it added flavor and aroma. And let's call this recipe, Cine-Man's Chicken-Broccoli Stem Stir-Fry because I don't see this at any of the Chinese Buffets that I go to.
And for tonight's dinner, I bought a Safeway Signature Cafe Turkey Pot Roast, the 5-Dollar Friday Special for this week. When I got home, though, I found out that the cashier double-charged me for the pot roast because she was distracted when she suggested that when the weather gets warmer I should come in wearing a Tank-Top! Good Lord! I haven't worn a Tank-Top in ages ever since I became a regular customer at All-You-Can-Eat Buffets about thirteen years ago! I guess she was trying to tell me that I need to lose weight. And maybe I should since "Speedo" season is coming up. ( Just so you know, "Speedo" season is to guys what "Bikini" season is to gals, i.e. Summer-long skimpy beach attire season. ) I wonder what the Mutaween will do if they see me parading around--unshaven, of all things--in my Speedo Swimming Trunks.
Then, I made a quick detour to shop at the 99-Cents Only Store on Springs Road in Vallejo, CA, for some paper plates and some plastic forks & spoons.
They only had two concessions checkers at the theatre. I hated that. The theatre actually has three concessions counters. But they just kept one open even though Friday is usually the day when most new movies come out. So, I stood in the long line very impatiently because I had the feeling that I'd miss the previews and probably the first few minutes of the featured attraction, too. As it turned out, I still had time to settle down and catch one-and-a-half's worth of previews before the show.
After the movie, I noticed an elderly black couple still in the auditorium with me. The gentleman asked me if I liked the movie. I said, Yes, I liked it. It was a good movie. And I bid them both, Goodnight.
It was about 12:30 a.m. when I arrived home. And I was planning on starting my blog on the movie then. But since I had to wake up early in the morning to make the stir-fry ( which takes a very long time to prepare and a very short time to cook ) and since I usually lose track of time whenever I'm blogging, I just decided to have a midnight dinner with the Turkey Pot Roast that I bought, then to call it a night.
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