THE MECHANIC, R ( 1 hr & 32 min )

where:  MOVIE2K.COM  on my laptop
when:  Tuesday, February 1st, 2011
show:  11:15 p.m.
costs:  $0.00  Free Download
auditorium:  My living room
seat:  My swivel chair

2nd time:

where:  CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA
when:  Wednesday, February 2nd, 2011
show:  5:20 p.m.
costs:  $7.50 Ticket + $4.50 Pretzel Bites + $4.00 small Diet/Zero ( w/ Barq's & Cherry flavors ) Coke + $8.98 Mountain Mike's Pizza Restaurant's Wednesday Night All-You-Can-Eat Pizza & Salad Buffet Dinner after the movie = $24.98
auditorium:  12
seat:   4th row, 8th column 

synopsis/overview:  The best hit-man, Arthur Bishop ( Jason Statham ),  is fooled into killing the wrong target.  Now, he is out for revenge with the help of  an unlikely apprentice/accomplice.
 

noteworthy scenes:  1.) Swimming pool; 2.) New target; 3.) Parking garage; 4.) Cemetery; 5.) "What kind of person shoots someone in a wheelchair, anyway?"; 6.) Would-be car-napper; 7.) "You owe me now"; 8.) Animal shelter; 9.) Three-week assignment; 10.) Target shooting; 11.) Judgment calls; 12.) New roommate; 13.) Watch and learn; 14.) "A job"; 15.) Chihuahua and boys; 16.) Flunitrazepam [ Roofie ]; 17.) Change of plan; 18.) "Is it work or pleasure"; 19.) "I'm gonna call him, Arthur"; 20.) Luggage claim area; 21.) "File is a priority"; 22.) The new messiah; 23.) Adrenaline and epinephrine; 24.) "I'm hungry"; 25.) "Ketamine counteracts adrenaline"; 26.) Shoot-out; 27.) Rappel; 28.) Familiar face; 29.) "They played you so easily"; 30.) Hit-men; 31.) "I'm coming for you"; 32.) "I'm not a lefty"; 33.) Gun; 34.) Conversation in the truck; 35.) "You're gonna miss a good dinner"; 36.) "How much was Harry's ( Donald Sutherland ) life worth"; 37.)  Flushed-out; 38.) Bus; 39.) Garbage truck; 40.) Overkill; 41.) Hints; 42.) Gas pump; 43.) Note; and 44.) Surveillance tape.

audience reaction:  N/A

2nd audience reaction:  The audience seemed entertained by this, even the 6-year old momma's boy that some dumb-ass woman took with her to see this R-rated show.  I congratulate the woman for allowing her son to expand his vocabulary with the term, "Auto-erotic Asphyxiation," as mentioned and pornographically suggested in one scene in this movie--kid, don't do this at home!   L.O.L.

recommendation:  It was a good enough Action Movie.  Go see this on the big screen if you're a Jason Statham fan.

spoiler alert!  The bodyguards on watch should have noticed that something was amiss when their boss went swimming awkwardly and without turning his head to either side to come up for breath.  The overhead shot doesn't show the swimmer with his wrists held at all.  Why were there no sentries posted to guard/watch the perimeter of the villa?  During the target shooting, an ejected cartridge had a crimped opening, shown exiting in slow-motion ( Why would they use blanks for target shooting?  Ha, ha, ha.  This is a rhetorical question, by the way. ).  Why was  this particular shot shown in slow-motion for?  I want the Scene Editor's job!  Why didn't the hanged man's tongue stick out?  I see fingerprints all over the damn place!  What's so professional  about  leaving your prints at the scene of a crime?  The big guy could have easily gouged  the little guy's eyes out in the kill-or-be-killed fight.  Why was he the only one in the luggage claim area?   Why  did the hotel room have two-way mirrors?  It should be easy enough to tell whether or not the garbage disposal is grinding-up your hand.  Only $2.69 for a gallon of regular gas--when in heck was this friggin' movie made!?!?!?  He couldn't hear the gasoline splashing on the ground or smell its fumes ...?  Why didn't he see the note on the passenger seat right away?

fyi:  Even if a prop weapon is loaded with blank cartridges, it should not be aimed directly at someone because its blank's paper or plastic wadding can still cause serious injury, even death.  A promising young Hollywood actor was killed in this way:  Jon-Erik Hexum ( in 1984, at 26 years of age ).  And Bruce Lee's son, Brandon ( in 1993, at 28 years of age ), was killed by an unintentionally  squib-loaded prop gun.

word of advice:  "Revenge can kill you."  Arthur Bishop, the Mechanic

The best weapon is the element of surprise.

tidbits:  I had to see this movie again on the big screen to gauge the  Audience Reaction and because the movie2k.com version is short by seven minutes.  All that was missing was the Ending Credits--talk about a waste of my time and money!

attention:  It's that time.  So,  please, vote for me.  Thank you.

IP MAN: LEGEND OF THE GRANDMASTER, R ( 1 hr & 47 min )

where:  SHATTUCK CINEMAS in Berkeley, CA
when:  Sunday, January 30th, 2011
show:  7:10 p.m. 
costs:  $10.00 Ticket + $0.00 large Popcorn w/ Butter  ( free on my Landmark's Movie Watcher Rewards Card for February ) + $4.75 medium Sprite Zero + $0.00 Pierre 2 Mini Cheeseburgers ( given to me free at the Benicia Chevron gas station ) + $7.00 Chevron gas + $5.00 Carquinez Bridge Toll = $26.75
auditorium:  4
seat:  3rd row, 4th column, middle section

synopsis/overview:   Wing Chun Grandmaster Ip Man ( Donnie Yen ) wants to start a martial arts school in early 1950s Hong Kong.  And he soon finds out that a corrupt British Colonial  Police Officer, Superintendent Wallace  ( Charles Mayer ),  runs a protection racket, extorting money from local gangs with the help of  Kung Fu boss Hung Chun-nam ( Sammo Hung ).  Hung informs Ip that before he can set-up shop as a martial arts teacher, he must first attend a martial arts ceremony to test his fighting skills.  Ip beats his first two opponents and ends the third fight, with Hung, in a draw.  But refusing to pay protection money, Ip is forced to close his school.  He has another encounter with Hung, finally earning the latter's respect and admiration.  Hung invites Ip to see a Western-style boxing match, where  the featured celebrity boxer is the British Taylor "The Twister" Milos ( Darren Shahlavi ), a racist who  openly hates, insults and attacks some  Chinese martial arts school students who are there to demonstrate their skills.  The asthmatic Hung challenges "The Twister" to a fight and is mortally  beaten.  At a press conference, "The Twister" issues a challenge to any other Chinese martial artist.  Ip Man accepts the challenge.  Ip Man gets knocked down a number of times but, in the end, manages to win the fight.  Ip becomes the hero of  Hong Kong; and his Wing Chun style of  Chinese boxing becomes popular.


noteworthy scenes:   1.) Leaving for Hong Kong; 2.) New martial arts club; 3.) Laundry; 4.) Rent; 5.) The spar; 6.) New pupils; 7.) "Run"; 8.) Crazy man; 9.) Bullies; 10.) The fish market fight; 11.) Protection money; 12.) Jail; 13.) Martial arts ceremony; 14.) Newspaper article; 15.) Street brawl; 16.) Family dinner; 17.) Outdoor park; 18.) Heated argument; 19.) Western boxing versus Chinese boxing; 20.) Funeral; 21.) Police brutality; 22.) Challenge; 23.) Training for the fight; 24.) The fight; 25.) The victor's humble, conciliatory speech; and 26.) Ten-year-old Bruce Lee ( Jiang Dai Yan ).

audience reaction:  The audience enjoyed this movie and some gave it a "Hands Clapper" ending.

recommendation:  It was okay.  The stand-out fight in this movie would have to be the table-top fight, worth seeing for the price of an admission ticket.

spoiler alert!  First of all, this movie is not a "true to real life"  bio-pic.  And I'm not even sure if the fights with the British boxer actually happened in real life or if  the whole thing was just some sort of  symbolic embellishment done for dramatic effect.  Second of all, despite what one other movie critic said, they actually used wire-work in this movie--how else to explain how a fat man like Hung jumped so high and how one stool landed squarely and neatly on top of another.  When Ip's hand-tied student became "attached" to a cleaver-wielding bad guy, the bad guy could have easily and repeatedly  cross-body struck the student in the jugular.  The bad guys could have easily thrown their cleavers at Ip from a near-arm's-reach distance and seriously wounded him.  When Ip teetered at the edge of the round table, all Hung had to do was jump up at the opposite end to make Ip lose his balance and lose the fight.  When the round table broke in half, there was actually not enough height for the two pieces to land the way they landed ( but if they used wires ... ); and the way Ip and Hung each kicked the pieces should have made them move forward in midair instead of backward.  If  I were "The Twister," I would have fought my opponents without the use of  gloves; after all, the Chinese boxers were elbowing him, kneeing him, kicking him and hitting him in the back.  Why didn't the referee stop the fight when "The Twister" was throwing a number of unanswered punches?  Why were the fight rules not clearly established   before each  match?

fyi:  Ip Man was actually a police officer before he moved to Hong Kong.  And he was less of a cigarette smoker than he was an opium addict.

I just loved their cartoonish  portrayal of  white people as "foreign devils."  L.O.L.

I remember watching Kung Fu Theatre on TV ( Channel 36 or 44 or ... ? ) many years ago.  It featured Kung Fu movies from the 70s and early 80s, a great majority of which were stupidly bad.  I just watched  them for laughs.  Its host was a chain-smoking Sifu, smoking as he pleased before the camera!  The Sifu would demonstrate a few moves--with a lit cigarette in his mouth--during intermissions then he would abruptly stop because he would  soon be out of breath, admitting the fact before the camera ( at least, he was honest about it ).  Ha, ha, ha.  What an embarrassment he was!   Kung Fu Master or not, I could have easily beaten that Sifu in a fight because he tired easily.  They fired his sorry ass after just a few weeks.  Good riddance!

word of advice:  Don't stiff  your workers of their much-deserved pay.

tidbits:  When I went to gas-up at the Chevron gas station in Benicia, CA,  before heading off to Berkeley, I asked the clerk how much the mini cheeseburger sandwich was for.  He told me to take one for free because they were about to throw them away.  I couldn't pass up free food so I took one.

I decided not to take a Bart train because there wasn't enough time for it.  Once I got to Shattuck Avenue in Berkeley, I had to drive around a couple blocks to find a parking space.

A fire truck was parked outside the theatre because a movie patron ( who watched THE RITE ) needed some emergency assistance.

I just found out that the Landmark's Movie Watcher Rewards Card can only be used once per month for a discount at the concessions counter.  But the clerk was nice enough to give me February's discount special because, apparently, most movie goers with the rewards card made the wrong assumption as I did.  Oh, well ....  I guess that I'll be avoiding this theatre for the full month of February--thank God it's a short month!

When I exited the theatre, I noticed panhandlers sitting and loitering on the sidewalk at the theatre entrance and to either side of  it where coffee shops, snack shops  and restaurants are.  And some of  these panhandlers were looking at the dining patrons through the glass windows who, I'm sure of it, had a hard time enjoying their coffee and meals.  Boy! talk about laying on a buffet-sized guilt trip on people.  But that's Berkeley for you, I guess.

attention:  It's that time.  So,  please,  vote for me.  Thank you.

THE RITE, PG-13 ( 1 hr & 52 min )

where:  CENTURY 14 VALLEJO in Vallejo, CA
when:  Friday, January 28th, 2011
show:  11:20 a.m. ( Extra Dollar Off First Show Matinee )
costs:  $6.25 Ticket + $4.50 Pretzel Bites + $4.00 small Diet/Zero ( w/ Barq's & Cherry flavors ) Coke = $14.75
auditorium:  1
seat:  4th row, 8th column

synopsis/overview:  Michael Kovak ( Colin O'Donoghue ) has doubts about his religious calling.  Fate intervenes as he starts to leave the seminary school.  Reluctantly, he goes to the Vatican to attend a course in Exorcism.  Soon, he finds himself under the tutelage of an unorthodox exorcist, Father Lucas ( Anthony Hopkins ).  His skepticism is soon put to the test.

noteworthy scenes:  1.) Funeral home; 2.) "Such faith"; 3.) Final vow; 4.) Theology; 5.) Dorm; 6.) Accident; 7.) New program; 8.) "I'm guessing there's no cable"; 9.) Exorcism school; 10.) "Ex-girlfriend"; 11.) Cats; 12.) "Why don't you say so"; 13.) "Knowledge of  the unknowable"; 14.) Cellphone; 15.) "Okay, that's it"; 16.) "No proof of the Devil is proof of the Devil"; 17.) McDonald's restaurant; 18.) Bracelet; 19.) Nails; 20.) "Choosing not to believe in the Devil won't protect you from him"; 21.) Flashback; 22.) Mule kicks; 23.) Frog; 24.) Hospital; 25.) "You forgot your bag of tricks"; 26.) Hemorrhage; 27.) Accident; 28.) Bad news; 29.) "You gotta be f--king kidding me"; 30.) 'Phone call; 31.) Mule; 32.) Prophecy; 33.) Little girl; 34.) "The terror is real"; 35.) Upside-down crosses; 36.) "An old friend"; 37.) Haunting words; 38.) "It's more than just saying the words"; 39.) Tender moment; 40.) Round two; 41.) "Oopsy-daisy"; 42.) Crucifix; 43.) Baal; 44.) "Faith becomes you"; 45.) Magazine article; and 46.) Confessional booth.

favorite scenes:  Seminary students playing a violent video game in their dorm room.

The cellphone scene.

audience reaction:   The audience found some scenes amusing.

recommendation:  I didn't like this in particular.  The only scary scene in this movie doesn't even involve an entity at all but a cat!  And how "scary" is that?  'Not scary to a man but to a mouse, maybe.  So, are you a man or a mouse?  Go see this movie expecting it to be a Comedy film, not a Horror movie.

spoiler alert!  The driver who hit the cyclist wasn't really all panicky and/or guilt-ridden.  Cats do come when you call them, especially if they've  learned to associate their name with food in a Pavlovian sort of way.  Heck, if you want the cats to come running, all you need to do is turn-on an automatic can opener!  So, you're there in the presence of a demon-possessed person who exhibits the supernatural ability of knowing the unknowable--Heck! I'd ask it for the winning lottery numbers ( on many draws, if that's possible ) if I were the seminary student.  After all, leaving the seminary means that his scholarship will be turned into a $100,000.oo tuition fee, instead.  He should have jumped at that opportunity to get his hands on some easy money.  Ha, ha, ha.  Cellphone! hell, is there no sanctity in anything anymore?  Why would a priest use an innocent little creature for his parlor trick and dispose of it cruelly, without regard, in the fire?  Don't they have a Humane Society at the Vatican to report animal cruelty and animal abuse to?  Or does the Vatican condone such instances of  animal "sacrifice"?  Why wasn't there a single priest to perform Last Rites on the accident victim?  After all, we're talking about the Vatican where there are  tons of priests to begin with.  Why didn't any one of the accident responders cover the  victim for the sake of dignity instead of leaving her there as a macabre spectacle  to be ogled by the "rubber-neckers"?

fyi:   New Testament of the Bible, Luke 11:24-26 ( King James Version ) reads ...

24-When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man,  it walketh through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he saith, I will return unto my house whence I came out.
25-And when he cometh, he findeth it swept and garnished.
26-Then goeth he, and taketh to him seven other spirits more wicked than himself; and they enter in, and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first.

This above quotation is very telling of the kind of exorcism that priests do.  It's not really an exorcism but a means of letting in more demons into this world for such exorcists only perform "the power to loosen", not "the power to bind."  Jesus Christ talked about these powers; look them up for yourselves.  If you have not been Divinely-empowered by the Holy Spirit to "loosen" then to "bind", you have no business at all performing exorcisms because you're actually doing more harm than good!

New Testament of the Bible, Matthew 7:21-23 ( New International Version ) reads ...

21-"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
22-Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?
23-Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you.  Away from me, you evildoers!'

To learn more on why the kind of exorcism performed in this movie does not have a scriptural basis to it whatsoever, please read my blog on THE LAST EXORCISM ( 4th week of  August, 2010 ).

Saint Peter, an Apostle of Jesus Christ, is believed to have been crucified upside-down because he felt unworthy of dying a martyr's death in the manner of his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.   In Satan Worship, the upside-down cross is a symbol of the Devil.  Likewise, the  Peace Sign, a circle with the letters "Y" and "I" superimposed one upon the  other and turned upside-down in its center, is a stylized version of  this evil symbol, according to some christian evangelists.  Give "peace" a chance, my ass!

Baal is supposedly the first spirit to be cast-out by God, which would make him the Devil.  Baal, and other such lower spirit entities, thrives  on the energy given-off  by idol worshippers.  This is why one of the Ten Commandments specifically says not to practice Idolatry!

word of advice:  Demonic possession is no laughing matter.

tidbits:  Less than an hour into the movie, I started to squirm in my seat because my bladder wanted to be emptied.  I didn't want to go to the men's room in the middle of the movie for fear of missing-out on an important scene, especially since I was reviewing the movie.  So, I squirmed and held it in  impatiently throughout the rest of the movie.  And as soon as the Cast of Characters in the Ending Credits started rolling, I upped and left, taking care not to stand up straight or end-up having an embarrassing incontinent moment!  'Served me right for finishing my soda too soon instead of  taking little sips every now and then.

After the movie, I went to Chase Bank to make a deposit.  My favorite teller was there to help me with my deposit.

Then, I went to the Dollar Tree Store to buy some stuff.

The cashier at the dollar store was very unprofessional in more ways than one:  Not acknowledging the customer's presence, chewing gum and  chewing it with her mouth open, not greeting the customer  and  not giving a parting comment.  Who trained her--or who didn't train her for that matter?  Oh, how I wish I were a "Secret Shopper" right there and then!

As I traveled on Admiral Callahan Lane between the Target Shopping Center and the Avery Green Honda Dealership, I noticed a recliner, an ottoman, and a chaise lounge right there in that empty lot were undocumented day laborers hang-out waiting for a job offer.  Some of these laborers must be making good money in this bad economy to be able to afford furniture.  Wow! ( And this gives new meaning to "Outdoor Furniture." )

attention:  Voting for the Weblog Awards begins on the 1st of February.  Those of you who nominated my weblog in one or more categories, and those of  you who chose me as one of the nominees,  should check your e-mail next week to see when you can submit your votes.  Thank you--and wish me LUCK!

THE WAY BACK, PG-13 ( 2 hr & 12 min )

where:  EDWARDS FAIRFIELD STADIUM 16 & I-MAX in Fairfield, CA
when:  Saturday, January 22nd, 2011
show:  9:25 p.m.
costs:  $11.00 Ticket + $1.00 medium Popcorn ( Dollar upgrade on a Free Small Popcorn on my  Regal Movie Watcher Rewards Card ) + $4.75 small Diet Coke = $16.75
auditorium:  13
seat:  5th row, Seat 5

synopsis/overview:   This movie is based on a true story about a small group of prisoners who escaped from a Siberian gulag sometime in the early part of  WWII and walked 4,000 miles to freedom.

noteworthy scenes: 1.)  Drummed-up charges; 2.) "Siberia is your prison"; 3.) "Kindness, that can kill you here"; 4.) Sweater; 5.) Old folk remedy; 6.) "They will die free men; 7.) Forest shelter; 8.) Down in the mine; 9.) Escape; 10.) Tree bark; 11.) "Grateful is for dogs"; 12.)  "South, to Lake Baikal";  13.) "Three to four weeks"; 14.) "I don't eat fish"; 15.) Night blindness; 16.) Meat; 17.) Scout; 18.) The lake; 19.) The follower; 20.) Deer; 21.) Irena ( Saoirse Ronan ); 22.) Soap; 23.) Shave; 24.) Crossing the lake; 25.) Parents; 26.) "We've had enough lies"; 27.) "It's my birthday"; 28.) Campfire song; 29.) Mosquito repellent; 30.) Blistered foot; 31.) Crucifix; 32.) "Thank you, Mother Russia"; 33.) Good luck and goodbye; 34.) "They're communists"; 35.) Buddhist temple; 36.) Himalayas; 37.) "Double the salt"; 38.) Horsemen; 39.) "That's south"; 40.) "We're already dying"; 41.) "Mirages don't have birds"; 42.) "It was a miracle finding this.  Can we count on another"; 43.) Sandstorm; 44.) Small stones; 45.) Sunstroke; 46.) "It's okay"; 47.) "You look worse"; 48.) Snake; 49.) "Tastes like chicken"; 50.) Punishment; 51.) "I have to get back"; 52.) Great Wall of China; 53.) Tibet; 54.) Lhasa; 55.) "I'll cook his chicken"; 56.) "He's gone"; 57.) Passport; and 58.) Back home again.

audience reaction:  The audience liked this movie.  And a man in the audience said, "That was good."

recommendation:  I liked this movie, too.  It is a testament to the triumph of the  indomitable spirit of  man in the face of  seemingly insurmountable odds.  Go see this inspirational movie.

spoiler alert!  The one who suffered from night blindness should have kept on calling out his comrades' names.  It would have been safer had they crossed the frozen part of the lake while laying flat on their bellies, Penguin-style ( plain, simple Physics ).  Valka ( Colin  Farrell ) killed the dog, but why didn't he take it with him since they all could use all the meat that they could  get their hands on?  They could have done certain things to help the sun stroke victims.  They should have known better than to walk across the desert in the blazing sun when it would have made more sense to do so at night when the temperature was much cooler.  Of course, these observations of mine are negated by the fact that this movie is based on a true story; and I don't know how much of it is truth-based and how much of it is made-up stuff for dramatic purposes.

fyi:  The best way to keep from getting dehydrated fast in the desert is to keep one's mouth shut.  I learned this in my Cultural Anthropology class.

Lake Baikal is the oldest and deepest lake in the whole wide world.  And the locals believe that Jesus Christ visited and blest this area.

The Buryats are the indigenous people of  Lake Baikal, shown in the movie with mosquito repellents.  You  probably have heard of one of them:  The late Hollywood actor,  Yul Brynner ( born  in 1920 as Yuliy Borisovich Bryner ), was part Buryat.

word of advice:  "The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak."  New Testament, Matthew 26:41

tidbits:   When the concessions clerk asked me if  I wanted to upgrade my free popcorn to a medium "for just a dollar more," I foolishly said, Yes.  I of all people should know better than to get more popcorn than I can eat while writing down  notes on  a movie that I'm watching.  Never again--despite what Justin Bieber has to say about it in his upcoming movie!

On Thursday, somebody told me that Wal-Mart is laying-off people because business is slow even for the mega-box, cut-throat retail monopoly.  Boy! talk about bad economy.  Curious about it, I swung by the new Wal-Mart Super Center in Fairfield after watching this  movie.  It was a minute past midnight when I walked in through their doors.  I saw more employees than I did customers.  I went there to buy some rotisserie chicken, but they were out of if because, I guess, the rotisserie staff was cut back.

So I went to Food Max supermarket on West Texas in Fairfield.  They didn't have rotisserie chicken, either!

Now, what was I supposed to do with that big pot of rice that I cooked just a few hours before  and which was eagerly anticipating  the arrival of  some rotisserie chicken to tango with in my mouth?  One last chance ....

When I got back to Vallejo, I made a bee-line for the Food-4-Less supermarket.  The patron saint of   rotisserie chicken cravers--would that be Col. Sanders--had answered my prayer: Half a dozen rotisserie chickens to choose from.  Hallelujah!  Third time's a charm.  I was happy and, more importantly, my tummy was happy.

attention:  If you've been randomly-picked to choose the Finalists for the  2011 Weblog Awards, you only have until tomorrow to do so.  Please select my weblog as one of the finalists.  Thank you.

BHUTTO, NR ( 1 hr & 55 min )

June 21st, 1953 - December 27th, 2007

where:  SHATTUCK  CINEMAS in Berkeley,  CA
when:  Thursday, January 20th, 2011
show:  9:15 p.m.
costs:  $10.00 Ticket + $5.50 small Popcorn w/ Butter + $0.00 ( Free on a Movie Rewards Card ) medium Sprite Zero +  $8.73 Lee's Big Burger w/ drink ( Sobe Lean Cranberry Grapefruit ) @ Alohana Hawaiian Grill + $3.50 Bart Train Ticket + $5.00 Carquinez Bridge Toll = $32.73
auditorium:  8
seat:  Left section,  3rd column

synopsis/overview:   This is a documentary on the life, and the assassination, of  Pakistan's champion for democracy and the first-ever  female Prime Minister of a Muslim State, Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto.


noteworthy scenes:  1.) "Three weeks in mourning"; 2.  Without compare; 3.) "I'm better than you"; 4.) "Kennedys of Pakistan"; 5.) "Not a lesser creature"; 6.) Burqa; 7.) Power of the people; 8.) No surrender; 9.) Nuclear power; 10,) "We will make a horrible example out of you"; 11.) "Tonight, I'll be free"; 12.) Like father, like daughter; 13.)  Sharia Law; 14.) Soviets in Afghanistan; 15.) University of Nebraska; 16.) Class "C" cell; 17.)  Lockjaw; 18.)  Mujaheddin; 19.) House arrest; 20.) Poison; 21.) Groundswell of support; 22.)  Overwhelming odds; 23.) Arraigned marriage; 24.) Wedding/Campaign; 25.) Vote over Bullet; 26.) Switched pregnancy records; 27.) Plane crash; 28.) Avenged; 29.) Polio eradication; 30.) Women police; 31.) "Democracy is the best revenge"; 32.) "Mr. 10%"; 33.) Disqualification; 34.) Alleged corruption; 35.) "The Princess and the Playboy"; 36.) Sacrifice; 37.) Frankenstein; 38.) Family feud; 39.) Reconciliation; 40.) Corruption; 41.) Benazir's niece; 42.) Political victimization; 43.) "Islamic Bomb"; 44.) Addendum; 45.) Political madrassas; 46.) "We must be parties with the United States on this"; 47.) "Not the source, not the cause"; 48.) "'Religious pilgrimage' to North Korea"; 49.) "Eleven years in prison, no conviction"; 50.) Homeward bound; 51.) "Behind the glass"; 52.) "Rose petals" [ i.e. human flesh ]; 53.) "Life is in God's Hands"; 54.)  Ominous 'Happy Birthday' greeting; 55.) Invincible; 56.) Assassination; 57.) E-mail; and 58.) "The day does come when you see the response to your struggle."

audience reaction:  The audience liked this Documentary.  But we all left the auditorium in a somewhat somber mood.

recommendation:  I liked it, too.  Watching this Documentary is well-worth anyone's time.

spoiler alert!  There are three  grisly scenes:  That which shows two cadavers of men killed by the Taliban; and the gruesome aftermath scenes of  two  suicide bombings.

And I guess that they don't like using seatbelts in Pakistan.
 
fyi:  I was saddened upon hearing word of  Benazir's assassination for, you see, I admired her and even had a crush on her.  I felt  sorry for the Pakistani people and grieved with them on their great loss, a senseless hate-filled Tragedy.  Seeing this movie was my way of  paying my last respects to a great woman.

I didn't know that Benazir was half Iranian, on her mother's side.

I had two male Pakistani Muslim co-workers at one time.  I asked them what they thought of  Bhutto.  They both said that she had a corrupt government because of her husband, Asif Ali Zardari.  Interestingly,  even though Zardari was jailed for eleven long years  he  was never convicted of any crime; most likely, he was an innocent victim of  a smear campaign by Bhutto's political opponents.

Benazir's  bedroom in the Bhutto residence in Dubai is permanently locked because her widower,  Asif,  and their children don't want her "scent" to fade away.

One of Benazir's website is offered for sale.  I think that they should just keep it as a legacy to the Pakistan Peoples Party ( PPP ) until her son, and political heir, Bilawal, is ready to assume the role  as its leader.  Then, they can just update the website and keep it current.

Don't think for a moment that Russia is no longer a superpower.  It is actually more powerful now than it ever was during the Cold War.

word of advice:  Don't take anyone at face value.

tidbits:  I arrived in Downtown Berkeley about an hour before the movie was to start.  I double-checked with a Bart Train Station Agent to make sure that there were late trains running since the movie would end at 11:10 p.m.  The agent told me that the last train was scheduled to arrive at 12:45 a.m.

Since I had time to grab a bite to eat before the movie started, I decided to try out the Alohana Hawaiian Grill.

Don't waste your money on a Lee's Big Burger.  It doesn't come with  "secret sauce" ( thousand island dressing ) or ketchup and mustard; the only condiment slathered on it is mayonnaise.  Yuck!  But the chunky-cut French Fries that it comes with is tasty and not salty.

Before dawn today, I signed-up for Landmark's Movie Watcher Rewards Card on the Internet approximately 19 hours before this movie's 9:15 p.m. showtime. 


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