Adventures in Words

A quarter century after “Thelma and Louise” added their unforgettable chapter to movie mythology, a new “Thelma” is picking up where they left off. This time the badass heroine is a bit older. Both the character, Thelma Post, and the actress who so wondrously portrays her, Jean Squibb, are women in their nineties. Seriously. Co-starring with Richard Roundtree in what would be his last screen role, the pair are members of a demographic not known for remembering lines – or remembering anything, actually – much less hitting their marks.  Factor in that “Thelma” is an action comedy, and it seems less a movie than a miracle. Deftly written and directed by Josh Margolin, it's a tale of a 93-year-old widow still living independently who's taken in by one of those phone calls claiming that her grandson Daniel (Fred Hechinger) has been arrested after a traffic accident and needs $10,000 to be sent immediately to his defense attorney.  The fact that it needs to be in cash, and sent to a

  Glen Powell and Adria Arjona in “Hit Man.”  Netflix photo via IMDB.com Topping the Netflix movie charts for a while now, “Hit Man” is the rare case of a wry comedy loved by critics as much as audiences. It's being hailed as Glen Powell's breakout role after decades in the supporting trenches. (Yes, that was Glen playing John Glenn in “Hidden Figures” and Jake “Hangman” Seresen in “Top Gun: Maverick.” Seems the guy knows how to fly.) Foxy Adria Arjona co-stars, steaming up the lens whenever the camera sees her. There's beaucoup chemistry between her and Glen, even though it's hard to keep track of who's playing whom in any given scene. But “Hit Man's” secret weapon is actually on the other side of the camera.  Director Richard Linklater, who cowrote the script with Powell, is one of a handful of filmmakers who used to be known as  auteurs . They make meta movies, bigger than the sum of their parts. Their creations are self-aware of themselves as movies, even as

  Brie Larson in "Lessons in Chemistry."  Photo by Michael Becker/Courtesy of Apple - © Apple TV+ 2023 via IMDB.com Of all the movie goddesses I've been fortunate – more like crazy lucky – to meet in this lifetime, Brie Larson stands out.  It was the 2013 Maui Film Festival at Wailea where she was receiving the Rising Star Award. I was slotted to interview her before the award presentation, but when we ran into each other in the driveway leading up the festival's offices and spectacular outdoor amphitheater , we decided to just do it there. No photographers. No personal assistants. No festival staffers impatiently watching the clock. Just the two of us.  From first introductions to a smiling farewell twenty minutes later, the entire encounter happened by the side of the road Just 23 at the time, Brie was hardly the biggest name on the honorees list. But according to the festival staffer wrangling the celebrities, she was the coolest. Hands down. No entourage, no airs.

  Hi again, I know you didn't ask, but I wanted to share a few tips I've learned over time. They might come in handy, depending on where you're going. You might want to consider some changes in behavior. Probably no longer a good idea to slap unflattering nicknames on guys you don't like. They don't like you either, and have their own ways of settling scores. If you see anyone with a padlock in a sock, you might want want to look for somewhere to hide. Good luck finding one. On the other hand, if your new friends want to give you a new nickname – Fatso, maybe, or Cry Baby – you'll probably have to live with it. Different rules apply now, a different code of dishonor. Trying to paint yourself as the victim of corrupted justice won't get you very far among men who actually are victims of corrupted justice.  Don't whine. Trust me. They're like dogs, they can smell fear. As best you can, you should try to keep your mouth shut. Dumb as some of your toothl

  Lending their voices to USA for Africa:  Dan Akkroyd,  Bette Midler ,  Harry Belafonte ,  Bob Dylan ,  Michael Jackson ,  Phil Collins ,  Billy Joel ,  Lionel Richie ,  Smokey Robinson ,  Diana Ross ,  Dionne Warwick ,  Stevie Wonder ,  Lindsey Buckingham ,  Kim Carnes ,  Ray Charles ,  Sheila E. ,  Daryl Hall ,  James Ingram ,  La Toya Jackson ,  Marlon Jackson ,  Al Jarreau ,  Cyndi Lauper ,  Huey Lewis ,  Kenny Loggins ,  John Oates ,  Steve Perry , Anita Pointer ,  June Pointer ,  Ruth Pointer ,  Kenny Rogers ,  Paul Simon , Bruce Springsteen and Tina Turner.  Photo via IMDB. OK, here's a challenge.  Try watching “The Greatest Night in Pop” without getting chicken skin and putting the hairs on your neck into a frenzy. For about an hour. That's the effect of watching Bao Nguyen's music documentary about the creation of the aid anthem “We Are the World” one night in 1985. It's now streaming on Netflix. My guess is that people of a certain age won't be able to ge

  “ Oppenheimer” poster art via IMDB Apart from the buzzy excitement of the ceremony itself, when it comes to Academy Awards I've long believed that the nominations were better than the wins.  Being acknowledged as one of five great artists in your field, or one of 10 mighty movies, is a different proposition from actually winning the prize – especially in a contest that moves the goal posts every time it's played. Let us not forget that the greatest field general of modern Oscar campaigns was probably Harvey Weinstein, when he wasn't otherwise preoccupied. The nominations were announced Tuesday; winners will be named Sunday, March 10. Oscar nominations mark the beginning of the end of another movie awards season. My personal nod to the year's  best movie  gets on the  “Oppenheimer” bandwagon. It wins on the basis of degree of difficulty among other things. It's about the beginning of the end, too. Christopher Nolan's biography of the “father of the A-bomb,” J.