Fans of Sergio Leone’s Once upon a Time in the West will be delighted with this new Blu-ray version. Leone directed a series of spaghetti westerns that became international hits starring Clint Eastwood (A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, and The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly). Then Leone produced this spectacular, over-the-top, western. The cinematography is incredible! This is a movie that must be seen in Blu-ray to truly be appreciated! And Claudia Cardinale and Henry Fonda are iconic in their roles. How could you not love a film whose slogan was: “There were three men in her life. One to take her … one to love her … and one to kill her.” GRADE: A

I’m a sucker for a book like A Jane Austen Education: How Six Novels Taught Me About Love, Friendship, and the Things That Really Matter . William Deresiewicz was a reluctant reader of Austen until he finally “got” Emma. Once he figured out what Jane Austen was up to, Deresiewicz read Austen’s entire oeuvre. And, in the process of reading Jane Austen, Deresiewicz found out that Austen’s wisdom changed his life (which was pretty messed up). Fans of Jane Austen will find A Jane Austen Education both clever and compelling. Those of you who haven’t read all of Jane Austen’s novels might want to just read those chapters about the novels you’ve read to avoid any spoilers. GRADE: B+

On the other hand, some movie sequels do suck yet make over $400 million in the first two weeks after their release. Johnny Depp is back as swishy Captain Jack Sparrow. Kierra Knightley and Orlando Bloom are gone, but Penelope Cruz radiates from the screen in this adventure to find the Fountain of Youth. Yes, it’s all terribly silly. But Disney will continue to milk this franchise for all it is worth. When these Pirate movies are bringing in over a billion dollars each, expect another episode of Captain Jack Sparrow a couple summers from now. If you’re looking for a purely escapist romp, Pirates #4 will provide it. Just don’t expect more than that. GRADE: C+

Movie sequels don’t have to suck. Take Kung Fu Panda for example. Jack Black is back as Po, the lovable panda. Angelina Jolie (Tigress), Dustin Hoffman (Shifu), Gary Oldman (Shen), Jackie Chan (Monkey), Seth Rogen (Mantis), Lucy Liu (Viper), and a dozen other actors make up a strong supporting cast as Po undertakes another quest. Master Shifu receives word from Gongmen City that Lord Shen has attacked with a powerful new weapon. Po and his friends, the Furious Five, are sent to stop Shen, but the journey involves Po’s mysterious nightmares. There’s plenty of comedy and action. Kung Fu Panda 2 comes pretty close to being the perfect Summer Movie. GRADE: A

Back in 1984 and 1985, Crown Publishing issued a series called “Classics of Modern Science Fiction.” The small hardcovers were a little larger than a traditional paperback and sold for $7.95. My favorite volume in the series is The Classic Philip Jose Farmer 1952-1964. Isaac Asimov wrote a “Forward” about the rationale for a hardcover reprint series. Martin H. Greenberg contributed an informative “Introduction” about Philip Jose Farmer’s career. Then comes some of the most astounding PJF early stories: “Sail On! Sail On!”, “Mother,” “The God Business,” “The Alley Man,” “My Sister’s Brother,” and “The King of the Beasts.” These are ground-breaking stories that changed the landscape of science fiction. Sadly, Crown pulled the plug on the series in 1985. If you can find these wonderful volumes (usually at library book sales), all of them are well worth reading.
CROWN CLASSICS OF MODERN SCIENCE FICTION SERIES
1 Men, Martians and Machines Eric Frank Russell
2 The Joy Makers James Gunn
3 The Shores of Another Sea Chad Oliver
4 The Classic Philip José Farmer, 1952-1964 Philip José Farmer
5 The Classic Philip José Farmer, 1964-1973 Philip José Farmer
6 The Forgotten Planet Murray Leinster
7 The Paradox Men Charles L. Harness
8 Unearthly Neighbors Chad Oliver
9 Shadows in the Sun Chad Oliver
10 Greener Than You Think Ward Moore

You may think you’ve heard these Roy Orbison hits before but now, celebrating Orbison’s 75th birthday year, Roy Orbison: The Monument Singles Collection will prove you wrong. Restored to pristine mono, these remastered songs can be heard with their original sound for the first time since their original 7″ vinyl releases. Roy Orbison: The Monument Singles Collection includes all of Orbison’s classic hits from 1959-1966 plus some rarities. And the first-ever DVD release of Orbison performing nine songs from “The Monument Concert 1965” is included. For Roy Orbison fans, this is a must-buy. These songs never sounded so good! For the casual fan, the single CD edition, Roy Orbison: The Monument Singles A-Sides would be a happy compromise. Either way, it’s great to hear these wonderful songs the way they were meant to be heard. I found Ed Ward’s commentary below full of Orbison facts I wasn’t aware of. GRADE: A
Disc: 1
1. Uptown
2. Only The Lonely
3. Blue Angel
4. I’m Hurtin’
5. Running Scared
6. Lana
7. Crying
8. Let The Good Times Roll
9. Blue Bayou
10. Dream Baby
11. The Crowd
12. Working For The Man
13. In Dreams
14. Falling
15. It’s Over
16. Oh, Pretty Woman
17. Goodnight
18. Pretty Paper (Bonus Track)
19. (Say) You’re My Girl (Bonus Track)
20. Paper Boy (Bonus Track)
Disc: 2
1. Pretty One
2. Here Comes That Song Again
3. Today’s Teardrops
4. I Can’t Stop Loving You
5. Love Hurts
6. Summer Song
7. Candy Man
8. Mean Woman Blues
9. The Actress
10. Mama
11. Leah
12. Shahdaroba
13. Distant Drums
14. Indian Wedding
15. Yo Te Amo Maria
16. Only With You
17. Beautiful Dreamer (Bonus Track)
18. Sleepy Hollow (Bonus Track)
19. With The Bug (Bonus Track)
DVD
1. Only the Lonely
2. Running Scared
3. Crying
4. What’d I Say
5. Dream Baby
6. Mean Woman Blues
7. It’s Over
8. Oh, Pretty Woman
9. Goodnight

After Representative Chris Lee took off his shirt, sent his picture to a woman on Craig’s List (which ended up on GAWKER), resigned from the House of Representatives, and then had to explain all this to his wife, a Special Election was called for the most Republican district in New York State. My District, District 26, is the most conservative district in New York. It has voted Republican for the past 58 years. So replacing Chris Lee should have been a slam-dunk for the Republican candidate, millionaire Jane Corwin. The 26th District has 30,000 more registered Republicans than Democrats. Erie Country Clerk, Kathy Hochul, the Democratic candidate had little chance in such an overwhelmingly Republican district…except Corwin announced she supported the Paul Ryan Plan to kill Medicare and replace it with a voucher system.

Kathy Hochul slammed Corwin for the last month for not supporting Medicare. Corwin, who held her ground until this past weekend when polls showed she was trailing her Democratic rival, suddenly flipped and ran TV ads embracing Medicare. But, it was too late. Despite the $10 million dollars of advertising money spent in this race, the result turned on Medicare. The national Republican Party might regret that vote in the House where Republicans were pressured to support the Ryan Kill Medicare Plan.

BORDERS emailed me a 50% OFF ONE ITEM coupon. Whenever BORDERS sends me coupons like this, I always use them to buy sets of DVDs or CDs that seldom get discounted. This time, I decided to buy Cadfael: The Complete Series. BORDERS had it priced at $99.99 (AMAZON wants $74.49 for it). With my coupon and my PLUS membership, I paid $48 for the entire package. This set includes 13 DVDs which present 13 of Ellis Peters’ mysteries starring Sir Derek Jacobi as a former crusader who has turned to healing and mystery-solving. I enjoyed watching this series on PBS MYSTERY! and now it’s nice to own them. GRADE: A
THE MYSTERIES
One Corpse Too Many
The Sanctuary Sparrow
The Leper of St. Giles
Monk’s Hood
The Virgin in the Ice
The Devil’s Novice
St. Peter’s Fair
A Morbid Taste for Bones
The Raven in the Foregate
The Rose Rent
The Pilgrim of Hate
The Potter’s Field
The Holy Thief

I’ve admired Francine Prose’s novels since I read Blue Angel, a cunning story of a college professor who becomes involved with a student. In Prose’s latest novel, My New American Life, a 26-year-old Albanian nanny’s story of coping with America becomes both a cultural critique and a twisted version of the immigrant experience. Lula is hired by a wealthy banker to baby-sit his teenage son. The banker’s wife, Ginger, has abandoned her husband and son and travels the world sending postcards and making middle-of-the-night phone calls from foreign countries. As in all the Francine Prose novels I’ve read, the plot twists and curls in unexpected ways. You might have a notion of where the story is going, but time and again, Prose proves you wrong. GRADE: B+