Skyfall is the 23rd James Bond movie making it one of the most successful franchises in cinema history. The McGuffin in Skyfall is a hard drive with a list of names of operatives who have infiltrated terrorist organizations. At the same time, M (Judi Dench) is being attacked by politicians and pressured to retire while Bond (David Craig) deals with his own mid-life crisis. Javier Bardem provides a menacing Bad Guy. Skyfall resembles a roller-coaster ride: scenes build up suspense and then we have a wild chase scene. My only minor quibble about this film is that it’s a tad too long at 143 minutes. I’m already looking forward to the next Bond movie. GRADE: A-
SKYFALL
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Diane and I left Jekyll & Hyde: The Musical at the Intermission. The story, based on the classic Robert Louis Stevenson novel of a noble doctor who frees his Id, is a dark one. Once every decade or so, a dark play can survive and become commercial: The Phantom of the Opera and Sweeny Todd come to mind. But Jekyll & Hyde is nowhere in that class. The music was forgettable, the lyrics banal. Constantine Maroulis (from American Idol) sings his heart out as Dr. Jekyll and the creepy Mr. Hyde. Deborah Cox belts out her numbers, too. But none of the songs captured our interest. The local newspaper article on Jekyll & Hyde noted the producers were “tweaking” the play as they went along. They need to blow it up. GRADE: F
Today, the Buffalo Bills are 10-point underdogs in their game with the AFC leading team, the Houston Texans. To make matters worse, Wade Phillips, the Texans’ brilliant defensive coordinator, used to be the head coach of the Bills. Think he might want to show Bills’ owner Ralph Wilson he made a Big Mistake firing him? I expect an ugly game and another Bills loss. How do you think your favorite NFL team will do today?
I’ve read a fair number of Joyce Carol Oates’ novels and short story collections. She’s routinely mentioned when the Nobel Prize for Fiction rolls around each year. And the fact that Joyce Carol Oates grew up and went to school (in a one-room school house!) about 10 miles from where I currently reside was also a spur to read her revealing The Faith of a Writer. In a series of essays, Oates talks about her childhood, the books that were the most important to her, her writing routine, and her view of what writing requires in order to approach the outskirts of Art. I prefer Oates’ short stories to her sometimes elephantine novels, but Oates gives a good defense of her need to write novels. Although Joyce Carol Oates is an enormously prolific writer, her quality control is good. She rarely writes a clunker. If you’re a Joyce Carol Oates fan or if you’re interested in the opinions of a high-profile writer on her craft, pick up a copy of The Faith of a Writer. GRADE: B+
Last Friday for Forgotten Books, Todd Mason presented a brilliant homage to a great writer: Fritz Leiber. You can read it by clicking 
Hurricane Sandy’s effects here in Western New York consisted of some downed tree limbs from the high winds, minor flooding, and 400 people who lost power. To the east of us, in NYC and New Jersey, it’s a whole different story. Millions of people with no power, no drinking water, subways closed, roads impassable, and massive devastation. Over 50 people are dead because of the storm. As Governor Andrew Cuomo remarked: “These ‘Once Every 100 Year Storms’ are showing up every other year.” Yes, and it will get worse. No politicians are talking about Global Warming–many don’t believe in it (or science). Yet super storms like Sandy are going to be the New Normal. Diane and I have decided to invest in a natural gas generator unit to keep the power on when the inevitable disaster strikes. I’m getting estimates this week and we’ll pick the contractor next week. The photo above is a reminder that politicians of opposite parties can work together.