Each season, The Shaw Festival revives one of George Bernard Shaw’s plays. In 2017, Saint Joan, Shaw’s blistering critique of war and religion, stars Sara Topham as Joan. Joan leads the underdog French armies to victory over the invading British forces. Despite saving the country, Joan is betrayed by both the religious bureaucracy and Charles VII, who wouldn’t be King without Joan’s bravery.

I first read Saint Joan in the late 1960s while I was a student at Marquette University. I went to dozens of plays on and off campus during those years and was drawn to Shaw’s plays. I listened to an audio version of Saint Joan with Siobhan McKenna as Joan. Electrifying! This Shaw Festival version was compelling and thought-provoking. Do you have a favorite George Bernard Shaw play? GRADE: B+

Diane and I will be driving to Toronto by the time you read this. The drive to Toronto takes about two hours. The variables are getting over the International Bridges (Customs can provide extensive delays at times) and Toronto traffic. If you’ve driven in New York City, Boston, Chicago, Houston, San Francisco, or LA you know what Big City traffic can be like. We’re looking forward to seeing Patti & Phil Abbott, Bill Crider, Jeff & Jackie Meyerson, Maggie Mason, and many other friends. Diane can’t wait to hear Louise Penny, one of her favorite writers. I’ll be hanging on Megan Abbott’s every word! And FREE BOOKS!

I’ll be posting a BOUCHERCON report on Monday. I’m sure others will be posting BOUCHERCON reports in Real Time. Hope to see you there!

Blade Runner 2049 takes place after The Blackout where all electrical systems fail and there’s also an ecological disaster (all trees seem to be dead). Ryan Gosling plays K., an LAPD Blade Runner who tracks down replicants (aka, androids) who are treated like slaves. Gosling discovers a secret that becomes a quest between him and the Wallace Corporation (who manufactures the replicants). Gosling finally tracks down Harrison Ford (who played Deckard, a Blade Runner, in the original Blade Runner). Action sequences are unleashed!

At 163 minutes, Blade Runner 2049 is too long. While production designer Dennis Gasner (The Truman Show and Skyfall) makes Blade Runner 2049 look cool and futuristic, it’s not enough. The Coen Brothers’ cinematographer, Roger Deakins, captures some eye-popping images in this movie. But the meandering script and the lack of surprises in the plot hamper Blade Runner 2049. Expectations for an opening weekend Box Office of $40 million fell short (only $31 million). Word-of-mouth might not help this film. GRADE: C+

The 3-1 Buffalo Bills travel to Cincinnati to take on the 1-3 Bengals. Vegas has made the Bengals 3 1/2-point favorites. This is a classic “trap” game where after defeating two quality teams–the Denver Broncos and the Atlanta Falcons–the Bills are prone to losing to an inferior opponent. The Bills have followed this pattern for the past 17 Playoff-less years. Will today be different? We’ll see… How will your favorite NFL team do today?

Carrie Vaughn’s latest Young Adult novel is set in near-future society that has been devastated by disease and super-storms. Enid, a young investigator, is brought to a rural town to investigate the death of a handy man named Sero. The community has a lot of secrets that Enid slowly unravels. I’ve enjoyed Carrie Vaughn’s work, especially Martians Abroad (you can read my review here). If you’re in the mood for a clever SF mystery, give Bannerless a try. GRADE: B+

To clear up some misunderstandings, this new collection is The Complete Psychotehnic League, Volume One not to be confused with Poul Anderson’s Polesotechnic League series (seven volumes also published by BAEN Books). Anderson wrote the Psychotehnic League stories from 1947 to 1968. Set in a post-World War III world, the Psychotechnic League attempts to influence government and popular opinion with science. Yes, some of these stories are dated. But Poul Anderson’s story-telling ability shines through. I’ll be buying the next two volumes of The Complete Psychotechnic League as soon as BAEN Books publishes them! If you love classic SF as much as I do, you’ll enjoy The Complete Psychotechnic League! GRADE: A-
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
The Psychotechnic League by Sandra Miesel
Marius
Un-Man
The Sensitive Man
The Big Rain
Afterword by Poul Anderson

WARNING! If you’re not a fan of the Blues, you’ll probably not like this new Van Morrison CD. Morrison unleashes his bluesy singing voice and the 15 tracks on this CD are all blues songs. Some are new, but most are older tunes. I liked “Transformation” and “Benediction” the best. Your mileage may vary. Not my favorite Van Morrison CD. GRADE: B-
TRACK LIST:
1. “Roll With the Punches” (Van Morrison & Don Black)
2. “Transformation” (Van Morrison)
3. “I Can Tell” (Bo Diddley & Samuel Bernard Smith)
4. “Stormy Monday / Lonely Avenue” (T-Bone Walker / Doc Pomus)
5. “Goin’ To Chicago” (Count Basie & Jimmy Rushing)
6. “Fame” (Van Morrison)
7. “Too Much Trouble” (Van Morrison)
8. “Bring It on Home to Me” (Sam Cooke)
9. “Ordinary People” (Van Morrison)
10. “How Far From God” (Sister Rosetta Tharpe)
11. “Teardrops From My Eyes” (Rudy Toombs)
12. “Automobile Blues” (Lightnin’ Hopkins)
13. “Benediction” (Mose Allison)
14. “Mean Old World” (Little Walter)
15. “Ride On Josephine” (Bo Diddley)

Some of you might recognize Benny Andersson as one of the members of the super group ABBA. This new CD, Piano, features Andersson playing a solo piano. The music is a blend of ABBA music, music from the play (and movie) Chess that Andersson wrote, and various other tunes from Andersson’s repertoire. Some ABBA fans will miss the full musical experience, but I enjoyed the soothing piano playing and sensitive music. If you’re an ABBA fan, you’ll want to give Piano a listen. GRADE: A
TRACK LIST:
1. I Let The Music Speak
2. You And I
3. Aldrig
4. Thank You For The Music
5. Stockholm By Night
6. Chess
7. The Day Before You Came
8. Someone Else’s Story
9. Midnattsdans
10. Målarskolan
11. I Wonder (Departure)
12. Embassy Lament
13. Anthem
14. My Love, My Life
15. Mountain Duet
16. Flickornas rum
17. Efter regnet
18. Tröstevisa
19. En skrift i snön
20. Happy New Year
21. I gott bevar

Tom Cruise (aka, The Smirking Dwarf) channels former TWA pilot Barry Seal perfectly in this movie “based on true events.” It’s the late 1970s and the CIA approaches Barry Seal with a proposition: quit TWA and fly planes down to Central America on reconnaissance missions. Seal likes the sound of that and does the fly-overs of Communist bases. The CIA is so happy with Seal’s photos, they give him additional missions: deliver money to Colonel Noriega in return for top secret intel, deliver some weapons to insurgents, etc. Barry Seal decides to free-lance a little and starts bringing cocaine into the U.S….lots of cocaine. And, Seal makes millions of dollars. Part of the fun of American Made shows the difficulty of stashing bags and bags of cash.

Of course, all good things must come to an end. The CIA dumps Barry Seal, the D.E.A. busts him, and Colonel Oliver North sends Seal down to Central America for “one last mission.” Tom Cruise perfectly captures the arrogance, greed, and lunacy of Barry Seal. American Made is a cautionary tale that stings at the end. GRADE: B