The Killing Joke, a new animated feature, shows how the Joker became the Joker. I’m always interested in origin stories so seeing a failed stand-up comic transform into the Crown Prince of Crime fascinated me. Also of interest to some of you, The Killing Joke is rated “R” because of language and–believe it or not–sex. In addition to the animated film, this Blu-ray contains Special Features: The Many Faces of the Joker featurette, Madness Set to Music featurette, from the DC comics Vault–2 Bonus Cartoons, and a sneak peek at the next DC animated movie. If you’re a fan of Batman and the Joker, you’ll enjoy this new episode in their battle. GRADE: A

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is as much a Harry Potter book as The Importance of Being Earnest. Based on a J. K. Rowling “story,” this muddled play lacks all of the Sense of Wonder of the Harry Potter books. Very little magic. Very little mystery. Too much shouting and arguing. The play is set 19 years after the vanquishing of Voldemort. But all is not well in Harry Potter’s world. His son, Albus, could unsettle the Universe. I found the script limp and lifeless. A major disappointment! GRADE: F

In our never-ending quest to stimulate the U.S. Economy, Diane and I went out and bought a new bed–Beautyrest mattress, box-spring, upgraded bed frame, and headboard–for the Guest Room. Diane has been busy over the past six months cleaning out her mother’s bedroom. We had that room painted, going from white to blue. New windows and window treatments were installed. We had the carpet cleaned. Diane got rid of some furniture, too. A curio hutch, her mother’s headboard and foot-board, and swivel rocker are all gone now. Are you contemplating home improvements?

Suicide Squad works the genre of misfit missions made famous by The Dirty Dozen and The Expendables. Viola Davis plays a Government official who puts together this team of “meta-humans” who have “powers.” Will Smith plays Deadshot (an assassin who never misses). The Big Attraction in this movie is Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn: the Joker’s psychopathic girl friend. There are assorted other characters but they’re just filler. The Suicide Squad is given an impossible rescue mission. Their opponent is a supremely powerful being from another dimension called “The Enchantress.” The Suicide Squad’s battle with the Enchantress is the most boring confrontation in recent memory. Dull and tedious. For example, the powerful Enchantress (who could just turn the Suicide Squad into stone) decides to fight them with swords. Not magic swords…just swords. The Suicide Squad bored me and I’ll bet it will bore you. Skip it. GRADE: C-

Todd Mason mentioned Speaking of Horror: Conversations With Masters of the Field (1994) here. I’m a big fan of the horror writers interviewed in this volume so I immediately ordered a copy from AMAZON. But, in the order process, I discovered there was a second volume of interviews that was published in 2014. If you check out the list of writers included in these two volumes, you’ll find several whose thoughts about writing and the writing process will intrigue you. The Horror field has changed over the years and these writers address this issue, too. I learned plenty from reading these insightful interviews. You will too.
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
VOLUME ONE:
Introduction
Illustrations
Robert Bloch
Ramsey Campbell
Dennis Etchison
Charles L. Grant
Tanith Lee
Thomas Ligotti
Brian Lumley
William F. Nolan
Manly Wade Wellman
Chet Williamson
F. Paul Wilson
Index
About Darrell Schweitzer
VOLUME TWO:
Joe R. Lansdale
Carrie Vaughn
Lisa Tuttle
Kim Newman
Fred Chappell
Elizabeth Massie
Brian A. Hopkins
Harry O. Morris
Sephera Giron
S.P. Somtow
Hugh B. Cave
Robert Weinberg
Gahan Wilson
Ramsey Campbell
David J. Schow
Graham Joyce
Brian Lumley
Peter Straub

I enjoyed the first couple dozen books in The Destroyer series written by Warren Murphy and Richard Sapir back in the 1970s. The quirky humor and wild action was refreshing in the Men’s Action genre. After a while, the formula started to get stale and I stopped reading about Remo Williams and Chiun. I kept picking up copies of books in The Destroyer series whenever I came across them cheap (like a quarter). Now, I’m about to donate another couple thousand books to SUNY at Buffalo so I figured I’d read a volume in The Destroyer series for Old Time’s Sake. I picked Dream Thing because it featured an Elder God (right out of H. P. Lovecraft) about to wreck havoc on Earth. It was not as much fun as it sounds. Remo and Chiun are supermen without kryptonite. Very little humor or suspense. Skip this one. GRADE: D

I don’t want to sound like a conspiracy theorist, but maybe my blog went down yesterday because Dark Forces (aka, Russian hackers) may have objected to this post on the problems of the European Union. George Friedman runs Stratfor, a private intelligence company with a client list of governments and corporations. Friedman presents a detailed history of Europe leading up to the forming of the European Union. His parents fled Hungry and after an incredible journey, settled in the United States. Friedman developed a fascination with Europe based on the stories his mother and father told him. He has visited Europe dozens of times. Friedman believes the European Union is inherently unstable. History and centuries of conflict trump the European dream of unity and prosperity. Of course, if the European Union breaks up–and with the BREXIT crisis this looks more likely–the aftermath will affect the United States. The Russians, of course, would be the biggest beneficiaries of the collapse of the European Union. If you’re interested in global politics, Flashpoints provides a detailed analysis of the problems ahead. Highly recommended. GRADE: A
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
List of Illustratoins
Preface
PART ONE: European exceptionalism
A European life
Europe’s assault on the world
The fragmentation of the European mind
PART TWO: Thirty-one years
Slaughter
Exhaustion
The American origins of European integration
Crisis and division
PART THREE: Flashpoints
The wars of Maastricht
The German question once more
Mainland and peninsula
Russia and its borderlands
France, Germany, and their ancient borderlands
Mediterranean Europe between Islam and Germany
Turkey on the edge
Britain.

I’d be willing to bet that this Woody Allen film has the largest body-count of any of his films. But, despite the sporadic violence, Cafe Society is a mediation on Love. Beautifully filmed by cinematographer Vittorio Storaro, who filmed Last Tango in Paris, Apocalypse, Now, and Reds. Jesse Eisenberg plays a young man who ends up working for his uncle, a Hollywood agent. He meets stars, but falls for an office girl. Complications result. Jesse Eisenberg returns to New York City and runs a night club with his gangster brother. Complications ensue. The Past forces Jesse Eisenberg’s character to ponder his choices in life and in love. This is a pleasant movie, but no more. GRADE: B

Kimberly Palmer was the senior money editor at US NEWS & WORLD REPORT for nine years. She focuses on financial issues that impact women–having a baby, getting a divorce–and shows how to navigate the problems these situations present. I like the entrepreneurial spirit of this book. Kimberly Palmer says women’s financial issues don’t get the priory they deserve in today’s economy. Women will control two-thirds of the U.S. economy by 2050. Yet Palmer shows how woman continue to make “money mistakes” in every stage of their lives from bad marriages, to over-spending, buying the wrong house, not saving for retirement, and not focusing enough on health care. If you’re a woman–or you live with a woman–this book is full of excellent advice and insightful information. Making good financial choices, based on accurate information, can make a huge difference between happiness and despair. GRADE: A
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Introduction: Into Motherhood
One: Save (And Spend) Like a Mother
Two: Owning It
Three: Timing is Everything
Four: Like a Boss
Five: Investing Mamas
Six: Playing Defense
Seven: Stuck in the Middle
Eight: Model Moms
Nine: Back to You
Ten: Returning to the Nest
Epilogue: More Than Money
The Smart Mom, Rich Mom Handbook
Notes
Index

It’s been nine years since Matt Damon performed as “Jason Bourne” so I wondered if age might weigh on the character. Actually, age weighs on CIA Director and Bad Guy: Tommy Lee Jones. Director Paul Greengrass loves close-ups of Tommy Lee Jones with all of his wrinkles, creases, bumps, and blotches. Jones is 69 but looks like he’s 100 in this movie! Jason Bourne has been off the grid for nearly a decade, hiding out in remote European countries. A former CIA operative, played by Julia Stiles, contacts Bourne and tells him that a secret program to monitor all of American communications is about to go into online. With the uproar over the hacking of the Democrats National Committee and the release of the files by Wikieaks, the plot captures the tenor of our times. My favorite character in Jason Bourne is Vincent Cassel who plays a stone-cold killer called “The Asset.” He hates Bourne and his need for vengeance powers much of the concluding scenes of this film. And, I really liked Alica Vikander who plays Tommy Lee Jones’s “Number Two” as a dangerous and talented woman with her own cunning agenda. All in all, this is a fine crafted spy movie. If you’re in the mood for astonishing car chases, riots, and suspense then you’ll enjoy this latest episode in the Jason Bourne Saga. GRADE: B+