Kirstin Wiig’s raunchy and riotous Bridesmaids shows how everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, can go wrong with wedding preparations. Kirstin Wiig plays Annie Walker, best friend of Lillian. Lillian is engaged to be married and chooses Annie to be her Maid of Honor. But Annie’s life is a disaster area: manipulative boy friends, creepy roommates, dead-end job. Everything Annie touches turns to shit (and I mean that literally when it comes to the aftermath of the Bridesmaids’ luncheon). Yes, much of the slap-stick humor is over-the-top. But, you’ll laugh at the absurd situations Annie finds herself in (mostly because she creates the chaos that engulfs the wedding preparations). GRADE: B+

Claire Danes won an Emmy playing Temple Grandin, an autistic woman who revolutionized the cattle industry. Danes captures the brilliance of Grandin’s mind as well as the frustration with the “normal” world. Director Mick Jackson cleverly uses some flashbacks to fill in the back story of Grandin’s difficult childhood. David Stathairn plays Dr. Carlock, a former NASA scientist, who teaches science at the boarding school Grandin attends. He helps develop Grandin’s scientific curiosity and urges her to go to college. Grandin’s story, if it were presented as fiction, would be too incredible to be believed. This is an astounding movie with a strong cast (Julia Ormand as Grandin’s mother, Catherine O’Hara as Grandin’s aunt who owns a cattle ranch). HBO made the Right Decision when they green-lighted this film! GRADE: A+

Graham Greene divided his output into two parts: literary novels and “entertainments.” Some readers might consider Greene’s entertainments examples of his best writing. Penguin Books’ Three Entertainments is an omnibus volume that includes A Gun for Sale (aka, This Gun For Hire), The Confidential Agent, and The Ministry of Fear. My favorite of these three novels is A Gun For Sale which deals with a contract killer who seeks revenge after a betrayal. The other two novels, about deceit and double-dealing, make great reading, too. If you haven’t read any of Graham Greene’s “entertainments” you’re missing some best suspense novels ever written.

Back in the 1970s, I listened to Kate and Anna McGarrigle’s The Dancer With Bruised Knees and I fell in love with their crystal-clear voices and complex songs. But, years later, the McGarrigles’ brand of intelligent music seemed to fall out of favor. Then, in 2010, Kate McGarrigle died of sarcoma. Tell My Sister is a three-CD set of remastered versions of the McGarrigles’ first two classic albums and a collection of previously unreleased songs. Kate McGarrigle will be celebrated in a two-night tribute at New York’s Town Hall on May 12 and May 13 with performances by Anna McGarrigle, Kate’s children Martha and Rufus Wainwright, Emmylou Harris, and others. After listening to these three wonderful CDs, I wish I could be there. GRADE: A
TRACK LIST:
1.01 Kate & Anna McGarrigle: Kiss and Say Goodbye 2:49
1.02 Kate & Anna McGarrigle: My Town 2:58
1.03 Kate & Anna McGarrigle: Blues in D 2:43
1.04 Kate & Anna McGarrigle: Heart Like a Wheel 3:09
1.05 Kate & Anna McGarrigle: Foolish You 3:02
1.06 Kate & Anna McGarrigle: (Talk to Me of) Mendocino 3:08
1.07 Kate & Anna McGarrigle: Complainte pour Ste-Catherine 2:48
1.08 Kate & Anna McGarrigle: Tell My Sister 3:38
1.09 Kate & Anna McGarrigle: Swimming Song 2:28
1.10 Kate & Anna McGarrigle: Jigsaw Puzzle of Life 2:30
1.11 Kate & Anna McGarrigle: Go Leave 3:21
1.12 Kate & Anna McGarrigle: Travelling on for Jesus 2:44
2.01 Dancer with Bruised Knees: Dancer with Bruised Knees 3:45
2.02 Dancer with Bruised Knees: Southern Boys 3:28
2.03 Dancer with Bruised Knees: No Biscuit Blues 1:41
2.04 Dancer with Bruised Knees: First Born 3:54
2.05 Dancer with Bruised Knees: Blanche Comme la Neige 3:48
2.06 Dancer with Bruised Knees: Perrine Était Servante 3:17
2.07 Dancer with Bruised Knees: Be My Baby 3:11
2.08 Dancer with Bruised Knees: Walking Song 3:35
2.09 Dancer with Bruised Knees: Naufragée du Tendre (Shipwrecked) 3:46
2.10 Dancer with Bruised Knees: Hommage à Grungie 3:53
2.11 Dancer with Bruised Knees: Kitty Come Home 4:30
2.12 Dancer with Bruised Knees: Come a Long Way 2:19
3.01 Tell My Sister: The Work Song 3:10
3.02 Tell My Sister: Come Back Baby 3:29
3.03 Tell My Sister: Jigsaw Puzzle of Life 2:28
3.04 Tell My Sister: Saratoga Summer Song 3:53
3.05 Tell My Sister: Annie 3:47
3.06 Tell My Sister: On My Way to Town 2:34
3.07 Tell My Sister: Roses Blanches 2:39
3.08 Tell My Sister: Heart Like a Wheel 2:43
3.09 Tell My Sister: Kiss and Say Goodbye 2:49
3.10 Tell My Sister: Southern Boys 2:57
3.11 Tell My Sister: Willie Moore 4:03
3.12 Tell My Sister: Oliver, Remember Me? 1:23
3.13 Tell My Sister: My Town 2:43
3.14 Tell My Sister: Blues in E 2:06
3.15 Tell My Sister: Walking Song 2:26
3.16 Tell My Sister: Tell My Sister 3:35
3.17 Tell My Sister: Over the Hill 2:36
3.18 Tell My Sister: Come a Long Way 1:53
3.19 Tell My Sister: (Talk to Me of) Mendocino 3:02
3.20 Tell My Sister: Heart Like a Wheel 2:31
3.21 Tell My Sister: (Talk to Me of) Mendocino 2:56

I thought I knew a lot about GOOGLE, the world’s most successful search engine. But I didn’t know GOOGLE builds their own servers. I didn’t know they laid hundreds of thousands of miles of fiber optic cable connecting their secret server farms. And I didn’t know that GOOGLE and Apple, once close business partners, are now locked in a battle that pits Apple’s iPhone against GOOGLE’s Android phones. It was interesting that GOOGLE considered buying Skype back in 2007, but decided against it because they considered Skype an antiquated technology. Yet Microsoft is now buying Skype for $8 billion. I suspect GOOGLE is laughing at that move. If you’re interested in how a couple of Stanford Ph.D. students created a world-changing technology company (and became billionaires), In the Plex shows how it all came about. Fascinating story! GRADE: A

Finally, the entire Rocky and Bullwinkle series has been released including the elusive Fifth Season. This is the complete Rocky & Bullwinkle & Friends series on 18 DVDs: 91 trips in the WABAC time machine, 38 attempts to catch Snidely Whiplash, 91 Fractured Fairy Tales, and 50 bits of wisdom from Mr. Know-it-All. Special Features include: Dear Bullwinkle segments, Classic commercials and promos, Rocky & Bullwinkle saving stamp club, Many Faces of Boris Badenov, classic Cheerios commercials, June Foray interview, Moose Calls—Best of Bullwinkle Sings, and Bullwinkle puppet clips. That’s over 60 hours of viewing pleasure! Rocky and Bullwinkle fans, rejoice!

I found Deborah Harkness’ A Discovery of Witches a big disappointment. The book begins with an American historian, Diana Bishop, finding a bewitched book in Oxford’s Bodleian Library. The book, the object of centuries of searching by witches, demons, and vampires, reacts to Diane’s touch. So far, so good. But the story goes off the rails for me when Diana falls in love with a vampire named Matthew. The story then becomes more about their banned union rather than the magic. At 579 pages, A Discovery of Witches is way too long: 200 pages could have been cut easily. I did not have to go to Diana’s yoga classes or go through a wine-tasting every other chapter (Deborah Harkness has a wine blog). There must be a market for this kind of “witch-vampire romance” because A Discovery of Witches is moving up the Best Sellers list. But it’s not my cup of tea. GRADE: C

Fans of k. d. lang rejoice! We have another marvelous CD of her music to listen to! The songs on Sing It Loud have a Sixties feel to them. I’m including a video (below) of k. d. lang performing on The View. This should give you a flavor of what to expect on this album. It’s been nearly four years since k. d. lang released a CD of new material. I’m glad the wait is over! This CD has been getting played plenty around here! GRADE: A
TRACK LIST
1 I Confess
2 A Sleep With No Dreaming
3 The Water’s Edge
4 Perfect Word
5 Sugar Buzz
6 Sing It Loud
7 Inglewood
8 Habit of Mind
9 Heaven
10 Sorrow Nevermore

The Summer Movie season is in full swing. Actually, it started last week with Fast Five which I haven’t seen yet. But this week’s big opening is Thor, based on the Marvel Comics character. Whatever possessed Stan Lee to turn the legends of Norse gods into comic book action heroes, but it worked. Director Kenneth Branagh (of Wallander fame) opted for a visual feast with Frost Giants, treacherous Loki (played by Tom Hiddleston), and court intrigue in Asgard. Down on Earth, Natalie Portman plays an obsessed physicist who discovers the banished Thor (played by Chris Hemsworth). Odin (played by Anthony Hopkins) banishes his spoiled, immature son to Earth. And, stripped of his powers, Thor is just another hunky guy. Loki’s plotting brings disaster for everyone. There are plenty of dramatic moments in this movie. I also found Patrick Doyle’s soundtrack to be very powerful. It’s going to be a long, hot summer of movies. But this early entry may end up being the best of them all. GRADE: A

The Universe Wreckers is the third volume of the collected stories of Edmond Hamilton published by the outstanding Haffner Press. These stories were written at the dawn of the Great Depression when science fiction was finding its way. Edmond Hamilton was there at the beginning of the genre’s formation. As I’ve mentioned before when I reviewed the earlier volumes in this series, I admire Edmond Hamiton’s story-telling talent. Hamilton wrote exciting fiction for over 50 years! Thanks to Stephen Haffner, we can read these marvelous tales in an attractive format. If you’re a fan of classic SF, The Universe Wreckers is a must-buy!
Table of Contents
Introduction by Eric Leif Davin
“Cities in the Air” (Air Wonder Stories Nov, Dec ’29)
“The Life-Masters” (Weird Tales, Jan ’30)
“The Space Visitors” (Air Wonder Stories, Mar ’30)
“Evans of the Earth Guard” (Air Wonder Stories, Apr ’30)
“The Plant Revolt” (Weird Tales, Apr ’30)
“The Universe Wreckers” (Amazing Stories May, Jun, Jul ’30)
“The Death Lord” (Weird Tales, Jul ’30)
“Pigmy Island” (Weird Tales, Aug ’30)
“Second Satellite” (Astounding Stories, Aug ’30)
“World Atavism” (Amazing Stories, Aug ’30)
“The Man Who Saw the Future” (Amazing Stories, Aug ’30)

Appendix
• Original Pulp Illustrations
• Readers’ Letters from Original Magazines
• Correspondence between Hamilton and the SF Luminaries of the Day