Brad Davis

There are quite a few movies I’ve watched in the last few weeks. I watched Querelle and Midnight Express with Brad Davis. I’m about to re-read the book about his life written by his wife, Susan Bluestein Davis. The book is entitled, After Midnight. There are often those actors that get that one role that defines them and then it is hard to find a role that will be better.

Everyone in the entertainment industry strives to make whatever they do better that what they had done before. You’re constantly trying to prove that you are better or just as good as your last job providing it gets positive attention.

Brad Davis had appeared off-Broadway and appeared in  such films as Chariots of Fire, Sybil, Roots, Mrs. Reinhart, Robert Kennedy and His Times, The Rainbow Warrior, Rosalie Goes Shopping and A Circle of Friends, his first film after Midnight Express. It was during the filming of A Circle of Friends his addiction began.

It not only takes a lot to live up to the expectations of the people depending on you. The expectations one puts on themselves. In the entertainment industry more than any other occupation, people are constantly asking, am I good enough? They are always looking for some sort of validation and it has to come from the right people.

Thanks for stopping by; keep an open mind.


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Thank God It's Friday

There are some people that choose to call films that they don't think they should enjoy guilty pleasures. I am not one of them. I love all films. The fact that a person can put something together is quite an achievement and if they succeed in telling a great story that's even better.

There are certain things that are hard to capture on film. Thank God It's Friday attempts to capture what happens in a night at a Disco in California called the Jungle. An up and coming Diva flirts and lies her way into the DJ booth to get her song played. The club owner places a bet to sleep with a first time patron to the Jungle and the DJ's career is on the line as he prepares to go live with the Commodores performing, but their instruments haven't arrived. Love is lost, and found and dreams are shattered and some come true.
The clothing will make you laugh and for those of you who remember the 70's you'll ask yourself why did I ever wear that? What was I thinking?

It's an interesting film and if you don't like it, you'll love the music just the same. The soundtrack includes many songs by Donna Summer including the 1978 Oscar winning song "The Last Dance" and songs by other singers including The Commodores, Patti Brooks, Diana Ross and Paul Jabara. The films Theme song Thank God It's Friday, by Love and Kisses sets the pace for a musical experience.

The film introduced some up and coming stars, Jeff Goldblum, Debra Winger, the Late Raymond Anthony Vitte who plays DJ Bobby Speed. (He passed away at the age of 33.) Singer Paul Jabara also has a part in the film and his song trapped in a stair way plays in the background. There were a number of comedic talents in the film as well as great dancers.

Coming up:  Another letter to the Levee Board, Selling Stuff, It’s all about Survival, What if we’ve seen each other for the last time,  Behind the Photograph (Models) (Go to http://ArtbyDlonzo.blogspot.com)

Thanks for stopping by; keep an open mind. Why not become a follower while you’re here.

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Check back and see where this journey leads. Check out the links below to my videos.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmgUzGZGt98

The above link is a video for an organic flutist in New Orleans.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hciIcHFm3Yw&NR=1

The above is a link of a performance from Oz in New Orleans.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-qcybZsUzc

The above link is for a promo of a DJ in New Orleans.

http://www.myspace.com/darqueleight/music/songs/d-bohemian-31098704

Computer generated music.

Country Strong

       It took me quite some time before I sat down to watch this film. I’m not a big fan of Gweneth Paltrow, but I do like the movies that I’ve seen her in. I thought she was great in The Talented Mr. Ripley. The fact that the film was about country music may have had something to do with me not wanting to see it. I also didn’t know anyone else that was appearing in the film.

After watching the film I must say it was quite entertaining and I was impressed with the performance by Leigton Meester as a wanna be country singer. It’s almost as if the film were made for her. I’m not sure if she did her own singing, but she has shown that she is more than the actress that we see on Gossip Girl.

Stories about the music industry are usually all the same. Someone has an addiction or get burned out and some new comer who idealizes the star comes in to add tension or take over.
Despite that it is still a pretty good film.

Thanks for stopping by; keep an open mind.


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Island in the Sun

There are several movies in my collection that I don’t mind watching over and over. I usually watch them at least once a year. One such film is Island in the Sun. Originally I added this movie to my collection because of James Mason. I first saw James Mason in Stanley Kubrick’s film Lolita. I love the film and James Mason’s performance is great. So I then looked at some of the other films he had done and Island in the Sun showed up and then I saw that the film also starred Dorothy Dandridge.

Dorothy Dandridge was an actress I didn’t know a lot about until Halle Berry played her in the HBO film, Introducing Dorothy Dandridge. The likeness is uncanny. Halle Berry is an incredible actress like Miss Dandridge. I had seen the film Carmen and I’m sure in reruns on television I had seen Porgy and Bess. It’s hard to find some of these classic films on DVD. When you do find them they cost so much. I have to keep searching for a used version. There are still many old films I’d like to add to my collection, but I just don’t have the funds to do so. But if I take what I would pay for the DVDs and invest in a DVD recorder I could solve that problem. I have some of the films I would like to add to the collection on VHS. I need to transfer them before they get so bad that they won’t make a good copy.

Island in the sun is a film about race and class. For its time it was a very controversial film. The film exudes sex and yet the actors never kiss. It’s quite the erotic fare. Everyone in the film is great. Harry Belafonte leads the cast with Joan Fontaine, Joan Collins, James Mason and Dorothy Dandridge among others. It’s worth a look if you love movies. The costumes nor the film feels dated at all; Harry Belafonte gets to croon a few tunes.

Thanks for stopping by; keep an open mind.