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Avalon and the Mother

 Monday: Avalon (1990)

          This movie tells the story of a Polish-Jewish family living in the U.S. Sam came to the U.S. as a young man to join his four brothers. They ran a wallpaper business. Then there is a time jump. Sam is an old man. His son Jules is a grown man and has a family of his own. With such a big family drama is always there. Jules and his cousin Izzy are salesmen. They want to get out of it and start a store of their own. So they open a TV store. It is right at the time when TVs are becoming popular. Then the cousins decide to open a discount warehouse store. Success doesn't work out like it should. I liked this movie.

Tuesday: Light in the Piazza (1962)

        Meg is in Florence with her young adult daughter Clara. Clara looks like a beautiful young woman in her twenties. But an accident from her childhood has left her with the mentality of a ten year old. She mostly gets along but she is very naive and throws tantrums. Meg is hoping a trip to Italy will help after the rough years they have had. One day while site seeing they run into a young man named Fabrizio. He instantly takes a liking to Clara. Some how he always turns up where they are. Clara likes him a lot too. Meg is worried about her daughter. She's scared how people will react when they find out. But even she can't deny they have something special. Fabrizio loves all the things that make Clara different. Being with him could be the answer to all their problems. I thought this was a good movie.

Wednesday: Fool's Parade (1971)

           Three convicts are released from prison in West Virginia. Mattie served almost 40 years. He saved all the money he made in prison. Mattie and his friend Lee, along with a young man named Johnny are going to open a store. They are put on a train and told not to come back to the town. If they do they risk being arrested. A prison guard called Doc plans to trap them and kill them. It's only after they are on the train that Mattie realizes he can only cash his check in the prison town. The three men have to get back to town and cash the check. All the while avoiding Doc and the assassins he hired. I thought this movie was alright. Mattie is played by James Stewart. This is the oldest I've seen him. His character has a glass eye, which is disturbing. 

Friday: Cinderella (2021)

         The basic story is the same so I'll just write about how it is different. It is a musical with modern songs. Cinderella dreams of being a dressmaker. The prince has a younger sister who wants to be queen. Instead of a fairy godmother Cinderella has a fabulous godmother played by Billy Porter. Cinderella has to chose between marrying the prince and being a dressmaker for a queen. She choses to be a dressmaker. This movie has a strong feminist storyline. It's not the best but I still enjoyed it. The prince kind of bugged me.

Saturday: A Chorus Line (1985)

         Zach is holding dance auditions for his new musical. Many people come to try out. It comes down to the final 12. Zach asks them personal questions to get to know them better. His ex, Cassie, shows up during auditions. They used to work together. Cassie became a big star and left him. Now she is back and determined to talk to him about getting a job. The group go through a lot in their auditions. This movie was ok. It's a musical. I liked some of the songs. I've heard the stage version is better. If there were ever a movie that needs to be remade it's this one. If done properly I think it could be good.

Sunday: All About My Mother (1999)

         This is the last of the Pedro Almodovar Spanish films I had recorded. Manuela is a single mother raising her teenage son in Madrid. Esteban wants to be a screen writer. He loves watching movies and seeing plays. After seeing a play he tries to get the autograph of the lead actress. But ends up being run over by a car and dying. Manuela travels to Barcelona to tell his father, who is actually a trans woman named Lola, that he has died. When she gets there she can't find Lola only their friend Agrado, another trans woman. While with Agrado Manuela meets a young nun named Rosa. Manuela goes to see the actress from the play who happens to be in town. She ends up helping her and becoming her assistant. Later Manuela finds out that Rosa is pregnant with Lola's baby. Rosa can't tell her parents and is ill. Manuela agrees to help her. I thought this was a good movie. I liked this one the best out of all the films by Pedro Almodovar that I've watched. 

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