Emily E. James is one of the most intelligent people I’ve ever encountered. I could easily swap her out for one of my professors at Mary Washington College, and I had some damned good profs.
Her insights into language, communication and culture have taught me tremendously, even as I’ve interacted with her only informally. (Emily is a good friend of mine.) I can only imagine that contracting with her for editing services is a sound investment.
As I believe I may have mentioned, I have a love-hate relationship with David Tennant’s onscreen performances. I find him inexplicably, positively grating whenever he plays a protagonist. (See 2011’s “Fright Might” remake, or his cringe-inducing stint as “Doctor Who.”) But it seems to me that the man is absolutely fantastic when he plays a bad guy. (See his frightening and hilarious role as Kilgrave the first season of “Jessica Jones” in 2015.)
“Bad Samaritan” (2018) thankfully presents us with the latter Tennant. He musters an intensity with his eyes and his voice that are incongruous counterpoints to his innocent-looking face, and this makes him a damned good antagonist in a thriller. (He is a highly organized, sociopathic kidnapper in this film. I don’t think that’s much of a spoiler, as all of the film’s marketing make it clear.) He’s a hell of a lot of fun to watch — and listen to.
With that said, “Bad Samaritan” is an average movie — not altogether bad, but not awesomely good, either. (I suppose I’d rate it a 7 out of 10.) It benefits a lot from another very good actor in Robert Sheehan as its anti-heroic young protagonist. (The plot setup here is interesting — a mild-mannered burglar discovers a psychopath’s captive while in his house, then struggles with how he can help the terrified victim of a far worse criminal than he is.) The movie’s biggest sin seems to be that it borrows heavily from comparable genre-defining works from the likes of Thomas Harris and James Patterson. But it’s still an enjoyable enough movie in its own right.
There’s someone else here that’s great fun to watch too — Kerry Condon as the kidnapee. Her voice is amazing, and she’s a superb actress; I think she’s strong enough to carry another movie like this. I just knew she looked familiar … it turns out she played Clara, the really weird woman that Rick found in the woods during Season 3 of “The Walking Dead.” (He asks her the show’s signature “three questions.”)
She is also to voice of F.R.I.D.A.Y., Tony Stark’s on-board A.I. in several of Marvel’s “Avengers” movies. Didn’t see that one coming. Weird world.
Today’s artwork is definitely the weirdest birthday greeting I received this week … it comes to me from my good friend Jorgen over in Denmark. I’ve never before received a birthday message depicting me as a deity.
It’s weirdly hilarious, but it is also vaguely unnerving. I don’t know why, but I never thought I’d be so terrifying rendered as a celestial Eric.
Thanks again, Jorgen!
By the way, I can easily think of several people in New York who would attest that this is indeed the view I hold of myself.
Here’s a montage of an American president — and a Republican — making jokes at the expense of the Soviet Union. The one about the three dogs is my favorite.
The Republican Party was a different organization in the 1980’s, ladies and gentlemen. It was a different time.
Archie Comics.
… for all of the kind messages, gags and goodies sent my way for my 41st birthday. You guys are the best. You made me laugh like hell, and you made the day far more enjoyable.
Edit: 46th. It was my 46th birthday.
If you prefer darker poetry, art and photography, then please stay current with The Bees Are Dead, the transatlantic indie lit magazine devoted to dystopian visions.
The most recent publication there is an absolutely stunning poem by Paul Brookes.
There is also some wonderful work by poets Matthew Borczon and David Spicer, the list of B.A.D.’s nominations of Sundress Publications’ “Best of the Net” 2018, and some truly awe-inducing photography of “dereliction and decay” by urban explorer Carl Bennett.
Do stop in.
Photo credit: By Falcon® Photography from France (Old Bathroom) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)%5D, via Wikimedia Commons.
“The one pervading evil of democracy is the tyranny of the majority, or rather of that party, not always the majority, that succeeds, by force or fraud, in carrying elections.”
— Lord Acton
Photo credit: By Ein Dahmer [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)%5D, from Wikimedia Commons.
It’s someone who lashes out at me whenever I correct their spelling, grammar, punctuation or usage during a political discussion.
You heard it here first, people.
I’m pretty sure I should be a highly paid analyst at a think tank somewhere. You guys get on that.
Eric Robert Nolan, Author 