On June 15th, Mad River Path Association will host a Valley Dog Owner Summit from 6:30-8PM at the Waitsfield Elementary School gym. The event will be a community forum to discuss the topic of an off-leash area for dogs. Presenters will provide information about dog safety, local leash ordinances, and the Mad River Path. The goal will be to identify actions to help the community find an off-leash area for Valley dogs. The Waitsfield Elementary School cannot allows dogs in the building, however dog owners and non-dog owners should join us to share your thoughts and ideas for this common goal. We hope to see you there!
As a big fan of director Ridley Scott, I have been looking forward to his summer 2010 release of “Robin Hood” with much anticipation.
What’s not to like? I thought.
All Hollywood summer action movie ingredients look to be cued up.
An epic cast: Russell Crowe, Cate Blanchett, William Hurt, and Max Von Sudow among them.
A classic mythic character: Hollywood has done more than thirty versions of the famous English archer/outlaw, most recently a bare-bottomed Kevin Costner re-make, and, of course, Carey Elwes’ “Robin Hood: Men In Tights”.
Epic sets as backdrops.
Battle scenes galore.
And the kicker?
One of acoustic music’s favorite live musicians, Alan Doyle of Newfoundland party boy band “Great Big Sea,” playing one of Robin’s “merry men” in a key supporting role as Robin’s mando-sporting arrow-shooting bard. (Two thumbs up for Doyle, who performs admirably.)
Needless to say, I went into the theater sharpening my arrows.
Yes yes, most imperial film critics already have panned the Scott’s movie. Too long! Too convoluted! Too complicated! Too historically inaccurate! Too much a “prequel”! (Which it very much is – the film’s last scene features a text screen that reads “And so the legend begins.”)
Clearly, the critics didn’t receive the memo. Dudes, remember? Summer movie season. We want escapist entertainment. And Scott delivers, albeit unevenly.
Most critics, moreover, dismiss Scott’s film as a sort of “Gladiator in Jerkins” remake (Scott directing Crowe a few years back for Maximus Oscar glory).
I couldn’t disagree more.
In “Robin Hood,” Scott replaces the expansive desert setting of imperial Rome with the dirtier and more intimate landscape of the 12th century English medieval feudal countryside. True, we get a few gorgeous aerial shots of the forest, the coast (complete with epic French sea-borne invasion footage), and one incredible scene of Richard the Lionhearted’s naval convoy sailing up the Thames, but Scott wisely keeps us mostly in the woods, where Robin Hood belongs.
Instead of “Gladiator” or “Braveheart,” Scott’s film is more reminiscent of Shekar Kapur’s remarkable film “Elizabeth,” featuring Oscar winner Cate Blanchett as the woman who transforms herself from naïve girl to powerful queen. One of the best actresses in the business, Blanchett’s is back in “Robin Hood,” and she is mesmerizing as (Maid) Marian Loxley, the earthy yet regal wife of absentee landlord Robert Loxley, who is off fighting the Crusades with King Richard.
Like much of 12th century England, the shire of Nottingham is beset by roving bands of teen hoods and the unjust taxation policies of the newly installed King John (think Joaquin Phoenix’s Commodus on extra estrogen.)
The way-too-serious Russell Crowe’s Robin Longstride, meanwhile, returns from the Crusades and delivers the dead Loxley’s sword to Marian disguised as Loxley himself. At her manor, he finds his equal in Marian, as well as uncovering information about his own past. (In a series of super-contrived flashbacks, we learn that Longstride’s father was a political radical whose dissent and subsequent execution set the stage for 1215 and the Magna Carta. No kidding.)
The smoldering sexual tension between Marian and Robin is refreshingly slow to develop, along with some good laughs with the merry men along the way. Alas, Crowe plays Robin too straight, leaving Blanchett to really carry the film, helped along by her aging father (played with aplomb by Max Von Sydow, who steals every scene he is in).
Back in London, meanwhile, political intrigue abounds. As with “Elizabeth,” a double agent wangles his way into the chancellor’s seat, even as he plots with the French to divide England and invade, helped along by callow King John’s hubristic alienation of the country’s noblemen. How Scott weaves all these elements together, I leave for you to discover.
Suffice to say, the cinematography, horseplay, and excitement made me want to smash my smart phone, take up my bow and quiver, and retire to the woods to eat, drink, dance, and make merry.
What might our community look like when we can no longer count on large quantities of cheap fossil fuels? What can we do now that will preserve what we value, prepare us for this inevitable change, and create the better future we desire?
These and other questions will be discussed at a community presentation and discussion of Transition Towns to be held on Tuesday, June 1st at 7 pm at the Waitsfield Elementary School. The public is invited and the event is free.
Transition is a grassroots, community-based movement that began in Great Britain in 2006 and has quickly spread across the globe. Its aim is to build community resilience in the face of such challenges as peak oil, climate change and economic crisis. Five residents of the Mad River Valley (Stan Ward, Gaelan Brown, Jasna Brown, Ben Falk and Bill MacClay) will share their knowledge and experience of working with the Transition movement and similar initiatives in the Mad River Valley, help participants explore the relevance of this model for the valley, and discuss possible next steps.
Topics to be addressed will include: What is a Transition Town? What have been some of the accomplishments of other Transition Towns? How might this model help us promote sustainable development in the Mad River Valley? And what are some specific projects that could be done?
Proposed projects include but are not limited to:
A community-funded commercial kitchen and food-processing plant that is open to anyone to use, similar to the “Vermont Food Venture Center” being built in Hardwick;
A community-funded slaughter-house and meat-packaging/distribution center;
A community-funded composting operation, including a household compost pick-up service added to the local trash collection system, and compost sold to local farmers and gardeners at low cost;
A renewable energy co-op to organize group-net-metering wind and solar projects;
A firewood CSA system to support local loggers and ensure affordable, local firewood, perhaps including a community investment in wood processing equipment; and
Community-funded tree-farms for fruits, nuts, and mushrooms (edible landscape).
This event is sponsored by the Valley Futures Network and the Carbon Shredders. For additional information contact Jill Arace at 496-9974 or jarace@gmavt.net.
Every May, I turn off my thinking brain and go to the movies.
Why?
May marks the beginning of Hollywood’s summer season – action blockbuster time.
And I had high hopes for “Iron Man 2,” based on advance reviews.
With a musical score spotlighting AC DC and the Clash, and an all-star cast featuring Robert Downey Jr., Mickey Rourke, Don Cheadle, Gwyneth Paltrow, Samuel L. Jackson, and – be still my heart – Scarlett Johansson. ‘Nuf said.
I know what you’re thinking. Anyone can see from the film’s trailer that “Iron Man 2” deploys every Hollywood industry stereotype and clichéd trope in the book: machismo on ‘roids, fast cars, stunts out the yinger, CGI overkill, curvaceous coffee-table babes, gratuitous cartoon violence, U.S. imperial dogma (read: the world is drop-dead dangerous and the best defense is a good offense) disguised as escapism.
The whole silly enchilada.
But who cares?
It’s summer time at the movies.
That said, I want U.S. imperial summer action fare – as mindless as it is – to be GOOD, damn it.
And, early on in the film, there were signs of promise.
Scarlett Johansson, for instance. Did I mention her already?
Garry Shandling, while not as eye-candy appealing as the actress I just mentioned above, does a passable job as the villain, too.
And, to be clear, Robert Downey Jr. carries the film as best as he can. Downey is an actor who does tongue-in-cheek camera hamming better than anyone in Hollywood. He plays bezillionaire playboy Tony “Iron Man” Stark, America’s #1 nuclear deterrent, with witty irony and a feeling, in this film, that his self-absorbed snarky narcissism is always on the verge of being swallowed by his own mortality. “I’ve successfully privatized world peace,” he humorously boasts in front of a Senate Armed Forces subcommittee, and then, a few moments later, confronts death-by-body suit full in the face. Favorite visual moment? Iron Man as the “Change Obama” icon on a poster that Stark hangs in his sumptuous bar. Sometimes Hollywood gets it right.
But alas, “Iron Man 2” is beset with casting and narrative problems, and they all materialize after the first fifteen minutes (which features an action scene at Monaco Grand Prix that is absolutely riveting).
Problem #1: Mickey Rourke. Magnetic in the film “Wrestler,” Rourke plays Ivan Vanko (a.k.a “Whiplash”), a Russian with metallic teeth and a grudge against Stark for causing the death of Vanko’s father. “If you can make God bleed,” Vanko says, “you can get people to cease to believe in him.” So far, so good. After a gripping initial confrontation between Whiplash and Iron Man at Monaco, though, the film relegates Vanko to little more than a computer programmer for – sigh – CGI-powered droid ‘bots, which are about as interesting as Stark love interest Pepper Potts’ (Gwyneth Paltrow) on-the-phone biz-yak convos in this film (though her verbal jousting with Stark is passably fun.) Why, in God’s good name, would you cast Mickey Rourke as potentially the coolest bad guy since Heath Ledger’s Joker, and then stick him in a white room in front of a laptop for the bulk of the movie? Nyet nyet nyet.
Problem #2: Don Cheadle is cast as Lieutenant Colonel James Rhodes in the sequel. Big mistake. They should’ve stuck with Terrence Howard (See the original “Iron Man”), who is much less earnest and much more fun than Cheadle, and looks reasonably convincing in the Iron Man suit. Cheadle just looks plain silly, unlike Downey, who has figured out how to ham it up a bit. (Note to the casting department – replace Don Cheadle with Samuel L. Jackson – who plays Nick Fury in what is almost a cameo appearance) for the three-quel).
Problem #3: Scarlett Johansson. OK, so she’s a babe who speaks four languages in the film and wears a black jump suit as “Black Widow.” But she’s all business, to the point where she doesn’t even crack a hint of a smile the entire film. A shame. And, by the time she does bust out the black latex as Black Widow, it is only to flatten an entire room full of – brace yourself – middle-aged and balding security guards. Say what? Now, if Black Widow had gone up against Whiplash, with help from Iron Man…well, you get the idea. Another wasted set of narrative opportunities.
I really hope they give “Iron Man 2” director Justin Theroux the opportunity to direct a third “Iron Man” installment, so the man can redeem himself.
Sure, this film will drag in gajillions of dollars at the box office.
But for me, it will always remain “Iron Man, Part Duh.”
He has been called “the crown prince of the New Folk Movement” by Rolling Stone magazine.
He has toured all over the world for more than two decades.
His songs have been recorded by a wide range of musical artists in a diverse variety of genres.
And, after years of dangling carrots in front of him, our own Mad River Valley folk music impresario Bruce Jones, visionary founder of the Valley Acoustic Showcase, has finally convinced John Gorka to come and play at the Valley Player’s theater on Sunday night, May 16.
How good a songwriter and performer is John Gorka?
“Listening to John Gorka sing, one can get goosebumps all over,” observes The New York Times. “There are many reasons – fresh lyrics, a stunning emotional baritone voice, his twisted humor – but to focus on one limits the experience.”
I couldn’t have said it better myself. Check him out at www.johngorka.com.
I’ve listened to John Gorka for years, and seen him perform at festivals and venues all over the country. I never grow tired of the experience.
I think of Gorka as the Stephen Wright of folk music. He is wickedly funny in the most understated of ways, and almost deadpan on stage, but when he opens his mouth to sing, his voice – by turns haunting, melancholic, and wryly witty – captures the whole universe of human emotions in keenly observed turns of phrase. His mojo is hard to describe, really – Gorka must be heard to be believed.
And his writing is truly unique. Perhaps his most famous ballad is an old tune called “I’m from New Jersey,” in which he sings of the promise and peril of being a denizen of the Garden State.
A sampling:
I’m from New Jersey / It’s like Ohio
Only more so / imagine that.
Girls from New Jersey have this great big hair/
They’re found in shopping malls / I will take you there.
What makes Gorka a gifted songwriter is his ability completely empathize with his subject. He sings on a wide range of topics: war, love, peace, lust, and the often-wrenching changes the world brings to the unsuspecting, as is the case with one of his most powerful tunes, called “Houses in the Fields” (which I’ve heard him play on both the guitar and the piano):
They’re growing houses in the fields between the towns/
And the Starlight Drive-In Movie is closing down/
The road has gone to the way it was before/
And spaces won’t be spaces anymore.
His newest CD, entitled “So Dark You See,” delivers more of his trademark wit and wisdom voiced with his remarkable delivery. Only Gorka would dare to put an old Robert Burns poem to music, deliver an old Utah Phillips classic cover called “I Think Of You,” and then turn around and throw down a moving meditation on growing up in “Ignorance and Privilege,” in which he sings of the sacrifices Depression Era parents made for their sometimes-unappreciative progeny.
And if this review doesn’t convince you to see Gorka live, Bruce Jones has invited local up-and-comer Nikki Matheson to open the evening. Matheson has just finished recording a beautiful new CD entitled “Invisible Angel,” a project she started eight years ago while living in Paris, and has just finished with Vermont uber-producer Colin McCaffrey. You can listen to her at www.nikkimatheson.com.)
Two fabulous performers in our Valley on one spring evening.
U.S. officials want to go to war by invading another country.
Only problem? They don’t have a compelling reason.
So – they make one up by manufacturing “intelligence” and passing it off to U.S. “news” outlets, who dutifully report it as fact.
Nah.
Only in the movies, right?
You’re in luck.
High octane director Paul Greenglass (United 93 and the Bourne trilogy) teams up with Hollywood hot shot Matt Damon in a new “ripped from yesterday’s headlines” thriller that takes aim at the still-unanswered questions surrounding the Iraqi government’s alleged possession of weapons of mass destruction back in 2002.
Greenglass bases “Green Zone” very loosely on author Rajiv Chandrasekaran’s provocative and under-appreciated book The Green Zone: Imperial Life In The Emerald City, which painted an eye-opening picture of the plush pleasures that marked life for the U.S. imperial “worker bees” working to “build a new and more democratic” Iraq. But, in the interest of providing “getting butts in seats” entertainment, Greenglass takes tremendous liberties, shifting away from a focus on how U.S. Imperial elites transformed a once-sovereign nation into a giant military playground to protect U.S. geostrategic energy interests, complete with a dozen “enduring” (read “permanent”) bases and the gargantuan Bagdhad-based U.S. embassy, the biggest the world has ever seen – and towards the eye-opening journey of one honest U.S. officer (Matt Damon) who discovers that (brace yourself) the U.S. government lied its way into Iraq. “I came to find weapons and save lives,” he exclaims at one point. “I didn’t find shit!”
That’s about the size of it.
Greenglass’ timing of “Green Zone’s” spring 2010 release might be near-perfect, given that this month marks the 8-year-anniversary of the U.S. government’s invasion and occupation of modern Mesopotamia, with its enormous supply of fossil fuel energy reserves and convenient enemy-de-jour, Saddam Hussein (once a U.S. ally fighting Iranian Islamic fundamentalists back in the 1980s.)
Except for one thing.
Iraq, in the words of unembedded Middle Eastern independent journalist Dar Jamail, has become America’s “forgotten war,” all but gone from the coverage of what passes for “news” in U.S. mainstream media outlets. And yet, here is a major director and Hollywood actor (known for his progressive politics) re-visiting Iraq and the occupation’s opening moments. This, for me, was perhaps the most interesting twist in screening Green Zone, almost as if Hollywood has relegated the Iraq war (still very much in play) to the silver screen, history, and cultural memory, even as Greenglass, in interviews, states his hope that his film will revive an interest in Iraq that has flagged in recent months.
And Greenglass’ fictionalized story, told in his trademark compellingly disorienting “shaky-cam” style of quick-cut edits, tight camera work, and whip pans (heck, remove Damon’s G.I. garb, and we might as well be watching Bourne) is old news to any movie watcher who was awake and paying attention, as a citizen of our once-republic, to the fierce debates that raged throughout the years of the Bush/Cheney regime.
Remember?
When the U.S. government justified its post-911 mission of “Operation Iraq Liberation (OIL)”(I mean, “Freedom”) on the allegation that Saddam Hussein’s government possessed “weapons of mass destruction,” despite U.N. weapons inspectors’ (Hans Blix, Scott Ritter etc.) repeated assertions that the WMD threat had been neutralized? WMD, incidentally, was the most-oft-repeated phrase in U.S. “news” media coverage in the year leading up to the Iraq invasion, and has so completely disappeared from U.S. public discourse since, that hearing Greenglass’ characters utter “weapons of mass destruction” with such scripted seriousness is a painful reminder of the past 8 years of lies and illusion.
Slightly more encouraging, perhaps, in Greenglass’ film – at least in the “should art mirror life” department – is the fictionalized presence of a Wall Street Journal reporter named Lawrie Dayne, who Miller confronts while trying to get to the very murky bottom of the mysterious circumstances surrounding the elusive WMD. “How do you come to write stuff that isn’t true?” Miller asks Dayne, who admits she printed high level intel handed to her without any independently verified research. While a minor subplot in Green Zone, Dayne’s presence in Greenglass’ film reinforces the fact that major U.S. newspapers and high level “news reporters” – notably the New York Times’ Judith Miller – beat the drums for a U.S. invasion of the REAL Iraq, resulting in a Times-sponsored mea culpa after the damage had been done. At least the New York Times came clean.
Fast forward to now. Despite much talk of western-style “democracy” and “freedom” taking root in Iraq, the country is a mess today. A staggeringly high estimated one million Iraqis have died since the U.S. invasion, with at least 2 million wounded and displaced. Beyond the human toll, daily life for most Iraqis is abysmal, compared with life under the Hussein regime.
Perhaps Greenglass’ Green Zone will push thoughtful Americans into a reconsideration of U.S. foreign policy, or help stimulate some cautionary thinking as the Obama administration widens the war in Afghanistan and saber-rattles in Iraq. Then again, Americans are so conditioned to use movies as an escape that whatever lessons Greenglass and Damon hope to impart are lost in a staccato symphony of bullets – Firefight 101, Greenglass can do it in his sleep – at film’s end.
Attendees: Robin Morris, Stan Ward, Joshua Schwartz, Jill Arace, Charlie Hosford, Steve Gladczuk, Tom Barefoot, Laura Brines, Susan Klein, Brenda Johnston, Vickie Walluck, Jessie Karse, Bev Kehoe, Stan Ward, Dennis Derryberry, Peter Forbes and John Donaldson
1) Mad River Valley Potlucks – Jill reported that from 9 to 15 people have been attending. They may take a rest for the summer. Next potluck is Sunday, May 2 at the Waitsfield Church.)
2) Valley Walk ‘n Roll Festival – Laura reviewed some of the planned activities for this 3rd year of the festival to be held 5/15-22. Various bike rides, walks, Bike or Walk to School / Work Day and others are planned. An organization meeting is being held Friday, 4/16 at the 3 Mt. Café at 8 am.
3) Mad Bikes of Waitsfield – Laura said a group from Harwood has been working all week to repair and paint bikes. Next week the group will be making 12 new bike racks.
4) Sugarbush Triathlon – Laura reported that this year the Mad River Path is partnering with Sugarbush and stands to benefit, depending on the profits from the event. There are over 100 volunteers involved. Kids (4 to 12) event is on Sat., 4/10 and the adult event is Sun., 4/11.
5) John Abrams’ Building a Local Economy in the MRV Talk – Joshua reported this talk will be held on 4/23 from 6:30-8:30 PM at Yestermorrow. Abram is the well known author of The Company We Keep. (Seehttp://www.companywekeep.net/ ).
6) VT Festival of the Great Outdoors – Brenda who is the innkeeper at the White House Inn is spearheading this festival that is being held 7/9 – 18. The idea is to bring visitors to the Valley in the summer to utilize the great outdoors. 27 events are planned so far, with more to be added. Examples include: Gap to Gap Hike, guided kayak touring, pro tennis exhibition, star gazing, kids events, etc. See more information at http://www.vtoutdoorsfest.com/
Sat., 4/10 a fundraiser, the Mad Hatter Party, is being held at the Gatehouse Lodge. Raffle tickets for a cruise for 2 to Bermuda are also being sold.
7) Next Stage Steering Team Update – Susan reported on the progress of this group which is working to make recommendations on the next steps in the evolution of the VFN. The objective of the group is to determine the resources, direction, structure and leadership for the VFN going forward. The group’s recommended mission statement is “Valley Futures Network is a network connecting individuals and organizations working towards a healthy and sustainable Mad River Valley community.” The group is planning to finish its work in April and will present final recommendations in May or June.
e-Vermont Community Broadband Project – Joshua reported on this new initiative to help rural Vermont towns use the internet more effectively to advance a wide variety of local needs including downtown marketing, community engagement, economic development, school innovation, job creation, health and social services, and e-commerce. Grant money is available for up to 24 communities across the state. One example of what could be done would be to implement a Front Porch Forum in the Valley. (See http://www.frontporchforum.com/ for more information). Various ideas were discussed at the meeting. This is broader in scope than the mission of the VFN or MRVPD and so people interesting in organizing a plan and an application will be needed to move this forward. Contact Joshua at 496-7173 or mrvpd@madriver.com.
9) Energy update – Dennis said Localvolt members had been busy working on Vt. Yankee initiatives and information sharing and helping on grant applications for Valley municipal projects. 8 projects were successful grant recipients. Next Localvolt meeting is Monday, 4/12 at the General Wait House at 6 pm. Agenda items include Community Wind / Solar, Biomass Feasibility study grant application and phone follow-up on last year’s successful VCEM Project.
10) VT. Festival of the Arts – Bev distributed postcards and event registration materials for the festival being held from 8/1 – 9/5. Their website http://www.vermontartfest.com/ will be updated shortly.
