Ataraxia

  The Secret Agent by Kleber Mendoca Filho has four nominations for the upcoming Academy Awards, for the new Best Casting category, for Best International Feature Film, for Best Motion Picture of the Year, and for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role for Wagner Moura, who has won Best Actor at the Golden Globes (for Drama) and at The Cannes Film Festival…more notes on films, and reviews of books wait for you on my blog https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/09/do-you-have-any-feedback.html   8 out of 10   The Secret Agent has created a kerfuffle among film viewers at the club downtown   I should try and use the successful formula from Goodreads and use a one-line review, or maybe just a couple:   -           Those get the most likes   Indeed, the man who was (maybe still is) the number one best reviewer for a multitude of weeks, Jayson, gives it one line So, after my own 10, or ...

 Stumbling on Happiness by David Gilbert 10 out of 10   This book is one of the classics of Psychology and part of my bibliotherapy. The author’s humor has been appreciated and compared with that of Bill Bryson. It is interesting to read about our mind and the funny way it works, when it does. David Gilbert says that we are the only ones who think about the future, or at least are capable to do so. As an owner of an ocean fish tank, I was amused to read that gold fish meet each other for the first time…whenever they meet again- they don’t recognize each other- I suppose that goes for the Ocean fish too…or doesn’t it? I should look for a book on the psychology of fish. When we imagine the future, we tend to project the present into it. SF literature in the 1950s and 60s tended to project major nuclear conflicts at the end of the future. People love to think about California and how happy they would be there, not thinking about the traffic jams, only about the beach, the ocean. ...

  Castaway by Michael Stewart Not thrilling… but nice Very often, when I stumble upon a rather good story, film or whatever, I am reminded of a scene in The History of the World. The movie by the startling comedian, director and writer Mel Brooks is hilarious and made our group of friends learn some of the lines and the scenes. At one point, the emperor of Rome, played by Dom de Louise –if I have the right name- is presented with a treasure. The loot is gathered in a big container, something like a bathtub-the Roman leader plunges in for a treasure bath. However, when he sees the huge collection of gold, diamonds, rubies and other fabulous stones and gems, all he has to say is: -            Nice…not thrilling, but nice And all that with a bored attitude and in a tone that sounds more like disgust than joy of having such a fortune at his feet. So that has become not only an inside joke, but also an ironic way to point out that someth...

  Suspicion written by Samson Raphaelson, directed by Alfred Hitchcock was the 1942 Winner of The Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role for Joan Fontaine, it was also nominated for the Oscar for Best Picture, it is also one of The New York Times’ Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made – you find a multitude of notes on films from The NYT and other sites, plus reviews of magnum opera from The GOAT and other pages on my blog and YouTube channel https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/09/do-you-have-any-feedback.html     8 out of 10   Alfrred Hitchcock was one of the greatest auteurs.   Indeed, the term was coined for him, even if William Goldman https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/01/adventures-in-screen-trade-by-william.html explains it is a mistake to attribute the whole motion picture to one man, even if he has a massive talent, and most often a giant ego Notorious https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/08/notorious-written-by-ben-hecht-directed...

  Shoeshine aka Sciuscia by Vittorio De Sica was The 1948 Nominee for The Oscar for Best Writing, Original Screenplay and was The Winner of   the Honorary Award at that festivity, it is also one of The New York Times’ Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made – you have many notes on films from The NYT 1,000 and other lists, together with reviews of books from The GOAT and other sites on my blog and YouTube channel https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/09/do-you-have-any-feedback.html   9 out of 10   Vittorio De Sica was one of the greatest film makers of all time, although I have been thinking of him mostly as a ‘comedian’, remembering him as the director of Marriage Italian Style https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/07/marriage-italian-style-based-on.html although De Sica has made fabulous tragedies as well   Giuseppe Filippucci and Pasquale Maggi are the children who dominate this film, Franco Interlenghi has the role of the latter, he would later have ...

  They Were Expendable by William White is one of The New York Times’ Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made and we can see why – there are many notes on films from The NYT 1,000 list, reviews on magnum opera from The GOAT and other web pages on my blog and YouTube channel https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/09/do-you-have-any-feedback.html maybe you care to visit…you will be welcome   8 out of 10   They Were Expendable is formidable.   Alas, I have some qualms   First the merits: it is about valor, patriotism, courage, magnanimity, Emotional Intelligence, resilience, zest, and other character strengths, as identified by Martin Seligman https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/01/flourish-by-martin-seligman.html founder of Positive Psychology Robert Montgomery has the role of Lt. John Brickley, while John Wayne is Lt. (J.G.) 'Rusty' Ryan, and these command troops in World War II, as America is under attack, this is the stage when the Japanese are w...