Soul Movie Review

We all know that at some point, we will exit this life. The question is, will we live to the fullest while we can?

The new Disney Plus movie, Soul, premiered yesterday. Joe Gardiner (voiced by Jamie Foxx) is a junior high school band teacher with a passion for playing music. At this point in his adult life, his dream of being a professional jazz musician has yet to be achieved. Then he gets an opportunity to play at a local jazz club.

But before he can play, he falls into a manhole. Discovering that he is in the Great Beyond, Joe tries everything he can to get back to his body. His ticket back to Earth is 22, (Tina Fey) an infant soul who is disinterested in being born. Together, they will learn about what true passion is and how to live life to the fullest.

What I like about this movie is while it is obviously a kids movie, there are themes that are well over the heads of younger audience members. The message of appreciating being alive and knowing what is truly important radiates through the narratives, reaching the viewer as only a touching and funny film can.

Do I recommend it? Absolutely.

Soul is available for streaming on Disney Plus.

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Joe Biden’s VP Pick & the Political Mistake That Was Sarah Palin

When it comes a Presidential election, the choice of Vice President can make or break one’s campaign.

Back in 2008, the late Senator John McCain chose former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate for that year’s Presidential election. While we may never know if it was that decision that cost him the Presidency, we do know that this woman became a political joke.

Saturday Night Live had a field day that year. Tina Fey playing Palin was comedy gold.

As this year’s Presidential election comes closer with every day, Democratic nominee Joe Biden is under pressure to choose his running mate. After promising to choose a woman, there has been speculation about who his VP will be.

I would love to say that race does not play a role in his choice. The choice should be based on experience, who is the best person for the job, and professional chemistry. But race, unfortunately, does play a role.

For me, as a voter, I would not be surprised if he chose Kamala Harris or Stacey Abrams. If he wants to be President as badly as he says he does, he needs to prove that his administration and policies will be inclusive and respectful.

The last thing he or the Democratic party needs is a reboot of the political mistake that was Sarah Palin.

Throwback Thursday-Date Night (2010)

I would wager that if one were to ask any married couple with kids about their daily lives, they would tell you that they have little time to spare for themselves. That is where date night usually comes in.

In 2010, the movie Date Night premiered. Tina Fey and Steve Carell play Claire and Phil Foster, an average suburban couple from the New York City area with a full plate of responsibilities. Like many couples, they look forward to date nights to relax and enjoy each other’s company. The evening they choose to go out on will not just be any evening.

Date Night is one of those movies that would be forgettable if it was not for the comedic geniuses that are Tina Fey and Steve Carell. The movie is not horrible, but it is not exactly what it promises to be.

Do I recommend it? Maybe.

Happy Birthday Gilda Radner

Last night, I wished a happy 90th birthday to Mel Brooks.

What I did not know is that June 28th is also the birthday of another legendary Jewish comic, the late Gilda Radner.

Born in 1946, Gilda Radner is remembered as part of the original cast of Saturday Night Live, then known as the not ready for prime time players. Standing on the shoulders of Lucille Ball and Carol Burnett, Gilda paved the way for the careers of Tina Fey, Rosie O’Donnell, Ellen Degeneres, Amy Schumer, Roseanne and other female comedians. While some of her characters were broad and perhaps a little on the annoying side, other characters were sweet and maybe a little naive.

After leaving Saturday Night Live, Gilda acted in several movies, including Haunted Honeymoon(1986), with her husband, Gene Wilder. She left this world in 1989, dying from ovarian cancer. After her death, Gilda’s Club was established as a support system for those fighting cancer.

Happy Birthday Gilda, wherever you are.

Bossypants Book Review

Tina Fey has the career that many starting out in the entertainment industry can only dream of.  An alumni of Saturday Night Live and the show runner and one of the stars of 30 Rock, Tina is one of the funniest women in the industry.

Her 2013 auto-biography, Bossypants, is not the standard auto-biography. The standard auto-biography follows a very linear and standard pattern: I was born here, I accomplished a, b, c,d, etc. Very staid, very traditional and to some, could be very boring. This auto-biography is not boring. It is funny, honest and full of life’s truths that we could all stand to learn.

I especially loved the script for the infamous Hillary Clinton/Sarah Palin 2008 election skit.

I absolutely recommend it.

Throwback Thursday- Baby Mama (2008)

It’s not easy to be a woman these days. Despite our advances (and thank g-d for them), there is still some pressure to live a traditional life.

In the 2008 movie, Baby Mama, Kate (Tina Fey) has a very successful career.  But her love life is non-existent. With no man in her life and wanting to be a mother, Kate hires working class Angie (Amy Poehler) to be her surrogate. When Angie announces that she is pregnant, Kate goes into overdrive to prepare for the birth of her upcoming child.  Then Angie moves in with Kate and Kate’s well ordered, always in control life is no longer in order or control.

This movie is incredibly funny, especially considering who the two lead actors are. Fey and Poehler have a natural chemistry, Fey playing a version of Felix to Poehler’s Oscar. This movie proves that not only are women funny, but a well written movie with fully rounded female lead characters will bring audiences into the theaters. Another factor that makes this movie an enjoyable one is how completely realistic Kate’s situation is. There are many women like Kate, who have worked very hard to prove themselves as capable professionals. But then they reach a certain age and realize that while they were so furiously building their careers, they may have missed out on the possibility of a spouse and a child.

I absolutely recommend it.