tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post5943906591156646023..comments2023-11-03T06:02:02.128-07:00Comments on By Ken Levine: BRIDGE OF SPIES: My reviewBy Ken Levinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17305293821975250420noreply@blogger.comBlogger37125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-50637993875966066352015-11-13T05:36:37.973-08:002015-11-13T05:36:37.973-08:00I call these movies Spielberg's Obligatory His...I call these movies Spielberg's Obligatory History Lessons. I will probably see it eventually. But I'm thrilled to see this spark a discussion of The Lives of Others. We've got it on dvd and we'll be watching it tonight!Gerryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12361836428885324631noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-84040635482635213882015-11-12T18:25:20.245-08:002015-11-12T18:25:20.245-08:00Saw the movie yesterday. I'm sure Spielberg o...Saw the movie yesterday. I'm sure Spielberg over dramatized a lot, so will have to read up on what really happened and fact check it. Don't recall Frank Powers having a problem ejecting. He wrote a book, so will look that up too.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-51144531879670414092015-11-12T18:02:13.737-08:002015-11-12T18:02:13.737-08:00Frank Powers (we at KGIL called him Frank, not Ga...Frank Powers (we at KGIL called him Frank, not Gary) was truly a wonderful person as D. McEawn said. I got to fly the afternoon traffic reports with him one Friday when we got off early for a holiday, and he saw me leaving and asked I like to go up with him. I said sure! Can I bring my son? He said sure, meet me at the hanger. My son, then 7 or 8, sat on my lap and steered the plane. Frank handled the pedals, throttle and traffic reports. My son, still talks about it.....Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-68994772050726149352015-11-12T15:10:56.839-08:002015-11-12T15:10:56.839-08:00"Andrew said...
The Gary Oldman version was a...<i>"Andrew said...<br />The Gary Oldman version was a travesty.)"</i><br /><br />Well, that's an overstatement. It was a reader's digest version, with the extremely complex story condensed so much it was hard to follow. But it was intelligently written and directed and very well acted by a cast just as excellent as in the earlier version.D. McEwannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-72005132941448628512015-11-12T07:49:09.198-08:002015-11-12T07:49:09.198-08:00On these lines I would recommend the BBC version o...On these lines I would recommend the BBC version of Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy. Alec Guinness, Ian Richardson, and so many more great actors. Fantastic dialogue. Long, drawn-out suspense. One of the best things I've ever seen. <br />(The Gary Oldman version was a travesty.)Andrewnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-69785491158758432392015-11-12T04:44:12.576-08:002015-11-12T04:44:12.576-08:00I LOVE One, Two Three. ..."All I want from yo...I LOVE One, Two Three. ..."All I want from you, Scarlet Piffle, is silence, and very little of it."Sue Dunhamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04386142309332609673noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-16165661691041822522015-11-11T23:16:09.368-08:002015-11-11T23:16:09.368-08:00D. McEwan, you win the Internet (along with Ken) f...D. McEwan, you win the Internet (along with Ken) for extending and giving some real contour to the Powers story. We read blogs for their author but when the commenters can extend our enjoyment that way, it's a real bonus. Thanks!Breadbakernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-26816967284616284482015-11-11T21:26:06.016-08:002015-11-11T21:26:06.016-08:00@ Chris Muir - Agreed. And, coda is a great term....@ Chris Muir - Agreed. And, coda is a great term. Though I always wonder how well it works with anyone who hasn't seen/played them in sheet music.Igornoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-9375513791907349352015-11-11T20:45:00.292-08:002015-11-11T20:45:00.292-08:00No mention of your colleague, Alan Alda?No mention of your colleague, Alan Alda?Joseph Scarbroughhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06851086150240380366noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-60350640195477684302015-11-11T18:32:28.291-08:002015-11-11T18:32:28.291-08:00My problem with most recent Spielberg movies is th...My problem with most recent Spielberg movies is that they all feature what I've been calling an "emotional coda" at the end, that ties up how you're supposed to feel about the movie, and wraps it with a bow. cbmhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08341157122141290094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-51568707955427046092015-11-11T18:23:25.371-08:002015-11-11T18:23:25.371-08:00Ken, did you know Gary Powers when he was doing th...Ken, did you know Gary Powers when he was doing the traffic reports for KMPC. He took over after Jim Hickland died. Jim would often take me up with him and was teaching me to fly a helicopter. When Gary took over he gave me a couple lessons, too. I have photos if you ever want to see them. I was devastated when he was killed in a crash. I can't wait to see this movie.<br />RayAlaskaRaynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-2894353736175079502015-11-11T17:56:51.423-08:002015-11-11T17:56:51.423-08:00"And those of us of a certain age or studied ...<i>"And those of us of a certain age or studied history know the outcome."</i><br /><br />And those of us who knew personally one of the principals. I worked with Francis Gary Powers at KGIL for several years. He was a sweet, gentle, brave man (And hardly the male model he looks like in the movie). Whenever I had an afternoon free and the weather was clear, I would spend the afternoon drive time up in the station's two-seater Cessna, soaring over our freeways with Frank Powers, so I spent many happy hours up in the air with him, just the two of us. He told me a lot about his great adventure during those flights. I was deeply saddened by his death, in a helicopter crash. And even in that, he was a hero. He could have landed his out-of-fuel 'copter in a playing field, but it was full of kids playing baseball, and he had no way to warn them, so rather than risk hurting or killing kids, he chose to crash the 'copter where no one but its occupants, himself and a KNBC camera man, were killed. <br /><br />His first day flying for us, I wrote a bit for him he did on the air with Dick Whittington: "<br /><br />Dick: "Now to our new skywatch pilot, Francis Gary Powers in Skywatch 1."<br /><br />Frank: "Thank you, Dick. Traffic over the Moscow turnpike is heavily congested, with traffic backed up all the way to the Lenin's Tomb offramp."<br /><br />Dick: "Frank, are you reporting on Moscow? You're supposed to be flying over the San Fernando Valley."<br /><br />Frank: "Are we at war with the Valley?"<br /><br />When Rudolph Abel died, I wrote a line which Frank did on the air for us: "Now that Rudolph Abel has died, does this mean I have to go back to Russia?"<br /><br />I loved Frank Powers, a charming and modest American hero.dD. McEwannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-22048333551862742412015-11-11T16:59:56.687-08:002015-11-11T16:59:56.687-08:00@ Peter - I won't say Good Bye Lenin is a grea...@ Peter - I won't say Good Bye Lenin is a <i>great</i> film, but I did like the characters. And the premise is audacious. <br /><br />I was interested in the small details of life, east v west. And the premise made such details important - such as the pickle jar label (IIRC) in the dumpster. <br /><br />I was also fascinated by the window into what it must have been like for people in East Germany when the wall fell - especially people who (like the mother) had 100% bought into the system. The adult version of learning there is no Santa Claus. <br />Igornoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-52229801622289606122015-11-11T16:31:43.030-08:002015-11-11T16:31:43.030-08:00The Lives of Others is superb.
An antidote to the ...The Lives of Others is superb.<br />An antidote to the smoldering passion for socialism in our midst these days.<br />Another superb film from that era -The Spy Who Came In From The Cold.<br />Won't find better performances than thrones in that movie. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-83404003521097642712015-11-11T15:17:42.424-08:002015-11-11T15:17:42.424-08:00THE LIVES OF OTHERS. Seriously. If I could make yo...THE LIVES OF OTHERS. Seriously. If I could make you watch this film, I would. Alas it will remain largely unwatched. Remember that feeling when you finally got around to watching BREAKING BAD? You have at least two more coming: THE WIRE and, should you ever track down a copy and watch it, THE LIVES OF OTHERS.<br /><br />After a recent visit to Berlin, I watch TLOT again and I've been meaning to check out ONE, TWO, THREE, since. Definitely next on my list!Johnny Walkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13302545167970532080noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-52664200134680753022015-11-11T15:03:17.251-08:002015-11-11T15:03:17.251-08:00Sorry, of course I meant Goodbye Lenin! Sorry, of course I meant Goodbye Lenin! Peternoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-76093337270166386092015-11-11T14:59:56.197-08:002015-11-11T14:59:56.197-08:00Igor
Goodbye Berlin had a couple of funny scenes ...Igor<br /><br />Goodbye Berlin had a couple of funny scenes but it made the fatal mistake a lot of comedies make. It repeated the same basic joke over and over until it had run it into the ground, and it was far too long. It was something that would have worked much better as a short film.Peternoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-3590798306110640962015-11-11T14:26:56.998-08:002015-11-11T14:26:56.998-08:00Doesn't all of that apply equally to The Termi...Doesn't all of that apply equally to The Terminal?MikeNnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-5263238430863619652015-11-11T13:41:17.736-08:002015-11-11T13:41:17.736-08:00BTW, if anyone wants to see a very good, funny/tou...BTW, if anyone wants to see a very good, funny/touching film about East Germany at the time when the Berlin Wall comes down, check out "Good Bye Lenin!" (2003).<br /><br />From IMDB: "In 1990, to protect his fragile mother from a fatal shock after a long coma, a young man must keep her from learning that her beloved nation of East Germany as she knew it has disappeared."Igornoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-53343223638071566892015-11-11T12:50:13.747-08:002015-11-11T12:50:13.747-08:00Sounds kind of disappointing.Sounds kind of disappointing.Maude Lynnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03669688074743095866noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-42690968611378216492015-11-11T12:25:14.982-08:002015-11-11T12:25:14.982-08:00I was 12 years old when Gary Powers was captured b...I was 12 years old when Gary Powers was captured by the Russians. I kind of remember when he was released but really didn't know anything about it. The story is so old at this point that people in there 30's and 40's probably have no idea about this story. I have a 32 year old who barely knows who Brian Wilson is, so I wouldn't expect him to know this story. As for the length of the movie as Ebert said it doesn't matter how long it is as long as it is good.sanfordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06580867647162091670noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-1569956282985622692015-11-11T11:21:41.186-08:002015-11-11T11:21:41.186-08:00Pat Reeder.
Too bad Spielberg wasn't advised ...Pat Reeder.<br /><br />Too bad Spielberg wasn't advised by you at the start of his career. Imagine how successful he would've been then!Dixon Steelenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-68640425071740702092015-11-11T11:01:57.600-08:002015-11-11T11:01:57.600-08:00ONE, TWO, THREE is a terrific film. If you are loo...ONE, TWO, THREE is a terrific film. If you are looking for a slightly more serious take at the Cold War in Germany, have a look at THE LIVES OF OTHERS (2006). The film won an Academy Award and gives you a realistic look at East Germany's secret police, the Stasi. I believe this film has what Ken criticised about BRIDGE OF SPIES: unexpected plot twists and characters changing course<br /><br />As a bonus, if you should ever find yourself in Berlin, you can visit the former Stasi prison in a district called Hohenschönhausen. You will recognise a few things from THE LIVE OF OTHERS, like a secret prisoner transport van that has "fruits and vegetables" written on it. Ironically, there weren't too many fruits and vegetables available in East Germany most of the time.<br /><br />THE LIVES OF OTHERS<br />http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0405094/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1<br /><br />Former Stasi prison museum (tours in English are available)<br />http://en.stiftung-hsh.de/<br />jcsnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-43629296714228008532015-11-11T10:30:52.555-08:002015-11-11T10:30:52.555-08:00I LOVE "One, Two, Three"!
@ cadavra - Y...I LOVE "One, Two, Three"!<br /><br />@ cadavra - Yes, it is tiring (in a great way). And while I've long been a fan of Mad, Mad World, that film really does not hold up to today. My sense is: Unless you know those actors, it's just not that great. (And I say that as someone who has such affection for it, I've written a script inspired by it.)Igornoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-10036857199209257622015-11-11T09:06:00.757-08:002015-11-11T09:06:00.757-08:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Mighty Dyckersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03567545779834406431noreply@blogger.com