It's my Earth and I won't give it up!

This film is in black and white. Sometimes the scenes look a little faded. Who knows if this was done on purpose? This is one of the last silent films of the era. The music is well coordinated with the scenes. The film is 88 minutes long. Most of the time it is images or dancing. Remove the images and dancing and you have about 20 minutes. There is a written narration at the beginning of the movie to tell you of the author and purpose of the movie. The English subtitles cover only one fourth of the dialog. You have to be a fast reader to finish the title before the next scene.

An alternate title could be "Who killed Basil?" And why? This is the story of a conflict between the collective and the individual owned farms. The technologies (tractors and aeroplanes) are to represent the collective. Horses and sweat are to represent the farm owners. This is played out with close ups of the faces of the farmers and the farm animals.

Some reviewers missed the mark on one of the things that make this film controversial. He tried to relate this film to "Triumph of the Will" (1934) - English subtitles. The irony is that in 1930 the Soviet Communist League asked Ukrainian director Dovzhenko to make a propaganda picture. He was to dramatize the need for landowners to give up their properties in order to create collective farms. However, they got more than they bargained for. Hitler wanted Leni Riefenstahl to make "The Olympiad": Part 1 (1936) - English subtitles. This was to emphasize Aryan superiority. The film turned out to be a work of art and if anybody benefited from it that was the black American runner Jesse Owens. "Earth" turned out to be a work of art and if it did anything, it helps solidify the feelings of the people that farm ownership has its merit.

The Blessing Way

"He stirs, he stirs, he stirs, he stirs,"

"Among the lands of dawning, he stirs, he stirs.
The pollen of dawning, he stirs, he stirs.
Now in old age wandering, he stirs, he stirs.
Now on the trail of beauty, he stirs,
Talking God, he stirs..."
It is in the 1970's pre-cell phone where parallel lives take place. We have an Indian wanted for a stabbing who turns up dead. Not just dead but in the wrong place. Not the wrong place but in a mysterious way. There is also a team of archeologists looking into which craft (they just may find it). One archeologist seems to be missing. A strange Navaho has his hat stolen but the silver hatband left. A woman is coming to visit her fiancé is in for an adventure she did not count on. From all of this Joe Leaphorn must make some sort of sense.
It is the descriptiveness of Tony Hillerman that goes beyond the mystery to pant a picture of a different world that we get to glimpse in the process of reading.
Read the book but the addition of the voice of George Guidall ads a dimension to the story by helping visualize the people and correcting pronunciation of certain words. I suggest you read the book and listen to the recorded version.
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Dance Hall of the Dead

The Fire God is missing

Twelve-year-old Ernesto Cata (Zuñi) is practicing to be the Fire God in a local ceremony. His best buddy George Bowlegs (Navaho) is a Zuñi wana-be.

Ernesto is missing and there is a pool of blood by his bike. The next day his buddy George runs off. It is up to Sgt. Joe Leaphorn to find the boys before anything happens to them (if it has not already.)

As with most of Hillerman's novels, everyone has different agendas and stories that overlap. There are alleged stolen artifacts form and archeological dig, and possibly a drug interest. They may or may not interact. We also get a good dose of Zuñi culture, and a feel that we are in the area.

Hillerman is nice enough to leave sufficient clues to let you figure out the mystery before Leaphorn and you then get to watch as he finally comes around to your way of thinking.

Another book by Hillerman "The Boy who Made Dragonfly" further describes the dance hall of the dead (Kothluwalawa.)

Author's Note:
"In this book, the setting is genuine. The village of Zuñi and the landscape of the Zuñi reservation are depicted to the best of my ability. The characters are purely fictional. The view the reader receives of the Sha'lak'o religion is as it might be seen by a Navajo with an interest in ethnology. It does not pretend to be more than that."

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Listening Woman

A great cliffhanger

Joe Leaphorn can put the loose ends together even when no one else realizes there are loose ends. The story starts out with an old man being bludgeoned and later Leaphorn is intentionally almost rundown by a mysterious man in gold-rimed glasses. He tries to tie these together. Then he uses an old robbery as an excuse to get out of a Boy Scout commitment and track down the antagonist. Needles to say the story gets more convoluted for everyone but Leaphorn.
This is an excellent story with the added plus of the description of the area and the Navaho that occupies this area. What seems at first to be over description later enhances the final scenes.
Speaking about the location and Navaho, even the schools, this story is even more enjoyable if you read "Seldom Disappointed" first. Tony describes how he comes by the plot and the people. He even goes out to locations first as research.
I have read the book but the addition of the voice of George Guidall adds a dimension to the story by helping visualize the people and correcting pronunciation of certain words. I suggest you read the book and listen to the recorded version.

Many people resort to reading Hoffmann in German. Many other Writers used Hoffmann's outlines to make their own novels.
This book is a translation of
"Little Zaches, Surnamed Zinnober"
Pure entertainment, and of a high order.
"Princess Brambilla"
A complex and controversial work.
"Master Flea"
Not published until 1908 eighty-six years after composition.

"People of Darkness"
"The mole, his hunting place is darkness."

"The mole, his hunting song is silence."

Sgt Jim Chee of the Navaho tribal police is asked by the wife of Benjamin J. Vines to retrieve a mysterious box stolen from her husband's safe while he was away. When mister vines returns he tells Chee that it was all a mistake and hands Chee a check. We all know Chee can not let this lay still so the mystery leads him to people that use a mole for their talisman "The people of Darkness" and it appears that something (or someone) is killing them all off.

The mystery is fair and Tony Hillerman does not hide clues or surprise suspects to the last minute so it is not too hard to guess most of the plot or who the good guys and bad guys are. We are introduced to the Navaho concept of witches and Mary Landon who will play parts (if she survives) in future novels. In the process we get a vivid description of the four corners and other areas near buy. In People of darkness he picks up a Lotta Burger and I have eaten a few of them my self. In future books we will be introduced to the Navaho Taco. For the anthropologist in us he describes many sings and ways.

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"The Dark Wind"

"A dark wind has entered his soul"

"Enemies unseen... Fears unspoken...... A dark wind has entered his soul"

Navajo Tribal Police Sgt. Jim Chee seems to be batting zero; so far he has not been able to solve a series of seemingly unrelated crimes. In an area that was joint use land between the Navaho and the Hopi (now Hopi) Sgt Jim Chee is given the task of finding the vandal that keeps destroying a windmill placed there to make Hopi life easer. He hears an airplane landing in the dark of night with no lights. The plane crashes and leaves a dying pilot. Also a dead man sitting up against a rock with a note in his hand saying if you want it back contact...

Sgt Chee is told that it is probably drugs and federal jurisdiction. Chee is not supposed to go anywhere near or have anything to do with the case. He has his own problems with the mill, a missing thief, and a mysterious ritual death. Naturally he listens, and can not help it if they overlap.

One of the reasons for reading Hillerman's books maybe more important than the overlying mystery is the descriptions of the area and the Ways of the Navaho and Hopi. Hillerman suggests you also read "The Book of the Hopi" by Frank Waters.

Not as intricate as the book but still fun is the movie "Dark Wind" (Lou Diamond Phillips as Officer Jim Chee, Fred Ward as Lieutenant Joe Leaphorn)

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"The Ghostway"

Shoot out at the Wash-O-Mat

A Shoot out at the Shiprock Wash-O-Mat leads to a puzzle that only Jim Chee with his knowledge of the Ghostway and of death rituals can try to peace together. Related is a disappearance of a school girl (Margaret Sosi) will lead Jim from the New Mexico landscape to the Los Angeles area. There with Hillerman's gift for description we also get a contrasting look of the different worlds. Will He find the girl and what does the puzzle spell out, or will it ever become clear?

This is a close continuation of "People of Darkness" so many of the descriptions and people were previously defined in that book. The reason people read Hillerman is mostly for the descriptions of the places and people his characters encounter. As seen in previous books, in the description of Margaret and other characters, he incorporates his real life experience with World War II and its aftermath.

Leo G. Carroll, "The Parent Trap" (1961), is the Professor. He was working with a formula that made things grow, really grow. He is the good guy and trying to find an answer to world hunger. There is a difference of opinion and the scuffle starts a fire. The professor gets injected and the tarantula escapes.

John Agar, "The Brain from Planet Arouse" (1957), gets to be Doctor Matt Hastings the good guy.

Clint Eastwood "Dirty Harry" (1971), is a fighter pilot and gets to bomb the tarantula.

I saw this at the movies when I was a kid. The creature had habit of leaving white stuff everywhere it did it's thing. The film broke for a commercial at that time and was advertising tooth powder. "Powder your teeth. Don't past them." Needles to say I cringe at the site of white tooth powder to this day.

So an alternate title for this movie could be "daddy-longlegs"

This movie was not made or intended to be one of those beautiful epics with dazzling color and wide screen. It is a made for TV movie. It does follow the book closely. The few variations were probably due to time constraints in getting the information out. I have to admit I also was about to press the fast forward button. I do not think thy will ever try to put Poirot in the 80's again. What you missed was David Suchet playing Inspector Japp with the worst English accent I ever heard. So what is his real voice? And Faye Dunaway did not dominate every scene. The Colonel Hastings (Jonathan Cecil) was to pansy to be in any army I know. Still it had its moments; like when Hercule turned to Japp and said "Get used to the fact that wherever you go, it is on our way." And by the end of the movie you get over the initial shocks and can enjoy it for it's self.

The magazine "Weaver's" is defunct but you can find a few archives hidden away in weaver's guilds. However, the patterns live on in this the second book in the "Best of Weaver's" series.

The definitive work on Thick'n Thin Weaves includes:

* Block design with thick'n thin
* Network drafting with thick'n thin
* Comprehensive primer on warp rep
* Thick'n thin double weave
* Thick'n thin warping tips
* And over thirty projects

Unfortunately, for this book it is too many sweaters and not enough samplers. Many of the patterns have drafts for different numbers of shafts for each pattern. Some in this book are for 16 shafts. Looks like I am back to loom hunting. Alternatively, a little bit of retrofitting.

Moreover, we get to search for Moriarty together with the real duo of George C. Scott and Joanne Woodward.

It appears that Justin Playfair (George C. Scott) things he is Sherlock Holmes. An investigation by Dr. Mildred Watson (Joanne Woodward) may prove he is Holmes and she is really the Dr. Watson. On their mission to find their elusive archenemy, Professor Moriarty, they barely pass by one of his traps in a supermarket. Watch as Holmes makes a unique diversion. In the process, we may learn a little bit about ourselves.

I am rooting for them and you will be.

Do not thing the film is just carried by two actors. You may find some of our other favorites in this film.

American Dreamer

It is not exactly the same story but mighty close. The technology and feel of this low budget film is that of the Quartermass films. The technology is hokey and the props are amusing.

Meteorites land in formation in a field. Yes we know what this means. So a set of scientists are sent out to find what we already know. Yep they all come back a bit funny. When the attempt to take over the top scientist fails they must regroup. From now on it is one top scientist that can out gun and out sneak any of today's secret agents, against an organized well armed coup with electrified fences and nasty attitudes. Will he ever figure out what is happening? Can they be stopped from doing what ever it is that they are doing? And should they be stopped?

This film is really to stories in one. The first story section of with Theodore Lynn (Irene Dunne), writing a novel that others considered racy, under the pseudonym Carolina Adams. She lives with her two maiden aunts and a small New England Town. Michael Grant (Melvin Douglas) her book illustrator discovers her secret. He goes to her town to help free her from her role in this repressive environment. As results from this action, they fell in love with each other. Michael Grant realizing the situation does the only thing that any gentleman would do in that position. He skips town.

The second half of this movie is where the real action begins. Theodore goes after him to confront him. She discovers that he is in the same position. And this is where Theodora goes wild.