Movie Review—Hacksaw Ridge

by Peter J. O’Connell

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Hacksaw Ridge. Released: Nov. 2016. Runtime: 131 mins. MPAA Rating: R for intense, prolonged, realistically graphic sequences of war violence, including grisly, bloody images.

Many senior citizens know of Alvin York and Lew Ayres. York became a famous hero of World War I, though conflicted between pacifism and patriotism. With Gary Cooper in the lead, York’s story was told in the acclaimed film Sergeant York (1941). Lew Ayres was one of Hollywood’s most popular stars of the 1930s, featured in the antiwar classic All Quiet on the Western Front (1930) and the “Dr. Kildare” series of films. When Ayres was revealed to be a conscientious objector in 1942, at a time when stars such as James Stewart and Clark Gable were enlisting for combat service in World War II, he became reviled by many, and his career prospects crashed. However, his noncombatant but honorable service in the military as a medic, under fire, regained him popular respect.

The extraordinary story of Desmond Doss, however, until now has been little-known, despite periodic efforts over the years, including by Audie Murphy, the most-decorated combat veteran of World War II, to bring it to the screen. Now director Mel Gibson has brought the story of Doss—the first conscientious objector to receive the Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest award for military valor—to movie audiences in the terrific Hacksaw Ridge. 

The film proceeds in three parts. The first shows us Doss as a child and young man (Darcy Bryce as the young Desmond; Andrew Garfield as the adult Desmond). His family lives in the hills around Lynchburg, Virginia. His mother (Rachel Griffiths) is quite religious. His father (Hugo Weaving) is a rather complex character. Alcoholic and abusive of his wife and two sons, he seems to suffer from some form of PTSD from his service in World War I. He frequently visits the graves of army buddies killed in the war and forbids his sons to join the military. Yet he sometimes has the two boys fight each other so as to “save him the trouble “ of punishing them himself for some infraction. In one of these fights, Desmond hits his brother, Hal (Roman Guerriero as young Hal), in the head with a brick, rendering Hal unconscious. And we learn that in another incident, involving abuse by his father, Desmond almost shot his parent. Traumatized by these events and influenced by his mother, Desmond determines never to use a weapon—or even touch a firearm.

As a young man, the gangly Desmond, while helping an accident victim, meets a charming nurse (Teresa Palmer). He is smitten, and the two marry. After World War II breaks out, both Doss brothers disobey their father and enlist in the military. This begins the second part of the film.

At Army training camp, Desmond excels at first, but trouble begins when he informs his tough sergeant (Vince Vaughn) that he wants to serve in combat but will not touch a firearm. The sergeant and higher officers attempt to get rid of Desmond by pressuring him to enroll as a standard conscientious objector. Desmond declines to do so, however, saying that he is not a standard conscientious objector but is, instead, a “conscientious cooperator,” who wants to serve with his unit in combat but not carry a firearm. Eventually, Desmond faces a court-martial but is not convicted. Harder to face than these proceedings, however, is the contempt and brutalization that he has to endure from the other members of his unit, who treat him as a coward.

The fact that Desmond is the opposite of coward, however, is revealed in the several days of fighting at Hacksaw Ridge during the protracted, very bloody battle of Okinawa, a depiction of which constitutes the third part of the film. Hacksaw Ridge gets its name from the large number of amputations carried out there on the wounded. The struggle at Hacksaw Ridge requires GIs to ascend a sheer cliff face, advance across a rock field under fire, and confront Japanese forces in bunkers, caves and tunnels.

Gibson’s direction of the battle scenes is astonishing in both its cinematography and its “choreography.” The MPAA rating is a pale description of these scenes. In their depiction of horror and heroism, they surpass even the ones in such classic films as Milestone’s All Quiet on the Western Front (1930), Kubrick’s Paths of Glory (1957), and Gibson’s own Braveheart (1995). As the man (Gen. Sherman) said: “War is all hell.” Gibson’s control of the acting and his use of both traditional special effects and computer-generated imagery shows us that hell in a shocking, spellbinding way. But Gibson also shows us amid the slaughter a kind of sacrament of sacrifice as unarmed Desmond Doss repeatedly risks his life against incredible odds to rescue and treat his fellows, including his sergeant and other officers.

Doss, never touching a firearm, manages to carry at least 75 wounded men off the battlefield and lower them down the cliff face to a field hospital. For these exploits the unassuming Doss—wonderfully played by Andrew Garfield—becomes the first c.o. (or, as he would say, “c.c.”) to receive the Medal of Honor. That award is certainly well deserved, and Hacksaw Ridge deserves some awards for telling Doss’ story so well.

“Footnotes” to the film: (1) It will be interesting to see if Hacksaw Ridge does receive any awards at Oscars time. The film, like the current The Birth of a Nation, directed by Nate Parker, may suffer because of the personal peccadilloes of its maker. (2) Mel Gibson’s father, writer Hutton Gibson, now 98, is an American veteran of World War II, a winner of Jeopardy and other quiz shows, and father of 11 children. He moved his family to Australia in the 1960s to lessen the chances of his sons being drafted to serve in Vietnam. Mel Gibson attracted attention for his role in the Australian antiwar classic Gallipoli (1981) and achieved stardom in the ultraviolent Mad Max Australian films that followed. Mel Gibson then starred in a number of popular Hollywood films, including Braveheart (1995), which he also directed. The Passion of the Christ (2004), also directed by him, was a massive hit. After that, though, he entered a troubled period, with accusations of alcoholism, reckless driving and domestic abuse swirling about him. He also was accused of sharing his father’s extremist views, which include sedevacantism and what many consider anti-Semitism. Mel Gibson has denied most of these allegations. (3) With the exception of Andrew Garfield, who is British, and Vince Vaughan, who is American, all the actors in the film portraying Doss family members or American soldiers are Australian. The movie also was filmed entirely in Australia.           

      

Debunking the myths that are associated with getting older

Bernard Baruch said, “Old age is always 15 years older than I am.”

Last week, much to my own disbelief, I celebrated my 88th birthday. There is a saying that “age doesn’t matter unless you’re a cheese,” but I’m not too sure about that.

However, I do think that we create our own barriers by believing some of the general aging myths that, until recently, were almost universally accepted. Now AARP and the Agency on Aging have mounted campaigns to fight “ageism,” which manifests itself in the workplace, in our humor, and is evident in whether we have concern and respect for the senior members of our society.

Here are some aging myths that we need to debunk in order to not only accept, but be joyful for the opportunities afforded by additional years.

• Aging Myth No. 1: Your Age Determines How Old You Feel — Focusing on your chronological age can make you feel old when biologically you are still functioning well. Your general health, energy and, perhaps most important of all, your zest for life and new experiences are the determining factors in “ability age,” not the number of birthdays you have celebrated.

• Aging Myth No. 2: Your Body Will Become Frail At A Certain Age — You can increase the strength of your muscles and continue to be independent through exercise and weight training. Walking 30 minutes a day a few days per week can add seven years to your life. Balance exercises that prevent falls are one of the most important ways you can prolong your health and your vitality.

• Aging Myth No. 3: Our Genes Predetermine Our Health — While the gene bank you inherited is fixed, a lot depends on how you live your life. Your thoughts, emotions, levels of stress, sleep and exercise are all altering factors.

• Aging Myth No. 4: Your Brain Is Sure To Deteriorate Over Time — Just not true. Many people think you lose brain cells as you age, but research shows us that areas of the brain involved with memory and learning continue to produce new cells every day. So while you do lose cells, they are constantly being replaced. To help build new cells, the best thing you can do is keep your brain busy with new activities. Learning a new language is one of the best brain builders. Your local senior center often offers foreign language classes, and then it would be fun to plan a trip to visit a country where you could try out your newly acquired skill. Click here to continue reading.

Movie Review—Inferno

Inferno

by Peter J. O'Connell                                                                                                                                              

Inferno. Released: Oct. 2016. Runtime: 121 mins. MPAA Rating: PG-13 for sequences of action and violence, disturbing images, some language, thematic elements and brief sensuality.

A character played by Tom Hanks tosses and turns restlessly in bed, suffering nightmarish visions. Is it Captain Chesley Sullenberger, the heroic pilot played by Hanks in Sully, a fact-based film still on local screens? No, it's Robert Langdon, professor of “symbology” at Harvard, in Inferno, the third movie starring Hanks made from a Dan Brown novel.

As in the two previous movies, The DaVinci Code (2005) and Angels and Demons (2008), Langdon, dashing from historic landmark to historic landmark, has to figure out preposterously abstruse clues based on classic artistic and literary works in order to reveal “profound truths,” or save lives, even in Inferno, much of the human race itself. 

In Inferno Langdon's tossing and turning in a Florence hospital apparently stems from a head wound that also has caused him to lose his memory of the last few days. Dr. Sienna Miller (Felicity Jones) is helping Langdon when Vayentha (Ana Ularu), an assassin, shows up. This starts Langdon's dashing (accompanied by the lovely Miller) as he attempts to recover his memory and find out why Vayentha and other folks apparently are trying to kill him. 

Clues from Dante's Inferno, Botticelli's Map of Hell, the Boboli Gardens, Vasari's The Battle of Marciano, Dante's Death Mask and other highlights of Western Civilization lead Langdon and Miller to a riddle left by a scientist named Bertrand Zobrist (Ben Foster), who, before committing suicide, developed a plague virus that will kill off a large portion of the world's people in order to quickly solve what Zobrist believes to be an impending crisis caused by overpopulation.

After some adventures in Venice, with some friends revealed to be enemies and vice versa, the movie's convoluted plot moves on to a climax at the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul. By this time the absurdity of it all may have led some members of the audience to toss and turn restlessly and others, perhaps, to doze off—a possibility that the dull direction by Ron Howard does not foreclose, despite the exertions of Hanks, the loveliness of Jones and the tours of Florence, Venice and Istanbul.  

Movie Review—Denial

by Peter J. O'Connell                                                                                                                                                    

Denial. Released: Oct. 2016. Runtime: 110 mins. MPAA Rating: PG-13 for thematic material and brief strong language.

Many fine films, both fictitious and fact based, have been made about trials, particularly murder trials. Denial is the fact-based story of a murder trial of sorts, a trial in which the victim of the crime was, in effect, historical truth itself, and the defendant was the defender of the truth.

Deborah Lipstadt (Rachel Weisz) is an American, a Jew and a professor of history who has written critiques of those who deny that the Holocaust—the deliberate murder of six million Jews by order of the Hitler regime--took place. David Irving (Timothy Spall), a British historical writer and one of the most prominent deniers, files suit against Lipstadt in 1996, charging libel.

British libel law differs from American libel law. Shockingly, in the U.K the burden of proof in such cases is on the defendant. Thus, Lipstadt's (and her publisher's) legal team will have to prove at trial that the Holocaust did, in fact, take place and also that Irving's denial of that reality is a purposeful misrepresentation of the facts, a deliberate lie made to support anti-Semitism, not a sincerely held belief based on an interpretation of the facts.

Lipstadt's legal team is a formidable one, with noted barrister Richard Rampton (Tom Wilkinson) and solicitor Andrew Julius (Andrew Scott), Princess Diana's divorce lawyer. Lipstadt, however, faces pressure from two sides. Some members of the “Jewish establishment” would like to see the case soft-pedaled for fear of fomenting anti-Semitism—but the feisty Lipstadt is not a soft-pedaler. Then Holocaust survivors implore Lipstadt to let them testify as to what they personally experienced and witnessed. Lipstadt wants her lawyers to let them do so, but the lawyers adamantly refuse, fearing that Irving, who will be defending himself, would traumatize the survivors. 

The heart of the film is a visit by Lipstadt and her team to the heart of darkness itself: Auschwitz. The sequence is brilliant and moving as the somber team views in pale winter light the bleak barracks and the remains of the crematoria and “shower rooms”---gas chambers.

The trial scenes that follow are gripping. Expert defense witnesses present evidence of the Holocaust but are challenged by the aggressive, rat-faced Irving. Evidence is also produced of Irving's disgusting racism and anti-Semitism. Yet Irving denies holding such views just as he denies that the Holocaust happened. Finally, the case goes to the sitting judge, Sir Charles Gray (Alex Jennings), who has not been particularly assertive during the trial, for his opinion. 

Anyone interested in history—or humanity should not deny himself or herself the experience of seeing this film. Director Mick Jackson strikes the right tone throughout. Weisz and Spall seize your attention and hold it, and the supporting cast all turn in fine performances. For example, Alex Jennings as Sir Charles Gray, though he has few lines of dialogue, is able to convey a sense of what a judicial temperament of high order is like. 

                                                                                                                                                                     “Footnote” to the film: Some have commented that, ironically, the real David Irving actually bears more of a resemblance to Tom Wilkinson than to Timothy Spall. Also, the reference in this review to Spall as Irving being “rat-faced” should not be taken as meaning that Spall himself is, in fact, “rat-faced.” He isn't—but as a talented actor he can contort his features to convey outwardly what the writers and director of the work in which he appears felt to be the inner essence of the character he plays.  

Latest scam: Give ‘sheriff’ money order or get arrested

This time it wasn’t the “FBI” calling.

Instead, the latest scam involved a “Lieutenant” from the New Haven County Sheriff’s Office.

Within the past week, the Hamden Police Department has investigated three telephone scams targeting the elderly.

The “Lieutenant” advises the elderly resident that there is a warrant for their arrest. The victim is instructed to proceed to Renshaw Road with either a money order or a “Green Dot” gift card. The caller then instructs the victim to read him the numbers on the gift card, prior to their arrival on Renshaw Road.

There has been one Hamden resident that has been defrauded of $1,000. Click here to continue reading.

Greensburg Pennsylvania fire chief leaving post he's held since 1953

Greensburg icon J. Edward Hutchinson wants to make a fitting exit after more than six decades as fire chief. 

“I want to get on a horse and ride off like John Wayne into the sunset, and wave,” said Hutchinson, who will turn 95 in November. “I want a little humor.” 

The man popularly known as “Hutch” will not run for a 22nd term, leaving the fire department to find another leader for the first time since 1953. 

Hutchinson has been chief longer than most of his firefighters have been alive. 

“Sixty-three years is a long friggin' time,” he said. 

It is time to pass the job to someone new, he said — and for a well-deserved retirement after decades spent constantly on call. 

“Fire chief in Greensburg is 24 hours, seven days a week,” Hutchinson said. 

Applicants interested in the unpaid position must submit a letter to the fire department's board of control by Nov. 2, board president Jim Buscaglio said. 

“It's going to take a person who's going to try to fill his shoes, but I don't think they're going to be able to do it. I think it's going to be very tough,” he said. “I certainly don't want that position.” 

The department's nearly 300 volunteer members will vote on a new chief before city council has final say. 

One person has applied so far, Buscaglio said. He declined to say who until the board has seen all applications. 

Rather than waiting until the end of the year, when his term expires, Hutchinson said he will ask Mayor Rob Bell to swear in a new chief as soon as one is selected. 

Hutchinson knew how to get whatever the department needed, Buscaglio said. He could always bend the right ears and get the right grants to keep his department up with state-of-the-art gear. Click here to continue reading.