Brown Motion

Watched an interesting movie called 'State of Play'.  I may have blogged about this few years ago when I first saw it.  But since I forget what I saw and what I remember this may be a repeat title /topic - except that it might be a bit different take on the same story. So this story with a wonderful cast (Ben Affleck, Russell Crowe,  Robin Penn and Helen Mirren) is about a truth seeking journalist (Crowe) who is friends with a now Congressman (Affleck) from Pennsylvania.  At the heart of the story is two unrelated incidents or so it seems.  A couple of guys get shot in a Washington alley and a lady staffer on the congressman's research team dies in a mysterious train accident.  The journalist smells it and gets on it because he is only trying to earn his living. The story was originally written as a BBC series and Hollywood made a movie of it.  Who says the left coast does not copy a good story?  I have not seen the origina...

This is not a report on Swedish furniture.  Nor is it admiration of someone's feces. This is one of the opening remarks a doctor makes to the protagonist of a film called 'Philomena'.    The hero of the film appears to find this remark as curious praise until he realizes that the doctor meant he has not yet submitted a stool sample as part of his physical exam. A mildly humrous yet rather serious film about a mother's quest to search for her son taken away from her for adoption 50 years ago. This story like some recent productions is "based on real events" and could mean anything but the film version is positively entertaining.  Co produced by BBC films this one got some nominations from the Motion Picture Academy aka Oscars.  It did not win but I think that is only an opinion. Judi Dench plays the distraught yet firm of mind mother who certainly deserves a lot of credit for the role she played.  I have enjoyed her other roles including th...

Saw a wonderful BBC documentary showcasing the life of Richard Feynman.  Theoretical physics can be a very drab subject to appreciate but in watching how this Nobel winning professor went about making it easy for the lay person to understand made him a more wise person IMHO. Understanding is only part of the solution but to put something to good use requires it be narrated or communicated simply.  He knew how to do it.  From working to develop the A Bomb to solving the puzzle of what caused the Challenger Space Shuttle to blow up, he spent his life investigating and exploring and never being tired of being curious. Some of his books like 'Surely you are joking Mr. Feynman' provide a vivid look at his work and personal life of 70 years.  In it he reminisces of his curious habits and encounters that drove people wild but also proved a point beyond dispute. The documentary provided insight into his life from his close friends and family who are all ...

For Want of a Nail so goes the old rhyme - For want of a nail the shoe was lost. For want of a shoe the horse was lost. For want of a horse the rider was lost. For want of a rider the message was lost. For want of a message the battle was lost. For want of a battle the kingdom was lost. And all for the want of a horseshoe nail. In today's bizzaro world the NAIL can be replaced by WOODY. That part of the male anatomy that inevitably seems to get into a hot tub (ahem) - Nailing another individual so to speak! The 'Kingdom' in this rebranded metaphor would be Human Civilization in general. In the latest installment of power wielder shenanigans we were greeted with everything from the venerable British Broadcasting Corp and its erstwhile popular showman to Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (the 'I' is now seriously in doubt) to a Chief Executive of a Defense Supplier called Lockheed Martin - all falling prey to their vulnerability around not bei...