"Speak No Evil," A Modern Moron Movie Review

Don't let the bad things ruin the perfect, sometimes a man needs to be slashed across the face with a utility knife, and his face saturated in corrosive chemicals. 

"Speak No Evil" is difficult to review without having spoilers, but wow, the subject matter is intensity eerie. This flick is not a comedy, yet the writers still summoned laughter, especially when the two men were listening to a mellow pop song in the car. Brilliant writing by director James Watkins, Christian Tafdrup and Mads Tafdrup. The entire cast portrayed their roles in perfect synch.   

One couple is sadistically manipulative and murderous, while the other couple is not. "Speak No Evil" weaves the fabric of harmony into a myriad of too many evils. 

The previews, as the movie, did not disappoint, the psychological terrors punched my brain from underneath the skull. 

For those seeking instant gratifications to the senses, "Speak No Evil" might disappoint. This movie exposes the darkest recesses of evil's execution. Being forced into a kill or be killed situation is the ultimate buzz kill for any vacation. 

The ending and everything in-between weren't predictable, five stars for "Speak No Evil." 

Mass murder, kidnapping and grand theft are safe reveals for those still reading and want to see the film. 

This movie will be added to my October watch list for the rest of my life. 

Mark Izzy Schurr 

"Beetle Juice Beetle Juice," A Modern Moron Movie Review

A cascade of catastrophe amidst the imagination, or a blissfully bizarre and devious journey into realities realms? Crypt Addams has cool artwork, thank you Pinterest. 

Can the dead and the living coexist? "Beetle Juice Beetle Juice" has its theories on the matter, and be careful who you trust, or you just may end up in an eternity of a monotonous day, or the fury of Hell's flames.  

"Beetle Juice Beetle Juice" is certainly the most original mother daughter bonding story I've encountered. Tim Burton, his screen and story writers along with the music of Danny Elfman is solid. Burton's art is an appropriate display for the preschool aged, and sometimes it's a baleful parade of evil deeds shown with silly make-up. 

"I'm lightheaded," the headless man said in "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice"   

I forgot the other juvenile jokes, but there are more. 

Young love lures Jenna Ortega to the edge of hell's entrance, and her mother (Winona Ryder) has to journey into the afterlife without dying and save her daughter. and that's just a small portion of the story. 

Witchcraft certainly came in handy for the wife of Beetle Juice, and Monica Bellucci portrays a sexy dead woman who uses a staple gun to attach both her legs and nearly half her face to join the living.   

"Beetlejuice Beetlejuice" weaves dreams, deception, imagination, fantasy and fact onto the screen and bravo, three stars easy for "Beetle Juice Beetle Juice."  

Mark Izzy Schurr 

A Modern Moron Movie Review

Sadistically bizarre, yet blissfully entertaining, "Blink Twice" is a twisted tale of insane sexuality, murder, and over the top drug and alcohol use. 

Just before the movie started, a website is provided for anyone seeking mental health after they have seen the movie. Extremely disturbing rape is depicted, yet those scenes are brief and leaves many of the horrid details to the imagination.  

Slater King, aka Channing Tatum is a tech billionaire who owns his own island. Frida, (Naomi Ackie) a nothing in the work force yearns for King's affection and manages to get herself invited to a party on his private island along with her best friend.  

Upon arriving on the island, all cell phones are relinquished, and it's clear, "Blink Twice" is not going to be a typical comedy about excessive partying. 

"What the fuck we're we thinking?!?!? Jess said. Jess is Frida's best friend and realizes that doing hard drugs for several days, if not weeks with men on an island she's just met wasn't a smart choice. 

Sarah, extremely well portrayed by Adia Arjona is another one of the women who joins forces with the other ladies, and the justified slaughter begins. 

True love and sheer evil are weirdly weaved in "Blink Twice," three stars easy for this suspense / comedy. 

Mark Izzy Schurr

 

A Modern Moron Movie Review

Saleka Shyamalan showcases her musical prose as Lady Raven in "Trap." Shyamalan wrote or co-wrote the songs laden throughout "Trap." 

Lady Raven is a pop icon and her concert is a trap for the Butcher, a notorious serial killer. Like the 1930s movies, "Trap" relied on the dialogue rather than graphic violence or flashy imagery to get its point across, and it worked. 

All deaths in this movie are merely spoken upon and the most violent scene in "Trap" is when the killer pushes a much smaller adolescent girl down the cement stairs of a large concert venue. OK, I correct myself, the killer places a bottle of cooking oil in a commercial deep fryer and a girl gets glass blown up in her face. 

Lady Ravan is sly in her dealing with the Butcher. This movie was nothing like I expected, a very original story with doses of cinema intensity. Three and a half stars easy for "Trap." Don't leave too soon when the credits start rolling, or you'll miss something.  

Mark Izzy Schurr

  

  

Another Modern Moron Book Review

Whiskey peddling and gun running added fuel to fires already burning brightly between the whites, Mexicans and the Indians in the latter 1800s. 

Prior to 1850, Caucasians and the mighty Zuni Indians left the Apache's alone, because Apache's were an elite warrior force, able to use brute force and cunning with sagacious aplomb in battle or ambushes. Sometimes Apache's would surprise their enemies in their sleep and not kill a single person, but when their enemies awoke, most or all of their horses were gone, along with weapons, food and water.

No matter what age in time, before, during or after the Apache Wars, many whites, Mexican's and Indians coexisted and there were many white civilians who preferred the presence of Indians rather than the Army as did Mexican civilians with their military. 

Before the Apache warrior and medicine man Geronimo was 20-years-old, he was married to Alope, a shy slender squaw and daughter of an elite warrior, Noposo. Geronimo's native name was Goyathlay, but the Mexican nickname Geronimo stuck, a Spanish for Jerome.

Geronimo's wife Alope and his three children, all under the age of eight and his mother were killed by the Mexican military. 

The Apache mistrust for both the whites and Mexicans spawned the Apache Wars. Geronimo was one of the three Indian warriors responsible for slaying George Custer and all 210 U.S. Calvery troops in the battle of Little Bighorn in 1876. Weeks before the battle of Little Bighorn, Geronimo and Chief Magpie told Custer to leave the Black Hills or die. 

During all the battles of the Apache Wars, seven out of ten men hit anywhere by an Apache war arrow died. Apache war arrows were different from their hunting arrows. Hunting arrows where smooth, except for the tip of course. War arrows were jagged and poised with various venomous snakes or rotting animal livers, specifically saved for poisoning war arrows. 

Apache warriors could kill from 150 yards away with their bows. When vastly outnumbered, Apache's were able to attack suddenly and kill, and then in an instant, retreat and hide.  

Apache women worked constantly. They cared for the children, made the clothing, housing, cooked, woved rugs, weaved baskets and took care of family members who needed attention. 

"Apache Wars" is abundant with photo's of Geronimo and so much more from these nearly ancient times.  

This 17-chapter book is a four-star read simply for the one chapter titled, "Geronimo." 

Mark Izzy Schurr

   

A Modern Moron Book Review

The annelation of their childhood, stripped of their language, culture and spiritual believes, because the white man wanted it all. 

Jim Thorpe, a full-blooded Indian was born in 1888. The first 25-years of his life, he was dealing with the U.S. Army's mission to hunt down and kill every Indian in their path, including babies, women and children or enslave them into being white. 

Driven from their land again and again by broken treaties, subjected to every known spoliation and classified as beavers, buffalo and other wild creatures and compelled to give way to the march of civilization. The distorted cultural lens of whiteness is sagacious exposed in David Maraniss's 2022 book, "Path Lit by Lightning the Life of Jim Thorpe"   

In 1904, Jim began attending the Carlisle Indian Industrial School, and for at least one year, Pop Warner ran it. It was a very football orientated school. The official policy at Carlisle was to exterminate the Indian, not in body, but in language, dress, tradition, behavior and soul. 

In 1912, Thorpe became the caption of the college Carlisle team and game by game he became the icon for the American Indian, reaching mythical proportions, he was an athletic odyssey. 

Thorpe excelled in college and pro football and did very well in Major League Baseball. In 1916, while playing for the Milwaukee Brewers, Thorpe lead the league in stolen bases and banged in 10 homers with a .274 batting average. 

In 1912, Thorpe won two gold medals, the last year the Olympic gold was solid gold. He won gold in the Pentathlon and Decathlon. The putrid politics of having his medals taken away and finally restored to him decades after his death is all covered. 

The director of "Casablanca" directed the 1950s flick, "Jim Thorpe-All American." Documentary ends, movie making begins, Pop Warner said upon the movie's release.  

Having read this book, it's clear, I'm not a man. Hiram Thorpe, Jim's father had 15 children with five different women and Jim recalls his dad killing and skinning two deer's and hoisting one on each shoulder and walking several miles to the house to feed the family. Both Jim and his father were avid hunters and fishers. Thorpe said hunting and fishing was his favorite sport. By the time Jim was 10 years old, he would trek more than five miles alone into the woods to hunt and fish, often being gone from home for days. 

Jim Thorpe was an Olympic track champion, all American college and pro football player. He also played in Major League Baseball and the World Famous Indians basketball team. Thorpe was also one the founding presidents of the NFL. 

Jim was an absentee father for all seven of his children. His first son, Jim jr. died of sickness when he was just 3-years old, and booze certainly didn't help in Thorpe's private life. In the 1920s while playing college football for the Canton Bulldogs, and Carlisle, Jim had bouts with the three B's. Booze, broads and brawls.

His life was an impressive legacy laden with the ecstasy of victory, the gnawing pain of defeat and the exquisite ecstasy of athletic dominance.  

I've simply tinged the tip of the ice burg of this amazing five-star book. You don't have to be a sports buff or have heard of Jim Thorpe to enjoy this book, it's simply and amazing tale of tragedy and triumph. 

Mark Izzy Schurr   

 

Round One of This Year's Presidential Debate.

Our nation's national debt has soared to record highs under the leadership of President Biden and Donald Trump, these are the last eight years of stats pointed out in last night debate. (Photo, Schurr Shot, Devils Churn beach)

"We had no terror at all during my administration...during my four years we had the best environmental numbers ever...We had the greatest economy ever in our history when I was president, " Trump said.  

Forty out of the 44 cabinet members you appointed are not supporting you now...159 presidential schoolers voted you the worst president ever, Biden said. 

Trump said everybody wants Roe v. Wade to be state decisions and not mandated.  

President Biden supports Roe v. Wade and proposes billionaires pay 24 or 25 percent taxes as opposed to what they currently pay; 8.2 percent. 

Neither candidate last night was compelling, dull golf challenges, Trump bragging about acing a dementia test. Trump knows the difference between a whale and a lion, and he officially bragged about this last night. Biden didn't look promising to lead us another four years, yet he's our best choice over the serial liar and felon, Trump.

Seriously America! With the right people in charge, young adults would have an educational system designed for their ideas and imaginations while learning essential skills. Four-day work weeks, the livable 32-hour kind, UBI, and so much more. 

The political wisdom of Andrew Yang, and Tulsi Gabbard's books inspire me, alas, I regress.

What's happening on the American and Mexican borders is disastrous under both democratic and republican leadership. Under Biden, the border policies are seriously flawed, but equally worthless under Trump's leadership.  

Not left, not right, but The Foward Party, if not that one, find another independent party, because our presidential choices this year are horrendous, even shameful. Yang is clear, neither party in charge is the answer for America. Who do we vote for this year? 

I'm riden' with Biden, simply because he's not Trump. I'd vote for Ron DeSantis over Biden. I'm not anti-republican, I'm anti Trump. He's using 1700s political scare tactics and it's working. Where's the data on America welcoming in Mexicans who are mentally ill or their prisoners stealing our social security while living in luxury hotels?

Neither candidate talked about the tens of thousands of dead Palestinian children from Israel's insane retaliation on Hamas. Yes, the October 7 Hamas attacks which pulverized more than 1,200 Is Raelians was true terror, but mass murdering children is not the answer. 

Nintendo soldier pilot's flying and launching nuclear weaponry on women and children needs to end yesterday. America is still bombing children overseas. America's mass shooting problem suddenly dissipated? 

Last night's debate was very disappointing, a one-and-a-half-star watch, but vote, all eligible voters, vote.org, its the very least we really need to do. 

Mark Izzy Schurr    

    

 

  

  

Make America Great Again?

When was America ever great? It took the U.S 144 years to allow voting rights to women, and in 1920, it was only white women that were allowed to vote in all states. (The above picture is an actual picture of the potential Felon in Chief, the dangling of the Mc What

Hav Yous is AI, but the rest is real from his trail in which he was found guilty on all 34 counts.)

For some, America was great more than 159 years ago when black people could be bought and sold like any other inanimate product. How come nobody talks about our third president and his black sex slaves Thomas Jefferson? The history of any massive country is rooted on mass murder and rape from its hierarchy, and America is no different than China, Japan, Russia, France, Africa, the U.K., and many more countries. 

Slavery ended on paper a 159-years ago, and yet hate between some blacks and whites simply based on skin color and not the content of their character still fuels too many hearts of hate from both cultures. 

On May 20, Donald Trump had 'unified Reich' stuff on his personal Truth Social page. People, including myself may argue if Trump is a racist or not, but one thing is certain, he caters to these hate groups, including the KKK, the Proud Boys and the QAnon, aka the Q. 

February 19, 1942, was another great day in America for some of Trump's cult, I'll betcha. On this day, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt ordered all Japanese Americans on the West Coast to be rounded up and jailed. I read two books on this torrid history of the U.S. The 2003 novella, "When the Emperor Was Divine," by Julie Otsuka and George Takei's "My Lost Freedom," released this year. 

George Takei was sent to a maximum-security prison when he was 5-years-old in 1942 with his mother, father and two siblings, one slightly older and his toddler sister. His crime, being a Japanese American. His mother was a true citizen, she was born in Sacramento and his dad was a legal immigrant from Japan, and like the white people, paid their taxes and worked legally. Make America Great? When exactly was it Great? 

How wonderful the Native American's were treated, is that when America was great?                                                                                                                                                                                        Referring to African Americans as blacks and Native Americans as Indians are my preferences because it's less wordy and when the Indians slaughtered General Custer and his entire Cavalry, it was true justice. White man was in the wrong and they paid the ultimate price of war. Months before the Battle of Litte Bighorn, General Custer and his army were told by Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse and another Indian Chief to leave the Black Hills or die. It was a one-sided slaughter lead by Crazy Horse's Cheyenne tribe, Sitting Bull's tribe and one other Chief and his warriors. 

In the Battle of Little Bighorn, Custer was one of all nine officers killed along with all 280 enlisted cavalry U.S. soldiers. Thirty-two Indian warriors lost their lives for justice that day. America was great that day for me. The Indians were here first, and the whites came for the gold, so fuck General Custer, he had months to head the warnings and bail in peace.       

Currently America isn't even in the top 30 in education or clean water, so where is all this lip service greatness? 

I agree with Trumpsters, President Joe Biden is a do-nothing old man, but he's not Trump, so again, I'm ridn' with Biden in November. Trump is a whooping four years younger than Biden and an absolute disgrace to America and all humanity. He's a convicted felon and tried to overthrow the government and that's just the tip of the iceberg for him, a serial criminal and liar. He told more than 30,000 lies or spread misinformation in just four years. Airports in 1776? Trump, a stable genius? Trump also suggested we nuke hurricanes. His stupidly is infinite. Donald J. Trump, the j is for genius he'll probably say. 

In my brothers and sisters' lifetimes, America was segregated and ended the year I was born. Signs reading whites only were laden throughout America in the early 1960s and earlier, when America was great, according to Jabba the Gut and his cult. 

I support local sports while too many Trumpsters send the billionaire buffoon felon money to help with his legal fees. I follow no one's dictates, save my own, I finally grew up.  

Looking upon America's choices for the upcoming election, I see the beginning of the end. I want to be wrong, I really do, but honestly, I'm glad my life is more than half over, the future looks bleak to me, but I know how to fake happiness and sometimes experience it. 

Mark Izzy Schurr

    

 

Another Modern Moron Book Review

Those in control of today's Democratic party and permeant Washington are leading us down a very dangerous path that threatens our freedom, democracy and ability to thrive in a peaceful prosperous county, Tulsi Gabbard said in her new book "For Love of Country Leave the Democrat Party Behind." 

Gabbard's political novel is a fantastic read, Republicans would love it. I liked this book and I'm anti Trump. 

In early 2022, congress voted on a $40 billion aid package to Ukraine with no conditions on how the money is spent. I learned this and so much more from her new book. 

Personally, I think she should be the American president, she's not even 50-years-old, a former member of congress, an enlisted member of the U.S. Army reserve and has seen the spoils of war firsthand when she was stationed in Iraq in 2005. 

 "We (America) create the rules and the good guys are the ones who follow the rules, and the bad guys are the ones who don't," Gabbard said.

Self-serving politicians send our soldiers to die in wars they have nothing to do with, and then fly into war zones on our tax dollars to shake hands with a few soldiers for photo opps. When these politicians showed up in Iraq where she was stationed, she refused to shake any of their hands. She has heart and soul, and having been to war, knows what absolute lunacy and evil war really is.  

Politician don't care about our soldiers or their families. These warmongers are all lip service, and their actions tell the story, Gabbard said. More than 7,000 U.S. soldiers were killed in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars and more than 500,000 Iraqi and Afghanistan children have been murdered in these wars so one percent of the insanely rich could get even wealthier. 

When I was in Iraq, the KBR Halliburton logo was stamped on almost everything. Food, laundry, fuel and port a potties from a company that made 100s of billions of dollars if not trillions, Gabbard said. 

Our foreign policy should not be based on dropping bombs or exacting crippling sanctions on other nations Gabbard said. 

The Dooms Day clock is currently at 90 seconds to midnight. It's moved up 30 seconds since the early 1980s. The Doomsday Clock is adjusted every year by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientist. Another fact I learned from reading this book. 

Males who go into female sports is absolute lunacy and it's because of the democrats this nonsense goes on. Swimmer William Thomas changed his name to Lia Thomas and as a male he was ranked 462nd in the world. Simply changing his name and declaring himself a woman, he was able to compete against the women, thanks to Democrats in power. In the locker rooms he was often aroused and bragged to women about his sexual conquests and their complaints were ignored. 

One democratic politician said it would be OK if Mike Tyson declared himself a woman and joined a female boxing league. I'm still voting for President Joe Biden this November, but I understand the Republicans frustrations with the Democrats. 

Gabbard rips on the Biden administration the way I do with Donald J. Trump. In 2020, Gabbard was for Biden, but this year, she's voting for Trump. Surprise, I still hate Trump, but I really liked "For the Love of Country Leave the Democratic Party Behind." Three and a half stars for this well written and insightful book.

Mark Izzy Schurr 

 

A Modern Moron Book Review

Glitz, glamour and scandal was the life and brief times of Thelma Todd, an iconic force in Hollywood yesteryear. 

Her death at 30-years-old was documented as a suicide from carbon monoxide poisoning in December of 1935. She was found dead in the front seat of her car that was in a closed garage. 

"The Ice Cream Blonde" details three compelling theories as to how she died. Accidental death, suicide or murder. 

Michelle Morgan, the author of this 2016 book leaves things open to how she died, personally, I think she was murdered, but the other two options are viable arguments, and I was very impressed how Morgan left out her personal opinions as to how Todd died. She marvelously presented all the evidence at her disposal from five years of research. 

Suicide and accidental death have certain merits, but murder seems the most likely to me. When she was found in her car, the autopsy report suggested she may have been choked to death by having a bottle or pipe shoved in her mouth, but carbon monoxide could have also caused the swelling. 

This book suggests how gangster activity goes hand in hand with Hollywood. Thelma Todd talked about this and before her death, close friends said she was getting ready for big changes in her life. She ran the luxurious club, the Cafe Trocadero, aka The Troc and denied gangsters from having a casino in her California club, despite death threats and larger amounts of money offered to her to allow it.    

Her then lover, Roland West wanted the casino and had known ties to gangsters, as did Todd, including maybe Al Capone.

This book is only 224 pages, an afternoon read, and Morgan is very concise and clear on the details. Four and a half stars for "The Ice Cream Blonde." 

Thelma Todd began her movie career at the tail end of the silent film era and ended it in the toddler hood of the sound era. Sound in the movies went mainstream in 1930, and she was in her first movie in 1926.

A picture of Thelma Todd during the silent era.

This book isn't just about her death. It reveals her childhood and other tragic deaths in her family, including her little brother who was killed accidentally when he was only 7-years-old. Read the book if you want more details. 

I also learned how smart Thelma Todd was. She spoke several different languages including Russian and Spanish and she negotiated all her movie contracts and ran a business. 

The business she ran, The Troc was later changed to Cafe Chez Roland in the mid 1940s. In 1951, this 12,500 square foot fully equipped restaurant, bar and entertainment venue with four penthouse apartments sold for $100,000. 

In 2015, Cafe Chez Roland sold under the name of the "Sidewalk Cafe." The front doors of the building Todd used herself, the sliding glass doors to her room and the refrigerator used by the 1930s staff were still intact at the time it was sold. 

Thelma Todd was an outstanding example of the new school of motion picture women evolving in Hollywood, a writer said in an article from Hollywood Filmograph. 

Mark Izzy Schurr 

   

Alice in Wonderland, it's Timeless

Journey into the enchanted realms where the unimaginable is tangible. 

The mystic bands of childhood dreams twined into our memories ripe with the shadows of eternity. Burning with curiosity, Alice ran after the white rabbit with pink eyes, topcoat and a waist coat pocket watch. (Lewis Carroll)

19-year-old Charlotte Henery as 12-year-old Alice in 1933

In time the little girl would be a grown woman ripe in years and a loving heart and gather her children and make their bright eyes eager with many strange tales, thus the tale of "Alice in Wonderland grew. (Lewis Carroll) 

Ruth Gilbert as Alice in 1915

 

Mark Izzy Schurr 

Another Modern Moron Book Review

I was amazed the state of California allowed my alcoholic father who declared bankruptcy, failed in business and terrorized me as a child was given full control all my accomplishments and everything I've done, Britney Spears said. 

Last year's book, "Britney Spears the Woman in Me" was a very impressive read. An excellent book I borrowed from the local Santa Rosa library. 

The tabloids and the news merely tinged the surface of the Britney Spears conservatorship, which she endured for 13 years. During this time, any man who dated her had to pass a background check by her father, sign an NDA and submit a blood test even though she was an adult.  

Conservatorships or guardianships are primary reserved for people with no mental capabilities, or ones who cannot do anything for themselves. 

Spears admits she needed some guidance, and that she partied too much from time to time, but as I see it, she was very young, beautiful and rich, and enjoyed life. This is not a crime. Spears was the first woman to have a number one debut album and single from the same album, and she was only 16-years-old at the time. It's not her fault she was idolized at such a young age, and she mentioned how men of all ages have oohed and awed at her body ever since she was a young teenager.

Her mom and dad got her into show business, and as a pre-teen she got her big break as a Mouseketeer on the new Mickey Mouse Club, aka MMC. Mouseketeers were between the ages of 8-12-years-old. 

Spears details her love life between Justin Timberlake and other men and keeps the gossip classy. She's the first to admit she wasn't perfect, nor is she now, but she's free from her parents and the conservatorship and that's fantastic. 

I want my father to stop drinking and my mom to stop yelling, Spears said, recalling her childhood before she was the bread winner in the family. 

In 2008, Cosmopolitan named her Ultimate Woman of the Year, and her song "Piece of Me" won every award it was nominated for, including video of the year. She was under conservatorship at this time, and her father flat out said to her, "I'm Britney Spears now.  

Under her father's insane dictatorship, Spears was also a Las Vegas residency performer. While a Vegas singer, dancer and choreographer, she did 248 shows, and every show was the same songs and chorography because of her horrible father. Each show grossed hundreds of thousands of dollars and she was given a $2,000. a week allowance.

"Sometimes under the conservatorship I felt like a child, but mostly like a pissed off adult. Music was my blood and my bones, and they took that away from me," Spears said. 

She also had four hours of therapy a week, mandatory AA meetings four days a week, training, fan meet and greets while also doing three shows a week in Vegas. Spears said she is sorry for not being able to give fans who attended her Vegas shows all she could because of the stupid conservatorship rules. Free Britney was something her fans did for her and kept her going she said in "The Woman in Me." 

Under the conservatorship I was safer physically, but it was absolutely horrible for my sense of joy and creativity, Spears said.    

She was also forced into a $60,000 a year rehab facility and was there for way too long. While she was there, her mother and father got rid of all her Madame Alexander dolls she started collecting as a child and three years' worth of poetry she wrote. 

I made peace with my family, and by that, I mean I never want to see them again, and I'm at peace with that, Spears said. 

In 2021, Spears got former lawyer for Stephen Spielberg and Keanu Reeves, and now she is no longer under her deranged father's thumb.  

"I've made music, traveled the world, became a mother, found love. lost it and found it again. It's been a while since I felt present in my own life, in my own power, my own womanhood, but I'm here now," Spears said. 

Mark Izzy Schurr 

A Modern Moron Book Review

Army soldiers banging on our door, telling us to leave our home and take only what we can carry recalls George Takei in his latest book, "My Lost Freedom." 

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt ordered all Japanese Americans living on the west coast to be rounded up and arrested on February 19, 1942. Takei was living in Los Angeles with his baby sister, older brother and his parents during this time. "My Lost Freedom" is George Takei's documentation as a 5-year-old boy going to prison because of his ancestry, along with his parents and siblings.

Takei was 4-years-old when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, killing more than 345 U.S. soldiers.   

This book pulls no punches, it presents the facts, yet doesn't judge. "My Lost Freedom" is the second book I've read on this subject. Another recommend read, "When the Emperor was Divine," written by Julie Otsuka.

Takei's mother was born legally in Sacramento, and her husband was a Japanese immigrant from San Francisco.  

The unjust Japanese prison's were nothing like the German had for the Jewish, and I thank all powers for that.

 

The bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki instantly killed more than a 130,000 or 150,000 people. Imagine your blood boiling the instant before you die, that's what is like being in direct contact with the atom bomb.

"My Lost Freedom" has the death toll numbers from Hiroshima and Nagasaki but doesn't refer to the blood boiling from the A bomb. I read that elsewhere. 

Five stars for George Takei's "My Lost Freedom," and yes, he's the George Takei, aka Mr. Sulu or Hikaru Sulu, the original "Star Trek." 

Mark Izzy Schurr   

 

A Modern Moron Movie Review

"Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes" weaves the bizarre fabrics of fantasy and reality into an unknown attire that cloaks the audience. 

Screenwriter Josh Friedman puts us into a world where the unimaginable is tangible and apes rule the world. A virus infecting the minds of both humans and apes vastly benefits the apes. Nova, aka Mae, marvelously portrayed by Freya Allan is teamed with Raka, the orangutan and the chimpanzee Noa, because of war. Raka is sly witted, funny and heartful. 

Noa's the grandson of Ceasar, a renowned chimpanzee interictal in uniting different breeds of apes and coexisting with humans. His funeral Pyra at the beginning of the movie sets the tone for Noa to continue the family legacy of unity among all.   

Noa and Raka slowly learn their human counterpart Nova is equally as smart as they are, if not more intelligent. All three learn from each other. 

The special effects and make-up team did a fantastic job, and the story is a well-orchestrated planet amidst a universe of monkey madness.  

Anybody who liked 2001s "Planet of the Apes" starring Mark Wahlberg would probably dig this months "Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes," This movie series began in 1968 and the special effects have always been impressive, yet the dialogue stands out the most. The latest installment of "Planet of the Apes" doesn't disappoint, three stars easy for this flick. The second row, B7 at Airport Cinemas is my new favorite way to watch movies. 

Mark Izzy Schurr

A Modern Moron Movie Review

The diabolical intentions of six kidnappers meets the nefarious desires of Abigail, a 12-year-old vampire.  

Six high profile thieves follow the dictates of an entity who convinces them to seize Abigal and hold her hostage for millions of dollars. Each of the six is set to make $7 million apiece, so they go along with the plan. 

This was the most original vampire story I've ever seen. Nonfans of graphic horror might wanna pass on "Abigal," but I laughed out loud on occasion, and the blood and gore are not the focal point of this flick. 

All the actors were believable in an utterly bizarre blitzkrieg of nonsense, but somehow "Abigal" works, and I found myself rooting for Abigal, extremely well portrayed by Alisha Weir. I also didn't want Joey to die. Joey was the sexy and savvy black-haired dream, Melissa Barrera.  

The ending was something I didn't see coming. Three stars easy for "Abigal." 

Mark Izzy Schurr 

A Modern Moron Book Review

Using her acorn compass and the help of Lewis Lady bug, Beatrix Butterfly and Cleo Cricket, Addie Ant sets forth on an all-day adventure. 

Addie lives with her two aunts, Gertie and Zelda in the tomato bed and decides to venture to where the watermelons and sunflower seeds grow. 

"Addie Aunt Goes on an Adventure" is the first book by acclaimed singer and song writer Maren Morris and former schoolteacher Karina Argow and illustrated by Kelly Anne Dalton.  

Books and stories for young children still exist, and bravo to the trio of women who spawned Addie Ant. 

We cannot stay home all our lives; we must present ourselves to the world and we must look upon it as an adventure. (Beatrix Potter) 

Three and a half stars for the April release of "Addie Ant..." 

Mark Izzy Schurr 

Another Modern Moron Movie Review

A group of combat journalist encounter military maniacs without conscience or restraint and eager to kill anyone not born in the United States and that's just a small part of what happens in "Civil War," released on Friday.  

A college aged woman is determined to be a combat journalist and she gets what she bargained for and the horrid details of war reign in her camera's eye. I never had the desire to be a combat photographer and "Civil War" affirms these feelings. 

Three stars easy for "Civil War." 

Mark Izzy Schurr.   

  

 

A Modern Moron Movie Review

In order for the Catholic Church to survive, it's hierarchy resurrected the devil's son as an infant in 1971 in this month's "The First Omen."  

The latest installment of "The Omen" follows the book on the details of the pre and actual birth of Beelzebub's son. The unscrupulous and extremely macabre orphanage got their baby evil into the world of high-profile politics as an infant in the early 1970s in hopes he becomes the President of the United States. 

It's absolutely horrid what happens to many young nuns in this Roman church, but "The First Omen" writers, crew and actors left the absolutely horrifying details to the mind. Released on the 5th, "The First Omen" is the 6th installment of "The Omen" films, first released in 1976. The American nun, and star of the film displays true resistance and unites with another nun in a cunning ploy to escape the nefarious Roman church. 

This version is a prequal to the original movie and it's clearly set up for a sequel I'd definitely go see. I was disappointed the entire film revolved around Satan's birth, but the ending has an unsuspecting curve and a valid foe against Damien, the son of the Devil. Does the Devil have a sister?

Just under three stars for "The First Omen,"  

Mark Izzy Schurr 

  

"Imaginary," A Modern Moron movie review

Chauncy Bear lures his prey into a radically dark dimension by mixing their imaginations into his reality. 

"Imaginary" caused me to jump once. The sporadic moments of Hollywood fluff didn't bother me in this film. I thought the story was originally clever. Chauncey Bear is very meticulous in choosing who he slays or manipulates. 

Chauncey Bear kidnaps a very young girl and takes her to his realm of dark insanity. The little girl's mother and her 15-year-old sister must learn how to enter an unknown realm for an attempted rescue of their innocent sibling. Now that's a dilemma. 

"Imaginary" targets the suspense and terrors of the mind, rather than excessive amounts of special effects. Three stars easy for "Imaginary." 

Mark Izzy Schurr  

The Ecstasy and the Agony of Human Nature Showcased in "Love Lies Bleeding."

 

"Love Lies Bleeding" is a bizarre blitzkrieg of cinematic fantasy, ignoring all the stereo types of what sexy is, or perhaps ought to be. 

Jakie is an intoxicating creation of sexuality in Lou's heart. Kristian Stewart as Lou has the demons of her father being high up in organized crime, and she also yearns to kill her sister's husband, because he's an excessively abusive lame brain.  

Katy M. O'brian is the body building babe trying to convince Lou to run off to Las Vegas with her while she enters a prestigious body building contest. "Love Lies Bleeding" exposes the dark side of lascivious behavior, yet emphasis the exquisite power of tangible love. 

"Love Lies Bleeding" is far more than a sex charged woman meets woman romance, it's a crime story with sly intensity. Three stars easy for this flick, released on the 8th. 

Mark Izzy Schurr

"The Last Election," Another Modern Moron Book Review

"This is absolutely the stupidest f****** system in the world, we want to change it," Alex McLuhan said. 

I honestly forget who Alex McLuhan is, but it's his direct quote from Andrew Yang's latest book, "The Last Election." I becha McLuhan is a member of the Maverick Party. Simple fact, the Maverick Party is a spawn of Yang's Foward Party. Not left, not right, but Foward. 

The Foward Party has some great policies; open primaries, UBI, no more Electoral College, the candidate who receives the most votes, wins, simple. Only gun owners should be able to fire their guns, and with today's technology, it could be made possible.   

Universal Basic Income for all American citizens 18-years-old and older. Yang got this idea from Martin Luther King Jr who spoke about a guaranteed supplemental income in 1967. Yang's book "The War on Normal People" details where the money would come from and the MATH works.

Make America Think Harder was coined by a Yang Ganger during his 2020 presidential campaign. Companies such as Amazon and General Mills would pay one percent of their profits into UBI and every google search would cost .01 cent. These are just two of the many other sources UBI would generate from.    

Imagine an additional $700 a month after taxes on top of whatever else you earn, and no matter how much one nets, they still get the money, as long as they meet the two above criteria's, thus eliminating the argument, you get it, and I don't. Yang laughs when it's said people won't work if they receive Universal Basic Income. Can you live on $12,000 a year in the U.S.? Yang said. 

Yang's a better choice than our current two candidates, but I regress, he's not running this year. Yang talks about the gerontocracy between President Biden, Donald Trump and America in general in this book, "The Last Election."  

Yang talks too much about the Maverick Party, or does he? One thing is clear, Yang is 100 percent correct when he says Americans need better choices in our presidential candidates, regardless if their democrat or republican. He pushes for one day having a third party that competes evenly with our current two choices.  

 

"You don't need inside knowledge to see the country is falling apart," Yang said. 

Three stars easy for October's "The Last Election," co-written with Stephen Marche.

Myself with Andrew Yang at his meet and greet in San Francisco in June.

  

Mark Izzy Schurr 

   

No Longer Alone

Bravo to Carla Valderrama for her first book, "This Was Hollywood Forgotten Stars and & Stories," a 2020 book with sharp vintage fashion and enlightening tales of the actors and crew who paved the way for today's stars. 

The author on the back cover of 2020s "This Was Hollywood." 

More than 200 pages of photos and words are laden throughout this book from the silent era of film making, to shots of the 2018 remake of "A Star is Born" with Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga. 

Child star Cora Sue from the 1930s was one of 11 people Valderrama talked to for acquiring delicious and devious details from the Hollywood heavy weights of the past. Cora Sue was born in 1927, the year before Shirley Temple. Before she was 8-years-old, she was in movies with MGM's queen of the screen, Norma Shearer. During this time frame she also appeared in movies with Fay Wray, the lead female in 1933s "King Kong" and Claudette Colbert, William Powell, Greta Garbo and Loretta Young. Her last movie was "Weekend at the Waldorf" when she was 15 or 16-years-old. 

She left Hollywood on her own accord because 50-year-old writer Harry Ruskin wanted to have sex with her when she was 15 years-old in exchange for a major film role. 

Cora Sue said five of her friends acquiesced themselves sexually for movie rolls, and even their own mothers were telling their young daughters; do whatever they ask, you need the part. This book is the first time Cora Sue has shared her full story of her experience with sexual harassment in Hollywood.  

The bottom picture is Cora Sue when she was 15 or 16-years-old.

Writer, director, actress, film editor and Mayor of Universal City during the silent era of movies, Lois Weber was a real force for women in the movies and a true pioneer for today's women in the film industry. She was the first woman to direct a feature film, 1914s, "The Merchant of Venice. In 1915, Weber said the future of movies is color and 3-D. 

Because of this book I want to see 1915s "Hypocrites," a feature film Weber wrote and directed. the first film in which she received full credit for writing and directing. "Hypocrites" was an art film featuring a nude woman who holds up a mirror to politics, love, modesty and the home life. No one else has attempted as much or gone as far. After seeing "Hypocrites." you cannot forget the name Lois Weber, a writer for "Variety" magazine said upon the movies initial release. "Hypocrites" was still a major draw for movie goers six months after its release. 

"Hop, the Devil's Brew," a 1916 film Lois Weber directed dealt with drug trafficking and contained segments of opium use. Her film, 1916s "Where Are My Children?" advocated the use of birth control and women's rights to abortion, both of which were illegal in the United States at the time. "Where Are My Children?" was the highest grossing picture in 1916 for Universal Pictures. 

Silent film director D.W. Griffith was vastly overrated, while Lois Weber was snubbed by the industry. In 1926, a book was released about the major accounts in Hollywood, and praised D.W. Griffith, and barley mentioned Lois Weber, and the book's writer or writers never said she was a director. In 1927, writer's for "Motion Picture Magazine" praised her 1921 movie "Blot," about economic inequality of the middle class. Her film "Where are My Children?" was also given accolades, and the writer said the success of her films has proven she has kept up with the times unlike D.W. Griffith. 

Writer, actress and director Lois Weber on pages 68-69. 

"This Was Hollywood Forgotten Stars & Stories" contains 30 chapters about vintage fashion and various stars including Rudolph Valentino, Paul Newman, Gracie Allen, the Nicholas Brothers, Loretta Young and many more. The sexual liaisons of Clark Gable, Loretta Young and several others are detailed in Carla Valdrrama's book. No spoilers from me, read this amazing book if you want the gritty gossip.

Actress Susan Peters rocking 1940s fashion on page 179. 

The chapter about the Nicholas Brothers detailed the rampant racism in Hollywood back in the day. Regardless, Fayard and Harold Nicholas were amazing dancers. Watch their astounding dance moves in 1943s "Stormy Weather." 

"They weren't writing anything for blacks unless it was a shoeshine or something. Rather than do that, we just did our dance routine," Harold Nicholas said. Film producer Richard D. Zanuck said just five minutes of the Nicholas Brothers could make any clunker of a flick a box office success. 

I've simply scratched the surface of this book. Valderrama details the lives of both male and female sex symbols of Hollywood yesteryear and so much more. 

The last chapter features Paul Newman and his 1954 movie, "Silver Chalice," so bad its hilarious, critics said upon its release.

Paul Newman's debut film, a flick about persevering the goblet Jesus drank from at the Last Supper. 

A five-star book, only my 3rd or 4th five-star rating, including movies.

Lyrics from Hank III; The Devil's pouring drinks, and his daughter needs a ride. Sex symbol Rita Hayworth on page 173. 

Valderrama's chapter on Loretta Young was great stuff. I own several of her early 1930s films, and they've withstood the test of time, especially 1931s "Big Business Girl," in which Young portrays a college business degree graduate who moves to New York in hopes of a career and paying off her $2,000 student debt. 

Valderrama delves into the past with aplomb and vigor, and I no longer think I'm the only one fascinated by the amazing stars of the silent and early sound era of film making. 

Loretta Young with her daughter Judy. 

There is a dark side to Hollywood, and "This Was Hollywood..." mention's the tragic ends to past stars of the screen. 

Highly acclaimed 1940s dancer, Vera-Ellen who thought of herself as fat. 

Mark Izzy Schurr