POTD: Raphael Loggias in the Hermitage

From 2018 08 12 Winter Palace & Hermitage

Today's photo-of-the-day is from the Hermitage in St Petersburg, Russia. This photo is not the throne room or a ballroom, but of a humble hallway. It's the gallery known as the "Raphael Loggias, designed by Giacomo Quarenghi and painted by Cristopher Unterberger and his workshop in the 1780s as a replication of the loggia in the Apostolic Palace in Rome frescoed by Raphael." (Wikipedia).

Bonus photo after the jump.

Review: There There

Amazon

From There There, by Tommy Orange:

But what we are is what our ancestors did. How they survived. We are the memories we don’t remember, which live in us, which we feel, which make us sing and dance and pray the way we do, feelings from memories that flare and bloom unexpectedly in our lives like blood through a blanket from a wound made by a bullet fired by a man shooting us in the back for our hair, for our heads, for a bounty, or just to get rid of us."

There There is a short novel of many characters, each with a story of what it means to be a Native American in an urban setting, in this case Oakland, California.

Leave No Trace (2018)

Rotten Tomatoes

Leave No Trace (2018): A combat veteran and his teenage daughter live off the grid in the Oregon forest. A character study of his inability to return to civilian life and the strains that places on her. An understated, touching look at one case of the "unhoused." B-

POTD: Leonardo's "Madonna Litta"

From 2018 08 12 Winter Palace & Hermitage

Today's photo-of-the-day is from one of the world's great museums, the Hermitage in St Petersburg, Russia, founded by Catherine the Great. On most days, like this one, the Hermitage hosts huge crowds of tourists, all come to see art treasures like Leonardo da Vinci's "Madonna Litta". In this case, I found the tourists more photogenic than the artwork.

A bonus photo after the jump.

POTD: Doorway to Riches

From 2018 08 12 Winter Palace & Hermitage

Through these doors lie some of the world's great artworks. Come in and browse. Today's photo-of-the-day is from one of the world's great museums and historic palaces: the Hermitage, founded by Catherine the Great, housed in the Winter Palace, home of Russian tsars for 200 years, from Peter the Great to Nicholas and Alexandra.

Hale County This Morning, This Evening (2018)

Rotten Tomatoes

Hale County This Morning, This Evening (2018): Oscar nominated documentary about life in rural Alabama. Cinéma vérité, a style I loved when I first came across it in 1975 (Frederick Wiseman's Welfare), but am now more likely to find simply mundane and tedious. C-

The Wheel Award for Excellence in Motion Pictures

The Academy Awards will be given out February 24, 2019. This will be the third year in a row that I've seen all the nominees for Best Picture before the Oscar is awarded. That means my opinion means something. Right?

2018 had a diverse set of movies, as did 2017. I'm not in complete agreement with the Academy's choices, but overall, I'm not complaining with the nominees they've given me to vote on (even though they haven't actually, you know, given me a vote on anything).

The Wheel Award for Excellence in Animated Short

IMDB

There are five movies nominated for an Oscar for Animated Short. My own pick for the Oscar, if I had a vote, would be for

• One Small Step (USA and China): Young girl dreams of being an astronaut. With perseverance, the support of her father, and the shoes he makes for her (One Small Step, get it?), her dream...well, you'll just have to watch yourself. A-

Not Just On Track, It's Double Track

Maybe lost in the higher profile news of the last couple of weeks (the Scott Dunn "bimbo" tweet and the Laura (Maczka) Jordan bribery trial) was news that will likely have a longer term impact on Richardson. And it's good news! I'm talking about the decision to double-track the Cotton Belt line.

The Wheel Award for Excellence in Live Action Short

IMDB

There are five movies nominated for an Oscar for Live Action Short. My own pick for the Oscar, if I had a vote, would be for:

• Fauve (Canada): Two boys play in the woods, on a train track, in a surface mine, until they get in trouble. Fun and games turns serious. Good acting. A complete short story in 17 minutes. A-