Bob Marley: One Love (2024)

Rotten Tomatoes

Bob Marley: One Love (2024): Biopic of the Jamaican reggae star. The intersection of religion and politics is skimped on. So, too, is Marley's complex personal life, except for one explosive scene with his wife about infidelity. But see it for the music. B+

Prime

Council Recap: "Heads in Beds" Prevails

"City council overrode a decision by plan commission in vote to supersize residential portion of massive mixed-use development." That's how TheRealDeal summarized the Richardson City Council's unanimous vote to allow a boost of 1,175 apartments at CityLine, for a total of 5,100. The City Plan Commission had previously denied the request 5-2, with one commissioner citing the desire to see "more creative retail or entertainment uses." City Manager Don Magner put his finger on the scale by saying the proposal "creates a path forward that's based in market reality," with the market reality being that right now, money is available for wood-frame apartments, so that's what we ought to build, tying up that land for the next fifty years. That's how developers think. That's not how City Councils should think.

POTD: Majorelle Blue

"Majorelle's retreat,
Colors bloom in desert's heat,
Art and nature blend."

— h/t ChatGPT

From 2023 09 20 Marrakesh

Today's photo-of-the-day is from Marrakesh, Morocco, specifically the Majorelle Garden. It was designed by the French artist Jacques Majorelle in the 1920s and was restored in the 1980s by Yves Saint-Laurent. Majorelle trademarked the name Majorelle Blue for this intense shade of blue.

Click for a bonus photo.

POTD: Palm raising in Marrakesh

"In Marrakesh streets,
Inspired by a distant scene,
Palm recalls a flag."
— h/t ChatGPT

From 2023 09 20 Marrakesh

According to the Pulitzer Prizes, "Perhaps no Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph is better known than Joe Rosenthal’s picture of six U.S. Marines raising the American flag on Mount Suribachi on Iwo Jima. It was taken on Friday, Feb. 23, 1945, five days after the Marines landed on the island."

Famous enough that I wasn't surprised to see this homage on a wall in faraway Marrakesh, Morocco, of all places.

The Sympathizer (TV 2024)

Rotten Tomatoes

The Sympathizer (TV 2024): Black comedy about the aftermath of the Vietnam War. Everyone comes out looking bad: South Vietnamese army, Communists, CIA, Hollywood, and Robert Downey, Jr, playing four roles in the same over-the-top way. B-

Max