The Professionals -- A Western to Remember

I grew up watching Westerns, and I loved them, as did every red-blooded American boy in the 50s.

Courage, heroism, loyalty, stretching beyond one's limits – these were themes that touched us all deeply.

These kind of movies became more complex as life itself became more complex. And in 1967 we have one of the last of the breed – The Professionals, a film that does not deserve to be forgotten.

It features a dynamite all-star cast – Burt Lancaster, Lee Marvin, Robert Ryan, Jack Palance, Ralph Bellamy, Woody Strode, and “introducing” a young and smoldering Claudia Cardinale. The cinematography is by Conrad Hall (Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid) and it's directed by Richard Brooks (Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Elmer Gantry, Sweet Bird of Youth, In Cold Blood, Looking for Mr. Goodbar).

Lee Marvin, Burt Lancaster, and Robert Ryan are rough and hardened mercenaries hired by the ultra-rich and manipulative Ralph Bellamy to track down his wife, who has been kidnapped by the dashing Mexican bandito Jack Palance.

Our trio evades one dangerous obstacle after another and is about to successfully complete their mission when... the script delivers a satisfying twist – and the movie ends with another tasty twistaroonee.

In between, there is crackling dialogue, with a lot of juicy lines to remember, and wonderful, lovingly-crafted action sequences, just like they used to make them.

Claudia Cardinale fulfills her archetypical role as the sultry, sulky, exotic babe with large endowments. And Burt and Lee are each deeply satisfying doing what they do best – the ruggedly masculine, cynically smart, always capable anti-hero. Robert Ryan has a resigned, world-weary presence, caused by the fact that he was in fact, ill and near the end of his days. And Woody Strode is an imposing and graceful physical presence who, for whatever reason, has few lines.

The Professionals is really worth seeing and will entertain anyone who likes bold heros, sweeping vistas, exciting action – all that good old stuff.

The 11th Hour -- Required Viewing for Every Tenant of the Earth

When I first saw this film I left a review on Netflix saying that every person on this planet should see this film – at least twice.

I stand by that. This is a truly important film that will open your eyes as no other film can to the effect of human life on our poor patient, long-suffering, deeply abused Mother Earth.

It paints with crystal clarity the pain that we have inflicted on our dear planet, fouling and harming our nest until every single biological system on earth is hurt and some are deeply and irreparably damaged.

This film is richer, deeper, fuller, more challenging, more frightening, more hopeful, and more impacting than Al Gore's film. It goes further than An Inconvenient Truth in every way.

It features many mini-interviews with leading experts on the environment and the planet. They have such stimulating facts and inspiring ideas to relate that I actually got more out of seeing the film the second and third time.

The 11th Hour opened my eyes to startling facts about our world that I was completely unaware of.

The film points out that human population was almost stable for thousands of years because agriculture was the dominant technology. We were tied to the energy from the sun and could only produce as much food as the sun's energy would permit.

Then came the discovery of fossil fuels and the Industrial Revolution. The population exploded, faster and faster.

Since the time of the Kennedy Administration, the population of the earth has doubled. It is completely shocking to me that this has happened within my lifetime (which seems short to me).

We see the effects of this human explosion all around us, as the commute and pollution becomes worse every day, and the malls and freeways multiply and proliferate.

But we are not aware that the oceans are increasingly polluted, the forests of the world are rapidly shrinking, the fish in the ocean are literally in danger of being used up completely, there are only a few tigers in the world, many large fish are totally extinct...  Our poor dear world – our home, our nest.

The 11^th Hour will wake you and shake you.

But it does not leave you without hope.

The last part of the film is devoted to visionaries and their far-reaching solutions. As I saw these dedicated men and women speak, I thought that if we have the creativity to destroy our planet we also have the creativity and commitment to save it.

The Cove -- Chilling, Exciting, Inspiring

The Cove is a remarkable film. It is chilling, stomach turning, inspiring, thrilling, and completely engrossing.

It is the story of an undercover operation to film the horrorific slaughter of 23,000 dolphins every year in a secret Japanese cove.

It is also the remarkable story of Rick Barry, the original trainer of Flipper. After experiencing a beloved dolphin committing suicide in his arms, Rick made a 360° turn from dolphin trainer and exploiter to dolphin liberator.

Now Rick sees the purpose of his life as freeing dolphins from cruelty and captivity.

He became aware of this secret Japanese cove in Taiji Japan where fishermen herd dolphins and then slaughter them. The dolphins are sold for food and also sold to places like Sea World where they are forced to perform for cheering crowds.

This is a multi-million dollar business, and the proceeds are divided among the fishermen and townspeople.

The Cove tells the story of a group of very courageous and caring Americans assembled by Rick Barry. They literally risk their lives to film the dolphin slaughter.

They form a secret ops mission to expose the secret. Everywhere they go, they are followed and harrassed by the fishermen and the town chief of police. They risk being imprisoned and tortured or even killed.

In the dead of night they mount a high tech operation – with infrared cameras, high def cameras hidden in fake rocks, divers, and even a remote control helicopter. Their compassion and commitment are awe-inspiring.

Finally the hidden cameras roll, and you witness the heart-stopping, sickening, brutal slaughter of these gentle and sentient creatures, who have been well known throughout history as saviors of endangered humans in the ocean.

These are images you will never forget.

If you care about our earth -- and other living creatures – you must see this film.