The Writer's Life 10/25 - Blue Ruin

I watched another independent film last night, courtesy of Netflix. Blue Ruin (2013) is an impressive, violent, low budget film about revenge. There must be thousands of works based on this theme. This one is way above average, ten times better than most Hollywood blockbusters. It comes to only one conclusion -- much blood must be spilled before closure is reached. The protagonist wants to be thorough, wants the killing to end once and for all. I was riveted the entire 90 minutes running time. This is only the second full feature from Jeremy Saulnier, who pulled triple duty as director, screenwriter and cinematographer. He has worked the camera on 13 other films. I look forward to his future efforts. I recognized only one name in the cast -- Eve Plumb, who played Jan on The Brady Bunch way back when. Her part is small. Most of the other players have substantial credits. My only quibble is that the DVD did not have close captioning. I need it these days, especially when the characters speak softly, as they do here. 16,000+ users have rated the film at IMDb, forging to a consensus of 7.1. That may be a little low. The contributors commentary is interesting, citing subtle humor that I missed, and speculating on the meaning of the title. The car the lead character uses is basically a blue ruin. Someone also suggests the guy is a blue, as in the blues, ruin. I ran a search on the term and found nothing to suggest it has cultural significance, although it is mentioned in a Tom Waits song and there is a dive bar by that name in Manhattan’s Hell’s Kitchen. Anyone squeamish about violence or downbeat subject matter should pass.

Since the film is only a tidy hour and a half, I got the chance to see the last 20 minutes of a PBS show featuring Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga, who recently teamed on an album of standards. I’ve only heard LG a few times, while driving, so I really couldn’t get a handle on her talent level. I’ve always been turned off by her outrageous wardrobe and statements, and referred to her mentally as Lady Caca. I’m happy to say she has a beautiful voice. I was fortunate to catch her solo on Lush Life, a standard that seems very hard to sing. She was great, and she dressed elegantly for the show. The duets were exactly what one would expect. Trumpeter Chris Botti made a guest appearance on the finale, It Don’t Mean a Thing If It Ain’t Got That Swing, a piece that makes up musically what it lacks lyrically. Fortunately, the phrases weren’t repeated over and over again, as is the case in several performances of it.


RIP Terry Keenan, only 53, who succumbed to a cerebral hemorrhage. I read her even-handed business column every Sunday in the NY Post.


Political correctness has claimed another victim, PGA president Ted Bishop. His response to Ian Poulter's Twitter criticism of Nick Faldo included the term "lil girl." This is a firing offense? I don't think it even requires censure.

My thanks to Ralph, who bought six works of non-fiction, and to the elderly woman who purchased the only book in Russian I had on hand today. 

Vic's 4th novel: tinyurl.com/bszwlxh

Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3

Vic's Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx
Vic's Short Story Collection: http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tiny.cc/0iHLb Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kx3d3uf
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/rP7o9

Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp

Vic's Horror Screenplay: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3f

Vic's Blog: http://vicfortezza.blogspot.com/

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