An Honest Liar
I have had my eye on this documentary for a long, long time and my anticipation really paid off in a big way. If you look back through my blog, you will realize that I am a huge advocate for skepticism. There are a lot of flim flammers and woo woo practitioners out there that will just as soon steal your money as look at you. This documentary was about The Amazing Randi, a young magician who decided to devote his life to debunking the supernatural. He especially targets those who would prey on those desperate enough to believe anything. The documentary follows his career in magic up to his retirement. It then follows two of his most notable feuds (Peter Poppoff and Uri Gellar) and how he has debunked them both over the years. It then gets personal as it explores a very personal untruth that permeated his life that shows even more how dedicated he is to helping people. Check it out and see what I’m raving about.
Parks and Recreation
This is a show that I keep saying ‘Oh I’ll get around to watching that’ or ‘Yeah it’s on my list’. I had heard it was really good and it is the project that brought Chris Pratt to the level where he could be cast in a brilliant Marvel movie. The show was always there and I would eventually get to it. Eventually came this week as I finally decided to just sit down and watch this show. I had gotten into Amy Poehler through Tina Fey so I was curious whether I would like this one. The show is made in a documentary style like The Office before it. However, the characters feel like they are a lot more down to Earth. Amy Poehler is great as Leslie, a government employee who tries too hard but often fails at her job. Chris Pratt plays that guy who you know is a total loser but you can’t help but really like him. My favorite is Nick Offerman who plays grumpy Ron Swanson, a government supervisor who hates the government. I have only watched four episodes but I’m itching for more.
Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley’s Island of Dr. Moreau
Another documentary this week, a genre I have neglected for a little while but I love watching them. I especially love watching documentaries about the art of film. This one is about a truly disastrous movie and the even more horrible events behind the scenes. The Island of Dr. Moreau was a book by HG Wells that attracted the attention of Richard Stanley, a young but rising writer/director. He had a vision for a movie version and pushed hard for the studio system to fund it. They got funding by adding big Hollywood names who were uninterested in doing a good job on the movie. After four days on location, Richard Stanley was fired from his own movie. I don’t want to spoil anything but that is where the behind the scenes events got even darker. The end result was a mess and the documentary really gets deep into what happened and how it all went wrong. It is definitely worth a watch.
Links of the Week:
Harry Nilsson – Everything’s Got ‘Em
She – Headshot
Miles Davis – So What
Pun Fiction
He Had One Job
Weekly Updates:
– American Crime Story is still an engaging show
– I’ve loved Legends of Tomorrow lately
– I really want to see 10 Cloverfield Lane
– I still have not seen Zootopia
– I am listening to so many podcasts lately
– I may have to talk about Serial on here soon
Happy Saint Patrick’s Day!
Tags: Amazing Randi, Amy Poehler, An Honest Liar, Chris Pratt, Lost Soul, Media Update, Nick Offerman, Parks and Recreation, Richard Stanley, skepticism
Wolf of Words 
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