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If you missed For Memories Sake Saturday, you can make it up to yourself Monday night at 7 pm at the Lyric Theatre.  Not only is the movie free, it is also free popcorn night.  But free pop corn is not a reason to see this movie.  For Memories Sake is a documentary about a woman in Tennessee who has been taking photographs, movies and video tapes for decades.  A “professional mom” who raised nine children, she is not a professional photographer but a woman with an innate eye for making memories.  Taking 2, 4, even 10 or 12 photos a day, her collection totals over 150,000 images - images that are in danger of being lost due to the condition in which they are kept.  read more »

First and foremost, a movie that has excellent use of subtitles - readable, left on long enough and good contrast.  That off my chest, on to the actual movie.  If I were teaching a class on symbolism in film, I would consider this movie which is almost overly rich in clocks, tickings, eyes seeing, eyes to look at, tides rolling in and moving out, and more.  read more »

By Neal Turnage

March 5, 2010

The Virginia Tech basketball team was reeling. It had lost three
straight, including its first home loss of the season; players were
injured or hurting; and a once solid shot at getting invited to the
NCAA tournament started to look a little shaky. But the team had not
given up hope and in the final regular season home game, senior night
for Lewis Witcher and Paul Debnam, the Hokies got back on track with a
71-59 victory over NC State.

I just saw THE IMAGINARIUM OF DR. PARNASSUS at the Lyric.  Monty Python with shades of Heironymous Bosch, Salvador Dali and a touch of Goethe done in a rich tapestry of animation.  A very interesting movie! Terry Gilliam’s work from Monty Python clearly is the high point of this movie, although it is much darker than  his work in the past.  The policemen’s chorus, for example, is much like “I’m a Lumberjack.”  The head popping through the earth and having a road come out his mouth, the driver popping out of the woman’s head after it is taken off her body, and the animated landscapes are pure Monty Python but he adds touches of Salvador Dali and Hieronymous Bosch to spice up the tapestry of facades.  read more »

Mildly profane, but wickedly funny.

by Justin Velasquez


February 18, 2010

There is an air of familiarity in viewing the feature Crazy Heart. It is a very common, yet compelling film that deals with the always reliable theme of redemption. Crazy Heart is written and directed by newcomer Scott Cooper and is based on the 1987 Thomas Cobb novel of the same name.

Crazy Heart is a drama that follows the winding music career of Bad Blake (played exquisitely by Jeff Bridges), a country singer who's down in the dumps. At one time a star, Bad is now relegated to playing shows at various bowling alleys and bars. Bad seeks to make a comeback but doesn't have an idea how to accomplish that task.

Prerequisites:Swim 300 yards continuously, using these strokes in the following order: 100 yards of front crawl using rhythmic breathing and a stabilizing, propellant kick. Rhythmic breathing can be performed either by breathing to the side or to the front.100 yards of breaststroke using a pull,...

In order to perform the necessary re-construction at the front of the building at 312 North Main Street, there will be several closures required. This street is also known as College Avenue Extended. The sidewalk in front of the address will be closed 24 hours a day on February 22 - March 7.The...

The Town of Blacksburg is seeking public comment in the development of the Annual Action Plan for fiscal year 2010. The Annual Action Plan provides a yearly accounting of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and other funds allocated towards the implementation of objectives outlined in the...

We had two feet of drifts half way across the street this morning in our neighborhood.  Someone sent me a news clip from Minnesota where they were claiming they had trouble finding places to put plowed snow, and that the piles of snow were "6 feet high."  Huh.  Buncha pikers up there in Minnesota--we've got snow piles 10 feet high.

West Campus/Perry Street Bus StopEffective Monday, February 15, 2010 the bus stop at the intersection of West Campus and Perry (traveling towards Campus) will be closed. Passengers may use the Wright House bus stop, located on West Campus Drive across from Davidson Hall. This stop closure will...

Town of Blacksburg business and home occupation license renewal applications for 2010 are due on Monday, March 1, 2010. Businesses are assessed an annual license tax based on prior year’s annual gross receipts. Tax and fees must be filed and paid by March 1, 2010 to avoid late filing and late...

There will be no open public gym time at the Blacksburg Community Center February 15 -21. Gym A will be closed for gym floor repair. Gym B will be available only for scheduled classes and leagues. For more information call the Blacksburg Community Center at 540-961-1149.

This time of year the Lyric gets a lot of heavy dramatic films.  It is refreshing to have a romantic comedy slash drama to cleanse the palate.  I didn’t really see this as an Oscar winning movie bu it was a good change of pace and it was a good movie.  It made me want to rent a Hertz car and fly off on an American Airlines jet to, say, upper Wisconsin.  read more »

Great news! Beer helps build strong bones!  It turns out craft made beers (e.g. locally brewed beer, Sam Adams, etc.) are high in silicon, which is essential for strong bones.  And the silicon in beer is easily absorbed by the body.  The ingredients used in the brewing make all the difference.  Cheap beer made with rice and corn has very low levels of silicon, while beers made with hops and barley can have as much as 9 times more bone-building silicon.  So enjoy a beer and build up your bones.

As the father of a son currently serving in the US Army, I found this movie very hard to watch.  There were some glaring incongruities - the wrong uniforms, Woody Harrelson’s commander calling him Lieutenant when he was wearing Captain’s bars, little things like that - but those incongruities do not take away from the sheer force of the movie.  The emotions, the language, the comraderie even though they didn’t understand one another, all of these came together in a tour de force that grabs your gut and doesn’t let go.  My son constantly talks of his battle buddies and how he is never alone but always has someone to watch his back.  read more »