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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 3, 2016)
August 3, 2016 The Skanner Page 7 FILM REVIEW: ‘Can We Take a Joke?’ Indicts P.C. Police for Stiling Comedians’ Freedom of Speech Arts & Entertainment FILM REVIEW: ‘Jason Bourne’ Back for Another Riveting Adventure as Dashing Rogue Assassin By Kam Williams For The Skanner News G eorge Carlin (1937-2008) once said, “It’s the duty of a comic to see where the line is drawn, and cross over it.” In many re- spects, he was merely dou- bling down on the philosophy of his mentor Lenny Bruce (1925-1966), who never saw a taboo he wasn’t willing to bust. Lenny paid a steep price career-wise for walking the walk and talking the talk, as he was oten arrested for obscenity just for doing his stand-up act. And although he was ultimately vindicated posthumously, having paved the way for future genera- tions of irreverent entertain- ers, one can’t help but wonder whether those hard-earned advances might be in jeopardy. That is the contention of a host of co- medians appearing in “Can We Take a Joke,” a documentary suggesting that the current climate of political correct- ness is having a chilling efect on their freedom of speech. Directed by Ted Bal- aker, the ilm includes commentary by such outspoken First Amendment ad- vocates as Penn Jillette, Lisa Lampanel- li, Adam Carolla and Gilbert Gottfried, who lost his gig as the voice of the Alac duck over a joke that went too far, in the estimation of his corporate sponsor. They uniformly lament a recent cul- tural development relected in mem- In this ifth movie in the franchise, Jason Bourne is still considered an outlaw by CIA Director Robert Dewey (Tommy Lee Jones) and CIA analyst Heather Lee (Alicia Vikander) By Kam Williams For The Skanner News bers of the Millennial Generation’s being easily ofended. “It’s almost like people have gotten sot,” observes one comic, “If you’re easily outraged, please don’t come to a comedy show.” It’s not as if Carlin didn’t envision this development. For, before he passed away, he warned that, “All the censor- ship is coming from the P.C. people on the let on college campuses.” This is ironic since universities once prided themselves on providing a safe space to express unpopular views. Excellent HHH 1/2 Unrated Running time: 74 minutes A Jason Bourne movie just isn’t the same without Jason Bourne, as the producers found out the hard way in 2012 when they made “The Bourne Legacy” without the iconic title character. Fortunately, they’ve since settled their diferences with star Matt Damon who returned to reprise the role of the dashing, ren- egade CIA agent which he originated and played to perfection in the espi- onage franchise’s irst three install- ments. The movie marks the reunion of Da- mon and Paul Greengrass, director of both “The Bourne Supremacy” (2004) and “The Bourne Ultimatum” (2007), the series’ most successful episodes at the box oice. While this ofering might not quite measure up to those in terms of high-octane action, it nev- ertheless makes up for the relative- ly-subdued atmosphere with riveting cloak and dagger intrigue The point of departure is Athens, and a decade since we last saw Jason. He’s now fully recovered from the amnesia that had previously plagued See BOURNE on page 9 Book Release Party and Signing FRIDAY AUGUST 12, 2016 6 PM Portland Prime Restaurant 121 SW 3rd Ave Portland, OR 97204 Forgiveness an Act of Love: The Key to Wisdom Wellness and Wealth By JoAnn Martin