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