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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (July 12, 2017)
July 12, 2017 The Skanner Page 7 Arts & Entertainment FILM REVIEW: Casey Affleck and Rooney Mara Co-Star in Surrealistic ‘A Ghost Story’ By Kam Williams For The Skanner News C (Casey Affleck) and M (Rooney Mara) are a nondescript young couple living in a modest ranch house in suburban Texas. Noth- ing of note transpires be- tween the happily-mar- ried lovebirds besides carnal canoodling inter- rupted by things that go bump in the night. The next morning, bliss turns to tragedy when he suddenly passes away in a car crash at the mouth of their driveway. Grief-stricken M is sum- moned to the morgue where she only lingers long enough to identify her husband’s body. But as soon she leaves, matters enter anoth- er dimension when the ghost of C miraculously stands up and walks out of the place under the white sheet covering the corpse. Like a homing pigeon, the disembodied spirit proceeds to make his way back to his hum- ble abode, deliberately traipsing across a roll- ing, verdant field to take the most direct route. By the way, C’s flowing white linen covering (with a couple of eyeholes conveniently poked out) has somehow been ren- dered invisible to the naked eye. This ghost is mute, so there’s no “Hon- ey, I’m home!” when he literally walks through the door. M mourns, oblivious of C’s ethereal presence, de- spite his hovering over her obsessively. He might be frustrated by his in- ability to make contact. Or he might just want to protect. It’s hard to “ By Kam Williams For The Skanner News ‘A Ghost Story’ might be best described as a series of stark, shad- owy tableaux, like an Ed- A pretentious speculation on loss from the perspective of the dearly departed tell, since he never talks. Then, when she vacates the premises, he stays be- hind, and starts to spook the new residents, as if scaring them away might bring his wife back. Thus unfolds “A Ghost Story,” a pretentious speculation on loss from the perspective of the dearly departed. The tor- toise-paced production BOOK REVIEW: ‘Book of Black Heroes’ Looks at Political Leaders ward Hopper painting come to life. The picture was writ- ten and directed by David Lowery (Pete’s Dragon), and co-stars a couple of consummate thespians in Oscar-winner Casey Affleck (for Manchester by the Sea) and two-time nominee Rooney Mara (for “Carol” and “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”). The pair’s considerable talents are underuti- lized, here, since Casey’s hidden under a Hallow- een costume 90 percent of the time, and Rooney’s character disappears about halfway through the movie. Though Casey is ear- nest in his attempt to convey a range of emo- tions from under the sheet, ultimately, it’s the cinematic equivalent of watching a little kid try to fight his way out of a paper bag. Good HH Rated R for brief profani- ty and a disturbing image Running time: 87 min. “The first Afri- can-American polit- ical leaders began to serve following the Civil War...Known as Recon- struction, this period represented a window of opportunity for Afri- can-Americans... Many [Black] political leaders emerged during this period, using their political power and in- fluence to push for equal- ity and justice for all Americans... Unfortu- nately, the Reconstruc- tion period was short- lived, lasting only from 1865-1877. States in the South... passed laws that essen- tially took away the cit- izenship rights of Afri- can-Americans... These legislative measures were called Jim Crow laws. It would take nearly 100 years and ... the Civ- il Rights Movement be- fore African-Americans would again be guaran- teed the right to vote and hold elected office... A new generation of Black political leaders is active today. [This book] will ac- quaint readers with lead- ers of the past and will introduce new ones... Through their stories, I hope others, especially young people, will be in- spired to become leaders in their own right.” —Excerpted from the Introduction (pages ix-x) D espite the his- toric election of Barack Obama as the first African American president, the American Dream See BOOK on page 8
