Extra Criticum

How the Grinch Stole from the original story and became a banal musical

I would not see it with a fox, I would not watch it in a box, I would not pay to see it here, I would not pay to see it there.  I do not like the Grinch Musical, it's a grand rip off and full of bull!

Critic on the Spot: Carrie Rickey v.2

As our 2nd Critic on the Spot, we welcome Carrie Rickey, film critic for the Philadelphia Inquirer for 21 years. Her reviews are syndicated nationwide and she is a regular contributor to Entertainment Weekly, MSNBC and NPR. Rickey’s essays appear in numerous anthologies, including “The Rolling Stone History of Rock & Roll,” “The American Century,” and the Library of America’s “American Movie Critics.” Carrie also hosts a spirited blog, Flickgrrl.
Every few days, we'll post a new Q&A between Carrie and one of us. Here's #2, this one from Sylvie Stewart.

Why are the books always better?

About a month ago my daughter and I read together Wendy Orr's children's book Nim's Island, a charming story of a girl who lives with her eccentric widowed father on a small tropical island.  Yes, I admit that part of our decision to read the book was sparked by the fact that we'd seen trailers for a movie based on it, featuring Jodie Foster and a small cast, mostly of not well-knowns.  We decided to read the book before seeing the movie and found the book charming, suspenseful,  wonderfully absurd, and heartfelt.

Wish I could say the same for the movie.

"A Grounded Audience" and a Grounded World

Rolando, your post about the audience being more emotionally involved when their feet were grounded on the floor immediately brought to mind the memory of teaching music to elementary kids who were too little for the chairs in the classroom.  I remembered all those dangling swinging feet and all those unfocused brains and chattering tongues.

Now that I teach middle school, I find myself constantly watching the way my students sit in the chair, whether it's for good posture singing in chorus, or in general music class.

Hello, Wall-E, yes Hello, Wall-E, it's so nice to see you!

In spite of being a robot designed to clean-up a planet earth devastated by waste and evacuated of human beings over seven hundred years ago, Wall-E can appreciate a good tune.  Indeed, Wall-E is a hopeless romantic with a cockroach for a pet.  Like many of us, he is also a constant collector of junk.  He loves old toys, silverware, lightbulbs, and finds the box holding a diamond ring much more intriguing than the ring within.