Downton Abbey Live Blog

Sorry for not keeping up my Downton Abbey recaps so to make up I will do a LIVE BLOG!!!

Its my first on the blog, so I apologize if I'm not perfect.

The plot: Well, the Crawleys are headed for Scotland for a holiday with the household staff (and Branson and Lady Isobel) staying behind to hold the fort.

9:12 "I notice you are not one of our regulars." Thomas proving he can be both a complete asshole and awesome at the same time.

9:13 Also, Mrs. Hughes and Mr. Carson are the mom and dad of the staff. Hell, looking at the way those two interact

9:15. O'Brien, Mosely who can't play cricket worth a damn, and the Bateses (free!) are w/ the family in Scotland eating w/ the staff. NEWSFLASH! O'Brien is a snotty bitch.

9:16 Matthew hates bagpipes.

9:17 Thomas being nice? Weird.

9:18
Lady Isobel telling Branson he should eat w/ the staff.
"I don't think Lady Grantham would approve of that."
"Well, I don't think Lady Grantham would approve the working class learning to read."

9:21 Matthew really hates bagpipes. Especially when they wake him up.

9:22 "That sounds like a week w/ my mother-in-law." Love. Lady. Violet.

9:23 What is Mrs. O'Brien up to this time?
Mr. Carson won't give anyone a moment's rest.
I like Lady Edith in a pink sweater. ;-)

9:24 Looks like the new maid has the hots for Mr. Branson. Not necessarily good so soon after the death of Lady Sybil. I predict fan hate for her.

9:25 Mrs. Patmore wants to take a trip into town.

9:27 If you want to understand the Carson-Hughes relationship remember the statement from My Big Fat Greek Wedding: "A man may be the head but the woman is the neck and she can turn it anyway she wants to." :-)

9:28 Violet still grieves over Lady Sybil.

9:29 Still not sure what to make of the new maid. Movin' in on Lady Sybil's man!

9:30 John and Anna Bates meeting Rose(?) while she is smoking. Boy she is not happy in Scotland w/ her mother.

9:31 Do I smell romance in the air between Isobel and Dr. Clarkson?

9:33 Lady Edith in a red 1920s dress. Me likey. ;-)
And that guy w/ the wife in the looney bin kinda likes her too. Drama.

9:34 "Cause I've seen you naked." Cue fangirls fainting.

9:35 Hughes and Carson. I actually see Carson's point. He is the classical Team Dad who metes out punishment, she is the classical Team Mom who advocates for them to get lighter punishments from Mr. Carson.

9:36
"She's a woman, ain't she?"
"Only Technically."
Thomas you awesome snarky jerk.

9:37
Hunting in the Highlands.

9:38
"He finds himself in need of a wife."

9:39
John: "You sound racy."
Anna: "I am racy!"
A long overdue John/Anna romantic picnic that fans have been waiting for!

9:41 Branson will be eating w/ the staff. Cue smile from

9:41 Lady Edith in a grey outdoors outfit. Me likey. ;-)

9:43 Did Mrs. O'Brien just subtly insult the Lady of the House?

9:44 Lady Edith in a green dress. Me likey. ;-)

9:45 "He's what!" "It's only meant to be friendly." Carson and Hughes always entertain.

9:46 Clarkson asking Lady Isobel out on a date. Clarkson and Isobel kissin' in a tree. . .

9:47 Carson is still not coming to the carnival.

9:48 Is Anna learning how to dance?

9:49 The footmen sitting in the chairs of the Lord and Ladies. Ooooooh, not goo-ood! :)
Note: Do I see a gay romance next season between Jimmy-who-might-be-closeted and Thomas-who-everyone-has-known-was-gay.

9:51 The Carnival! Daisy and Ivy are getting along!
And I don't trust that guy sweetin' on Mrs. Patmore.

9:53 Tug-o-war match.

9:54 "We're not in a novel by Walter Scott."
I think that means "No", bub.

9:55 Downton Team wins Tug-O-War Match!

9:56 I love Daisy.

9:57 For the Record:
Upstairs crush: Lady Edith,
Downstairs Crush: Daisy

9:58 Yo, big guy! Don't break Mrs. Patmore's heart, you are making Mrs. Hughes angry.

9:59 Damn! Thomas. Is. A. Badass!

10:01 Folks, this is why everyone loves Violet.

10:02 I think we should note that Thomas got into a fight saving Jimmy. You know, the guy who nearly sent him to prison.

10:03 Carson picking up Lady Sybil. I sense a Crowning Moment of Heartwarming coming on!

10:04 Mosely may be s--t at Crochet but he can dance a decent jig.

10:04 The Local's maid has a problem w/ Mrs. O'Brien and spiking her drink! A warning, Mrs. O'Brien is not a woman to cross.

10:05 Well, we have our Crowning Moment of Heartwarming. And why Hughes and Carson are not just the Mum and Dad of the staff but of the whole house.

10:07 Mrs. O'Brien knows a spiked drink when she tastes it. Morsely, apparently, does not.

10:07 Lord Grantham helping the local Lord (still have no idea what his name is)

10:08 The passing of an age. "If only I had modernized as you did."
A modernization that Lord Grantham had to be dragged into kicking and screaming.

10:09 Anna dancing.
Mary: "Isn't she marvelous?"
Bates: "Yes, she is marvelous."

10:10 Mrs. Hughes telling Mrs. Patmore what a dick that bloke is.

10:11 "Either way, its the cooking he was after, not me."

10:12 "What if he comes back?" "He'll get a thick ear."
Hughes and Patmore laughing at the dick's bad pick-up lines.

10:12 Mosely is drunk.

10:13 Morsely dancing whatever the hell he is dancing is probably the funniest thing in the history of Downton Abbey. Crowning Moment of Funny, that's for sure.

10:14 The maid has kissed Branson.
Just wondered, do we call him "Lord Branson" yet? :-)

10:15 Lady Edith in a green dress. Me Likey. ;-)
And Mr. Mosely laughing.

10:16 Edna is in TWUBLE!

10:19 If you want to know why we love Mrs. Hughes, her comforting Tom Branson is why.

10:21 We got a baby coming!

10:21 It's understandable that Daisy would be worried upon hearing that Lady Mary is in the hospital considering how the last childbirth in the family went.

10:23 Rose is coming to Downton next year. I wonder what that will bring! Maybe some romance for Mr. Branson...

10:24 Clarkson is handling this childbirth, so Mary should be fine!

10:25 "I feel like I'm only half myself without him." -Mary, on Matthew.

10:28 Jimmy and Thomas are getting along better.

10:30 Well, we have a male heir now. "Downton is safe."

10:32 A Kissing Part! Yuck!

10:33 Uh-oh, bad feeling.

10:34 Well, that's two Crawleys down. Talk about a body count for this show.

Well, the episode is over. Now PBS will try to sell their DVDs.

Anyway, shocking ending. Though I knew about it ahead of time as I read a spoiler.

I'll post a later post on where I think show might go from here in terms of character arcs and development.


One last note: PBS, I can get Downton Abbey season 3 much cheaper than $120.

Classic Movies I Have Seen Recently

Suspicion (1940)

Decent suspense thriller from directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Cary Grant and Joan Fontaine (in a role that won her the Oscar for Best Actress). Lots of scenes show Hitchcock as the spell-binding genius he is with Cary Grant giving an amazing portrayal of a man who is seemingly a narcissistic sociopath and Joan Fontaine as his frightened and increasingly paranoid wife.
Anyway, decent movie but I felt the ending was a bit of a cop-out. Even if it did get Fontaine the Oscar.

The Gay Divorcee (1934)

This is the first movie with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers sharing top billing and its a pretty good outing. It starts a bit slow-ish (to me) but it gets very good. The plot is simple, Ginger Rogers wants a divorce from her husband she has not seen in a few years and who won't grant a divorce (different time) so her lawyer hires a man for her to be caught with. However, Fred Astaire has fallen for her. The best moment is the "Night and Day" scene. Here is where you see why Ginger was such a good dance partner for Fred. You can sincerely believe that a woman would fall in love with a man after dancing with him. 

Scene:

Only Ginger Rogers could make that stunned look as believable as she does. Some people's favorite scene is the big dance scene "The Continental" but I prefer the quieter one above.


Kelly's Heroes (1970)

Classic, tongue-in-cheek World War 2 action-comedy about a group of US soldiers going behind German lines to find some Nazi gold. It stars Clint Eastwood as the lead character Kelly who comes up with the plan, Donald Sutherland as a hippie tank leader (yes, a hippie), Don Rickles as the intel/accountant, and Telly Savalas as the Sergeant. The movie is a fun flick. Though it does contain some crude humour. Its a fun guy movie.

My favorite part has to be the song "Burning Bridges" by the Mike Curb Congregation!

Downton Abbey Ep. 3 Recap

Well, its three episodes into this season (or series in Brit speak) of ITV's Downton Abbey airing on PBS here in the states and I have decided to begin a recap.

First, a word on terminology. To identify between the story lines of the Crawleys and the staff I might be using the terms "upstairs" and Downstairs" for the two with "Upstairs" referring to the Crawleys and their story lines such as Mary/Matthew or the Isobel-Violet War and Downstairs for the staff such as John/Anna's relationship. I am including Tom Branson in the Upstairs for the most part because he has married into the Crawley's and most of his story lines involve the Crawleys.
Also, I've only seen about half of Season 2 so if I missed a great moment in the second half, I apologize. I hope to rectify this problem as soon as possible.

Now, onto the recap!

This week in Downton Abbey...

• Thomas (a homosexual) may have found a possible new avenue for romance in the new Footman, James. Unfortunately for him Mrs. O'Brien knows about Thomas's attraction to James and since Thomas has been treating her nephew, another footman, like crap for the past few episodes, she is likely to figure out a way to use it against him. 
• Tom Branson let his revolutionary "tear-down-the-establishment-despite-marrying-into-the-establishment" ideals got him into some trouble with the Irish authorities. Due largely to him attending a bunch of revolutionary "Free Ireland" meetings and possibly burning down a Lord's manor. Fortunately, his father-in-law was able to bail him out. 
• Middle-child Lady Edith, tired of being the family martyr in the areas of romance after getting dumped at the alter, decided to finally do something and, after hearing that the U.S. will soon be ratifying the 19th Amendment, sent in a letter to a newspaper (The Times, I think) taking up the cause of women's suffrage in the United Kingdom and Lord Grantham didn't like it too much. 
• Speaking of Lord Grantham. We learned that he apparently has no financial management skills whatsoever. Matthew, who has taken an interest in the place's finances since he pretty much bailed them out at the beginning of this season, has realized this and plans some changes. Just as Lord Grantham is hiring more help. So expect financial fireworks this season!
• Also, being a prostitute sucks. In more ways than one.
• I also believe that this episode provided further evidence for my case that the John/Anne story is the best romance on the show in an episode where the closest they came to actually sharing a scene together was a dissolve. In fact, the tender moment at the end when they finally read the letters the prison has been blocking is probably a more interesting and engaging moment than anything I've seen happen between Mary and Matthew. 
• We also learned that Lord Grantham isn't a big fan of Catholics, seeing them as a bit "Johnny Foreigner". 

Well, that's about it. Can't wait for next week!

Connecticut Shooting

My condolences and prayers to the families of the victims of the recent shooting in Connecticut. 

"I Wish I Was James Bond"

With Skyfall's America release here is a little tribute someone put together set to Scouting for Girl's "I Wish I Was James Bond". I love how the song sounds like its from the point-of-view of a 12-yr old who is watching James Bond with lines like "Kissin' all the girls, blow the bad guys away."

As for Skyfall? Great movie. Javier Bardem is a great villain and the cinematography is amazing. Probably the most beautifully shot Bond movie. Judi Dench also gives a great performance.

Here is the trailer:

Les Miserables International Trailer

We finally get to hear Russell Crowe sing. Seems to be straining a bit with "One Day More". Though that could be a result of their use of "live singing". 

Being a Tom Hooper movie the historical sets look amazing. 

Addams Family Musical

Saw the Addams Family musical yesterday a month or so ago. It was pretty funny though the plot was kinda mediocre. After having seen Christina Ricci's (amazing) sadistic deadpan take on Wednesday it was kind of odd seeing her go into love mode.

The songs were fun and okay. Few were what I would call classics but they were fun to listen to and watch. My favorites were probably "When You're an Addams", "Pulled", and "Happy/Sad". "When You're an Addams" is classic Addams Family. Aside from that and a bizarre song around the table, not much I can remember.
However, if any song has a chance of outgrowing its broadway origins and becoming a standard on its own right its the one performed by Gomez to Wednesday, "Happy/Sad".
Here it is, performed by the actor I saw, Douglas Sills, with Cortney Wolfson as Wednesday.

THIS is why I love musicals. Take a plot -any plot. A plot about 19th century Russian Jews, a Beast living in a castle, or a strange, bizarre, pseudo-undead family and give it the right song (or songs) and you have something that speaks to all of us.

Look at the lyrics:

"I'm feeling happy, I'm feeling sad.

A little childish, a little Dad.

I think of all the days you've known.

All the ways you've grown.

See you on you're own, and then

I'm happy and sad again."

For some reason, I just love that verse.

So, is it worth the price of admission? Not sure about that. Maybe the soundtrack on iTunes, or at least the songs "Pulled", "When You're an Addams", and, definitely, "Happy/Sad".

UPDATE: I should note, I found the above video on youtube, I did not record it.