Anthony Michael Hall and James Hoare Discuss 'The Lears' at #VaFilmFest 2017

Last week, at the 30th annual Virginia Film Festival in Charlottesville, one of the featured narrative films was The Lears.

University of Virginia English professor Mark Edmundson -- author of Why Teach?, Why Write?, and Why Read?, among other books -- led a panel discussion on the film, which is loosely based on William Shakespeare's King Lear.

The panel included the film's writer-director-cinematographer, Carl Bessai; its producer, Irwin Olian; and two of its cast members, Anthony Michael Hall ("Glenn Lear") and James Hoare ("Rory Lear").

Bessai has directed several previous films, including Emile (starring Ian McKellen), Sisters & Brothers, and  Fathers and Sons.  Irwin Olian also produced the 1999 film, Gut Feeling; he also has a cameo appearance in The Lears.  Although best known for 1980s films like The Breakfast Club, Hall has also spent a year in the cast of Saturday Night Live and has built a later career in as a character actor.  James Hoare is a newcomer -- The Lears is his first feature film -- but he has performed on stage and on television in his native Australia, where he will appear in the mini-series Picnic at Hanging Rock (based on the same novel as Peter Weir's 1975 film).

The film's cast also features Bruce Dern, Sean Astin, Aly Michalka, Victoria Smurfit, Nic Bishop, Stephen Ellis, and Ivy Matheson.

According to the Virginia Film Festival's program notes:

World-renowned architect Davenport Lear (Bruce Dern) summons his dysfunctional children to a weekend family retreat to test their love. Set in of one of Davenport’s signature architectural masterpieces, a quirky black comedy emerges in this modern-day reimagining of Shakespeare’s classic King Lear. Davenport announces he is to marry his younger personal assistant, setting off an explosive round of humorously devious behavior. Each of his children vies for his favor, consumed by self-interest, greed, and jealousy. The Lears raises fundamental questions about the nature of love, sexuality, family relationships, and honesty.

The video above was recorded at the Newcomb Hall Theatre on the grounds of the University of Virginia on Thursday evening, November 9, 2017.

Does Georgetown University Have the World's Smallest Athletic Facility?

As an alumnus of Georgetown University, today I received an email alert that tomorrow there will be a live webcast of the groundbreaking ceremony for a new athletic structure on campus.

According to the email,

This exciting milestone marks a historic moment in Georgetown’s tradition of athletic excellence.

The new four-story, 144-square-foot facility is named for legendary Hoyas men’s basketball coach John R. Thompson Jr., and is supported through the generous philanthropy of Georgetown’s alumni, friends and donors.

Imagine that! A four-story building that has only 144 square feet of space. Twelve feet by twelve feet, spread out over four floors. A handful of study carrels for grad students are bigger than that.

Is this a dollhouse or a miniature gymnasium?

Just in case a corrected email goes out that says the John R. Thompson, Jr., Intercollegiate Athletic Center is not intended for dwarf bowling tournaments, I have attached a screenshot below:

Hoya Saxa!

This Is Not Ironic -- Is It?

Am I wrong to think it is entirely appropriate that the Department of Homeland Security is going to be headquartered in an insane asylum?

According to an article published last October (but which just came to my attention) in The Architect's Newspaper,

In September, the General Services Administration (GSA) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) held a ceremonial groundbreaking to celebrate the creation of a DHS headquarters on the 172-acre west campus of St. Elizabeths—a National Historic Landmark and the first federally operated hospital for the insane.

Best known as the "home" of Ronald Reagan's would-be assassin, John Hinckley, St. Elizabeths also confined fascist poet Ezra Pound and numerous other crazies during its "golden years."

Now if only the administrators of St. Elizabeths could figure out a way to put a straitjacket on the administrators of the DHS.

Be sure to visit my CafePress store for gifts and novelty items!
Read my blog on Kindle!
Follow my tweets on Twitter! 

See my articles on Examiner.com!