Skip to main content

Movie Review: Nowhere Boy

    Hey everyone. I know that you remember me saying that I wouldn't watch any more movies on Apple TV due to the ridiculous download time and the high price. ($4.99) I made an exception tonight because I really wanted to see a movie about John Lennon's teenage years. The name, as you might expect from our title, is Nowhere Boy. I gather that the title comes from what his principal told him, which was that John was going nowhere in life. John replied, "If that's where the talented people go, that's where I should be." I don't know if this confrontation led to the writing of the song Nowhere Man or not.
    It seems that John was a troubled youth of fifteen or so, being raised by his Aunt Mimi, a good person who was wrapped a bit tight. He wanted to know what happened to his Mother and Father. John is a very troubled guy and has a lot of rebellion and hostility. As I remember the rocker's brooding expression and hard eyes, I feel that I understand him a bit better now. A family life like what he endured as a little kid tends to breed insecurity with many associated problems. Sort of a gift that goes on giving, until death do you part, sometimes.
     The main thrust of the movie is two-fold. First, John finds his real mother. Secondly he starts forming a band. Neither event is without issues.
     Aaron Johnson plays John Lennon and Kristen Scott Thomas is outstanding as his Aunt Mimi. Ann Marie Duff plays John's Mom. The acting is really good and the script is well written, though a bit sad. The writer would probably tell us, "Sorry about that, but life happens sometimes."
      Back to the plot. Aunt Mimi gave John exactly what he needed all the years he was growing up. Stability, family, etc. It was perfect timing for him to find his Mom because she was musical and taught him to play banjo and a bit of guitar. He immediately started a band called the Quarrymen. A stripling named Paul McCartney wandered into one of their gigs and the rest is history. Thomas Brodie Sangster does a good job as Paul, by the way.
    I give this movie a 4 stars out of 4. I think you'll enjoy it, especially so if you are a Baby Boomer. It's a fascinating look into the background of this interesting man. How important is environment, luck, fate, people? A 'chance meeting' often changes a life forever. John moaned to his new-found Mom, after seeing Elvis perform on a newsreel at the theater, "Why couldn't God allow me to have been Elvis Presley?" His Mom replied, "Because God wanted you to be John Lennon."
    From the author's green retreat, I'm CE Wills.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Cake Is Better Than Swords

Hey, everyone. On Thanksgiving, we had a get-together here at The Author's Green Retreat. One lady brought a cake which I wanted to show you. It had the look of a Roman Coliseum about it. Inside it was just as decadent...and fun, as ancient Rome. When I cut it open, homemade marshmallow cream began to ooze out in several spots, running over the chocolate cake and peanut butter icing. It is best served warm so the cream is fluid. Very tasty. The same lady, and her children, are people who have played a lot of Skyrim. They gave me some pointers on the game because I am having problems with it. They taught me how to fast travel, and a ton of other things, but the main thing was the armor and clothing problem. This is a little embarrassing, but let me explain. Okay. For several weeks when I played, I would enter towns and everyone I met would comment on my nakedness. I would select a tunic and shoes, whatever, go back around people and they would say something about it. I guess I w...

Hard Reset

    Hey, everyone. Yesterday I had an odd day. I had I-Pad trouble with my I-Pad Air. Let me tell you about it. I'll have to give you the "Reader's Digest Version". Ha, ha. This is an old saying, common during the dark ages. At that time Reader's Digest put abbreviated novels out for consumption by those who didn't really have a lot of time. They were quite good, usually.      So, a weird thing was going on with my Padster. To wit, I would buy a game and it would not appear on my I-Pad. The store would indicate that the game had downloaded but alas, there was no icon. Distressing. How could I possibly save Duke Nukem in The Manhattan Project ?      I bought other games, like Alpha 9, and they didn't appear either. I just chilled out for a while and meditated on the problem, hoping it would go away or a flash of genius might overtake me. I plugged the Padster into my PC and added some of my old games. They didn't appear either...

Games, Vladimir Putin and Moths

Hey, everyone. I have dubbed this moth the Butterscotch Moth . He is a big guy and looks like he has furry legs and tufts of hair growing from his back. Like a 50 year old plumber in a strap tee shirt.Da Vinci himself couldn't have painted his wings so beautifully. I just read an interesting article from Sports Illustrated.com by Al Michaels, the terrific sportscaster. He was filling in for Peter King while Peter is on vacation. First of all I was very impressed by how well Al wrote. I mean, this guy could have had a great career as a writer, a columnist or a blogger. Moreover, it would be nice to just sit down and chat with this guy. It was a lengthy piece and Al touched on a number of subjects with bluntness, knowledge and a toughness that does not condone B.S. 1. The NFL lockout 2. America's infatuation with football. 3. The Oakland Raiders. 4. His admiration for John Madden. 5.Restaurants. 6. Hotels. 7. Stadium Deals and NFL football in Los Angeles. 8. Chris Coll...