Scooter & Hum: May 2007

Friday, May 25, 2007

Limerick Friday XXXI: Chewbacca Defiles The Think Tank

Casually dropped a grumpy in the middle of a meeting one time
Heartbroken by an account manager who looked like Fred Dryer in his prime
Unlucky in love made her unleash a forlorn Wookie roar
Then she chased poor Jud all the way to his front door
He called the cops to say, “Linda Tripp’s in my driveway sipping Zima and lime”

Another Guru.com project that made me shake my head
“Knowledge of SEO and keyword density necessary,” it said
Wanted a content developer for an adult dating site
Shady as hell like MSI clients for whom we used to write
Such topics led to the first Pat-Literace meeting in bed

A “Lost” season finale to make your head spin
Now it’s several months of questions again
Who took over the island from Ben the Other?
What became of Penny and Desmond, brother?
Was surprised the character of Walt was portrayed by Greg Oden

Misunderstood Ricky couldn’t lay off the weed
So it’s another tailback the Dolphins do need
Where’s Cecil Collins when things go wrong?
Somewhere passing Sammy Smith a bong
Don’t fumble the bong water is the advice to heed

Wishes for a terrific Memorial Day I send
As summer lies just around the bend
Hope for waves that are more curl than foam-y
Have a few beers and pour one out for your homey
Do what it takes to enjoy a great holiday weekend

Wednesday, May 23, 2007

Wave Of Ho-Hum Wipes Out “24” As Season Dog-Paddles To Close

After the end of yet another far-fetched season of “24,” the show took on a melancholy, overly dramatic tone, with a reeling Jack Bauer gazing numbly off a cliff at the ocean before the fade. Was he contemplating suicide after losing killing his father and losing yet another love interest? Was he wondering if Audrey’s father was dead on when he said that everyone that Jack touches is either killed or ruined? Was he thinking about doing a triple-lindy off the cliff, sticking the landing on the top of a wave and walking across the ocean to stop a volcanic eruption near Iwo Jima?

Early on this season, the show began hitting new levels of ridiculousness, seemingly in an attempt to differentiate this “day” from all the others. The season settled into an entertaining, if familiar, plot, throwing viewers a bone by digging a little deeper into Jack’s upbringing and the odd family dynamics that have edged him closer to monster than human. After all, we’re talking about a man who had to kill a friend, torture his brother, come on to his sister-in-law and assist in the murder of his father in the span of a single day … paging Dr. Freud?

The two-hour finale was somewhat predictable, with the occasional spectacular special effect thrown in. There were also some unintentional-comedy scenes interspersed with the tension, such as Jack and his father sharing a Darth Vader-Luke Skywalker moment, where they both are jolted by the arrival of a furrowed brow and stare off into the distance, in the direction of one another. The consternated looks and abrupt gazes harken back to when Luke and his father felt each other’s minds in Empire Strikes Back. In another scene, Jack is swimming back to shore after leaping off a helicopter’s ladder when he is crushed by a wave near the shore. Here’s a guy who is a cold-blooded assassin, sharpshooter, top-notch communications expert, international politics expert, accomplished linguist, heartbreaker, pilot of 20 different kinds of vehicles … it’s good to know that he has one minor flaw – he can’t bodysurf worth a shit.

Similarly to “Lost,” “24” occasionally suffers from an overabundance of relevant characters, though it does a fairly good job of killing them off at times. In this season, we were often left to wonder what happened to Gary Payton look-alike and President Wayne Palmer after he suffered another brain seizure; what took place with the previous President after he was stabbed in the neck by his crazy ex-First Lady; what the story was with Audrey, who was only cursorily addressed in the season’s final moments; and where the crikey hottie daughter Kim was all day long?

There were a few storylines that were seemingly unearthed to possibly set up and lead into next season, such as Chloe’s pregnancy, the strange appearance and disappearance of Milo’s brother, and Jack’s impending crossroads decision. Is it possible that the Chloe and Milo’s brother backstories are related? How did Chloe seemingly know him so well? Who is really her baby daddy – her ex-husband (how did Chloe get married and divorced so quickly)? Milo’s brother? Jack? Lisping Edgar? The Russian premiere? And what about Jack’s nephew-son? Are they setting him up to be the heir apparent to Jack after he had the stones to shoot his grandfather? How big of a variable will he be in the next season?

The question for “24” legitimately becomes, “How can we possibly fill two more seasons of a show that is losing viewers faster than panties disappearing in a Brit-pari-dsay limo?” And further, “How can we make the show original enough again to placate our faithful viewers while expanding the audience base to include newcomers?” I mean, Jack defies so many orders that he’s to the point where he aims his gun at colleagues and coworkers more often than at the enemy … how many times is this going to be deemed “just Jack being Jack”? In addition, is Bill Buchanan really going to get a free pass after assaulting two CTU agents, stealing a helicopter and attacking an enemy against Presidential order – AFTER he’d already been fired?! The lack of accountability was seemingly justified in previous seasons, but the screw-the-bureaucracy mentality on this day was taken to new, defiant, anarchistic levels. How many times can these people go “off the reservation” before they wake up scalped and drunk in an Indian casino?

The finale appeared to suggest that Jack was ready to take stock of his life and consider a stark departure from what had led him, literally and figuratively, to the edge of the cliff. Yet it felt like a scene we had seen before – like at the end of just about every other season of “24.” In that respect, the ending didn’t make a whale of a lot of sense, but the show has been creeping in that direction for a couple of years now. It seemed to be a fresher, more creative series when it was on a year-to-year leash, but with the announced extension through 2009, it certainly seemed to lose a lot of steam this season in particular.

At the end, Jack, in a rare moment of sarcasm, tells Audrey’s father that he’s “pretty good” at killing and disappearing. But as a producer of the show itself, he’ll have to be pretty good at making a leopard change its spots in order to make “24” relevant again.

Monday, May 21, 2007

Peyote, Bus Drivers and Asbestos: The Final Days Of “The Sopranos”

“I’m a good guy … basically.”

Amidst the boiling tension and gathering storm clouds that have permeated the final handful of episodes of one of the landmark shows in the history of television, Tony Soprano emerged from a frightening slide into an unavoidable destruction long enough to utter a statement that perfectly sums up the entire series. He has long blamed everyone but himself for his wrongdoings, seemingly trying to convince himself that he is doing everything in his power to live the right way. Yet the “basically” – interjected almost as an aside after a pregnant pause – gives him the leeway to recognize the truth that he is fatally flawed.

As the end quickly approaches, Tony is ultimately revealing himself to have few, if any, redeeming qualities, which is disturbing and problematic for the viewer because the entire core of the show is based around asking the audience to empathize with someone who is the definition of an unsympathetic figure. We have been asked to identify with and process our feelings for a brutal and fractured individual – and by extension, we are led to question what it is that lies within us that allows us to possess any positive justification surrounding Tony. It’s almost as if we are being called on the carpet for being able to feel anything but disgust for Tony, which is one of the reasons why the final season has become so uncomfortable and difficult to watch at times. Yet, despite all of that, why do we still have a painful sense of foreboding for Tony as we watch his undeniable downfall and all that he has created slowly slip away?

How can the same man fiercely protect his daughter’s sensibilities—but to the point where he pulls an “American History X” move on one of the henchmen of his biggest rival? How can the same man treat one of his captains, Christopher Moltisanti, like a son for his entire life, then coldly give up on him and kill him in the aftermath of a car accident? How can the same man stop his son’s suicide attempt and see so many of the same psychological problems within him, yet still berate and belittle him afterwards? How can the same man so painstakingly create a structured mob organization, yet possess no ability to halt or even limit the headstrong, impulsive actions that will give him short-term satisfaction while threatening everything in the long term? Yet even as we shake our heads at Tony’s self-destructive behavior, there is something attractive about his upholding of the “code” surrounding this culture. For every offense or misstep, there is an understood level of meted-out justice, a countermove aimed at forever keeping the balance between action and punishment. Seeing this code in black and white – even as Tony beats Coco within an inch of his life – is somehow welcoming, understated in its effectiveness, especially in a society where justice is so often unjust.

But we are also asked to consider what the impact is of living your life within a cocoon of violence. Does it lead to a separation between fantasy and reality? When Tony kills Christopher, it feels almost like a dream sequence, something that would jar Tony awoke in the comfort of his own bed. But it actually happened, creating a temporary distance between the action and the audience as we attempt to process what happened and all the ripples it will create, even as the show hurtles forward. We are given no time to feel shock or outrage … the show, like life, speeds on. Part of the denouement in these final episodes has been that many aspects of the action appear to be dream-like in context and nature, yet are actually taking place and severely impacting and affecting what comes next and decisions that loom down the road.

And what is the toll that this lifestyle takes on the family dynamic? A.J.’s aborted suicide attempt finally turns Carmela against Tony, possibly forever. Combine that with the part of Italian culture that leads Tony to be offended by and embarrassed by the failures of his eldest son and a scenario has been created where A.J.’s similarities to his father could ultimately bring down the family – and “the family.” These changes were reflected in the reality that most of this episode took place in therapists’ rooms; this undoubtedly could have been called “The Therapy Episode.” Increasingly, depression and the accompanying truth that we pay for what we do in one way or another are depicted almost as another character in the show. This idea is brought home when Dr. Melfi’s shrink suggests—citing “studies”—that talk therapy actually encourages and validates sociopaths, basically saying that Dr. Melfi’s treatment of Tony isn’t helping; that, it is, in fact, enhancing his violent tendencies while hastening his downfall. In a group session, A.J.—who has almost become humorous now, thanks to his complete absorption and adoption of social causes and sympathies—reveals that his grandmother, Tony’s mother, described life as “all a big nothing” to him as a child. She told A.J. that, ultimately, “you die in your own arms” … this from the woman who tried to have her own son killed. Is this proof that we have come full circle with this show as the end nears?

With just two episodes remaining, opposing boss Phil Leotardo looms, out of control, on a vengeful power trip that can only end very badly as he increasingly challenges Tony. For Tony, all the deaths are piling up at the edge of his conscience, figuratively like the asbestos waste dumped at the edge of the New Jersey marsh land as a result of a petty disagreement between him and Phil. Meanwhile, Carmela broods in silence, A.J. resides in a mental hospital under observation, Meadow pursues romance with the son of one of Tony’s captains, and his own crew, in many ways, is still reeling from the losses of Christopher, Vito Liberace and Furio. All of these variables lend to the stifling atmosphere, rife with violence, that lies just beneath the surface of everything, pervading every word and action in the show.

Despite all the outside influences and factors, the conclusion is still a personal one for Tony. He is frantically trying to derive some final meaning out of life, one that appeared to be within his grasp after he was shot, before slipping away. He tries peyote in the desert, searching for signs, wanting to believe that he saw something revealing on his trip. He wants so badly to prove his mother’s message wrong, to rid himself of the feeling of isolation that haunts his every step. For whom can he trust? Who can he turn over responsibility and authority to? Who will eventually take his place as head of the family? Every attempt to groom a successor is met with exasperation. Christopher, the heir apparent, was pulled in 20 different directions and dogged by drug abuse; brother-in-law Bobby Bacala is domesticated, without a killer instinct; Paulie Walnuts is basically a buffoon who doesn’t take anything seriously; his consigliere, Silvio Dante, is just a details man; and A.J. is pursued by his own demons, even if Tony wanted to involve him in “the life.” So Tony continues to scramble for answers, even as the observer recognizes that everything is crumbling down around him.

One of the final scenes of the last episode showed Tony in a session with Dr. Melfi, trying to articulate some truth he feels he’s unearthed. He said that mothers are just like bus drivers, and their children go wrong by spending their lives trying to get back on the bus after being dropped off—instead of just letting it go. It was a remarkably lucid thought for Tony; does it represent the clarity that he has sacrificed so much to pursue? As with everything else in “The Sopranos,” the answer is likely both yes and no.

Basically.

Friday, May 18, 2007

Limerick Friday XXX: The Heffernans Have Left The Building

The “King of Queens” series finale had me feeling blue
One of my top three shows of all time, this is true
Kevin James is undoubtedly a stitch
If he does movies, I hope there are no more like “Hitch”
In difficult times, I’ll always ask myself, “What Would Arthur Spooner Do?”

Is Chah-lie going to be “Lost” in the ocean deep?
Will he die so Claire and Aaron can escape the heat?
But christ, did he have to hit Desmond with a freaking oar!?
Couldn’t he have just said, “I feel strongly about diving to the ocean floor”?
Lastly, shouldn’t he be able to swim fast as hell with those ginormous hobbit feet?

On contract out at Tekelec
Stuck me next to the Indian Help Desk
Makes me want to have some curry
Or maybe a strawberry Slurpee
Funny to hear someone from Delhi translating to Redneck

Season finales abound
A long summer, the corner’s around
Time for crappy reality shows
Forgot how much “Big Brother” blows
Nothing great like “What About Brian” to be found

Tuesday, May 15, 2007

A Very Special “Grey’s Anatomy”: McAlero Goes Off To Nursing School

Occasionally, a project originates from Guru.com, drifts through cyberspace and eventually reaches my desk. Some are serious, some are whimsical, some are challenging, some are paint-by-numbers, some are lucrative, some squeeze a nickel ‘til the buffalo shits. And then, one appears that makes it all worthwhile …

“Profile ID: xxxxxx matches...
Title: My daughter
Project ID: xxxxxx

Category: Writing / Editing / Translation
Description:

I am looking for someone who can write a poem or a song about my daughter. She is graduating this year from high school. She played basketball and softball in high school. her nick name is pumpkin. she just bought a oldsmobile alero. I think I would like to include some of her friends names. She is planning on going to college for nursing. I always call her my hero. She has a pet cat and dog.”

I heard your call, Melancholy Mother, as your fragile bird prepares to leave the nest. And I’ve decided to bestow to ye one limerick and one haiku … on the house:

I remember the first time you played basketball when you were just wee
To think that you’re almost a nurse now makes my heart fill with glee
Did I ever tell you that you’re my hero
As your hair blows in the wind outside your new Alero?
You’re my pumpkin – and you’re out of your gourd if you don’t believe you’ll always be

Hero to me, pets
Future nurse, sweet Alero
Gentle pumpkin, mine

Good luck, Anonymous, Gender-Confused Alero Girl Whose Mom Doesn’t Think She Has Any Friends – to you I say godspeed.

Friday, May 11, 2007

Limerick Friday XXIX: Long Live The City Of Big Shoulders

Took a trip to the amazing Windy City
Watched the Cubs win in quaint ol’ Wrigley
Walked the Magnificent Mile down Michigan Avenue
Had some deep dish and a little bratwurst, too
Saw all the incredible things that Chicago has to see

Pushing back basketball’s three-point line
Eliminating football’s dumbass rules for time
The NCAA is actually doing some smart things
Instead of just helping the big programs get more rings
If they can just put EZU on probation, we’ll be fine

“Lost” is cranking up for a memorable finale
How many will be killed off in the final tally?
Locke’s missing a kidney and lying in a pit
Chah-lie the Hobbit’s nine lives are just about gone to shit
If Sayid gets the ax, I’ll pour out a Slurpee and say, “Gollee!”

Tony Blair’s time running Britain is coming to a close
Londoners finally realized that the Prime Minister has no clothes
Seven years bending over for Bush must have been enough
I guess having tea and crumpets every day, it’s hard to look tough
Maybe a new UK leader will finally keep our next President on his toes

Thursday, May 10, 2007

“Lost”: Harry Potter and the Zany, Mysterious Adventures of Moonlight Graham

As “Lost” careens its way toward a scintillating final three hours of Season 3, the writers are making more and more references to pop culture:

 “Harry Potter”: Young Ben looks disturbingly like Harry’s doppleganger
 “Wizard Of Oz”: Last night’s episode was titled “Man Behind The Curtain”
 “Field Of Dreams”: Ben’s mother disappears into the shrubbery like the 1919 White Sox
 “Blair Witch Project”: Ben converses with an invisible enemy, Jacob, who terrorizes Locke
 “Sixth Sense”: people keep seeing ghosts, like Ben seeing his long-dead mother
 “The Invisible Man” and “Carnivale”: Jacob
 “Alice In Wonderland”: Young Ben sends his rabbit down the rabbit hole
 “The Village”: The Dharma Initiative creates a utopian society shut off from the outside world
 “Star Wars”: Jack=Luke, Kate=Leia, Sawyer=Han Solo, Sayid=Chewbacca (c’mon, that’s funny), Locke=Darth Vader, Ben=The Emperor, Jacob=Darth Maul (I’m trying here)

The latest episode reveals the formerly wheelchair-bound Locke turning into a combination of Rambo and Stephen Hawking, pounding the hell out of Mikhail—that dude HAS to be getting tired of having the christ beat out of him—and intimidating Ben into revealing some secrets. It seems that Locke has received some type of backbone-through-osmosis from coercing Sawyer into killing their father, Cooper/Sawyer. The theme of patricide is perpetuated as Ben kills his father, Roger Work Man, as part of “The Purge,” which looked like a ripoff of Jonestown.

At Locke’s insistence, Ben is forced—or is he?—to lead him to Jacob, who Ben believes is the imaginary “man behind the curtain.” Before they go, Ben’s daughter, Alex, sees fit to give Locke a gun, seeming to foreshadow some impending confrontation. On their journey, Locke and Ben come across a line of ash or gunpowder, and though Locke is intent on examining it, Ben appears flustered and hurries him along. Is this line a way to keep Jacob contained? Does it provide some type of barrier or protection? Is it a method of defense in times of trouble?

When they reach Jacob’s dwelling, a disturbing scene of Ben talking to an invisible man results in Jacob asking Locke to “Help me,” resulting in an enraged spirit/Jacob/invisible force to start whipping pictures around and breaking windows. In one instant, we appear to see the outline of a face, leading us to question whether Jacob is, in fact, real. After fleeing, Ben takes Locke to reveal a mass open grave where the bodies of “The Purge” that he led after joining the “hostiles" were disposed of. [Editor’s Note: If the Hostiles were the natives of the island before the Dharma Initiative arrived, after switching sides, Ben performed a genocide on the D.I. intruders—the original “Others”—then founded a modernized version of the Others.] Never one to think more than one step ahead, instead of capping Ben the moment he sees the open grave, Locke turns his back on Ben, then tries to turn and shoot him, allowing Ben to give him a gut shot that propels him into the mass grave.

Meanwhile, back at camp, Sawyer shows the tape demonstrating Juliet’s spying to Sayid, and the survivors confront Jack and Juliet. However, Juliet asks them to turn the tape over, and the details of a raid on the camp being planned by Ben and the Others are provided. Was Juliet planning to share this information before she was confronted? Either way, Jack says, “It looks like we have some catching up to do,” apparently meaning that he is intent on telling them what happened when he was detained by the Others and other helpful info. But I guess that will have to wait until next week.

A fascinating episode, indeed, giving more answers than possibly any other show in the series. However, a ton of queries still loom …

 Who is Annie, the young girl who befriended Young Ben? Was she Danielle Rousseau? Was she a reincarnation of Locke’s mother? Did Ben wind up marrying her, only to have her die during a pregnancy, fueling his passion to recruit Juliet and other doctors to help find a cure for pregnant women on the island?

 Who/what the hell is Jacob? What does “Help me” mean—is he being trapped/contained/controlled by Ben?

 Will the island “heal” Locke again? Will Jacob “help him”? Is Jacob actually Locke?

 Were the Hostiles part of an ancient civilization that created the four-toed statue and the other old-looking architecture that is found around the island?

 Did pressing the button in the hatch actually control the food drops and communicate to the supplier, allowing the now-controlling Hostiles to keep up the ruse that the Dharma Initiative was still thriving on the island?

 Why does Richard Alpert appear to be immortal and not age?

 Will the island take Chah-lie as a sacrifice in lieu of Locke?

The “Lost” braintrust recently announced that the show will air through the 2009-10 season. They are planning three more seasons of 16 episodes apiece (previous seasons have been either 22 or 24 episodes long). So, basically, counting the last two episodes of this season, they have 50 more episodes to answer or resolve all of the remaining questions that have been posed and put forth surrounding the island and its several generations/populations of inhabitants. With nine months between the end of this season and the start of Season 4, you can bet that the writers and producers will be frantically working to address the litany of problems and issues that have arisen.

And you can also assume that they’ll be watching a lot of movies in a quest for creative inspiration. Hell, maybe Yoda will show up next year, slay the Smoke monster, levitate the polar bear … and beat the almighty Dark Side out of Harry Potter in a game of Quidditch.

Lost Links

April 24, 2007: “Lost”: An Island Of Paradoxes

March 29, 2007: The Resurgence of “Lost”?

February 8, 2007: “Lost” V 3.5: Let The Games Begin

November 9, 2006: Mini-Season Makes For Long, Lost Winter Months

November 2, 2006: Vaya Con Dios, Mr. Eko

October 4, 2006: “Lost” In A Sea Of Questions

Monday, May 07, 2007

Samoans Hate Drywall

In addition to spending the ninth overall pick on a one-legged, skinny track star, Miami also saw fit to select Reagan Mauia, a player whose highlight film consisted of him running through some drywall. I’m not saying he’s not a good player … it’s just that he’s a fullback from the University of Hawaii who weighed 380 pounds like a year ago. He’s one of four Polynesian rookies added to the Dolphins roster this year, enough to make Jay Fiedler and Sage Rosenfels shake their yarmulkes in bewilderment.

And further confirmation that being a ‘Fin fan is -- literally -- like banging your head against the wall …

Thursday, May 03, 2007

Forest Burns In Epic “The Last King of Scotland” Performance

What began as a historical perspective on one of the most vicious dictators of our time turned into a vehicle for a brilliant actor due to the sheer force of Forest Whitaker. He captivated “The Last King of Scotland” from the first frame he was in, lifting a strong film into a very good movie while giving him a stage on which to display his prodigious talents.

Based on a landmark novel by Giles Foden, this movie was a portrayal of Ugandan general Idi Amin Dada as seen through the eyes of a fictional character, Scottish doctor Nicholas Garrigan (James MacAvoy). After initially travelling to the region as a way to escape his home life and try to effect some good in the world, Garrigan encounters Amin soon after he had ascended to power due to a coup and soon becomes a valued, trusted "advisor." Enlisting a fictional presence into a historical account can be a controversial, ineffective technique—perhaps the most damaging example coming in Oliver Stone’s “JFK”—but Garrigan’s usage here serves only to show the myriad sides and personalities of Amin, who remains largely misunderstood and mysterious to this day.

The tactic is one of many used in startling fashion by director Kevin Macdonald in his first feature film. Macdonald is a noted documentary-maker, and the film actually takes the form of a documentary at many points. A stunning soundtrack weaved itself perfectly throughout the film, allowing for a strong marriage of music and pacing. Macdonald also excelled in meshing scenes together to show various things going on at once, showing consciously and subconsciously how all is not as it may seem. The blending of a disarming Amin in rare form during a press conference at the same time that one of his wives, Kay (Kerry Washington), is found torn limb from limb and reassembled brutally created unforgettable imagery. The director also employed incredibly interesting camera work, building intensity through rapid focuses and quick panning methods.

Yet, right or wrong, everything extraordinary in this film is buried underneath the raw power exhibited by Whitaker. He is able to show the charming, humorous aspect of Amin, the optimism that was occasionally on display at the beginning of his reign. However, we quickly are shown cracks in the façade, indications that paranoia and possibly attention-deficit disorder dominate the man. While the self-effacing parts of Amin’s personality initially covered up the barbaric side, the dark part of the dictator gradually began to thrust aside the promising qualities. When we see Amin elevating assassins to positions of authority—Abby Mukiibi as Masanga, the fierce head of Amin’s brutal security force, is shudder-inducing in a stunning performance—we are forced to recognize the troubling undercurrents that are swirling more and more powerfully.

A Method actor, Whitaker immersed himself so deeply into the character of Amin that he admittedly dreamed that he was Amin, had trouble losing the East African dialect that he mastered and was reduced to repeatedly taking showers in an effort to literally and figuratively rinse the role off of him. To his credit, he threw himself into the role, refusing to enter into the portrayal with preconceived judgments or beliefs. In his pursuit of capturing the essence of the many-sided dictator, Whitaker learned Swahili, interviewed Amin’s family, read numerous books on the general and basically removed every barrier to violence within him that might inhibit him from “becoming” Amin for five months. The result was a staggering resemblance to Amin, in terms of stature, carriage and behavior, that was jarring to Ugandans who lived through the dictator’s regime. Justly, Whitaker won the Academy Award, a Golden Globe, a Screen Actors Guild Award, an NAACP Image Award and a BAFTA award for his efforts … hopefully, reward enough for half a year’s worth of a transition to a disturbed, murderous beast.

The book and film did not travel far enough down the bloody path to examine the roots of Amin’s violence or the death gasps that signaled the end of his rule. Amin was trained in the colonial British army and basically prepared to take over Uganda by the Brits. When he eventually grew beyond their grasp and lost control, the English did everything they could to distance themselves from his regime. His loss of stability is ably chronicled, along with the aspects of his regime that resulted in 300,000 — Amnesty International places the number at half a million — of his own countrymen being killed during his reign. However, we don’t see the connection that was built between he and the British culture, nor do we witness the downward spiral that resulted in his exile. Admittedly, following the story all the way until the end may have been too far-reaching and excessive, but one can’t help but wonder about the impact that his exile must have had on him.

The movie does document Amin’s decision to expel all Asians from Uganda, giving them 90 days to leave. The move was one of many reasons that the United States finally closed its embassy in Kampala in 1973, denouncing the brutality and horror of Amin’s regime. Amin’s erratic behavior eventually lead the Western press to detail him as a murderous ape and a caricature of himself. Amin’s arrogance and inability to have a finger on the pulse of his own countrymen backfired fatally when he ordered the invasion of Tanzania. Ugandan exiles joined the Tanzanian forces to storm Kampala in 1979, forcing Amin to flee to exile in Libya and, eventually, Saudi Arabia. In a last-gasp effort, he attempted to organize another Ugandan coup in 1989, but was thwarted and ordered to return to Saudi Arabia. A month before Amin’s death in 2003, one of his wives pleaded with Ugandan authorities to allow him to return to Uganda for his final days, but she was told that Amin would have to answer for his sins should he return. It would have been interesting to see the twist placed on this course of events by Macdonald, but the decision to conclude the film where he did was understandable as well.

All of the above is not meant to suggest that this is a perfect film. There were some scenes of sex and violence that could be construed as gratuitous, though a compelling argument could be made that the brutality of certain images was necessary to laying open the entire character of Amin. There were a couple of throwaway characters and some scenes that did nothing but add to the sense of urgency and show the overall debauchery of the climate and environment of the time; the merits of those scenes could be debated and argued in terms of excessiveness or essentiality to the story. The affair between Kay and Garrigan felt somewhat contrived as a means to demonstrating the depths of Amin’s sadistic side, even to those he supposedly loved.

Thanks to a governmental stance that involves basically pretending that Amin never existed, quelling interest in him and erecting barriers for natives seeking to learn more about him, sentiment and opinion about Amin within Uganda remain split. Apparently, one of Amin’s sons is working on a novel to counter the depiction put forth by Foden in his own book. In Uganda, the film has been applauded as remarkably accurate in some quarters and far too harsh on Amin in others. The movie does a terrific job of giving just enough detail in either direction to allow the individual viewer to make his or her own judgment. Whitaker’s flawless performance does more than enough to cover up some of the minor flaws inherent in “The Last King of Scotland,” making it easy to understand why it has been lauded as one of the most memorable pictures in recent memory and one of the finest historical portrayals of all-time.

Scooter & Hum