Movie View: GOING CLEAR: SCIENTOLOGY and the PRISON OF BELIEF

GOING CLEAR: SCIENTOLOGY and the PRISON OF BELIEF.

Thank you HBO for broadcasting this film. I hope millions upon millions see it the world over to spread the lunacy, the idiocy, the slave labor, and all the cultish details that make up Scientology.

After you watch this documentary it's more like the prison of dis-belief.

GOING CLEAR doesn’t break a lot of new ground but it does pull a lot of information, from the beginning of it all to 2014, together in 2 hours. The point isn’t so much about new information, but about spreading the evil and misinformation that is Scientology. It’s all about control, ‘cuz they shore don’t care about their people (see the movie).

What does Scientology do exactly? When you see long time Scientologists, John Travolta, Tom Cruise, and others describe it, you come away with… what? “I feel better after an audit” (see the movie). You have to pay for the audit, and the prices get higher as with even longer audit sessions, with an “e-meter” no less ( see photo above). It’s no wonder that Travolta and Cruise can’t leave, they have so much personal information on them if they ever left, Scientology would ruin their reputations. Not excusing them, but it’s their life in these idiots hands now. Of course, they gave up all this information in decades of… “audits” that are written down and sealed away somewhere.

Why do you think Mrs. Tom Cruise, Katie Holmes, “escaped” from LA and showed up in New York with only herself and the kids in a big secretive move? See… you don’t get to “leave Scientology” baby. Well, SHE DID! Boo ya Katie!

The most telling moment in the film was when one of the interviewees said something like, "Ask a Christian or a Jew or a Muslim to explain the core tenants of their religion, and they can do it in under a minute. It takes 7-8 years to find out the core tenants of Scientology." Yes, because if you discovered that alien beings, called Theton's, were the end result of your tutelage you would have never entered into this crazy-ass mess. By the time people have devoted themselves to this they're so brainwashed that when they discover what's going on it's too late. They've already drunk the Kool-Aid (sorry Kool-Aid) and they're done. Hook, line, and sinker.

I’ve been following the cult activities of Scientology for at least thirty years now. I’ve had friends interviewed in malls… ever see these people with clipboards in the malls in the eighties? Those were usually Scientologists trying to get you to do a survey that eventually led to a session, in a back room, and even a free book of L. Ron Hubbard’s “Dianetics.” I had a friend who did this once. He told me that the “session” went on for at least an hour and he poured all this heartfelt emotion out to the point he even cried – to total strangers! How did they do that? Exactly. His father has passed not that long ago and he was an open book, and they found the buttons to push. They gave him a number and an address that he could visit in Atlanta if he wanted more help.

A best friend’s cousin from New Jersey, young guy out of college, gave up everything he had, sold his house, cash, etc. to live at the Scientologists campus (prison) in Clearwater. His family weren’t allowed to see him. Last I heard they had seen him twice in twenty years. They had to go to Clearwater to find him. Scientology said it was his choice. Right. By this point he was brainwashed just like all the others.

GOING CLEAR is a movie everyone should see, especially young people. These days it’s not as easy to pull the wool over one’s eyes with the advent of so much information at our fingertips. The film does offer up more in-depth details as some of Scientology’s once highest members have left and are now spilling the beans, admitting now that they’re embarrassed, and even ashamed, that they could have been so clueless. Brainwashed they were, but their involvement shed a lot more inner workings of Scientology, and made this film just that much more… clear.

Whether it’s Scientology, or some other outfit, GOING CLEAR is a good example to not be sucked in by these smiling cult figures. Everyone needs help sometime, but kids this ain’t it.



Oh, and my interviewed buddy? Would you believe they gave him “the” book when they were done?

Had that exploding volcano image on the cover. Spewing poison.

I Found The Lost Room. So Should You.

Thanks to the DVD release I finally got a chance to take a gander at the original Sci-Fi series, The Lost Room, starring Peter Krause, Kevin Pollack, Julianna Margulies, and in a surprise return, actor Dennis Christopher who's always given us that creepy edge he brings to roles.

Directed by Craig R. Baxley who has previously brought several Stephen King yarns to the screen such as Storm of the Century, Rose Red, and the Stephen King Presents Kingdom Hospital series. The suspense that Baxley gave us in Storm of the Century he shows us again in The Lost Room. I had to watch every episode on this 2 disc set, no waiting, no taking time out for lunch, I wanted to see what was going to happen next!

Krause's character ends up with a unique motel room key, which can be used with any door, that always opens to the same motel room in a desert. Unknown to him, his daughter begins experimenting with the key and she eventually becomes part of The Lost Room. Thus begins his quest to find his daughter, and along the way he meets some very interesting characters to say the least. This eventually leads us into a much bigger story that goes back to the event, which began the origin of The Lost Room. And then the ball really gets rolling.

The series, although only one short season, is good storytelling with some adept acting by all involved. Krause's style of acting is not one I'm very fond of. However he did a fine job in this roll. I would say his acting chops certainly lent itself to making this series what it is. Obviously this series could have continued if they had found a large enough audience and I would have enjoyed seeing it go a little further. However they did bring it pretty much full-circle, if a little hastily, it was still an enjoyable few hours and I highly recommend it.

So get lost in The Lost Room, and be sure to have some popcorn at the ready.

Savagery is Just Around The Bend

I was fortunate to see the cinematic version (cinematic - that other word for "movie" ;-) of Cormac McCarthy's Pulitzer Prize winning novel THE ROAD this week. Had my brother Chris over and our bookstore shipper Gene stayed for the event. I'm a big fan of keeping myself focused when we watch a "new" film, no talking, etc. It's okay if there's a comment here and there, as long as it's during down times and it's not disrupting the experience of the story. For this showing we were glued to the screen with noticeable tension from the body language in the room. From every-body. Not a lot you'd want to say during this film. For the most part you're just trying to take it all in, and for me, at times, it was imagining what would this be like if it really happened to us. And I mean me and my family. That's just how personal it felt at times. Because that's the thing you see: savagery is just around the corner. We all take it for granted the good life we have in this world. At least here in the US, if you work you can have a good life. You don't have to be rich to enjoy your life (although a few more bucks here and there sure would help :-), but if you work, you can own a home, buy a car, raise a family (might have to have mom and dad working these days), etc. To have the right to be able to do those things is an amazing thing. There a many places in the world where survival is a daily event, forget about the long-term, they're just trying to live day-to-day. All we have to do is get our paycheck, go down to the grocery store and pick up the milk, eggs, and all the other things we desire. If you think about it, t takes a lot of people and operations to get those things into our home. It's hard not to take these things for granted, it's just part of our way of life.

Now imagine your world, as in THE ROAD, is gone, and money, electricity, plumbing... that's all gone. Due to the wars, or whatever caused this apocalyptic event, the weather is colder and the sky seems to be a permanent gray. Growing crops doesn't seem to be much of an option, and people are disappearing. No food, no hospitals, no infrastructure. Damn, what a horrible place to live and actor Viggo Mortenson, in the title role, along with his son (played effectively by Kodi Smit-McPhee) show us just what a struggle it is. Trying to stay clear of the cannibalistic marauders, who rove in packs, or hole up in mansions with their own version of a "fridge" to hold their "meat" is very disturbing. The son asks several times during their moving around, "we're the good guys, right?" He was born after the "event" so he has no real idea of the world his father left behind. The scene with an un-opened can of Coke, discovered hidden away, that the son got to enjoy was a simple and very poignant moment.

Hard to imagine, but this story is very close to home. Not that we live it, but someday, we could. Savagery is just around the corner. I say we leave it on that corner and walk the other way. The alternative is just to horrible to imagine. The movie is good, but one viewing will hold me a lifetime.

THE TIES THAT BIND - DVD REVIEW

THE TIES THAT BIND - DVD REVIEW.

Story by Brian Keene.

Directed by Jeff Heimbuch.

I Finally had a chance to sit down last night and pop in Brian Keene's first cinematic production of THE TIES THAT BIND, and watch it on our big screen. Brian Keene has gained a lot of popularity in the last decade, much of that due to his diligence to keep writing and getting his work published. It's worked, because he's gained a faithful audience the world over., and his audience is ever-growing. This DVD will help bring a new audience to the mix.

As Keene's video introduction discusses, he's had Hollywood options before, but this is the first film to actually be produced. Based on Keene's short story of the same name, this was a good tale to film. This is obviously a low-budget production, but with high standards: Heimbuch took a lot of care in this production and his passion shows. From the actors to the details of editing and sound. If I can be so bold as to compare this short film to an episode of Tales from The Darkside, the television horror series, it's qualities are close to that production.

Mention actors, especially husband.

All the extras are fun and informative and Brian Keene shows up with a reading titled Have a drink ... definitely worth watching.

This is a straight-to-DVD production that is also limited to 300 signed and numbered copies by Keene and director Jeff Heimbuch.

THE FRINGE

You're going to hear me write about "no time" in my life and how I'm always trying to sneak in a movie and / or TV show when I get TIME! :-) I used to record things I might miss. In fact I had recorded so much over the years that it really became a space problem These days I don't set timers for weekly shows, or plan to see a show. I've got an out you see.. I've become spoiled by the DVD TV season sets you can purchase, or better yet, rent! Now I can see a whole season within a week (or less if I'm inclined).

THE FRINGE is a Tuesday night show that combines detectives with sci-fi, mystery, paranormal, and just down right evil folk. I didn't catch it when it began, but somehow my family and I started watching it one night, and after several shows, we've become hooked. Produced by J.J. Abrams (Lost, Alias, and now the new Star Trek movie franchise as of 5/09) who seems to have joined similar ranks with Josh Whedon (Buffy, Firefly, Dollhouse). This series features his 'wraparound' story that is slowly unfolding as we delve into each weeks smaller episodes of odd worlds of mayhem. The bigger story 'seems' to be that a lot of this is connected and thus you have the wraparound. I'm finding it intriguing and I suggest you take a gander when you can.

Today's television is tough. With competition so fierce, we the viewer, are actually benefitting from the writers with some major story line improvements, twist and turns, and you don't know what's coming next. I like that. It's a fine line to keep our attention as well as keep the carrot just far enough out so we're close, but can't quite catch up until it's time for us to eat. Sometimes it's snack, sometimes its a smorgasboard, but as my buddy Dallas likes to say "ah, but was it a good ride?" Good advice.

Now, again, the only reason I've seen a few of episodes is that I've been with my family in front of the tube (no flat screen here yet bubbas and bubbetttes :-), but I get the feeling we'll all be sitting down to see this season's finale here in May. Of course, there's always the DVD set when its released.

So far I'm liking this ride on The Fringe, so hop on board and let's see where it takes us!