EL SEGUNDO HERALD January 21, 2021 Page 5
Entertainment
The Magical Retirement Community, And Fantasy
Masking Darkness, in ‘Some Kind of Heaven’
By Ryan Rojas, Cinemacy.com
Fulfillment, satisfaction, completion, contentment,
peace. It’s what we’re all striving
to achieve in our lives.
Yet life is hard, and we don’t always stay on
this track. Our flaws and insecurities, measured
against our boundless imaginations, can make for
a hard reality to adjust to if we’re not content
with where we’re at in life. Especially living
in present-day America, where reality has been
proven to be whatever personal construction
we make it to be.
And as we make it into the twilight of our
lives, our shortcomings become even more
magnified. So, wouldn’t a place that offered
aging seniors the opportunities to pursue those
fantasies be a good thing?
A new documentary, directed by Lance Oppenheim
and executive produced by Darren
Aronofsky and The New York Times, shows
retired living at The Villages, America’s largest
retirement community. This magical oasis offers
its local community an unlimited number of
recreational activities to do and, with that, an
infinite amount of people you can be.
Home to 130,000 residents, the Florida-set
retirement community is shown as a place
where the aged have escaped to live out their
final years, experiencing the fountain of youth
(which is what The Villages founder Harold S.
Schwartz advertised to baby boomers).
Some of the gray-haired are clearly okay with
having a good time, living out their hedonistic
pleasures of “nightclubbing” and meeting new
singles. But others, who Oppenheim centers the
film around, see the falsehood in the proscenium
and grapple with the darkness that lingers at bay.
The characters who Oppenheim follows are
strong and distinct: there’s married couple Reggi
& Ann, who are trying to maintain a marriage
under Reggi’s cratering mental state (tai chi
and drugs assisting). There’s Dennis Dean, a
van-living man seeking to get close enough
into The Villages to find stability (and a sugar
mama); and Barbara Lochiatto, a widowed
woman looking to step back into romantic life.
Oppenheim crafts Some Kind of Heaven into
a wonderfully off-kilter experience, in which
the dreamy surrealism of The Villages is seen
as being in a magical trance. Captured in 4:3
aspect ratio, the cinematography by David
Bloen captures the oddity in the manufactured
synchronicity. And it very much captures the
illusion of fantasy making our darkness.
Some Kind of Heaven is a must-watch. Its
sharp observations make for a documentary
that plays like a comedy and a dark drama.
And underneath it all is a film about identity.
I’m reminded by a quote from Shantideva:
“All the suffering there is in this world arises
from wishing our self to be happy.” There may
be something to that, here. But if all that’s too
much for you, I know a place where you can
go to make all your life’s troubles disappear.
Distributed by Magnolia Pictures, ‘Some
Kind of Heaven’ is now available to watch
on-demand. •
Some Kind of Heaven, courtesy of Magnolia Pictures.
Ryan Rojas
Black Bean Hummus with
Green Pepper Triangles
Provided by BPT.
Ingredients
• 1 cup canned black beans,
drained and rinsed
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon
juice
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
Directions
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 large green bell pepper, sliced
in triangles
• Fresh cilantro leaves for garnish
• Step 1: Place all ingredients, except green bell pepper and cilantro, in food
processor and blend until smooth.
• Step 2: Transfer dip to a small bowl. Garnish with cilantro leaves. Dip bell
pepper triangles into hummus.
Recipe Tip
Raid the produce section to make this dip fun. Red bell peppers, as well as
carrots and cucumbers, also make good dippers for this hummus.
Send us a photo and recipe of your favorite dish. We’d love to
share it with the community. Send to: web@heraldpublications.com
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Servings: 4 • gluten-free