Page 6 July 20, 2017 EL SEGUNDO HERALD Entertainment Film Review Spider-Man: Homecoming Makes a Millennial Teen a Superhero By Ryan Rojas for www.cinemacy.com In this age when today’s movie-going audiences roll their collective eyes over the sequels and remakes that now so frequently populate cineplexes across the country, it’s inescapable that the Spider-Man franchise is not brought up as one of Hollywood’s biggest re-boot offenders, having wrapped the previous take with Andrew Garfield in the title role only three short years ago. Spider-Man: Homecoming is the latest installment in the Marvel franchise, but thankfully comes with a fresh new spin (pun intended). Stepping into the web-slinger’s new spandex- -or rather, new suit that’s as tech-filled and tricked out as Iron-Man’s (the new suit being a present from Stark Industries)--ss the young Tom Holland, the next British import to play the spider-bitten superhero following his predecessor Garfield. The young Holland, with his smaller-than-most build, lends pitch-perfect casting to the role, bringing a constantly-amazed, mouth-agape enthusiasm to this Peter Parker. Parker continues to count down the hours in the school day until he can begin his “internship” with Stark Industries and put on the Spidey suit and swing around the city, stopping petty thefts and burglaries as the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. This barely satiates his desire to fight real crime and super-villains (a desire that would give the Avengers a run for their money). What makes Homecoming a winning outing Tom Holland in Spider-Man: Homecoming. Courtesy of Marvel Studios. El Segundo Rotary Club presents the 20th Annual in the SATURDAY • AUGUST 5, 2017 Gates Open: 4:00pm • Movie Starts at Dusk Chevron Park, El Segundo - Parking at Illinois & El Segundo Blvd. Admission: $5 (kids 3 and under are free) bring blankets & beach chair - no high-back chairs please Tickets available now at Industrial Lock & Security, Big-5 El Segundo and the El Segundo Chamber of Commerce. For more info: information@movieinthepark.info. Or visit: www.movieinthepark.info No Drop-Offs or Pick-Ups Permitted BEER • WINE • TACOS • PIZZA • HAMBURGERS • HOT DOGS • POPCORN & MORE! GIANT MOVIE SCREEN • ENTERTAINMENT • TRAIN RIDES • MOON BOUNCE • FACE PAINTING Dress up in your Moana costume! McDonald's INDUSTRIAL LOCK & SECURITY The Reimann Law Group Good Ideas. Good Work. Solving Problems. EL SEGUNDO POWER LLC Grandpoint® Bonilla Family • Cars Muffler & Automotive, Inc • C.C. Layne & Sons, Inc. • Dickie, 3 Leaf Realty • El Segundo Firefighters Association El Segundo Dermatology • El Segundo Police Officers Association • Shiela Fowler, Beach City Brokers • The Mailbox Brian Magovern, M.D., Torrance Orthopedic & Sports Medicine • Eloise Mendez, Palm Realty Boutique • Mularz Construction • Ramey Roofing • Bill Ruane SAGA • Seligman Wealth Management • So. Cal. Gas Company • Kevin Smith & Family • Team Handling Services No Pets No Outside Alcohol Permitted A fun outdoor famil evet! Check It Out Everybody Had an Ocean: Music and Mayhem in 1960s Los Angeles By William McKeen Reviewed by Roz Templin, Library Assistant, El Segundo Public Library Author William McKeen’s Everybody Had an Ocean: Music and Mayhem in 1960s Los Angeles describes how popular music evolved into rock and roll. Starting with surf music, he explains the sometimes subtle differences of instrumental tunes by Dick Dale, The Ventures and other “surf” bands and how that music is the precursor to the recognizable stylings of The Beach Boys and Jan and Dean. He includes background information on rhythm and blues (soul music), folk and country rock and how elements of it all blended into rock and roll. Focusing on The Beach Boys, there are also anecdotes of many other musicians who wandered in and out of the same recording studios, house parties and music halls, with intertwined stories from members of groups like The Beatles, The Byrds, The Buffalo Springfield, The Mamas and the Papas and more. For example, did you know that Brian Wilson sent his Beach Boys band on tour while he assembled the finest studio musicians to record their albums? Many times only vocals of the Wilson brothers, cousin Mike Love and friend Al Jardine were heard on the recordings. Did you know that singer Bobby Fuller (“I Fought the Law and the Law Won”) was most likely murdered by the Mob? And that Dean Torrence (of Jan and Dean) was implicated in the kidnapping of Frank Sinatra, Jr.? These are just a few of many more nuggets embedded throughout this history of California music. Quick sketches, some fascinating facts and full-on profiles of selected subjects dot the sections within chapters. The threads all come together to weave an in-depth narrative of what Southern California’s music world was like during major upheavals among its players and in its surrounding environments. Clean and innocent-sounding and looking boys and girls rhapsodizing about love gave way to darker themes that often included dissatisfaction and revolution from unkempt “hippies.” McKeen points out how fast styles change and how the public can react to those changes. The author has the ability to help make the reader understand the humanity of those pre-stardom youngsters. He also conveys a feeling of underlying dread as some of those “kids” plunge into alcoholism, drugs and worse. There’s a palpable sense of doom when he writes of Dennis Wilson’s introduction to a weird little guy named Charlie Manson. Suddenly, there’s a realization that other well-known celebrities of that time could have been victims of his murderous family. This is the best kind of nonfiction--a real page-turner. I thought this would be a dense, scholarly account of the times, but I was happy to find that it was engaging and addicting the more I read. There is, however, a tragic aura to the great accomplishments of this cast of characters. So many of these vibrant minds descended into dead ends of their own making. Luckily, their music will forever remind us of a brief time of beauty and sunshine, peace and love--songs that wished for those things and songs that celebrated those things. Alongside the dramas of their individual lives, those particular musicians united to find a way to transform their hopes and dreams into meaningful songs to many succeeding generations. Drop in to the library and let our staff suggest more offerings. There’s always something new to share with you! • Everybody Had an Ocean: Music and Mayhem in 1960s Los Angeles by William McKeen. Roz Templin. Like Us on Facebook See Film Review, page 13
Herald_072013_FNL_lorez
To see the actual publication please follow the link above