Page 2 January 3, 2019
Check It Out
By Roz Templin, Library Assistant,
El Segundo Public Library
Florence Claybourne, 84 years old, lives
in Cherry Tree Home for the Elderly. As our
story opens, she is lying on her sitting room
floor, waiting for help to arrive. While she
waits, she reminisces about her life and a
deeper history unfolds.
Florence has noticed that she forgets
things. It doesn’t really concern her until she
notices that things in her little flat are being
moved around. Miss Ambrose, one of the
Three Things About Elsie by Joanna Cannon
administrators at Cherry Tree, only thinks
she’s confused -- as do other employees and
residents at the Home. But Florence knows
that something is going on. Miss Ambrose
is focused on the fact that Florence keeps
too much to herself. Maybe Cherry Tree
isn’t a right fit for Florence? “You’re not
sending me to Greenbank?” asks Florence.
Greenbank is the last resort for the aged, a
dreary nursing home. Miss Ambrose proposes
a reassessment period of one month -- a
probationary period, so to speak. Florence
can’t imagine what crime she has committed
to deserve such a punishment, but Miss
Ambrose only retorts that “it’s a figure of
speech. That’s all.”
Worried that she will be moved to
Greenbank, but not wanting to participate
Entertainment
in dayroom activities with other residents,
Florence complains to her best friend Elsie
and to the “uniforms” (workers… she can’t
be bothered with remembering their names).
She goes about her business until she sees
someone she used to know, Ronnie Butler.
But it isn’t good. Ronnie Butler drowned
in 1953.
Not only does this story accurately describe
what it’s like to be old and feeling as if you
don’t matter in the modern world and not
only does it recall a time when characters
are young and in the full bloom of life and
promise, but it is also a mystery that runs
down several roads, depending upon what
the protagonist can remember.
Ronnie Butler identifies himself as Gabriel
Price, the new resident at Cherry Tree. He
soon wins over residents and staff alike with
his youthful appearance and helpful attitude.
But Florence isn’t fooled. She and her friends
Elsie and Jack unite to solve the mystery that
is Gabriel Price.
Three Things about Elsie isn’t just about
Florence and her fellow residents, but also
explores the lives of the workers: handyman
Simon, hairdresser Cheryl, Gloria, Miss Bissell
and of course, Miss Ambrose. Comical
and sentimental, these characters live in your
imagination and you root for their happiness.
By the end, these people connect with each
other and the reader has a better idea what
it’s like to be older and also what it’s like to
be around those aged folks. You can bet the
youngsters learn precious life lessons from
their elders, and you will also discover what
those three things are about Elsie. •
Film Review
Cold War Review: A Masterful
Triple Threat
By H. Nelson Tracey
for www.cinemacy.com
There is nothing more satisfying than watching
a film from a master director. In the case
of Polish director Pawel Pawlikowski, it was
his 2014 Foreign Oscar winner Ida,that added
him to my list of top directors. So when Cold
War released, it wasn’t a question of if but when
I could fit it into my queue, and I’m happy
to say that the film lives up to its predecessor
as a brilliant companion to Pawlikowski’s
previous work.
Shot in a visually distinct, entirely black and
white square ratio, we’re transported to 1949
Poland within seconds. The war in Europe is
over, yet the division between East and West
lingers when we meet our first protagonist,
Wiktor (Tomasz Kot). An accomplished musician
and conductor, Wiktor is part of a program
that recruits young village peasants to study
traditional Polish music in order to participate
in a newly formed musical conservatory. The
goal is earnest preservation of Polish heritage
through music and dance. Yet as their notoriety
grows, they face increased pressure to transition
to propaganda-based entertainment over the
traditional music of which they are passionate.
The resulting tension affects numerous countries…
and by tapping into the ultra-specific,
it successfully creates something universal.
This is only the starting point. The 90-minute
runtime is packed tightly with narrative beats.
The larger journey begins when Wiktor takes
a liking to one of the conservatory’s brightest
stars, Zula (Joanna Kulig). Despite their different
roles in the conservatory, they fall passionately
in love. Over the course of a few years, their
love story intertwines with the European conflict
at hand, and their opposite personalities make
for both passion and often conflict.
What makes Cold War so riveting is the
film’s delivery of material. Cinematographer
Lukasz Zal (who co-shot Ida and was nominated
for the cinematography Oscar), gets to
use the camera as the ultimate storytelling
device. Most films are lucky to have one or
two unforgettable shots that get burned into the
retinas. Cold War has at least a dozen. Some
are like magic tricks in their simplicity or
creative reveal of key information. Others are
more stunningly beautiful in an Ansel Adams,
magnificently black and white styling. None
are mundane or incidental. I won’t spoil these
wondrous photographic moments, as they are
worth the admission alone.
These combined forces of story, photography
and the angelic quality of the Polish music are
what make Cold War a must-see, especially on
a big screen. Pawlikowski claims he did not set
out to make another film so similar to Ida in
aesthetic, and yet the two are as perfect as
companion pieces come. They entirely stand
on their own, but are complementary as a pair.
Whatever Pawlikowski decides to do next,
consider my ticket already purchased. In the
meantime, I’ll be soaking up the emotional
experience of Cold War for many days to come.
Cold War is rated R for some sexual content,
nudity, and language. 88 minutes. Now playing
at Laemmle Royal. •
Cold War, Courtesy of Amazon Studios.
H. Nelson Tracey.
A new business deserves a good name.
Your
Business Name
Here
DBAS PUBLISHED FOR ONLY $75.00
Email dba@heraldpublications.com or call 310-322-1830 for more information.
El Segundo Herald* • Hawthorne Press Tribune*
Inglewood Daily News* • Lawndale News*
EL SEGUNDO OFFICE • 500 Center St. • El Segundo • CA • 90245
Phone: (310) 322-1830 • Fax: (310) 322-2787 • www.heraldpublications.com
*Our papers are legally recognized and adjudicated newspapers of general circulation
Staff and Departments
Editor-in-Chief: Heidi Maerker
Classifieds: Clara Nilles • class@heraldpublications.com
DBA: Debbie Waite • dba@heraldpublications.com • For Fictitious Business Name (DBAs) filings
Graphic Design: Michael Gonzales • ads@heraldpublications.com
Legals: Debbie Waite • legalnotices@heraldpublications.com
Letters to the Editor: letters@heraldpublications.com
Marketing: Debbie Waite • marketing@heraldpublications.com
Press Releases: pr@heraldpublications.com
For press releases, Herald In travel photos and general photos
Real Estate: Clara Nilles • graphics@heraldpublications.com • For new realtors, contracts, ads
Website contact: web@heraldpublications.com
For comments or announcements (weddings, engagements, obituaries)
Contributing Writers: Haleemon Anderson, Derrick Deane,TerriAnn Ferren, Greg McMullin, Duane Plank,
Adam Serrao, Brian Simon, Cristian Vasquez
Three Things About Elsie
by Joanna Cannon
Roz Templin
“And now we welcome the new year, full of things that have never been.”
– Rainer Maria Rilke