Lady of the House 1.7 - A Night at the Fights

Lady of the House - A Night at the Fights

Genre : Dark Comedy / Erotic / Thriller

Director : François Ozon

Writer : Chad Taylor

Cast: Linda Cardellini, Ezra Miller, Alfred Molina, Vincent Kartheiser and Cristin Milioti

The episode starts as we see the process of how a book is printed. We follow it along until Otto’s first pulp novel, “Eyes in the Middle of the Night” is published and put on a store shelf and someone buys it. In his attic, Otto writes to his sister about this joyous occasion and he finally feels like he has made it in America - even if it is written under a pseudonym. He then tells her about how boxing is all the rage in America these days and he is going to see a fight later that night.

At the fights, Polly, Frank, Roy, and Victoria appear to be having a splendid time. Polly searches the crowd with her eyes before finding Otto. She excuses herself for a moment and they meet secretly in the women’s restroom (which is hardly used as they are the only women there). He is infuriated that she misled him and brought company with her. Not just Frank but the neighbors - who already saw him - too?! She tells him that she figured they should spice things up and sex in a public place might fulfill that. He smiles. Cut to Frank sitting in awkward silence with Roy and Victoria as the crowd surrounding them loudly cheer on the fight. Roy excuses himself to go to the restroom as Frank keeps a trained eye on him as he walks away.

Roy ends up walking in the wrong room - instead finding Polly getting dressed in a ladies room (but Otto has already left). Roy is frozen still, unable to say any words. He does find himself peaking at Polly’s unclothed body but quickly looks away. She tells him it is the next door on the left. He accepts her directions and nervously leaves the room while still avoiding any eye contact.

When Roy returns, Victoria then excuses herself. During this time, Frank asks Roy about their sex life but Roy is very coy - which only raises Frank’s suspicions. Frank, meanwhile, boasts about the great chemistry that he and Polly share in bed upon which Roy says “I bet”, commenting on how Polly looks a bit like Victoria, just more mature and confident. This prompts Frank to look at him sternly and Roy changing the subject. Meanwhile, Victoria crosses paths with Polly as she heads for the ladies room and they share a polite smile. When she returns to her seat, Polly asks what she missed before subtly flirting with Roy. Frank bites his tongue for now. Polly again looks into the crowd and matches eyes with Otto and they share a wink.

At home, Frank starts drinking and grows angry at Polly for flirting with Roy in front of him, making him look like a fool. Otto, back in his attic, listens through the floor and is frozen in place. Polly says she was just having some fun and he should calm down but Frank is having none of it. He throws her to the ground and is ready to rape her. Otto is in a panic and peaks over to the attic door. After ripping off her dress, Frank stops in his tracks and starts to laugh. He says he just figured out that Polly had sex with Roy at the boxing fight.

Polly, scared and crying, doesn’t say anything but shakes her head no. Frank says he saw them run off together and that he can just tell from the smell of her. She still denies his claims but he keeps laughing in disbelief Instead of raping her, he instead starts to violently punch her, telling her he has enough of her humiliating him. He goes the bedroom and grabs his revolver. When he gets back to Polly, a door is heard being opened in the background and loud thud - but Frank’s fit of rage prevents him from hearing. Slowly, Otto walks into the frame and yells Frank’s name, prompting him to turn around.

Frank, still in his rage-filled stupor, stares at Otto in pure amazement. “Otto Struber? From Milwaukee? What in the bloody hell are you doing here?” Otto doesn’t say anything, instead pointing Frank’s gun at him. Frank turns to a bloodied Polly and asks if she is seeing this or if he is only dreaming. Otto tells Frank to back away from Polly or else. Frank begins to creep towards Otto while monologuing about how he was his favorite worker in Milwaukee and the pain it caused him to lose him. From the ground, blood in her teeth, Polly says that he was here - with them - the entire time. It wasn’t Roy he had to worry about. It was Otto has been fucking her every day - in Milwaukee and L.A. All the while living in their attic. Frank momentarily breaks the tension by figuring out that there wasn’t a bat up there after all but he then snaps back into his anger and charges at Otto.

Frank, breathing heavily, momentarily falters and drops to one knee, holding his chest. In a panic, he asks where his heart medicine is but Polly does not answer - instead telling Otto to hold his ground. It turns out to be a momentary reprieve as he gets back up and takes a deep breath. This time, Otto charges at him as they wrestle for the gun. Frank fights him on the ground until Otto eventually reaches the gun and shoots Frank in the chest. He lays flat on his back, bleeding to death. 

Nez Perce 1.8 - Wounds

Nez Perce : Wounds
Genre : Historical
Showrunner: Scott Cooper
Writer : Dwight Gallo
Cast: Adam Beach, Matthew Rhys, Martin Sensmeier, Gil Birmingham, Forrest Goodluck, Tatanka Means, Ben Schnetzer, Grace Dove, Robert Knepper, William Gregory Lee, William Belleau and Lily Gladstone

Plot:1862. With his commanding officer wounded, Gen. Oliver O. Howard (Matthew Rhys), who still has both arms, is forced to take control of his unit during the Civil War Battle of Fair Oaks in Virginia. Following a day of brutal battlefield action, Howard has to get his men to the rendezvous point where they can receive further orders from General McClellan. Howard and his men wait for nightfall to start moving again to avoid detection by the Confederate forces in the area.

Just before dawn, Howard and his men finally reach the rendezvous point where General George B. McClellan (Robert Knepper) asks what took them so long. Howard asks if there is time for him and his men to rest as they have been on the move all night, but McClellan says there is not as he needs Howard to lead a group of scouts to scout ahead to see where the Confederates are camped out.

Howard and Captain Philip Kearny (William Gregory Lee) lead a small group of soldiers through the previous day's battlefield, staying low to avoid detection. They make their way through the rotting bodies of men on both sides of the war. The smell causes Howard to throw up, but Kearny reminds him that they need to move quickly to the other side of the battlefield where there is cover. When they get to the other side of the battlefield, they find themselves in an ambush. Confederate soldiers emerge from the trees and open fire. Howard, Kearny and their men retreat. The men are all hit. Kearny takes a bullet to the skull, and he falls dead at Howard's feet. Howard is then hit in the arm by a Minie ball, shattering his arm. He lay on the ground in agony, surrounded by the bodies of his men, when General McClellan and his battalion charge across the field, scaring off the Confederate soldiers who took out Howard's group. Howard is taken back to camp, where it is determined that his arm needs to be amputated immediately. Howard bites down on a leather strap as medics saw his arm off. Howard then passes out.

1877. Nez Perce warriors line a ridge overlooking the majestic White Bird Canyon. Ollokot (Martin Sensmeier) comes over and takes position next to Chief Joseph (Adam Beach) and tells him that they are ready. Joseph asks about Toohoolhoolzote, and Ollokot nods down into the canyon where Toohoolhoolzote (Gil Birmingham) leads a team of twenty warriors. They spread out across the canyon floor and crouch down, disappearing into the tall grass. Warriors on horses take position behind thick trees. Joseph and Ollokot continue to watch and wait. Joseph says they don't have much time.

The women and children are stationed away from the canyon. Oyema (Lily Gladstone) sits alone, still grieving. Fairland (Grace Dove) comes over and kneels beside her. Oyema collapses into tears. Fairland comforts her as best she can. Nearby, Yellow Wolf (William Belleau) loads his rifle. Yellow Wolf tells Oyema that he promises to be careful and come back to her. He turns to go. Oyema grabs his arm, telling him that he's all she has. Yellow Wolf kisses her on the cheek, then leaves to join the warriors. Oyema watches him go, afraid.

Red Grizzly (Tatanka Means), Wahlitits (Forrest Goodluck) and the other war party Indians are escorted to the ridge and forced to sit down. Yellow Wolf follows close behind, taking position along the ridge not far away from Joseph and Ollokot.

The wind blows, bringing with it the sound of an approaching army. Warriors raise their rifles, taking aim. Hundreds of soldiers come into view on the far side of the canyon. The Nez Perce tribe may be eight hundred strong, but most are women and children. The warriors are outnumbered more than two to one. A warrior raises a large, white flag into the air. It unfurls and flaps in the breeze, easily visible for miles.

From the far side of the canyon, Captain David Perry (Ben Schnetzer) stares through binoculars at the billowing white flag. He's flanked by several corporals. One of his corporals is surprised they caught the Indians, but Perry tells him that the Nez Perce are trapped between the canyon and the river with nowhere to go, of course surrender is their only option.

Joseph, Ollokot, and four other warriors mount their horses. The prisoners are led over the ridge. Wahlitits glances at Yellow Wolf as he's being led away. Joseph rides over to Yellow Wolf and the other warriors lining the ridge. He tells them that if fighting begins to shoot the soldier with the horn first. Yellow Wolf asks why, but Joseph just tells him to do it, and after that they may fire at men with guns. Joseph turns and descends the canyon.

Perry watches as Joseph leads six warriors and the train of prisoners towards the center of the canyon floor. Perry spurs his horse forward along with six soldiers of his own, going out to meet Joseph half way. Nearby, American soldiers stand ready, bracing for the worst. Joseph and his warriors reach the middle ground first. The white flag continues to flap in the wind. The war party prisoners stand silent. Perry and his men come riding into view. They stop just a few yards from Joseph. Perry looks at Joseph and tells him he is listening. Joseph tells Perry that the prisoners are the men who did the killing, that they acts on their own with no authority. Joseph offers them to Perry so that he may judge them as he will. Perry asks about the rest of the Nez Perce, and Joseph says that they will go to the reservation as General Howard had said.

The James Morgan Show (S1E12)

With the awards season rapidly approaching for Last Resort Films and its television subsidiary, I figured it was a good idea to do an awards centric episode of the James Morgan Show.

Before I go on and talk about the awards, I still need to reveal the different ratings of our shows!

1. Rolling Stone 7.70
2. Hitman 6.52 (SEASON LOW)
3. Nez Perce 5.78
4. Miami Vice (Part 2) 5.76
5. Miami Vice (Part 1) 5.51
6. Gauntlet 5.48
7. Drive 5.01
8. Call My Agent 4.38
9. Call My Agent (Part 1) 4.24
10. Leaving Everything 3.77
11. Lady of the House 3.72
12. Brimstone 3.58

Now, here's a generic message

I'm hard at work to find another segment of my show that would make it a little more interesting. If you have any ideas, you can just share them with me in a message or in the LRTV discussion threads of the Last Resort Films board. 

I promised some awards news for today's episode, so I might as well spill the beans now. As you know the 1st Golden Views Awards are rapidly approaching and we trying very hard to make it an enjoyable experience for you, as we honor the best of Last Resort Television. It all leads me to talk to you about Harry Wright. Why?, you may ask. Some people may not know about it, but aside from being the head of critics for Last Resort Television, he's also the organizer of the 1st Golden Views and he came up with some modifications for a category.

It was previously announced that there was a going to be two categories recognizing the hard work of our writes: Best Original Story and Best Adaptation. Harry Wright has decided to merge these two categories together to make the Best Screenplay Award. The competition was basically non-existant in separate categories due to the small number of shows and the disparity between original and adapted shows, so he decided it was for the best to regroup them into one category. 

He also prepared a little something extra for the awards week. A week before you can start voting, each day will be dedicated to an acting category, with one post per day presenting the nominees in each category with a short reminder of the role they played in their respective series. It will make the voters' life easier when it comes to voting, as you'll just have to take a look at Harry's posts to remind yourself about the role of a certain actor or actress instead of looking in the database to find it yourself. There will be one category per day and the official voting will start on Sunday and I'll be taking a week off for that reason. 

I will be releasing more details as the ceremony gets closer, but if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask in the LR TV dedicated thread on the Last Resort Films message board.

Now, for the Trivia section!

Flash Gordon: The Flash Gordon character was previously adapted to the big screen in 1980, but talks about a film led nowhere in recent years… until the project was picked up by Last Resort Films. The Hollywood Reported reported in 2015 that Matthew Vaughn was in talks to direct the adaptation, but it never happened. Vaughn was working on the Kingsman series at the time, which features Channing Tatum, the actor chosen to play Flash Gordon in the LRF adaptation.

Resident Evil 2 : Despite numerous films over the years based on the Capcom series, this is only the second time that the iconic Leon Scott Kennedy appears on the big screen. He was a supporting character in Paul W. S. Anderson's Resident Evil Retribution, played by Estonian-American actor Johann Urb. In this film, Leon is played by Scott Eastwood, 33, almost ten years younger than Urb.

B.R.I.G.A.N.D.S. : This film moves the Mo Buck's Association one step closer to achieve his goal of working with every member of the famed Skarsgard family. They previously worked with Alexander in the Halo series, with Bill in High Society, with Valter in Skyrim and now, with Stellan in this film. The only one remaining is Gustaf, who already worked for LRF, but on D.R. Cobb's Splinter Cell: Conviction.

Rolling Stone 1.7 - Backlash Blues

Rolling Stone - Backlash Blues

Genre: Drama

Director: Oliver Stone

Writer: D.R. Cobb

Based on the Rolling Stone magazine

Cast: Josh Hartnett, Karl Glusman, Aimee Teegarden, James Urbaniak, Ross Butler, Alicia Witt, Dora Madison Burge, John C. McGinley and Katherine McNamara

Plot: May 1970. Brady Conroy (Josh Hartnett) is at the Rolling Stone offices talking to Kylee Hargrove (Alicia Witt) when they both hear murmurs around the office of a planned Vietnam War protest at the campus of UC Berkeley set for the next dar. Kylee asks Brady what he thinks about the protest since he used to work at the university. He tells her that he has mixed feelings on the matter in general. He isn't a fan of the war itself, but he doesn't think that protesting is the best use of the young students' time. They should be focused on their education and gaining life experience rather than worry about things out of their control. Kylee agrees with his take, but Ben Fong-Torres (Ross Butler) objects to Brady's opinion, saying that the students are trying to draw awareness to their cause. Brady says that if they really want to change things, they need to use the system and change it from within, not simply object to the system. Brady and Ben continue to argue, with Kylee trying to stop them. Ralph J. Gleason (James Urbaniak) comes out of his office to see what all the commotion is about. When he is told they're arguing about the planned war protest, he tells them to focus on their work and leave their petty arguing out of the office.

Celeste (Aimee Teegarden) and her roommate Kira (Katherine McNamara) are discussing their love lives, when Kira asks Celeste how things are going with her and Brady. Celeste says things are okay, but that he's been distant since getting his new job. Celeste then changes the subject to the upcoming protest on campus, asking Kira if she's planning on going. Kira is going since she is still angry that her older brother was drafted into the war. Celeste asks if Kira's brother died, and she says that he he's fine and is actually going to be at the protest, but that he very well could have died. Her brother was luckier than most. They leave their dorm to head to class. The energy on campus is more dour than usual, and some are already preparing for the protest the next day.

Brady, still fuming over the argument at the office, goes to the cafe where Lexi Davenport (Dora Madison Burge) is once again playing. After her set, Lexi sits down next to Brady and says she hasn't seen him in a while. She asks him what he's been up to, and he says that he's been around, just working. She asks him what he does, and he tells her that he is a writer for Rolling Stone magazine. She's impressed, and pulls the most recent issue out of her bag. She starts scanning through the magazine for his name, when she finds the article he wrote about Captain Beefheart. She points to the article and asks if he wrote it. He confirms that he wrote the article. She asks him to a party that night. He reminds her that he has a girlfriend, but she says that it doesn't bother her. She writes down an address on a napkin and leaves the cafe.

Brady sits in his car in front of a house party staring at the napkin Lexi gave him. He prepares to drive away when there's a knock at his window. It's Lexi. She's excited to see him and practically drags him inside. The party is in full swing by the time they walk in. People are dancing, smoking weed, drinking, and having an overall good time. Lexi introduces him around to her friends. Lexi drags Brady out to the dance floor and they dance to a song. They end up kissing after the dance. Brady tells her that he has to get up early in the morning, so he has to leave. Lexi asks if he wants company. Brady is hesitant, but agrees. They head back to Brady's apartment where they have sex. Afterwards they lay in bed smoking a joint. She tells him that she's working on preparing an album and asks if he can give her notes some time on her music. He tells her he'd love to.

In the morning, Lexi wakes Brady up and tells him that she has to go. He gets up out of bed and decides to head over to UC Berkeley to check out the protest. When he gets there things are peaceful for the most part, although many are starting to get loud. Brady is looking for Celeste, but can't find her in the ever-growing crowd. Suddenly, some of the protesters begin throwing rocks at the windows of the administration office. Brady soon runs into Dean Alan Smalling (John C. McGinley) who tells him that the police are on their way, so if Brady wants to avoid being lumped in with the trouble makers, he should probably leave the area. Brady thanks Smalling for the advice, but decides to stick around to see what happens.

As the day goes on, the protest gets more rowdy. The police have arrived by now and are preparing their riot gear. Brady finally finds Celeste and suggests they leave. She doesn't want to leave as she thinks the protest is important. Some of the protesters start throwing rocks at the police. The police in turn throw tear gas into the crowd. In the ensuing chaos, Celeste and Brady are separated. Brady is hit several times by the police, even though he isn't causing trouble. Angered by this, Brady takes the officer's club from him and hits him in the head with it, knocking him to the ground. Brady then takes off running, but ends up being arrested for his part in the protest, and further beaten by the officer. Brady ends up being knocked unconscious in the beating. Brady wakes up to the sounds of a jail cell being opened. When he looks up he sees Jann Wenner (Karl Glusman) telling the officers that it was all a simple misunderstanding and that Brady was merely at the protest to cover it for the magazine. The officers tell Wenner to keep Brady in line, and Wenner agrees to, thanking the officers for being so understanding. Outside of the police station, Wenner tells Brady that he owes him. Brady nods and starts walking home.