Movie Review: Sansho the Bailiff

Anju/Shinobu worries that Zushio/Matsu has lost his way.

Movie Review: Sansho the Bailiff (1954) directed by Kenji Mizoguchi (Japanese title: Sanshou Dayuu) The setting is the late Heian Period (around the Eleventh Century) in Japan. The popular governor of a northern province, Taira Masauji (Masao Shimizu), has incurred the wrath of a powerful military general because he would not raise taxes on the already… Continue reading Movie Review: Sansho the Bailiff

Book Review: Five Weeks in a Balloon

Book Review: Five Weeks in a Balloon by Jules Verne It is 1863, and Dr. Samuel Ferguson has a plan to do something no man has done before, cross the entire continent of Africa from west to east! But he’s not going to do it on foot or riding animal, but in a balloon. You… Continue reading Book Review: Five Weeks in a Balloon

Book Review: Uncle Tom’s Cabin

Book Review:  Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe Tom is a good man, a Christian man.  Tom is kind, hard-working, trustworthy, intelligent (though barely educated) and honest.  He’s respected by his colleagues, a faithful husband to Chloe and a loving father.  But Uncle Tom is also a slave, and all his positive qualities mean… Continue reading Book Review: Uncle Tom’s Cabin