Headlines addendum

I'm not reviewing Nicholas and Alexandra, as I'd hoped to. I'd rented the movie over the New Year's holiday from the library and seeing as it was two tapes long, I figured two weeks was ample time to watch and mull over the movies and then review it here. I've only gotten through the first 40 minutes and have decided to call it quits. It's not so much that it's inaccurate as much that it's a disjointed, badly-paced mess. I have no idea who half the characters are in the movie without falling back on my Romanov history. I can only imagine that the average viewer who knows little to nothing about Tsarist Russia would feel completely lost.

On a positive note, I think central facets of the title characters have been well-captured and detailed. Nicholas's absoluteness in his conviction that a douma or Parliment is detrimental to the people of Russia, Alix's religious fanaticism and devotion to Rasputin, and of course, their deep and abiding love for each other. Some well-known figures of the Bolshevik revolution make an appearance early on: Lenin, for instance, marching on the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg (which ends in a horrific massacre), Trotsky running a subversive newspaper calling for a douma in the echo of England's monarchy. So while it is tempting to see the sad trainwreck that is the last of the Romanovs run its course, I'll recommend instead the Robert K. Massie book upon which this movie was based. You'll get more out of Massie's Nicholas and Alexandra and also, his follow-up to the truth behind what really happened to the last Tsar and his family, The Romanovs: The Last Chapter.

A word of caution the latter: it is highly scientific, very provocative, and disturbing all at the same time. In fact, it should not be considered light reading. "Nicholas and Alexandra" is a biography, very well-researched and well-written and the same is true of "The Romanovs: The Last Chapter." However, "The Romanovs: The Last Chapter" is dedicated to the murder of the family and all of the gruesome details. In other words, if you've read the last few chapters of "Nicholas and Alexandra," consider "The Romanovs: The Last Chapter," published in the last decade, to be a fluid extension of the first. But know that it is a scientific and investigative book, which doesn't focus on the pomp and circumstance, but rather with ashes and bones.

***

I have food. Amazing amount of food. I'm practically overwhelmed by the quantity and the choice. I had to pretty much get everything from staples like butter and orange juice to frozen veggies and fresh ones as well. I was also out of potatoes, eggs, and frozen lunches to take to work. I'm not a big snacker, but I did get some jello mix and microwave popcorn just for fun, as well as my usual snack food of choice -- chips, salsa and chedder cheese to make nachos. Now I'm good to go until next weekend. So you people no longer need to worry about me wasting away because I was too lazy to brave traffic and go to the grocery store.

***

And ooh, I forgot the countdown in my earlier post: 3 days, 3 hours, 10 minutes. Squee!