"The Power of One" [PG-13] - 14/20

"THE POWER OF ONE"

PART XIV

"Oh my God!" Piper wailed in despair. "Oh my God! I can't believe this has happened!"

Phoebe retorted darkly, "I can. I told you there was something off about her."

Paige added, "I thought that the bottle had contained a power stripping potion. But she already had Wyatt's powers."  

"The milk was probably poisoned," Cecile explained. "Ms. Thompson needs to kill Wyatt in order to make the power transfer complete."

The youngest Charmed One glanced at her former brother-in-law. "Like when Barbas had Cole's powers?"

"Yeah." Cecile glanced at the opened double doors that led to the backyard and headed in that direction.

Phoebe asked Cole, "Why did you wait so long to try to vanquish her?"

Piper rolled her eyes, as the half-demon gingerly handed over Wyatt to her. "Well that's a good idea, Pheebs. Cole should have attacked her, while she was holding my son. Who no longer has his powers."

"I doubt that I would have been able to kill her anyway," Cole added. "I had noticed that she was wearing that amulet."

A distressed Piper wailed, "Oh God! How in the hell are we going to get Wyatt's powers back?" The infant in her arms began to cry. "Oh Wyatt, honey! I'm sorry. Mommy's sorry."

Olivia added, "If this Daley Bakker had waited this long to do the ritual, why did she pick tonight?" She stared at Andre. "And who exactly is she?"

Andre sighed. "Daley Bakker . . . happens to be a member of the Anansi Order."

A low whistle escaped from Cole's mouth. Olivia gasped aloud. The Charmed Ones stared at the couple. Frowning, Paige asked, "Who is this Anansi Order? And why have both Cole and Olivia heard about it?"

Before Andre could answer, Olivia said, "Victor Lacroix. He . . . uh, he was a drug dealer, who was a member of this criminal organization called the Anansi Order. I had to go to Louisiana over four years ago to extradite him. For murder. That's how Cecile and I first met Andre." She glanced at Andre. "You mean to say that Daley Bakker is . . .?"

Andre finished, ". . . one of the top drug lords on the West Coast. In this country. Her distribution area is from California to Texas. My old boss, Victor Lacroix, covered the entire Mississippi Valley - from Minnesota to Louisiana. And any area east of the Alleghenies. The Anansi Order is a group of criminals who are heavy into the West African supernatural. Many of them are familiar with Vodoun . . . which means that most of them are powerful bokors. Victor was among the few who had hired a bokor to work for him." He paused. "Namely me. Back in '97 or '98, Victor was visiting San Francisco, when he had murdered some local drug dealer."

"He had left the city before the police could arrest him," Olivia finished. "Then around the spring of '99, we had received a tip that he could be found in Morgan City, Louisiana. My captain contacted the law there. And I was ordered to bring him back."

The houngan added, "I was the one who had tipped the police about Victor's whereabouts."

Paige gave him a thoughtful stare. "You snitched on him."

Nodding, Andre replied, "Yeah. To get control of his operation. Only . . ." He shook his head in disbelief. "I didn't count on meeting Cecile. And Olivia, of course." He had the red-haired witch exchanged fond smiles.

"What about this Daley Bakker?" Phoebe asked. "If she was in control of the West Coast, how could she allow this Victor Whatshisname to commit a crime in her area?"

With a shrug, Andre replied, "I don't know. I never met the woman. But I have heard of her. After Olivia had brought Victor back here, he was mysteriously killed, while in jail. It's believed that Ms. Bakker had arranged the hit. The Cartel had tried to kill me, after I had turned my back on them. But they had apparently gave up . . ." Andre's eyes grew hard. ". . . after I dealt with a few of their people." He sighed. "Like I said, I've heard of Ms. Daley Bakker. She had started manufacturing cocaine in the small factory she used for her herbal products. And this was around the time she had reached her mid-twenties. A year or two later, she was manufacturing 'Cat' from a ranch outside . . ."

Piper cried out in dismay, "You mean to say that my son's nanny is a drug lord?"

"What's Cat?" Paige demanded.

"Methacathinone," Olivia explained. "Powdered drug that's inhaled."

Andre added, "Victor had several labs, outside New Orleans. I don't know where Ms. Bakker had her labs, but before Victor's arrest, she had been a member of the cartel for at least three or four years."

Phoebe asked, "Who's the head of this order? A demon?"

"Who cares?" Piper retorted. "That bitch has my son's powers! I'm more concerned about her." She turned to Andre. "Where does she live?"

Olivia interrupted, "Piper? Before you go charging after this woman, may I remind you that she now has Wyatt's powers? And we don't even know if Cole will be able to deal with her."

"You saw how he had blocked her energy balls!"

Cole added, "Yeah, but she can probably do the same to my powers. Like Dako. And she has that amulet."

Piper demanded, "So, what do we do?"

Andre sighed, "Other than try to keep Wyatt safe, I don't know. Like Olivia had said, Daley Bakker needs to kill him in order to keep his powers. Permanently. The only way out of this mess is to find out what kind of ritual she had used."

"And how do we do that?" Phoebe asked.

"I . . ."

Cecile returned to the others. "Look what I found, outside." She held up what looked like a strand of weed or some kind of plant. "Bloodroot. Daley Whatshername must have used it as a substitute for Wyatt's blood."

"Then why was she taking hair from Wyatt's brush?" Phoebe asked.

"She probably combined the bloodroot with the hair."

Paige's face puckered in distate. "Eww!"

"It's a hell of a lot better than using Wyatt's blood," Cecile argued. "Which she would have never been able to get, anyway."

Andre added, "Which would explain why she had waited until tonight for the ritual."

Cecile nodded. "The first quarter moon. Naturally, one would use a ritual for some kind of transfer, when the moon is in transition." She broke away.

Andre continued, "Must have been a powerful ritual that she had used. Then again, we're talking about Wyatt here. Such a ritual would have been needed for his powers. The best thing I can suggest is that you keep him under wraps."

"Hey! Look at what I had found!" Cecile's voice cried. The others followed her voice to the Solarium. She pointed at a blanket filled with a few objects, on the sofa. "Must be part of the altar that Ms. Bakker had . . ." The blanket, along with the items, disappeared. Cecile frowned. "What the hell?"

Olivia turned to Cole. "Can you get them back?" The half-demon waved his over the empty spot. The blanket and the items reappeared. But only briefly. They disappeared a second time, before he could react.

Paige cried out, "Altar!" After a few seconds, the space on the sofa remained empty.

"Oh great!" Piper exclaimed. "Now what?"

Andre replied, "Like I said, keep Wyatt under wraps. Cecile and I can find out what ritual the Bakker woman had used. Only I don't know how long it would take us to find a way to reverse the spell."

Piper sighed. "Oh God! I guess I better take him to the Whitelighter Realm."

"He won't be safe there," Olivia said, taking the Charmed One by surprise.

"What?"

Olivia continued, "Piper, this Daley Bakker has Wyatt's powers. She probably knows about Leo and has already met Chris. I wouldn't be surprised if she starts searching for him . . . up there."

Looking slightly exasperated, Piper began, "Then where do I . . .?"

"Keep him here," Olivia suggested. She nodded at the half-demon. "And have Cole cast a protection spell over the house. I doubt that even Daley Bakker will be able to get inside."

"Great."

Shaking her head, Phoebe murmured, "Boy, she really played this beautifully." Piper stared at her. "Daley Bakker, I mean. I wonder how long she had been planning this?"

"Who knows?" Cecile commented.

Phoebe added, "And hiring that demon to attack Piper and Wyatt. Very well planned."

"Phoebe, do you mind NOT EXPRESSING your admiration for this woman?" an annoyed Piper grumbled. At that moment, blue orbs appeared before the group, eventually forming into both Leo and Chris.

The young Elder glanced around the room, his troubled eyes resting briefly upon Cole and Andre. "The Council had felt a disturbance, not long ago," he commented. "From here. What just happened?"

Piper heaved a silent sigh. As if her night could not get any worse.

-----------

The moment Daley had teleported into the warehouse, she marched straight toward her right hand man, Marc. The latter sat behind a small table that held a computer laptop. "Is everything ready?" she demanded.

"Yeah." Marc stared at her. "How did it go? Did you . . .?"

Daley spotted a mouse scampering across the floor. She incinerated it with an electrical ball. ". . . perform the ritual? Yeah, I did."

Marc's eyes widened in shock. "Damn woman! That's some firepower!" He stared at the last remains of the mouse - a scorch mark on the floor. "What happened to the mouse? It's gone."

"Precisely." Daley bent over his left shoulder. "Let's get this show going. Contact Ruben in L.A."

Still looking slightly stumped, Marc mumbled, "All right." He flipped open his cell phone and dialed a number. Then . . . "Yeah Ruben, it's me. Marc. Time for the delivery." He stared at Daley, who walked over to a stack of crates. She waved one hand over the stack and the crates immediately disappeared. She returned to Marc's side and they both began to stare at the laptop's screen. A few minutes passed before the computer indicated a deposit of 32 million dollars into the bank account of Daley's organization. Marc grinned. "It worked." He said to Ruben over the phone, "Transaction has completed, Ruben. See you in a few days." Then he hung up. "Man, that was fast!"

Daley nodded sharply. "Of course. Now, contact Gloria in Denver." Marc did as he was told. The sorceress teleported another stack of crates out of the warehouse. Minutes later, the pair learned that they had just earned a profit of eleven million dollars.

With a smile stamped on his face, Marc declared, "So far, we've earned 43 million dollars, tonight. Damn"
"And it's not over," Daley coolly added. "Call Tony."

Marc contacted the sorceress' agent in Houston. Daley teleported the remaining crates to the Texas metropolis. A few minutes passed before their account reflected a deposit of 20 million dollars. "That's it," Marc declared. "We've made 63 million dollars, tonight. That's . . . shit! This is the biggest delivery we've ever made in one day. This is like . . . history! Any more nights like this . . . hell! We can control the entire order." He paused. "So, I guess that everything went according to plan."

Daley snapped, "Not quite!"

"What do you mean?"

With a sigh, Daley explained what had happened at the Halliwell home. "With Wyatt still alive, there's a chance that the ritual can be reversed . . . or it will be reversed by the end of the moon's next Last Quarter. I have to get rid of him. Fast!"

"Do you think that Andre Morrell might find out about the ritual?" Marc asked.

Again, Daley sighed. "I don't know. Either he will or that girlfriend of his. The mambo I had met." Recalling the good-looking attorney who had blocked her attacks, Daley demanded, "And who in the hell is this Cole Turner?"

Marc looked stupefied. "Who?"

"I had met a tall, good-looking man, yesterday. He was with Piper, the Dubois woman and that red-haired witch," Daley explained. She then described how Cole Turner had easily deflected the electrokinetic power that she had stolen from Wyatt. "Either Wyatt isn't as strong as we had believed . . . or there's another player in this game." She fixed Marc with a hard stare. "Find that warlock friend of yours. Get him to tell me everything he knows about this Turner guy. Meanwhile . . . I'll have to find a way to get close to Wyatt, again. And kill him."


END OF PART XIV

"GETTYSBURG" (1993) Review

"GETTYSBURG" (1993) Review

In 1974, author Michael Shaara’s novel about the famous three-day battle at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania was published.  Titled ”The Killer Angels”, it told the story of the Gettysburg battle from the viewpoint of certain military leaders – Confederates James Longstreet, Robert E. Lee and Lewis Armistead and Union leaders John Buford and Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain.  The novel went on to win the Pulitzer Prize in fiction.  But despite this accolade, Shaara never really made any money from the novel.  Nor did he live long enough to reap the benefits of his creation in the years to come – including the movie adaptation called ”GETTYSBURG”.  

Released in the fall of 1993, ”GETTYSBURG” starred Tom Berenger as Longstreet, Jeff Daniels as Chamberlain, Sam Elliot as Buford Richard Jordan as Armistead, and Martin Sheen as Robert E. Lee.  The movie was directed by Ron Maxwell and produced by Ted Turner.  And despite being over four hours long (the running time is officially four hours and fourteen minutes), managed to surprisingly maintain my interest without me falling asleep.  And that is something that the 1939 Oscar winner, ”GONE WITH THE WIND” cannot boast.  True, one could say that ”GETTYSBURG” is a movie filled with a great deal of combat in compare to Margaret Mitchell’s story, which featured no combat at all.  But despite being a story about a famous battle, ”GETTYSBURG” featured a lot more narrative drama than it did combat action sequences.  And yet, director Maxwell managed to keep the movie at a good pace – with the exception of one period in the story.

Ronald Maxwell had not only directed ”GETTYSBURG”, but also wrote the screen adaptation of Shaara’s novel.  I must admit that Maxwell did a pretty good job in closely following the novel.  Although there were times when I wish he had taken a few short cuts.  Actually that time occurred in the series of conversations leading up to the final action sequence – namely Pickett’s Charge up Cemetery Ridge on the third day.  It simply lasted too damn long.  I had found Chamberlain’s discovery of his first sergeant’s death, Longstreet’s instructions to Pickett and the latter’s brigade commanders, and Longstreet’s gloomy prediction about the Charge dramatically satisfying.  But honestly . . . I could have done without Armistead’s speech about Virginians to the English observer – Lieutenant Colonel Fremantle (James Lancaster), Armistead’s last conversation with Richard Garnett, Chamberlain’s conversation with Hancock and the sequence featuring the Confederate troops cheering Lee.  It was only during this last act that the movie threatened to bore me.

There had been complaints that ”GETTYSBURG” had failed to make any allusions to the slavery issue.  Well, whoever made those complaints had obviously failed to see the movie.  Not only did Longstreet commented about the slavery issue to Fremantle – before the latter immediately changed the subject – but an encounter with a runaway slave led to an interesting conversation about race, slavery and bigotry between Chamberlain and the 20th Maine’s First Sergeant Kilrain (Kevin Conway).  There were other aspects of the movie that I had also enjoyed – Buford’s commentary about the importance of the Gettysburg location, the aforementioned Longstreet’s prediction about Pickett’s Charge and Lee’s ironic comments about being a military commander.  And I also enjoyed some of the movie’s more comic moments – Chamberlain’s efforts to prevent his brother Tom (C. Thomas Howell) from being too informal in the presence of the 20th Maine men and the conversation between Pickett and his commanders about Darwinism.

But ”GETTYSBURG” is, first and foremost, a war movie about a specific battle.  And like many other war movies, it is filled with battle sequences.  On the whole, I found them pretty satisfactory.  One must remember that this movie had been released at least five years before Spielberg’s World War II drama, ”SAVING PRIVATE RYAN”.  Which meant one should not expect the battle scenes to be particularly detailed in its violence in the same manner as the 1998 movie.  In other words, most of the battles seemed to feature a great deal of musket fire, explosions, and bodies either falling to the ground or being blown sky high – something one would see in television miniseries like ”NORTH AND SOUTH:  BOOK II” or ”THE BLUE AND GRAY”.  The most graphic scene I can recall occurred during a non-combatant scene that featured the field hospital filled with both bodies and body parts, where Longstreet visited one of his division commanders, John Bell Hood.  However, I must commend at least two battle sequences.  The actual charge up Cemetery Ridge had a great sweep, enhanced by Kees Van Oostrum’s photography from a helicopter.   That effectiveness of that sweep was nearly ruined when the Confederate troops finally reached the Union position.  There, the scene became nothing more than a confusing mess of both Union and Confederate troops merely shoving each other around.  Too bad.  Another memorable battle sequence featured Chamberlain and the 20th Maine’s conflict with the 15th Alabama regiment on Little Round Top.  The battle started in a generic manner as the two regiments exchanged musket fire.  But once the 15th Alabama came across the 20th Maine’s position, the violence became rather detailed and spilled into hand-to-hand combat and short-range firing.  I can even recall one Union soldier slamming the butt of his musket into the crotch of a Confederate.  And the 20th Maine’s charge down Little Round Top turned out to be as exciting as the charge made by Pickett’s division up Cemetery Ridge.

But it was the cast that really impressed me – especially the performances of Tom Berenger, Martin Sheen, Richard Jordan, Kevin Conway, Stephen Lang and especially Jeff Daniels.  Berenger did an excellent job of portraying the very human James “Pete” Longstreet, Lee’s ”Old Warhorse”.  But his most poignant moment occurred when his Longstreet regretfully ordered Pickett to commence his charge without uttering a word.  I was amazed at how the actor allowed Longstreet to age within seconds during this sequence.  Martin Sheen portrayed Robert Lee beyond the historic icon as a brilliant, yet obviously flawed man.  Both Conway and Lang gave vibrant performances as the Irish-born Buster Kilrain and George Pickett.  Lewis Armistead turned out to be Richard Jordan’s last role and many have claimed that it was one of his best.  I heartily agree.  In fact, one of his finest moments on screen occurred when his Armistead rallied his troops up Cemetery Ridge by sticking his hat on his sword (which actually happened, by the way).  Unfortunately, Jordan died of a brain tumor nearly three months before the movie’s theatrical release.  For me, the heart and soul of ”GETTYSBURG” turned out to be Jeff Daniel’s masterful portrayal of the talented Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain.  Not only did he managed to portray the Union leader as a flesh-and-blood human being, he also gave one of the best speeches – in which he attempted to convince the remnants of the mutinous 2nd Maine to join his regiment – on the silver screen.  It seemed a shame that Daniels had never received an acting nomination or award for his performance.

I would not go as far to say that ”GETTYSBURG” is one of the best war movies ever made.  Quite frankly, it is not.  But it is one of the better Civil War movies I have ever seen.  Not only did director/screenwriter Ronald Maxwell managed to adhere closely to Michael Shaara’s novel, but maintain a steady pace for a movie that turned out to be over four hours long.  It presented its historical characters as human beings and not waxwork dummies that seemed prevalent in a good deal number of other Civil War movies.  And more importantly, it provided a history lesson on one of the most famous battles during that particular period.  I heartily recommend it.

"SAFE HOUSE" (2012) Photo Gallery

Below are images from the new action thriller called "SAFE HOUSE".  Directed by Daniel Espinosa, the movie stars Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds:  


"SAFE HOUSE" (2012) Photo Gallery

TIME MACHINE: Battle of Shiloh

TIME MACHINE: BATTLE OF SHILOH

This month marked the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Shiloh.  It was fought between April 6-7, 1862; around Pittsburg Landing, Tennessee.  It was one of the first major battles in the Western Theater of the U.S. Civil War.

In southwestern Tennessee, the Union Army under Major-General Ulysses S. Grant had found his command camped at Pittsburg Landing, on the west bank of the Tennessee River.  Confederate General Albert Sidney Johnston wanted to launch surprise attack on Grant's forces and destroy it.  Johnston's second-in-command, Pierre G. T. Beauregard advised against such an attack, fearing that the sounds of Confederate soldiers marching and test-firing their rifles after two days of rain had cost them the element of surprise.  Johnston refused to accept Beauregard's advice and told him that he would "attack them if they were a million".  Despite General Beauregard's well-founded concern, the Union forces did not hear the sounds of the marching army in its approach and remained blissfully unaware of the enemy camped three miles away.

In the early morning of April 6, 1862; Johnston's Confederate forces launched a surprise attack on Grant's forces at Pittsburg Landing. The Confederates achieved considerable success on the first day, due to the Union Army's state of unpreparedness for an attack.  The assault was very fierce and some of the numerous inexperienced Union soldiers of Grant's army fled for safety to the Tennessee River. Others fought well but were forced to withdraw under strong pressure and attempted to form new defensive lines. Many regiments disintegrated.  The companies and sections that remained on the field attached themselves to other commands.  General William T. Sherman, who had been so negligent in preparation for the battle, became an important rallying figure for Union troops.  He appeared everywhere along his lines, inspiring his raw recruits to resist the initial assaults, despite staggering losses on both side.  His division bore the brunt of the initial attack, and despite heavy fire on their position and their right flank crumbling, they fought on stubbornly.  The Union troops slowly lost ground and fell back to a position behind Shiloh Church.

Although the Confederates seemed to be emerging as victors of the battle, a minor mishap and Grant's stubborn refusal to crumble under in defeat, led to an eventual victory for the Union.  Around 2:30 p.m., General Johnston was leading a charge against a Union camp near a peach orchard, when he took a bullet behind his right knee.  Johnston did not believe the wound was serious at the time and instead, sent his personal physician to tend some captured wounded Union soldiers.  Although he did not feel anything, the bullet (possibly fired by friendly fire) had in fact clipped a part of his popliteal artery.  Within minutes, his boot filled up with blood and Johnston's staff saw that he was on the verge of fainting.  It did not take long before he finally died and command of the Confederate forces fell upon General Beauregard.

General Grant was about ten miles down river at Savannah, Tennessee, that morning. On April 4, he had been injured when his horse fell and pinned him underneath. He was convalescing and unable to move without crutches.  Grant heard the sound of artillery fire and raced to the battlefield by boat, arriving about 8:30 a.m.  He worked frantically to bring up reinforcements that seemed near enough to arrive swiftly, which included Lew Wallace's division from Crump's Landing. However, he would wait almost all day before the reinforcements arrived.  Wallace's slow movement to the battlefield became particularly controversial.  Several factors saved the Union forces on April 6.  One, their forces under General Benjamin Prentiss managed to hold back a Confederate frontal assault for seven hours at a place called the Hornet's Nest.  Two, Grant kept his cool and did not cave in to the possibility that his army might be destroyed.  But more importantly Beauregard failed to take advantage of the Union's exposed flanks as they pulled back toward Pittsburg Landing, and continued focusing his troops at the Hornet's Nest.

Worse luck for the Confederate Army appeared at Pittsburg Landing on the evening of April 6.  Reinforcements under General Don Carlos Buell arrived.  Beauregard had been forewarned at the possibility of Buell's arrival, but he decided to accept the report that the Union commander was on his way to Decatur, Alabama.  By the morning of April 7, Beauregard had no idea that his forces were outnumbered by both Grant and Buell's forces.  As he prepared to finish Grant by the banks of the Tennessee River, Beauregard and his men found themselves surprised by a strong counterattack by the Union Army.

Beauregard launched a series of counterattacks from the Shiloh Church area by the early afternoon, hoping to ensure control of the Corinth Road.  Although the Union Army's right was temporarily driven back by these assaults, Union troops seized the road junction of the Hamburg-Purdy and East Corinth Roads, driving the Confederates into Prentiss's old camps.  Beauregard's final counterattack was flanked and repulsed when Grant moved Colonel James C. Veatch's brigade forward.  Realizing that he had lost the initiative and that he was low on ammunition and food and with over 10,000 of his men no longer in action, Beauregard knew he he was in serious trouble.  He withdrew the Confederate forces in an orderly fashion back to Corinth, Mississippi.  The exhausted Union soldiers did not pursue much past the original Sherman and Prentiss encampments.

By the late afternoon of April 7, the battle had ended.  Long afterwards, Grant and Buell quarreled over Grant's decision not to mount an immediate pursuit with another hour of daylight remaining. Grant cited the exhaustion of his troops, although the Confederates were certainly just as exhausted. Part of Grant's reluctance to act could have been the unusual command relationship he had with Buell. Although Grant was the senior officer and technically was in command of the overall Union forces in that part of the Western theater, Buell made it quite clear throughout the two days that he had been acting independently.

Newspapers vilified Grant for allowing his army to be caught offguard on the morning of April 6.  Journalists began spreading the false rumor that he had been drunk during the battle.  Many credited Buell for taking command of the Union forces on April 7.  Sherman was hailed as a hero.  Grant's career suffered a temporary setback when head of all Union forces in the Western theater, General Henry W. Halleck  combined and reorganized his armies and demoted Grant to the powerless position of second-in-command.  Halleck remained in charge, until he was promoted as general-in-chief of all Union forces and called back to Washington D.C.  Beauregard was relieved of command of the Confederates' Army of Mississippi around late May/early June 1862.  Braxton Bragg assumed his old position.

For more details on the Battle of Shiloh, I recommend the following books:

*"Shiloh 1862: The Death of Innocence" by James Arnold

*"Shiloh, 1862" by Winston Groom

*"Shiloh: The Battle That Changed the Civil War" by Larry J. Daniel

"The Power of One" [PG-13] - 13/20

"THE POWER OF ONE"

PART XIII

"Sheila . . . Sheila hon . . . Yes. Yes, I know that it's past eight o'clock. I'm sorry honey, but . . ." With the phone glued to his ear, Darryl waited patiently, as his wife demanded an explanation for his failure to leave the police station.  

When she finally finished, Darryl found himself with the opportunity to continue. "Yes honey. I know that I'm supposed to be at the McNeills by now." Since his wife happened to be a computer software consultant, the Morrises had managed to wangle an invitation to the McNeills' cocktail party in honor of Cecile Dubois. "Look Sheila, I'll try to get there as soon as possible. But I won't be able to, unless I finish this report. The captain wants it ASAP."

"All right," Sheila conceded. "I'll let you get back to your work. But hurry up and get here, Darryl. I'm getting tired of fending off horny business executives who want to know if I'm alone."

A relieved Darryl parted with, "Okay sweetheart. Good-bye," before he hung up the telephone. Then he leaned back into his chair and sighed.

Scott Yi, one of the detectives on his squad; appeared by his desk, holding a large yellow envelope. "Trouble in paradise?"

"No, it's just . . ." Darryl let out a gust of breath. "I have a long and difficult report to finish on the Winston case. McPherson wants it tonight. And I was supposed to take Sheila to the McNeills' party." He sighed. "I guess it's time to get back to the salt mine." Then he noticed the younger man's presence. "Why are you still here?"

Scott shrugged his shoulders. "I have a report to finish. The Jose Ortiz shooting."

"Go home and finish it, tomorrow," Darryl ordered. "Unlike the captain, I don't need it right away."

"Okay." Scott paused, before tossing the envelope in his hand, on Darryl's desk. "One last thing. It came in for Olivia. From Deborah Liu."

Darryl grabbed the envelope. "Oh yeah. Must be the results on the prints from the Halliwells' new nanny." He opened the envelope and withdrew a few sheets. A gasp left his mouth, as he read the forensic results. "Holy shit!" he exclaimed.

Scott frowned. "What's wrong?"

"Piper's new nanny. She gave Piper a phony name, when she was hired." Darryl reached for the telephone and dialed the number to the McNeill house. When he heard a busy signal, he hung up. Then he stood from his chair and snatched his jacket. "Look, could you do me a favor and finish my report on the Winston case for me?" he asked Scott. "The notes are on my desk."

Nodding, the younger man replied, "Sure. Where are you going?"

To the McNeills' house. Looks like I'm going to make that party, after all." Darryl fished out his cell phone, as he made his way to the exit.

----------

With all of her items in place on the blanket outside, Daley returned inside to fetch Wyatt from the Solarium. She reached inside and lifted the infant from the crib. Then she carried him outside and placed him on the blanket.

After taking a deep breath, Daley squatted on the blanket, and began the ritual. She closed her eyes and commenced in the Fon language, "Oh Kalfu, I beseech you to open a path between the spirits of myself and this child before me."

A bright light swirled around the two figures on the blanket, until it formed a straight line between Daley and Wyatt. Then Daley continued the ritual.

-----------

The McNeills' manservant quietly appeared by Olivia's side and murmured to her, "Pardon me, Miss Olivia, but there is a telephone call for you. It's Mr. Morris and he says it's an emergency."

The red-haired witch thanked Davies and excused herself from a group of guests. She headed toward the foyer and picked up the telephone receiver. "Hello? Darryl?"

"Yeah, Olivia. It's me," her partner's voice announced.

Olivia continued, "Shouldn't you be here by now? I think that Sheila is starting to get wor . . ."

"I'm already on my way," Darryl said, interrupting. "Look, I've been trying to get a hold of you. I've got the Forensics report on those prints."

Mild disgust tinged Olivia's voice. "It's about time! Why does it take so long for them to . . ."

A frustrated sigh filled the redhead's ear. "Olivia! Shut up and listen! Please! The prints on that glass belong to a thirty-eight year-old woman named Daley Bakker. With two Ks. She owns a herbal shop on Telegraph Road."

"Daley Bakker?" The news astounded Olivia, despite her suspicions. "Not Donna Thompson?"

Darryl repeated, "No, her name is Daley Bakker. I thought you should know, since that's not the name she had given Piper."

"Thanks Darryl. I guess I'll see you in a few minutes." Olivia hung up and let out a gust of breath. Daley Bakker. Now, why on earth would Miss Bakker use a alias to get a job as Wyatt's nanny?

Olivia rushed back to the large drawingroom. She scanned the crowd, until her eyes fell upon Phoebe standing near Jason. Looking bored. Olivia made her way to the Charmed One's side and tugged the latter's arm. "Hey! Phoebe? Mind if I speak to you for a minute?"

Phoebe shot the redhead a confused look. "Huh? Oh . . . sure." She turned to her boyfriend. "Um, would you excuse me, Jason? I'll be back."

Ignoring the billionaire's puzzled stare, Olivia led Phoebe to a quiet spot near the fireplace. "Where's Paige?" she finally asked. "We need to find her right away, in order to get back to your house. Or maybe Cole."

"What's wrong?" Phoebe demanded.

Olivia told the Charmed One about the telephone call she had received from Darryl. "In other words, we were right about Ms. Thompson . . . or Ms. Bakker. She was using a phony name. Where's Paige?"

Looking alarmed, Phoebe replied, "I saw her heading outside with Harry. Toward the garden."

"Figures. Listen, could you try to get a hold of Piper?"

"Yeah . . . uh . . . I have a cell phone on me." Phoebe reached inside her small purse for her cell phone. The two women passed through the French doors and headed outside. As they made their way toward the garden, Phoebe retrieved her cell phone. The moment she tried to activate her phone, she cried out, "Dammit! My batteries are dead!"

The pair continued their frantic search for the youngest Charmed One, until they came across two figures partially hidden by the darkness. "I think I see someone," Olivia declared. "Come on." She grabbed Phoebe's arm and led the other woman toward the couple.

-----------

They stood near one of the house's thick adobe walls. "Okay Andre," Cecile said. "You finally got me alone. Now, what do you want?"

Taken slightly aback by Cecile's cool tone, Andre hesitated. "I . . . uh," he began uneasily. "I understand that . . ." He broke off in a fit of frustration. "What the hell is wrong with me? Look, what I'm trying to say is that . . ."

Cecile regarded him warily. "Cole told you. Didn't he? Or was it Olivia?"

In a sad voice, Andre said, "It was Cole. He told me the night we all had dinner at his place."

"Yeah, I figured as much."

Andre continued, "Why didn't you tell me that you were planning to dump me? If I had known that you were dissatisfied . . ."

Cecile heaved a long sigh. "It's not you, Andre. It's me. I just . . . I don't think our relationship is going anywhere. I mean . . . we've been seeing each other for over three years. Four, next spring. I don't know. Maybe I want something more for us. You know - build some kind of life together."

"What made you think that I didn't want the same?" Andre demanded.

Looking slightly embarrassed, Cecile shot back, "I didn't! Okay? I was afraid to bring up the subject. And you . . ." She hesitated, looking away. "You seemed pretty happy with the way things were."

Andre shook his head in confusion. "What made you come to that conclusion? Did you ask me or something?"

"Listen, I didn't just decide . . ." Cecile began to protest. "I mean, I was going to say something. Only . . ." She sighed. "I just couldn't work up the nerve. I don't want to lose you, Andre. But if we keep going as we are now, I don't think we're going to stay together very long. I'm just no longer happy with the way things are now. But I don't want to force you to make a choice that you might not be ready for."

Stuffing his hand into one pocket, Andre could feel the small velvet box that contained the engagement ring. "What makes you think I'm not ready?"

Her eyes wide with shock, Cecile stared at him. "What are you saying? That you are?"

At that moment, Andre allowed his fingers to clutch the ring's case. Come hell or high water, he would propose to this woman. Tonight. And hopefully, wipe away any doubt or fear that she might harbor about his feelings. Andre opened his mouth. "Cecile, would . . ."

"Paige, Harry, we need to speak . . ." Olivia's voice took Andre by surprise. The redhead and Phoebe emerged beside them. Olivia blinked a few times and stared at the couple. "Oh! Cecile, Andre. I thought . . ."

Annoyed by the interruption, Andre sharply demanded, "What is it?"

"We're looking for Paige," Phoebe replied. "There's an emergency at home."

Her attention now focused on the two witches, Cecile frowned. "Emergency?"

With a sigh, Olivia explained about the information that Darryl had conveyed to her. "Miss Donna Thompson is actually the owner of a herbal shop on Telegraph Road. Her name is Daley Bakker. With two Ks."

"Daley Bakker?" The mention of the name sent Andre's mind spiraling back into the past. Back to the days of his association with drug dealer Victor Lacroix, now deceased. He then snapped out of his reverie and frowned at Olivia. "Are you sure that's the name Darryl gave you?"

This time, Olivia frowned. "You know her?"

"I don't know her, personally," Andre explained. "But I've heard of her." He immediately forgot about the engagement ring and started toward the house. "Phoebe, you better find Paige, fast. And get Piper. We'll get Cole. If that woman is Daley Bakker, Wyatt is in serious trouble."

------------

After delivering her offer to Kalfu, Daley continued with the ritual.

She grabbed the small plastic bag that held strands of Wyatt's hair, removed the hair and wrapped strands of a blood root them around them. Then she placed it all inside a small metal bowl. The spell originally called for blood, but since Daley figured that Wyatt's natural shield would prevent her from shedding his blood, his hair - along with the bloodroot - could serve as a substitute. Daley dropped a lit match into the bowl, producing a puff of smoke. The sorceress dropped a combination of her hair and bloodroot into another bowl and incinerated it with another lit match.

"Oh Kalfu, please lift the power of magic from this child and deliver it to my body, so I can serve you."  She continued with a chant of devotion to the god Kalfu, while shaking a rattle. A bright light glowed around Wyatt. He began to squirm and cry, as the light shot above his body, formed an arc and settled upon Daley's body. The sorceress inhaled deeply, as she felt his power settle within her. She then ended the ritual by offering her thanks to Kalfu.

Satisfied with the completion of her task, Daley decided to test her new powers. She eyed the rattle on blanket and within seconds, it teleported into her hand. The ritual had worked. She was now the most powerful sorceress in existence. And all she had to do was complete the ritual's final task.

Daley picked up Wyatt, along with the blanket and its contents from the ground. "Hey there," she said to the wailing infant. "No need to cry like that. Don't worry, sweetheart. Everything's gonna be all right. Within a few minutes, all of your worries will be over." A smile curved her lips. "Permanently."

-------------

The Charmed Ones and Harry orbed into the middle of the Solarium. They found Donna . . . or Daley about to feed a bottle of milk to Wyatt. Fearing that some kind of power stripping potion was in the bottle, Paige reacted immediately. She orbed the bottle out of the nanny's hand and into hers.

"What the hell?" Donna/Daley angrily cried out. She waved her hand at the newcomers and sent them flying out of the room. The bottle dropped from Paige's grasp.

"Wow!" Harry exclaimed, struggling to his feet. "Looks like she already has Wyatt's powers."

Phoebe suggested fearfully, as Harry helped her stand up. "Maybe that's her own power."

A grim Piper retorted, "Trust me, it's not."

"She's telling the truth." Daley emerged from the Solarium, holding Wyatt. "Now if you don't mind, I would like that bottle back." The object of desire orbed from the floor and back into her possession.

Four more people teleported into the middle of the living room. Paige sighed with relief at the sight of Olivia, Cole, Cecile and Andre. Annoyance flitted across the nanny's face. "Oh, what the hell is this? A party?" Again, she flung out her hand, sending the newly arrived quartet flying across the room. It shocked Paige that even Cole seemed to be affected. Daley added, "I think it's time to end this little party." An energy ball formed in her hand before she flung it at Cole and the others. The half-demon quickly held out his hand and blocked the attack. Much to Paige's relief. Don . . . Daley regarded him with dismay. "That's not possible! Who are you?" She sent another energy ball toward his direction. And again, he blocked the attack.

Then to Paige's dismay, the fake nanny focused her attention upon the Charmed Ones and Harry, and attacked them with an energy ball. As the ball of electricity zoomed toward them, Paige cried out, "Energy ball!" Unfortunately, it continued it path toward the sisters and Harry. Cole used his telekinesis to redirect the energy ball into another direction and it slammed against a wall.

The nanny growled in frustration and began to orb out of the room. Paige held her breath, as Cole beamed the infant out of Daley's arms. He finally sent an energy ball at the Vodoun woman, but the latter could disappear for good before it could strike.


END OF PART XIII

"TINKER, TAILOR, SOLDIER, SPY" (2011) Review

"TINKER, TAILOR, SOLDIER, SPY" (2011) Review

Between the late 1970s and early 1980s, author John le Carré wrote a series of popular novels called The Karla Trilogy that featured MI-6 officer George Smiley as the leading character.  At least two versions of "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy" had been made  The most recent is the 2011 movie in which Gary Oldman starred as Smiley.  

Set in 1973, "TINKER, TAILOR, SOLDIER, SPY" has George Smiley, who was recently forced to retire, recalled to hunt down a Soviet mole named "Gerald" in MI-6 (a.k.a. the "Circus"), the highest echelon of the Secret Intelligence Service.  The movie began with "Control" - the head of MI-6 - sending agent Jim Prideaux to Hungary to meet a Hungarian general who wishes to sell information. The operation is blown and the fleeing Prideaux is shot in the back by Hungarian intelligence. After the international incident that followed, Control and his right-hand man, Smiley were forced into retirement. Control, already ill, died soon afterwards.  When field agent Rikki Tarr learned through his affair with  the wife of a Moscow Centre intelligence officer in Turkey that the Soviets have a mole within the higher echelon of MI-6, Civil Service officer Oliver Lacon recalled Smiley from retirement to find the mole known as "Gerald".  Smiley discovered that Control suspected five senior intelligence officers:

*Smiley 
*Percy Alleline (new MI-6 chief)
*Bill Haydon (one of Alleline's deputies)
*Roy Bland (another Alleline deputy and the only one from a working-class      
  background)
*Toby Esterhase (Alleline's Hungarian-born deputy, recruited by Smiley)

I have never seen the 1979 television version of le Carré's 1974 novel, which starred Alec Guinness.  In fact, I have never been inclined to watch it.  Until now.  My interest in seeing the television adaptation has a lot  to do with my appreciation of this new film version.  I enjoyed it very much.  I did not love it.  After all, it did not make my Ten Favorite Movies of 2011 list.  It nearly did, but . . . not quite.

Why did "TINKER, TAILOR, SOLDIER, SPY" fail to make my favorite 2011 movies list?  Overall, Tomas Alfredson did an excellent job in translating le Carré's story to the screen.  However . . . the pacing was slow.  In fact, it crawled at the speed of a snail.  It was so slow that in the end, I fell asleep some fifteen to twenty minutes before the movie ending, missing the very moment when Smiley exposed "Gerald" at the safe.  However, I did wake up in time to learn the identity of "Gerald" and the tragic consequences of that revelation.  I have one more problem with the film.  Benedict Cumberbatch portrayed Peter Guillam, a former division head recruited to assist Smiley in the latter's mole hunt.  There was a brief scene featuring "DOWNTON ABBEY" regular, Laura Carmichael, in which Guillam revealed his homosexuality.  Cumberbatch did an excellent job in conveying this revelation with very little dialogue and a great deal of facial expressions.  And yet . . . this revelation seemed to have very little or no bearing, whatsoever, in the movie's main plot.  Even Smiley's marital problems ended up being relevant to the main narrative.  End in the end, I found the revelation of Guillam's sexuality a wasted opportunity.

But there is a great deal to admire about "TINKER, TAILOR, SOLDIER, SPY".  One, it is a fascinating tale about one of the time-honored plot lines used in more espionage - namely the mole hunt.  I suppose one could credit le Carré for creating such a first-rate story.  But I have seen too many mediocre or bad adaptations of excellent novels to solely credit le Carré for this movie.  It would not have worked without great direction from Alfredson; or Bridget O'Connor and Peter Straughan's superb script.  I found Maria Djurkovic's production designs for the film rather interesting.  She injected an austere and slightly cold aura into her designs for 1973 London that suited the movie perfectly.  And she was ably assisted by cinematographer Hoyte Van Hoytema, and art designers Tom Brown and Zsuzsa Kismarty-Lechner.

The heart and soul of "TINKER, TAILOR, SOLDIER, SPY" was its cast led by Gary Oldman, as George Smiley.  The cast almost seemed to be a who's who of British actors living in the United Kingdom.  Toby Jones, Colin Firth, Ciarán Hinds and David Dencik portrayed the four men suspects being investigated by Smiley.  All four did an excellent and kept the audience on their toes on who might be "Gerald".  However, I do have one minor complaint.  Hinds' character, Roy Bland, seemed to have received less screen time than the other three.  Very little screen time, as a matter of fact.  Mark Strong gave one of the movie's better performances as the MI-6 agent, Jim Prideaux, who was betrayed by "Gerald" and eventually forced to leave "the Circus" following his return to Britain.

Both Simon McBurney and Kathy Burke gave solid performances as Civil Service officer Oliver Lecon and former MI-6 analyst Connie Sachs.  However, Roger Lloyd-Pack seemed to be a bit wasted as another of Smiley's assistants, Mendel.  I have already commented on Benedict Cumberbatch's performance as Peter Guillam.  However, I must admit that I found his 1970s hairstyle to look a bit artificial.  I can also say the same about the blond "locks" Tom Hardy used for his role as MI-6 agent Rikki Tarr.  Fortunately, there was a good deal to admire about the actor's emotional, yet controlled performance as Tarr.  I really enjoyed John Hurt's portrayal of Smiley's former superior, the gregarious Control.  I thought it was one of his more colorful roles in recent years.

However, the man of the hour is Gary Oldman and his portrayal of MI-6 officer, George Smiley.  Many found the selection of Oldman to portray Smiley a rather curious one.  The actor has built a reputation for portraying characters a lot more extroverted than the mild-mannered Smiley.  His minimalist performance in "TINKER, TAILOR, SOLDIER, SPY" took a great deal of people by surprise.  So much so that Oldman ended up earning an Academy Award nomination for his performance.  And he deserved it, as far as I am concerned.  I consider George Smiley to be one of Oldman's best screen performances during his 30 odd years in movies.  In fact, I suspect that the actor has made George Smiley his own, just as much as Alec Guinness did over thirty years ago.

As I had stated earlier, "TINKER, TAILOR, SOLDIER, SPY" is not perfect.  Its pacing is as slow as molasses.  I thought actor Ciarán Hinds and the plot revelation regarding Peter Gulliam's homosexuality was vastly underused.  But thanks to Tomas Alfredson's direction, Bridget O'Connor and Peter Straughan's Oscar nominated screenplay, and an excellent cast led by the superb Gary Oldman; the movie turned out to be a surprising treat and has ignited my interst in the world of George Smiley.

"WESTWARD HO!": Part Two - "THE WAY WEST" (1967)

Below is Part Two to my article about Hollywood's depiction about the westward migration via wagon trains in 19th century United States.  It focuses upon the 1967 movie, "":  


"WESTWARD HO!":  Part Two - "THE WAY WEST" (1967)

I.  Introduction

Based upon A.B. Guthrie Jr.'s 1949 novel, "THE WAY WEST" told the story of a large wagon train's journey to Oregon in 1843.  The wagon train is led by a widowed former U.S. Senator named William Tadlock (Kirk Douglas).  A former mountain man named Dick Summers (Robert Mitchum) is hired as the wagon party's guide and among the last to join the train is farmer Lije Evans (Richard Widmark), his wife Rebecca (Lola Albright)and their 16 year-old son Brownie (Michael McGreevey); who were living near Independence when the wagon train was being formed.

During the journey to Oregon, the movie introduced audiences with the other members of the wagon train.  They included a family from Georgia named the McBees (Harry Carey Jr., Connie Sawyer and Sally Field), and the recently married Johnnie and Amanda Mack (Mike Witney and Katherine Justice).  Personal friendships and animosities flourished during the 2,000 miles journey.  Summers managed to befriend both Lije and Brownie Evans.  The latter fell in love with the McBees' extroverted daughter Mercy, who developed a crush on Johnnie Mack.  The latter had difficulty consummating his marriage with a sexually unresponsive wife.  Frustrated, Mack turned to Mercy for a brief tryst.  Senator Tadlock proved to be an intimidating, yet manipulative leader.  Only two people dared to question his decisions - Summers and Lije.  Especially the latter.  Although willing to question Tadlock's leadership, Lije was reluctant to replace him as the wagon party's new leader.

"THE WAY WEST" received a good deal of negative criticisms.  It has also been compared to "HOW THE WEST WAS WON" to its detriment.  I plan to write a review of "THE WAY WEST" in the future.  But right now, I am more interested in how the movie fared in regard to historical accuracy.


II.  History vs. Hollywood

The Tadlock wagon party headed for Oregon Territory in 1843, the year known as "The Great Migration of 1843" or the "Wagon Train of 1843", in which an estimated 700 to 1,000 emigrants left for Oregon.  The number of emigrants in Tadlock's party and the year in which the movie is set, seemed historically accurate.  "THE WAY WEST" also featured a few well-known landmarks along the Oregon Trail.  Such landmarks included Chimney Rock, Scott's Bluff, Independence Rock and Fort Hall.  Fort Laramie did not play a role in the movie's plot.

So far, "THE WAY WEST" seemed to be adhering to historical accuracy.  Unfortunately, this did not last.  One, the wagons featured in the movie came in all shapes and sizes.  They ranged from farm wagons to large Conestoga wagons.  I cannot even describe the wagon used by the McFee family.  It was not as heavy as a Conestoga, but it was long enough to convey Mr. McFee's peach tree saplings across the continent.  The draft animals used by the emigrants turned out to be a mêlée of oxen, mules and horses.  The movie did point out the necessity of abandoning unnecessary possessions to lighten the wagons' loads.  Only, it was pointed out when the wagon party attempted to ascend a very steep slope what looked like the  in Idaho.

"THE WAY WEST" did not feature a large-scale attack by a horde of Native Americans.  But the movie came damn near close to including one.  The wagon party first encountered a group of Cheyenne warriors not far from Independence Rock.  When one of the emigrants, Johnnie Mack, mistook a chief's young son hidden underneath a wolf's skin as a real wolf and shot him, the wagon train made tracks in order to avoid retribution.  The Cheyenne caught up with the wagon party and demanded the head of the boy's killer.  The other emigrants declared they were willing to fight it out with the Cheyenne, until they discovered they would be facing a large horde of warriors.  In the end, Mr. Mack confessed to the crime and allowed himself to be hanged, in order to spare Brownie Evans from being handed over to the Cheyenne by Tadlock.

Dramatically, I found this sequence to be effective.  I admired how director Andrew V. McLaglen developed the tension between the emigrants, Senator Tadlock and the Cheyenne demanding justice.  Historically, I found it a mess.  The number of Cheyenne warriors that had gathered for the sake of one boy struck me as very improbable.  The only times I could recall that many Native Americans gathering at one spot was the council for the 1851 Treaty of Fort Laramie and the Battle of Little Bighorn.  And considering that the Cheyenne nation were spread out from the Black Hills in present-day South Dakota to southern Colorado, I found this encounter between the Tadlock wagon party and the Cheyenne historically improbable.

"THE WAY WEST" fared somewhat better than "HOW THE WEST WAS WON" in regard to historical accuracy.  But I found it lacking in some aspects of the plot.  Like the 1962 movie, "THE WAY WEST" proved to be more entertaining than historically accurate.