From Mexico to Montana in One Night
By Steve Herte
This
was a week of learning. I'm always learning new things and I'm of the
opinion that when you stop learning new things you die, but this week
was impressive in the amount of knowledge gained.
·
I learned that it's very difficult to please a girl from Ecuador. You
have to be satisfied if you make her happy, and I did.
·
I've always known that I was a good listener but I surprise myself
every Tuesday night with how little I get to talk about myself. I
came up with a new dance step Tuesday and Betty keyed into it right
away. Likewise, I finally learned the Texas two-step she's been doing
every week to "Folsom Prison" and was able to accompany
her.
·
I learned that either I'm a lucky (or really good) gardener or that
irises are easy to grow and transplant.
·
And lastly, I learned that my pastor at church can hardly wait for me
to retire and take over the music program.
My
quartet is reuniting at the Cheesecake Factory in White Plains with
the higher purpose of determining if we have a chance at winning the
Senior Quartet Contest, perhaps next year. One thing I know I can
depend on is that nights where the movie AND the restaurant are both
excellent are rare, and so you'll see. Enjoy!
The
Book of Life (20th Century Fox, 2014) –
Director: Jorge R. Gutierrez. Writers: Jorge R. Gutierrez, Douglas
Langdale. Voices: Diego Luna, Zoe Saldana, Channing Tatum, Ron
Perlman, Christina Applegate, Ice Cube, Kate del Castillo, Hector
Elizondo, Danny Trejo, Carlos Alazraqui, Ana de la Reguera,
Emil-Bastien Bouffard, Elias Garza, Dan Navarro, Genesis Ochoa, &
Placido Domingo. Animated, Color, 95 minutes.
All
Souls’ Day is celebrated in Mexico as Dia de los Muertes, the Day
of the Dead, and it is on this day that this movie takes place,
November 2. A bus of bored, spitball-flinging school children pulls
up to a museum and nearly terrorizes the aging tour guide. But deftly
using her “Follow Me” sign as a shield, a beautiful red-haired
tour guide takes over and leads them through an invisible door and
into a spacious hall to witness “the glory of Mexico.”
The
children are dazzled and follow her to the far end of the hall, where
the Book of Life resides. She opens the book and, using wooden toys
to help illustrate it, reads a tale. She starts, “As we all know,
Mexico is the center of the universe…”
The
story begins in the town of San Angel (the ‘g’ is pronounced like
an ‘h’) on November 2, where we meet little Maria (Saldana) and
her two friends, Manolo (Luna) and Joaquin (Tatum), who are
constantly vying for her attention. Maria is General Posada’s
(Alazraqui) daughter. Manolo Sanchez, is from a long line of
bullfighters and Joaquin is descended from mighty warriors. Joaquin’s
father was the last to repel the fearsome bandito, Chakal (Navarro),
and his men.
One
day, Maria sees pigs in a pen and decides to free them from bondage
with help from Manolo and Joaquin. The pigs stampede into town and
cause a bit of havoc, but are followed by a large tusked boar.
Joaquin fends off the boar with the skills he’s learned and Manolo
demonstrates his keen aptitude for bullfighting to send the boar
careening into a wall, where it’s knocked out.
Meanwhile,
in the ethereal reaches we see La Muerte (del Castillo) and Xibalba
(Perlman), the rulers of the Lands of Remembrance and the Forgotten,
arguing over why they rule the places they do. Xibalba sees the two
boys competing for Maria and makes a wager with La Muerte over which
one will win her hand. He chooses Joaquin and she chooses Manolo. If
Joaquin marries Maria, they will switch kingdoms. If not, they will
remain in their lands forever.
After
the dust clears in the town square the general makes a judgment that
Maria is to be sent to a convent to learn how to be a lady, hoping
this kind of behavior will be stopped. The two boys are heartbroken.
Manolo presents her with the little pig she saved from bondage and
she names him “Chewy.” She boards the train with the pig and the
boys will not see her again until they are all adults.
While
Joaquin learns swordsmanship and battle techniques, Manolo
reluctantly learns bullfighting. He really wants to be a singer and
play guitar, a talent he clearly possesses.
On
the day of Maria’s return there is a spectacle planned in the
arena, starting with Joaquin demonstrating his prowess in
horsemanship and followed by a bullfight featuring Manolo. They are
both amazed by how beautiful Maria has become and both show off for
her. But though his techniques are flawless in the ring, Manolo’s
refusal to kill the bull embarrasses his father Carlos (Elizondo),
and he’s left alone in the arena with his guitar. (Even the bull
shakes his head at him.) Maria is clearly attracted to Manolo’s
singing and playing, but her father insists she be with Joaquin
because, “he is the only one who can help us fight Chakal.”
That
night, Manolo arranges a tryst with Maria on the bridge to the town,
and it looks like he’s going to win her when Xibalba intervenes. He
sends his staff, transformed into a poisonous snake, to bite Maria.
Manolo is blamed for her death and becomes an outcast. He vows to
bring her back from the Land of Remembrance, and Xibalba is only too
glad to accommodate him. The snake now has two heads, and bites
Manolo twice. When he wakes up, he’s a skeleton version of himself
in the Land of Remembrance.
Soon
Manolo learns that Xibalba tricked him as well as cheated on the
wager with La Muerte. The single bite Maria received was easily cured
by a kiss from Joaquin and she accepts his proposal thinking that
Manolo is dead forever. Manolo now has a different quest, to find La
Muerte and return to the land of the living.
He
meets his entire family who died before him including his mother
Carmen (de la Reguera), Grandfather Luis (Trejo), and the opera
singing Jorge Sanchez (Domingo). In the land of the living, Chakal
attacks San Angel, and Carlos is the first to defend the town and the
first to pop up in the Land of Remembrance. Manolo, Carmen, Carlos
and Luis travel to the Land of The Forgotten to find La Muerte, but
it’s not easy. Only with the help of the Candlemaker (Ice Cube) do
they achieve their goal.
La
Muerte is outraged that Xibalba has cheated her, and Manolo makes him
a wager -- any task he chooses -- to return him to the land of the
living. Xibalba chooses fighting every bull his ancestors ever fought
at the same time. Eventually Manolo is faced with a coalesced giant
bull with flaming red eyes and the choice of his sword or his guitar.
The
Book of Life is a glorious
animated production on a par with Rio for
sheer scope of theatricality and with Madagascar in
clever scripting and character development. Even though all the
characters are obviously wooden toys, their movements convince the
audience they are real. The music and soundtrack are wonderfully
chosen songs from pop favorites such as “Creep” by Radiohead, and
“I Can’t Help Falling In Love With You” by Elvis Presley, to
original tunes written for the film. The colors are dazzling and the
3D special effects help pull one into the story. It’s a movie for
all generations and all ages. It’s squeaky clean in language and
the only violence is more slapstick than serious. Even the credits
are fun.
Rating: 5
out of 5 Martini glasses.
Ted’s
Montana Grill
110
West 51st Street
(just off 6th Avenue
toward 7th), New
York
Walking
east on 51st Street
from 7th Avenue
I realize an interesting anomaly. I pass Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse,
then one door down, the Capital Grill (steakhouse), and then Ted’s
Montana Grill with its sleek black awning and white lettering. Hence,
there are essentially three steakhouses in a row on one street. This
shouldn’t surprise me after being on 6th Street
in East Greenwich Village where there are at least 30 Indian
restaurants in one block, but steakhouses are different. They’re
grander, less intimate places. Ruth’s Chris was my benchmark
steakhouse until Capital Grill came from Rhode Island, but when I
discovered Uncle Jack’s Steakhouse, the new standard for excellence
was carved in stone.
Inside,
Ted’s is mahogany paneling, wood flooring, milk chocolate colored
faux-tin ceiling, and art deco swags for lighting. There is an
enormous bison head hanging on the far wall along with a large
antique mirror. The bar is off to the right side attended by a lively
young crowd. The young (almost incredibly young) man at the Captain’s
Station led me to my table (which was set for four – 6:45 is a good
time to get a table with Broadway so near), and I sat for only a
short while before Lincoln, my server, took my water preference and
cocktail order and presented me with the single laminated card menu.
The wine list was on the reverse. Lincoln didn’t appear much older
than the man who seated me; even his acne gave him away.
At
this point I noted that some people indeed had come with the intent
on making an eight o’clock curtain at some show, and brevity and
prompt service would be a must to get them on their way. I was not in
that situation, but I forgave Lincoln for not introducing himself on
that count. He returned with my Beefeater martini in an impressively
large glass and asked if I had any questions about the menu. I had
hardy begun to read it, but I did ask him how many ounces the filet
mignon, Delmonico, and T-Bone steaks weighed. 10, 14, and 16, was his
answer. Satisfied with that I told him I needed more time and he
left. While the martini was not the best I’ve ever had, it was far
from being the worst.
Another
server brought a small bowl of sliced sweet dill pickles – a nice
touch – and I munched on them while deciding. I was tickled that
the menu had appetizers abbreviated to simply “Apps.” The Bison
nachos were appealing, but Lincoln assured me it was a hefty dish. I
told him that I wished it were Wednesday, because then the Soup of
the Day would be Chicken Gumbo. He agreed, as it was his favorite. I
settled for the New England Clam Chowder, a Caesar “Side” Salad
(as opposed to an entrée salad), and the Bison Delmonico steak with
a side of Roasted Mushrooms. The wine list was impressively
reasonably priced and I ordered a bottle of the 2012 Ravenswood
Zinfandel. Lincoln left to put in the order.
The
good-sized bowl of chowder arrived along with the salad first. It was
comparable to my benchmark chowder at the Chart House in Boston (hot
and with more clams than potatoes), but it wasn’t as amazingly
creamy. The salad, though beautifully green Romaine lettuce and
crunchy croutons, had no visible (it was there, the leaves were
glistening) or tasteable dressing. I asked Lincoln for some chopped
garlic to liven it up and he brought back a ramekin of exactly that.
It helped. (At least they left off those nasty anchovies.) Lincoln
asked me if I wanted the wine with my steak and I told him to bring
it as soon as the martini was finished.
I
had just finished the chowder and was starting the salad when a young
lady brought the main course. “Way too early!” I told her and
sent it back. Lincoln apologized and I responded that I neglected to
tell him beforehand that I was a slow eater and not going to a show
(but he could have asked as well). When my martini was finished,
right on cue, Lincoln brought a glass of wine. “Bottle?” I
reminded him. And he was off again to correct the mistake. At this
time I saw something resembling a breadbasket on other tables and not
on mine. Hmm.
I’ve
had Ravenswood Zinfandel before and knew it to be a consistently
reliable wine and this time was no exception. When the salad was
finished the main course reappeared. I couldn’t help thinking that
it was put under heating lamps because it looked identical to the
dish that came out first, right down to the angle at which the tiny
American flag toothpick was leaning. I realize that bison meat is
leaner than beef, but my 14-ounce filet mignon last Friday had way
more meat on it than this “14 ounce” Delmonico. It was tasty and
prepared almost medium (not my stated preference), but also not as
wonderful as the Delmonico I enjoyed at the restaurant of the same
name downtown (where the dish was invented). The nine (yes, I easily
counted them) Bolide mushrooms were golden brown and again, tasty,
but …. this is a side dish in a steakhouse? Maybe I’m jaded, but
side dishes are usually unfinishable.
I
was totally ready for dessert after consuming the main course (the
pickles too). Here was where Ted’s finally put their best foot
forward. The Banana Parfait, though it looked nothing like a true
parfait, was so yummy I started eating it before I remembered to take
a picture of it. All of the desserts at Ted’s feature Häagen-Dazs
ice cream. That, plus the bananas and the fresh whipped cream, set me
on a feeding frenzy. The double espresso was standard but the Grand
Marnier was the crown on a dinner that cumulatively didn’t deserve
to wear one.
It
was 11 years ago that Ted Turner and George McKerrow Jr. opened the
first steakhouse in Columbus, Ohio, celebrating bison on the menu and
encouraging ranchers to keep and breed them. This is their
50th location,
and it’s been open at least a year. I know why tourists like it:
the prices are great. Maybe I’ll just have to return on a
Wednesday.
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