286 posts from 2008

"WHATEVER YOU DESIRE"

PART 5

"Paige? Stop staring at him like that. Please!" Nathalie added for good measure.

A fleeting spark of guilt lit up the young witch's eyes, before she tore them away from the daemon sitting in one of the kitchen chairs. Sobbing. Paige refocused her eyes on the cup of Glogg sitting on the table. "Sorry," she muttered.

Nathalie sighed and said to the sobbing Stregheria demon. "Riggerio? Listen sweetie, why don't you finish your Glogg? It'll help you feel better."

More tears fell from the handsome daemon's eyes. "I do not know, Nathalie," he sobbed. "You should have seen her. That woman looked just like my . . . my Sofia. It's just . . . just too much for me to bear."

Paige whispered to Nathalie, "What is he talking about?"

Nathalie whispered back, "A Stregheria witch named Sofia Pasolini. Riggerio and she were in love, some forty years ago. She was killed by a warlock named Fonetti."

Shaking her head, Paige commented, "And I thought that Phoebe was the first witch to fall for a demon."

"Oh no, honey. That sort of thing has happened a lot, over the years." Nathalie paused. "It happened to your grandmother."

Paige's eyes grew round with shock. "What?"

But Nathalie returned her attention to Riggerio, who had finished the last of his punch. "How do you feel, honey?" she asked. "Better?"

The daemon sighed. "A little. Your Glogg is excellent, by the way. Better than that Glogg I once had in Stock . . . uh, Stooo . . . why do I feel so strange?" Then he swayed slightly, rolled his eyes and slumped forward on the table.

At that moment, Cole entered the kitchen. He glanced at his fellow daemon and said, "I see that you've finally found a way to stop his crying."

"I had added an extra touch of Valerian to make sure that I knock him out, right away," Nathalie replied. "I guess it's okay for him to sleep here."

Cole added, "Better here than in the other rooms. The whole place looks like the aftermath of a battle. Especially with all of those bodies strewn about."

"So much for your party," a mournful Paige said.

Nathalie dismissed the comment with a wave of her hand. "Don't be too sure. The antidote should keep everyone out for at least an hour or two. And it's not even ten o'clock, yet. The night's still young."

"The night is over, Nathalie," Cole declared firmly. "That Valerian might wear out within an hour or so, but it might take everyone a lot longer to recover from its aftereffects. By the way, how much Valerian did you put in the Glogg? It nearly took Olivia and Harry forever to fall asleep."

Nathalie stared briefly at Cole, as she noticed a few things different about him. A slow smile crept across her face. "Well, of course it took longer for them. They're redheads."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning," Nathalie continued, "it has been recently discovered that redheads require more anesthesia during operations. They have some kind of genetic mutation that gives them a higher resistance to drugs. You . . . uh, had a little problem with them?"

Cole rolled his eyes and sat in the chair, opposite the unconscious Riggerio. "Tell me about it."

"Is that why you have lipstick on your chest?" Nathalie asked saucily. She nodded at Cole's gaping shirt.

The half-demon's fingers immediately flew to his shirt and began to fasten the remaining buttons. "That's an old scar, not lipstick," he murmured, as his face turned red.

"A scar with the same coloring as Olivia's lipstick? And what's that on your neck? Another . . . scar?" An amused Nathalie watched the half-daemon squirm with discomfort.

A snicker escaped from Paige's mouth. Cole glared at her. "Okay," he said with a defeated sigh, "so things got out of hand with Olivia," he grumbled. "She got a little . . . aggressive. But nothing happened."

Nathalie's smile widened. "Of course. Whatever you say."

The door swung open in a violent manner. Bruce and Barbara stumbled into the kitchen, their clothes in disarray. "Hey!" Barbara declared cheerfully. "Is the party over?"

* * * *

Phoebe slowly made her way downstairs to the Halliwells' living room, the following morning. Upon arriving, she found the room empty and strode toward the kitchen. Sure enough, her family - sans Leo - was there, eating breakfast at the kitchen table.

"She's awake!" Paige declared in a genial voice. "Finally!"

Groaning aloud, Phoebe asked, "What time is it?"

Piper glanced at the kitchen clock. "Eight forty-five. I'm surprised that you're up, already. I thought you would be sleeping a lot longer, considering how hung over you looked when Paige brought you home, last night."

This time, Phoebe sighed. She eased her body into the remaining empty chair. "I still feel hung over. The last several hours seem to be a blur. The last thing I remember is eating and drinking some raspberry punch." She paused and glanced at Paige. "Shouldn't you be leaving for work, by now?"

Paige said, "I just got a call from Barbara. Ostera's will be closed, today. Barbara is . . . recovering."

"Is that all you remember from last night?" Piper asked. "Just eating?"

A frown creased Phoebe forehead. "That, and talking to Cole, Olivia and Paul. Only I don't know what about."

"You mean that you don't remember . . ." Paige broke off and shook her head. "Never mind."

Phoebe demanded, "Never mind what? What happened? I know about the potion in the punch. You told me about it, last night. But that's all I remember."

Piper glanced at Paige. "Well, our little sister didn't tell me much. Other than the party had ended early, because of the potion. And the antidote this Nathalie person had later served. What kind of potion was in that punch?"

"It was made from bluebells," Paige said, as she cut into her sausage patty. "Which are used to free a person's inhibitions. You know, causes them to be more open about their feelings."

Frowning, Piper said, "Wait a minute. Has this something to do with that ridiculous theory that we had heard about duel psyches or something?"

"I wouldn't exactly call it ridiculous, Piper." Paige popped the piece of sausage into her mouth and chewed. "You didn't see a demon weep uncontrollably over the memory of a dead witch."

"What?" Both Phoebe and Piper screeched at the same time.

Then Phoebe added, "Are you talking about Riggerio? I remember seeing him at the party."

"There were DEMONS at the party?" Piper demanded.

Paige nodded. "Yeah. I mean, Cole was there. And so were Riggerio and three other demons. They were all affected by the bluebell potion. Well, except for Cole, who didn't drink any of the punch."

"Five demons and not a drop of blood was spilled?" Piper asked in a disbelievingly voice.

"Not a drop," Paige replied. "Although . . ." she hesitated, "there were a few flare-ups." Her eyes slid toward Phoebe, who stared back. "Including one between Pheebs and Olivia."

Phoebe warily eyed her younger sister. "What exactly happened?"

"Oh, nothing much. You two got into a fight. You tried to punch Olivia. She blocked you and tossed you onto the ground." Paige shrugged her shoulders. "Simple."

Phoebe groaned. "Oh God! I can't believe . . ." She stared at Paige. "Wait a minute! Why would I attack Olivia?"

"Because of the potion," Paige explained in a matter-of-fact tone that irritated Phoebe. "It had released all of your inhibitions."

Curiosity gleamed in Piper's eyes. "Exactly what kind of inhibitions are we talking about?"

Paige hesitated before she answered. "Oh, like Phoebe's feelings for Cole."

"I have no feelings for Cole!" Phoebe retorted. "He means nothing to me!"

Rolling her eyes, Paige shot back, "If that's true, why did you get into a fight with Olivia? I mean, God Phoebe! You practically admitted to me that you still love him. You practically tried to get him to admit that he still felt the same about you. And when Olivia had pointed out that he didn't, you attacked her."

Panic rose within Phoebe, as her sister's words spewed out. Paige had to be wrong! There was no way she would get into an argument with another woman over Cole! "You can't be right!" Phoebe protested.

"Pheebs . . ."

"I don't know where you got this idea, Paige, but you're wrong! You probably misunderstood something I had said, because I am quite certain that I don't love Cole."

Heaving a sigh, Paige surrendered. "Okay, Phoebe. If that's what you want to believe." Then her dark eyes glittered, as they pinpointed Phoebe's. "But you can't keep lying to yourself, Pheebs. Sooner or later, you feelings are going to come out. And it might be at the worst time, possible."

Phoebe silently vowed that it would never happen. Because as far as she was concerned, she had no feelings for Cole. No matter what Paige believed.

* * * *

Paul was sipping a glass of apple juice, when Leo materialized in the middle of his apartment. "Hey Paul!" the whitelighter cheerfully greeted.

A groan escaped the witch's mouth. "Morning Leo. What brings you here?"

Leo explained that he had heard about Nathalie Gleason's party from Paige. And the potion that accidentally ended up in the hostess' Raspberry Sunset punch. "Yeah, if you can call it an accident," Paul grumbled. "I'm beginning to think that she added it on purpose."

"That doesn't sound like Nathalie Gleason," Leo said with a shake of his head. He sat down on the living room sofa. "She may be unorthodox, but she would never used magic on someone without his or her permission."

Another grunt left Paul's mouth. "Yeah. Whatever." He gulped down the last of his juice. "So, did Paige and Phoebe give you the details? Because I sure as hell don't remember them. Well, I do remember waking up in a strange bedroom, feeling groggy. And seeing Beltha . . . uh, Turner talking to Phoebe at the refreshment table." He added in a morose voice, "And Olivia being jealous." A frown creased his forehead.

"Paige wasn't exactly forthcoming when she and Phoebe came home, last night," Leo explained. "She had mentioned the potion, and the herb Miss Gleason used to cleanse the potion from your systems. Of course Paige, Cole and Miss Gleason didn't drink the punch, so they weren't affected."

Paul sighed. "Lucky bastards," he mumbled darkly. "Because right now, I feel as if I had a close encounter with a cattle prod. God!"

"That must be the Valerian that Miss Gleason added to the . . . uh, antidote. That's probably why you're still feeling groggy. A day's rest should do you some good." He paused, reluctant to express what was on his mind. "Uh Paul, can I ask you something? Are you sure that you don't remember anything after drinking the potion? Like anything between Olivia . . . and Cole?"

Shaking his head, Paul replied, "No, nothing." He gave Leo a suspicious look. "Why? Did Paige say something?"

"Not really. It's . . ." Leo sighed. "Well, according to Paige that potion had literally exposed everyone's feelings. I just thought . . ." Noticing the horrified expression on Paul's face, the whitelighter quickly amended his words. "Don't worry. It's nothing. Besides, if anything had happened, Paige would have said something. It's nothing." He gave Paul a reassuring smile. Yet, a small part of Leo did not feel so confident.

* * * *

The doorbell rang. Olivia sauntered over to the front door and glanced through the peephole. "Well, look who's here!" she drawled laconically, before opening the door. She greeted her new visitor. "Nathalie! I see that you've finally worked up the nerve to face me?"

The dark-haired witch greeted both Olivia and her brothers with a nervous smile. "Hey Livy! You seem to be feeling better. Bruce. Harry."

The McNeill brothers returned Nathalie's greeting with curt nods. "So, what are you doing here?" Olivia asked.

"To apologize," Nathalie replied in a humble manner. "In fact, I want to apologize to all of you."

Bruce asked, "Why didn't you simply call?"

"Well, I did. I called your house." Nathalie added, "But your mom told me that you and Harry were here, at Olivia's apartment. So . . ." She held out a rectangular-shaped pan that contained some kind of dessert. "Here's my peace offering. A peach cobbler."

Harry rose from his chair and walked over to the two women. "Cobbler? Did you make one for each guest at your party?" he asked Nathalie.

"No, just for the three of you. The last thing I want to be is on the bad side of a McNeill." Nathalie smiled at Bruce. "Especially since one of them is getting married."

Shaking his head, an amused Bruce said, "Your invitation will be in the mail. Don't worry."

Nathalie immediately perked up. "Great!"

"Wait a minute!" Olivia gave her friend a dark look, as she took the cobbler. "You're still on the bad side of this particular McNeill."

Dark eyes pleaded with the red-haired woman. "Oh, c'mon Livy! You're not sore, are you? Putting that potion in the punch was an accident. I swear!"

"You know something, Nat? I don't even know why I had bothered to accept your party invitation in the first place," Olivia retorted. "The last time you had one, I ended up acting as referee between two warlocks, whose covens were involved in a blood feud. But this . . ." She shook her head in despair.

Nathalie reached for the cobbler. "I guess that means my peace offering is out of the question."

"Did I say that?" Olivia demanded, as she moved the cobbler out of Nathalie's reach. Then she added in a curt voice, "And by the way, you're forgiven for last night."

The dark-haired witch replied sarcastically, "Gee, thanks."

Olivia added, "However, we want to know what happened, last night."

"Yeah," Bruce said. "Everything."

After a brief hesitation, Nathalie did as she was asked. "Okay," she said to Bruce, "if you insist. For one thing, you and Barbara were at each other like cats in heat. All night long." The oldest McNeill's face turned beet red with embarrassment. Harry, on the other hand, chucked with amusement. "I wouldn't laugh if I were you, Harry. Especially since you were all over Paige Matthews."

The smile on Harry's face disappeared. "What? What are you talking about? She's not even my type!"

"Oh really? Then why were you trying to kiss her?" a smiling Nathalie asked. "I saw you."

"I . . ." Harry hesitated. A giggle escaped from Olivia's mouth. He glared at her. "Okay, so I find her a little attractive. Why shouldn't I? I'm a man. She's a woman. What's the big deal?"

Olivia's mouth curved into a smirk. "Don't worry, Harry. It's no big deal."

"Oh, I don't know about that," Nathalie said. "From what I saw, Paige had no problem with returning your kiss." Again, Olivia giggled. Nathalie stared at her. "What are you laughing at? All Harry did was kiss Paige. He didn't get into a big fight over her."

Olivia retorted archly, "Meaning?"

"Meaning, you and Phoebe Halliwell managed to get into a big fight over a certain half-daemon."

Green eyes narrowed dangerously. "Excuse me?"

"Honey," Nathalie said, shaking her head, "you don't want to know the whole truth. Trust me."

Blind panic struck Olivia. For the umpteenth time since last night's party, she found herself wondering what happened to her, after drinking Nathalie's punch. Not even fear of any revelation regarding her true feelings for Cole, could squash her curiosity. "And what exactly is the truth?" she demanded. When Nathalie failed to answer, she added in a voice tinged with steel, "Nat, I suggest that you tell me what happened, now. I don't like being kept in the dark."

Nathalie heaved a sigh. "Okay. If you insist." Then Olivia listen with horror, as the former revealed what happened last night - how one Winifred McKenna had tried to proposition Cole, Olivia and Phoebe's reactions, and the fight that had ensued between the latter two. "After that," Nathalie continued, "Cole had sent you, Phoebe, Harry and that Paul Margolin to separate bedrooms to cool off, while I made a bowl of Glogg with some cloves and cedar wood to cleanse out the potion. I don't know what happened when Cole and Paige went upstairs to give you guys your Glogg, but . . ."

"But what?" Olivia demanded, interrupting. "What about upstairs?"

The dark-haired witch's eyes grew wide with innocence. "Nothing. I have no idea what happened, upstairs. I only know that Paige gave the Glogg to that Margolin fellow and Phoebe, and Cole did the same for you and Harry."

A dim memory of a bedroom lingered in the back of Olivia's mind. Only she could not flesh out the details. "Did something happened between Cole and me?" she asked.

"How would I know?" Innocence continued to linger in Nathalie's dark eyes. Olivia gave her a suspicious stare. Either the older woman believed that something had transpired between Olivia and Cole. Or knew. The latter filled Olivia with horror. Oh God!

The doorbell rang for the second time. Her mind still fixed on Nathalie's suggestions, Olivia barely heard it. Again, it rang. "Uh, Livy," Bruce said, jolting her out of her reverie, "I believe someone is at the door."

Olivia responded with a vague nod. She walked over to the door and glanced through the peephole. Her heart fluttered at the sight of the figure standing in the corridor. It was Cole.

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

Nine minutes later, Cole beamed out of Olivia's apartment, holding a bottle of tarragon. He really did not need the herb, but he did need an excuse to visit Olivia and find out if she had recovered from last night's party. Or if she had remembered anything.

Judging from what he had seen of the McNeill siblings, they had all recovered. But Cole had noticed something else - namely the smug expressions on the faces of the McNeill brothers and Nathalie. And the air of embarrassment that surrounded Olivia whenever she talked with him. And her reserved manner. He had a deep suspicion that Nathalie had told them everything - including her own suspicions of what had happened between Olivia and him, last night. Shit!

After placing the tarragon on his kitchen table, Cole opened the refrigerator and retrieved a bottle of water. He unscrewed the top and took a swallow. Whether or not Olivia had remembered anything, Cole realized that he could no longer dismiss the incident. Thanks to Nathalie's potion, he now knew about Olivia's true feelings. That she was in love with him - Cole Turner, aka Belthazor. Cole wondered if she had turned to Paul Margolin out of frustration for Cole's reluctance to pursue more than a friendship.

But Cole's reluctance had disappeared. Thanks to Olivia's burgeoning relationship with Margolin and last night's revelations, he was through trying to be friends with the redhead. He wanted more with Olivia than friendship. In fact, he simply wanted her. Period. Paul Margolin, as far as Cole was concerned, had just acquired a serious rival for Olivia's heart.

THE END

”FROST/NIXON” Review

Beginning on March 23, 1977, British journalist David Frost conducted a series of twelve (12) interviews with former U.S. President Richard M. Nixon, in which the former commander-in-chief gave his only public apology for the scandals of his administration. Some 29 years later, Peter Morgan’s play – based upon the interviews – reached the London stage and later, Broadway, with rave reviews. Recently, Ron Howard directed the film adaptation of the play, starring Frank Langella as Nixon and Michael Sheen as Frost.

I first became interested in Nixon and the Watergate scandals in my mid-teens, when I came across a series of books that featured columnist Art Buchwald’s humorous articles on the famous political scandal. As I grew older, I became acquainted with other scandals that had plagued the American scandal. But it was Watergate that managed to maintain my interest for so long. Ironically, I have never seen the famous Frost/Nixon interviews that aired in August 1977 – not even on video or DVD. But when I saw the trailer for ”FROST/NIXON”, I knew I had to see this movie. There was one aspect of the trailer that put me off – namely the sight of Frank Langella as Richard Nixon. For some reason, the performance – of which I only saw a minor example – seemed rather off to me. However, my family went ahead and saw the film. And I must admit that I am glad that we did. Not only did ”FROST/NIXON” seemed only better than I had expected. I ended up being very impressed by Langella’s performance. And Michael Sheen’s portrayal of Frost merely increased my positive view of the film.

Speaking of the cast, ”FROST/NIXON” had the good luck to be blessed with a cast that featured first rate actors. Matthew MacFadyen gave solid support as John Birt, David Frost’s friend and producer for the London Weekend Television. I felt the same about Oliver Platt’s slightly humorous portrayal of one of Frost’s researchers, Bob Zelnick. Rebecca Hall gave a charming, yet not exactly an exciting performance as Frost’s girlfriend, Caroline Cushing. One of the two supporting performances that really impressed me was Kevin Bacon, who portrayed former Marine officer-turned Nixon aide, Jack Brennan. Bacon managed to convey Brennan’s conservatism and intense loyalty toward the former president without going over-the-top. Another intense performance came from Sam Rockwell, who portrayed another of Frost’s researcher, author James Reston Jr. Rockwell’s performance came as a surprise to me, considering I am more used to seeing him in comedic roles. And I must say that I was very impressed.

But the two characters that drove the movie were Richard M. Nixon and David Frost. Both Frank Langella and Michael Sheen first portrayed these roles in the Broadway version of Peter Morgan’s play. If their stage performances were anything like their work on the silver screen, the theatergoers who had first-hand experience of their stage performances must have enjoyed quite a treat. As I had earlier stated, I originally harbored qualms about Frank Langella portraying Richard Nixon. What I did not know was that the man had already won a Tony award for his stage performance of the role. After watching ”FROST/NIXON”, I could see why. Richard Nixon had possessed a personality and set of mannerisms that were easily caricatured. I have never come across an actor who has captured Nixon’s true self with any real accuracy. But I can think of at least three actors who have left their own memorable stamps in their interpretations of the former president – the late Lane Smith, Sir Anthony Hopkins and now, Frank Langella. One of Langella’s most memorable moments featured a telephone call from Nixon to Frost, in which the former attempts to further psyche the journalist and ends up delivering an angry tirade against the wealthy establishment that he had resented, yet kowtowed toward most of his political career. Michael Sheen had the difficult task of portraying a more complicated character in David Frost and delivered in spades. Sheen’s Frost is an ambitious television personality who wants to be known for more than just frothy talk show host. This reputation makes it impossible for Frost to be taken seriously by Nixon, Zelnick and especially the judgmental Reston.

I also have to compliment Peter Morgan for what struck me as a first-rate adaptation of his stage play. Morgan managed to expand or open up a story that depended heavily upon dialogue. The movie could have easily turned into a filmed play. Thankfully, Morgan’s script managed to avoid this pitfall. And so did Ron Howard’s direction. I must admit that Howard did a great job in ensuring that what could have simply been a well-acted, would turn out to be a tightly paced psychological drama. Hell, the interactions between Frost and Nixon seemed more like a game of psychological warfare between two antagonists, instead of a series of interviews of historical value.

I am trying to think of what I did not like about ”FROST/NIXON”. So far, I am hard pressed to think of a flaw. Actually, I have thought of a flaw – namely the usually competent Toby Jones. Considering how impressed I had been of his performances in ”INFAMOUS” and ”THE PAINTED VEIL”, it seemed a shame that his Swifty Lazar seemed more like a caricature than a flesh-and-blood individual. Perhaps it was a good thing that his appearance in the film had been short. Also, knowing that Frost had questioned Nixon in a series of twelve interviews, it seemed a shame that the movie only focused upon three of those interviews. Naturally, Howard and Morgan could not have included all twelve interviews for fear of dragging the movie’s running time. However, I still could not help but feel that three interviews were not enough and that the film could have benefited from at least one more interview – one that could have effectively bridged the gap between Frost’s second disastrous interview, until the third that led to his own triumph and Nixon’s rare admission.

”FROST/NIXON” could have easily become dialogue-laden film with no action and a slow pace. But thanks to Ron Howard’s direction, Peter Morgan’s adaptation of his play and the superb performances of the two leads – Frank Langella and Michael Sheen, the movie struck me as a fascinating character piece about two very different men who had met during the spring of 1977 for a historical series of interviews that seemed to resemble more of a game of psychological warfare.

Below are photos from the new Bryan Singer World War II thriller about the last assassination attemp upon Adolf Hitler. "VALKYRIE" stars Tom Cruise, Bill Nighy, Kenneth Branaugh, Tom Wilkerson and Terence Stamp:

 

"VALKYRIE" Photo Gallery

”THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL” (2008)

Back in 1951, Robert Wise directed a science-fiction film about a humanoid alien visitor who comes to Earth with a warning. The film, starred Michael Rennie and Patricia Neal. Fifty-seven years later, Scott Derrickson directed a remake of the classic that stars Keanu Reeves and Jennifer Connolly.

Based upon Harry Bates' short story, "Farewell to the Master", this updated version of ”THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL” ditched the Cold War theme and settled upon humanity’s environmental impact upon Earth. Another change in this latest version centered around the main character, Klaatu (Keanu Reeves). In the 1951 version, Klaatu (portrayed by Michael Rennie) started as a “humane” and ended up as a slightly cold alien who threatens the humans during a United Nations conference, with “the big stick” – threatening annihilation if the nations refused to find a way to settle the Cold War. Klaatu experiences a reversal of characterization in this new version. He starts out as cold and tough, with very little hope for humanity. Due to his interactions with Dr. Helen Benson (Jennifer Connolly), Professor Barnhardt (John Cleese) and Helen’s stepson Jacob (Jaden Smith), Klaatu becomes more humane and compassionate over humanity’s situation.

I wish I could point more of the similarities and difficulties between the two versions. But if I must be honest, my memories of the 1951 version are not that sharp. It has never had much of an impact upon me. It just happened to be one of many decent movies that I did not find particularly mind boggling. Even when I became older. And If I must be honest, I can say the same about this version. In the end, ”THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL” (2008) seemed like nothing more than a solid, yet entertaining science-fiction story with a message about a real life crisis in present-day Earth. Namely our endangered environment. Everything about this movie seemed solid - Scott Derrickson’s direction, David Scarpa’s screenplay and the cast led by Reeves and Connolly.

However, there were some exceptional standouts in both the cast and the crew. Jeffrey A. Okun’s visual special effects struck me as being impressive. I especially liked the updated design of Klaatu’s starship and the fact that it, along with Gort, was biologically based. As for the cast, I was impressed by two performers – young Jaden Smith, who portrayed Helen Benson’s stepson and Kyle Chandler as John Driscoll, Assistant to the Secretary of Defense (Kathy Bates). Smith did an excellent job of conveying young Jacob’s anger over his father’s death and resentment toward being “stuck” with his stepmother. And Chandler provided another example of his talent for portraying ambiguous and sometimes, dark characters with his portrayal of the frightened and desperate Driscoll.

Other than that, I found nothing really exceptional about this version of ”THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL” . . . anymore than I did about the previous 1951 version. If you are looking for something exceptional, you will be disappointed. If you are simply looking for a solid story that is also entertaining, then ”THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL” is your movie.

 

Below are five of my favorite Christmas songs of all time.  Enjoy: 

TOP FIVE CHRISTMAS SONGS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"The Rain Chronicles" [PG] - Book III

Rain Robinson of ”Future’s End” ends up on Voyager, following her adventures with Tom Paris and Tuvok in late 20th century Earth. Here is Book III.

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

RAIN ROBINSON - May 27, 2373:

Today, I began my first shift in Stellar Cartography. It did not turn out too bad. I barely managed to keep up, but at least I didn't make a fool of myself. Even better, I also made two friends, who didn't seem to mind answering my questions every five or ten minutes.

My new friends happened to be sisters, twin sisters - Jenny and Megan Delaney. They seemed very friendly, a lot of fun to be with and a big help. Let's face it. My knowledge of astronomy and stellar cartography is at least 300 years outdated. Thanks to Jenny, Megan and some late-night study sessions with the ship's computer, I managed to catch up to the latest findings within two weeks. There is still a lot I don't know. But, if all goes well, I should be able to keep up with them and the rest in Stellar Cartography by the end of the year. One last thing I like about the Delaneys - they seemed to be among the few on this ship who don't seem full of themselves. In other words, they don't look upon me like some cavewoman from prehistoric times.

Megan is the quiet one. Dimples usually form on her cheeks whenever she smiles. I also believe that she once dated Tom Paris, some two years ago. Okay, I must admit that I felt a little . . . no, a lot jealous when I first heard this news. Until I also learned that Megan and Tom had put their relationship behind them, a long time ago. And now, they only consider themselves as good friend. In fact, Megan has now developed an interest in another crewman, whose name has escaped me.

Unlike Megan, Jenny does not have dimples when she smiles. And she also seemed more like the outgoing type. Very talkative and with a lot of jokes. In many ways, she reminded me of Tom. After learning about the holodecks from Jenny, I wonder if she would be interested in creating programs from some of my old favorite "B" movies. She seemed like the type who would enjoy them. There is one thing about Jenny Delaney that I cannot fathom. Namely, her interest in one Ensign Harry Kim. She seems to like him. A lot.

What Jenny sees in him, I have no idea. I suppose one could say that he is very good-looking and smart. Despite his quiet nature, he also seemed to have a sly sense of humor. I almost grew to like him. Until I encountered one of his less admirable traits. Like a lot of people on this ship, Harry Kim has this smug superiority that tends to manifest itself whenever the subject of Starfleet or the Federation comes up. He seemed proud . . . almost a little too proud over humanity's "evolvement" over the past 300 years.

One time, he came so proud and smug over the subject that I could not help but respond in a bitchy manner. Let's just say that Mr. Kim did not take kindly to my manner. Hey! What can I say? When I hear bullshit, I can't seem to keep my mouth shut.

* * * *

LIEUTENANT B'ELANNA TORRES - Stardate 50394.19:

I have a strong suspicion that Harry does not like Rain Robinson very much. At least, not anymore. However, that was not always the case.

When she first came aboard, Harry tried to make Rain feel at home. Typical Harry. Mister Collector-of-Lost-Souls. Both Tom and I had been amongst those lost souls during Voyager's first year in the Delta Quadrant. Rain became another. Both she and Harry seemed destined to become good friends. Until that little conversation between them in the Mess Hall.

It happened about a week following Voyager's encounter with the Q Continuum's civil war. Harry, Tom, Rain, Ken Dalby, Megan Delaney, Golwat and I had gathered around one of the Mess Hall's large tables, following dinner. Tom, Rain and I were recounting our adventures on 20th century Earth.

I had just finishing describing my and Chakotay's encounter with those Arizona terrorists. Rain immediately added, "You must have come across one of those groups of right-wing terrorists. They're people who feel that the government was slowly taking over their rights as citizens."

Ken nodded. "Freedom fighters, right?" he asked.

A snort left Rain's mouth. "Yeah, right. Freedom for white Americans. Especially if they're men. As far as they're concerned, everyone else deserves to be oppressed."

"I noticed how they seemed to view both Chakotay and myself with a lot of hostility," I added, remembering those stares. Curious, but hateful. "I guess it was a good thing Tuvok and the Doctor came to our rescue."

Harry shook his head. "You were very lucky, Maquis. Quite frankly, I'm glad I had remained on the ship." Then he faced Rain and made his big mistake. "I guess you're lucky, also. Now that you don't have to live in the 20th century, any longer."

"Lucky?" Rain's dark eyes narrowed. "How am I lucky?"

Harry continued, "Well, maybe not completely lucky. After all, you're stuck in the Delta Quadrant with the rest of us. But once we return to Earth, you'll find yourself in a better world. No wars, poverty, diseases and crime. It's paradise." His face lit up. Good old Starfleet. Optimistic, as always.

Another long pause followed. Rain continued to stare at Harry. Hard. "Hmmmph," she finally said. "I guess the Earth of today is probably a better place to live. However, I doubt very much that you can still call it paradise. There's no such place. At least not on this plane of existence."

"I see what you're getting at," Harry said with a dismissive laugh. Unbeknownst to him, Rain's body stiffened. "You're speaking from some kind of spiritual point of view. Which is fine for those who are religious. But from our point of view, Earth is paradise. You just have to see it for yourself." He looked as if he was ready to plant the Federation flag on the next planet.

A smirk threatened to tug the edges of Rain's lips. "No kidding," she said in a voice that dripped with sarcasm. "You know, I've been reading about your Federation in the ship's computer. Earth is like you said. Somewhat."

Golwat frowned. "What do you mean?" she asked.

"Well . . . there are no wars. At least on Earth. But I've noticed that your Federation has been involved in plenty of wars elsewhere. From what I've read, you were just involved in a war with some species called Cardassan . . . uh, Cardasaiann . . ."

"Cardassians," Tom added.

Rain shot him a grateful look. "Yeah. Thanks. Didn't your Federation just have a war with these Cardassians about . . . oh, five years ago?"

Again, Tom provided the correct answer. "Six or seven years ago." This time, Rain ignored him.

"But we're now at peace with the Cardassians," Harry explained. "The Federation signed a treaty with them about three years ago." Ken Dalby frowned. As a fellow ex-Maquis, I didn't blame him. Personally, I think the Federation should have dealt with the Cardassians when they had the chance.

And in typical Dalby fashion, Ken expressed what the rest of us former Maquis felt. "Not only did the Feds sign a treaty with the Cardies, they handed over their DMZ colonies in order to settle that treaty. A treaty that didn't have a chance of working out."

Rain nodded. "Yeah. I've read about that, too. Sort of reminds me of a certain event that happened on Earth, before my time."

None of us seemed to have any idea what Rain was talking about. Including Mr. Twentieth Century himself. A confused looking Harry asked her to be specific.

"I read how your Federation gave up those colonies to ensure peace with these Cardas-si-ans. It reminded me of how the British Prime Minister, Neville Chamberlain, signed a non-aggression pact with Hitler, allowing the latter to continue his conquest of smaller European nations in 1938. Chamberlain did all of this to avoid a war and yet, World War II began a year later."

Tom cried out, "I remember reading about that!" He failed to notice the dark glance from Harry. "Now that I think about it, you're right."

The 'Fleeters, with the exception of Megan Delaney, looked very upset. Especially Harry. Dalby naturally looked pleased by Rain's analogy. As for Tom . . . Let's just say that he seemed more enthralled by Miss Robinson herself, instead of what she had to say.

"You simply can't compare the Federation to this Chamberlain fellow," Harry declared in heated tones. "Especially since the Federation is still at peace with the Cardassians."

Rain shot back, "How do you know?"

A smug smile appeared on Ken's face. Golwait quietly excused herself. Megan remained seated. As for Harry - he opened his mouth to speak, but not a word came out. It didn't surprise me. After all, it has been two years since we were all thrown into the Delta Quadrant by the Caretaker. A lot could have happened in the Alpha Quadrant during that period. I never realized until this moment on how much Harry put the Federation on a pedestal.

"By the way," Rain added, "you also claimed that there was no poverty on Earth and . . ."

Harry nodded. "That's right."

". . . no crime. And yet," Rain continued, "you mean to tell me there is absolutely no crime on Earth? Including murder?"

Poor Harry. He looked as if he had walked into a trap. "We're not violent!" he declared.

"But you still have murder. Right? I mean, money isn't the only motive for all crimes. There are so many other emotions to deal with - lust, hatred, fear, you name it. I noticed that the Federation has a legal system."

Tom quietly added, "And prison." A faraway look had crept into his blue . . . I mean, his eyes. The ghost of prison in New Zealand seemed to have returned. I wonder if Rain knew about that aspect of his past? Or Caldik Prime?

Rain continued, "Look, what I'm trying to say is that this picture of Earth as 'Paradise' simply strikes me as being unrealistic. It might be a hell of a lot better than it was in my time. But from what I've read, it seemed far from perfect. And you've seemed to acquire a whole new set of problems over the past three centuries. Face it, there's no such thing as paradise. Your Federation just might be spouting propaganda."

Needless to say, Harry did not take Rain's little speech very well. I don't think even Golwat appreciated it and she wasn't Human. Since both were regular Starfleet officers and Federation citizens, naturally both took Rain's words very personal. Megan didn't. Which surprised me. Perhaps the Delaneys had a more realistic view of the world than your average Federation citizen. I know that Tom did. And Dalby, not surprisingly, gleefully agreed with Rain.

And me? I may have been a Starfleet officer for the past two years, but I've also been around. Like Dalby and Tom, I've seen too much of the Universe's dark side to view the Federation as paradise. Klingons believed that paradise awaits them in Sto-vo-kor. The Klingon afterlife. Judging from Rain's comments about no paradise on this plane of existence, I suspect that she would agree with them.

END OF BOOK III

”AUSTRALIA” Review

I might as well say it. I have never been a fan of director Baz Luhrmann’s films. ”STRICTLY BALLROOM” (1992) had failed to generate my interest. I could say the same about the 1996 version of ”ROMEO AND JULIET” As for ”MOULIN ROUGE” (2001), I loathe the highly acclaimed film. Considering my views on Luhrmann’s past films, I had no desire to see his latest endeavor – namely ”AUSTRALIA”, which stars Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman.

”AUSTRALIA” struck me as a character study of its three main characters – Lady Sarah Ashley, a British aristocrat who inherits her late husband’s cattle station (Kidman); her Drover (Jackman); and Nullah (Brandon Walters), the mixed blood child of Lady Ashley’s Aborigine maid and a white man. Written by Luhrmann, Stuart Beattie, Richard Flanagan and Ronald Harwood, this three-way character study focuses upon Lady Ashley’s attempts to maintain her fortune and cattle station, and keep her newly formed family together that includes Nullah and the Drover. Threatening Lady Ashley’s plans are a greedy cattle baron named King Carney (Bryan Brown), Australia’s ”Stolen Generation” policy regarding mixed blood children, World War II, the Drover’s emotional cowardice, the villainous machinations of a station manager named Neil Fletcher (David Wenham) and her own possessive nature. All of this is set against the epic backdrop of Australia’s Northern Territory between 1939 and 1942. The story reaches its apex in the Japanese bombing of Darwin on February 19, 1942.

If I must be frank, ”AUSTRALIA” is not the type of film I could see earning nominations for any major movie awards. Except for one possible category. It is not perfect film. Let me rephrase that. ”AUSTRALIA” struck me as the type of popcorn epic that would be more appreciated during the summer season. Personally, I would compare it to Michael Bay’s 2001 film, ”PEARL HARBOR”. Only the latter struck me as slightly superior. Thanks to Luhrmann’s direction and the screenplay he co-wrote with Beattie, Flanagan and Harwood, ”AUSTRALIA” had the bad luck to be marred by overblown melodrama that had seen its heyday in television soap operas like ”DYNASTY”. This seemed very apparent in the film’s last act that followed the Darwin bombing. Obstacle after contrived obstacle popped up endlessly to prevent Sarah Ashley, the Drover and Nullah from enjoying a tearful reunion.

Another aspect of the film that annoyed me was its first twenty minutes that introduced the main characters. Quite frankly, those early scenes baffled me. What exactly was Luhrmann trying to achieve? I found myself watching a badly acted spoof on costume epics or Australian culture with exaggerated performances by Kidman, Jackman and Jack Thompson, who portrayed Lady Ashley’s alcoholic accountant, Kipling Flynn. Speaking of Thompson, the poor man seemed truly wasted in this film. He only hung around long enough to give an over-the-top portrayal of a drunken man who ends up being killed by stampeding cattle. And all of this happened before the first hour.

Judging from the above, one would assume that I disliked ”AUSTRALIA”. Heartily. Guess what? I don’t. In fact, I found myself becoming a fan of the movie by the time the end credits rolled. How was that possible? Well, once Luhrmann’s tale rolled past that . . . bizarre first twenty minutes, it actually improved. To my utter surprise, I found myself getting caught up in Lady Ashley’s horror at the discovery of her husband’s murder, her growing affection for Nullah and the other hands on Faraway Downs, her new cattle station and her growing attraction toward the Drover. The movie’s first main action piece centered around Lady Ashley’s attempt to save her station with a cattle drive to Darwin. Not only does she develop a close relationship with Nullah, but falls in love with the Drover. And she also earns a strong enemy . . . not King Carney, the cattle baron who is determined to monopolize the cattle industry in the Northern Territory, but her husband’s former station manager who not only works for Carney, but longs to take possession of Faraway Downs for himself.

One of the amazing aspects about ”AUSTRALIA” is that the movie managed to provide an entertaining romance between two interesting, yet flawed people. Despite their hokey acting in the film’s opening sequences, Kidman and Jackman did a solid job in creating chemistry between Lady Ashley and the Drover – two people who seemingly had no business in becoming a couple. Kidman eventually portrayed Lady Ashley as a warm and passionate woman who was afraid to let go of those she loved. This Lady Ashley was a far cry from the ridiculously shrill woman that first arrived in Australia. And Jackman transformed the Drover from the blustery and macho Australian male archetype into a caring man who was also afraid to become emotional close to anyone. David Ngoombujarra gave solid support as the Drover’s close friend and colleague, Magarri. Well known actor-dancer David Gulpilil was very imposing and unforgettable as King George, a magic tribal leader suspected of killing Lady Ashley’s husband. And veteran actor Bryan Brown was very entertaining as the charismatic cattle baron, King Carney. Surprisingly, Brown’s character did not end up as the movie’s main antagonist. That task fell upon David Wenham, who portrayed Neil Fletcher, Lady Ashley’s station manager and later, business adversary. Recalling Richard Roxburgh’s over-the-top performance as the Duke of Monroth in ”MOULIN ROUGE!”, I had feared that Wenham would utilize the same approach. Thankfully, Wenham’s villainy turned out to be more nuanced and low key. He gave a perfect portrayal of an insecure man who not only harbored a deep resentment toward the more privileged types like Lady Ashley and King Carney, but was too racist to acknowledge his own half-white/half-Aborigine son, Nullah, who also happened to be tribal leader King George’s grandson. But the real star of ”AUSTRALIA” turned out to be the young Aborigine actor, Brandon Walters, who portrayed Nullah. All I can say is - where did Baz Luhrmann find this kid? He was phenomenal! This is the second movie in which Nicole Kidman found herself co-starring with an inexperienced, yet very talented child actor (the first being Dakota Blue Richards of ”THE GOLDEN COMPASS”). Walters, who turned out to be a very charismatic and talented young actor, literally stole the picture from his co-stars. And I suspect that must have been unusual thing to do in a movie that was nearly three hours long. Whether Walters prove to become a future star - only time will tell.

But ”AUSTRALIA” is not just about the characters. Luhrmann did a pretty good job of re-creating Northern Australia during the early years of World War II. And he received able support from people like Production Designer/Costume Designer Catherine Martin (Academy Award winner), Art Directors Ian Gracie and Karen Murphy, Cinematographer Mandy Walker, Special Effects Supervisors Aaron and Brian Cox, and Visual Effects Manager Katrin Arndt. I was especially impressed by Walker’s photography of Sydney, Bowen and Northern Australia locations such as Darwin and Kununurra. She did a beautiful job of capturing the rugged and dangerous cattle drive that dominated the movie’s first half. I also have to commend both her photography and Arndt’s special effects team for the sequence that featured the Japanese bombing of Darwin. My only quibble about the bombing sequence was that it did not last very long. Granted, ”AUSTRALIA” is not ”PEARL HARBOR” and its plot did not revolved around the Darwin attack as the latter film revolved around the December 7, 1941 attack in Hawaii. But, I must admit that I had been looking forward to a sequence with a little more depth than was shown.

The Japanese attack upon Darwin was not the only historical topic that dominated ”AUSTRALIA”. The movie also focused upon Australia’s policy toward those children of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent who were removed from their families by the Australian and State government agencies and church missions between 1869 and 1969. One of the victims of this policy turned out to be Nullah, who is Aboriginal on his mother. The movie featured three chilling scenes that conveyed how this particular policy affected Nullah’s life. The most chilling centered around Nullah and his mother’s attempt to hide from the local police inside Faraway Down’s water tower – an act that leads to his mother’s death by drowning.

I realize that ”AUSTRALIA” eould never be considered Best Picture material. Not even by me. Luhrmann had indulged in a little too much melodrama – especially in the film’s last half hour – to suit me. And I found the movie’s first half hour very confusing. I did not know whether Luhrmann had expected the audience to take it seriously or realize that he was trying to spoof epic movies or Australia in general. Whatever he was trying to achieve, I feel that he had made a piss poor effort. But as I had pointed out earlier, once Kidman’s character arrived at her late husband’s cattle station, the movie found its groove and Luhrmann proceeded to unveil an engrossing, yet entertaining epic tale.

"WHATEVER YOU DESIRE"

PART 4

(NOTE: This chapter is rated R and features sexual situations. Which is why it took me so damn long.)

Steam rose above the sherry brown liquid inside the punchbowl. Paige stared at it. "What is this?" she asked, wrinkling her nose.

"Glogg," Nathalie answered. "It's a Scandinavian punch. Very delicious. It's usually served around the Winter holidays. However, I don't think you should drink any of it. There's whiskey in it. And I had added a touch of Valerian in it to put everyone to sleep. At least for an hour or two. And I had also added some cloves and Cedar Wood to help cleanse out the potion." She filled four plastic cups with Glogg. "Okay, there's a cup for each of our prisoners, upstairs. And I'll deliver the rest of the punch to the other guests."

Both Paige and Cole grabbed two cups each, and disappeared from the kitchen. They reappeared in the middle of the second-floor corridor. "Okay," Cole said, "how do you want to handle this?"

"I'll give Phoebe and Paul their punch," Paige replied. "And you can provide the same service for the McNeills."

Anxiety flared in Cole's blue eyes. "Uh . . . maybe you should deal with Olivia."

A knowing smile curved Paige's mouth. "Why?" she asked in an innocent voice. She stared at the half-daemon.

"Because . . ." Much to Paige's delight, Cole squirmed with discomfort. Then, "Never mind. I'll deal with her, myself." Paige allowed herself a smile. Which disappeared after Cole's next words. "Oh, by the way, I noticed that you left me to deal with a certain young Harrison McNeill." Paige glanced up and saw the cryptic smile on Cole's lips.

She frowned. "And what's that supposed to mean? Are you saying that I'm trying to avoid Harry? Because I'm not." Cole's smile remained fixed. Paige added, "And did you just call him Harrison?"

"Yes. Harrison. Like in Harrison Ford," Cole said. "And I never said anything about you avoiding him. You did." He opened one of the doors and peaked inside. "Speak of the devil, he's in here. Are you sure you don't want to deliver his punch?" Paige glared at him. Cole's smile widened. "I guess the answer is no." He entered the room.

Paige walked over to the next room. She peeked inside and found Paul Margolin pacing back and forth. She entered and greeted the Assistant District Attorney with a cheerful, "Hey! How are you doing?"

Paul faced her, his expression marred by a scowl. "What the hell am I doing here?" he demanded angrily. "And why can't I get out?"

After a brief hesitation, Paige answered, "Uh . . . I think Cole may have cast some kind of spell to keep you from leaving. Sorry about that. Here." She handed Paul one of the cups of punch.

He glanced down at it. "What's this?"

"Glogg. Nathalie made some more punch. Only it's a hot punch. Some kind of Scandinavian drink. It's very good."

The male witch glanced at the punch for a second time and dismissed it. "I'm not thirsty. What I am is pissed off for being stuck in here. And finding out what Belthazor is up to."

"Paul, he's not up to anything," Paige assured him. "And his name is also Cole. As for the punch," she held out the cup, once more, "try it. Before it gets cold."

Paul ignored the offer. "You know, when Leo first told me about the job opening at the DA's Office, I had wondered why he seemed so eager for me to move to the West Coast. Now, I know why."

Paige frowned at Paul's words. "Did you just say . . .? Leo had told you about the job opening?"

"Well, yeah," Paul continued. "I didn't understand it myself, until I met Olivia. And Belthazor. I'm beginning to see that Leo needed me . . . to save Olivia from 'him'."

For a second, Paige wondered if the ADA had lost his mind. "Wait a minute," she demanded, "are you saying that Leo wanted you out here . . . to save Olivia from Cole?"

"Of course!" Paul retorted. "Don't you see?" He resumed his pacing. "Or understand? Olivia . . . she . . . God! I don't know how to begin to describe her. On the surface, she seems completely wrong for me. She's too independent. She doesn't respect the relationship between a whitelighter and a witch. She breaks the rules, all of the time. She's sarcastic and perverse. And worst of all, she's just a little too tolerant of the wrong kind of people. People - if you can put him in this category - like Belthazor. And yet," Paul's expression softened, "I love her so much. God help me, but I do. There's no one like her."

Paige stared uneasily at the other witch. "Yeah. Well, you've described Olivia to a T. Um, you still want some punch?"

Paul's next outburst nearly caused Paige to jump out of her skin. "I have to save her! I have to save Olivia. If Belthazor ever get the best of her . . ." He shook his head in despair. "It'll just be a repeat of what you and your sisters went through."

The mention of Cole and Phoebe's relationship sparked a brief flare of anger within Paige. Along with a touch of guilt over her own contributions to the couple's breakup. Paige took a deep breath and reminded herself on why she was here. Sporting a false smile, she held out the cup of punch, once more. "Well, while you're thinking of ways to save Olivia, why don't you have a drink?"

To Paige's relief, Paul took the cup.

* * * *

As Cole entered the bedroom, he found Harry sitting in a nearby chair, staring out of the window. The redhead glanced at the half-daemon, at the sound of the door closing. He stood up. "Finally! Someone! Why in the hell can't I get out of here?"

"After I had sent you here, I cast a spell to keep you inside and give you a chance to cool off. By the way," Cole held out the one cup of punch, "Nathalie made some more punch. Something called Glogg. Want to try it?"

Harry seemed more interested in a certain witch than punch. "Where's Paige?" he demanded. "Why didn't she come to see me?"

A sigh left Cole's mouth. "She's . . . uh, she's somewhere else. Look, why don't you try the punch?"

"Somewhere else?" Harry frowned. "She's with someone, isn't she? Who?"

"Harry . . ."

The youngest McNeill continued, "Oh God! I know! Paige doesn't want to see me, does she? I bet I came on too strong."

Cole stared at the witch. He noticed the lipstick smear on the younger man's mouth. Lipstick that happened to be Paige's particular shade of red. "God, you two really did kiss, didn't you? Or did you force . . .?"

"No! Nothing like that!" Harry protested. "It was nothing. Just a little kiss between the two of us." His face almost matched the coloring of his hair.

An amused smile quirked Cole's lips. "Well. That must have been some little kiss," he murmured. "I didn't realize that you were interested in Paige."

Looking outraged, Harry retorted, "Who said I was interested?" A pause followed before he continued, "Okay, so I am interested in her. But I don't have a chance, now that she's dating that Sonny Crockett look-a-like. What's his name? Ned."

"Nate," Cole corrected, still feeling amused.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Whatever. What does she see in this guy, in first place? Do you think this thing with Crockett Junior will last?"

"Why don't we cross our fingers and hope for the best? Meanwhile," Cole handed the cup of Glogg to Harry, "why don't you try this punch?"

Heaving a disappointed sigh, Harry took the cup and lifted it in the air. "Thanks. Here's hoping that Paige and Ned . . ."

"Nate."

"Yeah. Nate. Here's hoping that it won't last." Then to Cole's relief, Harry took a swig of Glogg.

* * * *

A disconcerted grumble reached Paige's ears, as she entered the second bedroom. "Well, it's about time!" Phoebe cried. "Where have you been?"

Paige glanced around the room. Judging by its size and furnishing, she suspected that it belonged to the mistress of the house. She smiled at her older sister. "Hey Pheebs! How is it going?"

"Why can't I get out of here?" Good old Pheebs. Always to the point.

"I don't know," Paige replied. "I think that Cole must have added some barrier spell or shield to keep you from leaving. I mean, you guys were acting pretty weird."

Outrage poured out of Phoebe's mouth, as she denied any kind of strange behavior on her part. "It's not my fault! Olivia was the one acting like a bitch! You should have seen the way she had tore into that Winifred woman. And me!"

"Uh, Pheebs? May I remind you that you tried to punch Olivia? You're lucky that all she did was toss you on the floor."

Phoebe huffily retorted, "I was holding back!"

"Yeah. Sure Phoebe." Paige held back a sigh. Poor Phoebe. Delusional, as always. "Anyway, here. Try this." She held out the cup of punch.

Phoebe demanded, "What's that?"

"Glogg." Paige explained that after Nathalie had ran out of cordial for her Raspberry Sunset, she decided to make something different. "It's one of those Scandinavian hot punches. Although I think your cup is only warm by now. Try it."

Phoebe took the cup and murmured, "Thanks." She took a sip. "Hmmm, not bad."

"Really?" The moment she uttered the word, Paige realized that she had made a mistake. The older stared at her with suspicious eyes. Paige quickly added, "I didn't get to try it. Whiskey. But Paul thought it was great."

Nodding, Phoebe took another sip. "Speaking of Paul, is he in another room?"

Paige cheerfully replied, "How did you know?" Phoebe gave her another sharp glance. The younger sister added, "He was acting a little hostile toward Cole. And I think he was getting on Olivia's nerves."

"She really doesn't appreciate him," Phoebe commented. "I think he's too good for her." She sipped once more.

"Who? Paul?"

Phoebe nodded. "Yeah. Did you see how she treated him? Like annoying pest. He's ten times the witch she is. And he's a hell of a better prospect than someone like Cole."

"Then why don't you date him?" The sarcastic remark came out of Paige's mouth before she could stop herself.

"What?"

Paige quickly added, "I'm just saying that I think Olivia is better off without the noble ADA. The guy's weird, Phoebe."

"Are you saying that Olivia should be with Cole?" an incredulous Phoebe demanded. "Have you forgotten what I had to go through, because of him? What we all had to go through?"

Paige sighed. Heavily. "God, Phoebe! Do we have to go through this, again?"

"Cole is dangerous, Paige! Look at the mess he had caused, downstairs."

Rolling her eyes, Paige replied, "Cole didn't cause that mess, Pheebs! It was that Winifred Whatshername. She tried to hit on Cole. She even tried with Paul. And it was Olivia who came down on her in a jealous fit. And don't forget that not only did you try to interfere; you even tried to get Cole to admit that he still loves you. And what's up with that?"

"Well, it's the truth!" Phoebe angrily insisted. "Cole still loves me! In a sick, twisted way, of course. He's only hanging around Olivia to make me jealous."

Paige regarded her sister with sad eyes. "Oh Phoebe."

"What? Why are you looking at me, like that?" Anxiety filled Phoebe's dark eyes. "Are you saying that I still love Cole?" She finished the rest of her Glogg.

Reluctantly, Paige opened her mouth. "Well . . ."

"Well, forget it!" Phoebe retorted. Then she paused, as guilt crept into her expression. "All right. Maybe I am. But there can never be anything between us. Don't you understand, Paige? Cole is dangerous for me. He's too dangerous for Olivia. And you."

What the hell? Paige stared at her sister, as if the latter had lost her mind. "What are you talking about, Phoebe? I'm not in love with Cole!"

"But you're his friend." Phoebe approached the younger woman with concerned eyes. "Paige, try to understand. Cole is not a safe person to be around. Maybe you should . . . you . . ." She began to weave back and forth. Then she gave Paige another suspicious stare. "What . . . what was in . . . this punch?" The empty cup slipped out of her hand, before she fell forward - onto the bed.

Paige sighed and picked up the cup. She stared at the sprawled figure on the bed. Poor Phoebe, she thought. Mixed up and unhappy, as always. It did not surprise Paige that her sister remained in love with Cole. But she wondered if by rejecting him, Phoebe had made a colossal mistake. Paige also wondered if Olivia was doomed to follow in her sister's footsteps.

* * * *

Cole allowed himself one last glance at the slumbering Harry, before he closed the bedroom door behind him. He found Paige leaving another room. "So, how is our favorite ADA?" he asked the half-witch/whitelighter.

"Fast asleep," Paige answered. "And so is Phoebe."

"Phoebe?" Cole frowned. "You were coming from her room?"

Paige nodded. "Well, yeah. You're finished with both Harry and Olivia, right?"

Cole explained that he had only seen Harry. It had taken quite a while for the portion to affect the youngest McNeill. As Paige started toward the staircase, Cole added, "Where are you going?"

"Hel-lo? Back downstairs?" the Charmed One replied. "To help Nathalie with the others guests. Why?"

After a brief hesitation, Cole continued, "Well, I . . . I was wondering if you could . . ." He noticed the amused glimmer in Paige's dark eyes and realized that she knew . . . that he wanted her to give the last cup of punch to Olivia.

A smile now tugged Paige's lips. "If I could do what?" she asked.

Cole took in the smirk and Paige's amused expression. He heaved a sigh. "Nothing. Never mind. I'll . . . see you later." Paige turned away and resumed her walk toward the staircase. Another sigh left Cole's mouth. He squared his shoulders and entered the remaining bedroom.

The moment he entered, Olivia bounced from the large bed and rushed toward the half-dAemon. "Cole!" he cried. Relief throbbed in her voice. "Thank goodness you're here! I can't seem to leave this room!" She threw herself into his arms.

Gently, Cole kept Olivia at arms' length. "I had cast a barrier spell to keep you guys inside. You were . . . acting pretty strange."

"What do you mean we were acting strange?" a frowning Olivia asked. "How?"

Cole opened his mouth to speak, but he found himself unable to bring up her fight with Phoebe. Or the confession that had taken everyone by surprise - especially him. He shook his head. "It's nothing. You and Phoebe were about to get into it."

"You mean that I was about to kick her ass." A bright smile lit up her beautiful face. "Right?" She moved closer to Cole. "But let's not talk about Phoebe. I'd rather talk about us." Olivia now stood less than an inch away from Cole.

Desperate to ignore the warmth radiating from the redhead's body - and his own growing desire - Cole held out the last cup of punch. "Before we do, how about a nice cup of Glogg? Nathalie had decided to make something new."

Olivia touched the side of the cup. "Isn't this supposed to be a hot drink?"

"Wait a minute." Cole waved one hand over the drink. A stream of fire briefly touched the surface. When he finally handed the cup to Olivia, steam rose from it. "Here you go."

"Where's your cup?" Olivia asked.

Cole's eyes widened in surprise. "Huh?" He glanced down at his hands. "Oh. Uh, just a minute." A second later, he held another plastic cup. Only it was not filled with Glogg. Cole raised the cup to his lips. "Well, cheers." He quickly drained the Seven-Up, inside.

Olivia blinked. "Wow! You really must be thirty. Oh well." She took a drink of her Glogg. "Hmmm," she said between sips, "not bad. And I even like the bits of almond." Then she drank the rest of her punch and placed the empty cup on the small table, next to the bed.

Cole observed her closely. "How do you feel?" he asked.

A sultry smile curved Olivia's lips. She closed the space between them and slipped her arms around Cole's neck. "Ask me in another half-hour from now."

"Uh . . . Olivia, what are you . . .?"

"Doing?" she finished. The redhead planted a light kiss on Cole's nose. "What do you think?"

Cole felt himself grow tight, between his legs. He gulped. "Olivia, I don't think this is a good ide . . ." Slim fingers began to unfasten his shirt buttons. After she had unfastened three, Olivia leaned forward and lightly kissed the patch of flesh, just below his throat. Cole felt himself grow even tighter. "Olivia . . ."

"Shhhh. Relax," she murmured. "What do you think I'm going to do? Hurt you?" She kissed him again.

"Olivia . . ." Cole paused, as Olivia's mouth captured his lower lip and tugged. "Olivia, this is not a good idea. Not now."

She slowly forced Cole to step back, until he found himself falling on the bed. He let out a grunt, as Olivia's body landed upon his. "What's not a good idea?" she murmured. "This?" After unfastening more of his buttons, she pushed back his shirt, exposing his chest. Then she flicked her tongue across the tip of one of Cole's nipple. He shivered.

"Oh God!" he moaned.

Her mouth hovering over his nipple, Olivia murmured, "Hmmmm, you don't say." Then she covered said appendage with her lips and tugged and suckled it, simultaneously. Her ministrations drove the heat of Cole's desire several degrees higher. Olivia's lips then traveled down the center of his chest, until they reached the edge of his waistline. Just as she began to unfasten his belt, all reason left Cole, as he grabbed her waist and flipped her onto her back.

"Well, this is unexpected," Olivia said in a surprised tone.

Cole murmured, "Shut up." Then he stared briefly into green eyes that matched the desire he felt, before lowering his mouth upon hers. Cole kissed her with as much passion, as he could possible mustered. And judging from Olivia's response, it seemed to be a lot. Her mouth parted slightly and he slid his tongue inside, allowing it to touch hers. While they explored each other's mouth, Cole slowly unbuttoned Olivia's blouse. She moaned slightly, as his hand gently cupped a lace-covered breast. Cole's lips disengaged from Olivia's momentarily. He glanced at her lacy bra and noticed something different. "Oh, a clasp in the front." Breathing heavily, he released the clasp and pushed back the bra, revealing a pair of fleshy globes that quivered before his eyes.

While he marveled at Olivia's breasts, he noted that they were perfectly shaped. Not to big and not too small. A perfect size 38. "What are you staring at?" she growled seductively. "Come here." Olivia grabbed the back of Cole's head and guided him toward her lips for a deep and passionate kiss. Then Cole removed his lips from hers, stared deeply into her glittering eyes, and took one protruding, coral-colored nipple into his mouth and gently began to suckle. Olivia arched her back and moaned out loud. As he continued to form wet circles around the tips of Olivia's breasts, one of her hands strayed back to his belt and began to unfasten it. Then she unzipped his pants and slipped the said hand inside. Cole's body nearly bucked upward, as he felt her fingers wrap around his member. She gently squeezed him several times, and Cole felt his body growing hotter and hotter. Then he decided that two could play at this game. He slipped his own hand underneath Olivia's skirt. She moaned again, while he caressed a smooth thigh. Reveling in the warm flesh, Cole allowed his hand to slide upward, until he reached Olivia's panties. He slid his hand inside the garment that was now damp and Olivia's moans grew louder. Just as he was about to slip two fingers inside her, Cole's eyes fell upon the empty plastic cup on the night table. And remembered why he was here.

Cole took a deep breath - barely impossible, with her hand still around his member, and removed his own hand from between her legs. "Olivia," he murmured in a low, harsh voice. He removed Olivia's hand from inside his trousers. "We have to . . . stop."

"Wha . . .?" Confusion and disappointment whirled in Olivia's green eyes. "Why did you stop?" she demanded breathlessly.

Staring into those eyes, Cole found himself unable to speak. When he finally regained his voice, he said, "Look . . . I . . . don't think . . ." A sigh left his mouth and he tore his gaze away from Olivia.

"Cole? Is there something wrong?" Olivia clutched at his arm. "You're not going to walk away from me again, are you?"

Memories of that New Year kiss flashed in Cole's mind. He did not want a repeat of that little debacle - the kiss, his flight and Olivia's anger, which had lasted for nearly three weeks. But that cup on the night table reminded him that Olivia was under the influence of Nathalie's potion and not in her right mind. He almost came close to taking advantage of her. And it was the last thing he wanted to do.

Taking another breath, Cole reached down to push Olivia's red curls away from her forehead. "Look, Olivia. I want to be with you. More than you can possibly know. It's just . . . well, now is simply not the right time."

"Why the hell not?" Olivia demanded.

"Olivia . . ."

Before Cole could say another word, Olivia captured his mouth with her own. Lips and tongues soon danced together, to form another passionate kiss. As his reluctance dissipated, Cole again allowed one of his hands to slide up Olivia's thigh. Before he could do anything further, he felt her body relax. Olivia flopped back on the bed and drifted into a deep sleep.

Cole removed his hand from her thigh. He slowly scrambled off the bed and began to fasten his shirt buttons. His eyes took note of Olivia's face and her half-naked state. With a wave of his hand, she was fully clothed again. Then he heaved a regretful sigh and left the room.

END OF PART 4

Here is a gallery featuring photos from the movie called "FROST/NIXON".  Based upon the 2006 play by Peter Morgan, the movie starred Frank Langella as former President Richard Nixon and Michael Sheen as journalist/talk show host David Frost, and was directed by Ron Howard.

 

"FROST/NIXON" Photo Gallery

"LOST":  The Island Guru

There have been countless number of character essays and theories posted by ”LOST” fans about Island Destiny Man – John Locke (Terry O’Quinn). Quite frankly, I have only read a small number of those articles. But recently, I have been watching some of the series’ episodes from Seasons One and Two. After viewing some of them, I have grown aware of a certain trait of Locke’s that I find annoying.

When John Locke’s back story was first introduced in the episode, (1.04) “Walkabout”, viewers discovered that he had been a wheelchair bound employee of a box company in Tustin, California. Viewers eventually discovered that Locke was the illegitimate son of the fifteen year-old Emily Locke and a con artist named Anthony Cooper. Locke spent most of his childhood and a great deal of his adult years longing to be a man of action and someone special. He spent those years honing his skills as a hunter and gathering a great deal of knowledge on so many subjects.

On September 22, 2004; John Locke had traveled to Australia to participate in a ”walkabout tour” that would allow him to ”live in the wilderness” for a certain period of time with a group of tourists. Employees of the Melbourne Walkabout Tours took one look at Locke’s disabled state and refused to accept him on one of their tours. Forced to return home to California, Locke boarded the Oceanic Airlines Flight 815 that would take him from Sydney, Australia to Los Angeles, California. Only he and his fellow passengers never reached United States soil. Instead, they found themselves stranded on a mysterious island in the South Pacific. Locke also discovered that the island had somehow cured his crippled legs. From this moment on, Locke became an acolyte of the island. And judging from his interactions with characters like Charlie Pace and Boone Carlyle, he searched for his own band of acolytes to share his beliefs.

Locke spent most of Season One helping the castaways survive those first 44 days on the island and offer them sage advice. He also had two encounters with a mysterious smoke monster, became the survivors’ “great white hunter”, helped Boone Carlyle deal with unhealthy for his stepsister, Shannon Rutherford, helped Charlie Pace kick a heroin addiction and convinced spinal surgeon Jack Shephard to assume leadership of the castaways. This all changed in the episode, (1.19) “Ex Deux Machina”, when Locke and Boone discovered a Nigerian plane filled with heroin and bodies in the jungle. In that episode, he had convinced Boone to crawl into the plane to examine it. Because he had failed to inform Boone that he had a prophetic dream that the plane would lead to Boone’s death, he lied to Jack about the true situation of Boone’s wounds after the actual accident. From that moment on, the series began to unravel even more of Locke’s less admirable traits. Many fans and even actor Terry O’Quinn have expressed regret that Locke had not remained the wise, self-assured man from Season One.

But my recent viewings of some of the Season One and Season Two episodes have led me to wonder if Locke’s ”self-assuredness” had been nothing more than a façade. Also, that same self-assuredness seemed to have revealed a trait within Locke that I found personally distasteful. Superficially, John Locke’s willingness to help others like Charlie and Boone seemed may have seemed admirable. It certainly did to many viewers. No one has ever complained about his “methods” in helping those two. And for me, his methods in helping Charlie and Boone has made me wonder if John Locke was – like Jack Shephard – a slightly bullying and controlling man.

Charlie Pace
I had first noticed these traits in Locke during the Season One episode, (1.06) “House of the Rising Sun”. This episode’s subplot featured an expedition in which Jack, Charlie, Kate Austen and Locke examined a large cavern as a provision for housing and water for the castaways. While alone with Charlie, Locke took the opportunity to reveal his knowledge of the musician’s heroin habit:

[We see Charlie walking away from caves trying to take drugs out of his pocket, looking behind him. But Locke is coming from the opposite direction.]
CHARLIE: Listen to me, you old git, I'm going in the jungle. A man has a right to some privacy.
LOCKE: Just hand it to me. You're going to run out. My guess is sooner rather than later. Painful detox is inevitable. Give it up now at least it will be your choice.
CHARLIE: Don't talk to me like you know something about me.
LOCKE: I know a lot more about pain than you think. I don't envy what you're facing. But I want to help. [Charlie walks away]. Do you want your guitar?
[Charlie turns and comes back.]
LOCKE: More than your drug?
CHARLIE: More than you know.
LOCKE: What I know is that this island might just give you what you're looking for, but you have to give the island something.
CHARLIE [giving Locke the drugs]: You really think you can find my guitar?
LOCKE: Look up, Charlie.
CHARLIE: You're not going to ask me to pray or something.
LOCKE: I want you to look up.
[Charlie looks up and almost cries when he sees his guitar on a cliff above.]

Judging from the above scene, Locke’s idea of helping Charlie was to insist that the latter hand over the remaining heroin he had left. He insisted. That was Locke’s initial idea of helping Charlie. Knowing the location of Charlie’s guitar, which the latter valued more than anything, Locke then maneuvered Charlie into giving up the drugs in return for the guitar.

In the following episode, (1.07) “The Moth”, Charlie had demanded that Locke return his drugs – which the former agreed to do – ONLY when the former asked for the third time:

[Shot of Charlie running from a boar. Some luggage falls, the boar is trapped in a large net trap.]
LOCKE: Nice work, Charlie. You make excellent bait.
CHARLIE [angrily]: I'm glad I could oblige. Now give me my bloody drugs.

Act 2
CHARLIE: Did you hear what I said? I want my drugs back. I need 'em.
LOCKE: Yet you gave them to me. Hmm.
CHARLIE: And I bloody well regret it. I'm sick, man. Can't you see that?
LOCKE: I think you're a lot stronger than you know, Charlie. And I'm going to prove it to you. I'll let you ask me for your drugs three times. The third time, I'm going to give them to you. Now, just so we're clear, this is one.
CHARLIE: Why? Why? Why are you doing this? To torture me? Just get rid of them and have done with it?
LOCKE: If I did that you wouldn't have a choice, Charlie. And having choices, making decisions based on more than instinct, is the only thing that separates you from him [indicating the boar].

Now I realize that Locke simply wanted to help Charlie. And I realize that he honestly believe that he was giving Charlie a choice. But if that was John Locke’s idea of a choice, he could keep it, as far as I am concerned. I found Locke’s idea of giving someone a choice rather boorish and controlling. He did not simply give Charlie a choice. What Locke did was manipulate Charlie into making a choice . . . but only on his terms. If Locke really wanted Charlie to utilize his free will to make a choice – one way or the other – about the heroin, he should have given Charlie the heroin when the latter first asked. Some fans have argued that Charlie would have never given up the heroin if Locke had handed it over right away. My answer to that is . . . tough shit. Seriously. Charlie should have made the decision to either continue taking the heroin or stop using . . . on his own. Without Locke’s interference or manipulation.

In the Season One finale, (1.24) “Exodus II”, Charlie accompanied Sayid in a search for Danielle Rousseau, a long time castaway who had kidnapped Aaron Littleton in order to exchange him for her own kidnapped daughter. During that search, the pair came across a Nigerian plane with dead bodies and Virgin Mary statuettes filled with heroin. In a weak moment, Charlie took one of the statuettes behind Sayid’s back. It turned out to be the first of many trips in which Charlie ended up filching a statuette or two, until he managed to build up quite a collection. The ironic thing is that Charlie managed to refrain from using heroin in his possession. Claire Littleton – Aaron’s mother, Mr. Eko and eventually Locke discovered in Season Two’s (2.10) “The 23rd Psalm” and (2.12) “Fire and Water’ that Charlie had possession of the statuettes. This, along with Charlie’s frantic concern and actions over Aaron, led Locke to assume that Charlie had resumed using drugs again:

CHARLIE: Hey, John, can I talk to you for a second?
LOCKE: Yeah, what is it, Charlie?
CHARLIE: I take it you heard about what happened last night.
LOCKE: If you mean you taking the baby out of Claire's tent in the middle of the night -- yeah, I heard.
CHARLIE: This whole thing was a big misunderstanding, John. I was sleepwalking. I don't how or why --
LOCKE: Is there something you want from me, Charlie?
CHARLIE: I was hoping you could speak to Claire for me. You know, put in a good word.
LOCKE: Are you using?
CHARLIE: What?
LOCKE: Heroin. Are you using again?
CHARLIE: Kate sees a horse -- nothing. Pretty much everybody's seen Walt wondering around the jungle. But when it's Charlie it must be the bloody drugs, right?

Charlie did lie about having the drugs in his possession. But he had been telling the truth about using. When Locke found Charlie’s stash of statuettes, he reacted in the following manner:

[Back on the Island, Charlie holds a couple of baggies of heroin in his hand.]
LOCKE [suddenly, off camera at first]: I'm disappointed in you, Charlie.
CHARLIE: You following me?
LOCKE: How long have you been coming out here?
CHARLIE: John, you've got the wrong idea, man.
LOCKE: You said you destroyed them all, and yet here they are. How is that the wrong idea?
CHARLIE: I came out here to finish the job. I'm going to get rid of these right now.
LOCKE: Yeah, that's very convenient now that I found you. [Locke goes to the statues with his pack.]
CHARLIE: What are you doing?
LOCKE [putting the statues in his pack]: There was a time when I let you choose whether or not you were going to do this to yourself. Now I'm making that choice for you.
CHARLIE: Oh, you don't believe me? Give them to me. Give them to me right now; I'll destroy them. Look. [He breaks up the baggies in his hand] I'll throw them in the sodding wind. Look, John, I know I lied, alright. [Locke starts walking away] Wait, wait, wait. Remember all those talks we had, you and me? You said everything happens for a reason -- this island tests us. That's what this is, John, at test. This is my test. That's why these are here.
LOCKE: These are here because you put them here, Charlie. [Locke starts to leave again.]
CHARLIE: Wait, John, wait. [Charlie grabs Locke's arm, and Locke angrily breaks free.] What are you going to do? Are you going to tell Claire? You can't. If she sees them, I'm done. She'll never trust me again, and she has to, John. It's about the baby, alright? Aaron's in danger. You have to believe me.
LOCKE: You've given up the right to be believed, Charlie.

Now, I can understand how Locke would be pissed off that Charlie had lied to him about having the statuettes. But the manner in which he took possession of them reminded me of a bullying parent. At that moment, Locke decided that he would do something about Charlie’s drug problem by taking away the heroin without the latter’s permission. Like a parent would act toward an errant child. All Locke could have done was express disappointment at Charlie for the latter’s lies. But he behaved as if he had the right to take the drugs away . . . and ”make the choice” for Charlie to stop using. The sad thing is that Charlie allowed him to get away with such controlling behavior.

Booone Carlyle
By mid Season One, John Locke found another disciple to mentor. It all began when Charlie and a very pregnant Claire had been kidnapped by a spy for the Others – Ethan Rom – in the episode (1.10) “Raised By Another”. In the following episode, (1.11) “All the Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues”, a party that included Locke, Jack, Kate Austen and a wedding planner named Boone Carlyle set off into the jungle in search of the two kidnapped castaways. Eventually, the quartet split into two teams when Kate revealed that she also had tracking skills. Jack and Kate formed one team, and Locke and Boone formed the other. And at this moment, the master/apprentice relationship between the latter pair was born.

This relationship between Locke and Boone lasted approximately eight to nine episodes – between ”All the Best Cowboys Have Daddy Issues” and (1.19) “Ex Deux Machina”. During this period, Locke and Boone discovered a steel door to the hatch (Swan Station) that would dominate Season Two. The two men spent several episodes trying to find ways to open the hatch, while lying to the castaways that they were on expeditions hunt for boar. These expeditions were briefly postponed in the episode, (1.13) “Hearts and Minds”, when Boone decided to tell Shannon about the discovered hatch:

BOONE: Look, at least I've got to tell Shannon.
LOCKE: Why?
BOONE: What do mean, why? She's my sister.
LOCKE: Why do you care about her so much?
BOONE: You don't know her man. She's smart, she's special in a lot of ways.
LOCKE: Fair enough.
BOONE: She's been asking me about this. I can't keep lying to her.
LOCKE: You mean you can't keep lying to her, or you can't stand the way she makes you feel because you're lying to her?
BOONE: Both. Whatever. Look, she can keep a secret.
LOCKE: You're sure?
BOONE: Yes, I'm sure.
LOCKE: No, I mean, are you sure you want to do this?
BOONE: I've got to get her off my back. She keeps asking me about this, she keeps asking me about you, about the whole thing.
LOCKE: You're sure you've thought through the ramifications?
BOONE: Yes.
LOCKE: So be it.
[Boone turns around, Locke clocks him with a knife handle.]

After this surprising moment, Locke tied Boone to a tree and used drugs to force the latter to experience a vision quest :

[Shot of Boone tied up. Locke is mixing the stuff in the bowl.]
BOONE: Locke, what is this? Do you hear me? Untie me right now.
LOCKE: Or what?
BOONE: I swear I won't tell anyone about the hatch thing, okay? I promise.
LOCKE: I'm doing this, Boone, because it's time for you to let go of some things. Because it's what's best for you. And, I promise, you're going to thank me for this later.
BOONE: Hey, I don't think this is best for me. [Locke smears the stuff he's been mixing onto the wound on Boone's head.] What is that?
LOCKE: An untreated wound, out here, is going to get infected.
BOONE: You're not going to just leave me here.
LOCKE: Whether you stay is up to you. The camp is 4 miles due west.
BOONE: Which way is west?
[Locke throws a knife into the ground, just out of Boone's reach.]
LOCKE: You'll be able to cut yourself free once you have the proper motivation.
BOONE: Locke!
[Boone is struggling in the ropes, trying to reach the knife.]
BOONE: Help, help!

Locke claimed that he was forcing Boone to submit to a vision quest ”for his own good”. Perhaps helping Boone find closure in his relationship with Shannon had been on his mind. But I find it interesting that Locke had decided to manipulate Boone into this situation after the latter decided to reveal the secret about the hatch. And regardless of whether Locke truly had Boone’s interests at heart or not, he really had no business forcing Boone into that situation in the first place. No wonder the younger man attacked Locke upon returning to the camp.

It all worked out in the end. Locke’s enforced ”vision quest” convinced Boone to leave Shannon alone and allow her to continue her romance with Sayid. More importantly – at least for Locke – the two men continued to maintain the secret of the hatch within the next six to seven episodes. However, Boone never really forgotten Locke’s heavy-handed method of coercing him into a vision question. He made this perfectly clear in ”Ex Deux Machina”:

[The scene switches to Boone and Locke at the hatch.]
LOCKE: I had a dream last night. I asked for a sign and then I saw a plane crash—a Beechcraft [pointing] right out there. It was a dream, but it was the most real thing I've ever experienced. I know where to go now.
BOONE: Go for what?
LOCKE: To find what we need to open this bastard up.
BOONE: Have you been using that wacky paste stuff that made me see my sister get eaten?
LOCKE [laughing]: No, no.
BOONE: Because, John, I've got to tell you—signs and dreams...

In the end, Boone paid a heavy price for becoming John Locke’s protégée . . . assistant . . . or however you want to call him. In the same episode, Locke dreamt of the following - a Beechcraft plane crashing, as well as his mother pointing in its direction; a blood-stained Boone; being confined to his wheelchair and a woman from Boone's past who had died from a fall. As shown in the above passage, Locke did reveal some of his dream to the younger man. Unfortunately, he failed to tell Boone about seeing the latter covered in blood. With Locke’s legs temporarily paralyzed, he urged Boone to climb into the Beechcraft. The younger man managed to briefly contact someone via the plane’s radio (it turned out to be Bernard Nadler from the Tail Section of Flight 815) before the plane fell over and severely injured Boone. Locke managed to regain the use of his legs and carry Boone back to camp. But since he had failed to inform Jack about the nature of Boone’s injuries, the latter eventually died in the next episode, (1.20) “Do No Harm”.

Other Castaways
Charlie Pace and Boone Carlyle were not the only survivors of Oceanic Flight 815 to whom Locke had volunteered his advice. In (1.14) “Special”, he tried to give parenting tips to Michael Dawson on how to handle the latter’s ten year-old son, Walt Lloyd. Being older than Charlie and Boone, and resentful of Locke’s growing relationship with Walt, Michael angrily rejected Locke’s advice. Ironically, I sympathized with Michael. God knows he barely knew anything about being a parent, considering Walt’s mother kept Michael away the ten year-old away from him. But Michael had never asked for Locke’s advice or sympathetic ear. And the older man did not help matters by attempting to teach Walt on how to throw a machete without Michael’s permission.

Locke’s relationship with spinal surgeon Jack Shephard is practically legendary amongst ”LOST” fans. And yet, their relationship had begun on a harmless note when Locke informed Jack that most of the castaways regarded him as their leader. This was Locke’s way of convincing Jack to accept the mantle of leadership. In the end, Locke grew to regret the advice he had given for by Season Two, he ended up clashing with Jack over the leadership of the castaways. Which I did not found surprising, considering that both men shared a penchant for controlling others . . . in their own fashion.

There have been other instances in which Locke inflicted his own will against the desires and choices of others . . . or manipulated others. In ”The Moth”, he prevented Sayid from setting up a signal to help the castaways get rescued. He committed a similar act in Season Three’s (3.13) “The Man From Tallahassee”, when he blew up the submarine that the Others had provided for Jack’s departure from the island. In (3.19) “The Brig”, Locke manipulated James “Sawyer” Ford into murdering his own father, Anthony Cooper. It seemed that Cooper had conned Sawyer’s family of their money back in the 1970s – an act that drove Mr. Ford to commit the double act of murder/suicide. And in the Season Three finale, (3.24) “Through the Looking Glass II”, Locke murdered island newcomer Naomi Dorrit in cold blood to prevent her from signaling her companions from an offshore freighter.

For me, there is one scene that truly symbolized the conflicting and sometimes hypocritical nature of John Locke. In Season Two’s (2.11) “The Hunting Party”, Locke and Jack had discovered that Michael had left the camp in a desperate search to find Walt, who had been kidnapped by the Others in ”Exodus II”. And the two eventually clashed over how to react over Michael’s desperate flight:

LOCKE: Doesn't seem to be -- trail's as straight as the interstate -- the path of a man who knows where he's going. [Locke stares at Jack a moment] Where are you going, Jack?
JACK: What?
LOCKE: Well, let's say we catch up with him, Michael. What are you going to do?
JACK: I'm going to bring him back.
LOCKE: What if he doesn't want to come back?
JACK: I'll talk him into coming back.
LOCKE: This is the second time he's gone after Walt. He knocked me out; he locked us both up. Something tells me he might be past listening to reason.
JACK: What? You think we should just let him go -- write him off?
LOCKE: Who are we to tell anyone what they can or can't do?

What exactly did Locke say to Jack? Oh yes . . . ”Who are we to tell anyone what they can or can’t do?” I found the comment a very ironic comment for John Locke to make, considering his past history with Charlie, Boone and Michael. Judging from the above dialogue, Locke seemed to be a fervent believer in free will and choices. Yet, he seemed incapable of practicing what he was preaching. Despite his belief in free will and free choices, I suspect that John Locke suffered from a malady that afflict many human beings – namely a desire to inflict one’s will or control over others. Power over another is a heady drug and many would bend over backwards or make any excuse to indulge in that desire. A very popular excuse, at least with Locke, seemed to be that he had acted for the greater good on behalf of his fellow castaways – regardless of whether they had asked for his help or not. From what I have seen of Locke’s character over the series’ past four seasons, he reminds of a certain type of character who has appeared in many forms of literature over years. This type happens to an individual who has exercised very little control over his/her life and who has spent most of his/her life being manipulated by others. This has certainly been true of Locke’s character in his relationships with his parents, employers and other acquaintances. Especially his father. This could explain why given the opportunity, Locke never hesitated to make decisions for others without their consent or manipulate them with a Draconian touch that seems rather sinister.

The ironic thing is I have rarely come across any criticisms regarding Locke’s penchant for inflicting his will upon others. Many fans have complained about his willingness to be manipulated by others, especially his father Anthony Cooper and leader of the Others, Ben Linus. Some fans have complained about his obsession over the island and his long-running feud with Jack. But I do not recall coming across any complaints about his actions with Boone in ”Hearts and Mind”. And many have complimented him for the way he dealt with Charlie’s drug addiction in Season One. I wish I could share in this adulation, considering that Charlie did give up his heroin addiction. But I cannot. I believe that Locke – and possibly many fans – was more focused upon the endgame, instead of the journey. What I am trying to say is that Locke seemed so intent upon achieving a goal – whether it was to get Charlie to give up drugs or convince Boone in getting over Shannon – that he failed to realize that such goals required a great deal of work on their parts. I would have been more impressed if both Charlie and Boone had come to the realization that they needed to get over their desires and obsessions on . . . their . . . own, or made the decision to achieve these goals without being manipulated by Locke. But since Locke had decided to interfere in the lives of both men, he pretty much robbed them of their struggles.

After reading this article, one would believe that I dislike John Locke. I do not. Frankly, I consider him to be one of the most fascinating characters on ”LOST”. Like many other fans, I bought into that image of him as this mysterious and all wise man who not only understood the island better than the characters, but also understood them and their situation better than them. What I had failed to realize back in Season One that underneath the persona of the all wise island guru, John Locke was an insecure man whose enthusiasm over being healed by the island led him to interfere and manipulate the lives of some of his fellow castaways. This enthusiasm not only led him to wallow in a delusion that he knew all there was to know about life, it also hid the fact that as an individual, Locke still had a long way to go in achieving self-realization.