Will iconic images recorded in the grooves of an ancient vase unite the Holy Land or rip it further apart?

THE VASE

A novel by Mark M. DeRobertis

Muhsin Muhabi is a Palestinian potter, descended from a long line of potters. His business is run from the same shop owned by his ancestors since the day his forebears moved to Nazareth. The region's conflict saw the death of his oldest son, and rogue terrorists are in the process of recruiting his youngest in their plot to assassinate the Pope and Israeli prime minister.

Professor Hiram Weiss is an art historian at Nazareth’s Bethel University. He is also a Shin Bet operative on special assignment. With the help of fellow agent, Captain Benny Mathias, he plans to destroy the gang responsible for the death of his wife and only child. He puts a bomb in the ancient vase he takes on loan from Muhsin’s Pottery Shop.

Mary Levin, the charming assistant to the director of Shin Bet, has lost a husband and most of her extended family to recurring wars and never-ending terrorism. She dedicates her life to the preservation of Israel, but to whom will she dedicate her heart? The brilliant professor from Bethel University? Or the gallant captain who now leads Kidon?

Harvey Holmes, the Sherlock of Haunted Houses, is a Hollywood TV host whose reality show just flopped. When a Lebanese restaurant owner requests his ghost-hunting services, he believes the opportunity will resurrect his career. All he has to do is exorcise the ghosts that are haunting the restaurant. It happens to be located right across the street from Muhsin’s Pottery Shop.




Sunday, January 6, 2019

Aquaman Movie Not Bad

So I saw the Aquaman movie with my two sons, and it wasn't bad. It was pretty good, actually. As for Amber Heard? Not so impressive. Her acting I mean. And this is a disappointment to me because I had been waiting for some time for Amber to play a major role in a major movie. And now that it has finally happened, my fears have been realized. First of all, Amber makes a bad redhead. Some actresses can change their hair color without losing a step. Scarlet Johanssen is one of those. She can be a blonde, a brunette, or a redhead, and for her, it works. Not so with Amber Heard. She's a blonde, and as a blonde, she is very beautiful, as I've mentioned often on this blog.



But as a redhead, (see above,) Amber Heard does not make it. Maybe acting has everything to do with it. And as I've mentioned, Amber is not very talented in that regard. And I'm disappointed because I had envisioned her as the lead female role in my book Killer of Killers if it were to ever make the big screen. The lead female character in that book is a blonde. And as a blonde, there is no other actress I can think of who can top Amber in looks. But being an actress is dependent on more than just looks. You have to be able to act. And she doesn't have the acting skills to pull it off.

In Aquaman, for example, she delivers her lines with no passion, no sense of urgency, and no base skill. It makes you wonder if she ever took acting lessons. But whatever, she didn't ruin the movie Aquaman. And that could be because the lead female role was actually played by Nicole Kidman, who has never been questioned about her acting skills. She's a veteran actress with a long resume. And she delivers in Aquaman as the mother of Aquaman. She worked well. And yes, she is getting on in years, and it shows, but, hey, she's the mother of Aquaman, who's a fully grown man, and that means she's playing the part of a middle-aged woman, and she was right for the role.

But Amber Heard is not right for any role. And that is because she is not a good actress. That doesn't mean she can't become a good actress. Her role in Aquaman is her first major role in a movie as far as I know. I mean other than some B movies like I've mentioned before. So like anything, with time and practice, anyone can get better at whatever it is they aspire to do. The only problem is time. For women in the movie business, and for men too, btw, time is not an ally. It's an ally when you consider that with time you get better at something. But on the other side of the coin, time takes away the very essence of what being a movie star begins with. Looks. It's that way for everyone.

So the movie Aquaman works well enough to suit me. Even with Amber Heard. Heck, get her some more roles in some other major movies, and maybe she can end up being a good actress. Maybe even good enough to play Samantha Jones. But time will be the ultimate judge of that one.

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