FilmReview

Director: ChinonyeChukwu

Writers: Michael Reilly, Keith Beauchamp, and Chukwu

Producers: Beauchamp, Reilly, and Whoopi Goldberg.

Rating: PG 13

While visiting Jim Crow-era Mississippi in 1955, Black teen Emmett Till (Jalyn Hall) innocently flirts with white shopkeeper Carolyn Bryant (Haley Bennett). He is subsequently brutally murdered. For Emmett’s mother Mamie (Danielle Deadwyler), his lynching ignites a powerful and historic crusade for accountability.

On 28 August, Emmett Louis Till, a 14-year-old African-American, was abducted, tortured and lynched for seemingly offending a white woman in a grocery store; his dead body, mutilated and unrecognisable, was discovered in the Tallahatchie river three days later.

It is to the credit of filmmaker Chinonye Chukwu (Clemency) that Till has no truck with depicting and therefore sensationalising the heinous crime. Instead, Chukwu reframes the story through the prism of Emmett’s mother Mamie’s fight for justice. It’s a smart move, finding hope in a tragedy without cheapening it, while playing out the narrative on a bigger civil-rights canvas — one that provides a subtle but stunning showcase for Danielle Deadwyler in the lead role. Exemplifying the film’s ‘less-is-so-much-more’ approach, the Harder They Fall actor elevates some pedestrian historical-drama writing into something compelling and touching in equal measure.

The ability to bring history into the here-and-now by intertwining the personal and the political is one of the film's main strong suits.

Star Rating ***/*****

Was January a tough month for you? Traditionally supposed to be the most depressing month of the year, cold, dark, and summer seems a long way off. Even here in Spain the days are shorter, and the temperatures lower. The post-festive buzz, has well and truly worn off, the credit card statement is in, and most of our New Year’s resolutions went up in smoke by the end of Three Kings. Was one of your resolutions to cut back on the booze? Did you try, and found you couldn’t? Has your drinking increased? Are you struggling to stop completely, even for a short period of time? Is your alcohol use, making you, or those around you, miserable?

Maybe lockdown was the trigger for you, feelings of isolation and loneliness led to a change in your drinking habits, perhaps larger volumes, or more frequent binges. Possibly it was the move to Spain, living here full-time is entirely different to a two-week vacation, and it is easy to get sucked into daily-drinking. Or it could be for a completely different reason.

If you regularly drink more, or for longer than you planned to; have tried to cut back (or stop) and found you couldn’t; drink to deal with feelings and emotions; or if your drinking is interfering with your life, then you could have a problem with alcohol. There is a solution, Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) - a 12 Step fellowship; a peer-support group that has helped millions of people, all over the world, with their problem drinking. If the consequences of your alcohol use are getting too much, if you are ready to stop drinking, or want support to help you try, then don’t wait until it gets any worse.

Here two members of AA, talk about how their drinking led them to AA, and how they now enjoy life and all the benefits of being sober……..

“My name is Lydia; I am 65 years of age and I have been sober for 23 years. I am not perfect, nor will I ever be, and neither is my life, but that is ok. I have all that I need, and a few of my wants. The point is, I now have a life. I came into AA, lonely, hopeless, and broken. Today I have hope, gratitude, friends, and so much more.

The simple fact is, I was completely sick of the consequences of my drinking, and I had to be ready to stop. I had to do it for myself; and I had to give myself completely to this simple program. I would say to anyone worried about their drinking, if it is costing you more than money (relationships, health, jobs), it is very likely that you have a problem. If you decide you want to give AA a try, you will never be alone again, you don't have to continue in the misery.

The fact is, untreated alcoholism, will (and does) kill in the end. I have lost friends because of their drinking. Alcoholics Anonymous and the 12-step program have saved my life, and the lives of countless others. It has given me a life with a purpose, and it's available to anyone who wants it!”

“My name is Jacob, I am in my 50’s, happily married with no children. I run a successful business, based on the Costa del Sol. But my life wasn’t always like that.

The comments first started in my twenties, people would say; maybe I should have water with my wine, or a bit more tonic in my gin. A couple even called me an alcoholic, but I brushed it off. I was functioning, I still held down a good job (two in fact), I still had a wife and a car!

By the end, I had to have a drink in the morning to stop the shakes, my whole day was centred around where the next drink was coming from. I wasn’t eating properly, and there were a lot of arguments, slamming doors, and shouting. I was lying and being dishonest, I was leading a double life. Till my wife made me get help.

The most amazing thing about AA is there are no rules. Not on what you must do, or what you should believe. It is not like a church or a school, it is a group of people trying to get themselves off the drink, and into a better way of living, using a spiritual program, and a set of principles as guidelines…. And it is completely free.

If you think you might need to look at your drinking, or need some help to stop, then get in touch with AA. Come along to a meeting (or a few) and just listen.”

There are meetings of Alcoholics Anonymous, with friendly people who will understand, held daily throughout the Costa del Sol. Meetings are free to attend, and anyone who thinks they may have a problem with alcohol is welcome.

Call the English-speaking AA helpline for support: +34 600 379 110, or visit the website for help and information: www.aacostadelsol.com

Honesty Is The Best Policy?

Golf ethics question for you

What if you were playing in the Club Championship Tournament Finals and the match was halved at the end of 17 holes. You had the honour and hit your ball a modest two hundred & fifty yards to the middle of the fairway, leaving a simple six iron to the pin. Your opponent then hits his ball, lofting it deep into the woods to the right of the fairway. Being the golfing gentleman that you are, you help your opponent look for his ball. Just before the permitted five minute search period ends, your opponent says: "Go ahead and hit your second shot and if I don't find it in time, I'll concede the match." You hit your ball, landing it on the green, stopping about ten feet from the pin. About the time your ball comes to rest, you hear your opponent exclaim from deep in the woods: "I found it!". The second sound you hear is a click, the sound of a club striking a ball and the ball comes sailing out of the woods and lands on the green, stopping no more than six inches from the hole. Now here is the ethical dilemma: Do you pull the cheating b******* ball out of your pocket and confront him with it or do you keep your mouth shut?

How To Survie A Heart Attack When You Are Alone

Good advice here, share with family and friends, it could save their life.

Let's say it's 7:25 pm and you're going home (alone of course) after an unusually hard day on the job.

You're really tired, upset and frustrated.

Suddenly you start experiencing severe pain in your chest that starts to drag out into your arm and up into your jaw. You are only about 5km from the hospital nearest your home.

Unfortunately you don't know if you'll be able to make it that far.

You have been trained in CPR, but the guy that taught the course did not tell you how to perform it on yourself.

How To Survive A Heart Attack When Alone

Since many people are alone when they suffer a heart attack without help, the person whose heart is beating improperly and who begins to feel faint, has only about 10 seconds left before losing consciousness. However, these victims can help themselves by coughing repeatedly and very vigorously.

A deep breath should be taken before each cough, and the cough must be deep and prolonged, as when producing sputum from deep inside the chest.

A breath and a cough must be repeated about every two seconds without let-up until help arrives, or until the heart is felt to be beating normally again.

Deep breaths get oxygen into the lungs and coughing movements squeeze the heart and keep the blood circulating. The squeezing pressure on the heart also helps it to regain a normal rhythm.

Using this method heart attack victims can get help or to a hospital.