This is a film about the life of  Lady Margaret  Thatcher, the iconic, long  serving  Prime Minister  of Great  Britain. The whole of the film  left me  greatly saddened. For  such a great  and  courageous  woman, this  depiction  tends  to  exaggerate  Ms. Thatchers' struggle with dementia while busy running  through the highlights of her political career. Without 'doubt' Meryl  Streep's  portrayal is  amazing. She  captures the manner, voice and   at  times  the undeniable  strength and bravado  that real-life  Margaret Thatcher carried. Unfortunately, by  dwelling so  much on  the present  and dementia years, the poignant life's work of Ms. Thatcher is given short shrift. Watching the film I couldn't help but compare her to the  politicans  of  today. None  carry her  sense of duty, honor and determination to do  the right thing  even if  it's difficult  and politically  unpopular.  God please send us someone like Lady Thatcher. America needs her.

This is a great little movie! At a running time of 1 hr. 58 min. it could get long, but it doesn't. There's  enough storyline and music to keep this movie rolling along. Starring Dolly Parton and Queen Latifah as rivals in a church choir, the story  is both touching with several plots going  at one  time, and  very, very  musical. In fact, the soundtrack would be a worthy addition to one's Gospel music collection. Featuring guests  appearances by Kirk  Franklin and my Southern Gospel pal Karen Peck, I was lifted up and encouraged from the first beat! Dolly is of course a little "cornball" in her humor, and Queen Latifah does an incredible job of singing and acting. Keke Palmer and Jeremy Jordan are the two kids who really rock this choir. Queen Latifah's rendition of "Fix Me Jesus" is heartfelt.  Parton wrote  three great  songs  for  the movie score. The finale is incredible and amazingly for  Hollywood allows Jesus to be glorified in song!

Last night I went to the opening of the Broadway Across America show, "Shrek the Musical"  at  the  Ohio Theater  in  Columbus. Initially  I was  un-
enthusiastic about going, but it's part of the 2012 season package. I had heard ahead of time that it was undergoing a constant rewrite since it closed in New York months ago. I have to say the show was quite enjoyable. It's  a typical boy meets girl story, or in this case ogre meets girl story. Fans of the movie will appreciate this stage adaptation. The music and story line move along quite briskly. There's lots of color, lots of humor and the music is surprisingly fun and witty. The show reminded me of "Spamalot" in the way that the characters were over-exaggerated, and costumes and sets were whimsical and colorful. The performances by the princess, the donkey, and the tiny Lord were excellent. My fellow theater-goers were generally impressed and didn't take a lot of effort to end with a standing O.