Dope

Icarus, much like its mythological namesake, starts out openly enough. Writer/director Bryan Fogel, obviously undergoing a mid-life crisis, seeks to rise above his competition and win an long-eluded amateur bike race by subscribing to a doping program ala Lance Armstrong and Tyler Hamilton. His gonzo-ish film about cheating the system then takes a serious turn as he flies extremely close to the sun by becoming involved with Russian doping superstar, Grigory Rodchenkov, just prior to the 2016 summer Olympics and Russian scandal – the doping scandal that is, taking into consideration another very serious scandal that occurred in the United States later that year in November, an event this film alludes to.

Fogel’s film presents a complete analysis of Russia’s athletic doping program and its pervasive influence on all of its athletes while providing a revealing look at how the conspiracy came to light leading to the eventual banning of 68 Russian athletes from Rio. The documentary is so compelling you cannot look away.

Rodchenkov, who comes across as a favorite crazy uncle, blasts away on camera with truths and proofs that lead to WADA and the IOC’s landmark decision. Rodchenkov equally has no problems with broadcasting his opinions concerning President Vladimir Putin’s fear-laden regime. If Putin and the KGB can easily evade the IOC, imagine what other high-level larceny exists that can be used to, ahem, trump other standards.

Icarus presents art dictating life, where one rather flaky story uncovers a very-real conspiracy that affects so many. This is not merely a sports documentary, rather a politically human one with real consequences, and needs to be viewed. Here’s hoping the Academy’s nomination committee is taking note, as Icarus has the potential to win gold of its own.


As Always,
theJOE

Not the Freshest Affair

There is no denying that Nelson DeMille is a master of action, thrillers, and debatably-good one-liners. He also makes for a rather good globetrotter reporting on locales that the normal traveler probably doesn’t have at the top of their bucket list: Russia, Yemen, and now, Cuba. However, the one problem with niche writers is that their beloved style can sometimes be encapsulating. New stories might be enjoyable, neo-noir reads, but are not necessary the freshest.

The Cuban Affair, DeMille’s latest, drops Daniel "Mac" MacCormick, ex-Ranger now sea captain, directly into the Obama-era “Cuban Thaw” where he is hired to help Cuban dissidents in recovering pre-Castro property deeds, and maybe a whole ton of cash, all while trying to escape from Havana. Mac is a fun, archetypal DeMille alpha male. He prefers beer to wine, one-liners to pillow-talk, and has the libido of a seventeen-year-old. Mac is a good guy, and someone you would want on your side in a fight. Or a good game of cornhole. Yet, he is hardly original. In fact, the name “Daniel MacCormick” could easily be replaced with DeMille regulars “John Corey” or “John Sutter” and aside from environment settings, no one would be the wiser.

DeMille, of course, knows his audience and easily provides that which has made him popular. The Cuban Affair is a fun, thankfully-fast read that allows DeMille to postulate Cuba’s place in the current global community while making sure good ole Communism is still the go-to baddie as the CIA remains the slightly lesser of two evils. As original as the Caribbean setting is, the infiltrate-and-escape plot is certainly not. DeMille peppers the chase with fun characters and clever dialogue, but even that only has the appeal of a Corona Light, when the long-time fan is thirsty for a cuba libre. Right?


Many thanks to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for the ARC, as well as to Nelson DeMille, who remains one of my favorite authors and whom I would share a Corona with anytime.


As Always,
theJOE

Simply Floats Rather than Swims

Full props to Paula Hawkins; she knows how to craft a good mystery. Look at her debut novel, The Girl On The Train. The tale was full of dead-on despicable characters, but the compelling narrative unfolded itself into a highly enjoyable whodunit mystery of grief, lies, and murder.

Hawkins does the same with her follow-up, Into The Water. She slowly, yet methodically, unveils the mystery of why a number of women seemingly commit suicide by drowning in a lake in northwestern England, all told through the accounts and perspectives of entirely unreliable spectators. Two of these deaths, Nel and Katie, are the focus of the investigation by the local constabulary as well as by Lena, Nel’s daughter and Katie’s friend. Hawkins continues her theme of using highly-flawed, emotionally-unstable characters, but these archetypes work well in the environs of a small town where gossip is king and not all neighbors can properly balance each other’s blemishes.

Hawkins’ writing style plods more than needed this time around. Excerpts of a book written by Nel prior to her death appear within this novel with the premise of providing local back story, instead they simply draw out the tale into a unnecessarily longer read. And as with any good mystery, there are multiple reveals and feints, yet one of the larger ones comes to soon, dampening the impact of future disclosures, and slowing down the cat-and-mouse chase as Lena and her aunt, Jules, become involved deeper than intended while the police prove to be more of a groundless threat than actual help.

Into the Water makes a significant attempt at swimming above the standard genre flotsam, yet its weightiness pulls it under time and again, much like Nel and Katie, until it finally bobs ashore. By no means a disappointing read, picking up a faster current, however, would have avoiding unnecessary bailing.


As Always,
theJOE