mskarpelos

The Linden and Lo Bianco characters are partners on the NYPD. On a call that turns out to be to an embassy, they get separated, and in the mêlée Lo Bianco's arm is injured so badly that he eventually loses it and has to go on disability. He's obsessed with finding out who did this to him, but the perpetrators have diplomatic immunity, so the NYPD won't pursue it. Lo Bianco (Mr. Outside) works on his own with unofficial help from his former partner Linden (Mr. Inside) who remains on the force. In addition to the main plot of finding the culprits, there is a lot of interesting dialogue and interplay between Linden and Lo Bianco. The plot summary says the bad guys are drug smugglers, but I distinctly remember they were smuggling diamonds not drugs.

It's standard fare for 70s cop movies, but I like it, so I gave it a 7.

I always loved listening to the great albums recorded at the two Muscle Shoals studios, so I looked forward to seeing this documentary in the hopes of learning what exactly made the Muscle Shoals sound so distinctive.

Unfortunately, I think the musicians interviewed couldn't really explain what it was that made Muscle Shoals so special from a technical perspective. Bono, as always, was quite articulate, but he didn't offer anything technical. He instead talked philosophically about the power of the Tennessee River just as the Mississippi influenced the Blues. Most of the other musicians fell back on platitudes and clichés about funky white guys. Keith Richards was beyond hopeless as an interviewee. He seemed like he was doing a really bad Saturday Night Live impersonation of himself.

Don't get me wrong. The stories were entertaining. I particularly liked Greg Allman's story about how his brother Duane learned to play the slide guitar and Wilson Picket's story about the first time he came to Muscle Shoals. I also thought the documentary did a good job telling the history of the original FAME studio as well as the second studio started by the so-called "Swampers".

Nevertheless, I think at least one interview segment with a Rock historian or a musicologist to put everything in context and offer technical explanations would have been a great addition.

Finally, although it's clear that the Muscle Shoals musicians were far ahead of their fellow southerners on the issue of race, and the film rightly showcased this, it also showed clips of Lynyrd Skynyrd in concert proudly displaying a confederate flag. Displaying a confederate flag in 2013 is beyond bad taste. It's simply unacceptable.

This movie has everything you would want: magnificent performances led by the incomparable Ben Kingsley, wonderful writing, inspired direction by the equally incomparable Richard Attenborough, and breathtaking cinematography that pays homage to the natural beauty of the Indian sub-continent. The emotion, which ranges from humor to pathos, is so seamless and real that you feel you are watching history as it unfolds. It is also painstakingly accurate from a historical perspective, so it has excellent educational value as well.

I have given several movies a 10 rating, but Gandhi is my favorite movie of all time. It can do more than merely entertain you. It can change your life. Its message of courageous yet non-violent opposition to tyranny as the most effective means for ensuring positive and lasting social change is, in my view, among the most important lessons any of us can learn.