[Note: This material is for education or entertainment only. It does not constitute investment advice of any kind. See a licensed investment professional for investment advice.] In the last fifty years, stock market expansions were driven by developments in technology half the time, and periods of excessive leverage every time. Today’s continued market expansion (featuring regular new highs amid inflation, global turmoil, and a deficit that has already increased by 1.5 trillion in only six months), is the answer to the riddle–borrowed from J. R. R. Tolkien and The Hobbit. The traditional answer is a human: it first crawls on all fours, then learns to walk on two, then uses a cane later on. This market is using a cane. The chart above shows the NASDAQ

ONCE AGAIN, having found a recent Ray Fiennes period piece on Amazon, I briefly read the synopsis, then ordered it. It’s World War I and a small town in England needs a choral director. He’s highly qualified for the job, but he harbors pro-German sentiments.  And perhaps there are other things as well. Another lovely UK film with a great actor and supporting cast. You get to go back in time and experience  rural English tradition and lifestyle four generations ago. Music was a social experience and a cohesive one. I had to pay a few bucks to rent it as it was only made last year. Money well spent. WRH

  IN MY FAVORITE Ryan Gosling film (and probably my favorite Sci-Fi film), he plays a replicant, a humanoid in BladeRunner 2049.  In this film, which is softer Sci-Fi, he plays a brilliant underachiever who “merely” teaches science. When a strange stellar deterioration (sick stars to cut through the science) threatens life in our solar system and beyond, some very serious people show up and cite his published works on highly relevant material. The rest is imaginative and yet satisfying; any serious Sci-Fi fan will, like any film lover, suspend their disbelief a little in exchange for a story that ventures far from home but never betrays its Earthborn heart. WRH

[Author’s Note: Mom went to her rest on Dec. 14th 2022 at 90 years of age. I composed a tribute to her shortly after that; here’s the link: https://www.moviesmarketsandmore.com/paean-for-a-country-girl-or-faith-family-community-learning-and-little-baseball/ This piece, Mercy, is a reader favorite as well as one of my own. A couple of days ago, I returned to cemetery, planted and watered some flowers….and remembered to pray.] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ IN MY MOTHER’S kitchen, and taped to the door of a cabinet where cups and plates are kept, is a laminated Catholic Diocese card. The card is divided into two distinct sections. The top part is titled The Corporal Works of Mercy. The “works” are ministrations to be made and observations to be kept in caring for –to name some of them–the poor, the

  MICHELE PFEIFER has been a dream to watch on screen since she starred opposite Sean Connery in The Russia House. She works with Kurt Russell in this, but it’s her show (I won’t say why here). The contrast here is the epitome of metropolis, New York City, against the epitome of western retreat, Southwestern Montana on the Madison River. It pits the sounds of nature against the sounds of bluster, and the sight of stars against blinking lights atop skyscrapers. It is more of Taylor Sheridan’s craft of dialogue, adventure and modern pioneers in a newfound frontier experience. I heard it called a “chick flick,” but dismissed that idea. It’s about finding and sharing places, not cities. It’s about who you are when you step

I REVIEWED THE FIRST season quite a few years ago. They brought it back! Many of the same rugged characters in a good cast. While the new season imagines a sequel that allows for lost time, they fiddled with fidelity to the book as I remember it. Violent, globe skipping, and full of the same ruthlessness, the early episodes of Season Two (perhaps because they more closely mirror present conflicts) take us back to Latin America and arms trading, power-seeking, and traitorous elements in MI6. Tom Hiddleston returns as the former hotelier-turned-spy, identities swapped-out like suits and ties.  Olivia Coleman is still around as “Jonathon’s former hander.  It’s early and, in keeping with most of the content for streaming these days, demands that you suspend

This got my attention when I saw that Christian Bale played the lead: a former soldier and respected expert who is called in to investigate a lurid death at what was a nascent US military Academy. What’s more, the series is based on a fiction book of the same title, in which a young Edgar Allan Poe, while at the Academy (he actually did briefly attend), is drawn to center stage amid the turmoil. The portrayal of Poe is engaging, and as you can imagine, the language is elevated. Christian Bale is always fun to watch, but a strong cast did well to support the production. One well-known actress appeared whom I didn’t recognize under her costume and speech pattern. Keep an eye out for

THIS WAS REFRESHING on a couple of levels. First, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck have done action films galore, but when they have appeared in the same film, they usually had a personal connection. Here, they are on the same raw, gritty, Miami narco team, but the team has a trust problem: a member of their team discovered a huge cartel money stash, but died a violent death in the process. The title word  “RIP” refers to confiscating illegal drug money, but it also stands for keeping or stealing some or all of it. The other level of interest is very edgy content and dialogue thick with insider lingo and tough cop to cop confrontations, as well as interplay between several levels of enforcement who

I THOROUGHLY ENJOYED this; you get some acting heavies like Glen Close, Daniel Craig, Josh Brolin, Jeremy Renner, and Andrew Scott (not necessarily ranked in order for their performances). An impressive newcomer for me is Josh O’Connor as the young new Catholic priest assigned to a small-town church to help the Monseigneur (the other Josh). But why would the Bishop send another priest to the Monseigneur who wouldn’t need much help in a small town?? Fun to see new characters evolve from actors/actresses who may have established their prowess along different lines. WRH

This is another gem: an Agatha Christie work, and I was thrilled to see that Martin Freeman (The Hobbit, Sherlock Holmes) and Helena Bonham Carter (Harry Potter, The Theory of Flight) played key roles. Set in what must have been early 20th century England, a newcomer for me, Mia McKenna-Bruce, plays young Lady Eileen (less formally “Bundle”), who is drawn up into substantial intrigue surrounding the death of a friend and suitor who was presumed to have committed suicide— right after arranging a meeting where he would propose marriage to her. It is a coming of age(nt) tale of sorts–for a persistent young woman with courage and a quick head. The acting is wonderful and the period costumes, vehicles, etc. only add to it all. WRH