Minority Mindset

As a huge Trek fan, I’m really loving Spock’s journey in Strange New Worlds. They’re doing a fantastic job showing us how he becomes the Spock we all know and love from The Original Series, played by Leonard Nimoy. It’s fascinating to watch him grow and explore that inner conflict between his Vulcan logic and his human emotions – it’s really setting the stage for everything that comes later.

The film Eternity takes place in the afterlife, where people who have just died get to choose how they’ll spend forever. They arrive at a massive, bustling train station that serves as a gateway to different worlds. Each person is paired with an ‘afterlife coordinator’ who helps them pick their eternal destination. This place, called the Junction, is like a huge convention center, with various worlds being promoted through displays and booths. There’s everything from Nudist World and Mountain World to a retro Studio 54 World and even a Smoker’s World (where cigarettes don’t pose a health risk). The popular Man-Free World is already full! (Part of the fun of the movie is spotting all the unique and imaginative worlds.) When Larry Cutler arrives, he’s slow to choose. He knows his wife, Joan, was also very ill and will likely arrive soon. You can bring a loved one with you to any world, but once you both make a decision, it’s permanent. If that feels a bit limiting for an eternity of happiness, perhaps you should discuss it with the filmmakers.

You’re probably curious about how often the characters say “clock tick” in the musical Wicked. I counted five instances where it’s used as a playful way to say “just a moment.” Initially, it seems like just another quirky expression from the land of Oz, similar to words like “obsessulated.” But the phrase appears repeatedly – Nessa uses it with a servant, and in a particularly dramatic scene, Elphaba casually says “Now you wait just a clock tick” when Glinda confronts her, effectively downplaying the tension.

It’s surprising to realize this actor has appeared in so many major films. He first gained recognition playing Uncle Owen in Star Wars: Attack of the Clones, and has since been in movies like King Arthur, Exodus: Gods and Kings (where his casting caused some debate), The Great Gatsby, and Smokin’ Aces. I always thought he was in Blackhawk Down, but it was actually Zero Dark Thirty. For a long time, it was hard to categorize him as an actor. Was he a leading man, a character actor, or a strong supporting player? He never quite became a traditional movie star, and didn’t seem interested in that level of fame, but he often played very similar roles. He consistently portrayed quiet, stoic characters – reliable when he was on the good side, and unyielding when he was the villain. He excelled in roles where his reserved nature contrasted with more outgoing co-stars. He’s a great match for Chiwetel Ejiofor in Kinky Boots, and in the now-classic film Warrior, he’s captivating as a quiet high school teacher competing in an MMA tournament against his troubled war veteran brother (played by Tom Hardy).

Early estimates suggest Zootopia 2 could earn between $135 and $150 million at the box office over the Thanksgiving holiday. Meanwhile, the recently released Wicked: For Good is projected to make around $80 million during the three-day weekend.