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JOHN WICK: CHAPTER 2 (Rated R)
The unexpected success of Keanu Reeves as a legendary hit man in the titular role of “John Wick” in 2014, a demanding task of full-blown action requiring a blend of martial arts and gunplay, screamed for a sequel.
With an even higher body count when Reeves’ John Wick takes on various henchmen of criminal enterprises, “John Wick: Chapter 2” delivers the high-octane action thrills on a much grander scale of mayhem than the original.
Remember that in the first film it was the senseless killing of his dog that threw John Wick into a fury of brutal vengeance. It all kicks off this time when he retrieves his beloved 1969 Mustang from a treacherous Russian gang.
Having attempted to retire from the underworld when he got married, the now widowed Wick has been trying to put his criminal life behind him, but to no avail when the bad guys are restless and unforgiving.
After a high-speed chase on New York City streets, John’s plans to have a quiet civilian life are cut short when Italian gangster Santino D’Antonio (Riccardo Scamarcio) shows up on his doorstep with a marker compelling the repayment of past favors.
Taking refuge at the Continental, neutral ground for killers in a hotel run by the imperious Winston (Ian McShane), Wick realizes he has no choice but to respect the ancient code of fulfilling a marker, no matter how odious the assignment.
As a result, Wick is off to Rome to do Santino’s dirty work and soon comes to know that the contract killing would have the very unfortunate consequence of granting Santino a seat at the “High Table,” an international criminal cartel.
Penetrating an ornate villa during a gala event to fulfill the hit, Wick is soon chased through the ruins of a Roman bathhouse by an endless stream of heavily-armed thugs.
But the best confrontation is with his target’s devoted bodyguard Cassian (Common) as well as with Santino’s lethal colleague, the mute but dexterous androgynous fighter Ares (Ruby Rose).
The second chapter of “John Wick” ends with the seemingly obvious allusion to another installment, where it appears without any doubt that the body count will mount even higher as the titular character will face off with an ostensibly endless throng of assassins.
To be sure, John Wick has more lives than a cat, and it’s hard to imagine that he won’t have a welcome return for more chaotic mayhem. Here’s hoping that his mechanic Aurelio (John Leguizamo) has restored the classic Mustang for more thrilling street action.
TV Corner: ‘Powerless’ on NBC Network
In the DC Universe of comic book heroics, comedy is rare when it involves the apocalyptic battles between villains and superheroes.
The NBC network aims to change that with its new series “Powerless.”
Young actress Vanessa Hudgens, best known for the “High School Musical” TV shows, takes the lead role of Emily Locke, who has been recruited to take a job at Wayne Security in Charm City.
The joke is that Wayne Security is a failing subsidiary of Wayne Enterprises in Gotham City, where the unseen Bruce Wayne apparently has become impatient with the leadership of his incompetent cousin Van Wayne (Alan Tudyk), a vain, silly man with no real drive.
Actually, Van does have ambition to get out of Charm City, if for no other reason than the daily grind of life in this boring metropolis results in the constant need for its citizens not to become collateral damage in the epic superhero vs. villain battles.
In her new position of the head of research and development, Emily is tasked with the improbable duty of motivating the apathetic employees of her division, and that would especially include engineers Teddy (Danny Pudi) and Ron (Ron Funches).
The problem for Emily is that she’s not experienced enough to be an authority figure, and she unwisely struggles to become friends with her employees who take pains not to let her in on their superhero online fantasy league.
Both Danny Pudi and Ron Funches have made their marks in other network comedies, which would be “Community” and “Undateable” respectively. As such, they are well-equipped with comedic chops to push back with nice quips.
While the best lines belong to Tudyk’s Van Wayne, his secretary Jackie (Christina Kirk) has funny counter-punches in her effortless mocking of her boss’ noticeable insecurities, including the fact that he’s omitted from the photo of the Wayne Dream Team on prominent display.
Hudgens’ Emily exhibits a pixie-like charm of the innocent waif tossed into the unfamiliar territory of urban challenges. While others shrug off everyday supernatural events, Emily is bewildered by the carnage that derails her subway ride to the first day on the job.
The good news for “Powerless” is its half-hour running time, which affords even the most casual viewer time to catch up on the first few episodes and gives this character-driven comedy a chance to make an impression, whether good, bad or indifferent.
Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – Middletown High School once again took top honors at this year’s Mock Trial event.
The fifth annual competition took place on Monday in the Lake County Superior Court in Lakeport.
Middletown High and Upper Lake High squared off in the competition, which had the two teams arguing the fictional court case “People v. Awbrey,” which involves human trafficking and false imprisonment.
Judge Stephen Hedstrom presided over the first round, while Judge Richard Martin presided over round two.
Melissa Perry, the information systems manager for the Lake County Superior Court, once again coordinated the entire event from the court side, arranging and training judges and attorneys as well as the facility. Tammy Serpa was the event organizer from the Lake County Office of Education.
Following the competition, awards were given out to winning students. Outstanding awards went to:
• Outstanding Defense Attorney: Gary Pickrell IV, Middletown High.
• Outstanding Defense Witness: Jared Thornberry, Upper Lake High.
• Outstanding Clerk/Bailiff: Lyndsay Wade, Upper Lake High.
• Outstanding Prosecution Attorney: Abigail Elder, Middletown High.
• Outstanding Artist: Rhianna Eby, Upper Lake High.
Middletown High’s team included Jillian Anderson, Abigail Elder, Donald Elder, Aiden Isaia, Emily Gallagher, Moyra Horrell, Journey Nystrom, Gary Pickrell IV, Kyle Pryor-Landman, Jacquelyn Pyzer, Natalie Rodriguez, Audrey Showen, Jack Shrive, Summer Solis, Megan Talbert, Jon Thomas, Mylie Turney and Jessica Zell. Kevin Palotti was the team’s coach, with Jon Hopkins, Lake County’s former district attorney, the attorney coach.
Upper Lake High’s team included Laisha Altamirano, Angelica Ayala, Dante Bassignani, Rhianna Eby, Chris Fecht, Hunter Ford, Hasmine Haro, Austin Hill, Lantana Kimbler, Benat Love, Amanda Maxwell, Eduardo Mendoza, Jasmine Myers, Cheyanne Obedoza, Valeria Robles, Alana Sanchez, Jasmine Serafin, Sergio Serafin, Emily Stith, Jared Thornberry, Jasmin Velasco, Lyndsay Wade and Kaila Willard. Alex Stabiner was the coach and Judy Conard the attorney coach.
Middletown High will now travel to the state Mock Trial competition in Riverside March 24 to 26.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lake County Department of Child Support Services, or DCSS, was honored by California DCSS Director Alisha Griffin last Wednesday for the county’s outstanding efforts to support families throughout the state.
The county received the Director’s Excellence Silver Award for increasing reliability of child support payments to families during the federal fiscal year.
The recognition was given at the first California Statewide Child Support Director’s meeting of the year where Lake County DCSS Director Gail Woodworth accepted the award from Griffin.
The award criteria take into account increases in total distributed collections, percentages of current support due that is paid, and percentage of cases that are paid in full every month, all of which translate into consistent, reliable income to help stabilize the resources available to children in local families.
Lake County DCSS earned its silver recognition by averaging a 3.65-percent increase across the award criteria.
“Congratulations to Director Woodworth and her staff,” Griffin said. “Their dedicated efforts contribute to a better life for children in families in Lake County and across the state.”
Money can be a compelling temptation. Some trustees give in to their temptation and misappropriate trust funds for their own personal use.
After the fact, when they are caught, such trustees may try to recharacterize their misappropriation as so-called “borrowing.”
Such misappropriation, of course, is not “borrowing” and repayment does not make it a loan. It is embezzlement – a crime.
In California embezzlement is defined as fraudulently appropriating property that belongs to someone else, and has been entrusted to you.
With a trust, the trustee holds lawful title and possession in order to manage the trust assets. They owe a legal duty to administer such assets strictly according to the terms of the trust for the sole benefit of the trust beneficiaries.
Thus, a trustee is guilty of embezzlement when the trustee misappropriates trust assets for self-use, or to benefit any other person in violation of the terms of the trust.
Some trusts permit legitimate borrowing of funds by the beneficiary. Oftentimes with living trusts the trustee is also a beneficiary. If the trustee seeks to borrow funds then this should be done in strict adherence to the trust’s terms that allow such borrowing. This is just one place where a trustee needs the guidance of an attorney.
A trustee who embezzles can expect to face both severe civil and criminal sanctions.
A trustee who has embezzled but before they are caught comes forward and discloses their wrongdoing to the beneficiaries is more likely to avoid imprisonment.
A trustee who is not so forthcoming but is caught in the act has much less reason to expect leniency with criminal prosecution.
A trustee who embezzles will also be subject to civil restitution and surcharges (penalties). They may well end up making payments for many years to come. Crime does not pay.
There are certain types of people who if appointed as trustees appear to be more likely to embezzle funds.
People with drugs and/or alcohol addictions, people who cannot support themselves and people who spend more than they make come readily to mind. These people live day to day. They think mainly about their own personal problems and needs. They don’t think much, if at all, about the consequences of their actions both to themselves and others. That is down the road.
The best way to minimize the likelihood of a future embezzlement involving the management of one’s own trust is to avoid naming such persons as possible trustees.
Unfortunately, these same persons are sometimes enterprising in influencing persons who care about them and in getting themselves named as future trustee.
Usually, a nonprofessional trustee is also one of the beneficiaries who has a strong personal relationship with the person who established the trust (the “settlor”). That personal relationship may arise in a variety of ways.
Elderly and lonely people, especially those with diminished capacity, often need caregivers. These caregivers spend a lot of time in their home. They may become more important to them than their own family, who doesn’t spend much time with them. Families who neglect their elderly should not be surprised if financial elder abuse occurs as a result of a caregiver’s activities.
Beneficiaries of a trust who distrust the trustee can hire an attorney to obtain information regarding the trust assets, liabilities and actions of the trustee affecting the same.
Beneficiaries can also petition the court for an accounting and removal of the trustee when the actions and/or inactions of the trustee provide grounds.
Trusts are intended to avoid a more costly and time consuming court supervised probate. Without court oversight, the integrity and capabilities of the trustee become even more important to whether the trust will be administered properly. Choose the trustee wisely.
Dennis A. Fordham, Attorney, is a State Bar-Certified Specialist in estate planning, probate and trust law. His office is at 870 S. Main St., Lakeport, Calif. He can be reached at
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – Despite storms that moved across the region on Friday, California Department of Water Resources construction crews continued to repair erosion below the Oroville Dam’s emergency spillway.
Fears of failure in the emergency spillway had led to a Sunday evacuation order that impacted 188,000 people in Butte, Sutter and Yuba counties, as Lake County News has reported.
Rock, aggregate and cement slurry are being used to repair and backfill the affected areas, officials said.
On Friday morning, water flow from the flood control spillway was at 80,000 cubic feet per second, which was gradually lowered to 70,000 cubic feet, the Department of Water Resources reported.
Officials said the reduced outflow is allowing debris removal from the diversion pool below the spillway.
The level of the reservoir has been reduced by 40 feet to accommodate inflow from current and forecasted inclement weather and is not expected to exceed anticipated outflows, officials said.
The Department of Water Resources said the trail system and launch ramps at the dam remain closed to the public.
Researchers from Trinity College Dublin have discovered a patch of land in an ancient valley on Mars that appears to have been flooded by water in the not-too-distant past.
In doing so, they have pinpointed a prime target to begin searching for past life forms on the Red Planet.
The findings have just been published in Geophysical Research Letters, by Dr. Mary Bourke from Trinity, and her colleague, Professor Heather Viles, from the University of Oxford.
“On Earth, desert dunefields are periodically flooded by water in areas of fluctuating groundwater, and where lakes, rivers and coasts are found in proximity. These periodic floods leave tell-tale patterns behind them,” said Dr. Bourke.
“You can imagine our excitement when we scanned satellite images of an area on Mars and saw this same patterned calling card, suggesting that water had been present in the relatively recent past,” she added.
In a remote sensing study of the Namib Desert, the researchers had previously noted these patterns – “arcuate striations” – on the surface between migrating sand dunes.
Fieldwork subsequently showed that these arcuate striations resulted from dune sediments that had been geochemically cemented by salts left behind by evaporating groundwater.
These dune sediments later become relatively immobile, which means they are left behind as the dunes continue to migrate downwind.
“Following our work in Namibia, we hypothesise that on Mars, similar arcuate striations exposed on the surface between dunes are also indications of fluctuating levels of salty groundwater, during a time when dunes were actively migrating down the valley,” said Bourke.
"These findings are hugely significant,” Bourke continued. “Firstly, the Martian sand dunes show evidence that water may have been active near Mars' equator – potentially in the not-too-distant past. And secondly, this location is now a potential geological target for detecting past life forms on the Red Planet, which is important to those involved in selecting sites for future missions."