Calling the dedication of the State Veteran Cemetery a “Sacred Commitment” to the veterans of northwestern New Mexico and parts of northeastern Arizona, New Mexico Dept. of Veterans Services Cabinet Secretary Jack R. Fox played a very large part in the Groundbreaking Ceremony for the Veterans’ Cemetery Oct. 25.

The cemetery is just merely a dirt lot at this juncture with a flag erected that Veterans Helping Veterans raised, closest landmark is the McKinley County Juvenile Detention Center, 2105 Hassler Rd.

Fox delivered the welcome address to the large crowd, estimated over 500, and led the Pledge of Allegiance.

Fox also introduced the Miyamura High School Choir, directed by Liam Murphy, singing the Star-Spangled Banner.

Beverly Charley of the N.M. Dept. of Veterans Service gave the invocation. Fox then recognized the dignitaries in attendance and turned over the welcome address to Gallup Mayor Jackie McKinney.

Fox returned to center stage to introduce guest speakers Hiroshi Miyamura, Gallup’s Medal of Honor recipient from the Korean War, and George Eisenbach, the Director of the VA Cemetery Grants Program.

The reception for Miyamura was the loudest and longest, interrupted only by the Sergeant of Arms for Veterans Helping Veterans, who brought his already standing members to attention and presented arms in honor of and respect of Miyamura.

The keynote speaker was, of course, Governor Susana Martinez, who delivered a heartfelt message in honor of her relatives who served, as well as all the veterans who put in their time in the armed forces.

McKinney elaborated more on what the dedication of the cemetery meant to him after the groundbreaking event ended.

“Great day in Gallup,” he said. “Been working with the cabinet secretary of Veterans Services for the last few years. Good to see it all come to fruition. It’s just an installment on our debt to veterans.”

According to information laid out in the program for the event, overall, the State Veterans Cemetery Program is a statewide strategic initiative to plan, design, and construct up to four new cemeteries for veterans living in New Mexico within the next five years.

The Gallup based cemetery will provide plots for rural-area veterans and their spouses.

The four selected sites: Ft. Stanton, Gallup, Angel Fire, and Carlsbad.

New Mexico is the mostly rural, fifth-largest state in the nation, but has only two national cemeteries to serve more than 150,000 veterans living beyond the VA’s designated 75-mile service radius of these two cemeteries, one in Santa Fe and one in Ft. Stanton, the program states.

In September of 2017, a $6.7 million grant from the VA’s Semetery Grants Program was awarded to New Mexico for the construction of the veterans cemetery in Gallup.

By Tom Hartsock

Sun Correspondent

Rating: «« out of 4 stars

Running Time: 109 min.

Annabelle is an evil and decidedly creepy-looking porcelain plaything that first received attention for its brief but memorable turn in The Conjuring. The bit stood out so much that the toy received its own film in 2014. While the press (myself included) were less enamored with the spin-off, it was successful enough to spawn this week’s follow-up, Annabelle: Creation. As expected, this prequel/sequel is far from a classic. Still, those who enjoy a chill or two may find a few of their hairs standing on end.

Set in the 1950s, the story involves doll-maker Samuel Mullins (Anthony LaPaglia) and his wife Esther (Miranda Otto), who manufacture the titular creation at their remote home and then experience a great personal tragedy. Some time later, the staff and residents of a closing orphanage are invited to take refuge with the couple. Led by Sister Charlotte (Stephanie Sigman), the kids begin experiencing strange phenomena, with most events revolving around the youngest new arrivals, Polio-stricken Janice (Talitha Bateman) and her friend Linda (Lulu Wilson).

The kids are sweet and likable and the adults empathetic enough to engage in the story, although the screenplay is simply an excuse to allow numerous sequences with the doll terrorizing the leads. Those with any familiarity with these types of movies will know exactly what to expect. Of course, it doesn’t help that there are many moments where the leads lack any sort of common sense, seemingly walking into trouble rather than turning around. Then again, packing up and leaving at the first sign of strangeness makes for a very short horror movie.

And that’s a good thing, because the scare sequences stand as the highlights. Director David F. Sandberg (Lights Out) has honed his skills from his previous outing, using long takes that hold on a beat or two longer than expected. Somehow, the odd length and stillness works and helps add tension to the otherwise familiar scare tactics. There’s a tendency to keep Annabelle out of frame and shoot characters in tight spaces peering through grates and obstructions. These eerie bits, often featuring a character staring at a static object for a lengthy period, do create unease when employed.

There’s also an extremely creepy scene with a child trapped with Annabelle. After being covered with a sheet, the doll rises and walks ever-so-slowly towards the youth, with the sheet gradually falling off. There’s another moment with two characters at night talking under a sheet and lit from underneath with a flashlight. A menacing figure approaches and viewers only hear sounds and see obscured movement through the fabric. These scenes play on viewer imagination and work extraordinarily well.

However, as the movie continues to its climax, events begin to become exaggerated and sillier. The story also doesn’t do as much with the supporting kids as it should to really emphasize the threat (although the group do face off against a nasty creation in a nearby barn). And there are some intended jolts involving a young, possessed character that don’t come across as terrifying... the small party isn’t truly menacing, lessening the impact of these scenes.

Still, the finale does tie things up and connect events with the other films, which should please fans of the series. And Annabelle: Creation is better than the previous entry (as well as the director’s last flick, Lights Out). It feels closer in tone to the Conjuring films even if it cribs many of it scares. In the end, this effort isn’t going to go down in horror movie history, but if you’re just looking for a couple of jumps, you could do worse.

For more movie and DVD/Blu-Ray reviews, visit: cinemastance.com

By Glenn Kay
For the Sun

Rating: ««« out of 4 stars

Running Time: 143 min.

The 1967 Detroit riot was one of the largest displays of violent civil unrest in the United States up to that point in history. Motivated largely by racial discrimination and mistreatment, mobs formed in the streets, leading to clashes, confrontations and devastation. The new film Detroit comes 50 years after the real-life incident and specifically deals with the horrific and disturbing actions that took place between police and citizens taking refuge at the nearby Algiers Motel.

Admittedly, the opening is a tad more awkward than it should be. There’s an animated intro setting up events in US history, then a raid that ultimately led to the unrest, loads of news footage as well as additional scenes of looting and protest. Obviously, the intent early on is to put perspective on proceedings and establish a tone of chaos and instability. However, it’s a lot of material, some of which isn’t entirely necessary. In fact, a little more trimming wouldn’t have hurt the film. It feels like a good 20 plus minutes before all of the central players and story come into focus.

Still, if one can be patient through the somewhat choppy early sections of the film, it soon becomes incredibly compelling. Once the story introduces viewers to the participants in more detail and places them at the motel, the film turns into a completely harrowing experience. Those involved include an aspiring singer Larry (Algee Smith), his friend Fred (Jacob Latimore) and Viet Nam veteran Greene (Anthony Mackie).

After a fake gun is fired within the property, local police, state troopers and armed militia Guardsmen arrive to assess the situation. A violent, racist officer named Krauss (Will Poulter) takes control, brutalizing the hotel guests and intimidating other officers into following his lead. Unwilling to get involved, the outsiders keep their distance as events spiral indoors. Local security guard Dismukes (John Boyega) attempts to alleviate the tensions and ask for cooler heads to prevail. Alas, no one on the side of the law listens.

The cast are uniformly excellent and its impossible not to identify and empathize with the protagonists as they are tormented and tortured by Krauss. He’s as nasty as it gets and lacks some subtlety. However, it is interesting to witness how amidst flawed and fearful characters, one particularly awful and aggressive individual can take control and manipulate a situation. There’s a palpable sense of dread almost like a horror picture throughout the middle of the film. However, the situation is far more disturbing and brutal because of its feeling of authenticity. Director Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker) excels at amplifying the tension and handling the action beats, resulting in a truly visceral experience.

Dismukes is also a detailed and multi-faceted character, as he tries to walk a tightrope between doing his job, trying to minimize the damage as well as stay on the good side of authorities, which ultimately backfires and ends up getting him in trouble. Again, there is unending drama and danger for most of the people involved, with devastating consequences for those held under martial law.

This is certainly a button-pushing experience, bound to provoke anger and indignation at the injustices that were committed for no discernable reason. The ugliness on display is difficult to sit through at various points. Sadly, it is also a story that is still relevant today. Overall, Detroit is a distressing and brilliantly acted feature and it’s hard to deny its emotional impact. Hopefully, it will also promote empathy, understanding and discussion amongst viewers.

By Glenn Kay
For the Sun

Rating: ««« out of 4

Running Time: 137 min.

Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets opens with an absolutely phenomenal montage. It depicts human progress into space over the passing of centuries, eventually leading to the creation of an orbiting space station featured prominently in the film. This gorgeous, quirky and strangely affecting opening ends up emphasizing camaraderie between all beings. The bit is so strikingly good, in fact, that it’s pretty much impossible for the rest of the film to top it. Yes, nothing can quite match this sequence, but the feature itself still manages to offer a lot of fun, popcorn entertainment thrills.

Valerian (Dane DeHaan) and partner Laureline (Cara Delevingne) are special operatives for the human federation who police the universe. When they retrieve the last of a cute, nearly extinct species of alien life called Converters, they’re immediately called to Alpha, otherwise known as the City of a Thousand Planets. It’s a communion of life from across the universe placed together to share their knowledge through the universe. However, Commander Arun Filitt (Clive Owen) reports that Alpha is under attack; areas have been made unlivable and a dark force is threatening it, not to mention wanting to steal the Converter.

This film is from noted French director Luc Besson (La Femme Nikita, Leon: The Professional, The Fifth Element and Lucy) and, as expected, it is visually stunning. Much like his previous sci-fi efforts, it’s bold and bright with intense colors popping off of the screen. The camerawork is consistently impressive, with many impressive long takes establishing the big, epic scope. Additionally, the sets dazzle and inspire wonder with the characters constantly moving through new and unexpected environments. An early chase through a Big Market set in more than one dimension is lively and fun.

As for the human characters, they’re perfectly serviceable, if not as striking. Valerian has eyes for Laureline, but can’t quite convince her of his seriousness. There’s plenty of back and forth banter between the two and a decent portion of it works, although there isn’t quite as much in the way of onscreen sparks as hoped. And the humor in general is quite broadly played. There are some very silly gags for a young audience, while other moments feel much more serious. Still, a few oddball jokes (one involving a strange beast reacting to potential clothing choices) are just strange enough to earn some laughs.

And there are plenty of odd tangents. The negative to some of the sidelines is that they don’t feel entirely necessary and lead to a lull or two. On a positive note, one is never quite sure exactly where the film is heading, meaning that at least these elements are unexpected. Still, in the end this reviewer appreciated the movie’s eccentricities and peculiarities. It never feels like a processed studio product, but rather a singular individual’s imagination running wild.

Yes, for all of its imperfections and oddness, this feature pretty consistently holds one’s attention for its entire duration. It’s a visual knock-out and as strange as it may be, isn’t quite like anything else out there. Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets may not be the best feature ever from this filmmaker, but it’s a consistently fun one (with a few genuinely great scenes) that is always entertaining to watch.

By Glenn Kay
For the Sun