Cue the sad songs

Real-life local heavies make wake-scene cameos as Dallas lays J.R. Ewing to rest

This time J.R. Ewing really is dead. Episode 8 of the second season of Dallas on TNT put the character in the ground once and for all, with veteran cast members from ye olden days standing graveside: Steve Kanaly as Southfork ranch hand Ray Krebbs; Ray’s once-upon-a-time hayloft canoodling partner, Lucy Ewing, played again by Charlene Tilton; her daddy, Gary Ewing (Ted Shackelford); J.R.’s mistress, Mandy Winger (Deborah Shelton); and his last young bride, Cally (Cathy Podewell).

It remains a mystery exactly who killed J.R. Was it a petty thief in Nuevo Laredo who broke into J.R.’s hotel room and shot him? Or did new Ewing nemesis Harris Ryland (Mitch Pileggi) have something to do with it?

Exec producer Cynthia Cidre wrote this week’s script, titled “J.R.’s Masterpiece.” Directed by Michael M. Robin, it was certainly the strongest hour of the season so far (seven more episodes to go), featuring a heart-tugging emotional breakdown by Patrick Duffy as Bobby.

Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and Mavericks owner Mark Cuban all uttered nice bits of dialogue.

Linda Gray, the strongest player in this series reboot, turned in a beautiful performance with her reading of a letter from former hubby J.R. as she stood over his casket. Seems the ol’ rascal had fallen back in love with the former Miss Texas. His letter, delivered to Sue Ellen the day before he died, expressed apologies for all his misdeeds and asked if he could take her to dinner sometime.

Gray’s tears were genuinely moving. She and actor Larry Hagman were close friends for 30 years, so she probably didn’t need to dig too far into The Method to feel her character’s grief. (Hagman died November 23, having completed five episodes this season.)

More highs, lows and in-betweens:

Sad songs: The slowed-down arrangement of the opening theme set the somber tone for this week’s send-off of the show’s central character. Sue Ellen’s visit to J.R.’s Southfork bedroom, where she caressed their wedding photo, was set to the bittersweet tune “The Bottom” by Houston singer-songwriter Charlie Robison. Lyrics: No need to worry about tomorrow/Cause you're not here/I'm going all the way down/To the bottom.

As cast members old and new watched J.R.’s coffin lowered, the music was “Down to the River to Pray,” from the soundtrack to O, Brother, Where Art Thou? (Get it?)

Nobody mentioned frackin’ methane: What this season of Dallas has lacked is exploration of personal relationships instead of all that phony passion for the exploration of oil and methane. Less shop talk and more family drama made this week’s show the kind of compelling experience for viewers that keeps us tuning in.

Best line: “I’m a bit drunk now,” said Sue Ellen, standing at J.R.’s grave and admitting she fell off the wagon the night before. (Linda Gray at 72 is at least twice the actress she was 30 years ago.)

Wake-up call: The wake for J.R. at Dallas Petroleum Club stirred up interesting new couplings. Sue Ellen flirted with brother-in-law Gary (though maybe just for oil lease reasons). And J.R.’s son, John Ross (Josh Henderson), engaged in some steamy smooch-fu with step-cousin Emma (Emma Webb) in the back seat of his (or somebody’s) car.

Locals paying tribute: Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and Mavericks owner Mark Cuban all uttered nice bits of dialogue in their wake-scene cameos.

J.R.’s favorite cocktail: Bourbon and Branch, which was served at the wake. Here’s the recipe.

Damn, Pam: Before he was killed in Nuevo Laredo, J.R. had been in Abu Dhabi searching for Pamela Barnes Ewing, birth-mom to Christopher (Jesse Metcalf). This is where the new Dallas breaks the mythology of the old one. Pam, played back in the day by Victoria Principal, was shown being blown to smithereens in a car wreck with an oil tanker in series one’s episode 282.

They made a half-baked attempt at bringing on a “new” Pam with a reconstructed face (played only once by Margaret Michaels), but even that Pam said she had only weeks to live. Because Principal has turned down all requests to reprise her role, it’s a mystery who will be playing the new-new Pamela Barnes Ewing.

Coming up: Joan Van Ark returns at Gary’s wife, Valene. (They were the couple at the center of Dallas spin-off Knots Landing.) And Bobby has to reexamine his life and marriage in the post-J.R. universe.

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New episodes of Dallas air at 8 pm, Mondays on cable’s TNT, with frequent reruns.

Larry Hagman had shot five episodes of Dallas before his death in November 2012.

Photo courtesy of TNT

Larry Hagman had shot five episodes of Dallas before his death in November 2012.

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Movie Review

The life of an actor is far from rosy in dramedy Misty Green

Photo courtesy of A24

Rosalind Eleazar in Misty Green.

For every well-known/successful actor in Hollywood, there are thousands of others whose lives are more tenuous as they struggle to find work. The new film Misty Green is about one such actor who, after a period in the limelight, now finds herself on the outskirts of the industry, just hoping to find her way back in.

Misty (Rosalind Eleazar) won an Emmy for a 2000s-era TV show that still gets her recognition, but not much work. Still living in the apartment of a recently-deceased man with whom she was having an affair, Misty spends her days sleeping in and her nights getting blitzed on alcohol and drugs. She seems to be heading nowhere fast until a few things coincide to break up her routine.

The man’s wife (Amy Landecker) shows up and tells her she has seven days to vacate the apartment; Misty’s brother, Jay (Daniel Kaluuya) — who is bipolar — arrives after being kicked out of his facility for non-payment; and Jordan (Chris Rock), a former colleague with whom she had a falling-out, reappears in her life, offering a possible chance to rehabilitate her image.

Written and directed by Rock (his first feature since 2014’s Top Five), the film is a funny and excruciating look at how the entertainment industry might actually work. Misty is her own worst enemy thanks to late nights fraternizing with unsavory characters like Zach (Adam Driver), who deals in drugs and women in equal measure, but her frustration proves warranted when her agent, Randy (Topher Grace), and casting directors like Rhonda (Tracie Thoms) hardly give her the time of day.

Misty tries her best to stay positive, but when jobs like singing in a bar are the best she can do, the mountain seems insurmountable. Rock does an effective job of demonstrating the elements that are within and without Misty’s control that affect her ability to regain her position in the industry. The chip on her shoulder is almost as big as the bias some have against her, and other negative circumstances don’t help matters much.

There are many small touches that Rock and his crew put in the film to give it an air of authenticity. Filming in Los Angeles (a rarity these days), Rock uses both subtle and overt shots of homeless people in the city, suggesting that the line between the haves and have-nots is a fine one, especially with Misty on the verge of not having a place to live. He also has cameos from a few of his funny friends, including a bit of meta-casting of Anthony Anderson (who has faded a bit after starring in Black-ish) in a bit part as a cop.

Eleazar, a British actor best known for appearing on the Apple TV show Slow Horses, is a magnetic presence as Misty. The character herself is somewhat cringey in her decision-making, and Eleazar sells every bit of her righteous indignation and self-defeating actions. The supporting cast is great across the board, including Rock, Driver, Kaluuya, Thoms, Grace, Anna Kendrick, and Rich Sommer.

Misty Green makes you rage against the Hollywood machine, laugh at the various ways different people deal with its maddening quirks, and hide behind your fingers as Misty chooses options that don’t help, either voluntarily or because her back is against the wall. It’s a powerhouse of acting that gives a unique angle on the inner workings of Hollywood, one that ironically might be competing for awards at year’s end.

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Misty Green is now playing in theaters.

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