View from the Couch

BY GEORGE DICKIE

As this writer can confirm, ask celebrities who their favorite musician is, and many will respond – without hesitation – “Joni Mitchell.” This year, the veteran singer-song-writer receives one of the top accolades in her field, the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song. The award was presented to Mitchell in Washington, D.C., early this month in a ceremony taped for PBS; it airs Friday, March 31 (check local listings), with James Taylor, Brandi Carlile, An-nie Lennox, Herbie Hancock, Cyndi Lauper, Graham Nash and Diana Krall among those performing in tribute to the honoree.

The Canada-born Mitchell made her way from her native Alberta to Toronto as an artist in the mid-1960s, with folk singer Chuck Mitchell giving her inspiration to move to America ... plus his last name, as her husband. They would divorce after a couple of years, but she remained an attraction at East Coast clubs.

Buffy SainteMarie (“The Circle Game”) and Judy Collins (“Both Sides Now”) were among those who helped popularize Mitchell’s material early on, and her albums such as “Wildflowers,” “Blue” and the Grammy-honored “Clouds” did much to build her fan base. “For the Roses” and “Court and Spark” (the latter another Grammy winner for her) also were released that built her catalog – also encompassing “Big Yellow Taxi,” “Help Me” and “Raised on Robbery” – and her reputation into the 1970s. Mitchell has contoured her work to changes in the music industry and her own sound. Her health also has posed challenges for her along the way; in 2022, the Recording Academy named her its MusiCares Person of the Year, and she performed live for the first time in almost a decade at the Newport Folk Festival.

In getting the Gershwin Prize, Mitchell joins an impressive list of recipients from Stevie Wonder, Sir Paul McCartney and Billy Joel to Carole King, Tony Bennett and the late Burt Bacharach (who received it in tandem with his frequent songwriting partner Hal David). As with the others, though, hers is a singular career surely due the award named for musical siblings George and Ira Gershwin.

A winner of four Oscars including best international feature film, director and cowriter Edward Berger’s take on the classic Erich Maria Remarque novel casts Felix Kammerer as one of many young German soldiers eager to get to the front lines to oppose French forces during World War I. Their enthusiasm wanes as they gain firsthand experience in the horrors of battle, shattering their illusions of attaining heroic

BY JAY BOBBIN

status in combat. Presented on Blu-ray, this version of the tale adds a subplot about armistice talks being conducted, with Daniel Bruhl playing a German superior who works on negotiating a ceasefire. Made in Prague, the movie was named best picture at the British Academy Film Awards. ›››› (R: AS. P, GV) (Also on 4K Ultra HD)

Though he had a major run on Broadway in “The Music Man” recently, Hugh Jackman still kept a hand in moviemaking, as confirmed by this drama that director and co-writer Florian Zeller based on his stage play. It’s a prequel to “The Father,” which earned Anthony Hopkins an Oscar ... and he reprises that role here, though the thrust is on Jackman as that character’s son, who tries to rebuild his relationship with his own son (Zen McGrath) from his earlier marriage. It’s a difficult process, forcing Jackman’s alter ego to come to terms with his feelings about his own dad. Laura Dern and Vanessa Kirby also star. ››› (PG-13: AS, P) (Also on Blu-ray, Digital and On Demand)

“PLANE”

As if the crash of a passenger jet isn’t bad enough, the survivors find themselves having to outwit rebels on the Philippines island where they’re stranded in this melodrama. Gerard Butler gets to exude his “Olympus Has Fallen” brand of toughness again as the airplane’s pilot, who tries to signal would-be rescuers while battling the bad guys with tenuous help from a murder suspect (Mike Colter, “Luke Cage”) who was on the plane.

Tony Goldwyn (“Scandal”), Daniella Pineda and Paul BenVictor also are featured in the adventure, which now has a sequel in the works ... using a different mode of transportation, as its planned title “Ship” suggests. DVD extras: three “making-of” documentaries. ›››

(R: P, V) (Also on Blu-ray, 4K Ultra HD, Digital and On Demand)

“GASLIT: THE COMPLETE LIMITED SERIES”

Julia Roberts gets a true showcase and a showy role as Martha Mitchell in this made-forStarz drama, detailing how the colorful wife of then-Attorney General John Mitchell (played by Sean Penn) elevated the true story of the Watergate break-in to somewhat epic proportions. Even with the larger-than-life persona Martha had, White House officials tried to discredit her claims of illegal activity within the administration, putting her husband in a difficult position between his spouse and his boss ... who was President Richard Nixon. Dan Stevens (“Downton Abbey”), Betty Gilpin (“GLOW”), Shea Whigham, Allison Tolman, Chris Messina, John Carroll Lynch and Patton Oswalt are among members of the solid supporting cast, but the saga services Roberts particularly well. ››› (Not rated: AS, P)

“MISSING”

A young woman played by Storm Reid – seen recently in HBO’s “The Last of Us” –searches desperately for her missing mother (Nia Long) In this tight, well-done suspense tale, a sequel to “Searching.” The daughter worries when her mom and the latter’s new boyfriend fail to return from a trip to Colombia, and what she then learns about the beau causes her concern to deepen. Video surveillance and other electronic methods help in the search, as does a troubleshooter (Joaquim De Almeida) who conducts an in-person hunt. Ken Leung and Daniel Henney (“Criminal Minds”) co-star. DVD extras: three “makingof” documentaries; audio commentary by filmmakers. ››› (PG-13: AS, P, V) (Also on Bluray, Digital and On Demand)