Buffa's Buffet: 5 things on my mind

All the noise inside my head that is fit to print.

Every movie doesn’t need a sequel.

Every story doesn’t need a continuation.

What ever happened to one and done cinematic storytelling? In the relentless era of streaming releases and blockbusters being built off proven IP, the idea of a filmmaker coming to an invisible land and building something for one movie visit is nearly obsolete.

There was online discourse about this topic this week on Twitter, with people weighing in on whether or not Matt Reaves’ spring hit, “The Batman,” really needs a sequel. While there’s a case to be made for a sequel to Robert Pattinson’s gothic and moody Caped Crusader, I don’t think the material screams for it.

Granted, Reaves did a lot with material that carried a lot of tread on its tires, following multiple directors producing their version of Gotham’s steely avenger. But when I left the three-hour film, my mind wasn’t begging for more. The same as not begging for more “Interstellar” after Christopher Nolan fried my brain.

But it is Nolan’s trilogy of Batman movies that leaves Warner Brothers and anybody looking for a role in a comic book adaptation sucking up ice drippings. It creates this appetite for more happiness, the thing Don Draper raved about on “Mad Men” all those years ago.

It’s just not always necessary, the same as half of the movies released today being well over two hours. Craft tighter films, hire better editors, and stop regurgitating what Hollywood has already shown us. How about original films like “Pig” or “Chef?”

NOPE! We’ll get seven more versions of “The Batman” until the suited-up fella himself retires into a legit cave. And still, they’ll get a halfway interested Ben Affleck-type to play him. Leave it be. The same message can be sent to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Let characters and stories stay buried, please.

The St. Louis Blues aren’t buried, even if the fans would describe it that way. They dropped their third game in the last four overall last night against the Dallas Stars. Jamie Benn didn’t go down; the Blues did, 4-1. Dallas made it look easy, smothering the Blues in the first two periods and then unleashing their offensive abilities on Jordan Binnington and an overmatched defense.

Look, I’d like to curse the body of Jordan Kyrou every time he misses a backcheck or forecheck, or any time he misses a check at dinner. He’s a young, offensive-minded player with a big, shiny new contract for the fan base to pick apart over the next decade. He’s going to take plays off, miss pucks, commit turnovers, and all that jazz. All part of the semi-master plan of throwing him to the wolves and seeing if he can skate.

But before I take all his Pappy’s BBQ away, remember he won the game against Florida over the weekend. If not for that, the losing streak is alive at four games and pushing hockey fans into their fifth bottle of bourbon--which used to be the Christmas present they had planned for a relative.

It’s not Kyrou’s fault. It’s not Vladimir Tarasenko’s or Ryan O’Reilly’s fault either. Jordan Binnington could have played better, but he had little chance on half of those goals last night. The Blues defense all but invited the Stars in to shit on their bed.

All we can hope is that head coach Craig Berube can shake the roster up, find the right mix, and get this team settled in a land called consistency. Two months in, they’re fucking lost.

A busy family won’t be lost with Factor 75. The ready-to-eat meal kit company is easily the best home delivery meal system that the Buffas have tried yet. Hello, Mr. Fresh, this new company has you beat. Look, if you can cook a salmon and freeze it for some random stranger to eat days or weeks later without losing quality, you’re onto something. The salmon was flaky, just pink enough, and juicy.

The accompanying veggies were scorched Earth upon leaving the microwave. You get the meal heated up in under three minutes. The box says two minutes, but a couple 30 second interval reheats can be necessary. I’ve tried various surf and turf options, and all have been smashing. They store nice and easy in the fridge, and you can read all about them on the box instead of looking for the instruction booklet that is outside in the recycling can.

Best of all, they’re consistent. Every meal has tasted good, and I’ve had five of them. Shredded chicken tacos without the tortilla? Check. Ground beef nachos without the chips? Check. Factor 75 has keto and vegetarian options to go with their long line of beef/chicken/seafood heavyweights.

Cooking should be fun and never abandoned, no matter how busy your life becomes or how clueless you are in a kitchen. Get in there and learn a few meals. Master a couple. Men, women, and children even will adore you for it. Boil pasta, don’t burn the meat, and keep mastering small abilities.

However, there’s not always a suitable time to cook and prepare something. Time is fleeting and likes standing still as much as a six-year old, so a fine and convenient ready-to-eat meal hits the spot.

Getting back to movies and sequels and the times of those films, local filmmaker Joey Puleo could teach quite a few directors and Hollywood producers how to properly edit and release a precise product. His latest documentary, “A New Home,” hit Amazon Prime this week. The hard-hitting and emotionally-charged film throttles on a running time that comes in under an hour. Together with his doc on St. Louis’s Italian immigrant community, The Hill (“America’s Last Little Italy”), you have two movies combining to create one two-hour incredible movie.

“A New Home” tells the heroic and inspiring story of the thousands of Bosnian refugees who fled their homeland, which was embattled in war and tyranny, and came to the United States. Out of all the places in the world not called Bosnian, St. Louis held the most Bosnians anywhere in the world. Puleo captured their plight and flight cohesively without getting politically preachy or bogged down in excess.

Paging you, Damian Chazelle. His new film, “Babylon,” comes in at three hours and nine minutes. What in the ungodly fuck, dude? “La La Land” was crap, but it wasn’t that long.

What else?

~Don’t sleep on the relatively new movie, “Devotion.” The heroic retelling of two Navy fighter pilots who proved instrumental in The Korean War. Following this year’s big blockbuster splash in “Top Gun: Maverick,” this leaner indie-type production still packs a punch with lead stars, Jonathan Majors and Glen Powell, leading the war along with some riveting aerial battle footage. Good story, solid run time, good acting, and a true story make this one a destination flick.

~Cool small news bit. Adam Wainwright will join teammates Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt in March’s World Baseball Classic. One day, you may be able to get Waino out of baseball, but you’re never getting the game out of him.

Final thought: On a human note, I am feeling quite overwhelmed by it all. Life, family, work, the rest. It’s normal, or at least the dozen responders on my Facebook post prove that point. It’s just a hard walk even living in this world, day to day and trying to make things count. The new job is overworking my brain and the rest of what makes me… ME is just trying to keep up. Days turn to weeks, and months appear later.

Don’t worry or send out a care package (unless it’s weed), but I felt like sharing that universal condition. As my dad’s late friend Charles (fuck you, cancer) used to say during the middle of a hospital shift when asked how he’s doing: “I’m holding on.”

Me too, Charles. Goodnight.