On April 16 in the year 1917, during the First World War, a pair of dozing English soldiers—Schofield (George MacKay) and Blake (Dean-Charles Chapman)—are chosen to deliver an urgent message. Surveillance shows that some 1,600 British troops have advanced into the edge of a German trap. Horribly urgent as this is, the warning seemingly can’t be delivered by plane, and the Kaiser’s soldiers have cut the telegraph lines.

Delivering the message via a pair of runners is a mad plan, but their commanding officer (Colin Firth) recites Kipling to steady the two corporal’s nerves, “Down to Gehenna or up to the Throne …”

George Orwell cited the unspoken other half of that couplet as proof of how important a cliché can be: “sooner or later you will have occasion to feel that ‘he travels the fastest who travels alone,’ and there the thought is, ready-made and, as it were, waiting for you.”

“Ready-made” isn’t a bad way to describe how director Sam Mendes proceeds; he makes a thrill ride out of the Western Front. It’s the fastest-paced film he’s done. Editing is usually an invisible art, but this year the Oscar for best editing may go to a film that looks as if it had no edits. It’s formed as one long take, based on a soldier’s tunnel vision of zigzagging through the crowded trenches.

Here is almost every nightmare story you’ve heard about the war; a trench cave-in while soldiers prowl an abandoned German entrenchment alive with rats so fat they can barely waddle.

Perhaps the nastiest matter is in the home stretch: hand-to-hand night combat among brick walls sliced into Dali shapes by artillery blasts. In these scenes, cinematographer Roger Deakins recalls Pat Barker’s novel The Ghost Road; under the parachute flares, everything is as yellow and orange and lurid as a carnival.

This two-protagonist movie is livened up by celebrity officers. Mark Strong is an intelligent-looking officer (Canadian, I think) who provides a handy truck. The ever-humane Daniel Mays is excellent as a soldier harrowed by the war. A maddened Andrew Scott blesses his troops with droplets of holy rum as they get ready to go over the top. Benedict Cumberbatch is a blood-drinking attritionist, another one of those top-brass fiends who thought that World War I would be won by the side that stuffed the most meat in the grinder.

The problem is that Mendes sometimes gets into the kind of territory that Mark Twain condemned in James Fenimore Cooper. It’s a movie on steroids, cooking up incidents when the truth is bad enough. First an escape in a river, and then a waterfall—in the Lowlands?

Lastly comes the bad Hemingway scene of a soldier encountering the only woman (Claire Duburcq). And a final race gives us a runner seemingly able to outrun machine guns.

I succumbed to this thrilling, compelling film—though it’s current, post–Golden Globes status as a best-picture frontrunner is baffling. Considering what they endured, it’s probably best that the vets didn’t live to see it and hoot at it.

‘1917’ is playing now.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Comedian John Cleese has an insight I hope you’ll consider. He says, “It’s easier to do trivial things that are urgent than it is to do important things that are not urgent. It’s also easier to do little things we know we can do than to start on big things that we’re not so sure about.” I hope you’ll make this advice a priority in the coming weeks. You’ll be wise to prioritize important tasks, even those that aren’t urgent, as you de-emphasize trivial matters that tempt you to think they’re crucial. Focus on big things that are challenging, rather than on little things that are a snap.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Author Honoré Balzac (1799–1850) was born with sun and Mercury in Taurus and in the 10th house. Astrologers might hypothesize from these placements that he was ambitious, productive, tenacious, diligent, realistic and willful. The evidence supporting this theory is strong. Balzac wrote over 80 novels that displayed a profound and nuanced understanding of the human comedy. I predict that 2020 will be a year when you could make dramatic progress in cultivating a Balzac-like approach in your own sphere. But here’s a caveat: Balzac didn’t take good care of his body. He drank far too much coffee and had a careless approach to eating and sleeping. My hope is that as you hone your drive for success, you’ll be impeccable in tending to your health.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Before he was 21 years old, William Shakespeare and his wife birthed three kids. When he was 25, while the brood was still young, he began churning out literary masterpieces. By the time Will became a grandfather at age 43, he had written many of the works that ultimately made him one of history’s most illustrious authors. From this evidence, we might speculate that being a parent and husband heightened his creative flow. I bring this to your attention because I want to ask you: What role will commitment and duty and devotion play in your life during the coming months? (I suspect it’ll be a good one.)

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Cancerian-born painter Stanley Spencer (1891–1959) didn’t align himself with any artistic movement. Early on, his work was an odd blend of French Post-Impressionism and 14th-century Italian painting. I appreciate his stylistic independence, and suggest you draw inspiration from it in 2020. Another unique aspect of Spencer’s art was its mix of eroticism and religiosity. I think you’ll enjoy exploring that blend yourself in the coming months. Your spiritual and sexual longings could be quite synergistic. There’s one part of Spencer’s quirky nature I don’t recommend you imitate, however. He often wore pajamas beneath his clothes, even to formal occasions. Doing that wouldn’t serve your interests. (But it will be healthy for you to be somewhat indifferent to people’s opinions.)

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press in the 1440s. In subsequent decades, millions of mass-produced books became available for the first time, making their contents available to a far-wider audience than ever before. The printing press caused other changes, too—some not as positive. For instance, people who worked as scribes found it harder to get work. In our era, big culture-wide shifts are impacting our personal lives. Climate change, the internet, smart phones, automation and human-like robots are just a few examples. What are you doing to adjust to the many innovations? And what will you do in the future? Now is an excellent time to meditate on these issues.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): You’re skilled at the art of self-editing. When bright new ideas well up within you, you understand they are not yet ready for prime time, but will need to be honed and finessed. When your creativity overflows, tantalizing you with fresh perspectives and novel approaches, you know that you’ll have to harness the raw surge. However, it’s also true that sometimes you go too far in your efforts to refine your imagination’s breakthroughs; you over-think and over-polish. But I have a good feeling about the coming weeks, Virgo. I suspect you’ll find the sweet spot, self-editing with just the right touch.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Thomas Love Peacock was a Libran author whose specialty was writing satirical novels that featured people sitting around tables arguing about opinions and ideas. He was not renowned for cheerful optimism. And yet he did appreciate sheer beauty. “There is nothing perfect in this world,” he said, “except Mozart.” So much did Peacock love Mozart’s music that during one several-month stretch he attended six performances of the genius’s opera Don Giovanni. In this spirit, Libra, and in accordance with astrological indicators, I encourage you to make a list of your own perfect things—and spend extra time communing with them in the coming weeks.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Jean-Michel Basquiat began his career as a graffiti artist. When he evolved into a full-time painter, he incorporated words amidst his images. On many occasions, he’d draw lines through the words. Why? “I cross out words so you will see them more,” he said. “The fact that they are obscured makes you want to read them.” In the coming weeks, you might benefit from discreetly using this strategy in your own life. In other words, draw attention to the things you want to emphasize by downplaying them or being mysterious about them or suggesting they are secret. Reverse psychology can be an asset for you.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Because of the onslaught of the internet and social media, many people no longer read books. But in 2020, I highly recommend that you not be one of that crowd. In my astrological opinion, you need more of the slow, deep wisdom that comes from reading books. You will also benefit from other acts of rebellion against the Short Attention Span Era. Crucial blessings will flow in your direction as you honor the gradual, incremental approach to everything.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): “I love to be surprised by something I have never thought of,” declares Capricorn actor Ralph Fiennes. According to my analysis of the astrological aspects, you’ll be wise to make that one of your top mottos in 2020. Why? First, life is likely to bring to your attention a steady stream of things you’ve never imagined. And second, your ability to make good use of surprises will be at an all-time high. Here’s further advice to help ensure that the vast majority of your surprises will be welcome, even fun: Set aside as many of your dogmas and expectations as possible, so that you can be abundantly receptive to things you’ve never thought of.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): “I love fools’ experiments. I am always making them.” So said one of the most famous and influential scientists who ever lived, Aquarian-born naturalist Charles Darwin. In accordance with upcoming astrological factors, I invite you to draw inspiration from his approach. Allow yourself to explore playfully as you conduct fun research. Just assume that you have a mandate to drum up educational experiences, and that a good way to do that is to amuse yourself with improvisational adventures.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): “How do you get your main pleasure in life?” That question was posed to Scorpio author Evelyn Waugh and Piscean social reformer William Beveridge. Waugh said, “I get mine spreading alarm and despondency.” Beveridge said, “I get mine trying to leave the world a better place than I found it.” I hope you will favor Beveridge’s approach over Waugh’s in 2020, Pisces—for two reasons. First, the world already has plenty of alarm and despondency; it doesn’t need even a tiny bit more. Second, aspiring to be like Beveridge will be the best possible strategy for fostering your mental and physical health.

In Marin County, Phyllis Thelen is best known as one of the most successful supporters of arts, having formed or helped finance organizations such as Marin Ballet, Youth In Arts and Art Works Downtown.

Through it all, for over 70 years, Thelen herself was and continues to be an accomplished and celebrated visual artist with hundreds of works in several artistic mediums to her name. Many of these art pieces will be on display at Art Works Downtown for the new retrospective exhibit, “Phyllis Thelen: Coming Full Circle,” which opens with a reception on Friday, Jan. 10 and features an Artist Talk fundraiser on Friday, Jan. 31.

Born in the small railroad-crossing town of Colton, CA, in 1926, Thelen spent her youth making art, though she never thought a career would come of it. “In my day you were supposed to not put your time into things that weren’t going to earn you a living,” she says.

After convincing her father to let her study art in college, Thelen began to sell silkscreens, prints and woodblock works.

“I found that anything creative was satisfying to me; the whole thing is in the process,” Thelen says. “Letting your creative spirit go; it takes you out of yourself and what’s going on in the world and puts you in a different place. For me, that’s really irresistible.”

When Thelen moved to Marin in 1958, she found the county in need of creative arts foundations and began her work in philanthropy and art development work. “I found as much creative satisfaction in building organizations,” she says.

Art Works Downtown is one of Thelen’s greatest achievements, and the former Gordon’s Opera House on Fourth Street has anchored the art scene for over 20 years as an affordable studio, housing and exhibit space.

“Phyllis convinced the city of San Rafael to put her artwork in some of the vacant storefronts on Fourth Street to make it look inviting,” says Art Works Downtown Executive Director Elisabeth Setten. “At that time it was a bit of a new idea for downtowns to include the arts as a way for community development. She saw the potential.”

Now, Art Works Downtown is an anchor of the Downtown San Rafael Arts District, one of the 14 communities that received a grant from the state to serve as California’s first state-designated Cultural Districts.

In the last decade, Thelen retired from her role as an arts supporter, and is once again a full-time artist. This month’s title for the retrospective, “Coming Full Circle,” is not only a nod to that change in her life, but also because it will display Thelen’s progress as an artist, from the leaf boats she made as a child, to her provocative environmental and political works and her recently re-worked prints and other pieces now transformed into quilts and scrolls.

“It’s an amazing opportunity to look back at Phyllis’s work throughout the last few decades and see an artist who makes a commitment not only to arts centers but to the art,” Setten says. “It shows the impact she’s had over many years in the community.”

‘Phyllis Thelen: Coming Full Circle’ opens Friday, Jan. 10, at Art Works Downtown, 1337 Fourth St., San Rafael. 5pm. Free. artworksdowntown.org.