Mystery Science Theater 3000 experiment #706: Laserblast.
Original airdate: May 18, 1996.
Part of the Mystery Science Theater 3000 20th Anniversary Edition box set.
Laserblast is notable for two reasons: film critic Leonard Maltin gave it two-and-a-half stars, higher or equal to than several notable "good" movies, and of course, it was the last first-run MST3K episode aired on Comedy Central about a year before they moved over to the Sci-Fi Channel.
A loner teenager named Billy Duncan, played by Kim Milford, finds a lost alien ray gun while stumbling around in the desert one hot afternoon. Billy claims it as his own and uses it to get revenge on his enemies, but exposure to the weapon's radiation turns him into a violent lifeform who is eventually put out of his misery by the same aliens who left the weapon behind in the first place. Roddy McDowall and Keenan Wynn have small roles in this one. It wasn't one of their better performances.
In Deep 13, Dr. Forrester loses his funding, so he pulls the plug on his ongoing experiments, setting the Satellite of Love free. Before it can spiral out of control, Tom Servo manages to get the thrusters working, and the SOL drifts into deep space, encountering an annoying robot called Monad, a field of star babies (one needs changing), and a black hole that transforms Mike into something terrifying, but useful. After reaching the edge of the universe, Mike, Crow, Gypsy, and Tom become beings of pure energy, while back on Earth, Dr. F. is reborn, not unlike the end of 2001: A Space Odyssey, except that the monolith is a gigantic VHS tape.
A little more detail on the episode here.
I've actually never seen this episode before tonight, and it turned out to be a good one. Recommended!
Thursday, April 30, 2009
American Beauty
American Beauty. 1999 Dreamworks Pictures.
Starring: Kevin Spacey, Annette Bening, Thora Birch, Wes Bentley, Mena Suvari, Chris Cooper, Peter Gallagher, Allison Janney, Scott Bakula, Sam Robards
Director: Sam Mendes
Available from Amazon.
Sam Mendes' directorial debut netted five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor in a Leading Role for Kevin Spacey, and Mendes won the award for Best Director. Terry Gilliam declined to direct this movie, which meant that if he had accepted, it would've been a very difficult filmmaking process that went horribly overbudget.
The movie opens with narration from Lester Burnham (Spacey), who informs us that in less than a year, he will be dead, but he doesn't know that yet, and in a way, he's already dead. Burnham is a 42-year-old advertising executive and can't find any way to advance even higher. His wife Carolyn (Bening) is an ambitious real estate broker who hypes herself up so much that she is absolutely devastated when she can't close the deal. Their daughter is Jane (Birch), 16 years old, and she abhors her parents. Jane also has self-esteem issues, and is saving money for breast augmentation. The Burnhams' new neighbors are USMC Colonel Frank Fitts (Cooper), his distant wife Barbara (Janney), and their teenage son Ricky (Bentley), an aspiring filmmaker who films everything around him. Frank controls Ricky with a strict lifestyle, and testing him for drug use. His biggest fear may be that his only son might be gay, which isn't the case. We also learn that Frank is severely homophobic, which is just a cover for his deepest, darkest secret.
After watching a high school basketball game that Jane is cheerleading at, Lester develops a deep infatuation with Jane's friend and classmate Angela Hayes (Suvari). His fantasies about Angela portray her as sexually aggressive among thousands of red rose petals. Meanwhile, Ricky films Jane in her bedroom window one evening; she catches him and exposes herself through the window. Eventually, they begin a romantic relationship, bonding over Ricky's favorite image that he ever filmed: a plastic bag that is blown by the wind in front of a wall. Carolyn starts having an affair with a business rival, Buddy Kane (Gallagher). Lester's mid-life crisis continues: he quits his job before being laid off, and takes a low-pressure job at a fast food joint. He trades in his car for a '70 Pontiac Firebird and starts working out so he can "look good naked". Ricky soon starts selling Lester marijuana, and Lester still flirts with Angela whenever she visits Jane.
Frank becomes suspicious of Ricky's friendship with Lester, and after he finds videotapes of Lester working out, he beats his son, and Ricky leaves, asking Jane to flee with him to New York. Ricky also dismisses Angela as "ordinary", deflating her. Frank confronts Lester, and attempts to kiss him. Lester blows him off, and finds a distraught Angela, who asks him if she's beautiful. She starts to seduce Lester, but he stops her, and they instead bond over their shared personal frustration.
At the end, Lester is shot to death, but it's unclear who shot him. Carolyn was seen loading a gun and driving home (her affair with Kane ended after Lester's indifferent reaction to the news), and Frank returns home covered in blood and finds a gun missing from his collection. Ricky and Jane left the house after finding Lester dead in the kitchen. From the afterlife, Lester's final words suggest that he is happy, and it's difficult to be angry with so much beauty in the world.
Highly, highly recommended movie.
Starring: Kevin Spacey, Annette Bening, Thora Birch, Wes Bentley, Mena Suvari, Chris Cooper, Peter Gallagher, Allison Janney, Scott Bakula, Sam Robards
Director: Sam Mendes
Available from Amazon.
Sam Mendes' directorial debut netted five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor in a Leading Role for Kevin Spacey, and Mendes won the award for Best Director. Terry Gilliam declined to direct this movie, which meant that if he had accepted, it would've been a very difficult filmmaking process that went horribly overbudget.
The movie opens with narration from Lester Burnham (Spacey), who informs us that in less than a year, he will be dead, but he doesn't know that yet, and in a way, he's already dead. Burnham is a 42-year-old advertising executive and can't find any way to advance even higher. His wife Carolyn (Bening) is an ambitious real estate broker who hypes herself up so much that she is absolutely devastated when she can't close the deal. Their daughter is Jane (Birch), 16 years old, and she abhors her parents. Jane also has self-esteem issues, and is saving money for breast augmentation. The Burnhams' new neighbors are USMC Colonel Frank Fitts (Cooper), his distant wife Barbara (Janney), and their teenage son Ricky (Bentley), an aspiring filmmaker who films everything around him. Frank controls Ricky with a strict lifestyle, and testing him for drug use. His biggest fear may be that his only son might be gay, which isn't the case. We also learn that Frank is severely homophobic, which is just a cover for his deepest, darkest secret.
After watching a high school basketball game that Jane is cheerleading at, Lester develops a deep infatuation with Jane's friend and classmate Angela Hayes (Suvari). His fantasies about Angela portray her as sexually aggressive among thousands of red rose petals. Meanwhile, Ricky films Jane in her bedroom window one evening; she catches him and exposes herself through the window. Eventually, they begin a romantic relationship, bonding over Ricky's favorite image that he ever filmed: a plastic bag that is blown by the wind in front of a wall. Carolyn starts having an affair with a business rival, Buddy Kane (Gallagher). Lester's mid-life crisis continues: he quits his job before being laid off, and takes a low-pressure job at a fast food joint. He trades in his car for a '70 Pontiac Firebird and starts working out so he can "look good naked". Ricky soon starts selling Lester marijuana, and Lester still flirts with Angela whenever she visits Jane.
Frank becomes suspicious of Ricky's friendship with Lester, and after he finds videotapes of Lester working out, he beats his son, and Ricky leaves, asking Jane to flee with him to New York. Ricky also dismisses Angela as "ordinary", deflating her. Frank confronts Lester, and attempts to kiss him. Lester blows him off, and finds a distraught Angela, who asks him if she's beautiful. She starts to seduce Lester, but he stops her, and they instead bond over their shared personal frustration.
At the end, Lester is shot to death, but it's unclear who shot him. Carolyn was seen loading a gun and driving home (her affair with Kane ended after Lester's indifferent reaction to the news), and Frank returns home covered in blood and finds a gun missing from his collection. Ricky and Jane left the house after finding Lester dead in the kitchen. From the afterlife, Lester's final words suggest that he is happy, and it's difficult to be angry with so much beauty in the world.
Highly, highly recommended movie.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Sergeants 3
Sergeants 3. 1962 United Artists, distributed to DVD by MGM.
Starring: Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Peter Lawford, Joey Bishop
Also Starring: Henry Silva, Ruta Lee, Buddy Lester, The Crosby Brothers
Director: John Sturges
Available from Amazon as a single DVD, or part of The Rat Pack Ultimate Collectors Edition box set.
Frank Sinatra produced this remake of 1939's Gunga Din which served as a vehicle for he and his Rat Pack buddies. This would be the last of two movies they all appeared in, as Peter Lawford was ousted from the group after he could not, or would not act as a go-between for Sinatra and John F. Kennedy after their association became a matter of controversy, due to Sinatra's alleged ties to organized crime. Also, after JFK chose to stay at Bing Crosby's home in Palm Springs instead of his, Sinatra used that as an excuse to never speak to Lawford again, except when Frank Junior was kidnapped, prompting Sinatra to call Lawford and ask him to get in touch with Robert F. Kennedy to get the FBI involved. Sinatra and Bishop had some kind of issue, which led to him not appearing in Robin and the 7 Hoods and 4 For Texas, but whatever the deal, it apparently was never as serious as the Sinatra-Lawford falling out.
This one's recommended only for Rat Pack fans curious to see what nearly turned into a lost film. Sergeants 3 was rarely seen after its theatrical release, and didn't make it to home video until MGM finally released it on DVD in 2008. The movie can be pretty politically incorrect at times, and only Dean Martin looked like he actually fit into his role.
Sadly, the finished product is pretty boring, and not even the combined talents of Sinatra, Martin, Davis Jr., Lawford and Bishop could save it. I saw clips of this one in a Rat Pack documentary, which made it look more like a non-stop slapstick comedy western. The laughs are few and far between. Again, recommended only for serious Rat Pack fans. Everyone else should take a pass.
Starring: Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Peter Lawford, Joey Bishop
Also Starring: Henry Silva, Ruta Lee, Buddy Lester, The Crosby Brothers
Director: John Sturges
Available from Amazon as a single DVD, or part of The Rat Pack Ultimate Collectors Edition box set.
Frank Sinatra produced this remake of 1939's Gunga Din which served as a vehicle for he and his Rat Pack buddies. This would be the last of two movies they all appeared in, as Peter Lawford was ousted from the group after he could not, or would not act as a go-between for Sinatra and John F. Kennedy after their association became a matter of controversy, due to Sinatra's alleged ties to organized crime. Also, after JFK chose to stay at Bing Crosby's home in Palm Springs instead of his, Sinatra used that as an excuse to never speak to Lawford again, except when Frank Junior was kidnapped, prompting Sinatra to call Lawford and ask him to get in touch with Robert F. Kennedy to get the FBI involved. Sinatra and Bishop had some kind of issue, which led to him not appearing in Robin and the 7 Hoods and 4 For Texas, but whatever the deal, it apparently was never as serious as the Sinatra-Lawford falling out.
This one's recommended only for Rat Pack fans curious to see what nearly turned into a lost film. Sergeants 3 was rarely seen after its theatrical release, and didn't make it to home video until MGM finally released it on DVD in 2008. The movie can be pretty politically incorrect at times, and only Dean Martin looked like he actually fit into his role.
Sadly, the finished product is pretty boring, and not even the combined talents of Sinatra, Martin, Davis Jr., Lawford and Bishop could save it. I saw clips of this one in a Rat Pack documentary, which made it look more like a non-stop slapstick comedy western. The laughs are few and far between. Again, recommended only for serious Rat Pack fans. Everyone else should take a pass.
The Great Outdoors
The Great Outdoors.
1988 Universal Pictures & Hughes Entertainment.
Starring: Dan Aykroyd, John Candy, Annette Bening, Stephanie Faracy
Director: Howard Deutch
Buy The Great Outdoors from Amazon.
This is one of eight movies that starred both Dan Aykroyd and John Candy, and it was also Annette Bening's first major motion picture role.
Chicago's very own Chet Ripley (Candy), his wife Connie (Faracy), and their two sons are on vacation at a Wisconsin lake resort, complete with the backwoods cabin with numerous things wrong with it (dead fish in the shower, missing toliet seats).
And then, the Craig family shows up unannounced. Connie's sister Kate (Bening), her husband, the know-it-all investment broker Roman (Aykroyd), and their spaced-out twin daughters crash the resort, having cancelled their previous plans of a vacation in Europe. Roman drives a Mercedes, and loves to make people aware of his wealth, and his alleged expertise on just about everything. He also spoils Chet's vacation enough that he's ready to pack up his family and go home, even though one of his teenage sons is trying to romance a local girl named Cammie (Lucy Deakins).
There is a reason why the Craigs have crashed the Ripleys' vacation: a bad investment has wiped out all of their money, and Roman was planning to ask Chet to loan him $25,000.
When Roman and company aren't annoying Chet and his family, they are encountering grizzly bears, find out that the guest of honor of a 110th birthday party died enroute, but was still brought to the party regardless, and Chet devours a 96 ounce prime steak to impress Roman and earn everyone a free meal. Oh yes, everyone ends the film by dancing to Wilson Pickett's "Land of a Thousand Dances", which doesn't add much to the plot, but it's still a fun scene.
Also, rural raccoons can recognize Illinois license plates, and reason that Chicago residents eat much better than local citizens. Did you know that? I surely didn't!
Recommended movie.
1988 Universal Pictures & Hughes Entertainment.
Starring: Dan Aykroyd, John Candy, Annette Bening, Stephanie Faracy
Director: Howard Deutch
Buy The Great Outdoors from Amazon.
This is one of eight movies that starred both Dan Aykroyd and John Candy, and it was also Annette Bening's first major motion picture role.
Chicago's very own Chet Ripley (Candy), his wife Connie (Faracy), and their two sons are on vacation at a Wisconsin lake resort, complete with the backwoods cabin with numerous things wrong with it (dead fish in the shower, missing toliet seats).
And then, the Craig family shows up unannounced. Connie's sister Kate (Bening), her husband, the know-it-all investment broker Roman (Aykroyd), and their spaced-out twin daughters crash the resort, having cancelled their previous plans of a vacation in Europe. Roman drives a Mercedes, and loves to make people aware of his wealth, and his alleged expertise on just about everything. He also spoils Chet's vacation enough that he's ready to pack up his family and go home, even though one of his teenage sons is trying to romance a local girl named Cammie (Lucy Deakins).
There is a reason why the Craigs have crashed the Ripleys' vacation: a bad investment has wiped out all of their money, and Roman was planning to ask Chet to loan him $25,000.
When Roman and company aren't annoying Chet and his family, they are encountering grizzly bears, find out that the guest of honor of a 110th birthday party died enroute, but was still brought to the party regardless, and Chet devours a 96 ounce prime steak to impress Roman and earn everyone a free meal. Oh yes, everyone ends the film by dancing to Wilson Pickett's "Land of a Thousand Dances", which doesn't add much to the plot, but it's still a fun scene.
Also, rural raccoons can recognize Illinois license plates, and reason that Chicago residents eat much better than local citizens. Did you know that? I surely didn't!
Recommended movie.
The Thomas Crown Affair
The Thomas Crown Affair.
1968 The Mirisch Corporation & United Artists; now owned by MGM.
Starring: Steve McQueen, Faye Dunaway, Jack Weston, Gordon Pinsent, Yaphet Kotto, Fritz Weaver
Director: Norman Jewison
Available from Amazon as a single DVD, or part of MGM's Steve McQueen Collection.
Thomas Crown (McQueen) is a young and handsome millionaire responsible for a perfect crime: he had five men rob a bank, and then dump the money ($2.6 million) in a trash can. Crown found the money later, and stored it all in a Swiss bank. Soon after, an independent insurance investigator, Vicki Anderson (Dunaway), begins working on investigating the heist, and after digging deeper, begins to suspect Crown was the mastermind. To get closer, Anderson begins seeing Crown socially, but openly tells him that she's investigating him.
Pretty soon, they both fall in love, and Vicki is in a tight spot, since she is morally obligated to bring Thomas Crown to justice. Things are complicated further after Crown organizes another caper just for the hell of it.
Norman Jewison utilized split screens frequently to show simultaneous actions; this was inspired by the groundbreaking 1967 Canadian short film In the Labyrinth. Also, Sean Connery declined the lead role of this film, a decision he said he would come to regret.
Recommended.
1968 The Mirisch Corporation & United Artists; now owned by MGM.
Starring: Steve McQueen, Faye Dunaway, Jack Weston, Gordon Pinsent, Yaphet Kotto, Fritz Weaver
Director: Norman Jewison
Available from Amazon as a single DVD, or part of MGM's Steve McQueen Collection.
Thomas Crown (McQueen) is a young and handsome millionaire responsible for a perfect crime: he had five men rob a bank, and then dump the money ($2.6 million) in a trash can. Crown found the money later, and stored it all in a Swiss bank. Soon after, an independent insurance investigator, Vicki Anderson (Dunaway), begins working on investigating the heist, and after digging deeper, begins to suspect Crown was the mastermind. To get closer, Anderson begins seeing Crown socially, but openly tells him that she's investigating him.
Pretty soon, they both fall in love, and Vicki is in a tight spot, since she is morally obligated to bring Thomas Crown to justice. Things are complicated further after Crown organizes another caper just for the hell of it.
Norman Jewison utilized split screens frequently to show simultaneous actions; this was inspired by the groundbreaking 1967 Canadian short film In the Labyrinth. Also, Sean Connery declined the lead role of this film, a decision he said he would come to regret.
Recommended.
Fury
Fury. 1936 MGM/Turner Entertainment.
Starring: Spencer Tracy, Sylvia Sidney, Walter Abel, Bruce Cabot, Edward Ellis, Walter Brennan
Director: Fritz Lang
Buy Fury at Amazon. Also part of the Controversal Classics box set.
Fritz Lang's first American film saw the director forced by MGM to change details of the original script while filming, namely making the protagonist innocent of the crime he's accused off, and adding on a reconciliation between him and his lover.
Joe Wilson (Tracy) is traveling to meet his fiancée Katherine Grant (Sidney), when he finds himself stopped and arrested on flimsy circumstantial evidence for kidnapping a child. As Joe sits in the pokey, gossip quickly circulates around the small town, which naturally grows more outrageous as it spreads further. Finally, enough of the locals are angered enough to gather at the jail, wanting to bump off Joe themselves. The sheriff (Ellis) refuses to let the public deal with Joe themselves, so they burn down the jail. Joe barely gets away alive, and everyone believes he perished in the blaze.
The local district attorney (Abel) brings the main perpetrators to trial for murder, but no one is willing to identify exactly who did what, and several of the accused have alibis. As things look bleak, the prosecutor reveals newsreel footage shot of twenty-two people caught in the act. On the other side of the courtroom, the defense attorney tries to get his clients off by claiming there's no evidence that Joe was killed. However, an anonymous letter writer had returned a partially melted ring that Joe was wearing, and Katherine notices on the letter that a word is misspelled, the way Joe used to spell it.
Katherine learns that Joe is alive, and conspiring with his brothers to get revenge. She manages to talk him into stopping the charade, and Joe enters the courtroom as the verdicts are being read, setting things right.
A decent courtroom drama, even if the transfer to DVD was less than stellar. Evidentally, a pristine film negative couldn't be located, but considering the film's age, that can be overlooked. Highly recommended movie.
Starring: Spencer Tracy, Sylvia Sidney, Walter Abel, Bruce Cabot, Edward Ellis, Walter Brennan
Director: Fritz Lang
Buy Fury at Amazon. Also part of the Controversal Classics box set.
Fritz Lang's first American film saw the director forced by MGM to change details of the original script while filming, namely making the protagonist innocent of the crime he's accused off, and adding on a reconciliation between him and his lover.
Joe Wilson (Tracy) is traveling to meet his fiancée Katherine Grant (Sidney), when he finds himself stopped and arrested on flimsy circumstantial evidence for kidnapping a child. As Joe sits in the pokey, gossip quickly circulates around the small town, which naturally grows more outrageous as it spreads further. Finally, enough of the locals are angered enough to gather at the jail, wanting to bump off Joe themselves. The sheriff (Ellis) refuses to let the public deal with Joe themselves, so they burn down the jail. Joe barely gets away alive, and everyone believes he perished in the blaze.
The local district attorney (Abel) brings the main perpetrators to trial for murder, but no one is willing to identify exactly who did what, and several of the accused have alibis. As things look bleak, the prosecutor reveals newsreel footage shot of twenty-two people caught in the act. On the other side of the courtroom, the defense attorney tries to get his clients off by claiming there's no evidence that Joe was killed. However, an anonymous letter writer had returned a partially melted ring that Joe was wearing, and Katherine notices on the letter that a word is misspelled, the way Joe used to spell it.
Katherine learns that Joe is alive, and conspiring with his brothers to get revenge. She manages to talk him into stopping the charade, and Joe enters the courtroom as the verdicts are being read, setting things right.
A decent courtroom drama, even if the transfer to DVD was less than stellar. Evidentally, a pristine film negative couldn't be located, but considering the film's age, that can be overlooked. Highly recommended movie.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Love and Death
Love and Death. 1975 United Artists; distributed to DVD by MGM.
Starring: Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Jessica Harper, Olga Georges-Picot, James Tolkan, Denise Peron, Harold Gould, Alfred Lutter, Howard Vernon
Director: Woody Allen
Buy Love and Death from Amazon.
This was the last of Woody Allen's movies where he tried to get as many laughs as possible. Allen offers up parodies of Russian novels by Dostoyevsky and Tolstoy, pays tribute to several of Ingmar Bergman's films, and adds humor to the proceedings similar to the Marx Brothers (including a parody of a scene from Animal Crackers), Bob Hope, and Charlie Chaplin.
Oh, and in a rare move for Allen, this movie was neither shot, nor filmed anywhere near New York City.
In the film, Napoleon and his lovable rapscallions from France are advancing, and an invasion of the Russian Empire is imminent. Boris Grushenko (Allen) is a coward and a pacifict scholar forced to enlist in the Russian army. On top of that, he just received word that his cousin Sonja (Keaton) is going to marry a herring merchant, Boris accidentally captures a group of French soldiers, but it's all for naught, as the rest of Napoleon's forces reach Moscow immediately after that.
Boris goes home and marries the recently-widowed Sonja, who really doesn't want to marry him, but promises him she will when it looks like he's about to be killed during a duel. Their marriage is filled with philosophical debates, but no money. Sonja is angry that the French invasion will interfere with plans to start a family that year, so she draws up plans to kill Napoleon at his quarters, with Boris reluctantly going along with them after discussing it. Sonja escapes arrest, but Boris isn't so lucky.
Highly recommended movie.
Starring: Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Jessica Harper, Olga Georges-Picot, James Tolkan, Denise Peron, Harold Gould, Alfred Lutter, Howard Vernon
Director: Woody Allen
Buy Love and Death from Amazon.
This was the last of Woody Allen's movies where he tried to get as many laughs as possible. Allen offers up parodies of Russian novels by Dostoyevsky and Tolstoy, pays tribute to several of Ingmar Bergman's films, and adds humor to the proceedings similar to the Marx Brothers (including a parody of a scene from Animal Crackers), Bob Hope, and Charlie Chaplin.
Oh, and in a rare move for Allen, this movie was neither shot, nor filmed anywhere near New York City.
In the film, Napoleon and his lovable rapscallions from France are advancing, and an invasion of the Russian Empire is imminent. Boris Grushenko (Allen) is a coward and a pacifict scholar forced to enlist in the Russian army. On top of that, he just received word that his cousin Sonja (Keaton) is going to marry a herring merchant, Boris accidentally captures a group of French soldiers, but it's all for naught, as the rest of Napoleon's forces reach Moscow immediately after that.
Boris goes home and marries the recently-widowed Sonja, who really doesn't want to marry him, but promises him she will when it looks like he's about to be killed during a duel. Their marriage is filled with philosophical debates, but no money. Sonja is angry that the French invasion will interfere with plans to start a family that year, so she draws up plans to kill Napoleon at his quarters, with Boris reluctantly going along with them after discussing it. Sonja escapes arrest, but Boris isn't so lucky.
Highly recommended movie.
Johnny Got His Gun
Johnny Got His Gun.
1971 World Entertainment & Cinemation Industries; released to DVD by Shout! Factory.
Starring: Don "Red" Barry, Timothy Bottoms, Jason Robards, Donald Sutherland, Diane Varsi, Kathy Fields, Anthony Geary
Written and Directed by Dalton Trumbo
Buy Johnny Got His Gun from Amazon.
Most people today will instantly associate this film with Metallica, who used scenes and dialogue for their first music video for the song "One", which was released in 1988. The band reportedly purchased the movie outright after much effort was made to secure the rights to use footage from it, showing that even before they allegedly sold out, Metallica had more than a little money lying around to use however they wanted to. Shout! Factory's DVD release, which appeared in the brick and mortar stores today, includes the video for "One" as an extra. Other extras included are a new interview with star Timothy Bottoms, and the radio adaptation of Dalton Trumbo's 1939 novel that premiered in 1940 on NBC Radio, and starred James Cagney.
American soldier Joe Bonham (Bottoms, in his first film role) has suffered a fate worse than death. After getting hit by an artillery shell on the very last day of World War I, Bonham survived, but he was rendered a quadruple amputee who has also lost his eyes, ears, mouth, and nose. He remains conscious and able to reason, but he's a prisoner of his own body, gradually becoming aware of the extent of his injuries. His doctors believe that the only part of Joe that wasn't injured was the area of the brain controlling involuntary functions, which is why he's still alive, and they also believe that he cannot think or feel.
Since Joe can't do anything but think, he frequently remembers or dreams about his pre-war life with his family, including his dad (Robards), and his girlfriend (Fields), which are all told in flashbacks. After a long period, described in the radio show as 22 years (!), Joe is cared for by a nurse (Varsi) who is the first one to try to interact with him. She traces a Christmas message on his chest, and he responds by breathing in Morse Code. From there, Joe tries vainly to communicate with his doctors that he either be allowed to die, or be exhibited in a freak show as a demonstration of the horrors of war. The Army does not grant either wish, thinking it's easier to leave him in the condition he's trapped in.
This is an interesting movie, and one that had Donald Sutherland portraying a hepcat Jesus Christ (not unlike Peter O'Toole in The Ruling Class), although the transfer to DVD leaves a lot to be desired. Recommended, although perhaps you should seek out the novel, and read that first.
1971 World Entertainment & Cinemation Industries; released to DVD by Shout! Factory.
Starring: Don "Red" Barry, Timothy Bottoms, Jason Robards, Donald Sutherland, Diane Varsi, Kathy Fields, Anthony Geary
Written and Directed by Dalton Trumbo
Buy Johnny Got His Gun from Amazon.
Most people today will instantly associate this film with Metallica, who used scenes and dialogue for their first music video for the song "One", which was released in 1988. The band reportedly purchased the movie outright after much effort was made to secure the rights to use footage from it, showing that even before they allegedly sold out, Metallica had more than a little money lying around to use however they wanted to. Shout! Factory's DVD release, which appeared in the brick and mortar stores today, includes the video for "One" as an extra. Other extras included are a new interview with star Timothy Bottoms, and the radio adaptation of Dalton Trumbo's 1939 novel that premiered in 1940 on NBC Radio, and starred James Cagney.
American soldier Joe Bonham (Bottoms, in his first film role) has suffered a fate worse than death. After getting hit by an artillery shell on the very last day of World War I, Bonham survived, but he was rendered a quadruple amputee who has also lost his eyes, ears, mouth, and nose. He remains conscious and able to reason, but he's a prisoner of his own body, gradually becoming aware of the extent of his injuries. His doctors believe that the only part of Joe that wasn't injured was the area of the brain controlling involuntary functions, which is why he's still alive, and they also believe that he cannot think or feel.
Since Joe can't do anything but think, he frequently remembers or dreams about his pre-war life with his family, including his dad (Robards), and his girlfriend (Fields), which are all told in flashbacks. After a long period, described in the radio show as 22 years (!), Joe is cared for by a nurse (Varsi) who is the first one to try to interact with him. She traces a Christmas message on his chest, and he responds by breathing in Morse Code. From there, Joe tries vainly to communicate with his doctors that he either be allowed to die, or be exhibited in a freak show as a demonstration of the horrors of war. The Army does not grant either wish, thinking it's easier to leave him in the condition he's trapped in.
This is an interesting movie, and one that had Donald Sutherland portraying a hepcat Jesus Christ (not unlike Peter O'Toole in The Ruling Class), although the transfer to DVD leaves a lot to be desired. Recommended, although perhaps you should seek out the novel, and read that first.
Bringing Up Baby
Bringing Up Baby. 1938 RKO Radio Pictures & Turner Entertainment.
Starring: Katharine Hepburn, Cary Grant, Charles Ruggles, Walter Catlett, Barry Fitzgerald
Director: Howard Hawks
Available as a single DVD, or part of the Classic Comedies Collection from Amazon.
This film is allegedly the first mainstream work of fiction to use the word "gay" referring to homosexuality, and not just being happy. Cary Grant ad-libbed a line during one scene, saying "Because I just went gay all of a sudden". Construe it how you will.
David Huxley (Grant) is a mild-mannered paleontologist suffering from a plethora of problems, namely getting married to the wrong woman for him, Alice Swallow (Virginia Walker), and professionally, he is trying to assemble a brontosaurus skeleton, but he's missing just one bone, an "intercostal clavicle". Huxley must also make a good impression on Mrs. Random (May Robson), a rich lady considering a donation of one million dollars to his museum. The day before his wedding, David meets Susan Vance (Hepburn) by chance at the golf course. Susan is a free spirit, and unknown to David, Mrs. Random's niece. Susan's brother has sent her a leopard from Brazil named Baby, which she is supposed to give to her aunt. Susan believes David to be a zoologist, and tries desperately to lure him to her residence to help care for the animal. Predictably, Susan falls for David, and plans to keep him at her house indefinitely.
While at Susan's home, David spots her dog George stealing and burying the one dinosaur bone that he needs to complete the skeleton. After Mrs. Random arrives, chaos breaks out as Baby runs away, as does George, as well as a vicious leopard from the nearby circus that Susan and David let out of its cage, mistaking it for Baby. It's up to them to rescue Susan's pets, return the wild leopard to the circus, find the missing dinosaur bone, secure the million dollar donation, and somehow end up together by the end of the movie, Alice Swallow be damned.
Oh, and there's a road accident involving a chicken truck. You can't go wrong with that!
This is a highly recommended screwball comedy well worth your time.
Starring: Katharine Hepburn, Cary Grant, Charles Ruggles, Walter Catlett, Barry Fitzgerald
Director: Howard Hawks
Available as a single DVD, or part of the Classic Comedies Collection from Amazon.
This film is allegedly the first mainstream work of fiction to use the word "gay" referring to homosexuality, and not just being happy. Cary Grant ad-libbed a line during one scene, saying "Because I just went gay all of a sudden". Construe it how you will.
David Huxley (Grant) is a mild-mannered paleontologist suffering from a plethora of problems, namely getting married to the wrong woman for him, Alice Swallow (Virginia Walker), and professionally, he is trying to assemble a brontosaurus skeleton, but he's missing just one bone, an "intercostal clavicle". Huxley must also make a good impression on Mrs. Random (May Robson), a rich lady considering a donation of one million dollars to his museum. The day before his wedding, David meets Susan Vance (Hepburn) by chance at the golf course. Susan is a free spirit, and unknown to David, Mrs. Random's niece. Susan's brother has sent her a leopard from Brazil named Baby, which she is supposed to give to her aunt. Susan believes David to be a zoologist, and tries desperately to lure him to her residence to help care for the animal. Predictably, Susan falls for David, and plans to keep him at her house indefinitely.
While at Susan's home, David spots her dog George stealing and burying the one dinosaur bone that he needs to complete the skeleton. After Mrs. Random arrives, chaos breaks out as Baby runs away, as does George, as well as a vicious leopard from the nearby circus that Susan and David let out of its cage, mistaking it for Baby. It's up to them to rescue Susan's pets, return the wild leopard to the circus, find the missing dinosaur bone, secure the million dollar donation, and somehow end up together by the end of the movie, Alice Swallow be damned.
Oh, and there's a road accident involving a chicken truck. You can't go wrong with that!
This is a highly recommended screwball comedy well worth your time.
Trail of the Pink Panther
Trail of the Pink Panther.
1982 United Artists, distributed to DVD by MGM.
Starring: Peter Sellers (archive footage), David Niven, Rich Little (voice only; uncredited), Herbert Lom, Richard Mulligan, Joanna Lumley, Capucine, Robert Loggia, Harvey Korman, Burt Kwouk, Julie Andrews (uncredited), Robert Wagner (uncredited)
Music: Henry Mancini
Director: Blake Edwards
Available from Amazon.
Let's begin...Peter Sellers died before production of this movie started, so his appearance in the movie was pieced together from flashbacks from previous Pink Panther films and unused footage. This installment is dedicated to his memory. David Niven also makes a cameo in the film, but at the time of filming, he was very ill, and his voice was considered too weak for filming, and he was overdubbed by an uncredited Rich Little.
As usual, the famous Pink Panther diamond is stolen yet again from Lugash, and Chief Inspector Clouseau is called to look for it despite the protests of Inspector Dreyfus (Lom). Clouseau goes to London to investigate Sir Charles Lytton (Niven & Little), but no one has bothered to tell him that Lytton lives in the South of France. En route to an airport, Clouseau accidentally blows up his car, and thinks it's simply an assassination attempt. It is soon confirmed that there's a plot to kill Clouseau, and he is told not to go to Lugash, but Dreyfus, hoping that Clouseau will finally meet his end, orders him to go there.
Clouseau disappears, prompting investigative journalist Marie Jouvet (Lumley) to uncover the mystery, setting out to discover his background by interviewing people who he has met over the years, namely his father (Mulligan). Jouvet also has a run-in with the mafia, led by Bruno Langlois (Loggia), who politely warns her to stop searching for Clouseau, but she refuses, and even files a complaint with Dreyfus, who to her chagrin, presses no charges against Langlois. Despite this, Jouvet concludes that Clouseau must be alive, and he is found at a seaside cliff (played by Joe Dunne only seen from behind) before a montage of clips from previous movies is shown.
This movie is not recommended. The only real humor comes from the previously filmed archive footage of Sellers, and the rest seems like they never should have even bothered. Even MGM didn't think too highly of the finished product after acquiring it; they didn't even bother to edit out or replace the old United Artists logo from the beginning of the film like they've done with just about every other UA movie they now own before releasing it to DVD.
1982 United Artists, distributed to DVD by MGM.
Starring: Peter Sellers (archive footage), David Niven, Rich Little (voice only; uncredited), Herbert Lom, Richard Mulligan, Joanna Lumley, Capucine, Robert Loggia, Harvey Korman, Burt Kwouk, Julie Andrews (uncredited), Robert Wagner (uncredited)
Music: Henry Mancini
Director: Blake Edwards
Available from Amazon.
Let's begin...Peter Sellers died before production of this movie started, so his appearance in the movie was pieced together from flashbacks from previous Pink Panther films and unused footage. This installment is dedicated to his memory. David Niven also makes a cameo in the film, but at the time of filming, he was very ill, and his voice was considered too weak for filming, and he was overdubbed by an uncredited Rich Little.
As usual, the famous Pink Panther diamond is stolen yet again from Lugash, and Chief Inspector Clouseau is called to look for it despite the protests of Inspector Dreyfus (Lom). Clouseau goes to London to investigate Sir Charles Lytton (Niven & Little), but no one has bothered to tell him that Lytton lives in the South of France. En route to an airport, Clouseau accidentally blows up his car, and thinks it's simply an assassination attempt. It is soon confirmed that there's a plot to kill Clouseau, and he is told not to go to Lugash, but Dreyfus, hoping that Clouseau will finally meet his end, orders him to go there.
Clouseau disappears, prompting investigative journalist Marie Jouvet (Lumley) to uncover the mystery, setting out to discover his background by interviewing people who he has met over the years, namely his father (Mulligan). Jouvet also has a run-in with the mafia, led by Bruno Langlois (Loggia), who politely warns her to stop searching for Clouseau, but she refuses, and even files a complaint with Dreyfus, who to her chagrin, presses no charges against Langlois. Despite this, Jouvet concludes that Clouseau must be alive, and he is found at a seaside cliff (played by Joe Dunne only seen from behind) before a montage of clips from previous movies is shown.
This movie is not recommended. The only real humor comes from the previously filmed archive footage of Sellers, and the rest seems like they never should have even bothered. Even MGM didn't think too highly of the finished product after acquiring it; they didn't even bother to edit out or replace the old United Artists logo from the beginning of the film like they've done with just about every other UA movie they now own before releasing it to DVD.
Monday, April 27, 2009
First Blood
First Blood. 1982 Anabasis N.V. & Orion Pictures.
Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Richard Crenna, Brian Dennehy
Director: Ted Kotcheff
Buy First Blood Ultimate Edition from Amazon.
There are some films, and some movie genres that I'm not too wild about, and the Rambo series fits under this category. There is one way to get me to change my mind, and that usually involves Wal-Mart selling certain titles for five bucks.
Anywho...
John Rambo (Stallone) is a former member of an elite U.S. Army Special Forces unit, who was awarded a Medal of Honor for his service in Vietnam. Unfortunately, he's having great difficulty readjusting to civilian life. We see him searching for a friend of his, unaware that he died a year before from Agent Orange exposure. Rambo is now the last remaining member of his unit. Making his way to the small town of Hope, Washington, where he is promptly shown the door by a hardass sheriff Will Teasle (Dennehy), who makes it no secret that he despises "drifters". Rambo defies his order, and starts to make his way back into town, only to be arrested. Non-compliant while in custody, Rambo finds himself subjected to police brutality, and has flashbacks to his P.O.W. days, before escaping after the officers attempt to dryshave him with a straight razor. Stealing a motorcycle, Rambo speeds off into the wilderness, making his way high enough in the mountains that the police have to pursue him on foot. Teasle's head deputy spots him from a helicopter and tries to gun him down from the air. Rambo throws a rock in self defense, sending the pilot falling to his death. Teasle himself is unaware that his deputy tried to kill Rambo, and vows revenge.
Teasle's other deputies pursue Rambo into the woods, completely out of their element, especially after they learn about Rambo's combat experience and war hero status. Rambo disables them with guerrilla tactics, but he does not kill them. Teasle is confronted by Rambo, who warns him to back off before he retreats back into the forest. The National Guard is called in, along with Colonel Samuel Trautman (Crenna), who takes credit for training Rambo. Trautman is surprised to find the deputies are still alive, and suggests that they let Rambo go and find him after the situation calms down, but Teasle will not give in. Rambo outwits the National Guard, and hijacks a military truck, which he uses to destroy much of the town of Hope. Returning to the police station, Rambo injures Teasle, and prepares to finish him off when Trautman appears to talk him down. After his now-famous rant about the horrors of war and being unable to readjust to normal life, Rambo surrenders to Trautman. Don't worry, he'll be back in First Blood, Part 2, and eventually, his own syndicated cartoon series.
Recommended.
Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Richard Crenna, Brian Dennehy
Director: Ted Kotcheff
Buy First Blood Ultimate Edition from Amazon.
There are some films, and some movie genres that I'm not too wild about, and the Rambo series fits under this category. There is one way to get me to change my mind, and that usually involves Wal-Mart selling certain titles for five bucks.
Anywho...
John Rambo (Stallone) is a former member of an elite U.S. Army Special Forces unit, who was awarded a Medal of Honor for his service in Vietnam. Unfortunately, he's having great difficulty readjusting to civilian life. We see him searching for a friend of his, unaware that he died a year before from Agent Orange exposure. Rambo is now the last remaining member of his unit. Making his way to the small town of Hope, Washington, where he is promptly shown the door by a hardass sheriff Will Teasle (Dennehy), who makes it no secret that he despises "drifters". Rambo defies his order, and starts to make his way back into town, only to be arrested. Non-compliant while in custody, Rambo finds himself subjected to police brutality, and has flashbacks to his P.O.W. days, before escaping after the officers attempt to dryshave him with a straight razor. Stealing a motorcycle, Rambo speeds off into the wilderness, making his way high enough in the mountains that the police have to pursue him on foot. Teasle's head deputy spots him from a helicopter and tries to gun him down from the air. Rambo throws a rock in self defense, sending the pilot falling to his death. Teasle himself is unaware that his deputy tried to kill Rambo, and vows revenge.
Teasle's other deputies pursue Rambo into the woods, completely out of their element, especially after they learn about Rambo's combat experience and war hero status. Rambo disables them with guerrilla tactics, but he does not kill them. Teasle is confronted by Rambo, who warns him to back off before he retreats back into the forest. The National Guard is called in, along with Colonel Samuel Trautman (Crenna), who takes credit for training Rambo. Trautman is surprised to find the deputies are still alive, and suggests that they let Rambo go and find him after the situation calms down, but Teasle will not give in. Rambo outwits the National Guard, and hijacks a military truck, which he uses to destroy much of the town of Hope. Returning to the police station, Rambo injures Teasle, and prepares to finish him off when Trautman appears to talk him down. After his now-famous rant about the horrors of war and being unable to readjust to normal life, Rambo surrenders to Trautman. Don't worry, he'll be back in First Blood, Part 2, and eventually, his own syndicated cartoon series.
Recommended.
The West Point Story
The West Point Story. 1950 Warner Bros. Pictures.
Starring: James Cagney, Virginia Mayo, Doris Day, Gordon MacRaye, Gene Nelson, Alan Hale Jr., Roland Winters
Director: Roy Del Ruth
Amazon listings: Single DVD. Also part of the James Cagney Signature Collection.
Yes, legendary tough guy James Cagney is portraying a slightly effeminate Broadway musical director in this one.
Elwin "Bix" Bixby isn't having a great time in his career, so he reluctantly accepts a job from the producer Harry Eberhart (Winters) to stage a show at West Point that's been written by the producer's nephew Tom Fletcher (MacRae). Harry thinks his nephew's show could be a Broadway success if only he would leave the military academy.
At West Point, Bix's rehearsals aren't what he would like them to be at first, thanks to the academy's rules and regulations, and the cadets can only rehearse on their own time. To get around this, Bix himself must become a cadet, and have to deal with the attendant hazing.
Jan Wilson (Day) arrives at West Point to help out with the production, and Tom is so taken by Jan that he goes AWOL to accompany her to Hollywood. Not only does Bix have to salvage the production, he also now has to save Tom's military career by following him to California, and trying to talk him into returning to the base.
The trailer for The West Point Story tried very hard to recapture the spirit of Cagney's earlier hit Yankee Doodle Dandy. Recommended, largely on the strength of Cagney's performance. The DVD for the movie (as well as the other four discs from the Cagney Signature set) also includes the optional "Warner Night at the Movies" feature, which is a recreation of what it was like to go to the cinema in the glory days of Hollywood. They usually include newsreels, trailers, cartoons, and short films all preceeding the main feature. It sounds like an interesting concept, and I plan to review at least one DVD with this feature in the near future.
Starring: James Cagney, Virginia Mayo, Doris Day, Gordon MacRaye, Gene Nelson, Alan Hale Jr., Roland Winters
Director: Roy Del Ruth
Amazon listings: Single DVD. Also part of the James Cagney Signature Collection.
Yes, legendary tough guy James Cagney is portraying a slightly effeminate Broadway musical director in this one.
Elwin "Bix" Bixby isn't having a great time in his career, so he reluctantly accepts a job from the producer Harry Eberhart (Winters) to stage a show at West Point that's been written by the producer's nephew Tom Fletcher (MacRae). Harry thinks his nephew's show could be a Broadway success if only he would leave the military academy.
At West Point, Bix's rehearsals aren't what he would like them to be at first, thanks to the academy's rules and regulations, and the cadets can only rehearse on their own time. To get around this, Bix himself must become a cadet, and have to deal with the attendant hazing.
Jan Wilson (Day) arrives at West Point to help out with the production, and Tom is so taken by Jan that he goes AWOL to accompany her to Hollywood. Not only does Bix have to salvage the production, he also now has to save Tom's military career by following him to California, and trying to talk him into returning to the base.
The trailer for The West Point Story tried very hard to recapture the spirit of Cagney's earlier hit Yankee Doodle Dandy. Recommended, largely on the strength of Cagney's performance. The DVD for the movie (as well as the other four discs from the Cagney Signature set) also includes the optional "Warner Night at the Movies" feature, which is a recreation of what it was like to go to the cinema in the glory days of Hollywood. They usually include newsreels, trailers, cartoons, and short films all preceeding the main feature. It sounds like an interesting concept, and I plan to review at least one DVD with this feature in the near future.
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Dallas
Dallas. 1950 Warner Bros. Pictures.
Starring: Gary Cooper, Ruth Roman, Steve Cochran, Raymond Massey, Barbara Payton
Director: Stuart Heisler
Part of the Gary Cooper Signature Collection, available from Amazon.
Blayde Hollister (Cooper) is a former Confederate officer whose home and family are destroyed by the Marlow brothers during the Civil War. Hollister vows revenge, and ventures west to Texas, faking his death in a staged gunfight with his friend Wild Bill Hickock (Reed Hadley). After that, he befriends Martin Weatherby (Leif Erickson), the newly appointed U.S. Marshall to the new settlement of Dallas. Weatherby isn't really experienced in his job, but he does allow Hollister assume his identity in his quest to lure the Marlows out into the open.
The eldest Marlow, Will (Massey) is posing as a law-abiding real estate dealer feigning outrage at the antisocial activities engaged in by his brothers Cullen and Bryant, who are happily terrorizing the citizens of Dallas.
Dallas is a decent, good looking Technicolor western with a good performance by Gary Cooper, with some comedy and plenty of dialogue courtesy of writer John Twist. Recommended, especially if you've never seen it before.
Starring: Gary Cooper, Ruth Roman, Steve Cochran, Raymond Massey, Barbara Payton
Director: Stuart Heisler
Part of the Gary Cooper Signature Collection, available from Amazon.
Blayde Hollister (Cooper) is a former Confederate officer whose home and family are destroyed by the Marlow brothers during the Civil War. Hollister vows revenge, and ventures west to Texas, faking his death in a staged gunfight with his friend Wild Bill Hickock (Reed Hadley). After that, he befriends Martin Weatherby (Leif Erickson), the newly appointed U.S. Marshall to the new settlement of Dallas. Weatherby isn't really experienced in his job, but he does allow Hollister assume his identity in his quest to lure the Marlows out into the open.
The eldest Marlow, Will (Massey) is posing as a law-abiding real estate dealer feigning outrage at the antisocial activities engaged in by his brothers Cullen and Bryant, who are happily terrorizing the citizens of Dallas.
Dallas is a decent, good looking Technicolor western with a good performance by Gary Cooper, with some comedy and plenty of dialogue courtesy of writer John Twist. Recommended, especially if you've never seen it before.
Gentleman Jim
Gentleman Jim.
1942 Warner Bros. Pictures & Turner Entertainment.
Starring: Errol Flynn, Alexis Smith, Jack Carson, Alan Hale, William Frawley, Ward Bond
Director: Raoul Walsh
Amazon listings: Single DVD. Part of the Errol Flynn Signature Collection, Volume 2.
A film based on boxing champion James J. Corbett's autobiography The Roar of the Crowd.
In San Francisco during the 1890s, boxing is illegal. James J. Corbett (Flynn) is a young bank teller with an interest in boxing, who stumbles into it after talking the police out of arresting Judge Geary, a member of the board of directors at Corbett's bank, for illegally promoting fights. Geary is looking to improve the image of boxing by finding talent from more respectable backgrounds, and having them fight under Marquess of Queensbury rules. Geary has also found a British coach to evaluate prospects. During an impromptu sparring session, Geary discovers that Corbett has excellent fighting skills, in addition to his polished manner. On the downside, Corbett's arrogance alienates many from the upper class, particularly Victoria Ware (Smith). Corbett is attracted to her, but they argue frequently, and Victoria slowly comes around.
Corbett goes pro, hiring a manager named Billy Delaney (Frawley), and he introduces a new sophisticated style of boxing that downplays violent brawling. He wins several matches enroute to the championship fight with John L. Sullivan (Bond).
Interesting movie, and a personal favorite of Errol Flynn, who suffered a mild heart attack while filming it. Recommended movie.
1942 Warner Bros. Pictures & Turner Entertainment.
Starring: Errol Flynn, Alexis Smith, Jack Carson, Alan Hale, William Frawley, Ward Bond
Director: Raoul Walsh
Amazon listings: Single DVD. Part of the Errol Flynn Signature Collection, Volume 2.
A film based on boxing champion James J. Corbett's autobiography The Roar of the Crowd.
In San Francisco during the 1890s, boxing is illegal. James J. Corbett (Flynn) is a young bank teller with an interest in boxing, who stumbles into it after talking the police out of arresting Judge Geary, a member of the board of directors at Corbett's bank, for illegally promoting fights. Geary is looking to improve the image of boxing by finding talent from more respectable backgrounds, and having them fight under Marquess of Queensbury rules. Geary has also found a British coach to evaluate prospects. During an impromptu sparring session, Geary discovers that Corbett has excellent fighting skills, in addition to his polished manner. On the downside, Corbett's arrogance alienates many from the upper class, particularly Victoria Ware (Smith). Corbett is attracted to her, but they argue frequently, and Victoria slowly comes around.
Corbett goes pro, hiring a manager named Billy Delaney (Frawley), and he introduces a new sophisticated style of boxing that downplays violent brawling. He wins several matches enroute to the championship fight with John L. Sullivan (Bond).
Interesting movie, and a personal favorite of Errol Flynn, who suffered a mild heart attack while filming it. Recommended movie.
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Raging Bull
Raging Bull. 1980 United Artists; now owned and released to DVD by MGM.
Starring: Robert De Niro. Cathy Moriarty, Joe Pesci, Frank Vincent, Nicholas Colasanto, Theresa Saldana, Mario Gallo
Director: Martin Scorsese
Amazon listings: Single DVD. Two-disc special edition.
Quite possibly Martin Scorsese's best movie, and a true "modern classic" film.
We open with the overweight and over-the-hill former boxer Jake La Motta (De Niro) practicing his stand-up comedy routine sometime in 1964 before flashing back to 1941, where he loses a fixed boxing match in Cleveland to Jimmy Reeves, which prompts the audience to riot. Despite that, Jake's career is on the rise, even if the local mob is putting pressure on him and his brother Joey (Pesci), who is responsible for organizing Jake's matches, in addition to serving as his sparring partner. At one point, Jake tells his brother that he doesn't have much faith in his own boxing skills.
Jake splits two fights with Sugar Ray Robinson, which are set two years apart, then wins his next six fights while grappling with his insecure feelings about his very young wife Vickie (Moriarty) possibly having feelings for other men, particularly a future opponent, Tony Janiro. Showing off his sexual jealousy, Jake beats Janiro in front of the local mob boss Tommy Como (Colosanto). While Joey is talking his brother up to the press, he sees Vickie socializing with one of his mob connections, Salvy Batts (Vincent). After Vickie tells him that she's giving up on Jake, Joey picks a fight with Batts, which gets him in trouble with Como. After settling that, Joey tells Jake that he'll have to take a dive against Billy Fox (which he does) in order to get a title shot. Despite being suspended briefly, Jake does win the title belt from Marcel Cerdan in Detroit.
Three years later, Jake's insecurity gets the better of him, and he suspects Joey slept with Vickie, and his wife sarcastically replies she had already slept with everyone in the neighborhood. The two brothers fight over it, and after a match with Laurent Dauthuille, Jake tries to make up with Joey, but Joey assumes that it's just Salvy impersonating his brother. This depresses Jake enough that he allows Robinson to land some hard punches on him as punishment in their third and final fight.
Jake retires a couple of years later, telling the press he has bought new property in Miami. Vickie files for divorce shortly thereafter, and Jake is arrested for providing underage girls (passed off as 21 year olds) to men. Instead of raising bribe money by selling his belt, Jake serves a prison sentence, sorrowfully questioning his misfortune. After his release, Jake returns to New York to meet with Joey again. The "I coulda been a contender scene" from On the Waterfront is referenced, as Jake complains that Joey should have been there for him, but he also realizes that he can eventually redeem himself for his past wrongs.
Highly, highly, highly recommended film.
Starring: Robert De Niro. Cathy Moriarty, Joe Pesci, Frank Vincent, Nicholas Colasanto, Theresa Saldana, Mario Gallo
Director: Martin Scorsese
Amazon listings: Single DVD. Two-disc special edition.
Quite possibly Martin Scorsese's best movie, and a true "modern classic" film.
We open with the overweight and over-the-hill former boxer Jake La Motta (De Niro) practicing his stand-up comedy routine sometime in 1964 before flashing back to 1941, where he loses a fixed boxing match in Cleveland to Jimmy Reeves, which prompts the audience to riot. Despite that, Jake's career is on the rise, even if the local mob is putting pressure on him and his brother Joey (Pesci), who is responsible for organizing Jake's matches, in addition to serving as his sparring partner. At one point, Jake tells his brother that he doesn't have much faith in his own boxing skills.
Jake splits two fights with Sugar Ray Robinson, which are set two years apart, then wins his next six fights while grappling with his insecure feelings about his very young wife Vickie (Moriarty) possibly having feelings for other men, particularly a future opponent, Tony Janiro. Showing off his sexual jealousy, Jake beats Janiro in front of the local mob boss Tommy Como (Colosanto). While Joey is talking his brother up to the press, he sees Vickie socializing with one of his mob connections, Salvy Batts (Vincent). After Vickie tells him that she's giving up on Jake, Joey picks a fight with Batts, which gets him in trouble with Como. After settling that, Joey tells Jake that he'll have to take a dive against Billy Fox (which he does) in order to get a title shot. Despite being suspended briefly, Jake does win the title belt from Marcel Cerdan in Detroit.
Three years later, Jake's insecurity gets the better of him, and he suspects Joey slept with Vickie, and his wife sarcastically replies she had already slept with everyone in the neighborhood. The two brothers fight over it, and after a match with Laurent Dauthuille, Jake tries to make up with Joey, but Joey assumes that it's just Salvy impersonating his brother. This depresses Jake enough that he allows Robinson to land some hard punches on him as punishment in their third and final fight.
Jake retires a couple of years later, telling the press he has bought new property in Miami. Vickie files for divorce shortly thereafter, and Jake is arrested for providing underage girls (passed off as 21 year olds) to men. Instead of raising bribe money by selling his belt, Jake serves a prison sentence, sorrowfully questioning his misfortune. After his release, Jake returns to New York to meet with Joey again. The "I coulda been a contender scene" from On the Waterfront is referenced, as Jake complains that Joey should have been there for him, but he also realizes that he can eventually redeem himself for his past wrongs.
Highly, highly, highly recommended film.
Friday, April 24, 2009
Alias Jesse James
Alias Jesse James.
1959 Hope Enterprises & United Artists; now owned by MGM.
Starring: Bob Hope, Rhonda Fleming, Wendell Corey, James Garner, Fess Parker, Gary Cooper, Roy Rogers, Hugh O'Brien, James Arness
Director: Norman Z. McLeod
Part of the Bob Hope MGM Movie Legends Collection, available from Amazon.
Inept door-to-door insurance salesman Milford Farnsworth (Hope) has one more day to sell a policy for the Plymouth Rock Insurance Company, or he's fired. At a New York City bar, Milford unwittingly sells a $100,000 life insurance policy to a visiting Jesse James (Corey). After briefly thinking that he's saved his job, his boss Titus Queasley (Will Wright) finds out who Farnsworth sold the policy to. Queasley sends Milford west to get him to find Jesse James and talk him into cancelling the policy on such a high-risk client, or his death will bankrupt the company. If he can't do that, Farnsworth is told to act as Jesse's protector so he doesn't die, and his girlfriend Cora Lee Collins (Fleming) will not be able to collect.
Jesse James decides to bump off Farnsworth after dressing him up to look like the legendary outlaw, so he can marry Cora and collect the insurance money. Cora ends up falling for Milford, and they run off together, with the James Gang following them. As it turns out, Queasley telegraphed ahead for help, and a plethora of legendary western heroes and actors appear as their TV characters, or themselves, and they all manage to save Farnsworth's assets.
Recommended for a rainy day.
1959 Hope Enterprises & United Artists; now owned by MGM.
Starring: Bob Hope, Rhonda Fleming, Wendell Corey, James Garner, Fess Parker, Gary Cooper, Roy Rogers, Hugh O'Brien, James Arness
Director: Norman Z. McLeod
Part of the Bob Hope MGM Movie Legends Collection, available from Amazon.
Inept door-to-door insurance salesman Milford Farnsworth (Hope) has one more day to sell a policy for the Plymouth Rock Insurance Company, or he's fired. At a New York City bar, Milford unwittingly sells a $100,000 life insurance policy to a visiting Jesse James (Corey). After briefly thinking that he's saved his job, his boss Titus Queasley (Will Wright) finds out who Farnsworth sold the policy to. Queasley sends Milford west to get him to find Jesse James and talk him into cancelling the policy on such a high-risk client, or his death will bankrupt the company. If he can't do that, Farnsworth is told to act as Jesse's protector so he doesn't die, and his girlfriend Cora Lee Collins (Fleming) will not be able to collect.
Jesse James decides to bump off Farnsworth after dressing him up to look like the legendary outlaw, so he can marry Cora and collect the insurance money. Cora ends up falling for Milford, and they run off together, with the James Gang following them. As it turns out, Queasley telegraphed ahead for help, and a plethora of legendary western heroes and actors appear as their TV characters, or themselves, and they all manage to save Farnsworth's assets.
Recommended for a rainy day.
MST3K #612: The Starfighters
Mystery Science Theater 3000 experiment #612: The Starfighters.
Original airdate: October 29, 1994.
Part of the 12th MST3K box set, still available from Amazon.
A 1964 movie about Air Force pilot trainees starring future U.S. Congressman Robert K. Dornan, who as many people know, has had a history of saying really stupid things during his political career. If Dornan was really that much of a conservative homophobe during his acting career, he never really showed it.
Dornan is Lt. John Witkowski, training at a central California Air Force base to fly the F-104 Starfighter, whenever his father, a Congressman, isn't calling him to make sure he's all right, or calling his military superiors to talk them into moving him into the Bomber wing like he was back in World War II. And that's pretty much the film in a nutshell. Not a whole lot happens, aside from endless shots of airplanes refueling in the air.
On the Satellite of Love, Crow is trying very hard to get into the INFORMATION SUPERHIGHWAY!!!1!, but it takes the entire episode to do so, not to mention that Tech Support can't be bothered to take his phone call. Mike and the bots market their own barbeque sauce, which is bold as bold can be. Later on, Crow and Tom try "refueling", which looks and sounds fairly obscene, and they later successfully debrief Mike. Oh, and we can't forget Tom leading the United Servo Academy Men's Chorus in an inspired performance.
I missed this episode during its run on cable, and never got to see it until Rhino released it as part of their final MST3K box set before Shout Factory took over releasing the show to home video. I missed one hell of an episode. Highly, highly recommended.
Original airdate: October 29, 1994.
Part of the 12th MST3K box set, still available from Amazon.
A 1964 movie about Air Force pilot trainees starring future U.S. Congressman Robert K. Dornan, who as many people know, has had a history of saying really stupid things during his political career. If Dornan was really that much of a conservative homophobe during his acting career, he never really showed it.
Dornan is Lt. John Witkowski, training at a central California Air Force base to fly the F-104 Starfighter, whenever his father, a Congressman, isn't calling him to make sure he's all right, or calling his military superiors to talk them into moving him into the Bomber wing like he was back in World War II. And that's pretty much the film in a nutshell. Not a whole lot happens, aside from endless shots of airplanes refueling in the air.
On the Satellite of Love, Crow is trying very hard to get into the INFORMATION SUPERHIGHWAY!!!1!, but it takes the entire episode to do so, not to mention that Tech Support can't be bothered to take his phone call. Mike and the bots market their own barbeque sauce, which is bold as bold can be. Later on, Crow and Tom try "refueling", which looks and sounds fairly obscene, and they later successfully debrief Mike. Oh, and we can't forget Tom leading the United Servo Academy Men's Chorus in an inspired performance.
I missed this episode during its run on cable, and never got to see it until Rhino released it as part of their final MST3K box set before Shout Factory took over releasing the show to home video. I missed one hell of an episode. Highly, highly recommended.
Thursday, April 23, 2009
THX 1138
THX 1138. 1970 Warner Bros. Pictures & American Zoetrope.
Starring: Robert Duvall, Donald Pleasence, Don Pedro Colley, Maggie McOmie, Ian Wolfe, Marshall Efron, Sid Haig, James Wheaton
Executive Producer: Francis Ford Coppola
Director: George Lucas
Buy THX 1138, two-disc special edition, from Amazon.
This is the first feature length film directed by George Lucas, and it took some time before its DVD release in 2004. Lucas wanted to upgrade portions of the movie, not unlike what he did with the first three Star Wars films, but not as extensive in this case.
In a dystopian future, we are taken to an underground society where omnipresent, faceless, android police officers control the population, all human activity is monitored at all times, and special drugs to supress all emotion (that includes sexual desire) are mandatory to take. THX 1138 (Duvall) works on a nuclear production line. His roommate LUH 3417 (McOmie) has grown disillusioned, and consciously decides to stop taking her pills, breaking the law. She substitute inactive pills for THX's medications. As the drug's effect wears off, THX starts feeling genuine emotion and sexual desire for the first time, and he and LUH become lovers, planning to escape the "superstructure" where they can live in freedom. Before these plans go anywhere, they're both arrested and charged with having unauthorized sexual activity, and not taking the state-prescribed drugs.
THX is imprisoned in a white, limbo-like area along with notable inmates as technician SEN 5241 (Pleasence), who used his programming skills to try to replace LUH as THX's roommate, but ended up imprisoned after THX reported him. Eventually, THX and SEN decide to escape limbo, encountering a renegade hologram called SRT (Colley), who has also decided to escape. After leaving prison, THX tries to find LUH, only to find that her identity is now belonging to a fetus in a growth chamber, suggesting that she was considered "incurable" and killed. SEN breaks off to explore deeper into the city's underground, and is eventually captured, leaving THX and SRT to steal vehicles, and managing to elude capture by the android police officers (whose budget will dictate whether or not THX will be taken back into custody).
Lucas would subsequently insert references, and some not subtle at all, to this movie in every one of his subsequent projects. Recommended cult movie.
Starring: Robert Duvall, Donald Pleasence, Don Pedro Colley, Maggie McOmie, Ian Wolfe, Marshall Efron, Sid Haig, James Wheaton
Executive Producer: Francis Ford Coppola
Director: George Lucas
Buy THX 1138, two-disc special edition, from Amazon.
This is the first feature length film directed by George Lucas, and it took some time before its DVD release in 2004. Lucas wanted to upgrade portions of the movie, not unlike what he did with the first three Star Wars films, but not as extensive in this case.
In a dystopian future, we are taken to an underground society where omnipresent, faceless, android police officers control the population, all human activity is monitored at all times, and special drugs to supress all emotion (that includes sexual desire) are mandatory to take. THX 1138 (Duvall) works on a nuclear production line. His roommate LUH 3417 (McOmie) has grown disillusioned, and consciously decides to stop taking her pills, breaking the law. She substitute inactive pills for THX's medications. As the drug's effect wears off, THX starts feeling genuine emotion and sexual desire for the first time, and he and LUH become lovers, planning to escape the "superstructure" where they can live in freedom. Before these plans go anywhere, they're both arrested and charged with having unauthorized sexual activity, and not taking the state-prescribed drugs.
THX is imprisoned in a white, limbo-like area along with notable inmates as technician SEN 5241 (Pleasence), who used his programming skills to try to replace LUH as THX's roommate, but ended up imprisoned after THX reported him. Eventually, THX and SEN decide to escape limbo, encountering a renegade hologram called SRT (Colley), who has also decided to escape. After leaving prison, THX tries to find LUH, only to find that her identity is now belonging to a fetus in a growth chamber, suggesting that she was considered "incurable" and killed. SEN breaks off to explore deeper into the city's underground, and is eventually captured, leaving THX and SRT to steal vehicles, and managing to elude capture by the android police officers (whose budget will dictate whether or not THX will be taken back into custody).
Lucas would subsequently insert references, and some not subtle at all, to this movie in every one of his subsequent projects. Recommended cult movie.
Brewster's Millions
Brewster's Millions. 1985 Universal Pictures.
Starring: Richard Pryor, John Candy, Lonette McKee, Stephen Collins, David White, Rick Moranis, Jerry Orbach
Director: Walter Hill
Available at Amazon.
This is the seventh film adaptation of George Barr McCutcheon's novel of the same name, and it turned out to be the most successful one.
Monty Brewster (Pryor) is a baseball pitcher in the twilight of his career, playing on the Hackensack Bulls, a minor league team so minor that games are regularly delayed by trains (the field is built near an industrial district, and there's a branch line bisecting the outfield). His best friend is catcher Spike Nolan (Candy). Both players are released following their arrest for involvement in a bar fight, only to be bailed out by a cameraman who Monty is convinced is a scout for the New York Mets. In actuality, the man was hired to find Brewster (Nolan's along for the ride) and bring him to a Manhattan law office. Once there, Monty learns (via a videotaped "living will") that his recently deceased long-lost great-uncle was an eccentric multimillionaire who was his only living relative. The deceased uncle has included Monty in his will, and he is challenged to spend $30 million in 30 days to inherit the full $300 million inheritance, albeit with many conditions and rules that won't make it easy.
Monty can either accept that challenge, or settle for the one million dollar "wimp challenge", which Nolan urges him to take. After thinking about it, Brewster accepts the challenge.
The question is, can Monty meet the challenge, or will he lose everything?
Recommended film.
Starring: Richard Pryor, John Candy, Lonette McKee, Stephen Collins, David White, Rick Moranis, Jerry Orbach
Director: Walter Hill
Available at Amazon.
This is the seventh film adaptation of George Barr McCutcheon's novel of the same name, and it turned out to be the most successful one.
Monty Brewster (Pryor) is a baseball pitcher in the twilight of his career, playing on the Hackensack Bulls, a minor league team so minor that games are regularly delayed by trains (the field is built near an industrial district, and there's a branch line bisecting the outfield). His best friend is catcher Spike Nolan (Candy). Both players are released following their arrest for involvement in a bar fight, only to be bailed out by a cameraman who Monty is convinced is a scout for the New York Mets. In actuality, the man was hired to find Brewster (Nolan's along for the ride) and bring him to a Manhattan law office. Once there, Monty learns (via a videotaped "living will") that his recently deceased long-lost great-uncle was an eccentric multimillionaire who was his only living relative. The deceased uncle has included Monty in his will, and he is challenged to spend $30 million in 30 days to inherit the full $300 million inheritance, albeit with many conditions and rules that won't make it easy.
Monty can either accept that challenge, or settle for the one million dollar "wimp challenge", which Nolan urges him to take. After thinking about it, Brewster accepts the challenge.
The question is, can Monty meet the challenge, or will he lose everything?
Recommended film.
A Night in Casablanca
A Night in Casablanca.
1946 United Artists & Castle Hill Productions; released to DVD via Turner Entertainment & Warner Home Video.
Starring: The Marx Brothers (Groucho, Harpo, Chico), Sig Ruman, Charles Drake, Lois Collier
Director: Archie Mayo
Available from Amazon as a single DVD, or as part of the Marx Brothers Collection.
The brothers Marx return to the big screen following a five-year absence in an independently produced film that was originally intended to be a parody of Casablanca, but was retooled into a spoof of wartime melodramas.
The Hotel Casablanca keeps seeing its managers being murdered, and the escaped Nazi war criminal Heinrich Stubel, disguised as Count Pfefferman (Ruman) is responsible. Stubel is after stolen art treasures that he hid in a secret room somewhere in the hotel, and the only way he can do this without arousing suspicion is to take over the building himself. Stubel has a mute valet named Rusty (Harpo), who accidentally destroys Stubel's hairpiece, which means the former Nazi can't go out in public because of a conspicuous scar.
The hotel's new manager is Ronald Kornblow (Groucho), who doesn't realize that he's been hired only because no one else will take the job, but that doesn't stop him from taking over in a truly inept fashion. Corbacchio (Chico), owner of the Yellow Camel company, appoints himself as Kornblow's bodyguard after overhearing a murder plot, and he receives aid from Rusty.
Can Kornblow and his friends outwit Stubel?
Not bad, but obviously not the best film the Marx Brothers ever made. It's also notable for a series of exchanges between Groucho and Warner Bros., as the studio allegedly threatened to sue the brothers for using the name "Casablanca" in the title. Groucho fired back by threatening to sue the studio for using the word "Brothers". This is simply an urban legend; the studio just inquired about the story of the film to ensure there was no copyright infringement. Groucho capitalized on the rumors to attract more publicity for the movie, which included a series of hilarious letters to Warner Bros.
Recommended if you've never seen it before, or if there's nothing else on that day.
1946 United Artists & Castle Hill Productions; released to DVD via Turner Entertainment & Warner Home Video.
Starring: The Marx Brothers (Groucho, Harpo, Chico), Sig Ruman, Charles Drake, Lois Collier
Director: Archie Mayo
Available from Amazon as a single DVD, or as part of the Marx Brothers Collection.
The brothers Marx return to the big screen following a five-year absence in an independently produced film that was originally intended to be a parody of Casablanca, but was retooled into a spoof of wartime melodramas.
The Hotel Casablanca keeps seeing its managers being murdered, and the escaped Nazi war criminal Heinrich Stubel, disguised as Count Pfefferman (Ruman) is responsible. Stubel is after stolen art treasures that he hid in a secret room somewhere in the hotel, and the only way he can do this without arousing suspicion is to take over the building himself. Stubel has a mute valet named Rusty (Harpo), who accidentally destroys Stubel's hairpiece, which means the former Nazi can't go out in public because of a conspicuous scar.
The hotel's new manager is Ronald Kornblow (Groucho), who doesn't realize that he's been hired only because no one else will take the job, but that doesn't stop him from taking over in a truly inept fashion. Corbacchio (Chico), owner of the Yellow Camel company, appoints himself as Kornblow's bodyguard after overhearing a murder plot, and he receives aid from Rusty.
Can Kornblow and his friends outwit Stubel?
Not bad, but obviously not the best film the Marx Brothers ever made. It's also notable for a series of exchanges between Groucho and Warner Bros., as the studio allegedly threatened to sue the brothers for using the name "Casablanca" in the title. Groucho fired back by threatening to sue the studio for using the word "Brothers". This is simply an urban legend; the studio just inquired about the story of the film to ensure there was no copyright infringement. Groucho capitalized on the rumors to attract more publicity for the movie, which included a series of hilarious letters to Warner Bros.
Recommended if you've never seen it before, or if there's nothing else on that day.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
His Girl Friday
His Girl Friday. 1940 Columbia Pictures.
Starring: Cary Grant, Rosalind Russell, Ralph Bellamy, Alma Kruger, Gene Lockhart, Clarence Kolb, Regis Toomey
Director: Howard Hawks
Buy His Girl Friday, Columbia Classics edition, from Amazon.
A 1940 remake of the 1931 film The Front Page. This movie has also since become a public domain one, which means anyone can release it to home video. I have made sure to seek out and buy the one released by Columbia Pictures itself, and I would recommend that you do the same, even if Columbia didn't do the best job preserving their older films!
Morning Post editor Walter Burns (Grant, suave as always) knows that his former wife and former star reporter Hidegard "Hildy" Johnson (Russell) is planning to marry the boring insurance salesman Bruce Baldwin (Bellamy) before settling down to a quiet life as a wife and mother in Albany, New York. Burns isn't having it, and he manages to talk Hildy into covering just one more big story before she leaves: the upcoming execution of convicted murderer Earl Williams (John Qualen). Bruce and Hilly plan to live with Bruce's mother the first year, which should suggest that this relationship's gonna go over real well, right?
(It should be mentioned that Bruce Baldwin looks like that fellow in the movies...you know, Ralph Bellamy. Oh, and Walter Burns once got even with a guy named Archie Leach, who regretted ever messing with that fiery editor!)
Burns does everything he can do to keep Hildy from leaving, and he sets up Bruce that he is frequently arrested on trumped-up charges. Meanwhile, Williams escapes from jail, and runs across Hildy. The lure of the big scoop overcomes Hildy, and she becomes preoccupied with writing the story that she hardly notices that Bruce has thrown in the towel, and is going back home to Albany.
Mayor Fred (Kolb) is a corrupt son of a gun, and he realizes he and his sheriff need the publicity of the execution to keep their jobs in the next election, and they bribe a messenger to go away and come back later when he tries to give them the governor's reprieve for Williams. Walter and Hildy put a stop to this plot. Afterwards, he offers to remarry Hildy, complete with promising that honeymoon they never had the first time in Niagara Falls (slowly I turn...). Enroute, Walter finds out about a big news story, a strike, in Albany.
Highly recommended movie. This is one of the all-time classic screwball comedies.
Starring: Cary Grant, Rosalind Russell, Ralph Bellamy, Alma Kruger, Gene Lockhart, Clarence Kolb, Regis Toomey
Director: Howard Hawks
Buy His Girl Friday, Columbia Classics edition, from Amazon.
A 1940 remake of the 1931 film The Front Page. This movie has also since become a public domain one, which means anyone can release it to home video. I have made sure to seek out and buy the one released by Columbia Pictures itself, and I would recommend that you do the same, even if Columbia didn't do the best job preserving their older films!
Morning Post editor Walter Burns (Grant, suave as always) knows that his former wife and former star reporter Hidegard "Hildy" Johnson (Russell) is planning to marry the boring insurance salesman Bruce Baldwin (Bellamy) before settling down to a quiet life as a wife and mother in Albany, New York. Burns isn't having it, and he manages to talk Hildy into covering just one more big story before she leaves: the upcoming execution of convicted murderer Earl Williams (John Qualen). Bruce and Hilly plan to live with Bruce's mother the first year, which should suggest that this relationship's gonna go over real well, right?
(It should be mentioned that Bruce Baldwin looks like that fellow in the movies...you know, Ralph Bellamy. Oh, and Walter Burns once got even with a guy named Archie Leach, who regretted ever messing with that fiery editor!)
Burns does everything he can do to keep Hildy from leaving, and he sets up Bruce that he is frequently arrested on trumped-up charges. Meanwhile, Williams escapes from jail, and runs across Hildy. The lure of the big scoop overcomes Hildy, and she becomes preoccupied with writing the story that she hardly notices that Bruce has thrown in the towel, and is going back home to Albany.
Mayor Fred (Kolb) is a corrupt son of a gun, and he realizes he and his sheriff need the publicity of the execution to keep their jobs in the next election, and they bribe a messenger to go away and come back later when he tries to give them the governor's reprieve for Williams. Walter and Hildy put a stop to this plot. Afterwards, he offers to remarry Hildy, complete with promising that honeymoon they never had the first time in Niagara Falls (slowly I turn...). Enroute, Walter finds out about a big news story, a strike, in Albany.
Highly recommended movie. This is one of the all-time classic screwball comedies.
Rock 'n' Roll High School
Rock 'n' Roll High School.
1979 New World Pictures; now distributed to DVD by Buena Vista Home Entertainment.
Starring: P.J. Soles, Vince Van Patten, Clint Howard, Dey Young, Mary Woronov, Paul Bartel, The Ramones (Joey, Johnny, Dee Dee, Marky)
Executive Producer: Roger Corman
Director(s): Allan Arkush, Joe Dante & Jerry Zucker (last two uncredited)
Amazon.com listings (all discontinued)
Vince Lombardi High School, circa 1980. The school keeps losing principals after their inevitable nervous breakdown thanks to the students' love of rock 'n' roll and a complete disregard for education. At the center of this is the absolutely kick ass Riff Randell (Soles), a Ramones fanatic who waits in line for three days for concert tickets. Riff hopes to meet Joey Ramone so she can give him a song she wrote just for the band, "Rock 'n' Roll High School".
Unfortunately, the new principal, a strict disciplinarian named Evelyn Togar (Woronov) confiscates Riff's concert ticket. She and her best friend Kate Rambeau (Young) simply find another way to meet their heroes: win a radio contest. Eventually, Ms. Togar and a group of parents decide that the best way of dealing with their kids is burning a pile of rock records. Led by Riff and the Ramones (who are made honorary students), as well as Mr. McGree (Bartel), who finally succumbed to a secret love of rock 'n' roll, the students take over Vince Lombardi High, leading to the student body blowing the school sky high at the end of the film.
Meanwhile, Kate is sweet on the school's star linebacker Tom Roberts (Van Patten), and tries to work out a deal with Eaglebauer (Howard) for a date, but Roberts has his eyes on Riff.
The Ramones weren't even the first band considered for this film, as the producers considered Todd Rundgren, Cheap Trick, Devo, and even Van Halen for the movie. Any of these acts would've made this a completely different movie, and it's hard to imagine Riff Randell fawning over Rundgren, Robin Zander, or even David Lee Roth. Todd Rundgren has admitted that he regrets turning down the role.
A fun movie that's highly, highly recommended. Too bad it seems to be completely out of print at this time!
1979 New World Pictures; now distributed to DVD by Buena Vista Home Entertainment.
Starring: P.J. Soles, Vince Van Patten, Clint Howard, Dey Young, Mary Woronov, Paul Bartel, The Ramones (Joey, Johnny, Dee Dee, Marky)
Executive Producer: Roger Corman
Director(s): Allan Arkush, Joe Dante & Jerry Zucker (last two uncredited)
Amazon.com listings (all discontinued)
Vince Lombardi High School, circa 1980. The school keeps losing principals after their inevitable nervous breakdown thanks to the students' love of rock 'n' roll and a complete disregard for education. At the center of this is the absolutely kick ass Riff Randell (Soles), a Ramones fanatic who waits in line for three days for concert tickets. Riff hopes to meet Joey Ramone so she can give him a song she wrote just for the band, "Rock 'n' Roll High School".
Unfortunately, the new principal, a strict disciplinarian named Evelyn Togar (Woronov) confiscates Riff's concert ticket. She and her best friend Kate Rambeau (Young) simply find another way to meet their heroes: win a radio contest. Eventually, Ms. Togar and a group of parents decide that the best way of dealing with their kids is burning a pile of rock records. Led by Riff and the Ramones (who are made honorary students), as well as Mr. McGree (Bartel), who finally succumbed to a secret love of rock 'n' roll, the students take over Vince Lombardi High, leading to the student body blowing the school sky high at the end of the film.
Meanwhile, Kate is sweet on the school's star linebacker Tom Roberts (Van Patten), and tries to work out a deal with Eaglebauer (Howard) for a date, but Roberts has his eyes on Riff.
The Ramones weren't even the first band considered for this film, as the producers considered Todd Rundgren, Cheap Trick, Devo, and even Van Halen for the movie. Any of these acts would've made this a completely different movie, and it's hard to imagine Riff Randell fawning over Rundgren, Robin Zander, or even David Lee Roth. Todd Rundgren has admitted that he regrets turning down the role.
A fun movie that's highly, highly recommended. Too bad it seems to be completely out of print at this time!
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
The Long Goodbye
The Long Goodbye. 1973 United Artists, owned and distributed to DVD by MGM.
Starring: Elliott Gould, Nina Van Pallandt, Sterling Hayden, Mark Rydell, Henry Gibson, David Arkin, Jim Bouton, Arnold Schwarzenegger
Director: Robert Altman
Buy The Long Goodbye at Amazon.
Robert Altman directed this film adaptation of Raymond Chandler's 1953 novel of the same name. The screenplay is considerably different than the original source, including a drastic character departure for one major player.
Elliott Gould is detective Philip Marlowe, who opens the movie by dealing with his fussy and hungry cat (the future Morris, we kid you not) at three in the morning. The cat threatened early to steal the show, lemme tell ya. After feeding the cat, Terry Lennox (Bouton), Marlowe's best friend, drops in and asks for a lift from Los Angeles to Tijuana right that very second, and the detective obliges. After getting home, Marlowe is met by two other detectives, who are accusing Terry of murdering his rich wife Sylvia. Marlowe can't believe his best friend could be a murderer, so he refuses to answer the detectives' questions, which earns him three days in jail. He is released after it's reported that Terry committed suicide in Mexico, which means an open-and-shut case to the cops and the media, but Marlowe is not convinced.
After getting out, Marlowe is hired by Eileen Wade (Pallandt), the wife of the alcoholic novelist Roger Wade (Hayden), who is having a creative dry spell, and has a Papa Hemingway persona that leads him on regular booze binges and lengthy disappearances. While investigating the missing Mr. Wade, Marlowe discovers that the Wades knew the Lennoxes socially, and there's much more to the deaths of the Lennoxes than what he knew before.
A great Altman film with a decent performance from Gould. One highlight was Bouton's performance; this was his only feature film role in between stints playing baseball and authoring books like Ball Four. Recommended movie.
Starring: Elliott Gould, Nina Van Pallandt, Sterling Hayden, Mark Rydell, Henry Gibson, David Arkin, Jim Bouton, Arnold Schwarzenegger
Director: Robert Altman
Buy The Long Goodbye at Amazon.
Robert Altman directed this film adaptation of Raymond Chandler's 1953 novel of the same name. The screenplay is considerably different than the original source, including a drastic character departure for one major player.
Elliott Gould is detective Philip Marlowe, who opens the movie by dealing with his fussy and hungry cat (the future Morris, we kid you not) at three in the morning. The cat threatened early to steal the show, lemme tell ya. After feeding the cat, Terry Lennox (Bouton), Marlowe's best friend, drops in and asks for a lift from Los Angeles to Tijuana right that very second, and the detective obliges. After getting home, Marlowe is met by two other detectives, who are accusing Terry of murdering his rich wife Sylvia. Marlowe can't believe his best friend could be a murderer, so he refuses to answer the detectives' questions, which earns him three days in jail. He is released after it's reported that Terry committed suicide in Mexico, which means an open-and-shut case to the cops and the media, but Marlowe is not convinced.
After getting out, Marlowe is hired by Eileen Wade (Pallandt), the wife of the alcoholic novelist Roger Wade (Hayden), who is having a creative dry spell, and has a Papa Hemingway persona that leads him on regular booze binges and lengthy disappearances. While investigating the missing Mr. Wade, Marlowe discovers that the Wades knew the Lennoxes socially, and there's much more to the deaths of the Lennoxes than what he knew before.
A great Altman film with a decent performance from Gould. One highlight was Bouton's performance; this was his only feature film role in between stints playing baseball and authoring books like Ball Four. Recommended movie.
The Taking of Pelham One Two Three
The Taking of Pelham One Two Three.
1974 United Artists, now owned by MGM.
Starring: Walter Matthau, Robert Shaw, Martin Balsam, Hector Elizondo, Earl Hindman, James Broderick, Jerry Stiller
Director: Joseph Sargent
Available at Amazon.
A movie that has been remade in 1998 as a made-for-TV version, and a theatrical remake with Denzel Washington and John Travolta will be coming to theaters later this year.
During an ordinary day in New York City, a Manhattan-bound train from Pelham Bay Park is hijacked by four armed men, led by British mercenary Bernard Ryder (Shaw) and a former train operator named Harold Longman (Balsam). They kill two transit workers, then demand a random of one million dollars in unmarked bills within 60 minutes.
While the NYPD rushes to the scene (and loses time after getting into a collision), Lieutenant Zachary Garber (Matthau) negotiates with the hijackers. After the delay with the police car, Garber bluffs Ryder and his crew by telling them the money is already delivered to the station meet point, but some time is needed to walk down the tunnel to the hijacked car.
After Garber leaves to confront the hijackers himself, Ryder and Longman have disabled the train car's "dead-man" feature, and send the car speeding towards the terminal station after claiming the ransom money. The police chase the runaway car while the hijackers quickly leave the tunnel, but the subway car trips a red light break as it enters the South Ferry Loop, which stops the car, saving those passengers aboard it.
Can Garber and the police catch the hijackers before they can escape to freedom with a million dollars?
A pretty exciting heist movie. Recommended.
1974 United Artists, now owned by MGM.
Starring: Walter Matthau, Robert Shaw, Martin Balsam, Hector Elizondo, Earl Hindman, James Broderick, Jerry Stiller
Director: Joseph Sargent
Available at Amazon.
A movie that has been remade in 1998 as a made-for-TV version, and a theatrical remake with Denzel Washington and John Travolta will be coming to theaters later this year.
During an ordinary day in New York City, a Manhattan-bound train from Pelham Bay Park is hijacked by four armed men, led by British mercenary Bernard Ryder (Shaw) and a former train operator named Harold Longman (Balsam). They kill two transit workers, then demand a random of one million dollars in unmarked bills within 60 minutes.
While the NYPD rushes to the scene (and loses time after getting into a collision), Lieutenant Zachary Garber (Matthau) negotiates with the hijackers. After the delay with the police car, Garber bluffs Ryder and his crew by telling them the money is already delivered to the station meet point, but some time is needed to walk down the tunnel to the hijacked car.
After Garber leaves to confront the hijackers himself, Ryder and Longman have disabled the train car's "dead-man" feature, and send the car speeding towards the terminal station after claiming the ransom money. The police chase the runaway car while the hijackers quickly leave the tunnel, but the subway car trips a red light break as it enters the South Ferry Loop, which stops the car, saving those passengers aboard it.
Can Garber and the police catch the hijackers before they can escape to freedom with a million dollars?
A pretty exciting heist movie. Recommended.
The Producers
The Producers. 1968 Avco Embassy Films; owned and distributed to DVD by MGM.
Starring: Zero Mostel, Gene Wilder, Kenneth Mars, Lee Meredith, Estelle Winwood, Christopher Hewett, Andréas Voutsinas, Dick Shawn, Renée Taylor
Director: Mel Brooks
Available at Amazon.
This was the first film directed by Mel Brooks, who only saw fit to reference it at least once in every other move that he has directed since then!
An aging and failed Broadway producer named Max Bialystock (Mostel) has found himself romancing rich old women in exchange for money for his "next play". A nebbish accountant named Leo Bloom (Wilder) arrives to do the producer's books and finds a two thousand dollar error in the accounts of Bialystock's last play. After being conned into hiding the fraud, Bloom has a revelation while shuffling numbers ("Creative accounting"), and Bialystock immediately puts the idea into action: massively overselling shares in a Broadway production, and then purposely making the play a spectacular bomb. No one would ever audit its books, avoiding a payout, and leaving Bialystock and Bloom free to escape to Rio de Janeiro with the money. Leo is reluctant at first, but eventually changes his mind.
After extensively searching scripts for unproduced plays, they find one that can't fail (or succeed?): Springtime for Hitler: A Gay Romp with Adolf and Eva as Berchtesgaden, which Max describes as a "love letter to Hitler", and it was written in total sincerity by a deranged ex-Nazi Franz Liebkind (Mars), who has since settled in the Big Apple. After convincing Liebkind to sign over the stage rights, promising him that they will show the world the "true Hitler, the Hitler with a song in his heart", Max and Leo hire the worst Broadway director out there, Roger De Bris (Hewett) to stage the play. Apparently, anything De Bris directs closes on the first day of rehearsal. The part of Hitler is given to a charismatic but perpetually stoned hippie named Lorenzo St. Dubois (Shawn), popularly known as LSD, and he wandered into the wrong theater by accident dyring the casting call. Bialystock then fleeces dozens of rich old women, managing to sell 25,000 percent of the play.
Springtime for Hitler turns out to be a cheerfully upbeat, and completely tasteless musical story of the life of Hitler, with an extravagant production number kicking off the play. To the dismay of Leo and Max, and to the outrage of Liebkind, the play is a hit, largely thanks to LSD's portrayal of Hitler. Hilariously, the attempt to sabotage the newest Broadway sensation backfires for Leo, Max, and Liebkind, and they are sent to prison after being found incredibly guilty of bombing the theater. No matter, though. The three of them collaborate on a new play for their fellow convicts called Prisoners of Love, and utilize the same scam as before.
Highly recommended movie!
Starring: Zero Mostel, Gene Wilder, Kenneth Mars, Lee Meredith, Estelle Winwood, Christopher Hewett, Andréas Voutsinas, Dick Shawn, Renée Taylor
Director: Mel Brooks
Available at Amazon.
This was the first film directed by Mel Brooks, who only saw fit to reference it at least once in every other move that he has directed since then!
An aging and failed Broadway producer named Max Bialystock (Mostel) has found himself romancing rich old women in exchange for money for his "next play". A nebbish accountant named Leo Bloom (Wilder) arrives to do the producer's books and finds a two thousand dollar error in the accounts of Bialystock's last play. After being conned into hiding the fraud, Bloom has a revelation while shuffling numbers ("Creative accounting"), and Bialystock immediately puts the idea into action: massively overselling shares in a Broadway production, and then purposely making the play a spectacular bomb. No one would ever audit its books, avoiding a payout, and leaving Bialystock and Bloom free to escape to Rio de Janeiro with the money. Leo is reluctant at first, but eventually changes his mind.
After extensively searching scripts for unproduced plays, they find one that can't fail (or succeed?): Springtime for Hitler: A Gay Romp with Adolf and Eva as Berchtesgaden, which Max describes as a "love letter to Hitler", and it was written in total sincerity by a deranged ex-Nazi Franz Liebkind (Mars), who has since settled in the Big Apple. After convincing Liebkind to sign over the stage rights, promising him that they will show the world the "true Hitler, the Hitler with a song in his heart", Max and Leo hire the worst Broadway director out there, Roger De Bris (Hewett) to stage the play. Apparently, anything De Bris directs closes on the first day of rehearsal. The part of Hitler is given to a charismatic but perpetually stoned hippie named Lorenzo St. Dubois (Shawn), popularly known as LSD, and he wandered into the wrong theater by accident dyring the casting call. Bialystock then fleeces dozens of rich old women, managing to sell 25,000 percent of the play.
Springtime for Hitler turns out to be a cheerfully upbeat, and completely tasteless musical story of the life of Hitler, with an extravagant production number kicking off the play. To the dismay of Leo and Max, and to the outrage of Liebkind, the play is a hit, largely thanks to LSD's portrayal of Hitler. Hilariously, the attempt to sabotage the newest Broadway sensation backfires for Leo, Max, and Liebkind, and they are sent to prison after being found incredibly guilty of bombing the theater. No matter, though. The three of them collaborate on a new play for their fellow convicts called Prisoners of Love, and utilize the same scam as before.
Highly recommended movie!
Monday, April 20, 2009
The Miles Davis Story
The Miles Davis Story. 2001 Dibb Directions & Channel 4 Television; released to DVD by Columbia Music Video.
Produced, Directed and Narrated by Mike Dibb
Available from Amazon.
A British television documentary, it focuses mainly on the life of Miles Davis, from his roots in East St. Louis, and how he helped shape jazz music for most of his life. There are plenty of interviews from family members, friends, historians, and of course, most of the musicians Davis worked with, all providing lengthy and interesting first-hand accounts of him at his best (music), and yes, at his worst (substance abuse, his treatment of women). Nothing is off limits here.
You will learn a lot about the life of Davis, but those expecting lengthy performance clips, or hearing music for longer than a few seconds will be disappointed. No matter, though. This is still the best documentary about one of America's most influential musicians, even if the music itself seemed to take a backseat. Highly recommended.
Produced, Directed and Narrated by Mike Dibb
Available from Amazon.
A British television documentary, it focuses mainly on the life of Miles Davis, from his roots in East St. Louis, and how he helped shape jazz music for most of his life. There are plenty of interviews from family members, friends, historians, and of course, most of the musicians Davis worked with, all providing lengthy and interesting first-hand accounts of him at his best (music), and yes, at his worst (substance abuse, his treatment of women). Nothing is off limits here.
You will learn a lot about the life of Davis, but those expecting lengthy performance clips, or hearing music for longer than a few seconds will be disappointed. No matter, though. This is still the best documentary about one of America's most influential musicians, even if the music itself seemed to take a backseat. Highly recommended.
Bowling for Columbine
Bowling for Columbine. 2002 Metro Goldwin Mayer, United Artists & Alliance Atlantis.
Featuring: Michael Moore, Charlton Heston, Matt Stone, Marilyn Manson, Dick Clark
Written, Produced and Directed by Michael Moore
Available at Amazon.
Michael Moore's award winning documentary about America's obsession with guns and violence. The title of the movie stems from the story (since disproven) that hours before they embarked on their killing spree in Columbine High School back in 1999, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold attending their favorite class: a no-credit bowling course held at an alley near the high school. Two years later, that same bowling alley would become the scene of a robbery and triple homicide.
Through the course of the movie, Moore meets with members of the Michigan Militia, which once counted Oklahoma City bombers Timothy McVeigh and his accomplice Terry Nichols, and extensively interviews Nichols' brother James. He also spends time investigating the role of the media in America's climate of fear and anger, which includes interviews with South Park co-creator Matt Stone, who grew up in Littleton, as well as Marilyn Manson, whose music (along with KMFDM's) was initially blamed by some people as the main cause of the massacre in Colorado. Manson concluded his interview by saying he would listen to the kids at Columbine, since "no one else did". Moore also makes sure to touch on violent video games, movies, and South Park being blamed for the shootings. Easy scapegoat.
Moore also took two Columbine survivors, Mark Taylor and Richard Castaldo, to K-Mart's then-world headquarters in Michigan, to try to claim a refund on the bullets still lodged in their bodies (Moore disclosed that some of the weapons and ammunition used by Harris and Klebold were purchased at the local store). K-Mart officials tried several times to evade the issue before deciding to phase out the sale of handgun ammunition.
The documentary's defining moment (my opinion) is Moore's unscheduled interview with a sickly (Alzheimer's disease, early stages of prostate cancer) Charlton Heston at his home. Ten days after Columbine, the NRA and its then-president Heston held a pro-gun rally in Littleton just ten days after the shootings, where Heston held up a rifle and yelled his now infamous catchphrase "From my cold dead hands", before trying to justify the NRA going ahead with its show despite the protests of Littleton's citizens. Heston vaguely blames "ethnic differences" on America's problems with violence, and he doesn't seem capable of answering Moore's questions to the director's satisfaction before famously walking off, leaving Moore standing alone in his driveway. That, I think, along with the surveillance footage taken from Columbine High School from the time Klebold and Harris waltzed in and started shooting, sending students running for their lives, is the toughest part of the movie to watch.
Highly, highly recommended.
Featuring: Michael Moore, Charlton Heston, Matt Stone, Marilyn Manson, Dick Clark
Written, Produced and Directed by Michael Moore
Available at Amazon.
Michael Moore's award winning documentary about America's obsession with guns and violence. The title of the movie stems from the story (since disproven) that hours before they embarked on their killing spree in Columbine High School back in 1999, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold attending their favorite class: a no-credit bowling course held at an alley near the high school. Two years later, that same bowling alley would become the scene of a robbery and triple homicide.
Through the course of the movie, Moore meets with members of the Michigan Militia, which once counted Oklahoma City bombers Timothy McVeigh and his accomplice Terry Nichols, and extensively interviews Nichols' brother James. He also spends time investigating the role of the media in America's climate of fear and anger, which includes interviews with South Park co-creator Matt Stone, who grew up in Littleton, as well as Marilyn Manson, whose music (along with KMFDM's) was initially blamed by some people as the main cause of the massacre in Colorado. Manson concluded his interview by saying he would listen to the kids at Columbine, since "no one else did". Moore also makes sure to touch on violent video games, movies, and South Park being blamed for the shootings. Easy scapegoat.
Moore also took two Columbine survivors, Mark Taylor and Richard Castaldo, to K-Mart's then-world headquarters in Michigan, to try to claim a refund on the bullets still lodged in their bodies (Moore disclosed that some of the weapons and ammunition used by Harris and Klebold were purchased at the local store). K-Mart officials tried several times to evade the issue before deciding to phase out the sale of handgun ammunition.
The documentary's defining moment (my opinion) is Moore's unscheduled interview with a sickly (Alzheimer's disease, early stages of prostate cancer) Charlton Heston at his home. Ten days after Columbine, the NRA and its then-president Heston held a pro-gun rally in Littleton just ten days after the shootings, where Heston held up a rifle and yelled his now infamous catchphrase "From my cold dead hands", before trying to justify the NRA going ahead with its show despite the protests of Littleton's citizens. Heston vaguely blames "ethnic differences" on America's problems with violence, and he doesn't seem capable of answering Moore's questions to the director's satisfaction before famously walking off, leaving Moore standing alone in his driveway. That, I think, along with the surveillance footage taken from Columbine High School from the time Klebold and Harris waltzed in and started shooting, sending students running for their lives, is the toughest part of the movie to watch.
Highly, highly recommended.
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Missing
Missing (Criterion #449).
1982 Universal Pictures & Polygram Pictures.
Starring: Sissy Spacek, Jack Lemmon, Melanie Mayron, John Shea, Charles Cioffi, David Clennon, Richard Venture, Joe Regalbuto
Music: Vangelis
Director: Costa-Gavras
Amazon listings: Criterion DVD. Original release to DVD by Universal.
American journalist Charles Horman settled in Chile to work as a freelance writer in 1972. Six days after General Augusto Pinochet led a coup that overthrew socialist president Salvador Allende, Horman was seized by Chilean soldiers, and taken to the National Stadium in Santiago, which was serving as a temporary concentration camp where prisoners were interrogated, tortured, and executed. For about a month, Horman's whereabouts were unknown, but it was later determined that his body was buried inside one of the stadium's walls, before turning up at a morgue. At the time that Pinochet seized power, Horman was in a resort town called Vina del Mar, which was a key base for the coup plotters and U.S. military and intelligence personnel supporting them. Horman spoke with several U.S. operatives and took notes documenting the assumed role of the U.S. in overthrowing Allende, which presumably led to his secret arrest, disappearence, and execution. Horman's family tried to find out his final fate, but were met with resistance and duplicity by U.S. embassy officials, who allegedly knew that he was definitely executed, and why.
Missing is based on Horman's story. The movie is set in an unspecified South American nation (clearly intended to be Chile). Director Costa-Gavras opens with a statement that the events of the film are true, but some things have been changed for the movie to protect it, as well as the innocent. Two Americans, Charlie (Shea) and Beth (Spacek) Horman have elected to settle in Chile, simply because they enjoy it there, and not for any political reasons. For all of the country's problems, they've made some good friends and enjoy living there. Then, during some chaotic events, Charlie suddenly disappears. Beth has no idea what happened, or where he ended up. She turns to the American consulate for help, but they're not very helpful, and insist on giving the same vague, canned non-answers whenever she approaches them.
Charlie's father Ed (Lemmon) arrives, convinced that Beth's liberal views have been the reason why the American officials will not cooperate with her requests for information. Ed is a gung-ho patriotic conservative convinced that the American way is always 100 percent right and true, while Beth instinctively doesn't trust her own government to do or say the right thing in any situation. Despite their differences, they must work together to find out the truth about Charlie's disappearance. The days turn into weeks, and Ed is horrified to learn that he and his family were betrayed by the U.S. government on behalf of the "friendly" dictator who engineered and carried out the chaos and violence gripping the territory.
Missing was banned in Chile during Pinochet's regime, even if the nation wasn't mentioned by name in the film. The movie was also removed from the market after Costa-Gavras and Universal were sued by former Ambassador Nathaniel Davis, who was portrayed in the movie by Richard Venture. Lew Wasserman, who was then the head of Universal, supported the movie enough that he insisted the studio absolutely refuse to negotiate any kind of settlement with Davis. The suit was eventually dismissed, and Missing was issued on DVD, first by Universal, and then by Criterion shortly thereafter. Also, the real life Ed Horman and Joyce Horman (who Spacek's character Beth was based on) worked closely with the production of the movie.
A winner of an Academy Award for Writing Adapted Screenplay, Missing also garnered three more nominations: Best Actor (Lemmon), Best Actress (Spacek), and Best Picture. Jack Lemmon did win the Best Actor Award at Cannes, though, an acolade that he deserved. He and Spacek gave some fantastic performances here, making Missing one hell of a powerful film not afraid to suggest that our own government can and will betray its own citizens for their own needs. Highly recommended movie.
1982 Universal Pictures & Polygram Pictures.
Starring: Sissy Spacek, Jack Lemmon, Melanie Mayron, John Shea, Charles Cioffi, David Clennon, Richard Venture, Joe Regalbuto
Music: Vangelis
Director: Costa-Gavras
Amazon listings: Criterion DVD. Original release to DVD by Universal.
American journalist Charles Horman settled in Chile to work as a freelance writer in 1972. Six days after General Augusto Pinochet led a coup that overthrew socialist president Salvador Allende, Horman was seized by Chilean soldiers, and taken to the National Stadium in Santiago, which was serving as a temporary concentration camp where prisoners were interrogated, tortured, and executed. For about a month, Horman's whereabouts were unknown, but it was later determined that his body was buried inside one of the stadium's walls, before turning up at a morgue. At the time that Pinochet seized power, Horman was in a resort town called Vina del Mar, which was a key base for the coup plotters and U.S. military and intelligence personnel supporting them. Horman spoke with several U.S. operatives and took notes documenting the assumed role of the U.S. in overthrowing Allende, which presumably led to his secret arrest, disappearence, and execution. Horman's family tried to find out his final fate, but were met with resistance and duplicity by U.S. embassy officials, who allegedly knew that he was definitely executed, and why.
Missing is based on Horman's story. The movie is set in an unspecified South American nation (clearly intended to be Chile). Director Costa-Gavras opens with a statement that the events of the film are true, but some things have been changed for the movie to protect it, as well as the innocent. Two Americans, Charlie (Shea) and Beth (Spacek) Horman have elected to settle in Chile, simply because they enjoy it there, and not for any political reasons. For all of the country's problems, they've made some good friends and enjoy living there. Then, during some chaotic events, Charlie suddenly disappears. Beth has no idea what happened, or where he ended up. She turns to the American consulate for help, but they're not very helpful, and insist on giving the same vague, canned non-answers whenever she approaches them.
Charlie's father Ed (Lemmon) arrives, convinced that Beth's liberal views have been the reason why the American officials will not cooperate with her requests for information. Ed is a gung-ho patriotic conservative convinced that the American way is always 100 percent right and true, while Beth instinctively doesn't trust her own government to do or say the right thing in any situation. Despite their differences, they must work together to find out the truth about Charlie's disappearance. The days turn into weeks, and Ed is horrified to learn that he and his family were betrayed by the U.S. government on behalf of the "friendly" dictator who engineered and carried out the chaos and violence gripping the territory.
Missing was banned in Chile during Pinochet's regime, even if the nation wasn't mentioned by name in the film. The movie was also removed from the market after Costa-Gavras and Universal were sued by former Ambassador Nathaniel Davis, who was portrayed in the movie by Richard Venture. Lew Wasserman, who was then the head of Universal, supported the movie enough that he insisted the studio absolutely refuse to negotiate any kind of settlement with Davis. The suit was eventually dismissed, and Missing was issued on DVD, first by Universal, and then by Criterion shortly thereafter. Also, the real life Ed Horman and Joyce Horman (who Spacek's character Beth was based on) worked closely with the production of the movie.
A winner of an Academy Award for Writing Adapted Screenplay, Missing also garnered three more nominations: Best Actor (Lemmon), Best Actress (Spacek), and Best Picture. Jack Lemmon did win the Best Actor Award at Cannes, though, an acolade that he deserved. He and Spacek gave some fantastic performances here, making Missing one hell of a powerful film not afraid to suggest that our own government can and will betray its own citizens for their own needs. Highly recommended movie.
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Days of Heaven
Days of Heaven (Criterion #409).
1978 Paramount Pictures.
Starring: Richard Gere, Brooke Adams, Sam Shepard, Linda Manz
Music: Ennio Morricone
Director: Terrence Malick
Amazon listings: Criterion DVD. Original DVD release.
As of this writing, Terrence Malick has directed only four feature films, and is reportedly working on his fifth for release in 2010. Regardless, every single one of them are considered "masterpieces" by film critics, so Malick has to be doing something right by taking his sweet time between projects. Days of Heaven is the first Malick film I've bought and owned, so let's see how I feel about it.
Scenario: Chicago, 1916. A laborer named Bill (Gere) gets into a fight with his boss at the steel mill, and Bill knocks him down, probably killing him. Bill flees the Windy City before he can find out the fate of his boss, along with his sister Linda (Manz) and his girlfriend Abby (Adams). Everyone ends up in the Texas panhandle as seasonal workers for a rich and shy farmer (Shepard) who Bill hears is dying of a mysterious disease. Bill and Abby pose as brother and sister to prevent gossip.
The farmer falls in love with Abby, and Bill encourages her to marry him so they can inherit his money when he dies. After the wedding, Bill stays at the farm as Abby's "brother", but the farmer's foreman begins to suspect their scheme. Unfortunately for Bill, the farmer's health actually stabilizes.
Bill's true relationship with Abby is found out, at a time where she is falling in love with her new husband. The farmer attacks Bill with a gun, but Bill kills him in self defense with a screwdriver. Since there's a class difference between the farmer and Bill, not to mention that scam he was perpetrating, Bill would be considered a murderer if caught. Bill and the girls leave the farm, and the foreman puts the police on their trail. Bill is killed by the police, and Abby goes off on her own after leaving Linda at a boarding school.
Days of Heaven took two years to complete, with Malick scrapping the script after just two weeks, and instead shooting "miles of film with the hope of solving the problems in the editing room". The film fell way behind schedule, and went over its budget. Malick's new approach aggravated Gere, and producer Bert Schneider, who had mortgaged his home to cover the overages. The editing process took over two years to complete, and Malick had great difficulty piecing the film together, until he finally struck on the idea of Manz's character providing narration. Schneider, still angered with Malick, had to ask Paramount for more money to complete the movie, which he was not comfortable with. They got that, and more after a screening with studio executives. Malick was reportedly given "carte blanche" for his next movie, but the ordeal of making Days of Heaven saw him abandon his next movie for Paramount while it was being developed. He would return in 1998 with The Thin Red Line, however.
Highly recommended movie.
1978 Paramount Pictures.
Starring: Richard Gere, Brooke Adams, Sam Shepard, Linda Manz
Music: Ennio Morricone
Director: Terrence Malick
Amazon listings: Criterion DVD. Original DVD release.
As of this writing, Terrence Malick has directed only four feature films, and is reportedly working on his fifth for release in 2010. Regardless, every single one of them are considered "masterpieces" by film critics, so Malick has to be doing something right by taking his sweet time between projects. Days of Heaven is the first Malick film I've bought and owned, so let's see how I feel about it.
Scenario: Chicago, 1916. A laborer named Bill (Gere) gets into a fight with his boss at the steel mill, and Bill knocks him down, probably killing him. Bill flees the Windy City before he can find out the fate of his boss, along with his sister Linda (Manz) and his girlfriend Abby (Adams). Everyone ends up in the Texas panhandle as seasonal workers for a rich and shy farmer (Shepard) who Bill hears is dying of a mysterious disease. Bill and Abby pose as brother and sister to prevent gossip.
The farmer falls in love with Abby, and Bill encourages her to marry him so they can inherit his money when he dies. After the wedding, Bill stays at the farm as Abby's "brother", but the farmer's foreman begins to suspect their scheme. Unfortunately for Bill, the farmer's health actually stabilizes.
Bill's true relationship with Abby is found out, at a time where she is falling in love with her new husband. The farmer attacks Bill with a gun, but Bill kills him in self defense with a screwdriver. Since there's a class difference between the farmer and Bill, not to mention that scam he was perpetrating, Bill would be considered a murderer if caught. Bill and the girls leave the farm, and the foreman puts the police on their trail. Bill is killed by the police, and Abby goes off on her own after leaving Linda at a boarding school.
Days of Heaven took two years to complete, with Malick scrapping the script after just two weeks, and instead shooting "miles of film with the hope of solving the problems in the editing room". The film fell way behind schedule, and went over its budget. Malick's new approach aggravated Gere, and producer Bert Schneider, who had mortgaged his home to cover the overages. The editing process took over two years to complete, and Malick had great difficulty piecing the film together, until he finally struck on the idea of Manz's character providing narration. Schneider, still angered with Malick, had to ask Paramount for more money to complete the movie, which he was not comfortable with. They got that, and more after a screening with studio executives. Malick was reportedly given "carte blanche" for his next movie, but the ordeal of making Days of Heaven saw him abandon his next movie for Paramount while it was being developed. He would return in 1998 with The Thin Red Line, however.
Highly recommended movie.
Friday, April 17, 2009
Metropolitan
Metropolitan (Criterion #326).
1990 Allagash Films & Westerly Film; distributed by New Line Cinema.
Starring: Carolyn Farina, Edward Clements, Chris Eigman, Taylor Nichols, Allison Rutledge-Parisi, Dylan Hundley
Director: Whit Stillman
Buy Metropolitan at Amazon.
It's a movie full of conversations.
Tom (Clements) attends an upper class debutante ball in Manhattan one night in December. When the party ends, Tom declines a cab, claiming he would prefer to walk home, and letting five others who were at the party take the cab. Those youngsters invite Tom to join them at the "afterparty" in a luxurious high-rise apartment, where everyone sips wine, smokes cigarettes, and have lengthy intelligent conversations about anything and nothing. Pretty soon, Tom is accepted into the group, and they regularly get together.
But Tom has a big secret: he's not part of New York City's wealthy elite, and instead, he lives in a small dingy apartment with his divorced mother. No matter, though, as Tom's new friends still accept him depsite his background. Tom soon finds himself drawn to Audrey (Farina), but an old flame from his past and another rowdy newcomer who owns a Long Island beach house might derail them before the romance even begins.
A largely obscure, and decent independent film. Whit Stillman went on to direct the somewhat more known The Last Days of Disco* in 1998. Highly recommended.
* I've heard online from a credible source that this movie will be released by Criterion sometime in the next couple of years. Stay tuned.
1990 Allagash Films & Westerly Film; distributed by New Line Cinema.
Starring: Carolyn Farina, Edward Clements, Chris Eigman, Taylor Nichols, Allison Rutledge-Parisi, Dylan Hundley
Director: Whit Stillman
Buy Metropolitan at Amazon.
It's a movie full of conversations.
Tom (Clements) attends an upper class debutante ball in Manhattan one night in December. When the party ends, Tom declines a cab, claiming he would prefer to walk home, and letting five others who were at the party take the cab. Those youngsters invite Tom to join them at the "afterparty" in a luxurious high-rise apartment, where everyone sips wine, smokes cigarettes, and have lengthy intelligent conversations about anything and nothing. Pretty soon, Tom is accepted into the group, and they regularly get together.
But Tom has a big secret: he's not part of New York City's wealthy elite, and instead, he lives in a small dingy apartment with his divorced mother. No matter, though, as Tom's new friends still accept him depsite his background. Tom soon finds himself drawn to Audrey (Farina), but an old flame from his past and another rowdy newcomer who owns a Long Island beach house might derail them before the romance even begins.
A largely obscure, and decent independent film. Whit Stillman went on to direct the somewhat more known The Last Days of Disco* in 1998. Highly recommended.
* I've heard online from a credible source that this movie will be released by Criterion sometime in the next couple of years. Stay tuned.
The Browning Version
The Browning Version (Criterion #294).
1951 The Rank Organisation & Janus Films.
Starring: Michael Redgrave, Jean Kent, Nigel Patrick, Brian Smith
Director: Anthony Asquith
Available from Amazon.
A film adaptation of Terence Rattigan's play of the same name, which was first performed in 1948.
Michael Redgrave is Andrew Crocker-Harris is an aging Classics teacher at a private school in Britain, who is forced to retire by his increasing ill health. As his career winds down, Crocker-Harris has to come to terms with his feelings that his entire life may be a failure, after years of scorn from students and colleagues alike, and no kind of thanks of any kind for all of the years he has taught. Not only is his job ending, so is his marriage to Millie (Kent), who is openly having an affair with Frank Hunter (Patrick), the school's chemistry teacher.
One student, though, actually doesn't openly despise Crocker-Harris. Taplow (Smith) gives the teacher a parting gift: Robert Browning's translation of the Agamemnon, with a Greek phrase he inscribed the gift with that translates as "God for afar looks graciously upon a gentle master". The teacher still maintains his stoic image, despite all that's going wrong for him, but he still grapples with remorse. This changes after Millie leaves him for good right before the graduation ceremonies. Crocker-Harris ultimately discards his prepared speech, and delivers a lengthy and emotional apology for having failed them as their teacher.
Recommended movie. This could very well change into a highly recommendation upon repeated viewings, though!
1951 The Rank Organisation & Janus Films.
Starring: Michael Redgrave, Jean Kent, Nigel Patrick, Brian Smith
Director: Anthony Asquith
Available from Amazon.
A film adaptation of Terence Rattigan's play of the same name, which was first performed in 1948.
Michael Redgrave is Andrew Crocker-Harris is an aging Classics teacher at a private school in Britain, who is forced to retire by his increasing ill health. As his career winds down, Crocker-Harris has to come to terms with his feelings that his entire life may be a failure, after years of scorn from students and colleagues alike, and no kind of thanks of any kind for all of the years he has taught. Not only is his job ending, so is his marriage to Millie (Kent), who is openly having an affair with Frank Hunter (Patrick), the school's chemistry teacher.
One student, though, actually doesn't openly despise Crocker-Harris. Taplow (Smith) gives the teacher a parting gift: Robert Browning's translation of the Agamemnon, with a Greek phrase he inscribed the gift with that translates as "God for afar looks graciously upon a gentle master". The teacher still maintains his stoic image, despite all that's going wrong for him, but he still grapples with remorse. This changes after Millie leaves him for good right before the graduation ceremonies. Crocker-Harris ultimately discards his prepared speech, and delivers a lengthy and emotional apology for having failed them as their teacher.
Recommended movie. This could very well change into a highly recommendation upon repeated viewings, though!
Thursday, April 16, 2009
La Strada
La Strada [The Road] (Criterion #219).
1954 Ponti-De Laurentiis Cinematografica, Trans Lux & Janus Films.
Starring: Anthony Quinn, Giulietta Masina, Richard Basehart, Also Silvani, Marcella Rovere, Livia Venturini
Director: Federico Fellini
Amazon.com listings: Criterion DVD, Essential Art House edition.
The winner of the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1956.
Gelsomina (Masina, Fellini's wife) is a clownish young lady sold for 10,000 lira by her impoverished mother to a carnival strong man called Zampanò (Quinn), who makes his living by drawing the public to a square, expanding his chest to break a chain, then passing the hat around. Zampanò is physically and emotionally abusive, and trains Gelsomina as his sidekick with a cruel streak. Despite her innocent looks and childlike optimism, she is unable to avoid Zampanò's fits of anger. Gelsomina considers herself an artist after learning to play a snare drum and trumpet, in addition to her dancing and playing a clown. Over time, their relationship improves somewhat, and Gelsomina falls in love, ultimately deciding that traveling as Zampanò's companion is her true purpose in life.
Somewhere in their travels, they meet up with "The Fool" (Basehart), an acrobat and clown from the circus. He tries teaching Gelsomina that there may be more to life than being Zampanò's sidekick-slash-target for rage. The Fool and Zampanò have long been at odds, and Zampanò ends up killing his nemesis in a fit of rage, which devastates Gelsomina. This gets her abandoned by the side of the road when Zampanò discovers this.
Years later, Zampanò hears that Gelsomina has died in a local village, which causes him to express remorse for the first time in his life.
La Strata was a landmark film not only for Fellini's career, but for Italian cinema in general. It was also a great influence on Martin Scorsese, who admitted that the character of Zampanò was an obvious prototype for Jake LaMotta in Raging Bull, as well as elements that were written into the character of Johnny Boy in Mean Streets. The Criterion DVD has a ten minute introduction from Scorsese, but newcomers to the film might want to avoid it until after seeing the movie first, since Scorsese gives away quite a bit about the plot and key events in the film.
Highly, highly recommended. I admit that I cheated and used the English-dubbed soundtrack available on the DVD instead of watching it as Fellini intended it, in its original language with English subtitles turned on.
1954 Ponti-De Laurentiis Cinematografica, Trans Lux & Janus Films.
Starring: Anthony Quinn, Giulietta Masina, Richard Basehart, Also Silvani, Marcella Rovere, Livia Venturini
Director: Federico Fellini
Amazon.com listings: Criterion DVD, Essential Art House edition.
The winner of the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1956.
Gelsomina (Masina, Fellini's wife) is a clownish young lady sold for 10,000 lira by her impoverished mother to a carnival strong man called Zampanò (Quinn), who makes his living by drawing the public to a square, expanding his chest to break a chain, then passing the hat around. Zampanò is physically and emotionally abusive, and trains Gelsomina as his sidekick with a cruel streak. Despite her innocent looks and childlike optimism, she is unable to avoid Zampanò's fits of anger. Gelsomina considers herself an artist after learning to play a snare drum and trumpet, in addition to her dancing and playing a clown. Over time, their relationship improves somewhat, and Gelsomina falls in love, ultimately deciding that traveling as Zampanò's companion is her true purpose in life.
Somewhere in their travels, they meet up with "The Fool" (Basehart), an acrobat and clown from the circus. He tries teaching Gelsomina that there may be more to life than being Zampanò's sidekick-slash-target for rage. The Fool and Zampanò have long been at odds, and Zampanò ends up killing his nemesis in a fit of rage, which devastates Gelsomina. This gets her abandoned by the side of the road when Zampanò discovers this.
Years later, Zampanò hears that Gelsomina has died in a local village, which causes him to express remorse for the first time in his life.
La Strata was a landmark film not only for Fellini's career, but for Italian cinema in general. It was also a great influence on Martin Scorsese, who admitted that the character of Zampanò was an obvious prototype for Jake LaMotta in Raging Bull, as well as elements that were written into the character of Johnny Boy in Mean Streets. The Criterion DVD has a ten minute introduction from Scorsese, but newcomers to the film might want to avoid it until after seeing the movie first, since Scorsese gives away quite a bit about the plot and key events in the film.
Highly, highly recommended. I admit that I cheated and used the English-dubbed soundtrack available on the DVD instead of watching it as Fellini intended it, in its original language with English subtitles turned on.
Naked Lunch
Naked Lunch (Criterion #220).
1991 20th Century Fox.
Starring: Peter Weller, Judy Davis, Ian Holm, Julian Sands, Roy Scheider
Director: David Cronenberg
Buy Naked Lunch (the movie) from Amazon.
"I can think of at least two things wrong with that title." --Nelson Muntz, March 31, 1996.
This would be the film adaptation of the William S. Burroughs novel, which among other things, provided the up-and-coming band Steely Dan with their monicker. Jamie Hyneman from MythBusters served as an animatronics technician for the film.
Anyway, William Lee (Weller) is an exterminator who finds out that his wife Joan Lee (Davis) is stealing his insecticide for recreational drug use. Somehow, Lee is arrested for "possession", and he believes that he is hallucinating become of exposure to the bug powder. During his haze, William imagines himself a secret agent, and his controller, a giant bug (ewwww!) assigns him a mission of killing his wife, who is suspected of being an agent for "Interzone Incorporated". Lee disregards that assignment, only to return home to find Joan in bed with one of his writer friends, Hank (Nicholas Campbell). Lee shoots his wife during a William Tell routine.
William, having "accomplished" his "mission", goes to Interzone, where the aforementioned organization is based, and spends his time writing reports on his "mission", which eventually turns into the book Naked Lunch. While in Interzone, the typewriters are living creatures who give Lee advice on his mission. One such typewriter, Clark Nova, tells Lee to find Dr. Benway (Scheider), via seducing Joan Frost, a doppleganger of his dead wife, Joan Lee. Benway is the head of a drug manufacturing ring, producing "the black meat".
Lee finishes his report, and flees Interzone to Annexia with Frost. To prove to Annexian border patrol that he really is a writer as he claims, William shoots Joan in the head, and he is welcomed into Annexia.
Well...this movie was different to say the least.
1991 20th Century Fox.
Starring: Peter Weller, Judy Davis, Ian Holm, Julian Sands, Roy Scheider
Director: David Cronenberg
Buy Naked Lunch (the movie) from Amazon.
"I can think of at least two things wrong with that title." --Nelson Muntz, March 31, 1996.
This would be the film adaptation of the William S. Burroughs novel, which among other things, provided the up-and-coming band Steely Dan with their monicker. Jamie Hyneman from MythBusters served as an animatronics technician for the film.
Anyway, William Lee (Weller) is an exterminator who finds out that his wife Joan Lee (Davis) is stealing his insecticide for recreational drug use. Somehow, Lee is arrested for "possession", and he believes that he is hallucinating become of exposure to the bug powder. During his haze, William imagines himself a secret agent, and his controller, a giant bug (ewwww!) assigns him a mission of killing his wife, who is suspected of being an agent for "Interzone Incorporated". Lee disregards that assignment, only to return home to find Joan in bed with one of his writer friends, Hank (Nicholas Campbell). Lee shoots his wife during a William Tell routine.
William, having "accomplished" his "mission", goes to Interzone, where the aforementioned organization is based, and spends his time writing reports on his "mission", which eventually turns into the book Naked Lunch. While in Interzone, the typewriters are living creatures who give Lee advice on his mission. One such typewriter, Clark Nova, tells Lee to find Dr. Benway (Scheider), via seducing Joan Frost, a doppleganger of his dead wife, Joan Lee. Benway is the head of a drug manufacturing ring, producing "the black meat".
Lee finishes his report, and flees Interzone to Annexia with Frost. To prove to Annexian border patrol that he really is a writer as he claims, William shoots Joan in the head, and he is welcomed into Annexia.
Well...this movie was different to say the least.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
My Life as a Dog
My Life as a Dog [Mitt liv som hund] (Criterion #178).
1985 Svensk Filmindustri & Janus Films.
Starring: Anton Glanzeluis, Tomas von Brömssen, Anki Lidén, Melinda Kinnaman, Kicki Rundgren, Lennart Hjulström
Director: Lasse Hallström
Available at Amazon.
Ingemar (Glanzelius) is a twelve-year-old boy who can't stop getting into trouble, which drives his mother (Lidén) crazy. Sadly, Ingemar has no idea that his mom is terminally ill. Eventually, he and his older brother become too much for her, and they are split up and sent off to live with relatives. Ingemar is sent to stay with his maternal uncle Gunnar (von Brömssen) and his wife Ulla (Rundgren). It should be noted that Ingemar usually tells himself frequently that whatever he has experienced could have been much worse, frequently citing the story of Laika, the Soviet space dog.
(At the time of filming, it was generally assumed that Laika survived the launch of Sputnik 2, and lived for several days afterward, only dying after mission control euthanized her with a poisoned serving of food. In 2002, the truth was finally revealed: that Laika died a few hours after launch, presumably from stress and overheating.)
After spending a wonderful and memorable summer with his aunt and uncle, Ingemar returns home, but his mother's health declines further, and she is hospitalized. After her passing, Ingemar is returned to his aunt and uncle's place, which they are now sharing with a large Greek family. Despite being fought over by two girls, the stress of his mother's death, and the knowledge that his beloved dog was put down during his first absence is too much for Ingemar, and he eventually hides in a one-room summer house, where he spends a lot of time coming to terms with everything, and realizing yet again that everything could be much worse.
Recommended movie.
1985 Svensk Filmindustri & Janus Films.
Starring: Anton Glanzeluis, Tomas von Brömssen, Anki Lidén, Melinda Kinnaman, Kicki Rundgren, Lennart Hjulström
Director: Lasse Hallström
Available at Amazon.
Ingemar (Glanzelius) is a twelve-year-old boy who can't stop getting into trouble, which drives his mother (Lidén) crazy. Sadly, Ingemar has no idea that his mom is terminally ill. Eventually, he and his older brother become too much for her, and they are split up and sent off to live with relatives. Ingemar is sent to stay with his maternal uncle Gunnar (von Brömssen) and his wife Ulla (Rundgren). It should be noted that Ingemar usually tells himself frequently that whatever he has experienced could have been much worse, frequently citing the story of Laika, the Soviet space dog.
(At the time of filming, it was generally assumed that Laika survived the launch of Sputnik 2, and lived for several days afterward, only dying after mission control euthanized her with a poisoned serving of food. In 2002, the truth was finally revealed: that Laika died a few hours after launch, presumably from stress and overheating.)
After spending a wonderful and memorable summer with his aunt and uncle, Ingemar returns home, but his mother's health declines further, and she is hospitalized. After her passing, Ingemar is returned to his aunt and uncle's place, which they are now sharing with a large Greek family. Despite being fought over by two girls, the stress of his mother's death, and the knowledge that his beloved dog was put down during his first absence is too much for Ingemar, and he eventually hides in a one-room summer house, where he spends a lot of time coming to terms with everything, and realizing yet again that everything could be much worse.
Recommended movie.
The Killers
Ernest Hemingway's The Killers (Criterion #176B).
1964 Universal Pictures, originally made for NBC.
Starring: Lee Marvin, Angie Dickinson, John Cassavetes, Ronald Reagan, CluGallagherGulager, Claude Akins, Norman Fell
Director: Don Siegel
Available at Amazon in a two-fer with the 1946 film.
This is the second film adaptation of Hemingway's short story. It was intended to be the first made-for-TV movie, but NBC decided it was too violent for network television, so Universal released it to theaters instead. The Killers is also notable for being Ronald Reagan's last film role before he entered politics, and the only project where he played a villain. Reagan, according to Kirk Douglas' autobiography, hated the movie because he slaps Angie Dickinson in one scene, and he was fearful that one scene would sabotage his political career.
Also, both Steve McQueen and George Peppard were considered for the role of Johnny North, before John Cassavetes was cast in the role.
Two well-dressed professional hitmen, Charlie (Marvin) and Lee (MST3K favorite Gulager), are hired to bump off ex-race car driver Johnny North (Cassavetes), who now works as a teacher for a school for the blind. North is given plenty of warning after Charlie and Lee show up, but he does nothing, and allows the two to shoot him to death. Afterwards, Charlie is disturbed by what just happened, in addition to the size of the paycheck, and the rumors that Johnny was involved in a million dollar heist, so he and Lee decide to find North's acquaintances to find out why he didn't try to save his own life, which includes his mechanic and best friend Earl Sylvester (Akins), and his lover Sheila Farr (Dickinson).
Charlie and Lee conclude that North fell in love with Sheila, who talked him into acting as the getaway driver for an armored car heist engineered by her boyfriend Jack Browning (Reagan). North ended up double crossing Browning after the heist went down, so Browning hired Charlie and Lee to take care of him. Johnny's racing career ended after a terrible crash the day that Browning and his men first showed up at the race track. Charlie and Lee believe that they can still profit from the crime North helped commit by finding out that Browning was involved, and discovering the location of the stolen money.
Highly recommended. Everyone was great in this picture, particularly Cassavetes, Gulager and Reagan.
1964 Universal Pictures, originally made for NBC.
Starring: Lee Marvin, Angie Dickinson, John Cassavetes, Ronald Reagan, Clu
Director: Don Siegel
Available at Amazon in a two-fer with the 1946 film.
This is the second film adaptation of Hemingway's short story. It was intended to be the first made-for-TV movie, but NBC decided it was too violent for network television, so Universal released it to theaters instead. The Killers is also notable for being Ronald Reagan's last film role before he entered politics, and the only project where he played a villain. Reagan, according to Kirk Douglas' autobiography, hated the movie because he slaps Angie Dickinson in one scene, and he was fearful that one scene would sabotage his political career.
Also, both Steve McQueen and George Peppard were considered for the role of Johnny North, before John Cassavetes was cast in the role.
Two well-dressed professional hitmen, Charlie (Marvin) and Lee (MST3K favorite Gulager), are hired to bump off ex-race car driver Johnny North (Cassavetes), who now works as a teacher for a school for the blind. North is given plenty of warning after Charlie and Lee show up, but he does nothing, and allows the two to shoot him to death. Afterwards, Charlie is disturbed by what just happened, in addition to the size of the paycheck, and the rumors that Johnny was involved in a million dollar heist, so he and Lee decide to find North's acquaintances to find out why he didn't try to save his own life, which includes his mechanic and best friend Earl Sylvester (Akins), and his lover Sheila Farr (Dickinson).
Charlie and Lee conclude that North fell in love with Sheila, who talked him into acting as the getaway driver for an armored car heist engineered by her boyfriend Jack Browning (Reagan). North ended up double crossing Browning after the heist went down, so Browning hired Charlie and Lee to take care of him. Johnny's racing career ended after a terrible crash the day that Browning and his men first showed up at the race track. Charlie and Lee believe that they can still profit from the crime North helped commit by finding out that Browning was involved, and discovering the location of the stolen money.
Highly recommended. Everyone was great in this picture, particularly Cassavetes, Gulager and Reagan.
The Fireman's Ball
The Fireman's Ball [Horí, má panenko] (Criterion #145).
1967 Carlo Ponti Cinematografica & Janus Films.
Starring: Jan Vostrcil, Josef Sebánek, Josef Valnoha, Frantisek Debelka, Josef Colb
Director: Milos Forman
Buy The Fireman's Ball at Amazon.
This was the first film that Milos Forman shot in color, on the heels of his success with 1965's Loves of a Blonde. The director maintained (in 1967) that the movie had "no hidden symbols or double meanings", but the Czechoslovak head of the state at the time, as well as the censors saw differently. The Fireman's Ball was "banned forever" after three weeks in theaters. When Forman was in Paris negotiating to make his first American film in 1968, the Soviet Union and its Warsaw Pact allies invaded Czechoslovakia, ending the Prague Spring, and prompting the director to settle in New York City.
The Fireman's Ball's script came about by accident, after Forman and two screenwriters went to a city called Vrchlabí to concentrate on writing. One evening, the three of them went to a real fireman's ball, which was apparently such a disaster that they couldn't stop talking about it after returning to their hotel. Forman and his writers scrapped their previous screenplay to write the one that was turned into this film. The actors in the film were not professional ones, but real life firemen asked to be in the movie.
The film's plot surrounds the retirement ceremony for the chief of a small town's fire brigade. The chief should have been honored the year before, but no one got around to organizing it then. Now, the chief is dying, and the ceremony has to take place now, or never. The first gift is a ceremonial fire ax, which turns out to be the only part of the ceremony that doesn't go wrong. The cake has been stolen, the decorative banner catches fire, and this is all before the guests even arrive. Naturally, any attempt made by the firemen to salvage the party makes things even worse than before.
Recommended, and surprisingly short (73 minutes).
Oh, and Milos Forman did admit during an interview included as an extra on the Criterion DVD that The Fireman's Ball really was a satire of Communism, which is something he obviously couldn't say after the movie's initial release.
1967 Carlo Ponti Cinematografica & Janus Films.
Starring: Jan Vostrcil, Josef Sebánek, Josef Valnoha, Frantisek Debelka, Josef Colb
Director: Milos Forman
Buy The Fireman's Ball at Amazon.
This was the first film that Milos Forman shot in color, on the heels of his success with 1965's Loves of a Blonde. The director maintained (in 1967) that the movie had "no hidden symbols or double meanings", but the Czechoslovak head of the state at the time, as well as the censors saw differently. The Fireman's Ball was "banned forever" after three weeks in theaters. When Forman was in Paris negotiating to make his first American film in 1968, the Soviet Union and its Warsaw Pact allies invaded Czechoslovakia, ending the Prague Spring, and prompting the director to settle in New York City.
The Fireman's Ball's script came about by accident, after Forman and two screenwriters went to a city called Vrchlabí to concentrate on writing. One evening, the three of them went to a real fireman's ball, which was apparently such a disaster that they couldn't stop talking about it after returning to their hotel. Forman and his writers scrapped their previous screenplay to write the one that was turned into this film. The actors in the film were not professional ones, but real life firemen asked to be in the movie.
The film's plot surrounds the retirement ceremony for the chief of a small town's fire brigade. The chief should have been honored the year before, but no one got around to organizing it then. Now, the chief is dying, and the ceremony has to take place now, or never. The first gift is a ceremonial fire ax, which turns out to be the only part of the ceremony that doesn't go wrong. The cake has been stolen, the decorative banner catches fire, and this is all before the guests even arrive. Naturally, any attempt made by the firemen to salvage the party makes things even worse than before.
Recommended, and surprisingly short (73 minutes).
Oh, and Milos Forman did admit during an interview included as an extra on the Criterion DVD that The Fireman's Ball really was a satire of Communism, which is something he obviously couldn't say after the movie's initial release.
The Importance of Being Earnest
The Importance of Being Earnest (Criterion #158).
1952 The Rank Organisation & Janus Films.
Starring: Michael Redgrave, Michael Denison, Edith Evans, Joan Greenwood, Margaret Rutherford, Miles Malleson, Dorothy Tutin
Director: Anthony Asquith
Available from Amazon.
Obviously, this is not the 2002 version with Reese Witherspoon. Sorry to disappoint.
Anthony Asquith directed this largely faithful adaptation of Oscar Wilde's stage play starring Michael Redgrave as the rich bachelor Jack Worthing. He has a friend, Algernon Moncrieff (Denison), who is broke and living on credit. Jack has a country getaway where he goes on weekends, leaving Algernon so curious that he tries to figure out where this retreat is, exactly.
Jack is also in love with Gwendolen (Greenwood), Al's cousin, and he also has a ward, Cecily Cardew (Tutin), who lives at the country estate and studies with Miss Prism (Rutherford). Algernon finds out about Cecily, so he arrives at Jack's weekend place claiming to be Jack's brother Ernest. Jack has been leading a double life, at the country home with Cecily, and another one in London, passing himself off as his non-existant brother Ernest, and that's who Gwendolen has just gotten engaged to, as she's always wamted to marry an Ernest.
Whenever he wanted to sneak off to the city to be with Gwendolen, Jack told Cecily that his brother Ernest was in trouble in the city. Unfortunately for Jack, Cecily has been intrigued from the very start since she's always wanted to wed a man named Ernest. She and Algernon quickly fall in love.
The major problem is, of course, neither man is actually named Ernest, and it could lead to great disappointment for the ladies...until Lady Bracknell (Evans) and Miss Prism realize that there's a solution that will make everyone happy.
Recommended movie.
Oh yes, we can't forget the movie's signature line..."A handbag?!"
1952 The Rank Organisation & Janus Films.
Starring: Michael Redgrave, Michael Denison, Edith Evans, Joan Greenwood, Margaret Rutherford, Miles Malleson, Dorothy Tutin
Director: Anthony Asquith
Available from Amazon.
Obviously, this is not the 2002 version with Reese Witherspoon. Sorry to disappoint.
Anthony Asquith directed this largely faithful adaptation of Oscar Wilde's stage play starring Michael Redgrave as the rich bachelor Jack Worthing. He has a friend, Algernon Moncrieff (Denison), who is broke and living on credit. Jack has a country getaway where he goes on weekends, leaving Algernon so curious that he tries to figure out where this retreat is, exactly.
Jack is also in love with Gwendolen (Greenwood), Al's cousin, and he also has a ward, Cecily Cardew (Tutin), who lives at the country estate and studies with Miss Prism (Rutherford). Algernon finds out about Cecily, so he arrives at Jack's weekend place claiming to be Jack's brother Ernest. Jack has been leading a double life, at the country home with Cecily, and another one in London, passing himself off as his non-existant brother Ernest, and that's who Gwendolen has just gotten engaged to, as she's always wamted to marry an Ernest.
Whenever he wanted to sneak off to the city to be with Gwendolen, Jack told Cecily that his brother Ernest was in trouble in the city. Unfortunately for Jack, Cecily has been intrigued from the very start since she's always wanted to wed a man named Ernest. She and Algernon quickly fall in love.
The major problem is, of course, neither man is actually named Ernest, and it could lead to great disappointment for the ladies...until Lady Bracknell (Evans) and Miss Prism realize that there's a solution that will make everyone happy.
Recommended movie.
Oh yes, we can't forget the movie's signature line..."A handbag?!"
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Play Time
Play Time (Criterion #112).
1967 Spectra Films & Janus Films.
Starring: Jacques Tati, Barbara Dennek, Billy Kearnes
Additional English dialogue: Art Buchwald (and his adulterated rot)
Director: Jacques Tati
Buy Play Time from Amazon.
Jacques Tati is Monsieur Hulot, and he's arrived in a futuristic Paris. He and a group of tourists from America, which includes a lovely lady named Barbara (Dennek) attempt to make their way through a city of straight lines, glass and steel high-rises, highways, and sparsely furnished living quarters. There really isn't much of a plot; it's simply a play where humanity encounters technology.
Play Time took nearly three years to complete, largely due to the film's production going over budget, thanks to the elaborate and massive set constructed for the movie, dubbed "Tativille". The set required a hundred construction workers to build it, and Tativille even required its own power plant to run. Tati himself eventually went bankrupt financing and completing the movie. But, to save money, the director utilized giant photographs of building facades, as well as life-sized cutouts of people to use in backgrounds.
The movie, while a critical success across the board, was a commercial failure in Europe, and later, in the U.S. after a heavily edited version of the movie (more M. Hulot!) debuted in 1973. I can safely say this is a highly recommended movie, and one that will require more than just one viewing. You see, there's always action in every scene, so you need multiple viewings to catch as many gags as you possibly can. Unfortunately, I've probably missed more than a few while writing this post out, but that'll happen. Regardless, seek out Play Time immediately!
1967 Spectra Films & Janus Films.
Starring: Jacques Tati, Barbara Dennek, Billy Kearnes
Additional English dialogue: Art Buchwald (and his adulterated rot)
Director: Jacques Tati
Buy Play Time from Amazon.
Jacques Tati is Monsieur Hulot, and he's arrived in a futuristic Paris. He and a group of tourists from America, which includes a lovely lady named Barbara (Dennek) attempt to make their way through a city of straight lines, glass and steel high-rises, highways, and sparsely furnished living quarters. There really isn't much of a plot; it's simply a play where humanity encounters technology.
Play Time took nearly three years to complete, largely due to the film's production going over budget, thanks to the elaborate and massive set constructed for the movie, dubbed "Tativille". The set required a hundred construction workers to build it, and Tativille even required its own power plant to run. Tati himself eventually went bankrupt financing and completing the movie. But, to save money, the director utilized giant photographs of building facades, as well as life-sized cutouts of people to use in backgrounds.
The movie, while a critical success across the board, was a commercial failure in Europe, and later, in the U.S. after a heavily edited version of the movie (more M. Hulot!) debuted in 1973. I can safely say this is a highly recommended movie, and one that will require more than just one viewing. You see, there's always action in every scene, so you need multiple viewings to catch as many gags as you possibly can. Unfortunately, I've probably missed more than a few while writing this post out, but that'll happen. Regardless, seek out Play Time immediately!
The Third Man
The Third Man (Criterion #64).
1949 London Film Productions, Rialto Pictures, StudioCanal & Janus Films.
Starring: Joseph Cotten, Alida Valli, Orson Welles, Trevor Howard, Wilfrid Hyde-White, Bernard Lee
Director: Carol Reed
Buy The Third Man from Amazon.
American pulp western novelist Holly Martins (Cotten) has arrived in Vienna, just after the conclusion of World War II. He is there to meet an old friend, Harry Lime (Welles), who offered the writer an opportunity to work with him. Upon arrival at Lime's apartment, a shocked Martins learns that Lime was killed by a truck while crossing the street. At Lime's funeral, Martins meets two British MPs, Sergeant Paine (Lee), a big fan of Martins' books, and his superior Major Calloway (Howard). After returning to the hotel, Calloway advises Martins to leave Vienna, as he can do nothing more than get into trouble.
Martins starts investigating, and meeting with people close to Lime to discuss his sudden demise, including actress Anna Schmidt (Valli), who was also at the funeral. He becomes suspicious and wonders if Lime's death had really been an accident, especially after learning that three men were spotted carrying the body across the street, and not two as other witnesses had described. After a porter who works in Lime's apartment building is found murdered, Martins is suspected of being the culprit. He escapes the mob, and runs across Calloway again, who again urges the writer to leave Vienna. When Martins refuses, Calloway reveals the truth about Lime's dealings before his death, and how he would steal penicillin from military hospitals, and sold it in diluted form, killing or injuring many people. Convinced, Martins finally agrees to leave Vienna. Before departing, he goes to Anna's apartment to say goodbye, only to find a man lurking in the darkness, who is revealed to be Harry Lime (the third man!), alive and well.
Lime disappears into the night, and Calloway is called to the scene by Martins, who deduces that Lime used the sewer tunnels to move around undetected. The police find the body of an orderly in a military hospital in Lime's coffin. Lime himself tries to bring Martins in on his racket, but the author refuses, and reluctantly takes part in a sting operation to bring Lime to justice. The final conflict does not end well for any of the three main characters.
A well-written and performed thriller. Highly, highly recommended movie.
1949 London Film Productions, Rialto Pictures, StudioCanal & Janus Films.
Starring: Joseph Cotten, Alida Valli, Orson Welles, Trevor Howard, Wilfrid Hyde-White, Bernard Lee
Director: Carol Reed
Buy The Third Man from Amazon.
American pulp western novelist Holly Martins (Cotten) has arrived in Vienna, just after the conclusion of World War II. He is there to meet an old friend, Harry Lime (Welles), who offered the writer an opportunity to work with him. Upon arrival at Lime's apartment, a shocked Martins learns that Lime was killed by a truck while crossing the street. At Lime's funeral, Martins meets two British MPs, Sergeant Paine (Lee), a big fan of Martins' books, and his superior Major Calloway (Howard). After returning to the hotel, Calloway advises Martins to leave Vienna, as he can do nothing more than get into trouble.
Martins starts investigating, and meeting with people close to Lime to discuss his sudden demise, including actress Anna Schmidt (Valli), who was also at the funeral. He becomes suspicious and wonders if Lime's death had really been an accident, especially after learning that three men were spotted carrying the body across the street, and not two as other witnesses had described. After a porter who works in Lime's apartment building is found murdered, Martins is suspected of being the culprit. He escapes the mob, and runs across Calloway again, who again urges the writer to leave Vienna. When Martins refuses, Calloway reveals the truth about Lime's dealings before his death, and how he would steal penicillin from military hospitals, and sold it in diluted form, killing or injuring many people. Convinced, Martins finally agrees to leave Vienna. Before departing, he goes to Anna's apartment to say goodbye, only to find a man lurking in the darkness, who is revealed to be Harry Lime (the third man!), alive and well.
Lime disappears into the night, and Calloway is called to the scene by Martins, who deduces that Lime used the sewer tunnels to move around undetected. The police find the body of an orderly in a military hospital in Lime's coffin. Lime himself tries to bring Martins in on his racket, but the author refuses, and reluctantly takes part in a sting operation to bring Lime to justice. The final conflict does not end well for any of the three main characters.
A well-written and performed thriller. Highly, highly recommended movie.
Pygmalion
Pygmalion (Criterion #85).
1938 General Film Distributors & Janus Films.
Starring: Leslie Howard, Wendy Hiller, Wilfrid Lawson, Leueen MacGrath, Marie Lohr, David Tree, Scott Sunderland
Editor: David Lean
Directors: Anthony Asquith & Leslie Howard
Amazon.com listings: Criterion DVD, or the Essential Art House edition, also from Criterion.
A 1938 British film based on George Bernard Shaw's play of the same name. The screenplay for this one was also adapted later on into My Fair Lady.
After meeting a flower girl named Eliza Doolittle (Hiller), speech coach Henry Higgins (Howard) makes a bet with the Sanskrit scholar Colonel Pickering (Sunderland) that he can teach Eliza to behave and speak like a duchess in six months, which would allow her to gain employment at a florist instead of just selling flowers on street corners. The next morning, Eliza shows up at Higgins' residence asking for elocution lessons. Mr. Doolittle (Lawson) pays Higgins a visit, "selling" Eliza for five pounds. After some work, Higgins takes Eliza to a gathering at his mother's Chelsea home, where Eliza can't seem to shake her Cockney dialect while describing the events surrounding a relative's death. Eliza also meets Freddy Eynsford-Hill (Tree) at the party, and he becomes quite enamored with her, despite the two of them being in two different social and economic classes.
The next social event is a reception at the Transylvanian embassy, where Eliza runs across a former student of Higgins, Count Aristid Karpathy (Esme Percy), who has become a speech coach in his own right. Thankfully, Eliza manages to fool everyone at the party, but neither Higgins nor Pickering acknowledge her accomplishments. Eliza and Higgins later argue, where she threatens to leave his house, marry Freddy, and go to work for Karpathy. She does leave, but returns, and the two of them bury the hatchet.
Recommended film.
1938 General Film Distributors & Janus Films.
Starring: Leslie Howard, Wendy Hiller, Wilfrid Lawson, Leueen MacGrath, Marie Lohr, David Tree, Scott Sunderland
Editor: David Lean
Directors: Anthony Asquith & Leslie Howard
Amazon.com listings: Criterion DVD, or the Essential Art House edition, also from Criterion.
A 1938 British film based on George Bernard Shaw's play of the same name. The screenplay for this one was also adapted later on into My Fair Lady.
After meeting a flower girl named Eliza Doolittle (Hiller), speech coach Henry Higgins (Howard) makes a bet with the Sanskrit scholar Colonel Pickering (Sunderland) that he can teach Eliza to behave and speak like a duchess in six months, which would allow her to gain employment at a florist instead of just selling flowers on street corners. The next morning, Eliza shows up at Higgins' residence asking for elocution lessons. Mr. Doolittle (Lawson) pays Higgins a visit, "selling" Eliza for five pounds. After some work, Higgins takes Eliza to a gathering at his mother's Chelsea home, where Eliza can't seem to shake her Cockney dialect while describing the events surrounding a relative's death. Eliza also meets Freddy Eynsford-Hill (Tree) at the party, and he becomes quite enamored with her, despite the two of them being in two different social and economic classes.
The next social event is a reception at the Transylvanian embassy, where Eliza runs across a former student of Higgins, Count Aristid Karpathy (Esme Percy), who has become a speech coach in his own right. Thankfully, Eliza manages to fool everyone at the party, but neither Higgins nor Pickering acknowledge her accomplishments. Eliza and Higgins later argue, where she threatens to leave his house, marry Freddy, and go to work for Karpathy. She does leave, but returns, and the two of them bury the hatchet.
Recommended film.
Good Morning
Good Morning [Ohayô] (Criterion #84).
1959 Shochiku Productions & Janus Films.
Starring: Keiji Sada, Yoshiko Kuga, Chishu Ryu, Kuniko Miyake
Director: Yasujiro Ozu
Available from Amazon.
Ozu's technicolor remake of I Was Born, But... features two suburban brothers, Minoru and Isamu, (Koji Shitara, Masahiko Shimazu) making a pact not to speak out loud until their parents buy a television set for the family. The boys are obsessed with that darned movin' picture box, and usually go to a neighbors' house to watch, because their father overheard a rumor that television will produce "100 million idiots". Shimazu is particularly adorable, and his favorite thing to say is "I love you!" in English. Meanwhile, the neighbors in the community are gossiping like no one's business, and wondering about the payment of dues to a neighborhood organization when they're not being disturbed by door-to-door salesmen.
Oh, and there seems to be far more references to flatulence in a movie from 1959 than you would've ever expected. This should be more than enough to make Good Morning the brand new favorite film for immature teenage boys and Dave Barry.
Viewers will notice that Ozu's filming style consists mainly of static shots, and filming characters head on during conversations. That camera doesn't move a centimeter, which some people may find disorientating.
Recommended movie. Now be quiet.
1959 Shochiku Productions & Janus Films.
Starring: Keiji Sada, Yoshiko Kuga, Chishu Ryu, Kuniko Miyake
Director: Yasujiro Ozu
Available from Amazon.
Ozu's technicolor remake of I Was Born, But... features two suburban brothers, Minoru and Isamu, (Koji Shitara, Masahiko Shimazu) making a pact not to speak out loud until their parents buy a television set for the family. The boys are obsessed with that darned movin' picture box, and usually go to a neighbors' house to watch, because their father overheard a rumor that television will produce "100 million idiots". Shimazu is particularly adorable, and his favorite thing to say is "I love you!" in English. Meanwhile, the neighbors in the community are gossiping like no one's business, and wondering about the payment of dues to a neighborhood organization when they're not being disturbed by door-to-door salesmen.
Oh, and there seems to be far more references to flatulence in a movie from 1959 than you would've ever expected. This should be more than enough to make Good Morning the brand new favorite film for immature teenage boys and Dave Barry.
Viewers will notice that Ozu's filming style consists mainly of static shots, and filming characters head on during conversations. That camera doesn't move a centimeter, which some people may find disorientating.
Recommended movie. Now be quiet.
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