Shadows (Criterion #251).
1959 Castle Hill Productions & Janus Films.
Starring: Ben Carruthers, Lelia Goldoni, Hugh Hurd, Anthony Ray, Dennis Sallas, Tom Allen, David Pokitillow, Rupert Crosse
Director: John Cassavetes
Available from Amazon as a single DVD, or as part of the John Cassavetes: Five Films box set (Criterion #250).
John Cassavetes made Shadows twice in 1957, and again in 1959. This is the 1959 print that he preferred, and the original film was believed to be lost or destroyed, turned up in 2004 after Boston University professor and Cassavetes scholar Ray Carney discovered it in a box of lost and found objects that had been collected from subway cars and stored away (more information here).
Shadows is the story of an interracial romance between Lelia (Goldoni), a light-skinned African American woman living in New York with her two brothers (Ben, played by Carruthers; and Hugh, played by Hurd), and Tony (Ray), a white man. Ben plays trumpet and spends his days hanging out with friends, while Hugh is an aspiring blues singer who finds himself in the insulting position of introducing chorus girls.
Things between Tony and Lelia are great, until he discovers the truth about her racial heritage, which causes Tony to make a scene as he is asked to leave by Hugh. Tony tries to redeem himself for this, and for the feelings of discomfort he got after discovering Lelia's race, but his gesture to prove he's not prejudiced is seen as merely an empty gesture and not taken seriously.
Shadows, which we are informed at the end was largely improvised by the cast, turned out to be a true milestone in American independent cinema. Highly, highly recommended.
Showing posts with label john cassavetes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label john cassavetes. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
The Killing of a Chinese Bookie
The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (Criterion #254). 1976 Faces Distribution & Janus Films.
Starring: Ben Gazzara, Timothy Carey, Seymour Cassell, Robert Phillips, Donna Marie Gordon, Morgan Woodward
Director: John Cassavetes
Available at Amazon as a single DVD, or part of the John Cassavetes: Five Films box set (Criterion #250).
It should be noted that there are two different versions of this movie: the original 1976 version that runs 135 minutes, and a recut of the film re-released in 1978 that ran only 108 minutes. It's to my understanding that there are some fairly significant differences between the two cuts, so this probably means that I'll revisit this DVD, and watch the second version at some point in the future.
Cosmo Vitelli (Gazzara) is a strip club owner who has finally paid off his debt to a sleazy loanshark (played by producer Al Ruban). Vitelli goes out that night to celebrate with his three favorite strippers, Margo, Rachael and Sherry. The evening's highlight is a card game where Cosmo loses $23,000, putting him back in the same hole he had just escaped earlier.
Holding his new debt over his head, Vitelli's mob creditors coerce him into agreeing to "hit" a rival. He assumes that the target is a nobody, but in fact, he is a major player in the Chinese mafia. With great difficulty, Vitelli does kill the man and several of his bodyguards, but is wounded himself.
Not only does Vitelli have to worry about the Chinese mafia now, but his own mob employers also want him rubbed out, and they had no expectation he would survive this assignment. Vitelli manages to kill or elude the people on his trail, but his ultimate fate is unknown.
Typical of anything Cassavetes directed, the movie is pretty roughly filmed at times, but the raw and sloppy feel of the finished product is often times much better than the slickly produced Hollywood films that the director wanted nothing to do with. Recommended movie(s).
Starring: Ben Gazzara, Timothy Carey, Seymour Cassell, Robert Phillips, Donna Marie Gordon, Morgan Woodward
Director: John Cassavetes
Available at Amazon as a single DVD, or part of the John Cassavetes: Five Films box set (Criterion #250).
It should be noted that there are two different versions of this movie: the original 1976 version that runs 135 minutes, and a recut of the film re-released in 1978 that ran only 108 minutes. It's to my understanding that there are some fairly significant differences between the two cuts, so this probably means that I'll revisit this DVD, and watch the second version at some point in the future.
Cosmo Vitelli (Gazzara) is a strip club owner who has finally paid off his debt to a sleazy loanshark (played by producer Al Ruban). Vitelli goes out that night to celebrate with his three favorite strippers, Margo, Rachael and Sherry. The evening's highlight is a card game where Cosmo loses $23,000, putting him back in the same hole he had just escaped earlier.
Holding his new debt over his head, Vitelli's mob creditors coerce him into agreeing to "hit" a rival. He assumes that the target is a nobody, but in fact, he is a major player in the Chinese mafia. With great difficulty, Vitelli does kill the man and several of his bodyguards, but is wounded himself.
Not only does Vitelli have to worry about the Chinese mafia now, but his own mob employers also want him rubbed out, and they had no expectation he would survive this assignment. Vitelli manages to kill or elude the people on his trail, but his ultimate fate is unknown.
Typical of anything Cassavetes directed, the movie is pretty roughly filmed at times, but the raw and sloppy feel of the finished product is often times much better than the slickly produced Hollywood films that the director wanted nothing to do with. Recommended movie(s).
Friday, January 23, 2009
Faces
Faces (Criterion #252). 1968 Janus Films and Castle Hill Productions
Starring: John Marley, Gena Rowlands, Lynn Carlin, Seymour Cassell, Fred Draper, Val Avery, Dorothy Gulliver
Director: John Cassavetes
Faces is currently available as part of the John Cassavetes: Five Films box set. It will be released separately from the box on February 17th, 2009.
John Cassavetes directed this amazing documentary of the great band the Faces, led by a not-at-all afraid to rock out Rod Stewart and future Rolling Stone Ron Wood, and...wha? Oh yeah.
Anyway, Cassavetes directed a grainy, black and white (for artistic purposes) film of a married couple (Marley & Carlin) whose union is disintegrating after fourteen years. After a nasty argument where he finally expresses his desire for a divorce, Richard goes out and hires a prostitute (Rowland), while his wife Marla meets up with her girl friends, and they pick up a hippie (Cassell) who she has a one-night stand with. Marla finds out that she is just as unsatisfied with this tryst as she would have been staying in her marriage to Richard.
Faces has a lot of dramatic closeups of the characters, almost to an uncomfortable degree, giving the viewer the feeling that not only are they right there, they probably will feel just as dissatisfied and unhappy as the characters in the movie are portrayed. It also was reportedly six hours long originally. Cassavetes also invited a young Steven Spielberg to help out during the making of this movie, and he served as an uncredited production assistant for two weeks.
Really good movie. Highly recommended.
Starring: John Marley, Gena Rowlands, Lynn Carlin, Seymour Cassell, Fred Draper, Val Avery, Dorothy Gulliver
Director: John Cassavetes
Faces is currently available as part of the John Cassavetes: Five Films box set. It will be released separately from the box on February 17th, 2009.
John Cassavetes directed this amazing documentary of the great band the Faces, led by a not-at-all afraid to rock out Rod Stewart and future Rolling Stone Ron Wood, and...wha? Oh yeah.
Anyway, Cassavetes directed a grainy, black and white (for artistic purposes) film of a married couple (Marley & Carlin) whose union is disintegrating after fourteen years. After a nasty argument where he finally expresses his desire for a divorce, Richard goes out and hires a prostitute (Rowland), while his wife Marla meets up with her girl friends, and they pick up a hippie (Cassell) who she has a one-night stand with. Marla finds out that she is just as unsatisfied with this tryst as she would have been staying in her marriage to Richard.
Faces has a lot of dramatic closeups of the characters, almost to an uncomfortable degree, giving the viewer the feeling that not only are they right there, they probably will feel just as dissatisfied and unhappy as the characters in the movie are portrayed. It also was reportedly six hours long originally. Cassavetes also invited a young Steven Spielberg to help out during the making of this movie, and he served as an uncredited production assistant for two weeks.
Really good movie. Highly recommended.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
A Woman Under the Influence
A Woman Under the Influence (Criterion #253). 1974 Castle Hill Productions & Janus Films.
Starring: Peter Falk, Gena Rowlands, Fred Draper, Lady Rowlands
Written and Directed by John Cassavetes
Buy A Woman Under the Influence as a single disc Criterion edition, or as part of the John Cassavetes: Five Films box set, also from Criterion.
"Mabel's not crazy, she's unusual."
A Woman Under the Influence follows the troubled marriage of Nick and Mabel Longhetti (Peter Falk and Gena Rowlands). He's an abusive husband, and his wife is out of her mind. The film opens with Nick, a city employee, being called to an emergency job downtown on a weekend he and Mabel were supposed to have all to themselves. After Nick calls to tell her what's going on, Mabel simply goes out to the nearest bar, gets loaded, and goes home with the first man she talks to. The next morning, Mabel is absolutely convinced that the man she slept with is really Nick!
In due time, Mabel's behavior gets her committed, but we also see that Nick is an enabler to her mental dysfunction.
The performances of Falk and Rowlands are amazing, particularly Rowlands, who plays Mabel, the borderline insane woman with such conviction that I found myself worrying about her more than I have any other character in recent memory. Falk's character came across as alternately a caring family man, and as one miserable, emotionally abusive bastard who you'd have no problems slugging in the face if the chance ever came up.
Recommended movie.
Starring: Peter Falk, Gena Rowlands, Fred Draper, Lady Rowlands
Written and Directed by John Cassavetes
Buy A Woman Under the Influence as a single disc Criterion edition, or as part of the John Cassavetes: Five Films box set, also from Criterion.
"Mabel's not crazy, she's unusual."
A Woman Under the Influence follows the troubled marriage of Nick and Mabel Longhetti (Peter Falk and Gena Rowlands). He's an abusive husband, and his wife is out of her mind. The film opens with Nick, a city employee, being called to an emergency job downtown on a weekend he and Mabel were supposed to have all to themselves. After Nick calls to tell her what's going on, Mabel simply goes out to the nearest bar, gets loaded, and goes home with the first man she talks to. The next morning, Mabel is absolutely convinced that the man she slept with is really Nick!
In due time, Mabel's behavior gets her committed, but we also see that Nick is an enabler to her mental dysfunction.
The performances of Falk and Rowlands are amazing, particularly Rowlands, who plays Mabel, the borderline insane woman with such conviction that I found myself worrying about her more than I have any other character in recent memory. Falk's character came across as alternately a caring family man, and as one miserable, emotionally abusive bastard who you'd have no problems slugging in the face if the chance ever came up.
Recommended movie.
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