1001: A FILM ODYSSEY

THE GRAPES OF WRATH (1940)

2012-01-29T07:06:00.011-06:00

Classics Revisited Book Group (Posting 10)

The Grapes of Wrath directed by John Ford
or
The Grapes of Wrath written by John Steinbeck

This seems to be a case where the book and the movie are held in equally high esteem. The film is ranked #21 in the American Film Institute top 1001 list and the book is in the top ten of the Modern Library’s list of top English language novels of the century.

I’m guessing that more school age students over the last few decades have read Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men than The Grapes of Wrath because it is shorter and probably easier to grasp. But I think Steinbeck’s tale of the Oakies traveling West during the depression looking for a pot o’ gold or at least a roof over their heads is a highly worthy journey to take even if it might take you a little longer to get there.

Book or Movie? Even though I’m picking the book over the movie this time, you got to at least see the scene where Henry (should have won the Oscar that year) Fonda gives his speech to his Ma before heading down that Golden Highway.

I'll be all around in the dark. I'll be ever'-where - wherever you can look. Wherever there's a fight so hungry people can eat, I'll be there. Wherever there's a cop beatin' up a guy, I'll be there. I'll be in the way guys yell when they're mad - I'll be in the way kids laugh when they're hungry an' they know supper's ready. An' when the people are eatin' the stuff they raise, and livin' in the houses they build - I'll be there, too.

I can here Woody Guthrie singing in the background now.

LOLITA (1962)

2012-01-26T09:49:00.014-06:00

Classics Revisited Book Group (Posting 9)

Lolita directed by Stanley Kubrick
or
Lolita written by Vladamir Nabakov

I hesitated many months before choosing Lolita for my reading group due to the controversial subject matter of a middle-aged man’s first person narrative about his infatuation with an under-aged girl. But after skimming the book, Reading Lolita in Tehran, I figured that if these sheltered Iranian girls weren’t traumatized by it, I figured my book group could take it without much fuss.

I was wrong.

One member of my book group kept asking “Who wanted us to read this? Who wanted us to read this filth? I stopped after page 25!” Another member said that in his determination that Nabakov had to be a… "purrr-vert"

Wow! I’m just glad I didn’t choose to read Portnoy’s Complaint!

I did point out to my group that the book is listed on many top ten lists of best English language novels of the twentieth century, but there was no convincing the nay-sayers on the evil of this work.

As far as Stanley Kubrick’s movie version of Lolita, it is in the 1001 Movie book. Now I’m a big Kubrick fan and I think any list of essential movies should have every Kubrick listed since there are so few. (All his major movies are listed in one edition of the book or the other except The Killing, which really should be listed.) However, if I were to leave one of his films out, it would be Lolita. Not that I don’t like it, as it has James Mason and Peter Sellers perfectly cast in their respective roles and is as faithful to this controversial work as a 1962 movie was allowed to be. I’m only saying, I’d put The Killing in the book and remove Lolita if I had to choose between them.

Book or Movie? Obviously I’m picking the book here. If you don’t mind getting in the head of a "purrr-vert," it’s really a substantial piece of literature.

GREAT EXPECTATIONS (1946, GREAT BRITAIN)

2012-01-23T09:40:00.008-06:00

Classics Revisited Book Group (Posting 8)

Great Expectations directed by David Lean
or
Great Expectations written by Charles Dickens

I counted fifty entries on my list of books/plays I’ve done for my Classics Revisited book group and I finished all but four. Unfortunately, Great Expectations was one of them. I liked the story of young Pip, Herbert Pocket, Estella and the mysterious Ms. Havisham; I just kept getting bogged down while reading it and wasn’t able to finish it.

David Lean’s 1948 film version with John Mills and Alec Guinness I did get through and thought was quite good, so I did get the whole story that way. There is also a BBC version I saw starring the guy that was in those Fantastic Four movies, though I am still partial to Lean’s version.

Book or Movie? Since I didn’t go with the David Lean movie for my Doctor Zhivago post, this time I’m choosing the 1946 movie over the book without guilt.

DOCTOR ZHIVAGO (1965)

2012-01-20T09:38:00.008-06:00

Classics Revisited Book Group (Posting 7)

Doctor Zhivago directed by David Lean
or
Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak

I had never seen Lean’s famous film or read Pasternak’s famous novel before my book group, so I had my work cut out for me that month. After reading and viewing, I find myself a little partial to the book, as I don’t think the film version compares with some of Lean’s other great films. There actually is a more recent television mini-series of Doctor Zhivago that gives the viewer more on the relationship between Zhivago and the love interest Lara. Of course, I would never say a television production could be superior to a David Lean film for fear of being smote by the cinematic gods.

Book or movie? I do think it’s okay to pick Pasternak’s novel here, using much of the same criteria I just used in choosing Gone With the Wind (novel) over Gone With the Wind (movie).

RUSSIAN ARK (2002, RUSSIA)

2012-01-17T09:44:00.007-06:00

Classics Revisited Book Group (Posting 6)

Russian Ark directed by Alexander Sokurov
or
Eugene Onegin by Alexander Pushkin

I am sure that if I grew up in Russia I would have read Pushkin’s epic poem and perhaps learned much of its verses by heart. But I didn’t and I had a lot of trouble just getting through the English translation by Charles Johnston. I did watch a film version of Eugene Onegin with Ralph Fiennes (not on the 1001 movie list) that I found more palatable than the original source.

I also viewed a most unusual film called Russian Ark (on the 1001 list in some editions) in which the entire movie is filmed in one take, while moving through the Hermitage art museum in St. Petersberg. It attempts to tie recent Russian history together along the way, including a cameo by Alexander Pushkin himself. The one take narrative is more than a stunt, it makes the movie quite captivating, though it should come with a warning label to young filmmakers to not try this at home.

Russian Ark or Eugene Onegin?

Defintely a vote for the movie. If seeing Russian Ark makes you fall in love with Russian history, then pick up a copy of Eugene Onegin and have a ball, though I doubt if I’ll be joining you anytime soon.

GONE WITH THE WIND (1939)

2012-01-14T09:37:00.012-06:00

Gone With the Wind directed by Victor Fleming
or
Gone With the Wind written by Margaret Mitchell

First of all, I like the movie Gone With the Wind. I’m from Atlanta and it’s practically a law that I like Gone With the Wind, as I certainly don’t wish to be accused of being a Yankee sympathizer. But over the years, I could never bring myself to read the book (1,100 pages or so) until I chose it for my book group.

Book or movie? After reading Ms. Mitchell’s book, I found I liked it more than I thought I would. I know it gets poo pooed on as being taken as serious literature, but I did find the details of the story captivating most of the time. So I will go with the book this time.

I’m not sure how to end this post. So I’ll jot down my list of the differences I found between Gone With the Wind (the book) and Gone With the Wind (the movie). I also found some interesting criticism over the years about the original story that I will also post.

Gone With the Wind Book vs. Movie

In the book, Scarlett has a boy named Wade Hampton Hamilton by her first husband, Charles and a girl called Ella Lorena by her second husband, Frank Kennedy. She has no children by these men in the movie.

In the book, it was Honey Wilkes who was in love with Charles Hamilton, not India. India's beau was Stuart Tarleton.

In the movie, Melanie is the first to give up her wedding ring "for the cause" at the Atlanta Bazaar. In the novel, Scarlet donates her ring first.

In the movie, when Ashley returns from the war, Mammy restrains Scarlett from running to greet him. Will Benteen restrains her in the novel.

In the novel, it is long after Scarlett marries Frank that her father Gerald dies. Will Benteen explains to her how it happened, and it is an interesting story - also much different than the movie - involving Scarlett's sister Suellen.

In the novel, while Will does fall in love with Careen, they do not marry. Careen never gets over the death of her only love, Brent Tarleton. It is Ashley who almost goes to work in a bank in New York before Scarlett asks him to manage her lumber mill. Will does get married in the book... to Scarlett's other sister, Suellen! Careen eventually enters a convent in Charleston.

Archie is another character from the book who, like Will, doesn't make it to the movie. Scarlett hires him to drive her around Atlanta, which he does until she hires the convicts for her lumber mill. Since he was a former convict, he quits. Archie turns up later, discovering Ashley embracing Scarlett at the mill, another episode that is different in the movie.

In the movie, at the sewing party, Melanie reads aloud from David Copperfield In the novel, she reads from Les Miserables.

In the movie, Bonnie is afraid of the dark, but it is never explained why. In the novel, we learn Mammy was afraid Bonnie would hurt herself so she told Bonnie there were "ghosts and buggerboos" in the dark

In the movie, Scarlett goes to Atlanta for the first time right after her first husband, Charles, dies. In the novel, she visits her mother's relatives in Charleston and also her father's relatives in Savannah before she goes to Atlanta.

Gone With the Wind Literary Criticism

We have had other novels about the Civil War by women. But I don’t know of any other in which the interest is so consistently centered, not upon the armies and the battles, the flags and the famous names, but upon, that other world of women who heard the storm, waited it out, succumbed to it or rebuilt after it, according to their natures.
-Stephen Vincent Benet, “Georgia Marches Through,” Saturday Review Magazine,
July 4, 1936.

She writes with a splendid recklessness, blundering into big scenes that a more experienced novelist would hesitate to handle for fear of being compared unfavorably with Dickens or Dostoevsky.
-Malcolm Cowley, “Going With the Wind,” New Republic, September 16, 1936.

Margaret Mitchell is a gifted storyteller. She can create characters to set tongues wagging, she can swing a plot and make it crackle, she has the courage of patient endeavor, she is a “natural” if there ever was one.
-Holmes Alexander, “Holmes Alexander to the Defense. Gone With the Wind,” Saturday Review of Literature, January 8, 1938.

Gone With the Wind may be one of the few books, from the 20th century that the great mass of readers will assure of survival into the next age. It would not be the first time that the people had made a “classic” in despite of the critics and the academicians.
-Edward P. J. Corbett, “Gone With the Wind Revisited,” America, August 24, 1957.

It dramatically demonstrates, as The Aeneid did before it, that you cannot destroy a traditional society simply by destroying its machinery. The strength of such a society does not lie ultimately, in outward forms or institutions but rather in the knowledge carried to the heart, the intangibles by which it lives.
-Robert Y. Drake, “Tara Twenty Years After,” The Georgia Review, Summer 1958.

Great literature can occasionally be popular, and certainly popular literature can occasionally be great. But with a few notable exceptions, such as the Bible but not Gone With the Wind, greatness and popularity are more likely to be contradictory than congenial.
-Floyd Watkins, “Gone With the Wind as Vulgar Literature,” The Southern Literary Journal, Spring 1970.

Reading the book now is a burden, the hopelessly bad outweighing the honestly good. Gone With the Wind is much too long…and a great many readers of the book and viewers of the film persistently and legitimately complained about the second half.
-James Boatwright, “Totin’ the Weery Load,” New Republic, September 1, 1973.

To me it seems that Margaret Mitchell wanted to write a success, a bildungsroman about a woman who was successful in breaking away from the life of self-effacement her mother had lived, in working counter to the existing patriarchal system as she matures from a young frivolous girl to a twenty-eight-year-old serious minded woman.
-Dawson Gaillard, “Gone With the Wind As Bildungsroman; or why did Rhett Butler Really Leave Scarlett O’ Hara?” Georgia Review, 1974.

As fiction, it achieves the child’s impossible desire for everything, and if it gratifies us, it also makes us ashamed of our childishness, ashamed of enjoying a novel that is not great, only compelling and indelible, only uniquely and universally popular.
-Blanche H. Gelfant, “Gone With the Wind and the Impossibilities of Fiction.” Southern Literary Journal, Fall, 1980.

Schefeski postulates that Tolstoy would have approved of Gone With the Wind because both authors shared a belief in simplicity and infectiveness as the most essential criteria of artistic work.
-Harold K. Schefeski, “Margaret Mitchell: Gone With the Wind & War and Peace,” Southern Studies, Fall, 1980.

No one more compellingly portrayed the relation between the past and the future of the nation and the South than Mitchell. But, for her, the binding of wounds required a share bourgeois ethic and could ill afford the luxury of mourning a “feudal” past. Under the bourgeois rubric, the nation cold understood as the destiny of the South, and the South as a generalized, rural, rational past. Perhaps it is a final fitting irony that the magnetic care of Mitchell’s vision of a revitalized bourgeois order lay in the unconscious life of a most disorderly girl.
-Elizabeth Fox-Genovese “ Scarlett O’Hara: The Southern Lady as a New Woman.” American Quarterly, Fall, 1981.

I guess I can end this post now.

A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE (1951)

2012-01-11T09:47:00.009-06:00

Classics Revisited Book Group (Posting 4)

A Streetcar Named Desire directed by Elia Kazan
or
A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams

The thing about comparing a movie to the text of the play is that the play is written to be performed and watched over being read. I would certainly do both with A Streetcar Named Desire, but regardless, the original movie does have much going for it. The strength of Tennessee’s story, the New Orleans setting brought to life by director Elia Kazan and the great cast led by Vivien Leigh and Marlon Brando all make this required viewing.

There were a couple of censorship issues that the movie couldn’t deal with adequately. I’m speaking primarily of Blanche Du Bois (Vivien Leigh) confessing to Mick (Karl Malden) that her ex-husband was a homosexual. Since she couldn’t say it this way, the script changes the confession to say that he was a …poet. What was that, again?

Another censorship issue that actually works to the films advantage is the rape scene, which is symbolized by a crashing mirror. The audience doesn’t see exactly what happens and this makes the drama and horror of it more effective.

Since I’m not making a real choice between play or movie here, I will choose the Kazan/Brando collaboration on Streetcar over the Kazan/Brando collaboration on On the Waterfront just because I felt the need to choose something.

HAMLET (1948) & HAMLET (1996)

2012-01-08T09:35:00.013-06:00

Classics Revisited Book Group (Posting 3)

Hamlet directed by Kenneth Branagh, Hamlet directed by Laurence Olivier
or
Hamlet written by William Shakespeare.

I do have a bone to pick with the 1001 Movie list. I know they are trying to “not give automatic preference-free passes as it were to self-consciously quality productions or high cinematic art,” but other than the Kurosawa adaptations of Shakespeare, the only 1001 listings for the bards adaptations are Orson Welles’s Chimes at Midnight and Olivier’s Henry V. That’s it! So we’re supposed to accept that Pretty Woman is essential viewing and no version of Hamlet is quite good enough to make the cut? Oh! Something is indeed rotten in the state of Denmark and time is most definitely out of joint!

Hamlet was the first Classics Revisited book group that I held. Before I read it, I watched several film versions. My favorite is the Kenneth Branagh Hamlet, which films the entire play at about four hours. Others still revere Olivier’s award winning 1948 adaptation, though much of the story is heavily edited. It may be of interest to watch the BBC version just to see Derek Jacobi (Claudius from Branagh’s Hamlet) as the Dane and Patrick Stewart as Claudius. The Franco Zeffielli/Mel Gibson version is worth viewing, though wasn’t my favorite. You may also want to see the odd modern day Ethan Hawke Hamlet which at least gives us Bill Murray as Polonius and Steve Zahn as Rosencrantz (or does he play Guildenstern?).

Movie or Play? That’s simple. See a movie version. Read the play. And see it performed in live theater. Be in a version if you have the resources. It’s Hamlet! Do it ! Just do it!
And while you’re at it, watch Series 1 of Slings and Arrows.

Alas poor Yorick! I knew him Horatio, a fellow of infinite jest,
of most excellent fancy, he hath borne me on his back a thousand times-
and now how abhorred in my imagination it is!

Hamlet 5.1.156

RAN (1985, JAPAN)

2012-01-05T09:33:00.015-06:00

Classic Revisited Book Group (Posting 2)

Ran directed by Akira Kurosawa
or
King Lear by William Shakespeare

Ran is the second adaptation of Shakespeare by Akira Kurosawa that is also in the 1001 movie book. This version of King Lear is certainly of merit in its own right, though I can’t say I like it quite as much as Kurosawa’s Macbeth adaptation, Throne of Blood. Another very interesting King Lear adaptation is Kozintsev’s 1970 Russian version. Also check out the recent BBC adaptation with Ian McKellan as Lear.

And don’t forget to watch series 3 of the Canadian television show Slings and Arrows.

Play or movie?I’ll go with the original this time over its Japanese counterpart because you really should read King Lear. Why? Because if one ever calls you the following, you may want to know its original source.

A knave; a rascal; an eater of broken meats; a base, proud, shallow, beggarly, three-suited, hundred-pound, filthy, worsted-stocking knave; a lily-livered, action-taking knave, a whoreson, glass-gazing, super-serviceable finical rogue;
One-trunk-inheritingslave; one that wouldst be a bawd, in way of good service, and art nothing but the composition of a knave, beggar, coward, pandar, and the son and heir of a mongrel bitch: one whom I will beat into clamorous whining,
If thou deniest the least syllable of thy addition.

King Lear 2.2.1090

THRONE OF BLOOD (1957, JAPAN)

2012-01-02T09:31:00.017-06:00

Classics Revisited Book Group

Since 2005, I have led a book discussion group at our library in the hope that it would give me an incentive to read some of the more famous works in literature or revisit (hence the name of the group) works I haven’t read in a long time.

I usually tried to find an accompanying movie to go with the book or play when applicable. Sometimes the movie based on the classic book turned out to be as famous as the original work (To Kill a Mockingbird, Gone With the Wind.) Other times there was no accompanying movie to go along with the original source. (I’m still waiting for movie versions of Ellison’s Invisible Man, Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying and Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye.)

Looking at my list of books read again, I have noticed that many of these movies that sprang out from books are also on the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die list, so I’ve decided to grandfather in the ones I’ve seen as well as add some of the also-rans for this blog.

Classics Revisited (Posting 1)

Throne of Death directed by Akira Kurosawa
or
Macbeth by William Shakespeare

First of all, Kurosawa’s film set in Samurai Japan is not a word for word adaptation of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, though it does follow the story fairly closely. There are certainly other interesting literal film adaptations of the story, including the Roman Polanski version from 1971 or Orson Welles’s 1948 version. The Trevor Nunn Royal Shakespeare company adaptation from the 1970’s with Ian McKellan and Judi Dench may be the best of the bunch. Also, see Series 2 of the Canadian television show Slings and Arrows if you get the chance.

But Throne of Blood or the orignal text? I’ll go with Throne of Blood just because it’s such a great cinematic experience and probably is only second to The Seven Samurai on my favorite Kurosawa movie list. It’s scary, dramatic, intense and if you like action, make sure to check out the film’s final scene.

But you really should read Macbeth, too.

Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow.
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Die!
Life‘s but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more; it is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.

Macbeth 5.5.27

CHARIOTS OF FIRE* 1981

2011-12-26T20:51:00.000-06:00

* This post really has nothing to do with Chariots of Fire, I just needed a blog heading.

I’ve been watching movies from the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die book, as well as a few others, for a little over two years now. So since I’ve seen 272 films so far and taking into account supplemental volumes with additional movies in it…I’ll be finished—uh, probably never. But I’ll keep trying.

Things I’ve learned since I’ve started watching movies from
The 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die book.

1. It’s good not to read the plot synopsis in the 1001 movie book before you watch the movie because they usually give away the ending.
2. It’s good to watch these movies in some kind of sequence: Like a week of
1940’s films, Italian films or Documentary films. I honestly was going to watch One Eyed Jacks, Two-Lane Blacktop, Three Kings, Four Weddings and a Funeral, Five Easy Pieces, The Sixth Sense, The Seven Samurai, 8 ½, Nine-Teen Hundred, The Ten Commandments, Ocean’s Eleven and Twelve Angry Men on consecutive nights until I realized neither version of Ocean’s Eleven was in the book, I was cheating on the number 9 and that I probably needed to get back on my medication and abandon this whole thread.
3. There are things in life other than watching a movie and trying to come up with something original to say about it…I just can’t remember what.
4. That the 1001 movie book loves French films and Westerns, but very few French Westerns.
5. And that I just want to be loved. Is that so wrong?

Movies seen since 2009 in bold

1. A Trip to the Moon (1902)
2. The Great Train Robbery (1903) 1
3. The Birth of a Nation (1915)
4. Les Vampires (1915)
5. Intolerance (1916)
6. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1919)
7. Broken Blossoms (1919)
8. Way Down East (1920)
9. Within Our Gates (1920)
10. The Phantom Carriage (1921)
11. Orphans of the Storm (1921)
12. The Smiling Madame Beudet (1922)
13. Dr. Mabuse, Parts 1 and 2 (1922)
14. Nanook of the North (1922)
15. Nosferatu, A Symphony of Terror(1922) 2
16. Haxan (1923)
17. Foolish Wives (1922)
18. Our Hospitality (1923)
19. The Wheel (1923)
20. The Thief of Bagdad (1924)
21. Strike (1924)
22. Greed (1924)
23. Sherlock, Jr. (1924)
24. The Last Laugh (1924)
25. Seven Chances (1925)
26. The Phantom of the Opera (1925) 3
27. The Battleship Potemkin (1925)
28. The Gold Rush (1925)
29. The Big Parade (1925)
30. Metropolis (1927) 4
31. Sunrise (1927)
32. The General (1927) 5
33. The Unknown (1927) 6
34. October (1927)
35. The Jazz Singer (1927)
36. Napoleon (1927)
37. The Kid Brother (1927)
38. The Crowd (1928)
39. The Docks of New York (1928)
40. An Andalusian Dog (1928)
41. The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928)
42. Steamboat Bill, Jr. (1928)
43. Storm over Asia (1928)
44. Blackmail (1929)
45. The Man with the Movie Camera (1929)
46. Pandora's Box (1929) 7
47. The Blue Angel (1930)
48. The Age Of Gold (1930)
49. Earth (1930)
50. Little Caesar (1930)
51. All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)
52. Freedom For Us (1931) 8
53. The Million (1931) 9
54. Tabu (1931)
55. Dracula (1931) 10
56. Frankenstein (1931) 11
57. City Lights (1931) 12
58. The Public Enemy (1931)
59. M (1931)
60. The Bitch (1931)
61. The Vampire (1932)
62. Love Me Tonight (1932) 13
63. Boudu Saved from Drowning (1932)
64. I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang (1932)
65. Trouble in Paradise (1932)
66. Scarface: The Shame Of A Nation (1932)
67. Shanghai Express (1932)
68. Freaks (1932) 14
69. Me and My Gal (1932)
70. Zero for Conduct (1933)
71. 42nd Street (1933) 15
72. Footlight Parade (1933) 16
73. Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933) 17
74. She Done Him Wrong (1933) 18
75. Duck Soup (1933)
76. Queen Christina (1933)
77. Land Without Bread (1933)
78. King Kong (1933)
79. The Bitter Tea of General Yen (1933)
80. Sons of the Desert (1933)
81. It's a Gift (1934) 19
82. Triumph of the Will (1934)
83. L'Atalante (1934) 20
84. The Black Cat (1934)
85. Judge Priest (1934)
86. It Happened One Night (1934)
87. The Thin Man (1934)
88. Captain Blood (1935) 21
89. Mutiny on the Bounty (1935) 22
90. A Night at the Opera (1935)
91. The 39 Steps (1935)
92. Bride of Frankenstein (1935) 23
93. Top Hat (1935) 24
94. A Day in the Country (1936)
95. Modern Times (1936)
96. Swing Time (1936)
97. My Man Godfrey (1936) 25
98. Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936)
99. Camille (1936) 26
100. Sabotage (1936)
101. Dodsworth (1936) 27
102. Things to Come (1936)
103. The Story of a Cheat (1936)
104. Captains Courageous (1937) 28
105. Midnight Song (1937)
106. Grand Illusion (1937) 29
107. Stella Dallas (1937)
108. The Life of Emile Zola (1937)
109. Make Way for Tomorrow (1937)
110. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) 30
111. The Awful Truth (1937)
112. Pepe Le Moko (1937) 31
113. Jezebel (1938)
114. The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) 32
115. Angels with Dirty Faces (1938)
116. Olympia (1938)
117. The Baker's Wife (1938)
118. Bringing Up Baby (1938)
119. Stagecoach (1939)
120. The Story of the Late Chrysanthemums (1939)
121. Babes in Arms (1939)
122. Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)
123. The Wizard of Oz (1939) 33
124. Destry Rides Again (1939)
125. Only Angels Have Wings (1939)
126. Gone With the Wind (1939)
127. Daybreak (1939)
128. Gunga Din (1939) 34
129. Ninotchka (1939) 35
130. The Rules of the Game (1939)
131. Wuthering Heights (1939)
132. His Girl Friday (1940)
133. Rebecca (1940) 36
134. Fantasia (1940)
135. The Philadelphia Story (1940) 37
136. The Grapes of Wrath (1940)
137. Dance, Girl, Dance (1940)
138. Pinocchio (1940) 38
139. The Mortal Storm (1940)
140. The Bank Dick (1940) 39
141. Citizen Kane (1941) 40
142. The Lady Eve (1941) 41
143. The Wolf Man (1941)
144. The Maltese Falcon (1941) 42
145. Sergeant York (1941)
146. Dumbo (1941)
147. High Sierra (1941) 43
148. Sullivan's Travels (1941)
149. How Green Was My Valley (1941) 44
150. The Palm Beach Story (1942) 45
151. Now, Voyager (1942)
152. Casablanca (1942)
153. To Be or Not to Be (1942)
154. Cat People (1942)
155. The Magnificent Ambersons (1942)
156. Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942) 46
157. Meshes of the Afternoon (1943)
158. Fires Were Started (1943)
159. The Man in Grey (1943)
160. The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943)
161. I Walked with a Zombie (1943) 47
162. The Seventh Victim (1943)
163. The Ox-Bow Incident (1943) 48
164. Shadow of a Doubt (1943) 49
165. Ossessione (1943)
166. Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)
167. To Have and Have Not (1944) 50
168. Laura (1944) 51
169. Gaslight (1944) 52
170. Henry V (1944)
171. Ivan the Terrible, Parts One and Two (1944)
172. Double Indemnity (1944) 53
173. Murder, My Sweet (1944)
174. The Battle of San Pietro (1945)
175. Spellbound (1945)
176. Mildred Pierce (1945)
177. The Children of Paradise (1945) 54
178. Open City (1945) 55
179. The Lost Weekend (1945)
180. Detour (1945) 56
181. I Know Where I'm Going! (1945)
182. The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) 57
183. Brief Encounter (1946)
184. Paisan (1946)
185. The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946) 58
186. My Darling Clementine (1946) 59
187. The Stranger (1946) 60
188. Beauty and the Beast (1946) 61
189. The Big Sleep (1946) 62
190. The Killers (1946) 63
191. A Matter of Life and Death (1946)
192. Great Expectations (1946)
193. Notorious (1946) 64
194. Black Narcissus (1946) 65
195. It's a Wonderful Life (1946) 66
196. Gilda (1946) 67
197. Monsieur Verdoux (1947) 68
198. Out of the Past (1947)
199. The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (1947) 69
200. Odd Man Out (1947)
201. The Bicycle Thief (1948) 70
202. Letter from an Unknown Woman (1948)
203. Secret Beyond the Door (1948)
204. Force of Evil (1948)
205. Spring in a Small Town (1948)
206. Red River (1948)
207. Rope (1948)
208. The Snake Pit (1948) 71
209. The Lady from Shanghai (1948)
210. The Paleface (1948)
211. The Red Shoes (1948) 72
212. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948) 73
213. Louisiana Story (1948)
214. The Heiress (1949)
215. Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949) 74
216. Gun Crazy (1949)
217. Adam's Rib (1949) 75
218. Whiskey Galore! (1949)
219. White Heat (1949)
220. The Reckless Moment (1949)
221. The Third Man (1949) 76
222. On the Town (1949)
223. Orpheus (1949)
224. The Asphalt Jungle (1950)
225. Rashomon (1950)
226. Winchester '73 (1950)
227. Rio Grande (1950)
228. All About Eve (1950)
229. Sunset Blvd. (1950)
230. Los Olvidados (1950)
231. In a Lonely Place (1950)
232. The Big Carnival (1951)
233. A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)
234. Strangers on a Train (1951)
235. The Lavender Hill Mob (1951)
236. Pandora and the Flying Dutchman (1951)
237. The African Queen (1951) 77
238. Diary of a Country Priest (1951)
239. An American in Paris (1951) 78
240. A Place in the Sun (1951)
241. The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) 79
242. The Quiet Man (1952)
243. Forbidden Games (1952) 80
244. Angel Face (1952)
245. Singin' in the Rain (1952)
246. To Live (1952)
247. Europa '51 (1952)
248. The Bad and the Beautiful (1952)
249. The Big Sky (1952)
250. High Noon (1952)
251. Umberto D (1952)
252. The Golden Coach (1952)
253. The Bigamist (1953)
254. The Band Wagon (1953)
255. Madame De… (1953)
256. From Here to Eternity (1953)
257. Tokyo Story (1953) 81
258. Roman Holiday (1953)
259. Wages of Fear (1953) 82
260. The Naked Spur (1953)
261. Pickup on South Street (1953) 83
262. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)
263. The Big Heat (1953) 84
264. Mr. Hulot's Holiday (1953) 85
265. Voyage in Italy (1953)
266. Tales of Ugetsu (1953) 86
267. Shane (1953) 87
268. Beat the Devil (1953) 88
269. Johnny Guitar (1954)
270. On the Waterfront (1954)
271. Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954)
272. Les Diaboliques (1954) 89
273. Animal Farm (1954) 90
274. Rear Window (1954)
275. A Star Is Born (1954)
276. The Barefoot Contessa (1954)
277. The Road (1954) 91
278. The Seven Samurai (1954)
279. The Wanton Countess (1954)
280. Silver Lode (1954)
281. Carmen Jones (1954)
282. Sansho the Baliff (1954) 92
283. Salt of the Earth (1954)
284. Artists and Models (1955)
285. Guys and Dolls (1955)
286. Pather Panchali (1955)
287. Bad Day at Black Rock (1955) 93
288. The Mad Masters (1955)
289. Hill 24 Doesn’t Answer (1955)
290. The Ladykillers (1955)
291. Marty (1955) 94
292. Ordet (1955) 95
293. Bob the Gambler (1955) 96
294. Kiss Me Deadly (1955) 97
295. The Man from Laramie (1955)
296. Rebel Without a Cause (1955)
297. The Phenix City Story (1955)
298. Smiles of a Summer Night (1955)
299. Night and Fog (1955)
300. The Night of the Hunter (1955) 98
301. The Sins of Lola Montes (1955)
302. Forbidden Planet (1956) 99
303. The Burmese Harp (1956) 100
304. The Searchers (1956)
305. A Man Escaped (1956) 101
306. Written on the Wind (1956)
307. The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)
308. Giant (1956)
309. All That Heaven Allows (1956) 102
310. Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) 103
311. The Wrong Man (1956)
312. Bigger Than Life (1956)
313. High Society (1956)
314. The Ten Commandments (1956)
315. 12 Angry Men (1957)
316. The Seventh Seal (1957) 104
317. An Affair to Remember (1957)
318. Wild Strawberries (1957) 105
319. The Nights of Cabiria (1957)
320. Throne of Blood (1957)
321. The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957)
322. The Unvanquished (1957)
323. Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957)
324. The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)
325. Mother India (1957)
326. The Cranes Are Flying (1957)
327. Paths of Glory (1957)
328. Sweet Smell of Success (1957) 106
329. Man of the West (1958)
330. Touch of Evil (1958)
331. Cairo Station (1958) 107
332. Gigi (1958)
333. The Defiant Ones (1958) 108
334. Vertigo (1958) 109
335. Ashes and Diamonds (1958) 110
336. Horror of Dracula (1958) 111
337. My Uncle (1958)
338. The Music Room (1958)
339. The 400 Blows (1959) 112
340. North by Northwest (1959)
341. Some Like It Hot (1959)
342. Anatomy of a Murder (1959) 113
343. Eyes without a Face (1959) 114
344. Ride Lonesome (1959)
345. Black Orpheus (1959) 115
346. Shadows (1959) 116
347. The World of Apu (1959)
348. Breathless (1959) 117
349. Ben-Hur (1959)
350. Pickpocket (1959)
351. Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959) 118
352. Rio Bravo (1959)
353. The Hole (1959)
354. Floating Weeds (1959) 119
355. Rocco and His Brothers (1960)
356. La Dolce Vita (1960)
357. Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (1960)
358. Shoot the Piano Player (1960)
359. The Adventure (1960)
360. The Young One (1960)
361. The Cloud-Capped Star (1960)
362. The Housemaid (1960)
363. Psycho (1960) 120
364. Revenge of the Vampire / Black Sunday (1960)
365. Peeping Tom (1960) 121
366. The Apartment (1960)
367. Spartacus (1960)
368. Splendor in the Grass (1961)
369. Last Year at Marienbad (1961) 122
370. The Pier (1961)
371. One-Eyed Jacks (1961)
372. Lola (1961)
373. Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961) 123
374. The Night (1961)
375. Jules and Jim (1961)
376. Viridiana (1961)
377. The Ladies Man (1961)
378. Through a Glass Darkly (1961) 124
379. Chronicle of a Summer (1961)
380. The Hustler (1961)
381. West Side Story (1961) 125
382. A Dog's Life (1962)
383. Cleo from 5 to 7 (1962)
384. Dog Star Man (1962)
385. An Autumn Afternoon (1962) 126
386. The Eclipse (1962)
387. Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
388. To Kill a Mockingbird (1962) 127
389. The Manchurian Candidate (1962)
390. Lolita (1962)
391. Keeper of Promises (1962)
392. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) 128
393. What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)
394. My Life to Live (1962)
395. Heaven and Earth Magic (1962)
396. The Birds (1963) 129
397. The Nutty Professor (1963)
398. Blonde Cobra (1963)
399. The Cool World (1963)
400. 8 1/2 (1963) 130
401. Passenger (1963)
402. Contempt (1963)
403. Hud (1963)
404. Winter Light (1963) 131
405. Flaming Creatures (1963)
406. The Great Escape (1963)
407. Shock Corridor (1963) 132
408. The Leopard (1963) 133
409. Barren Lives (1963)
410. Mediteranee (1963)
411. The House is Black (1963)
412. The Haunting (1963) 134
413. An Actor's Revenge (1963)
414. The Servant (1963)
415. Goldfinger (1964)
416. Scorpio Rising (1964)
417. The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964)
418. Marnie (1964) 135
419. My Fair Lady (1964) 136
420. Woman in the Dunes (1964) 137
421. Dr. Strangelove (1964)
422. A Hard Day's Night (1964) 138
423. The Red Desert (1964)
424. Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors (1964) 139
425. The Masque of the Red Death (1964)
426. Before the Revolution (1964)
427. Gertrud (1964) 140
428. The Gospel According to St. Matthew (1964)
429. Black God, White Devil (1964)
430. The Demon (1964)
431. Vinyl (1965)
432. The Shop on Main Street (1965) 141
433. Doctor Zhivago (1965)
434. The War Game (1965)
435. Tokyo Olympiad (1965)
436. The Battle of Algiers (1965) 142
437. The Sound of Music (1965)
438. The Saragossa Manuscript (1965)
439. Alphaville (1965)
440. Chimes at Midnight (1965)
441. Repulsion (1965) 143
442. Juliet of the Spirits (1965)
443. Pierrot Goes Wild (1965)
444. Faster, Pussy Cat! Kill! Kill! (1965)
445. Golden River (1965)
446. The Man Who Had His Hair Cut Short (1965)
447. Hold Me While I'm Naked (1966)
448. Blowup (1966)
449. The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (1966)
450. Daisies (1966)
451. Come Drink with Me (1966)
452. Seconds (1966)
453. Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966)
454. Persona (1966) 144
455. Masculine-Feminine (1966)
456. Balthazar (1966) 145
457. In the Heat of the Night (1967) 146
458. Two or Three Things I Know About Her (1967) 147
459. The Graduate (1967) 148
460. Playtime (1967) 149
461. Report (1967)
462. Hombre (1967)
463. Belle de Jour (1967)
464. The Young Girls of Rochefort (1967)
465. Week End (1967) 150
466. The Godson (1967)
467. Cool Hand Luke (1967)
468. Point Blank (1967) 151
469. Wavelength (1967)
470. Bonnie and Clyde (1967) 152
471. The Red and the White (1967)
472. Marketa Lazarova (1967)
473. The Jungle Book (1967)
474. The Fireman's Ball (1967)
475. Earth Entranced (1967)
476. Closely Watched Trains (1967) 153
477. Vij (1967)
478. The Cow (1968)
479. Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) 154
480. Planet of the Apes (1968) 155
481. Faces (1968)
482. Rosemary's Baby (1968)
483. If… (1968)
484. Memories of Underdevelopment (1968)
485. The Producers (1968) 156
486. David Holzman's Diary (1968)
487. Shame (1968) 157
488. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) 158
489. Hour of the Wolf (1968) 159
490. Targets (1968)
491. Night of the Living Dead (1968) 160
492. My Night with Maud (1969)
493. Lucia (1969)
494. A Touch of Zen (1969)
495. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
496. Midnight Cowboy (1969)
497. Satyricon (1969) 161
498. Z (1969) 162
499. The Conformist (1969)
500. Easy Rider (1969) 163
501. High School (1969)
502. In the Year of the Pig (1969)
503. The Wild Bunch (1969)
504. Andrei Rublev (1969)
505. The Butcher (1969) 164
506. The Color of Pomegranates (1969) 165
507. Kes (1969)
508. Tristana (1970)
509. Five Easy Pieces (1970) 166
510. El Topo (1970)
511. Woodstock (1970)
512. Deep End (1970)
513. The Spider's Stratagem (1970)
514. Little Big Man (1970) 167
515. The Ear (1970)
516. Patton (1970)
517. M*A*S*H (1970)
518. Performance (1970)
519. Gimme Shelter (1970)
520. Zabriskie Point (1970)
521. The Bird with The Crystal Plumage (1970)
522. The Garden of the Finzi-Continis (1970)
523. Wanda (1971)
524. W.R.: Mysteries of the Organism (1971)
525. A Clockwork Orange (1971) 168
526. The Sorrow and the Pity (1971)
527. Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971)
528. McCabe and Mrs. Miller (1971)
529. Walkabout (1971) 169
530. Klute (1971)
531. Harold and Maude (1971)
532. Red Psalm (1971)
533. Get Carter (1971)
534. The French Connection (1971) 170
535. Shaft (1971)
536. Dirty Harry (1971) 171
537. Murmur of the Heart (1971)
538. Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song (1971)
539. The Last Picture Show (1971)
540. Straw Dogs (1971)
541. Two-Lane Blacktop (1971)
542. The Heartbreak Kid (1972)
543. Aguirre, the Wrath of God (1972)
544. Cabaret (1972) 172
545. Last Tango in Paris (1972)
546. High Plains Drifter (1972) 173
547. Sleuth (1972)
548. Deliverance (1972)
549. Solaris (1972) 174
550. The Godfather (1972) 175
551. Cries and Whispers (1972) 176
552. Fat City (1972)
553. The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (1972)
554. The Bitter Tears of Petra Von Kant (1972)
555. Frenzy (1972)
556. Pink Flamingos (1972)
557. Superfly (1972)
558. The Sting (1973) 177
559. The Mother and the Whore (1973)
560. Badlands (1973) 178
561. American Graffiti (1973) 179
562. Papillon (1973)
563. Enter the Dragon (1973)
564. Mean Streets (1973)
565. The Long Goodbye (1973)
566. The Wicker Man (1973)
567. Day for Night (1973) 180
568. Don't Look Now (1973)
569. Sleeper (1973)
570. Serpico (1973) 181
571. The Exorcist (1973) 182
572. Turkish Delight (1973)
573. The Spirit of the Beehive (1973)
574. Fantastic Planet (1973)
575. Amarcord (1973)
576. The Harder They Come (1973)
577. Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid (1973)
578. Dersu Uzala (1974)
579. The Conversation (1974) 183
580. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
581. The Mirror (1974)
582. A Woman Under the Influence (1974) 184
583. Young Frankenstein (1974) 185
584. Chinatown (1974)
585. Celine and Julie Go Boating (1974)
586. Blazing Saddles (1974) 186
587. The Godfather Part II (1974) 187
588. Ali: Fear Eats the Soul (1974) 188
589. Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia (1974)
590. Dog Day Afternoon (1975)
591. One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) 189
592. Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai Du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles (1975)
593. The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)
594. The Wall (1975)
595. Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975) 190
596. Barry Lyndon (1975)
597. Fox and His Friends (1975)
598. India Song (1975)
599. Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975)
600. Manila in the Claws of Brightness (1975)
601. Salo, or the 120 Days of Sodom (1975)
602. Nashville (1975)
603. Cria! (1975)
604. The Travelling Players (1975)
605. Jaws (1975) 191
606. The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (1976)
607. Carrie (1976)
608. The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976) 192
609. All the President's Men (1976)
610. Rocky (1976) 193
611. Taxi Driver (1976)
612. Network (1976) 194
613. Ascent (1976)
614. In the Realm of the Senses (1976) 195
615. 1900 (1976)
616. The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976) 196
617. Star Wars (1977) 197
618. Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) 198
619. The Last Wave (1977)
620. Annie Hall (1977) 199
621. Last Chants for a Slow Dance (1977)
622. Stroszek (1977)
623. Man of Marble (1977)
624. Saturday Night Fever (1977)
625. Killer of Sheep (1977)
626. Eraserhead (1977)
627. Ceddo (1977)
628. The American Friend (1977)
629. The Hills Have Eyes (1977)
630. Soldier of Orange (1977)
631. Suspiria (1977)
632. The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith (1978)
633. Five Deadly Venoms (1978)
634. The Tree of Wooden Clogs (1978)
635. The Deer Hunter (1978)
636. Grease (1978) 200
637. Days of Heaven (1978) 201
638. Dawn of the Dead (1978) 202
639. Shaolin Master Killer (1978)
640. Up in Smoke (1978)
641. Halloween (1978) 203
642. The Marriage of Maria Braun (1979)
643. Real Life (1979)
644. My Brilliant Career (1979)
645. Stalker (1979)
646. Alien (1979)
647. Breaking Away (1979)
648. The Tin Drum (1979)
649. All That Jazz (1979)
650. Being There (1979)
651. Kramer vs. Kramer (1979)
652. Life of Brian (1979)
653. Apocalypse Now (1979) 204
654. The Jerk (1979)
655. The Muppet Movie (1979)
656. Manhattan (1979)
657. Mad Max (1979) 205
658. Nosferatu: Phantom Of The Night (1979)
659. Ordinary People (1980) 206
660. Atlantic City (1980)
661. The Last Metro (1980)
662. The Shining (1980)
663. Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
664. The Elephant Man (1980)
665. The Big Red One (1980) 207
666. Loulou (1980)
667. Airplane! (1980)
668. Raging Bull (1980)
669. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) 208
670. The Boat (1981)
671. Gallipoli (1981) 209
672. Chariots of Fire (1981)
673. Body Heat (1981)
674. Reds (1981)
675. An American Werewolf in London (1981) 210
676. Three Brothers (1981)
677. Man of Iron (1981)
678. Too Early, Too Late (1981)
679. Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1981)
680. E.T.: The Extra-Terestrial (1982)
681. The Thing (1982)
682. Poltergeist (1982)
683. Blade Runner (1982)
684. The Evil Dead (1982) 211
685. Tootsie (1982)
686. Yol (1982)
687. Diner (1982)
688. Fitzcaraldo (1982) 212
689. Gandhi (1982)
690. The Night of the Shooting Stars (1982)
691. A Question of Silence (1982)
692. Fanny and Alexander (1982) 213
693. A Christmas Story (1983)
694. El Norte (1983)
695. Videodrome (1983)
696. Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983) 214
697. The Big Chill (1983)
698. Sunless (1983)
699. The Last Battle (1983)
700. Money (1983)
701. Utu (1983)
702. Terms of Endearment (1983)
703. The Fourth Man (1983)
704. The King of Comedy (1983)
705. The Right Stuff (1983)
706. Koyaanisqatsi (1983)
707. Once Upon a Time in America (1983)
708. Scarface (1983)
709. The Ballad of Narayama (1983)
710. Amadeus (1984) 215
711. The Terminator (1984)
712. Paris, Texas (1984)
713. A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
714. This Is Spinal Tap (1984) 216
715. Beverly Hills Cop (1984)
716. Ghostbusters (1984)
717. A Passage to India (1984)
718. Stranger Than Paradise (1984)
719. The Killing Fields (1984)
720. The Natural (1984)
721. The Breakfast Club (1985)
722. Ran (1985)
723. Come and See (1985)
724. The Official Story (1985)
725. Out of Africa (1985)
726. The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985)
727. Back to the Future (1985) 217
728. The Time to Live and the Time to Die (1985)
729. Brazil (1985)
730. Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985)
731. The Quiet Earth (1985) 218
732. Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985)
733. Prizzi's Honor (1985)
734. Vagabond (1985)
735. Shoah (1985)
736. The Color Purple (1985)
737. Manhunter (1986) 219
738. Stand By Me (1986)
739. Blue Velvet (1986) 220
740. Hannah and Her Sisters (1986)
741. She's Gotta Have It (1986)
742. The Decline of the American Empire (1986)
743. The Fly (1986)
744. Aliens (1986)
745. Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)
746. Down by Law (1986)
747. A Room with a View (1986)
748. Children of a Lesser God (1986)
749. Platoon (1986)
750. Caravaggio (1986)
751. Tampopo (1986)
752. Peking Opera Blues (1986)
753. Salvador (1986)
754. Top Gun (1986) 221
755. Sherman's March (1986) 222
756. The Horse Thief (1986)
757. Brightness (1987)
758. Wings of Desire (1987)
759. Project A, Part II (1987)
760. Babette's Feast (1987)
761. Raising Arizona (1987)
762. Full Metal Jacket (1987)
763. Withnail and I (1987)
764. Good Morning, Vietnam (1987)
765. Goodbye Children (1987)
766. Broadcast News (1987)
767. Housekeeping (1987)
768. The Princess Bride (1987)
769. Moonstruck (1987)
770. The Untouchables (1987)
771. Red Sorghum (1987) 223
772. The Dead (1987)
773. Fatal Attraction (1987)
774. A Chinese Ghost Story (1987)
775. Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (1988)
776. The Vanishing (1988)
777. Bull Durham (1988)
778. Ariel (1988)
779. The Thin Blue Line (1988) 224
780. Akira (1988)
781. Cinema Paradiso (1988)
782. Hotel Terminus: The Life and Times of Klaus Barbie (1988)
783. A Fish Called Wanda (1988)
784. The Naked Gun (1988)
785. Big (1988)
786. Dangerous Liaisons (1988)
787. Grave of the Fireflies (1988) 225
788. Landscape in the Mist (1988) 226
789. The Decalogue (1988)
790. Die Hard (1988)
791. A Tale of the Wind (1988)
792. Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
793. Rain Man (1988)
794. The Story of Women (1988)
795. The Accidental Tourist (1988)
796. Alice (1988)
797. Batman (1989)
798. When Harry Met Sally (1989)
799. Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989)
800. The Cook, the Thief, His Wife and Her Lover (1989)
801. Drugstore Cowboy (1989)
802. My Left Foot (1989)
803. The Killer (1989)
804. Do the Right Thing (1989)
805. Roger & Me (1989)
806. Glory (1989)
807. The Asthenic Syndrome (1989)
808. Sex, Lies and Videotape (1989)
809. Say Anything (1989)
810. The Unbelievable Truth (1989)
811. A City of Sadness (1989)
812. No Fear, No Die (1990)
813. Reversal of Fortune (1990)
814. Goodfellas (1990)
815. Jacob's Ladder (1990)
816. King of New York (1990)
817. Dances with Wolves (1990)
818. Europa Europa (1990)
819. Pretty Woman (1990)
820. Archangel (1990)
821. Trust (1990)
822. Close-Up (1990)
823. Edward Scissorhands (1990)
824. Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1990)
825. Total Recall (1990) 227
826. Once Upon a Time in China (1991)
827. Boyz 'n the Hood (1991)
828. Raise the Red Lantern (1991) 228
829. Delicatessen (1991)
830. A Brighter Summer Day (1991)
831. Naked Lunch (1991)
832. The Beautiful Troublemaker (1991)
833. The Rapture (1991)
834. My Own Private Idaho (1991)
835. Thelma & Louise (1991)
836. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
837. The Silence of the Lambs (1991) 229
838. JFK (1991)
839. Slacker (1991)
840. Tongues Untied (1991)
841. Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse (1991) 230
842. The Double Life of Veronique (1991)
843. Strictly Ballroom (1992)
844. The Player (1992)
845. Reservoir Dogs (1992)
846. Romper Stomper (1992)
847. Glengarry Glen Ross (1992)
848. Unforgiven (1992) 231
849. Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992)
850. Candy Man (1992)
851. A Tale of Winter (1992)
852. Aileen Wuornos: The Selling of a Serial Killer (1992)
853. The Crying Game (1992)
854. Man Bites Dog (1992)
855. The Actress (1992)
856. Farewell My Concubine (1993)
857. Thirty Two Films about Glenn Gould (1993)
858. Groundhog Day (1993)
859. Short Cuts (1993)
860. Philadelphia (1993)
861. Jurassic Park (1993)
862. The Age of Innocence (1993)
863. The Puppetmaster (1993)
864. Schindler's List (1993)
865. Three Colors: Blue (1993) 232
866. The Piano (1993)
867. The Blue Kite (1993)
868. The Wedding Banquet (1993)
869. Three Colors: Red (1994) 233
870. Hoop Dreams (1994)
871. Forrest Gump (1994)
872. Clerks (1994)
873. Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994)
874. The Lion King (1994) 234
875. Satantango (1994)
876. Natural Born Killers (1994)
877. The Last Seduction (1994)
878. Pulp Fiction (1994)
879. The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
880. The Wild Reeds (1994)
881. Chungking Express (1994) 235
882. Crumb (1994) 236
883. Heavenly Creatures (1994)
884. Through the Olive Trees (1994)
885. Riget (1994) 237
886. Dear Diary (1994)
887. Casino (1995)
888. Deseret (1995)
889. Babe (1995)
890. Toy Story (1995)
891. Strange Days (1995)
892. Braveheart (1995)
893. Safe (1995)
894. Clueless (1995)
895. Heat (1995)
896. Zero Kelvin (1995)
897. Seven (1995)
898. Smoke (1995) 238
899. The White Balloon (1995)
900. Cyclo (1995)
901. Underground (1995)
902. The Brave Heart Will Take the Bride (1995)
903. Dead Man (1995)
904. The Usual Suspects (1995)
905. The Pillow Book (1996)
906. Three Lives and Only One Death (1996)
907. Fargo (1996)
908. Independence Day (1996)
909. Secrets and Lies (1996)
910. Breaking the Waves (1996)
911. The English Patient (1996)
912. Gabbeh (1996) 239
913. Lone Star (1996)
914. Trainspotting (1996)
915. Scream (1996) 240
916. Deconstructing Harry (1997)
917. L.A. Confidential (1997)
918. Happy Together (1997)
919. Princess Mononoke (1997) 241
920. Fast, Cheap, and Out of Control (1997)
921. The Butcher Boy (1997) 242
922. The Ice Storm (1997)
923. Boogie Nights (1997)
924. Kundun (1997)
925. The Sweet Hereafter (1997) 243
926. Funny Games (1997)
927. Taste of Cherry (1997)
928. Open Your Eyes (1997)
929. Mother and Son (1997)
930. Titanic (1997)
931. Tetsuo (1998)
932. The Celebration (1998)
933. Saving Private Ryan (1998)
934. Buffalo 66 (1998)
935. Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998)
936. Run Lola Run (1998) 244
937. Rushmore (1998)
938. Pi (1998) 245
939. Happiness (1998)
940. The Thin Red Line (1998)
941. The Idiots (1998)
942. Sombre (1998)
943. Ring (1998)
944. There's Something About Mary (1998)
945. Magnolia (1999)
946. Beau Travail (1999)
947. The Blair Witch Project (1999)
948. Taboo (1999)
949. Rosetta (1999)
950. All About My Mother (1999)
951. Three Kings (1999)
952. The Wind Will Carry Us (1999)
953. The Audition (1999)
954. Time Regained (1999)
955. Fight Club (1999)
956. Being John Malkovich (1999)
957. American Beauty (1999)
958. Attack the Gas Station! (1999)
959. Eyes Wide Shut (1999) 246
960. The Sixth Sense (1999)
961. The Matrix (1999)
962. Nine Queens (2000) 247
963. The Captive (2000)
964. In the Mood for Love (2000)
965. Ali Zaoua, Prince of the Streets (2000)
966. Gladiator (2000)
967. Kippur (2000)
968. A One and a Two (2000)
969. Requiem for a Dream (2000)
970. Amores Perros (2000)
971. Meet the Parents (2000)
972. Signs & Wonders (2000)
973. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)
974. Traffic (2000)
975. The Gleaners and I (2000)
976. Memento (2000)
977. Dancer in the Dark (2000)
978. O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000)
979. Amelie (2001) 248
980. What Time Is It There? (2001)
981. And Your Mother Too (2001)
982. Kandahar (2001)
983. Spirited Away (2001) 249
984. The Piano Teacher (2001)
985. The Son's Room (2001)
986. No Man's Land (2001) 250
987. Moulin Rouge (2001)
988. Monsoon Wedding (2001) 251
989. Fat Girl (2001)
990. Mulholland Dr. (2001) 252
991. The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
992. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
993. A.I.: Artificial Intelligence (2001)
994. Gangs of New York (2002)
995. The Pianist (2002)
996. Talk to Her (2002) 253
997. City of God (2002) 254
998. Russian Ark (2002)
999. Chicago (2002)
1000. The Barbarian Invasions (2003)
1001. Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003)
1002. Drowning by Numbers (1988)
1003. The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994)
1004. Muriel's Wedding (1994)
1005. Shine (1996)
1006. The Big Lebowski (1998)
1007. Lantana (2001)
1008. Adaptation (2002) 255
1009. Far From Heaven (2002) 256
1010. Hero (2002)
1011. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
1012. Bus 174 (2002)
1013. Uzak (2002)
1014. Rabbit-Proof Fence (2002)
1015. Irreversible (2002)
1016. Oldboy (2003) 257
1017. Good Bye Lenin! (2003)
1018. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
1019. The Best of Youth (2003)
1020. Lost in Translation (2003)
1021. Farenheit 9/11 (2004)
1022. The Passion of the Christ (2004)
1023. Collateral (2004)
1024. The Aviator (2004)
1025. Million Dollar Baby (2004)
1026. Downfall (2004) 258
1027. A Very Long Engagement (2004)
1028. Sideways (2004)
1029. Head-On (2004)
1030. 3-Iron (2004)
1031. Hidden (2005)
1032. Go, Live and Become (2005)
1033. Paradise Now (2005)
1034. Brokeback Mountain (2005) 259
1035. Tsotsi (2005)
1036. The Constant Gardner (2005) 260
1037. Crash (2005)
1038. Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
1039. The Prestige (2006)
1040. The Lives of Others (2006) 261
1041. United 93 (2006)
1042. Children of Men (2006)
1043. Pan's Labyrinth (2006)
1044. Apocalypto (2006)
1045. The Departed (2006)
1046. Borat (2006)
1047. Once (2006)
1048. The Queen (2006) 262
1049. The Host (2006) 263
1050. The Last King Of Scotland (2006)
1051. Babel (2006)
1052. Volver (2006)
1053. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007) 264
1054. La Vie En Rose (2007)
1055. No Country For Old Men (2007)
1056. Into the Wild (2007)
1057. There Will Be Blood (2007)
1058. Atonement (2007)
1059. Surfwise (2007)
1060. The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)
1061. Paranormal Activity (2007) 265
1062. Wall-E (2008)
1063. The Good, the Bad, the Weird (2008)
1064. The Dark Knight (2008)
1065. The Wrestler (2008)
1066. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)
1067. Gomorra (2008)
1068. The Class (2008)
1069. Slumdog Millionaire (2008)
1070. Anvil! The Story of Anvil (2008)
1071. Let The Right One In (2009)
1072. The Hurt Locker (2009)
1073. An Education (2009)
1074. The Hangover (2009) 266
1075. Precious (2009)
1076. Avatar (2009)
1077. Fish Tank (2009)
1078. The White Ribbon (2009)
1079. Inglourious Basterds (2009)
1080. District 9 (2009) 267
1081. In the Loop (2009)
1082. Monsters (2010)
1083. Of Gods and Men (2010)
1084. Black Swan (2010) 268
1085. Four Lions (2010)
1086. The Social Network (2010) 269
1087. Inception (2010) 270
1088. The King’s Speech (2010) 271
1089. True Grit (2010) 272

(More meaningless statistics)
1001 films viewed by decade

1900’s 1
1910’s 0
1920’s 6
1930’s 28
1940’s 41
1950’s 43
1960’s 46
1970’s 39
1980’s 20
1990’s 20
2000’s 19
2010’s 5

ITS A WONDERFUL LIFE (1946) vs. A CHRISTMAS STORY (1983)

2011-12-17T08:59:00.004-06:00

Brent Musberger: We are…LIVE from Pauley Pavilion for the 3rd annual finale of the 64 film tournament as the battle for the definitive Christmas movie sweepstakes has reached its highly anticipated climax.

To recap: A Christmas Story defeated Santa Claus Conquers the Martians, Black Christmas (which forfeited for being directed by A Christmas Story director Bob Clark and therefore creating a conflict of interest), National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, and Holiday Inn to reach the final four where the instant classic last second victory over the 1951 version of A Christmas Carol earned the coming of age story of Ralphie and his hunt for a Red Ryder BB gun a spot in the finals.

In the other bracket, It’s a Wonderful Life defeated Ernest Saves Christmas, Elf, Jingle All the Way, and Christmas in Connecticut to reach the final four where the story of George Bailey defeated Miracle on 34th Street in double overtime.

Onto the final: It’s a Wonderful Life vs. A Christmas Story:

Round 1
The protagonist:

It’s a Wonderful Life: George Bailey
George’s best moment: Loans out money to Bedford Fallians to prevent Potter from taking over the building and loan.
George’s worst moment: yells at his kids after Uncle Billy loses $8000.

A Christmas Story: Ralphie Parker
Ralphie’s best moment: Saves his family from Black Bart
Ralphie worst moment: He says THE word and it wasn’t fudge!

Winner: It’s a Wonderful Life. The everyman is just a tad more sympathetic than the everyboy.

Round 2
The villain:

It’s a Wonderful Life: In the person of Mr. Potter and in the set of circumstances that keep George in Bedford Falls.

A Christmas Story: The heavies here are assorted bullies, teachers, parents and grownups whose sole purpose seems to be preventing getting Ralphie his Red Ryder Carbine-Action Two-Hundred-Shot Range Model Air Rifle!

Winner: It’s a Wonderful Life. Mr. Potter (the very definition of evil) is the difference here.
Potter to George: “Look at you! You used to be so cocky. You were going to go out and conquer the world. You once called me a warped frustrated old man. What are you but a warped frustrated young man? A miserable little clerk crawling in here on your hands and knees and begging for help…Why don’t you go to the riff raff you love so much. You know why? Because they’d run you out of town on a rail!”

Evil. Evil. Evil

Round 3
Supporting cast:

It’s a Wonderful Life: Thomas Mitchell as Uncle Billy or Henry Travers as Clarence.

A Christmas Story: Darren McGavin as Dad

Winner: It’s a Wonderful Life. McGavin is most funny as the long-suffering, cursing dad with the obsession for leg lamps, but he did steal the fra-jilly joke from The Marx Brothers.
Nobody does nincompoop like Mitchell and nobody can order “Mull wine, heavy on the cinnamon, light on the cloves” like Travers.

Round 4
Auteur curriculum vitæ:

It’s a Wonderful Life: Frank Capra directed Arsenic and Old Lace, Meet John Doe, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, Lost Horizon, It Happened One Night, and You Can’t Take it With You. One of the most famous American directors with one of the most impressive resumes.

A Christmas Story: Bob Clark’s less impressive film output includes: Rhinestone, From the Hip, Porky’s I and II, Baby Geniuses I and II, and of course the TV movie classic Karate Dog.

Winner: A Christmas Story. Seems like a slam dunk for It's a Wonderful Life on paper, but since Mr. Clark dug so deep to come up with one classic within a career of such mediocrity, that I think even Mr. Capra would love this underdog story. Imagine Ed Wood pulling off Lawrence of Arabia.

Round 5
Recreation of the era:

It’s a Wonderful Life: Most of the story is set in the 1940’s and the film was made in the 1940’s.

A Christmas Story: Entire story is set in the 1940’s

Winner: A Christmas Story. The recreation of a simpler time at a simpler age is what makes the film work. It may not be a fair comparison since It’s a Wonderful Life was set in its own time, but George Bailey knows that life is not fair.

Round 6
Catchphrase:

It’s a Wonderful Life: Lots of candidates, but “Teacher says every time a bell rings, an angel gets his wings” is probably the best. It’s certainly better than Sam Wainwright continually saying “HEE-HAW”

A Christmas Story:”You’ll shoot your eye out, kid”

Winner: A Christmas Story. Close call, but “You’ll shoot your eye out” defines A Christmas Story.

Round 7
Screenplay:

It’s a Wonderful Life: Frances Goodrich & Albert Hackett

A Christmas Story: Jean Shepherd

Winner: It’s a Wonderful Life. You’d think I’d know who wrote the screenplay for a movie I’ve seen twenty times, but I admit to having to look it up. As retribution I’m giving this to Frances and Albert. Sorry, Jean.

Round 8
The strange cameo competition:

It’s a Wonderful Life. The guy that opens the gym floor to make George and Mary go into the water is Carl “Alfalfa” Switzer of Our Gang.

A Christmas Story: Ubiquitous screenwriter Jean Shepherd has the wonderful credit line of Man in line for Santa.

Winner: It’s a Wonderful Life. How can you beat getting dunked by Alfalfa! Sorry Jean, that’s 0-2.

Round 9
Narrator wars:

It’s a Wonderful Life: Mostly Henry Travers as Clarence

A Christmas Story: Jean Shepard

Winner: A Christmas Story, Well Jean, your narration style that was later copied for The Wonder Years finally gives you a win.

Round 10
Musical interlude:

It’s a Wonderful Life: Buffalo Girls

A Christmas Story: Deck the Halls from the Chinese restaurant.

Winner: It’s a Wonderful Life. As funny as “Deck the Halls with boughs of horry” is, Buffalo Girls is sung by George to woo Mary and later played as George asks Mary to marry him. George lassos the moon on this one.

Round 11
Longevity award:

It’s a Wonderful Life: A Christmas classic since the advent of television

A Christmas Story: A Christmas classic since the advent of cable

Winner: It’s a Wonderful Life: It may not be fair to punish A Christmas Story for only being under 30 years old, but you know-sometimes you get a Red Ryder BB gun for Christmas and sometimes you just got to drink your Ovaltine and like it!

Round 12
Symbols:

It’s a Wonderful Life: Bedford Falls has Christmas lights, bells, carolers, a movie theater showing Bells of St. Mary’s, and the wonderful old Building and Loan.
Pottersville has bars, blaring sirens, night clubs, pool halls, fights every Wednesday night, pawn brokers, girls-girls-girls burlesque, and a Dance Hall where Violet Bick gets picked up for prostitution!

A Christmas Story: The leg lamp or the bunny suit

Winner: It’s a Wonderful Life. But you got to admit that sometimes it’s more fun to live in Pottersville than Bedford Falls.

Round 13
Hot mom award:

It’s a Wonderful Life: Donna Reed

A Christmas Story: Melinda Dillon

Winner: It’s a Wonderful Life. Melinda Dillon was much more attractive in other movies such as Slapshot and Close Encounters as she was a bit frumped up here to be believable as Darren McGavin’s wife.
Donna Reed was at the height of her beauty here, at least when she’s not closing up the library!!!

Round 14
Citation for scene disparaging to libraries:

It’s a Wonderful Life: When George asks Clarence where Mary is in the reality in which George was never born, Clarence informs him that the ultimate tragedy has happened: First she’s an old maid and even worse: “She’s closing up the library!”
I’ve got to dock It’s a Wonderful Life for this one.

Winner: by default is A Christmas Story

Round 15
Evilest teacher:

It’s a Wonderful Life: Mrs. Welch gets admonished by George when she checks on Zuzu. Mr. Welch later punches George. Should Mrs. Welch suffer for the sins of Mr. Welch?

A Christmas Story: Ralphie’s teacher can’t seem to understand the importance of the Red Ryder BB gun!

Winner: A Christmas Story. Sorry, Mrs. Welch. Nobody punches out George Bailey and gets away with it! I'm giving this round to A Christmas Story just because I don't want to award Mr. Welch's unacceptable behavior!

Round 16
Remake Problems:

It’s a Wonderful Life: I know I shouldn’t keep punishing for the sins of others, but the 1978 television remake with Marlo Thomas as the female equivalent of George Bailey and Cloris Leachman as the female equivalent of Clarence was just wrong and someone should be held responsible!

Winner: A Christmas Story, but I just found out it has a sequel of it’s own called It Runs in the Family from the 90’s. I’ve already awarded the round, so A Christmas Story may have gotten away with one here.

Round 17
Unsympathetic authority figure:

It’s a Wonderful Life: Gower the druggist smacks George on his bad ear. Booooo!

A Christmas Story: Santa Claus can’t seem to understand the importance of the Red Ryder either. Booooo!

Winner: It’s a Wonderful Life. Mr. Gower wins because he does become a good guy and a friend to George (Except in the world without George where he is an alcoholic child murderer!) Ahem. Wait a second. George isn’t born and Gower becomes a drunken psychopath? On second thought, A Christmas Story wins. Santa just doesn’t want him to shoot his eye out, after all. He doesn’t kill anybody!

Round 18
I discovered it:

It’s a Wonderful Life: It’s just been around forever so gets no credit for discovery for me.

A Christmas Story: I was the one to discover this movie. Okay, not really. But I was one of the first to appreciate it. “Why wasn’t this more popular?” I said when it first came out. Now it is.

Winner: A Christmas Story

Round 19
Dumbest kid stuff dealing with ice:

It’s a Wonderful Life: Harry Bailey sleds onto thin ice and almost drowns.

A Christmas Story: Ralphie’s friend sticks his tongue to a frozen flagpole.

Winner: A Christmas Story. Equally stupid thing for a kid to do, but funnier in A Christmas Story.

Round 20
The ending:

It’s a Wonderful Life: George’s friends bail him out, his family embraces him and they sing Auld Lang Syne.

A Christmas Story: Ralphie dreams of making hip shots with his gun.

Winner: It’s a Wonderful Life: A Christmas Story’s ending is OK. It’s a Wonderful Life’s ending might be the most inspirational ending in filmdom. A no-brainer for It’s a Wonderful Life.

Brent Musberger: And the winner in the definitive Christmas movie sweepstakes is…wait a minute, here comes Tiny Tim Cratchit and the Little Match Girl…What could they want? Tiny Tim seems to be trying to tell me something. Excuse me…we seem to have a new development. Little Match Girl, are you in agreement? All right then. Everyone grab hands. George, Ralphie, Uncle Billy, Mr. and Mrs. Parker, Bert, Ernie, Flick, Mary, Department Store Santa...come on out. Form a line.
The final decision from these two adorable little children is that you the viewer need to find room in your holiday season for both of these Christmas classics.

Merry Christmas everybody! This is Brent Musberger reporting.

*This blog is a reprint from last year, but I couldn't think of anything else new to do for Christmas. Maybe next year.

BLUE VELVET (1986)

2011-12-10T08:45:00.002-06:00

My niece, Kara Demetropoulos, has been staying in New York City as part of the Occupy Wall Street movement. She texted me some messages pertaining to what she was doing and also told be she saw the film Blue Velvet while she was up there. So I decided to watch this unusual film again and relate quotes from that movie to the texts she sent me as well as I could.

Kara: I’ve been dumpstering for food with a freegan I met. We dumpster for clothes, electronics, things we can sell, etc.
Blue Velvet: Are you the one that found the ear?

Kara: Got out and marched on Wall Street.
Blue Velvet: Here’s to an interesting experience…Man, I like Heineken!

Kara: Witnessed police brutality at its finest.
Blue Velvet: Why does there have to be so much trouble in this world?

Kara: I spent 36 hours in jail.
Blue Velvet: It’s a strange world, isn’t it?

Kara: Now I’m staying with this really nice woman who is going to let me stay until I find a job and get my own place.
Blue Velvet: In the dream, there was our world. And the world was dark because there weren’t any robins. And the robins represented love and for the longest time there was just this darkness. And all of a sudden, thousands of robins were set free. And they flew down and brought this blinding light of love And it seemed like that love would be the only thing that would make any difference. And it did.

Good luck, Kara.

TRUE GRIT (1969), TRUE GRIT (2010)

2011-12-03T04:47:00.000-06:00

Awhile back,. someone recommended I read the Charles Portis novel True Grit for my book group. After the success of the Coen Brothers new film version of the novel, an Audiotape version of Portis’s book was recorded for the first time. I listened to the reading. A fine rendering by Donna Tartt. I thought it was a simple, but involving story of a 14-year-old hiring a surly U. S. Marshall to help her get revenge on the man that killed her father.

Then I watched the 1969 version of the movie with John Wayne, which I had never seen before. I followed that by watching the Coen Brothers version, which is listed in the latest editiion of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.

After that, I listened to the book again. (It’s pretty short, only 6 discs in Books-on-CD speak.)

The night of my book group was a dark and stormy night. Only a couple of people showed up. Both had positive things to say about True Grit. One lady in my group was even inspired to purchase other books by Charles Portis. That made me glad.

As far as the movies go: I did appreciate the 1969 version. I’ve always found John Wayne rather hit or miss depending on his role, but this was truly a part he seemed to get his teeth into. He wasn’t playing John Wayne as he often did; he was the drunk, one-eyed U. S. Marshall Rooster Cogburn. But since Mattie Ross is the one telling the story, the success of the movie rides on her. Kim Darby as Mattie Ross, I liked very much.

I didn’t think the Coen Brothers version would be able to top it, but I liked it as well. It is interesting that though many parts of the new movie vary from the original, I was struck by how some scenes between the two movies were very similar. One example is the scene where Mattie negotiates with the businessman to take back the horses her daddy bought before he was killed and is a highlight of both movies. And the staging of the scene where Rooster rides against the four members of Ned Pepper’s seemed to be almost identical in the two films

But I can see by the clock on the wall that I need to pick a winner. And the winner is….Charles Portis’s book. Or at least the very least, the Book-on-CD version.

TOTALL RECALL (1990)

2011-11-26T15:40:00.000-06:00

Science Fiction Week Day 7

Total Recall (1990)

Remembrance of Viewing Past: I’m frankly a little surprised that this Arnold Schwarzenegger film is on the list, but it's definitely worth another look.

After viewing: I always thought the story for this one was pretty involving and knowing the story twists didn't really detract too much from the second viewing. I did lose track of the number of people that Arnold kills, but this type of excess seems much more palatable to me in a Sci-Fi movie than in a contemporarily set one.

THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH (1976)

2011-11-25T13:39:00.000-06:00

Science Fiction Week Day 6

The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976)

Remembrance of Viewings Past: I saw this at the Rhodes repertory theater during the 1980’s. I believe it was on a double-bill with Zardoz. I have a positive but fading recollection of The Man Who Fell To Earth,and am curious how I will relate it now.

Seeing it now, I think David Bowie was perfectly cast as a very understated alien who comes from a dying planet. And Candy Clark as the leading lady is terrific. It’s a hard movie to explain and don’t know if a sci-fi movie like this could be made today. I don’t think The Man Who Fell to Earth action figures would sell too well. I’m also wondering if it is close enough to Christmas to listen to the David Bowie/Bing Crosby Little Drummer Boy duet. But I digress.

PLANET OF THE APES (1968)

2011-11-24T13:39:00.000-06:00

Science Fiction Week Day 5

Planet of the Apes (1968)

Remembrance of Viewings Past: I heartily admit to a sentimental attachment to the original Planet of the Apes. I first saw it when I was very young and have probably seen in at least in part a dozen times since.

The movie starts with three American astronauts landing hundreds of years in the future on a remote planet. The cynical Taylor (Charlton Heston) leads this band in the search for water or other life forms. They slowly find clues of life and hints of a civilization during the first thirty minutes of the movie. The reason I bring this up is because it is an important part of the building of suspense and introduction of Taylor’s character. The audience knows that they are about to run into a civilization where apes rule. Even if you are seeing it for the first time, we know what the title is! We know what is going on, but the astronauts don’t. It’s a slow trek, but it’s necessary for the plot. I also love Jerry Goldsmith’s score, which is used to full effect during the early scenes.

Anyway, here are a few other thoughts on Planet of the Apes.

1. The desert setting in the early scenes: Why do I like the early scenes so much? We don’t know where the story is going (even if we do know, you understand?) It’s called building suspense.
2. Little touches; The distibution of power, the see know evil, hear no evil, speak no evil pose that the orangutan’s have while Taylor is giving them unwanted truths. The character of Lucius, who is basically an ape hippie without being over the top, the sacred scrolls, the Forbidden Zone and let’s not forget Heston’s concubine Nova.
3. Memorable lines “Get your stinkin’ paws off me, you damn, dirty ape!” Come on, is there a better line as well timed in any movie than that one?
4. The makeup. If the viewer didn’t buy the makeup, the party was pretty much over. Luckily, we bought it.
5. The Turkish cave architecture of the ape village gives the story the otherworldly appeal it needs.
6. Changes from the original book-The Eiffel Tower from Boulle's novel? I don’t think so.
7. The performances-Maurice Evans as the politician Dr. Zaius, Kim Hunter and Roddy McDowell as the sympathetic chimpanzees, but don’t forget Charlton Heston as the cynical astronaut.
8. The ending-One of the greatest endings of all-time.
9. The sequels? Well, the four sequels are a mixed lot. The best of the bunch is probably the third installment where Cornelius and Zira escape on Taylor’s old ship and return to 1973 earth! It was about the only way they could keep the series going since a hydrogen bomb goes off at the end of the second movie. The last two installments in the series have their moments, epecially Conquest of the Planet of the Apes where we see the beginning of the ape uprising beginning to take place. After the movies played out, we had a short-lived television show Planet of the Apes, which was pretty so-so, but I watched every episode (All 13!)

INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS (1956)

2011-11-23T13:39:00.000-06:00

Science Fiction Week Day 4

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)

Remembrance of Viewings Past: First saw on television sometime in the 70’s. Have seen a couple of times since.

After viewing: I’m still a fan of the story, the major flaw in the '1956 version being the unnecessary prologue and epilogue that the studio added to the story. But this was more than a movie of pod people taking over. The author and filmmaker clearly wanted use this story of as metaphor against Communism, McCarthyism and other Totalitarian regimes.

In fact, on the CD I’m listening too there is a quote from the son of Invasion of the Body Snatchers director Don Siegel. I will transcribe it now:

“They were looking at this movie with Fresh eyes. They were bringing all this other stuff to it. Like it was a statement against McCarthyism and other people would say it’s a statement against Communism. But Siegel said that ‘none of that was in my head. That’s all in their imaginations. All I was trying to do was make and interesting scary, movie.’”

As I was saying, Invasion of the Body Snatchers is…an interesting and scary movie that people may at times read a little too much into.

FORBIDDEN PLANET (1956)

2011-11-22T09:38:00.000-06:00

Science Fiction Week Day 3

Forbidden Planet (1956)

Remembrance of Viewings Past: One of the most fondly remembered of all 50’s sci-fi films. Hopefully, after watching it again I can better define why.

After viewing: Here are the top ten reasons Forbidden Planet is one of the most fondly remembered films all 50’s sci-fi films.

Number 10 Anne Francis’s uber-short mini-skirt!

Number 9 Despite the quality of the production, it can still be a bit cheesy at times.: Examples include the flying saucer shots which aren’t really that much better than the ones from Fire Maidens From Outer Space and the supposedly nude Alatara clearly wearing a body suit.

Number 8 Special appeal for Trekies. This film was clearly a clearly a blueprint for much of the original Star Trek universe: Dashing commander who goes to an unknown planet and makes out with the only girl there! Dashing commander hangs out with the ships doctor, who really is closer to Spock than Mccoy. Blasters-which are called phasers in Star Trek, and more space jargon (you know, like the explanations from Star Trek why a worm hole will be closing up because of an exploding Super Nova in the next galaxy that is really hard to understand, but you just have to except it as a given plot point)is used here than you can shake a blaster at.

Number 7 High brow appeal in that Forbidden Planet is often compared to Shakespeare’s The Tempest

Number 6 Special appeal for Freudians as the Id plays such an important part in this story

Number 5 The fine supporting cast including the guy who later was on Police Woman, the guy who was later on Maverick and the guy who was later on The Six Million Dollar Man.

Number 4 Walter Pidgeon as Morbius is indeed a tragic character out of Shakespeare, though it might take a minute to realize that the pre-Airplane! Leslie Nielsen actually says his lines straight!

Number 3 The fact that the creatures are more of the mind than anything avoids the film from having any bad monster makeup.

Number 2 The look of the film, the color, and the fact that it is in Cinemascope makes this production great to look at. Dr. Morbius’s lab is also pretty impressive.

But the Number 1 reason that Forbidden Planet is one of the most fondly remembered films all 50’s sci-fi films is: Robby the Robot!

THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL (1951)

2011-11-21T17:37:00.000-06:00

Science Fiction Week Day 2

The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)

Remembrance of Viewings Past: I was probably about five. I was watching this on television during the days when they actually showed black and white movies on television! I remember the robot policeman Gort coming after Patricia Neal and have never been so scared while watching a movie since.

A one sentence synopsis of the movie might be: Space alien Klaatu comes to Earth and tells the citizens of the planet that if they continue to expand their atomic experiments into outer space, they will have to be eliminated.

As Klaatu said:
Your choice is simple.
Join us and live in peace
Or pursue your present course and face obliteration.
We shall be waiting for your answer.
The decision rests with you.

As Klaatu also said:
Those are great words.

CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND (1977)

2011-11-20T06:36:00.000-06:00

Science Fiction Week Day 1

Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)

Remembrance of Viewings Past: If memory serves correctly, I’ve seen Close Encounters of the Third Kind four times before. It's unusual in that I seem to like it more on odd numbered viewings. When it first opened, it made a big splash. Made a big impression on me. One of my favorite movies at that time. A couple of years later, Spielberg re-released a special edition version of the movie and I remember leaving the theater saying, “Was it really worth the extras he added? I was a bit disappointed. The next time I saw it was on television during the 80’s. Once again, I got caught up in the story and liked it a great deal. Then I saw it a few years later and found it to be rather slow moving. Well, it’s been over twenty years now since my last viewing, and this is likely the last time I’ll ever watch it. So I’ll give the film a definitive yes or no here.

In the meantime, I have the pleasure of recounting the reminiscences of one of the STARS of Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Ms. Wilma Jo Spanyer, who played…I’ll just let her tell you.

__________________________________________________________________________________

My grandfather and grandmother got jobs as extras when they came to Mobile to film Close Encounters of the Third Kind. There was a casting call and they went to it (being retired and all) and soon they were working on it at Brookley Field. My grandfather, who never met a stranger, soon had my dad, and my sister and myself working on the movie, too. Papa made friends with some of the Hollywood folks and the whole family was in on it. I don't know why my mom did not get in on it. She was with us on the set, just not in the movie. It was the coolest experience of my life. We were lowly extras, but getting big checks for kids back in that day and time. My grandfather was one of the people involved in the Mayflower project on the dark side of the moon part of the film, and my dad was one of the guys in jumpsuits there, too. In some of the earlier versions of the film, you can she the little aliens touching him when they came out of the ship. My sister, Boo, and myself were the two little kids in the back of the farmer's truck near the beginning of the movie.

We got to meet everyone - Steven Spielburg, Francois Truffaut, Terri Garr, Roberts Blossom (he played our dad the farmer), Richard Dreyfuss, Melinda Dillon, the camera people, everybody. I would say we met Carey Guffey but he was so little I doubt he would remember it! It was so much fun to be involved in this. It's funny now thinking back, how some of the extras that had like, one line, thought they were so important. Then when you see the finished movie, half of the stuff you did has been cut out, chopped up and it's all rearranged. The most important people there were some of the most humble acting. Francois Truffaut, Richard Dreyfuss, and Roberts Blossom were some of the nicest people you would ever want to meet. They just act like anyone else.
It was exciting to see how movies are made, but it's nothing like you think it will be. Nothing is filmed in order and they waste so much time. One whole entire night they shot close ups of my sister and I with the fans on us, blowing our hair, and none of that is in there. I guess when they are editing it they need a lot of extra stuff for continuity. It really seems like they waste a lot of time and money, though.

All in all, it was a great experience. We had a wonderful summer, made great money, ate some delightful food (they had wonderful caterers) and had an experience that lots of folks will never get. Then when the movie finally came out, my whole class went and cheered when we appeared on the screen. They even put something about us in our school yearbook. It was my fifteen minutes, I guess, and it was a lot of fun. Gave me some good memories. Recently, there has been a documentary about the making of the movie in Mobile in the works, and I hope we will all get to see that one day soon. I would love to see the interviews with all the Mobile people in it.
-Wilma Jo Spanyer
__________________________________________________________________________________

After viewing: The fifth times the charm. I did get caught up in it this time out and will now retire from watching the film while I still have a favorable impression of it.

And I want to give a special thanks to Ms. Spanyer for her recollections.

BONNIE AND CLYDE (1967), THE GRADUATE (1967), IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT (1967), GUESS WHO'S COMING TO DINNER (1967), DOCTOR DOOLITTLE (1967)

2011-11-12T05:29:00.000-06:00

Mark Harris’s book Pictures at a Revolution recounts elements of the motion picture business during the turbulent and transitional year of 1967. The book gives particular insight into the five movies nominated for Best Picture that year: Bonnie and Clyde, The Graduate, In the Heat of the Night, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner and Doctor Dolittle.

Two of these films (Bonnie and Clyde and The Graduate) were representations of the new Hollywood. Two of these films represented a change in race relations (Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner and In the Heat of the Night)or at least a change in race relations as represented in movies. And Doctor Dolittle was a representation of old Hollywood thinking.

At the Academy Awards that year, In the Heat of the Night won Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay and a Best Actor Oscar for Rod Steiger and did pretty well at the box office.

The Graduate won Best Director and was a huge and influential hit.

Bonnie and Clyde won a couple of Oscars, including Best Supporting Actress for Estelle Parsons. Bonnie and Clyde was also extremely popular.

Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner was the biggest hit of director Stanley Kramer’s career, despite the films mediocre to unenthusiastic reviews. The movie also won a Best Actress award for Katherine Hepburn and a Best original screenplay award for William Rose.

Doctor Dolittle won the Academy Award for best song (Talk to the Animals) but was largely a critical and financial disaster.

If I looked back on my viewing of these films, my choices for favorite would have varied according to when I viewed them.

In the late 60’s my choice would have been Doctor Dolittle. Now that really isn’t fair, I know, as I was only five years old when it came out and was the only one of these five films that I could watch or would have even been interested in watching. I thought the two headed-llama (the Pushmi Pullyu) was amazing! Talk to the Animals was such a fun song! And that giant sea snail? Well I thought it was pretty cool even if everyone laughed at how fake it looked. Of course, my choice for greatest movie of all-time at that point would have been Disney’s The Jungle Book, but it wasn’t nominated.
My 1968 choice for Best Picture from this list: Doctor Dolittle

In the early 70’s when I was eleven or twelve, my choice would have been Bonnie and Clyde. Lots of action. Lots of fun, even if what the Barrow gang was doing was pretty unseemly. And that ending? Awesome! Favorite character: Michael J. Pollard as C. W. Moss.
My 1974 choice: Bonnie and Clyde

Then by the late 70’s, I saw The Graduate, and it immediately became one of my favorite movies. It’s funny, is a great depiction of the uncertainty of youth. It has memorable performances by Anne Bancroft and Dustin Hoffman and those perfect Simon and Garfunkel songs for the occasion. And that ending? An even better finale than Bonnie and Clyde.
My 1979 to present choice: The Graduate

It might make for a better ending to this rant if I now pick In the Heat of the Night or Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner as my favorite now, but I really don’t think The Graduate is going to be beat. We’ll see…

After watching all five of these movies in 2011

Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner: The racial situations depicted in this film may seem a bit naïve and over the top, but the theme of harmony and getting along with others at least has its heart in the right place. Plus it’s pretty funny and the trio of stars, Katherine Hepburn, Sidney Poitier and Spencer Tracy in his last role, is worth watching. I wouldn’t call it Best Picture of the year, but in my re-watching I liked it better than I thought I would

In the Heat of the Night: I liked this one less this time than in my previous viewing. Supercop Virgil Tibbs (Sidney Poitier) comes to a small southern town and uses an astute power of reasoning that would make Star Trek's Mr. Spock blush to try to solve a local murder. All this while the local rednecks (which seems to be pretty much everyone in the whole town of Sparta) seems to want to beat him to death with a tire iron. Rod Steiger’s Chief Gillespie is the only one who seems to not want to beat Virgil Tibbs to a pulp, though he does try to run him out of town several times. Gillespie also proves to be a rather poor police officer, arresting the wrong person for the murder three times-including his own deputy! I may be a little overly sensitive to the issue of the way Southerners are depicted by Hollywood and I know this movie is over forty years old, but there you have it. I do think Rod Steiger is quite good, but this definitely isn’t my Best Picture choice for 1967.

Bonnie and Clyde: I’ve read a couple of revisionist Oscar takes where it is acknowledged that Bonnie and Clyde should have taken home the Best Picture award. One thing I liked about the film were some of the smaller touches, such as Bonnie and Clyde tying up a police officer and taking pictures of him with the Barrow gang as if they are posing for a yearbook. I also liked the plot point of Clyde being impotent, which raises a lot of motivational questions for both him and Bonnie. The unseemly nature of the Barrow gang’s exploits does bother me more now than it did when I watched it in the early 70’s. Still love the ending, but Bonnie and Clyde is still not my choice.

Doctor Dolittle: As badly as this movie has been trashed by critics over the years, I honestly didn’t find it all that bad after viewing it all these years later. All the problems with the shoot of this film are entertainingly accounted for in Harris’s book. As far as the actual movie itself, the songs are kind of fun and there are some clever touches with Dolittle’s conversing with animals. I’m even okay with the sea snail. Nonetheless, it was pretty silly to give this a best picture nomination over such films as In Cold Blood.

But the winner for me still is…
The Graduate: I’ve probably seen this about ten times now. It’s not a perfect movie. I thought Ben and Elaine’s relationship seemed rushed. Weren’t they only on their second date before they are broken up by Mrs. Robinson?
And the change in the naïve Ben in the first half of the movie to the obsessed overconfident Ben in the second half can seem a little jarring. Though I do think that growth is part of the point.

Ten memorable scenes from my favorite movie of 1967

1. Ben’s journey on the moving sidewalk over the strains of Sounds of Silence “Hello, darkness my old friend.”
2. The party in the opening scene. “Plastics”
3. Mrs. Robinson’s initial seduction of Ben “You are trying to seduce me aren’t you?”
4. The nervous Ben trying to get a room from Hotel Clerk Buck Henry “Are you here for an affair.”
5. Some great editing including the scene where Benjamin leaps toward the raft in his pool and lands on Mrs. Robinson in their hotel bed.
6. The scene in which Ben tries to get Mrs. Robinson to engage in small talk in their hotel room is funny at first, but is ultimately quite sad. “Let’s not talk about it. Let’s not talk at all.”
7. Elaine Robinson’s discovery of Ben’s affair with her mother. “Goodbye, Benjamin.”
8. Mr. Robison’s dressing down of Ben. “You’ll pardon me if I don’t shake hands with you”
9. The mad dash for the church to stop Elaine’s wedding. “Elaine! Elaine!”
10. Ben and Elaine escape from everything by bus in the final scene….but as Mike Nichols said, one day they will probably turn into their parents.

And thanks to Mark Harris for his informative and entertaining book.

REPULSION (1965, GREAT BRITAIN)

2011-11-04T08:30:00.000-05:00

Blog Writer: They don’t make ‘em like this anymore. It’s a horror movie that doesn’t go over the top and rely too much on special effects. We also don’t see anything filmed in black and white anymore, which could really add onto the creepiness factor of some recent films, BUT NO, that’s too subtle, we can’t have that either. And another thing…excuse me a second.

Sorry for the interruption. It’s just some plaster falling off the walls of my den. That’s a bit troubling...It’s really coming off in chunks. Anyway, continuing with my train of thought, Repulsion was Roman Polanski’s first major film in English and features one of the most beautiful actresses of all-time, Catherine Deneuve…Damn! Hold on just a minute…

Sorry, I thought I heard people having sex in the room above me. But that’s crazy since no one else is in the house. I guess my imagination is playing tricks on me. As I was saying, what was I saying? Something about Roman Gabriel? No, Roman Polanski, I think. I just can’t concentrate right now. These walls are really in worse shape than I thought.

At that moment a ghostly presence with flaming eyeballs and a hooded cloak appears in the seat next to the blog writer.

The Presence: So, what is it you think you’re doing?

Blog Writer: (Putting his hand to his chest) Oh! It’s just you. You really gave me a start. I was just writing about the 1965 psychological horror classic Repulsion.

The Presence: An interesting choice, but what you are saying in this blog sounds a lot like what you said about the movie The Haunting. I’ve been keeping notes on your entries and I see similarities here.

Blog Writer: Really? I do apologize if I’m being repetitive. It’s just that I’ve gone through about three hundred of the movies on this list and I guess I may be developing a tendency toward redundancy.

The Presence: That’s all very well. But do you think this is what you need to be doing right now, anyway? Shouldn’t you be promoting your short story, which is now available on Amazon and Kindle?

Blog Writer: You mean the story “Death Takes Another Holiday,” from the anthology Dreamspell Nightmares 2?

The Presence: (Sarcastically) No, I mean your Pygmy/Locust poem you wrote when you were a kid!

Blog Writer: Oh, yeah! Pygmy/Locust. I still remember it by heart, just like I wrote it yesterday…

The blogger clears his throat before reading.

Pygmies jumping to and fro,
Locusts everywhere,
I feel a greasy chipmunk a-lyin’ in my hair

Running water upside down.
Fishermen in the trees,
A hatchet twenty-five miles wide,
Chopping at my knees.

The pain inside has almost stopped,
That rattle in my brain,
Now help me get up, get outside,
And try to grab the rain.

The Presence: (Sighing) I’m guessing you did a lot of glue sniffing when you were young.

Blog Writer: No need to be so insulting.

The Presence: I’m sorry. But would you please promote your story already!

Blog Writer: All right. Dreamspell Nightmares 2 from L & L Dreamspell, a horror anthology featuring many great stories including “Death Takes Another Holiday” by Christopher Cox is now available on Amazon and Kindle.

The Presence: Anything else?

Blog Writer: You mean like I should say to visit their website at www.lldreamspell.com for other great books and story collections?

The Presence: Yes, like that. Was that really so hard? Oh, would you excuse me for just a second?

The presence begins brushing his jagged teeth. The blogger stares at him until the mouth of the ghostly figure has become frothy with toothpaste.

Blog Writer: What are you doing? Don’t you know where the bathroom is? And by the way, that’s my toothbrush!

The Presence lowers his head and hands the toothbrush back to the blogger who tosses it into a nearby trashcan.

Blog Writer: Anyway, you know how this whole self-promotion thing makes me uncomfortable.

The Presence: I have an idea. Why don’t you try to come up with a gimmicky way to get the information out so it won’t seem like you’re just promoting your book?

Blog Writer: I did that already. I posted the cover of the book at the top of the blog for The Haunting.

The Presence: Well, do it again.

Blog Writer: You don’t think I would be repeating myself again?

The Presence: Stop worrying so much. Just post the damn thing.

Blog Writer: I’m not sure…I...

The Presence has now started eating something with a pungent odor.

Blog Writer: What on earth are you doing now?

The Presence rips a piece of pink flesh into his mouth and begins chewing, though with some difficulty.

The Presence: Oh, this is just some raw rabbit I found in the refrigerator. It’s a little tough, but it’s quite hearty. Want a bite?

Blog Writer: No! No! I’ll post the cover already! Just take that thing out of here!

The Presence: Suit yourself. I have to go anyway. Now promise me you’ll call me when you do a blog on Swing Time. You know how I do love Fred and Ginger.

Blog Writer: I will. I will. Now let me have some peace, Thumper breath!

The Presence unsuccessfully stifles a burp as he disappears from view. The blog writer posts the cover of Dreamspell Nightmares 2 on his blog before unsuccessfully looking around the house for some Spackle.

HALLOWEEN (1978)

2011-10-31T04:03:00.004-05:00

Horror Week Day 7: The Return

Halloween(1978) Directed by John Carpetener

After viewing the film Halloween on October 30, 2011, I felt compelled to re-enter my Apple Iwayback Time Machine® and travel back over time and space…over space and time…and land on the date…

October 30, 1978

My Apple Iwayback Time Machine ® lands outside the cafeteria of my old high school. I unstrap myself before entering this building from my past. As I ease through the doorway, I immediately see a teenager sitting alone at a table eating what appears to be a rather greasy cheeseburger. I take the seat across from him. Our conversation is recounted below.

The Older: (Extending hand) Hello

The Younger: (reluctantly shaking hands) Hello? Do I know you? It’s funny, but you look an awful lot like my father.

The Older: (Laughing) Well you’re on the right track, but I’ll get to that in a minute. So…it’s the day before Halloween. What are you planning to do tonight?

The Younger: Me and my girl are going to watch a movie.

The Older: Girl?

The Younger: Okay. Okay. Me and a couple of the guys from the AV club are going to watch the movie Halloween if you must know.

The Older: (Pumping Fist) Yes! I’ve come back to just the right time.

The Younger: Look, Mister. Who exactly are you?

The Older: Well, this may be hard to believe, but I’m you. I’ve traveled back in time from the year 2011.

The Younger initially stands as if to protest before slinking back to his seat.

The Younger: (Thoughtfully) I…I believe you. I’ve somehow always known about you, and have dreaded your coming. What exactly is it you want from me?

The Older: Don’t be alarmed. I just wanted you to share your thoughts with me on the movie Halloween.

The Younger: (Clearing his throat) All right. That doesn’t sound too difficult. It’s on Home Box Office tonight. Cable premiere. It’s such a great movie!

The Older: Don’t know if it will stand the test of time.

The Younger: What do you mean? This was the main movie we talked about in school last spring. When I saw it at the theater, the audience was hiding their eyes or gasping or yelling out to the screen, “Don’t go in there.” Like yelling out is going to help!

The Older: I know. I was there, too.

The Younger: Oh, yeah. Since you seem to already know everything, why is it you need to visit me?

The Older: I’m hoping to use you as a conduit for drumming up some enthusiasm for this movie. I can’t seem to do it.

The Younger: Really? I become that jaded over time? That’s a depressing thought. But what about that great story? Six-year-old killer escapes fifteen years later from madhouse to terrorize hometown. It’s got suspense! Thrills! Violence! Frights! Scary Music! P. J. Soles topless! What more do you want from a movie?

The Older: Part of the problem is how often Halloween has been copied or borrowed from or stolen from or whatever it is you want to call it. The plot and the style of this movie seem like old hat at this point. I have seen and you will see many of these types of movies over the next few years.

The Younger: So you’re saying the fact that Halloween is an influential movie and is copied much in the future makes it look weaker? Why is it fair to blame the original movie?

The Older: It isn’t fair. But that doesn’t change my perception of it.

The Younger: Okay. What about the thrills and the chills in the movie?

The Older: They’re okay. But seem a little tamer than I remember. Especially right after seeing The Evil Dead.

The Younger: Whatever that is. What about that great music?

The Older: The score, you mean? I would say an excellent initial use of music begins to be overused by the movies second half.

The Younger: And the acting? Jamie Lee Curtis can really scream and I really like Donald Pleasence.

The Older: He’s a bit over the top, I’m afraid. Always reciting overdramatic platitudes like “The evil has escaped” or “He had the devil’s eyes.” Just too much.

The Younger: Geez, man. What about P. J. Soles topless?

The Older: Well, you got me there. I still like P. J. Soles.

The Younger: (Thinking for a moment) But I think Halloween will stand the test of time, better than say, The Exorcist.

The Older: I disagree with you. Since your standing the test of time quotient is about four years, I’m going with my opinion on this one. I think The Exorcist holds up quite well.

The Younger: That is really heavy. I liked The Exorcist when I first saw it. Now I’ve outgrown it and later you’re saying I will grow back into it? Huh. So your or my opinion on Halloween will change as we get older. So what will we think about other movies I like now? What about Psycho? You must still like Psycho.

The Older: One of my favorites.

The Younger: That's a relief. It’s good to know I don’t become a total asshole.

The Older: You watch your mouth, young man!

The Younger: What are you going to do? Ground me in the hopes I won’t turn into you?

The Older: Good point.

The Younger: I was just thinking that if you’re me years from now, how about throwing me some Super Bowl scores so I can place some knowledgeable bets in the seasons to come?

The Older: Sorry, kid. This is about Halloween. Not Back to the Future.

The Younger: What the hell is Back to the Future? Ah, never mind.

(The Older starts to leave)

The Younger: Hey, where are you going? Can’t you give me any advice for my life?

The Older: (After thinking for a moment) Yes. Avoid Halloween 2. It really sucked. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve really got to go now.

The Older leaves the cafeteria and gets into his Apple Iwayback Time Machine® and sets it in motion. The Younger leans out the cafeteria door.

The Younger: (Yelling to be heard over the roar of the Apple Iwayback Time Machine®) Could you just answer me one question before you go?

The Older nods.

The Younger:(Yelling) Are you the boogieman?

The Older: Yes, that’s exactly who I am.

The Older disappears back into his own time.

MANHUNTER (1986) vs. SILENCE OF THE LAMBS (1991)

2011-10-30T08:01:00.017-05:00

Horror Week Day 6

Manhunter vs. Silence of the Lambs

These two films are based on the novels Red Dragon and Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris. Both stories are about an FBI manhunt for a serial killer in which the main investigator enlists the aid of the infamous imprisoned serial killer Hannibal Lecter.

But which do I like better?

The characters
Will Graham (Manhunter) vs. Clarice Starling (Silence of the Lambs)
That’s a tough one. Will Graham’s FBI man must get into the head of Dr. Lecter in order for him to get the scent or the feel of the serial killer he is chasing. Clarice Starling also wants to get into Dr. Lecter’s head, but more for information on the bad's guys whereabouts than anything else.
I identify with the Will Graham character a little more than Clarice and William Petersen does well in the part, but Jodie Foster is so damn good in Silence of the Lambs I have to give this a slight nod to those lambs that won’t stop sceaming..

The Tooth Fairy (Manhunter) vs. Buffalo Bill (Silence of the Lambs)
Let’s see: The Tooth Fairy and Buffalo Bill both (as Dr. Lecter points out in Silence of the Lambs) covet. Buffalo Bill covets what he sees everyday and starves large women to easily remove their loose skin. He puts a moth in the mouth of one of his victims to experience the metamorphosis. Dolarhyde “The Tooth Fairy” of Manhunter uses sharp fake teeth to bite his victims and is obsessed with The Great Red Dragon painting by William Blake. He covets the familes he watches repeatedly in the home movies he views at his job. Overall, I think Buffalo Bill is a little more complex, but Dolarhyde did have the more tender moment in Manhunter after he weeps after making love to a blind woman. Still, those pesky moths give this round to Silence of the Lambs.

Hannibal vs. Hannibal
But really, it’s all about Hannibal the cannibal, the psychotic psychiatrist who routinely eats his patients and others but is even scarier in that he is more intelligent and well spoken than those who study or try to understand him. Brian Cox is a very good actor (I think of the screenwriter McKee in Adaptation whenever I see him) and he portrays the intelligent Lecter as very threatening. There is no way I would ever want this guy to pshycoanlayze me- He’s too damn creepy!

Anthony Hopkins’s Lechter may be even more scary because if you didn’t know that he ate people’s faces you could definitely get sucked in by this guy and never know what hit you as you innocently begin to blurt out your most intimate thoughts from his couch. Hopkins as Lecter may be ingrained in me as part of pop culture at this point, but no one is twisting my arm as I go with Hopkins and Silence of the Lambs.

Best Dramatic scene
Manhunter’s gotcha scene has Will Graham hurtling himself through a glass door to try to save the damsel in distress from the evil Dolarhyde. Wait for the SWAT team Will! All hell breaks lose and it’s the scene we the audience have been waiting for.

Silence of the Lamb’s big scene to me is when Hannibal Lecter engineers his escape through…uh…disguising himself behind the ripped off face of one of his victims. Ugh! The scene where the SWAT team comes in to discover the murdered police officers may be the film’s signature moment.
I’ll have to go with Silence of the Lambs once again.

Well is there anything that Manhunter can win here? Well, yes. I think the overall story is a little better in Manhunter mostly because of the nicely paced look at Will getting that 'serial killer scent' back to successfully track his prey. It gets some additional bonus points for the fast tempo music, the fact that it is better than the Red Dragon remake with Ralph Fiennes, and that part of it was filmed outside of Georgia State University while I was going to school there.

Silence of the Lambs get bonus points for having a bit part for B-movie directing legend Roger Corman, Dawn of the Dead directing legend George Romero and featured the only screen credit for "Darla" who so winningly portrayed Buffalo Bill's dog "Precious."

I expected Silence of the Lambs to be on the 1001 list, but I am surprised and glad that Manhunter is there too.

Day after effect: Did make me want to go back and read the Thomas Harris books.

Tomorrow: There must be some movie on this list with a Halloween theme. Let me think on it a minute.

PARANORMAL ACTIVITY (2007)

2011-10-29T08:01:00.008-05:00

Horror week Day 5

Paranormal Activity (2007)

Seeing a film done completely with a handheld camera or on a tripod can give the viewer an intense point of view. I think this was used to great advantage in The Blair Witch Project and if the innovative monster movie Cloverfield hadn’t used the device, that film would have basically been Godzilla.

Paranormal Activity uses a similar device. The whole film is whatever we see from the camera of a man who is trying to record the increasing amount of supernatural activity running rampant around his girlfriend. It’s an interesting film, suspenseful and all that. It has some nice odes to The Exorcist and other horror films. I wouldn’t put it on a list of indispensable films as the latest update of the 1001 book has done, but it’s a pretty good addition to the horror genre. I won’t quibble too much about its inclusion.

The Day (Night) After Effect: I’m willing to give this film bonus points since I got up in the middle of the night after watching it and could have sworn some lights came on that I was sure I hadn’t turned on. Okay, the night after effect makes me give this film a more solid thumbs up and inclusion in my book. Would you ghosts please leave me in peace now?

Tomorrow: Horror films never seem to get Academy Awards. Well, there was at least one exception and I’ll view that for tomorrow with Fava beans and a nice chianti, though I've never really cared that much for liver.

SCREAM (1996)

2011-10-28T08:00:00.008-05:00

Horror Week Day 4

Scream (1996)

I know I’m about fifteen years late to the party on this one, but I don’t normally watch these type of horror films anymore. What struck me about my virginal viewing of Scream was that the entire life of most of these teens revolves around an existence populated by the obsession of the type of film in which they are a part of.

This films references some of the films from the preceding twenty years that I remember watching, most particularly Halloween. It’s also interesting that Craven mentions his own film Nightmare on Elm Street. “But the sequels sucked!” or so says Drew Barrymore. There’s even a cameo by Exorcist star Linda Blair! I’m not sure where the Henry Winkler fits in, though it might have been cool if he had been murdered by pyschos wearing Fonzie masks.

It’s also interesting that whenever lead character Neve Campbell tries to say in some way that this isn’t a movie, another character will quickly correct her and point out that yes she is in a movie, though Neve vocalizes her wish that her genre was a Meg Ryan romantic comedy.

For me, there’s a real shortage of sympathetic characters, except maybe Campbell, but I think maybe that’s the point. There’s enough plot twists and mayhem to keep fans of the genre happy and Mr. Craven definitely puts new twists in it.

My two favorite characters are David Arquette as the Barney Fife-like deputy and Jamie Kennedy as Randy, the nerdy kid, who understands the ins and outs of horror movies a little two well.

I don’t think I’ll be venturing further into the Scream movies, but I admit that this one had more than its share of good moments.

Day after affect: Didn’t feel any aftershocks as far as scares were concerned, but there were a couple of moments the next day that I thought, “Hey, that part was pretty clever.”

Tomorrow: I’ll find the most recent 1001 movie listing in the genre I can find.

A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET (1984)

2011-10-27T07:58:00.013-05:00

Horror week Day 3

Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

I have only seen Nightmare on Elm Street once and I admit it was pretty, pretty, pretty scary back in 1984. I remember the third film in the series, Dream Warriors, was pretty good too. Looking at the original now, there’s still a lot of craftsmanship and the Freddy Kruger back story is good, but he’s become a bit of a punchline at this point from overuse. In the first couple of sequels at least, he couldn't slice into anyone without making a quip of some kind. He also won’t die. They kill him. He revives somehow. He comes back. And keeps coming back. I know you can say the same thing about the Frankenstein monster, but that got old after awhile too.

Also, after watching the rawness that The Evil Dead had, Nightmare almost seemed too slick. The scene where Johnny Depp gets sucked into his bed and blood spews all over the room in a gusher is visually impressive, but not particularly scary.

I would still put Nightmare on Elm Street in my 1001 book and would also like to thank the 1001 movies editorial staff at this time for not including any Friday the 13th movies in their publication.

Wasn’t that Johnny Depp? Speaking of Johnny Depp- I showed my fourteen-year-old niece an early scene from this movie with Mr. Depp in it and asked her if she knew who this was. Mind you, this was right after she had been watching Pirates of the Caribbean. She had no idea who it was and when I told her she didn’t believe me. So it goes.

The Day After Effect: Big case of the creeps after seeing this one in 1984. Not too much residual effect in 2011.

Tomorrow: Scream. Another Wes Craven film. I’ve never seen a Scream movie, but it’s in the book so I have to watch it because it is written in that scary book from The Evil Dead that I must do so.

DAWN OF THE DEAD (1978)

2011-10-26T07:58:00.010-05:00

Horror week Day 2

Dawn of the Dead (1978)

Zombies are hot. No, I’m not talking about some bizarre fetish attraction I may have for the female undead. I mean zombies are a hot commodity. I see at the library more zombie novels and anthologies of zombie short stories than I would think the genre would allow. We also have films like Zombieland, Planet Terror and Shaun of the Dead. One zombie movie, I can’t remember which one, had a blurb on its DVD cover that exclaimed. “One of the top 25 zombie movies of all-time!” Since I can’t come close to naming 25 zombie movies, I’ll just have to take their word for it.

Let me see if I have the zombie rules straight, at least in the George Romero universe.

Zombies move about really slowly.
They can easily be knocked down.
They can be killed with a bullet to the head.
They don’t really seem to be that strong.
They aren’t interested in each other, just living flesh.
If they get their teeth in you, you will soon be one of them.
They tend to gravitate to areas where they would have gone while they were alive, but don’t really know why.

This last point seems to be the main premise behind Dawn of the Dead, the sequel to Romero’s original Night of the Living Dead. Hundreds and hundreds of zombies have converged at the local shopping mall as our four main heroes try to fend them off as the undead aimlessly wander through the place that gave their life the most meaning when they were alive.

The film does make the point, and it is pretty funny, how mall shoppers tend to go on their shopping excursions by rote. Either that or Romero just had a friend who could get his cameras into an empty shopping mall because it would be really cool to shoot a film there.

The movie looks a little on the cheap (which can actually be an advantage in the horror genre: See The Evil Dead) but unlike its predecessor, it’s in living color! There’s also plenty of blood, guts, decapitations and exploding heads to keep one from nodding off during the proceedings.

SCTV memory: SCTV had an ongoing skit called The Farm Film Report with Joe Flaherty and John Candy as yokel movie reviewers who only seemed to like films that featured an exploding head scene in it. Whenever they showed a movie clip that ended with someone’s head exploding, they would cheer and shout out “Blowed ‘em, blowed ‘em up real good.” I don’t recall precisely, but I’m sure Dawn of the Dead must have been one of their favorites.

Day after effect: The day after I watched Dawn of the Dead, my ankle became swollen and my gait started to make me appear I was doing the "zombie shuffle" when I tried to walk. Probably just a coincidence.

Tomorrow: I'm going to head to the 80's to see a film I haven't seen in at least twenty-five years.

THE EVIL DEAD (1982)

2011-10-25T08:56:00.010-05:00

Horror week Day 1

The Evil Dead (1982)

The first question I have to ask myself if why have I never seen The Evil Dead?

I guess my answer would be I never though The Evil Dead was essential viewing before!

The 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die book says that it featured teenagers that “we couldn’t wait to be killed or be zombified.. Such self-consciousness would come to dominate screen terror.”

Maybe so, but this whole modern horror/slasher genre for me began when John Carpenter’s Halloween was released in 1978. I watched many of the flood of these kinds of films during the next few years (Blood Beach, Friday the 13th, Terror Train, My Bloody Valentine, Mother’s Day, Motel Hell, When a Stranger Calls, Student Bodies (the spoof I seemed to find funnier than others did)Phantasm (a personal favorite), and Kubrick’s The Shining, among many others. I even read an issue or two of Fangoria magazine back in the day, but somehow I missed completely out on The Evil Dead. I may have gone to see Gandhi back then instead-I don’t rightly recall.

Most of these movies weren't that great, but really didn’t aspire to be. Many of the titles listed above have even been remade, and I must ask-Did we really need another version of My Bloody Valentine? (I’ve seen none of the recent versions of any of these movies.)

After viewing The Evil Dead, I realize there’s a thin line at times between being listed in a book of essential film viewing and just being fodder for an episode of Mystery Science Theater. The Evil Dead has no real set up at all other than five college age students go to a remote cabin. We don’t really care about the characters, they’re basically just there to turn into the undead and torment and/or kill each other.

Shot with no real budget by director Sam Raimi, I got to admit that The Evil Dead does have a lot of creativity to it. It reminds me a bit in tone of George Romero’s Night of the Living Dead. Raimi says on the DVD extras that the Romero film was in fact the biggest influence for his film. Highlights of the film include a “rape” of one of the young women by the woods themselves, more than one decapitation and some really effective make-up by Tom Sullivan.

Since I hardly ever watch this type of movie any more, I admit it did bring back a twinge of nostalgia for me. So I think I’m going to blow the dust off my old tattered 1980 copy of Fangoria and watch some more scary movies from the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die book this week.

Not so Rotten Tomatoes- The Evil Dead’s critical rating on Rotten Tomatoes is 100%. A higher percentage than Lawrence of Arabia, Gone With the Wind or Casablanca! Nothing dead about that.

The Day After effect-It's the following morning and I admit I can’t seem to get the girl made up to look like a doll repeating “We’re gonna get you... We’re gonna get you” over and over again. In fact, I can’t stop thinking about this movie! I have a feeling horror week is going to be a bumpy ride for someone who doesn’t play in that ballpark anymore.

Tomorrow: Speaking of George Romero, I’ve never seen his Night of the Living Dead sequel, Dawn of the Dead. Since it is in the 1001 book, looks like it’s up next.

DAY FOR NIGHT (1973, FRANCE)

2011-10-22T15:36:00.007-05:00

French Blurbs: Day 14

Day for Night (1973) Directed by Francois Truffaut

Jacqueline Bisset is so mesmerizing in La Nuit Americaine that if she had stared at the camera and asked me to walk off a cliff, I would have had to consider it!

Films au revoir français ... en ce moment.

THE BUTCHER (1969, FRANCE)

2011-10-21T15:34:00.006-05:00

French Blurbs: Day 13

The Butcher (1969) Directed by Claude Chabrol

Intellectually, I'm sure I should say something about Chabrol and auterism, or maybe La Nouvelle Vague in general, or perhaps Le Boucher's unusual mixing of genres, the poetic nature of the script, the delicate pacing of the story, or just man's inhumanity to man! But, alas, all I can seem think about when it comes to Le Boucher is how I wish I had had Stéphane Audran as my elementary school teacher!

BALTHAZAR (1966, FRANCE)

2011-10-20T15:29:00.006-05:00

French Blurbs: Day 12

Au Hasard Balthazar (1966) Directed by Robert Bresson

Je pleure pour Balthazar! Quatre bonnes jambes, deux mauvaises jambes!

A MAN ESCAPED (1956, FRANCE)

2011-10-19T15:41:00.011-05:00

French Blurbs: Day 11

A Man Escaped (1956) Directed by Robert Bresson

Bresson's films can be dull-yet exhilirating, pretentious-yet meaningful, hard to fathom-yet easy to understand. I think I'll put off watching the next Bresson film on this list for awhile-but still try to see it as soon as I can.

BOB THE GAMBLER (1955, FRANCE)

2011-10-18T15:26:00.002-05:00

French Blurbs: Day 10

Bob the Gambler (1955) Directed by Jean-Pierre Melville

I have a hunch that when Quentin Tarantino worked at the video store that he viewed Bob Le Flambeur on more than one occasion.

LES DIABOLIQUES (1954, FRANCE)

2011-10-17T15:16:00.002-05:00

French Blurbs: Day 9

Les Diaboliques (1954) Directed by Herni-Georges Clouzot

Taux d'abord Hitchcock, si ce n'est pas Hitchcock c'est français!

M. HULOT'S HOLIDAY (1953, FRANCE)

2011-10-16T15:13:00.003-05:00

French Blurbs: Day 8

Les vacances de Monsieur Hulot (1953) Directed by Jacques Tati

If you have time to see only one Tati movie before you die...
I would still go with Playtime.

WAGES OF FEAR (1953, FRANCE)

2011-10-15T15:07:00.002-05:00

French Blurbs: Day 7

Wages of Fear (1953) Directed by Herni-Georges Clouzot

I felt like I had just seen something big after viewing Le salaire de la peur.

FORBIDDEN GAMES (1952, FRANCE)

2011-10-14T15:03:00.004-05:00

French Blurbs: Day 6

Forbidden Games (1952) Directed by Rene Clement

Jeux interdits is a sad, horrifying, but largely on target film dealing with a child’s view of life after witnessing the destruction of war.

THE CHILDREN OF PARADISE (1945, FRANCE)

2011-10-13T14:58:00.004-05:00

French Blurbs: Day 5

The Children of Paradise (1945) Directed by Marcel Carne

Les enfants du paradis does the impossible. It makes you care for and actually weep for a mime. Comment nous avez-vous l'amour, Baptiste!

PEPE LE MOKO (1937, FRANCE)

2011-10-12T14:52:00.008-05:00

French Blurbs: Day 4

Pepe Le Moko (1937) Directed by Julien Duvivier

Pepe Le Moko is best viewed back-to-back along with its Hollywood doppelganger Algiers.

L'ATALANTE (1934, FRANCE)

2011-10-11T14:25:00.000-05:00

French Blurbs: Day 3

L’Atalante (1934) Directed by Jean Vigo

The image I will take away from L’Atalante is that of the tattooed man/boy played by Michel Simon smoking a cigarette out of his navel.

THE MILLION (1931, FRANCE)

2011-10-10T14:39:00.008-05:00

French Blurbs: Day 2

The Million (1931) Directed by Rene Clair

Le Million is part silent film, part farce, part musical and beaucoup de plaisir.

FREEDOM FOR US (1931, FRANCE)

2011-10-09T08:03:00.001-05:00

One thing you have to say about the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die list is that if you like French films, you’ve got much on this list to make you happy! And I mean a lot of French films! So in order to shave some time in going through this list, I think I'll do a couple of weeks of blogs on just French films. Of course, many of these films are on DVDs that have commentaries and I enjoy watching the commentaries and yadda yadda yadda...which takes even more time! It also takes a lot of time to write something or other about these films, so I am going to reduce any commentary on these films over this span to just a blurb for each film. Break it down to the essence, so to speak. Comprendre? I mean what do you say if someone asks you about a movie, anyway? Do you go into a long diatribe about how you think the donkey represented Christ in a Robert Bresson film? No. Usually you say, “It was good,” “It was bad,” “It was OK,” or maybe even if you are at a loss, say “At least Angelina Jolie has a nice butt.”

Hopefully, I can do a little more than “It was good,” or “it was bad.” But I’m sure I’ll use “Catherine Deneuve has a nice butt” at some point. That doesen’t make for the most academic commentary, but if that is the particular insight that sticks in my brain the most, I’ve got to go with it. “Jacques Tati is the Frenchman’s answer to Jerry Lewis!” or “This film brings home the horrors that are French pastries,” might be other examples. Enough delay. The clock is ticking. I’ve broken out my beret, have been listening to Maurice Chevalier's recording of "Mimi" from Love Me Tonight and have been saying Viva La France to my family more than they probably wanted to hear in preparation for this and am now ready to proceed.

French Blurbs: Day 1

Freedom for Us (1931) Directed by Rene Clair

Dans À Nous la Liberté, Clair's penchant pour slapstick se compare avantageusement à la fois les Marx Brothers et Chaplin's Modern Times.

Note: Well, the above was my first blurb. It's not always easy for me to break my impression down to one sentence. Though I do find if you translate what you say into French, it can probably give what you say an intellectual heft that your thoughts probably don't deserve.

THE HANGOVER (2009), DISTRICT 9 (2009), INCEPTION (2010)

2011-10-01T04:24:00.002-05:00

Grandfather’s Journey

Part 1

My full name is Rebecca Francis Crabb. In three days I'll be celebrating my twenty-first birthday, though that’s not important because I don’t want to tell you about me. I want to tell you about the most remarkable man I have ever met. That would be my Grandfather, Franklin Crabb.

Grandfather, he’s technically my Great-Great grandfather, was born in 1902, an impoverished son of immigrants. I could tell you how he studied hard in school and became an “A’ student and excelled in athletics. He played in the 1924 Rose Bowl you know-starting left corner. I could tell you how he graduated first in his class. How he met the woman of his dreams in 1925 and stayed with her for seventy-five years until her death at ninety-seven in the year 2000. I could tell you how he became one of the most successful businessmen of his time. Rubber. I believe that was his first business success. It certainly was what put him on the map. I’m sure you’ve heard of Crabb Tires. Feel free to look up the history. He’s where the company got the name.

But Grandfather’s business success didn’t stop there. He knew that every house in America was going to want a television even before he owned one. That’s where he made his real fortune. In televisions, I mean. Now, I don’t want you to have the impression that Grandfather was a cold, heartless business tycoon. Nothing could actually be further from the truth. He gave to charities freely and always championed the underdog. He supported unions, worker’s rights, civil rights and women’s rights.

He was often encouraged to run for political office, but the political arena was the one venture he never entered into directly. However, I’m sure most of you have heard of Miriam Crabb. Grandfather’s wife was the only female Senator in the republic during the 1950’s. If you ever heard the rumor that Ms. Miriam was a potential presidential candidate in 1960, those rumors were true. But the men in those secluded smoke-filled rooms didn’t think it was time for a woman president and they eventually went with Kennedy instead. Miriam turned down a cabinet post after Kennedy’s election and continued in Congress for another eight years. Grandfather accepted an ambassadorship to Norway in 1961. A consolation prize for the Crabb family, I guess. I’m rambling, aren’t I?

I want to tell you a little about grandfather’s family. Seven kids. Twenty-eight grandkids. And I’ve lost track of the number of the great-grandkids. I’m one of them, of course. And I don’t think I’m talking out of school when I tell you that I’ve been his favorite over the last few years. He may be bedridden, but let me assure you, his mind hasn’t lost a thing. You would think a man of a hundred and eight years would lose something, but I don’t see it. He’s taught me so much about life, love, business, and politics. Oh, dear. I almost forgot why I started writing this. I really do carry on sometimes.

You see, Grandfather was actively involved in the movie industry in the 1930’s and 1940’s. He’s always been quite the cinema junkie. I must say he’s turned me into quite a film buff. I know the difference between Kurosawa and Ozu or Fellini and Visconti or Truffaut and Chabrol. Just try me. Anyway, a couple of years back, I came across the book 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die and brought it to him.

He said that he really liked the book, but didn’t think that at his age he would have time to go through them all. I told him sternly that he better make the time. He never has been able to deny me anything, so we began watching. And watching. We discussed every film in the book, or so it seemed. It took us four years to get through them all, but we did it. After we saw the last film on the list, he looked at me sadly and said that he thought by tomorrow it would be time for him to go and would I please gather the rest of the family together to say goodbye.

Part 2

Today’s the day grandfather wanted to tell everyone goodbye, but I have some news for him and don’t think he’s not going to like it. No, it’s not anything about his condition. He knows it’s his time and he’s ready. But what I’m holding in my hand may change all that. I have mixed emotions about it to tell you the truth. If I were being filmed, I’d tilt what I’m holding up to the camera and show it to you. It’s the latest edition of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die. I know he hasn’t seen most of the new films listed yet. I’ve never lied to him about anything before, and I’m not going to start now.

After I entered his hospital room, I couldn’t help notice his eyes light up as they always did when I came around. If that sounds conceited on my part I apologize, but it’s the truth.

“Hello, my darling. I know all this may be hard on you, but it is about that time,” Grandfather said.

“Grandfather,” I interrupted him. “I think there’s something I need you to see.”

I showed him the cover of the 1001 movie book with The Black Swan on the cover.

He moaned as he leaned his head back on his pillow as far as it would go.

“How many?” he asked unable to open his eyes.

“Only about seven or eight new ones. Don’t feel the need to have to watch-“

“No, no!” It was his turn to interrupt me now. “We have to finish what we started. But I think we need to get right to it. I suppose they can keep the life support running for another day.”

It was good to hear him making a joke, though he barely had enough strength remaining to even crack a smile at his quip.

I plopped my laptop onto his bed

“All the ones from the new list are already on here and ready to go,” I said.

He winked at me and said he should have known his princess would come prepared.

“We better get to it,” he continued. “The grim reaper is waiting is on stand-by.”

The first movie we watched was Inception.

“All you have to do with this one is just assume everything is a dream. It seems intellectually dishonest to me,” I said after the end credits rolled.

“Oh, my dear!” Grandfather said. “I found it a most creative endeavor. I have to disagree with you there, princess.”

The next movie we saw was District 9.

“My goodness!” I said. “Hasn’t doing everything with a handheld camera become a cliché at this point?”

“Oh, my dear!” Grandfather was about to rebut me in more detail, but he stopped for a moment before finally just saying, “How I have always loved…science-fiction.”

The last movie on our viewing marathon was The Hangover.

“Is this what film has come to?” I said perhaps more angrily than I intended. “Where we consider a glorified slob comedy as high art? What next? Should we put Porky’s at the top of the next Sight & Sound poll as the best cinematic masterpiece of all-time?” I posed the question hypothetically, of course. I realized I couldn’t bring myself to like anything on this day.

“Oh, my dear!” Grandfather said for the last time. “Never underestimate a good laugh here and there. It’s a precious commodity. It’s one of the few things we can count on in this cockeyed caravan called life. Do you remember the three elements of film? Or what good cinema should strive to do?”

“Of course!” I said. “Cinema should entertain, enlighten or communicate. If it does one you have an okay movie. If you have two, you have a classic. If you have three, you have Citizen Kane. I haven’t forgotten.”

“That’s my girl…that’s my princess,” he said weakly.

We were now officially finished with the entire list and all supplemental lists. Grandfather nodded to me to bring in the rest of the family, which I did. They all said their goodbyes over what seemed like hours, though it was probably just a few minutes in real time.

He gave me the signal and I set up the laptop once again.

“Everyone!” I announced. “Grandfather has requested…” I was having trouble continuing but knew I had to. “Grandfather has requested to see one last movie scene.”

Some of the family looked confused, but I ignored them and thought only of Franklin Crabb’s final wishes. I turned on the scene from The Seventh Seal that I had cued up. In it, the personified character of Death finally catches up to most of the characters in the film. They do not fear him, but greet him cordially and with smiles. They come to the realization that he really isn’t the boogeyman they thought and accept their fate.

After the last frame of the film faded to black, grandfather passed into the night for the last time, but he too shook hands with death with a smile on his face.

THE BIRDS (1963), MARNIE (1964)

2011-09-26T09:57:00.000-05:00

Today’s ‘Tippi’ Hedren double feature

If anyone is talking about watching a Tippi Hedren double feature, they are more than likely talking about the two Alfred Hitchcock films in which she starred, The Birds and Marnie. (I guess you could be talking about The Harrad Experiment or Countess From Hong Kong, but that doesn’t seem very likely.)

When I was a kid, I first knew about Alfred Hitchcock as the narrator of his weekly anthology series. Because of this series, he was the one director that even an eight-year-old kid could name. I thought he was primarily a horror director because I knew about Pscyho and the famous shower scene even before I was old enough to watch it. The other film I knew him for was The Birds. I believe this was the first Hitchcock movie I saw. I’m pretty sure I saw it on the late, late show. All you really need to know about the plot going in is that involves bird attacks on a small resort community outside of San Francisco.

Seeing it now, I still have a great affection for it. Some may scoff at the special effects today, but let’s see anyone else do what Hitchcock did with bird attacks without the benefit of modern day computer enhancement techniques. (You might end up with something like the infamous Night of the Lepus, which featured the terrorizing attack of killer bunny rabbits!)

One thing I like about the script by Evan “Ed McBain” Hunter is the slow build to the bird attacks. We get hints here and there of what is going on until escalated bird attacks begin to dominate the second half of the movie. I especially liked the scene at the café featuring octogenarian ornithologist Ethel Griffies where there is a heated debate over the reasoning behind the bird attacks.

There's also enough here for the audience to care about what happens to the characters. They feature the serious minded lawyer played by Rod Taylor, his possessive mother played by Jessica Tandy, the baby sister, played by Veronica Cartwright and the lovelorn school teacher played by a Suzanne Pleshette. All are all pretty good here.

But the lead role is undoubtedly the character of Melanie Daniels, played by former model Tippi Hedren. Hitchcock certainly cast beautiful blondes in his movies, but Eva Marie Saint in North by Northwest, Kim Novak in Vertigo or Grace Kelly in Rear Window, are all films that focus largely on the point of view of the male lead. In The Birds, Tippi is definitely playing the main character. And she is more than adequate in the role and she gets pecked at by hundreds of birds quite nicely.

I also have the famous picture from Life magazine hanging in a frame on my office wall of Tippi Hedren being attacked by birds with Alfred Hitchcock enjoying a nice turkey dinner in the background. Well, doesn’t everyone have a picture of Tippi Hedren hanging somewhere in their home?

Though she never became a Grace Kelly or even an Eva Marie Saint-type star, Hitchcock obviously liked her enough to cast her in his next film, Marnie. I’ve never got around to watching Marnie before, mostly because its reputation was never that great. But it clearly is well thought enough by someone to make the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die book, so I guess it’s time for me to enter Marnieland.

After viewing:

I found Marnie, the movie, a tough nut to crack initially, just like Marnie the character, is a tough nut to crack in the context of the movie. I actually liked Tippi quite a bit here. She has some very tough emotional scenes and pulls them off pretty well. I had more problems with Sean Connery’s character of Mark, the rich industrialist who discovers that Marnie is a thief yet falls in love with her despite the fact that she is so distant from him. According to original screenwriter Evan Hunter, the original book still has the Mark character, but also has a seperate character that is a psychiatrist who begins to unpeel the layers of Marnie’s psyche. In the movie, Mark the romantic interest and the psychologist (at least of the amateur variety) are the same person. It just seems too much coming from one character, even from the guy who played James Bond.

Eventually, I did become more emotionally involved in the plot and liked the way they handled some of the characters revelations at the end of the movie.

Well, I think I have about ten or so more Hitchcock movies to go on the 1001 list, but I’m afraid my time with Miss ‘Tippi’ is done. It took me thirty years, but I’m glad that I was finally able to complete the second half of the Tippi double feature.

THE SOCIAL NETWORK (2010)

2011-09-25T11:36:00.000-05:00

Chris likes this.

THE RED SHOES (1948, GREAT BRITAIN)

2011-09-23T11:24:00.002-05:00

Since I viewed the classic Powell/Pressburger ballet film The Red Shoes with my niece Krista, who actually does ballet, I thought I would ask her to write the blog for this film. She refused.

I recount the conversation thusly.

Uncle Chris: Tell me again why don’t you want to write this blog for me? You do know more about ballet than I do.

Krista: (unenthusiasticly) I know. I did like the movie. But I’ll leave the blogging up to you.

Uncle Chris: You’ll have to do better than that. Let's see. Why don’t we play a little word association? What did you think of the dancing in the movie?

Krista: The dancing? The dancers were skilled. Everything was precise. Meticulous. Would that be the right word?

Uncle Chris: Yes, meticulous. What did you think of the color?

Krista: Vivid. Striking. Foreshadowing of doom. Part of the plotline in that the dance of the red shoes reflects the dancer’s own life.

Uncle Chris: Good. What did you think of the story?

Krista: Unique. Very sad. Ironic that all she ever wanted to do be this great dancer, but it ended up ruining her.

Uncle Chris: Do you think a dancer might enjoy this film more than a non-dancer?

Krista: Definitely. I’ve felt similar stress, though perhaps not to that degree. But dancing is invigorating. Dancing is rejuvenating. Dancing is life!

Uncle Chris: Excellent! Now, did you think the composer character in the film was right?

Krista: About what?

Uncle Chris: It’s the music that creates the scene. The dancer must keep up and follow the composer’s lead.

Krista: Are you trying to agitate me? It’s the dancing! It’s ballet! It’s about dancing!

Uncle Chris: There’s the passion I’m looking for! Let’s see you do a pirouette.

Krista: No. You do a pirouette!

Uncle Chris: I couldn't if I wanted to. How about you doing one of those breezy bowlees?

Krista: Do you mean brisè volè?

Uncle Chris: Right

Krista: The answer is still no. And for your information, I’m neither a little child or a performing monkey!

Uncle Chris: Fine. Back to the film. Anything else in The Red Shoes that made you mad?

Krista: Not really. Well, maybe the ballet company seemed a bit too happy. It’s really a lot more cutthroat than that.

Uncle Chris: Well, since we are on the subject of dancing, I think this would be a good time for you to state your complaint about the scene from the movie Far From Heaven that you didn’t like. I give you the floor.

Krista: Thank you. They’re trying to set this scene in Far From Heaven of a happy Christmas right? And the little girl, who is about eight, gets point shoes! She’s eight years old! That will mess up her feet at that age. And then she compounds the error by saying the other girls in the class already have them. Who is running this class? Cruella De Ville?

Uncle Chris: Thank you for showing us your intensity. That concludes…

Krista: (Now enthusiastic) Can I talk about Twilight now?

Uncle Chris: That’s really off topic. We were talking about movies with dance.

Krista: I need to vent about Twilight!

Uncle Chris: All right. What don’t you like about Twilight?

Krista: Everything! The actors can’t act. The makeup is terrible! The special effects are terrible! Spider-Monkey? What is a Spider-Monkey?

Uncle Chris: Thank you. That is the end of my-

Krista: I’m not done yet! The music in Twilight doesn’t even match up with the movie. It was just plain bad! They had to know how awful the first movie was, but unlike Eragon, they didn’t know when to stop making them! And the acting? Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart? Is that the best acting talent out there? Are you kidding me?

Uncle Chris: Are you done now?

Krista: (Wiping her brow) Uh, yeah I think I’m done…for the time being. I feel much better now.

Uncle Chris: Thank you. I knew you’d help me write my blog with a little prodding.

Krista: All right. Since you let me go on I’ll give you one dance move. How about a grande jetè?

Uncle Chris: My favorite. Knock yourself out.

(Krista postures for a moment before agilely leaping out of the room)

FIN

8 1/2 (1963, ITALY)

2011-09-16T09:00:00.004-05:00

The final chapter of Claudia Cardinale week

Blog # 208 1/2

Cristoforo shook the snow off of his jacket as he entered the front door of his harem. The women all looked upon him with noticeable glee. Carlotta was the first to run up to him, placing a kiss on his left cheek as Venecia took his jacket.
Cristoforo, being a sensitive guy, hadn’t forgotten the women’s needs while he was away. He came bearing presents: A broken ear muff he found on the stoop for Carlotta, a plastic spider for Venecia, a nearly full box of Chiclets for Gabriela, a scratched forty-five of Tony Bennett for Francesca and some Comet toilet cleanser for his dear wife Daniela. He didn’t have presents for everyone, but the ones that didn’t get anything appeared happy just to be a part of the festivities. Isabella, the cook, had a large pot of pasta cooking for them all and clanged on it to indicate that dinner was prepared.

Before Cristoforo could get to the dinner table, he was stopped by Alessandra. She reminded him of his promise to put her in a future blog.

“Fine. How about Giulietta Degli Spiriti?” he asked her. Though Cristoforo had yet to see Giulietta Degli Spiriti, and didn’t know if there would be a part in it for her, she appeared satisfied with his answer.

Cristoforo then heard some harp music from behind him. He turned around to see Lucia, who broke free from her instrument and rushed to Cristoforo and gave him a hug.

“What about me?” she asked. “Could you use me when you do Amarcord, per favore?”

Cristoforo grasped her hands and kissed the tops of them. “But of course, my dolce studentessa di musica. Did I ever tell you that I too once had aspirations to be a great musician? When I was eight-years-old, I was the finest triangle player in my school. You should have heard me play Ave Maria…” Cristoforo noticed a couple of the ladies looking slightly embarrassed. He had obviously told this story before. Probably more than once.

Undaunted, Cristoforo went up to Isabella the cook, and presented his present to her: a wooden spoon. “Grazie, molto simpatico,” she said.

The lightheartedness of the mood was broken by Maria, a broken-down showgirl who at one time was Cristoforo’s number one mistress.

“ I don’t think you should eat yet!” Maria said this as she raced her way up to him, nearly in hysterics.

Most of the other women gasped at her impudence.

“I want to know why I’m being sent to the attic," she continued bordering on hysterics. "I’m still just twenty-six, no matter what my birth certificate says! I have a booty to die for.” She shook her posterior a couple of times in his face for emphasis but Cristoforo was more annoyed than impressed. He still tried to comfort her by putting a hand on her shoulder. Maria began to wail as she continued. “You said you were going to put me in your La Dolce Vita blog. You said I reminded you of Anita Ekberg!”

“My dear!” Cristoforo sternly interrupted her. “I have always tried to be honest with you. If you really reminded me of Anita Ekberg, I seriously doubt I would be sending you to the attic now. You know after you reach a particular age or your looks deteriorate to a certain degree, you have to move upstairs. It’s in the bylaws.”

“This is not fair,” she said, mascara tears running down her face. ”Look at the Saraghina. She is an ogre!”

They all looked at the frizzy-haired, six-foot-three, three-hundred pound Saranghina who in turn hissed in Maria’s direction.

“That is different,” he said sternly to Maria. “She was my first. I was just a boy. She performed the dance of he seven veils for me on the beach for a can of Starkist tuna. She gets a lifetime pass.”

“You monster.” Francesca said to Christoforo as she came over to comfort Maria. “Look how you’ve hurt this poor showgirl!”

“I will not put up with this kind of impertinence,” Cristoforo said. “Somebody run me a hot bubble bath while I listen to my music.” Cristoforo stripped off his clothes and wrapped a towel around himself before going over to his Victrola and putting on Wagner's Flight of the Valkyries. He began feeling relaxed again as the music played. He closed his eyes for a moment, but when he opened them, he noticed more of the women were looking at him with hostility.

His wife, Daniela, had come down from the upstairs attic and hurled the can of cleanser he had just given her at him. Others in the group began to follow suit by throwing their trinkets in his direction, and not in a loving way. The rebel women now began to surround him. Draped in nothing more than his towel, Cristoforo grabbed his trusty Indiana Jones bullwhip, which he luckily always kept close by and snapped it in front of them. The thwack made them all step back, which gave him time to head out the front door. He reopened the door, poking his head back in to give the ladies a final warning “I think all of you need to calm yourselves down. I’ll be back when you ladies learn how to beha..“ His final word was stifled by an earmuff that hit him squarely in the nose.

Cristoforo wanted to get as far away from his harem as he possibly could. He rubbed his nose where the earmuff hit it as he started down the road. He looked around him and noticed that the day was now sunny. A beautiful sixty-five degrees with no inclement weather in sight. It was then that a vision came upon him. She was dressed in white and had a noticeable glow to her. She handed him a glass of mineral water, which he took.

“My word. If it isn’t Claudia Cardinale! How nice to see you once again signorina,” he said before taking a drink from the glass.

As she continued to gaze in Cristoforo’s direction, it took him a minute to find his voice, “You’re so beautiful; I’m at a loss for words. You make my heart beat like a schoolboy’s…But why are you here?”

“I was about to ask you the same question,” Claudia said. “This isn’t the first time you’ve summoned me for one of your blogs.”

“Yes, Solyaris. Funny, you weren’t even in that movie. I was just trying to write about the perfect male fantasy woman.”

“Molto bene. But what is it you want this time?”

Cristoforo tightened the towel around him. “Very well,” he continued. “I just couldn’t come up with anything new to say about 8 ½. Many revere it. Some revile it. Entire forests have been chopped down to make books on interpretation of just this one film.”

Claudia touched his hand. “But how do you feel?”

“The first time I saw it, I was totally confused. The next time I saw it, I got a lot out of it, I think. This time, I began to get confused again. Then that harem scene. That’s one of my favorite scenes from any movie. And the finale! I love that part. Let’s just say that I’ve got some mixed opinions.”

Claudia leaned closer to Cristoforo. “Asa Nisi Masa,” she whispered.

“I always wondered what that meant,” he said. Is that anything like Hakunah Matata?”

Claudia grimaced as she shook her head.

“There’s an additional problem,” Cristoforo said. “I’m not sure how to end this blog.”

“You’ll think of something,” she said, coyly backing away just enough for him to see the Lamborghini parked behind her.

Cristoforo snapped his fingers before climbing to the top of the car and immediately stretched out his arms. He closed his eyes and began to sway.

After a couple of minutes Claudia cleared her throat. When he didn’t respond, she cleared her throat again. He finally opened his eyes and looked down at her. “What? I’m waiting to float away above the traffic, above everything, above-“

“No, no.” Claudia says. “That isn’t what I want you to do. Come with me.”

Claudia helped Cristoforo down from the car and they hopped in the Lamborghini. Claudia pointed to a suit hung up in the back of the car, which Cristofero put on. They drove for six minutes and forty-five seconds until they came upon an empty baseball park. They got out of the car and she took him by the hand and hurriedly took him to the center of the field. It was silent for a moment before he heard some music playing in the background that reminded him of the circus.

“I’ve come to stay forever I’ve come to create order. I’m here to cleanse. Do I make you happy? Claudia asked.

“Happy? Happiness is being able to tell the truth without anybody having to suffer. But I still don’t know what’s going on here.” Cristoforo replied.

It was then he noticed all the people. All the women of the harem had not only appeared in front of them, but had formed a chain and rushed past Cristoforo and Claudia in time with the music. Others began to join the group, most of whom Christoforo recognized. “Hey, that’s my third grade teacher. Hello, Mrs. Turner! And my Cousin who I haven’t seen in twenty years! And the Sri Lankan guy I used to buy hoagies from! And what is Eugene Walter doing here?”

The music got louder and the circle now formed completely around Cristoforo. Claudia grabbed his hand and pulled him towards the circle where they joined the procession. After a few minutes the music died away and everyone in the line stopped their march and applauded as a young man in white, about eight years old, came to the empty center of the gathering and played a flawless rendition of Ave Maria on the triangle.

Cristoforo shed a tear of joy as he pushed the publish button and posted successfully onto his blog.

FITZCARROLDO (1982, WEST GERMANY)

2011-09-15T09:59:00.004-05:00

Film #4 of Claudia Cardinale week: Firzcarroldo

Much has been written about Werner Herzog’s epic Fitzcarraldo.
1. Irishman Fitzcarroldo loves opera in general and the music of Enrique Caruso in particular.
2. His great desire is to build an opera house in Peru
3. In order to finance his project he has to get a steamboat to a remote section of the Amazon to harvest the rubber trees.
4. In order to do that, he must somehow get the steamship over a mountain.

The moving of the steamboat over the mountain took months to shoot, and Herzog all the while had to put up with lead actor Klaus Kinski, who for lack of a better term, who by all descriptions was pretty much a lunatic. Viewing the scenes of the boat going up the mountain is excruciating for the viewer (in a good way), but is also at times exhilarating when accompanied by a little Caruso. It also brought back memories of my favorite childhood story, The Little Engine That Could. Definitely a good choice for the 1001 book, but I might recommend a little Dramamine before viewing.

Claudia Cardinale in Fitzcarroldo

Once Upon a Time in the West reunion almost: Jason Robards (Cheyenne from Once Upon a Time…) reunited with Claudia Cardinale (Jill from Once Upon a Time…) until Robards had to drop out and be replaced by Klaus Kinski.

Claudia Cardinale’s entrance in Fitzcarroldo
Keep in mind that all the other Cardinale movies I’ve blogged this week were when Claudia was in her twenties. Claudia is past forty in Fitzcarroldo, so I guess that doesn’t warrant a dramatic entrance like in The Leopard or Once Upon a Time in the West. However, the opening scene where Claudia (as Molly) and Klaus Kinski (as Fitzcarroldo, her husband).hurry off their boat to go to the opera house to get a glimpse of Caruso is still a nice opening scene.

Films acknowledgement of Claudia’s place in the universe: I don’t think the film itself acknowledges Claudia’s place in the universe by a quote. Apparently just being able to put up with Klaus Kinski for an entire movie has to just be its own reward.

DVD extra’s acknowledgement of Claudia’s place in the universe: From director Werner Herzog: “Look how beautiful she is…I think God on my knees that she was in this film!”

Claudia on a 1-10 scale for Fitzcarroldo: This is no longer the sixties sexpot. This is a mature woman in her forties. Claudia really is only in about half of the film, and looks quite stunning in a series of early twentieth century outfits. No, this isn’t the 60’s Claudia, but the 80’s Claudia is quite nice, thank you. Claudia’s still a 10!

Tomorrow: Fellini's 8 1/2

ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE WEST (1968, ITALY)

2011-09-14T11:58:00.003-05:00

Film #3 of Claudia Cardinale week: Once Upon a Time in the West

I believe I would put Sergio Leone’s Once Upon a Time in the West at the top of my list of favorite Westerns. I might even put it in my top ten favorites of any kind of film.

The opening scene with the three gunfighters waiting for someone to arrive by train is splendid. We wait with the gunfighters who are quite bored. They nod off, try to catch flies, notice the drip coming out of the station until the stranger arrives and a gunfight ensues which is over as quickly as Charles Bronson can say, "Looks like you brought two too many."

Then comes the next scene.

SPOILER IF YOU HAVEN’T SEEN IT EVEN THOUGH ITS ONLY SCENE TWO!
It’s horrifying. We see the McBain family at their home in the middle of what seems like nowhere preparing a celebration of some kind. We learn that Mr. McBain is about to go pick up his new wife at the train station. Then as McBain is going to the well we hear a shot in the distance and we see McBain’s daughter fall over. McBain calls her name and runs to her. The oldest boy is shot. Then we see a group of men ambling toward the house at the moment the youngest McBain boy comes out and stares at them incredulously. The camera pans around this dastardly group of ruffians until we see their leader who perpetrated this dastardly act…and when we see who it is, Leone wants the audience to say, “JESUS CHRIST! IT’S HENRY FONDA.” (which you do if you haven’t seen it before). One of Fonda’s men says, “What should we do with this one, Frank?” Fonda looks at him, spits and turns to the boy and says, “Well, since you called me by name…” Then he fires in the direction of the boy as we cut to the next scene. As I said it’s horrifying and one of the best scenes I’ve ever seen.

I love the music in this film by Ennio Morricone even more than his music for the Eastwood/Leone Dollars trilogy. The sound effects replacing the music in the opening scene is fine too. The performances by the leads are all fist-rate. Charles Bronson as Harmonica, Jason Robards as the wily outlaw Cheyenne and Henry Fonda as the dastardly Frank. But this is Sergio Leone’s film. He has really painted quite an American portrait (on his Italian canvas). Not everyone likes this film They find it too slow. But those of us that do like it tend to like it a lot.

Claudia Cardinale in Once Upon a Time in the West

Claudia’s entrance: Claudia, of course, is the new wife (Jill). She arrives at the station right after the family massacre scene about thirty minutes into the film. She alights from the train. She looks demure and unsure of herself. We know what has happened, but she doesn’t. Even though she looks lost and vulnerable as she stands outside the train, the mere sight of Claudia is quite a relief for the audience after the previous scene.

Films acknowledgement of Claudia’s place in the universe
You know Jill, you remind me of my mother. She was the biggest whore in Alameda and the finest woman that ever lived. Whoever my father was, for an hour or a month-he must have been a happy man -Jason Robards as Cheyenne

If I was you I’d go down there and give those boys a drink…Can’t imagine how happy it makes a man to see a woman like you…Just to look at her…And if one of them should, uh, pat your behind…just make believe it’s nothing. They earned it.-Jason Robards as Cheyenne

DVD extra’s acknowledgement of Claudia’s place in the universe: Director John Carpenter acknowledges the long line of men that fell in love with Claudia Cardinale after seeing Once Upon a Time in the West. All I can say is, “Line form behind me, Johnny!”

Claudia on a 1-10 scale for Once Upon a Time in the West: As McBain describes her, she’s “be wearing the black dress and the straw hat she wore when they met.” (I think at the New Orleans whorehouse where she was employed) in her opening scene. And she looks great in it (the clothes, not the whorehouse). She’s definitely a breath of fresh air after the unpleasantness of the previous scene. There’s also a scene where’s she’s taking a bubble bath…er, voting’s over…Claudia’s a 10!

Next up: Fitzcarroldo

THE PINK PANTHER (1964)

2011-09-13T09:55:00.007-05:00

Film #2 for Claudia Cardinale week: The Pink Panther (Not on the 1001 movie list, but I needed something a little lighter after The Leopard.)

I grew up going to see all The Pink Panther movies during the 70’s. The Pink Panther Strikes Again, The Return of the Pink Panther and The Revenge of the Pink Panther. The success of all of theses movies all hinge on Peter Sellers comedic portrayal of the bumbling but dedicated French Police Inspector Jacques Clouseau.

So it was quite a surprised the first time I viewed the original Pink Panther on television and saw that the biggest role in the film was David Niven’s as the Phantom. I kept hoping for more of Clouseau. I eventually got some, but I was largely disappointed. The second film in the series, A Shot in the Dark, which starred Sellers front and center, I liked better.

Viewing the original The Pink Panther today, it’s actually a pretty fun, if lightweight heist film with the charming Niven supported by the comedy of Sellers and the beautiful supporting ladies Claudia Cardinale and Capucine. The titles with the cartoon pink panther are lively and of course the Pink Panther theme by Henry Mancini has been drilled into my head for all time.

But is it good enough for the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die list?
I would include it in my book, but with an asterisk. Next to the asterisk should read: “Viewer has the option of seeing A Shot in the Dark ,The Pink Panther Strikes Again, The Return of the Pink Panther or The Revenge of the Pink Panther as substitutes. All feature Peter Sellers as Clouseau. The Trail of the Pink Panther or The Curse of the Pink Panther are not acceptable substitutes as these films were pieced together after Sellers’s death. Alan Arkin or Steve Martin portrayals as the character are also unacceptable substitutes for the purpose of inclusion on this film list.

The Pink Panther cartoon: Many of us have fond memories of The Pink Panther animated series that aired on Saturday morning, but how many of us remember the short lived cereal called Pink Panther Flakes? For the record, they tasted an awful lot like Frosted Flakes.

Claudia Cardinale in The Pink Panther

First of all don’t get Claudia Cardinale and Capucine confused: I do remember the first time I saw this, I couldn’t keep straight which was which, but for the record Claudia was the princess and Capucine was Mrs. Clouseau.

After all these years can’t you still keep it straight?: For the purpose of this week’s Claudia Cardinale blogs, I thought about watching another Peter Sellers/Cardinale film, What’s New Pussycat? The only problem is Peter’s co-star in this was Capucine.Oops.

Claudia Cardinale’s entrance: The first glimpse we have of Claudia has her smiling on the ski slopes where she has a 'cute meet' with David Niven. Most of her other entrances are in Yves St. Laurent gowns and are accompanied by romantic music, circa 1964.

Films acknowledgement of Claudia’s place in the universe: In the opening credits we see the animated Pink Panther wolf whistle when Claudia’s name enters the credits. If the mere sight of Claudia’s name can get an animated character hot and bothered, who am I to argue?

Claudia on a 1-10 scale for The Pink Panther: Despite the elegant gowns, my main quibble is that I kept wishing Claudia had let down her hair a little more. I’m speaking literally, of course. Then we have the scene where she gets intoxicated on top of a tiger skin rug. Grrrrr! Claudia ranking: a 10!

Next up: Once Upon a Time in the West

THE LEOPARD (1962, ITALY)

2011-09-12T09:53:00.000-05:00

This week’s blogs are all about the Tunisian actress Claudia Cardinale. Ms. Cardinale is best know for her work in Italian films such as The Leopard and 8½ as well as American Films, such as The Pink Panther and Circus World.

Now why would I choose a week of films for Claudia, beautiful as she obviously is, over her more famous counterpart Sophia Loren? Well, when I looked over the 1001 Movie You Must See Before You Die Book, I found four films listed with Ms. Cardinale in prominent roles. Fellini’s 8 ½,Viscontti’s The Leopard, Leone’s Once Upon a Time in the West and Herzog’s Fitzacarldo. A pretty impressive lot. When I tried to find any listing of Loren films, I came up empty (Though I’m a little surprised her Oscar winning role in Two Women isn’t included.) So Ms. Cardinale it is.

Film #1 The Leopard

The Leopard, made by filmmaker Lucino Visconti is based on the popular Italian novel by Giuseppe Lampedusa, and is set during the time of Risorgimento and the unification of Italy in 1860 to 1862. It is a time of turmoil, war and a changing of the guard. Much of the personal story of the film involves the aristocratic Prince Fabrizio played by Burt Lancaster, his beloved nephew Tancredi and his love interest Angelica.

This is the kind of film that some love for its lushness, grandeur and epic storytelling. Others might just be bored with the whole thing and find it moves too slow and is just too long.

The film was made in three languages and dubbed where appropriate. The Italian version, which is over three hours in length, is generally acknowledged as the definitive version. Of course, it’s a little disconcerting at first to see an Italian voice coming out of Burt Lancaster that sounds nothing like Burt Lancaster. The American version is English dubbed, with Lancaster providing his own voice. There is also a French version, perhaps to accommodate French co-star Alain Delon. The Criterion DVD set I watched included the American and Italian version. I watched a bit of both. The only problem I had with the Italian version was getting used to the bombastic Italian voice coming out of Burt, but once I got used to it, I began to like the Italian version.

Claudia Cardinale in The Leopard

Claudia’s entrance in The Leopard: One of the best of Claudia’s entrances, which doesn’t even occur until about an hour into the film. She plays Angelica, the daughter of the rather buffoonish, upwardly mobile Don Calogero who has just entered the Prince’s palace for the first time. There is much clamoring going on as this scene unfolds. Nephew Tancredi is talking to Concetta, his potential future wife. Don Calogero introduces his daughter Angelica, who enters the room. Everyone’s jaw drops. Everyone stares. Concetta looks horrified. Angelica tucks in her lower lip and Tancredi looks into her brown eyes and it’s all over for him. Concetta knows in an instant she’s lost Tancredi forever. Prince Fabrizio’s wife then tells Angelica that “You’ve changed a lot and not for the worse,” which seems to be a bit of an understatement if you asked me.

Just saying: Unlike the Italian voice dubbed for Lancaster, I couldn’t get used to the English voice actress who dubbed Claudia.

One Kiss: There is a scene in The Leopard where Claudia gives a gentle kiss to Burt Lancaster that is sweet and respectful. It was a definite contrast to the kiss between the two in The Professionals where Claudia is just trying to seduce him to aide her in escaping.

Films acknowledgement of Claudia’s place in the universe: “How fortunate we are, Miss Angelica, to gather so lovely a flower into our home.”-Burt Lancaster as Prince Fabrizio.

DVD extra’s acknowledgement of Claudia’s place in the universe: Even the usually straight-laced film commentator Peter Cowie can’t help but gush a little recalling his meeting Claudia at a 2003 Berlin film festival-“I think she looked just as sensual, just as naughty, just as she did in the far off 60’s.”

Claudia on a 1-10 scale for The Leopard-If you take a look a Claudia in the ballroom finale, she is donning a most flattering hair bob with ringlets in the back accentuated nicely by an elegant white dress, pearls, and is even wearing a tiara. I want to use a word other than elegant to describe her, but nothing else seems to fit. Her touching dance with Burt Lancaster adds even more to her allure.
Claudia rating for The Leopard: She’s a 10!

Next up: The Pink Panther

ALL THAT HEAVEN ALLOWS (1955), ALI: FEAR EATS THE SOUL (1974, WEST GERMANY), FAR FROM HEAVEN (2002)

2011-09-10T08:20:00.002-05:00

The Blogger’s Wife

The 1001 blogger has a pencil dangling from his mouth as he thumbs through two movie books. He starts to edit some notes on the computer in front of him as the frozen image of Julianne Moore stares at him from his Magnavox to his right. He is so focused on what he is doing that he doesn’t hear his wife approach him.

Blogger’s Wife: So, what is it you’re doing now?

1001 Blogger: Oh, I didn’t see you there. I was working on this comparison for my blog. Do you want me to tell you about it?

The Blogger’s wife is unresponsive as he continues.

1001 Blogger: You see the Douglas Sirk films from the 50’s like All That Heaven Allows have apparently been very influential. I always thought that they were just fluff pieces. Guess I'm learning a few things. Continuing education is the key. We can learn through our movies.

Blogger’s Wife: Yes, dear. That’s all well and good, but you’ve been watching these movies for a long time now. Don’t you think you need to take a break from your 101 movies and go cut the grass?

1001 Blogger: (Laughing) First of all, it’s 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die. Oh, you knew the title, didn't you? You were just having sport with me. Anyway, the grass can wait another day because I’ve discovered a link between these films. (Raising his voice and pointing skyward) Triangulation! Triangulation, I say! You see, All That Heaven Allows, the Sirk film influenced both Far From Heaven, the Todd Hanes film and Ali: Fear Eats the Soul, the Fassbinder film. I would have never guessed that Sirk would have influenced Fassbinder!

Bloggers’ Wife: Fats Bender, sounds like a jazz musician. Anyway, as I said that’s all well and good, but I think you need to take a break and decide what kind of new televison we want. Not that I get a chance to look at it much these days, cause there’s usually a sixty-year old French movie playing on it. But I need some help with picking out some of these things. You know for our house!

1001 blogger: (Not seeming to notice her) What? Oh, my theory. Don’t you get it? Three films. Triangulation! Fassbinder took Sirk’s rather mundane dilemma of a woman who was a few years older than her lover and made a woman a lot older than her lover. He also threw in the outsider and racial component. She was German and he was a Moroccon emigrant…or was he a Malinese? I can’t remember, but it’s the same effect. It doesn’t effect the triangulation concept. And then we have the Haynes film, which has the racial relationship component and throws in the homosexual element! Don’t you see? Triangulation! In the original Sirk film, Rock Hudson certainly couldn’t have been gay.

Blogger’s Wife: But Rock Hudson was gay!

1001 Blogger: No. Rock Hudson, the screen component was not at all gay. What he did in his private lie is outside the realm of this evaluation.

Blogger’s Wife: You’re spending to much time on this! We have lives to lead, you know!

1001 Blogger: (Ignoring her comment) Oh, and I haven’t even mentioned the triangulatory link between the three films and televison. Jane Wyman’s jerkwad children give her a television to compensate for the loss of her boyfriend in All That Heaven Allows. In Far From Heaven, Dennis Quaid is a bigshot in a company that manufactures televisions. In Fassbinder’s film, one of the sons of the lady dating the younger man kicks in her television screen when he first hears about the relationship. I’m trying to interpret this link now. Or if there even is a link or if it’s just a coincidental motif…What was I saying?

Blogger’s Wife: Would you listen to yourself! I’m sick of all this! You care more about what you put on that damn TV than you do about me!

The 1001 blogger leans back in his chair and begins to stroke the top of the television as if it were the family pet.

1001 blogger: Well, I didn’t know you felt so strongly about this. Let me ask you this. Have you ever considered seeking psychiatric help? You seem really irrational.

The blogger’s wife turns beet red and goes over to the blogger’s television and kicks in the screen. She pulls her leg out of the shards of glass and straightens herself up before silently leaving the room.

1001 blogger: (staring blankly at the guts of his television) Triangulation!

THE BIG RED ONE (1980)

2011-09-05T16:07:00.003-05:00

Lee Marvin Week Day 9!

(The Big Red One, 1980 A 1001 film entry)

The Big Red One is the final film by eclectic director Samuel Fuller. This film is the autobiographical story of Fuller’s infantry regiment during World War II, where a fictional version of Fuller (played by future nerd vigilante Robert Carradine) and three other soldiers, including Corvette Summer star Mark Hamill, an Italian guy and the guy that looks a lot like Gary Busey, who all seem to fight everywhere during the years of World War II. Let’s see: France, Belgium, the beaches of Normandy during D-Day and Italy. I don’t think they made it to Japan, but I think I’m willing to cut them some slack. It’s not as mercilessly violent as something like Platoon or Saving Private Ryan, but it is pretty powerful at times.

But this blog isn’t supposed to be about Samuel Fuller, it’s all about Lee Marvin.

Like in The Dirty Dozen, Marvin is the leader of men going into battle. Except this time he is a sergeant, not a colonel. And instead of leading twelve criminals with no training, he’s leading four baby face soldiers (as well as their unlucky fill-ins). There’s even a Dirty Dozen reference when a soldier tells him where he is from and Lee responds with “Never heard of it,” a reprise of Donald Sutherland’s memorable line from The Dirty Dozen.

One of the film’s highlights is Lee delivering a baby in a tank He also has to be a psychologist at times, such as Mark Hamill about to go over the edge and Lee gently telling him “I thing you got him,” after Mark keeps shooting an enemy after he’s already killed him.

Lee’s also got to be a gambler and an actor. The Germans have lulled his men into a trap and he has to artfully make the Krauts think he is going for reinforcements so they won’t all be slaughtered. But the scene I will remember from this film is his carrying a dying child on his shoulders. The child dies (according to the narration) and he, the sergeant feels such grief that he is unable to put the child down for half and hour.

Quotable Lee

“You don’t murder animals. You kill them!”

“It’s just one of your balls, Smitty. You can live without it. That’s why they gave you two.”

“You’re going to live you son of a bitch. You’re going to live if I have to blow your brains out!”

This is the final film entry with Lee Marvin in the 1001 movie book.

Sorry I didn’t have the time for Cat Ballou, Donavan’s Reef, Emperor of the North Pole, Ship of Fools and that one he made with Chuck Norris, whatever that was called. Maybe next time.

THE DIRTY DOZEN (1967)

2011-09-04T16:19:00.006-05:00

Lee Marvin Week Day 8

(The Dirty Dozen, 1967)
(Surprisingly not a 1001 film entry)
Robert Aldrich’s The Dirty Dozen is the now famous story of a an American colonel during the Second World War who has the impossible task of taking a group of twelve criminals on a suicide (or close to it) mission behind German lines right before D-Day.

The dozen include:
Charles Bronson: One of the ultimate tough guys. Bronson also was the only actor who had the triple crown of being one of The Dirty Dozen, one of The Magnificent Seven and one of the POW’s of The Great Escape.

Jim Brown: Maybe the greatest running back of all-time. Tough guy? You bet! I think he does pretty well for his first screen role. When he’s tossing grenades on innocent German women-I believe his glee!

Donald Sutherland: The comedy relief. His scene posing as a general is the funniest in the movie. And he does represent anti-establishment rebel roles in later films such as MASH.

John Cassavetes: Loud-mouth, independent oriented, free-spirited filmmaker brings a loud-mouth, independent oriented, free-spirited edge to his role. He was the only one of the cast nominated for an academy award.

Clint Walker: The western star plays the most gentle natured of the dozen. Of course, he’s the size of a house. And don’t shove him or he’ll get really angry!

Telly Savalas: Tough guy-sure. It’s Kojack, after all. I wasn’t that found of his holier than thou, bible thumping, redneck character, however. But like I said-a tough guy.

Trini Lopez: Trini Lopez? The guy who strummed a guitar and sang “The Lovely Lemon Tree” with these tough guys? Takes all types I guess.

If you have a chance to get the DVD, I highly recommend listening to the commentary by film advisor Captain Dale Dye, who says he is a fan of The Dirty Dozen as entertainment. He then proceeds to rip the film a new one as he calls into question the accuracy of just about everything. “The American army would never hang anyone in that situation.” “What is that vehicle? Looks more like the Popemobile. “Nothing like that existed in Germany at that time.” “A ticking time bomb like the Savalas character would never be sent on a mission like this for fear of compromising the whole thing.” “They would never have wasted their limited time building barracks from scratch.” “There is no record on the American every sending convicted criminals into combat like this,” etc. etc.

But on today’s blog it’s is all about appreciating Lee Marvin. Only Lee, as Colonel Reisman, (John Wayne turned the part down so he could do The Green Berets!) could give credibility to the role of the man who has to put these misfits together, train them and lead them on their mission behind German lines. Only Lee could turn his back on John Cassavetes and flip him to the ground when he is attacked. Only Lee could give the gargantuan Clint Walker a knife and push him and dare him to cut him. Only Lee could tell Trini Lopez to knock off the guitar playing…Wait, I’ll take that one back-anybody could do that.

Quotable Lee

“I’m not very interested in embroidery, only results.”

“I don’t want to appear unduly cautious, but if my survival is going to be based on the performance of twelve deadheads, it might be helpful to know exactly what I’m training them for.”

(whispering) “Look you little bastard, either you march or I’ll beat your brains out.”

“Killing generals could get to be a habit with me.”*

*Actually said by Charles Bronson, but still a damn good quote.

Tomorrow: Day Nine of Lee Marvin week!

Why Nine Days when you are calling it Lee Marvin week?

Because I got one more to go! That’s why!

POINT BLANK (1967)

2011-09-03T16:13:00.006-05:00

Lee Marvin Week Day 7

(Point Blank, 1967) A 1001 Movie entry

Did it happen? A dream?

The plot: A thief named Walker is betrayed by his partner Reese on a heist of a weekly money shipment out of Alcatraz. Reese shoots Walker, leaves him for dead and takes his wife. Walker survives (unless the whole thing is imagined, which is a distinct possibility) and takes his revenge on Reese and the mysterious corporation that Reese buys his way into with the Walker’s share of the loot.

I must have liked this one because I watched it three times! (Or maybe I just didn’t understand all of it.) I don’t think there is a right or wrong answer to the questions Point Blank raises. I’ll say this; it improved with each viewing and is a worthwhile edition to the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die List.

But on today’s blog it’s is all about Lee Marvin and here are some Point Blank Leeisms..

1) He shoots the hell out of a mattress with such ferocity that I actually feel sorry for the mattress.

2) He gets information from a sleazy used-car salesman by going on a test drive with him and smashing up the car until he’ll talk! (Isn’t saying sleazy used-car salesman a little like saying fat sumo wrestler?)

3) He beats the crap out of two guys backstage at a nightclub while go-go dancing and a screaming soul singer perform in the foreground. (God, I love the 60’s!)

4) He tosses a naked man out off the top floor of an office building. (Dean Wormer did have it coming!)

5) He is set up by a corporation bigwig to be shot by a sniper only to force the corporation bigwig to take his place at the last second and get shot instead. (Did I phrase that right? Anyway, it’s pretty cool.)

6) He shoots the hell out of a phone with such ferocity that I actually felt sorry for the phone.

7) He stands like a statue while Angie Dickinson beats the crap out of him. (Revenge for Lee hanging Angie out of a window by her ankles in The Killers.

Angie later hits Lee squarely over the head with a pool cue. (This is apparently a form of foreplay if I’m following the movie plot correctly.)

Lee also gets the best of Dean Wormer from Animal House, Archie Bunker from All in the Family, the guy from Dynasty and Bat Guano (If that is his real name) from Dr. Strangelove. The only guy who seems to understand him is the sniper, that gung-ho cop from Hill Street Blues.

Quotable Lee:

“We Blew It.” (He blew it two years before Peter Fonda did.)

“I want my 93 Grand, Mal!”

There didn’t seem to be a lot of great quotes from Lee in this one if you just put it onto paper. Some of the memorable lines are said by others and we see Lee react to them. For example: His wife expresses her regrets in detail to her husband while he sits in an almost catatonic state with no reaction and no dialogue and mostly just stares blankly into space.

Keenan Wynn has my favorite line in the movie, “Take It Easy, You’ll Last Longer.” However, Lee can makes simple lines like, “Reese. I want Reese!” and “Don’t Get Lost,” more memorable than you might think.

A word about the remake of this movie- Payback with Mel Gibson. All I can say is, you put 1999 Mel Gibson against 1967 Lee Marvin…my money’s on Marvin.

Tomorrow: Day Eight of Lee Marvin week!

Why Eight days?

Because you can’t have Lee Marvin week without The Dirty Dozen!

THE PROFESSIONALS (1966)

2011-09-02T16:02:00.003-05:00

Lee Marvin Week Day 6

(The Professionals, 1966) Not a 1001 entry, but would be on my list.

The plot: A rich railroad man hires four gun for hires to go into post-revolution Mexico to retrieve his kidnapped wife.

The rich guy, named J. W. Grant, is played by movie veteran Ralph Bellamy. Bellamy’s career spanned from Astaire/Rogers pictures in the thirties to his memorable role as one of the rich assholes in Trading Places.

His wife is played by Claudia Cardinale. 1001 entries for Ms. Cardinale include 8 ½, The Leopard, Once Upon a Time in the West and Fitzcarraldo. She may also be the sexiest woman in the history of film, so we can understand all the shootings, explosions, kidnappings and revolutions fought in her behalf. Or maybe you have to be a man to understand.

And Jack Palance as Mexican rebel Jesus Raza. I must say that Palance (who I know best from Shane and City Slickers) is playing essentially the Anthony Quinn bandit chief role. I think he does a pretty good job with the accent.

The hired guns:
Lee Marvin, the weapons expert-more on him in a minute.

Burt Lancaster, the explosives expert and top line star of the film. Burt seems very at home with action in the film, is given some good dialogue and one-liners, and even seems perfectly at home when he is hung upside by some banditos.

Robert Ryan, older, but still tough, though not as tough as the other guys. But I’m not going to criticize someone who loves horses that much.

Woody Strode, may have gotten more quality parts in the 60’s than any African-American actor not named Sidney Poitier. Formerly teamed with Lee Marvin in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance and later with Cardinale in Once Upon a Time in the West. He plays the bow and arrow expert here.

No l001 love for director Richard Brooks: Despite directing The Blackboard Jungle, Birdman of Alcatraz, In Cold Blood, Lord Jim, The Professionals and other films of note, Brooks has zero entries in the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die Book. Wow! And I thought Stanley Kramer got screwed!

But today’s blog is supposed to be about Lee Marvin:
Marvin’s character, Henry “Rico” Fardan, rode with Roosevelt’s Rough Riders, and was former weapons expert and tactician for Pancho Villa. He also speaks Spanish, so is an ideal man to send into Mexico. Rico is really the leader of the group. Even though Lancaster is the biggest star in the movie, it is really Marvin who calls the shots. And he does it in such a low-key way. I don’t think he raises his voice throughout the entire movie! Who can command respect doing that? I guess the answer would be Lee Marvin. Compare his performance here with his loud psychopath in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. It’s a totally different performance and just as good. And Lancaster and Marvin make at least as good a team as Newman and Redford in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

Lee Marvin Quotes
J. W. Grant: Your hair was darker then.
Fardan: My heart was lighter then.

Fardan: Certain woman have a way of changing some boys into men and some men back into boys.

Fardan: What else is on your mind besides 100 proof women, 90 proof whiskey and 14 karat gold?

Fardan: We made a contract to save a lady from a nasty old kidnapper…who turns out to be you.

J. W. Grant:You bastard!
Fardan: Yes, sir. In my case an accident of birth. But you sir, you’re a self-made man.

Tomorrow: Day Seven of Lee Marvin week!

THE KILLERS (1964)

2011-09-01T14:17:00.000-05:00

Lee Marvin Week Day 5

(The Killers ,1964) Not a 1001 film entry, though the 1946 version is.

The hitmen in the 1946 version of The Killers have only bit parts. They knock off the main character at the beginning of the film and come back for a gun battle towards the end. In the updated and drastically altered 1964 version, the film is from the point of view of the killers, who eventually come after the man who put out the original hit. The cast includes John Cassavetes as the initial victim of the hitmen, Angie Dickinson and her beehive hairdo as the less than trustworthy romantic interest, future President Ronald Reagan in a rare role as a heavy, future Sheriff Lobo Claude Akins as Cassavetes’s loyal mechanic, and underrated tough guy hitman Clu Gulager, who I can’t help but refer to as Clugaler.

But on today’s blog it’s is all about Lee Marvin. Lee (with Clugaler) performs the hit on Cassavetes in the opening scene but can’t get over the fact that the victim seemed to not care that he was about to be knocked off. The killers eventually try to track down the one who put out the hit and extort money from him. Along the way, Lee lets Clugaler do much of his dirty work, like punching Akins in the stomach or turning up the steam of a sweatbox to unbearable levels on crook Norman Fell. While this is going on, Lee talks calmly to them, reasoning with them as if they really have any choice in the matter (Which they don’t!). Lee’s torturing highlight involves dangling Angie Dickinson out of an upper story window by her ankles.

THE FINALE SPOILER It turns out Angie and Ronnie are in cahoots the whole time. After Lee and Clugaler try to get some money out of him, Reagan shoots them both with a high-powered rifle (Damn NRA!). Reagan and Dickinson go to their house and pull some money out of their wall safe and plan to leave town. But do you really think Lee Marvin will go down so easily? Clugaler, maybe. But, Lee?

I don’t think so, Dutch!

Lee (bleeding severely from the future president’s bullet) follows the couple to their house where he catches them in their living room and SHOOTS Ronnie, then looks into the beautiful, sleepy eyes of Angie Dickinson and SHOOTS her too!
Then (the best part) Lee grabs the suitcase of money and stumbles to the front lawn. He sees a police car coming and shoots at it…with his finger. Then he collapses onto the lawn, money scattering everywhere and presumably dies as we see a great overhead shot of the scene before the end credits.

Lee Marvin, method actor: Some has attributed Lee’s realistic death scene to the fact that he was extremely intoxicated during the shooting of the scene and felt no pain on his final hard fall to the ground.

Quotable Lee Marvin

You see, the only man that's not afraid to die is the man that's dead already.

(To Angie Dickinson before he shoots her)Lady, I haven't got the time.

[In hushed tones] Sylvester, unless you want to renew your partnership with the late Johnny North, I suggest you tell us everything and anything we want to know.

Tomorrow: Day Six of Lee Marvin week!

THE MAN WHO SHOT LIBERTY VALANCE (1962)

2011-08-31T09:54:00.001-05:00

Lee Marvin Week (Day 4)

(The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, 1962) The last of the John Ford 1001 film entries

This is the West. When the legend becomes the fact, print the legend.

Education is the basis of law and order.

John Ford has certainly done his share of building the legend of the West in his films, so it’s interesting that he seems to want to show the man behind the curtain in his final great Western. (Hint: It’s not the Wizard of Oz behind the curtain, it’s actually John Wayne). This film reminds me a bit of Clint Eastwood’s Unforgiven as a Western myth buster. I’m just glad our civilization has evolved to destroying people’s lives with law books and red tape instead of six-shooters. Note: I’m not sure if I’m being sarcastic or not.

All that aside, I think the film holds up quite it holds well.

Jimmy Stewart is perfect in his role as a man who’d rather wave a law book than a gun (He’s really too old for his role, but I’m not complaining). John Wayne usually plays John Wayne and luckily his role of Tom Donavan calls for…John Wayne (Also too old, and I’m still not complaining) And I’d put the supporting cast of this film up against most any other: Andy Devine (as the wonderfully bumbling lawman), Edmond O’Brien, Lee Van Cleef, Strother Martin, Woody Strode, John Carradine, Denver Pyle and Vera Miles.

Seems like I’m forgetting someone. Oh, yeah. That would be Lee Marvin who plays Liberty Valance.

Liberty Valance is a psychopath. Just the name puts fear in the eyes of all who here it. He uses his whip on Jimmy Stewart during a holdup. (If you beat on Jimmy Stewart, you got to be a hell of a bad guy.) There is also a memorable scene when Lee and his gang destroy a newspaper office and nearly kill newspaperman Edmond O’Brien.

You could see why Marvin was cast as nasty villains because he’s so damn good at it! In fact, he’s so good in these type of roles that it’s somewhat surprising that he ever got cast in later lead roles. (Even his later good guys weren’t completely good.) Out of all the prominent cast members that I’ve mentioned above, Lee Marvin is the one you’ll probably most remember from this movie and certainly the one you’ll least like to see in your nightmares.

Quotable Lee Marvin

“Stand and deliver!”

“Why don’t you get yourself a fresh steak on me.”

“I live where I hang my hat.”

“You gotta choice dishwasher, either you get out of town or tonight you be out on that street alone…you be there…and don’t make us come and get you.”

“All right dude. This time, right between the eyes.”

“You got two hands hashslinger. Pick it up!”

Tomorrow: Day Five of Lee Marvin week!

BAD DAY AT BLACK ROCK (1955)

2011-08-30T10:32:00.003-05:00

Lee Marvin Week (Day 3)

(Bad Day at Black Rock, 1955) A 1001 film entry.

The basic plot: An outsider named Macready takes a train into a Western town called Black Rock, circa 1945 to find a Japanese man named Komoko, but everyone he meets in the town is hostile and seems to be harboring a dark secret.

Bad Day at Black Rock is a very difficult film to pigeonhole. It looks like a Western. The few Black Rock residents we see are mostly dressed like cowboys. The chief power in the town is a man called Reno Smith, a Western name if I ever heard one. But its 1945, Not 1885! The town seems so slight that it reminded me of the fake town the townspeople built in Blazing Saddles to fool Slim Pickens. And Macready (played by Spencer Tracy) is wearing a suit, sort of like he jumped out of an episode of Mad Men. It also has a film noir flavor, with the mysterious town harboring a great secret But since it’s in glaring Technicolor it can’t be film noir! It’s also a talky film with a lot of action or is it an action film with a lot talk? The cast is top notch. Tracy as the one-armed hero, Robert Ryan and Ernest Borgnine as the heavies determined to do what is necessary to take care of Macready. Also look for character actor extraordinaire Walter Brennan as the good hearted doctor/mortician. Another example of the ying and yang of this movie. It can also be viewed as an existential theatrical piece (as someone else pointed out, it's sort of like Sartre’s No Exit). I mean twelve people live in this town and there’s only one girl! Overall, I like the fact that I can’t easily place this movie. It’s bugging me. But it’s well acted and well done. A good edition to the 1001 movie list.

Favorite pushed me too far moment: One armed Spencer Tracy has finally had enough of big bully Ernest Borgnine and uses martial arts on him to kick the crap out of him. As the doc Walter Brennan says afterwards, “Man, oh man.”

Second favorite pushed me too far moment: Aging doc Brennan smacks tough guy Lee Marvin across the face with a fire hose knocking him out cold.

This cast looks somewhat familiar to me: Lee Marvin, Ernest Borgnine and Robert Ryan will reunite twelve years later for The Dirty Dozen.

Speaking of Lee Marvin:
Lee is sort of teamed with Ernest Borgnine here as one of Reno Smith’s subordinate accomplices. But where Borgnine is a portly bully, Marvin (as Hector) seems to be the one more likely to take a life without thinking of it for a moment. He dresses like a cowboy and acts like a cowboy. The scene where he tries to twirl his six-shooter (poorly) would be more amusing if he wasn’t such an asshole. This ranks as much more sinister heavy than Lee plays in The Wild One and foreshadows his most dastardly villain in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance.

Quotable Lee Marvin

(To the one-armed Macready) You look like you need a hand.

You all the time guessing ain’t you boy?

(First pretending to diagnose the problem with Doc’s Hearse and then violently ripping the wiring out.) Yeah, It was the wiring.

Tomorrow: Day Four of Lee Marvin week!

THE WILD ONE (1953)

2011-08-29T10:29:00.005-05:00

Lee Marvin Week (Day 2)

(The Wild One, 1953) Not a 1001 film entry, but a pretty iconic film

Picture Marlon Brando (as Johnny) rolling down the street in a leather motorcycle jacket. He’s the leader of a motorcycle gang who drives into a town and creates havoc-maybe not exactly havoc, but this guys are kind of disruptive and definitely annoying. His “tough guy” gang includes the future Jerry the dentist from The Dick Van Dyke Show and the future Mr. Kimball from Green Acres, not exactly ideal tough guys, but I’m willing to suspend disbelief on this one. Johnny and the gang deal with the town cop’s pretty daughter (“I don’t make no deal with cops,” Johnny says after discovering who her father is), locals who want to take justice into their own hand and a rival motorcycle gang.

It’s been awhile since I’ve seen this movie and figured it would be pretty dated.
Here’s some of Brando’s dialogue after the cop’s daughter asks him if his gang goes on picnics.

Johnny: Picnics? Man you are too square!
I have to straighten you out.
You don’t go one special place. That’s cornball style.
You just go. (Snaps fingers)
A bunch gets together after all week. It builds up.
The idea is to have a ball!
If you’re gonna stay cool, you gotta wail.
You gotta put something down. (Snaps fingers)
You gotta make some jive!
Don’t you know what I’m talking about?

A little antiquated, but I can still dig it.

Of course the most famous quote of the movie is his response to the question of what he is rebelling against.

Johnny: What have you got?

Should it be in the 1001 movie book? It’s a true relic of the era and certainly an interesting role for Brando. Yeah, put it in the damn book, it seemed a little better than I remembered it. One personal problem though: The older I get the less I sympathize with these rebels. What exactly do they want? (As a character in the film asks) Why can’t they just behave themselves and act like decent citizens…My God, I’m about to grab a shotgun and start yelling at kids to get off my lawn at any moment!

One hit wonder: I was curious about Mary Murphy, who played the nice girl who at least to a degree tames Johnny. I found out that she died in 2011 year at the age of eighty. The Wild One was by far her biggest and only important film role. So it goes.

But what about Lee Marvin?

Marvin plays Chino, the leader of the rival motorcycle gang and seems to have a lot of fun with this role. He rides into town and immediately tries to pick a fight with Johnny.

He’s wearing a black and white striped shirt, cap and riding goggles and has a stogie sticking out of his mouth at all times. Did I mention he’s having fun? Even hamming it up a little. Pick a fight with Johnny? Doesn’t faze him. Cops pick him up to go to jail. Doesn’t faze him. He seems to be perfectly fine with everything-just waiting for that moment when he has the opportunity to vandalize something. This is easily the most lighthearted of the heavies he played on this list. Well, if Lee’s having a ball who am I to criticize? Storm the Bastille!

Quotable Lee Marvin

(Sarcastically) What are you doing in this miserable gully Johnny, my love?

(Even more sarcastically) Let’s go inside and have a beer and I’ll beat the living Christmas out of you.

(With the greatest amount of sarcasm that Lee Marvin can muster) Now ladies and gentlemen…this lovely young lady over here…shall hold this beautiful object signifying absolutely nothing…Watch closely… See how the timid maiden of the hill clutches the gold to her breast. . and see how she fights back a tear as her hero lies bleeds to death in the street..

Tomorrow: Day Three of Lee Marvin week!

THE BIG HEAT (1953)

2011-08-28T08:40:00.007-05:00

Day one of Lee Marvin week!

At our annual library book sale, I found myself looking around for DVDs to purchase for the purpose of viewing for this 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die blog. I found The Dirty Dozen (not on the 1001 list, but I wanted to see it anyway) and then I found Point Blank (on the list) and then I found The Big Red One (also on the list). I realized by an odd coincidence, the movies I found all had Lee Marvin in them. Later that week, I was watching the 1946 version of The Killers. The bonus disc contained the 1963 version that starred none other than Lee Marvin.

So I decided to track down other Lee appearances on the 1001 list (The Big Heat, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance) and some that aren’t (The Professionals, The Wild One) and just blog on Lee movies this week.

And bring along any of today’s action heroes or any of yesterday, for that matter. Feel free to stack ‘em up against Lee. My money’s on Marvin.

Lee Marvin Week (Day 1)

(The Big Heat, 1953) A 1001 film entry

When I first got the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die book, I went down the list and noticed there were an awful lot of black and white film noirs. Well, it’s a good thing I like the genre. A commentator on one DVD stated something to the effect that there really aren’t any bad film noirs, as even the lesser ones are still interesting in some way. I’m not sure I’d go quite that far, but it is a genre that I’ve enjoyed visiting and re-visiting...

Fritz Lang’s The Big Heat features Glenn Ford as an honest cop who tries to blow the lid off a crime organization and the get the goods on the crime boss that is running the unnamed town in the film because a) Glenn’s a good cop and b) he’s out for revenge.

And I would certainly rank this higher than just “the interesting” category of the genre. Glenn (Jonathan Kent) Ford is really a better leading man than I gave him credit for and Gloria (Violet Bick) Grahame is a plus in any film.

But this week it’s all about Lee Marvin. So lets look at Lee.

You can’t miss it when you first see that lanky but tough amble, that deep voice, those penetrating eyes and that black hair. Wait a minute. Black hair? I thought Lee Marvin was born with gray hair! Guess not. Well, the hair hue doesn’t feel quite right, but I guess I’ll get used to it.

But he’s a tough guy right? The toughest, right? And the meanest, right?

But in his first scene, his girlfriend Gloria Grahame actually makes fun of the way he sucks up to his boss and does every thing to please the boss man. And she’s right! He really is quite the suck up. Hmmmm. This isn’t the “I don’t give a shit about anything or what anybody thinks” Lee Marvin I’m used to. But since he is an underling to the big crime boss, I’ll let it pass. But that’s not Lee Marvin.

His next big scene is in a bar where he is getting rough with a lady who he accuses of cheating him. Now, that’s more like it! Then he confronts cop Glenn Ford and….apologizes to him? And makes nice with the girl? Okay dark haired man, what have you done with the real Lee Marvin? That’s just not Lee Marvin!

Just as I am about to give up on Lee for this picture, we see Lee accusing his girl of going off with Ford the cop. Then he…(SPOILER ALERT FOR THE FILM’S DEFINING MOMENT) throws hot coffee in her face and disfigures her. Now THAT’s Lee Marvin!

And I love the character name: Vince Stone. How badass is that?
Lee Marvin as Vince Stone! Badass. Very badass.

Quotable Lee Marvin

(Before throwing the coffee) Oh you pig! YOU LYIN’ PIG!

(After throwing the coffee) I’ll fix you and your pretty face!

(With Glenn Ford’s gun pointing at Lee’s face) Go on, shoot! Shoot! SHOOT!

Tomorrow: Day Two of Lee Marvin week!

NETWORK (1976) vs. ROCKY (1976)

2011-08-23T09:25:00.003-05:00

I remember the 1976 Oscar race coming down to two movies. With all due respect to Taxi Driver, All the President's Men and Bound for Glory, the two major candidates were Network and Rocky. Rocky ended up winning Best Picture and Director and Network won three of the four acting awards plus Best Original Screenplay. But which won should have really won Best Picture that year?

The case for Network: Watching Network again for the first time in many years I'm struck by how modern it seems. Sensationalism in news and reality shows (Network had a group of revolutionaries with their own television show called the Mao Tse Tung Hour) is pretty much the norm for media today. I think Paddy Chayevsky’s screenplay for Network is a towering literary achievement. The performances by Faye Dunaway and William Holden and Robert Duvall are all strong. Ned Beatty and Beatrice Straight were nominated for Oscars (Straight even won) for basically one scene apiece. And Peter Finch as newscaster Howard Beale is nothing short of astonishing. Director Sidney Lumet brought it all together in what I think is his finest film. It’s funny, relevant and who that sees it can forget “I’m as mad as hell and I’m not gonna take it any more?” I thought Network was really a superb film all the way around. I’m having doubts Rocky can go the distance on this one.

The case for Rocky-Maybe the ultimate crowd pleaser picture. Also, the ultimate underdog picture. And the character of Rocky Balboa? What movie goer doesn’t know who Rocky Balboa is? The music? Gonna Fly Now may have been what won Rocky the Oscar in the first place. How could you vote for something else with that inspirational music playing in your head? And the final fight scene is exciting even after repeated views. A memorable movie-no doubt. But was it really enough to beat Network?

While I’m thinking this over, I’ll reminisce about some of the other movie titles that came out in 1976 that did not make the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die cut.

1. The Bad News Bears, If you were thirteen when this movie came out, you pretty much had to go see it.
2. The Big Bus, I know I saw this. It seemed like it was about this giant bus and you could do all these things on this bus like bowling. And it was like The Love Boat, only a bus and…whose idea was this anyway?
3. Bound for Glory, I wouldn’t have pictured David Carradine as Woody Guthrie. Still don’t really.
4. Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson, Not the most memorable of Robert Altman’s movies, but you know, this one may warrant a second look.
5. Car Wash, I certainly didn’t hear the song “Car Wash” enough in late 70’s!
6. The Enforcer, Callahan and Lacey?
7. Futureworld, It had been a long time since I had seen this one. I thought, “Yeah, the sequel to Westworld was actually pretty good.” After viewing it a couple of years ago….eh, not so good.
8. The Gumball Rally, A strange multi-car race around the world. Like It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World with lesser known stars. Though I do remember Raul Julia was in it.
9. King Kong, I was surprised to see that this infamous remake actually did pretty well at the box-office.

10. Lipstick, One of the Hemingway sisters gets raped and the other one guns down the rapist. I think that’s what happens.
11. Logan's Run, Yes, when I saw this movie I too thought thirty was old. Hah! There is no sanctuary!
12. Marathon Man, Hoffman-Olivier-Schesinger-Goldman. Top line thriller. Consider this one for the next 1001 Movie edition, why don’t you?
13. Murder by Death, Main draw today would probably be to see Truman Capote act.
14. The Omen, I actually owned the book on this one. But little did I know at the time it was just a novelization! I feel had!
15. The Pink Panther Strikes Again, The best of the Pink Panther movies was The Return of the Pink Panther, though it’s easy to get them confused.
16. The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea, I admit when I think of this movie, the first thing I think of is the infamous Playboy pictorial featuring Sarah Miles. If you can overlook that, and I admit it’s hard for me to do, it’s a pretty good film.
17. The Shootist, Fitting farewell for John Wayne.
18. Silent Movie, I’m guessing Mel Brooks being the last filmmaker to have a major studio finance a non-talking picture of his is a record that may last forever.
19. Silver Streak, First and best Wilder/Pryor teaming. Of course, I didn’t see their last couple of films, but I still feel pretty safe in that assertion.
20. That's Entertainment Part 2, Old MGM musical clips on the big screen may have worked in 1974, but by 1976, the time had passed.

The final decision: Howard “The Mad Prophet of the Air Waves” Beale defeats Rocky “The Italian Stallion” Balboa by a TKO in the 10th round. We'll have the details on the 11 o'clock news as soon as we make them up.

BEAT THE DEVIL (1953)

2011-08-22T07:30:00.001-05:00

Beat the Devil (1953)

Trying to view all the films on the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die list can make you forgetful at times. I actually watched this film several months ago, but forgot to make a post. Well, better late than never.

But do I have anything to say about it?

I do know Beat the Devil is mentioned in the movie about Truman Capote, Infamous. In Infamous, Capote (played by Toby Jones) impresses the locals with stories of how he beat Humphrey Bogart in arm wrestling during his work on Beat the Devil. I’m not sure what my point is other than recommending Infamous.

But what about Beat the Devilitself? It’s a strange little caper movie to be sure. It had a low budget feel to it that made it seem unlike a John Huston film to me. Despite its oddness, I found the whole thing lightweight, but enjoyable. And a very interesting cast including Bogart, Peter Lorre, Robert Morley, Gina Lollobridgida and Jennifer Jones.

And Truman’s writing? Adopted from a novel, I thought the screenplay was very sharp and the quick retorts made Mr. Bogart and associates that much more fun to watch.

That's about it for this one.

ANIMAL FARM (1954, GREAT BRITAIN)

2011-08-16T08:02:00.001-05:00

Why do Boxer, Clover and Benjamin have descriptions of greater depth than the other animals?

Did the rebellion on Jones’s farm happen too soon for the animals to have a workable system in mind for when they took over?

Oh, hello. I was just doing some studying with my niece Krista. She’s entering high school and is trying to come up with questions on her assignment for George Orwell’s Animal Farm.

How much foreshadowing is there in Clover’s mentioning to Boxer that he should take it easy?

It just so happens the 1954 animated version of Animal Farm is in the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die book, so although I'm certainly happy to help her with her assignment, I’m also glad to get a chance to view a movie I haven’t seen in at least twenty years.

How much abuse will the animals tolerate under the dictator pig Napoleon before they rebel?

Despite its lighter moments, I find this film difficult to sit through at times. It isn’t because the film isn’t good-in fact it’s very good. It’s just that seeing bad things happen to animated animals can really be upsetting.

Do the humans begin to respect Napoleon more because he is becoming more like them or are they merely opportunists?

The DVD copy in our library is in the children’s section next to Bob the Builder and Dora the Explorer. I’ve got to think there was a cataloging mistake somewhere down the line.

If Snowball had run off Napoleon, would the outcome have been different?

If Snowball had run off Napoleon, would the outcome have been different? Hmmm.
Good question. Does absolute power corrupt absolutely? Do we have movie references to help us answer this question? Michael Corleone? Charles Foster Kane? How about well..I’m sure you can come up with other examples. Anyway, back to the books for now, cause school is about to start and I haven’t even started Old Man and the Sea yet!

Signing off for now and don’t forget, “Four legs good, two legs baaaaaaddddd!

BLAZING SADDLES (1974), A WOMAN UNDER THE INFLUENCE (1974)

2011-08-14T07:29:00.001-05:00

1974 revisited
When I was 11, I practically begged my dad to take me to see Blazing Saddles. (For the record, there were three movies I remember pleading with my father to take me to around that time: The Exorcist, Blazing Saddles and The Reincarnation of Peter Proud.) Well, he took me and I loved the movie, of course. What kid that saw this in 1974 didn’t love the famous “campfire farting scene?” If you don’t know the scene I’m talking about, all I can say is: What kind of film buff are you, anyway?

I do remember my dad’s favorite part was Harvey Kormann’s constant references to his name: Hedley Lamarr.

2011
History repeats itself: I’ve been talking this movie up with my 14-year-old niece Krista for about a year now. She’s looking forward to seeing what all the fuss was about. Tonight’s the night. Wait, it’s coming on now…

We’ve finally watched it. I did have to explain to her who Hedy Lamarr and Cecil B. Demille were and why Cleavon Little signing “I Get a Kick Out of You” is funny and I tried to point out as many intentional anachronisms as I could, but she seemed to get most of it and even declared it ” hilarious.” Ah! A new generation that can appreciate a good campfire farting scene. Glad to do my part for the youth of America.

Back to 1974
A lot of movies that came out in 1974 that had an impact on me. Some good-some bad. Here are a few that did not make the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die cut.

1. Airport 1975
1974 will always be to me the year of the disaster movie. The stewardess is flying the plane! If you are wondering who uttered this line, it was Sid Caesar. If you aren’t wondering, it was still Sid Caesar.

2. Big Bad Mama
I believe this is the one with Angie Dickinson equipped with big hair and an outrageous Southern accent and William Shatner being hammy (as hard as that is believe!) Not to be confused with Bloody Mama, that was Shelley Winters.

3. Dark StarPre-Halloween John Carpenter. I just wish I remembered more about it. Will put on my rewatch list.

4. Death Wish
Okay, Charlie Bronson was no master thespian, but I just happen to like Charlie Bronson, Okay!

5. Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry
Some say the weak link to the 70’s anarchist car trilogy (Two-Lane Blacktop and Vanishing Point being the others.) I prefer to call it the weak link in the Susan George trilogy (Fright and Straw Dogs being the others). So I use to kinda like Susan George! Give me a break-I was 12!

6. Earthquake
The second leg in the 1974 disaster trilogy. This one’s main appeal was the gimmick of Sensurround, which I experienced in two theaters. It seemed to consist of a lot of noise and not enough much shaking either time. But any movie with former child evangelist Marjoe Gortner as a gay psycho has at least got that going for it!

7. Emmanuelle
It’s not porn, it’s erotica!

8. The Four Musketeers
Really the second half of The Three Musketeers. I saw this one without seeing the first one and you really need to see the first one to understand what’s happening in the second one.

9. Harry and Tonto
Art Carney really won the Oscar over Jack Nicholson, Dustin Hoffman, Albert Finney and Al Pacino…for Harry and Tonto?

10. Herbie Rides Again
I remember little about this one except that the original is better. Dean Jones, where art thou?

11. The Island at the Top of the World
I think I thought this movie was cool at the time. I was probably mistaken.

12. Lenny
Oh, 1001 movie book. How can you leave out Lenny? It may be brutal, but it's memorable
.
13. The Longest Yard
Oft quoted if you grew up in the 70’s. Probably Burt Reynolds’ best movie that doesn’t have the word deliverance in the title.

14. The Lords of Flatbush
Should have made Perry King a star; Made Sylvester Stallone a star instead.

15. Macon County Line
Mostly remember going to see this with my brother when he worked at a newspaper. Can you say free passes, baby! (Or was that Return to Macon County?)

16. The Man with the Golden Gun
A pretty fun James Bond flick. Though Connery purists may scoff, I’m cool with Roger Moore as J. B.

17. Murder on the Orient Express
You don’t really see these type of celebrity filled whodunits anymore.

18. The Towering Inferno
The third leg of the 1974 disaster trilogy and my favorite of the three. You know, Faye Dunaway and William Holden were in this film and Network. It’s only taken my thirty-five years to make that connection.

19. The Trial of Billy Jack I’m a Billy Jack fan, but this was one too many.

20. Zardoz People seem to have mixed feelings about this Sean Connery sci-fi flick. Though there’s seems to be no debate about Sean’s questionable wardrobe. (Below)

1974 revisited one more time
While I was stuck in 1974, I’ve decided to see one more film from that year.

I wanted to watch something completely the opposite of Blazing Saddles. I chose the John Cassavetes’ film A Woman Under the Influence. The only thing I remember about this when it came out was that it was nominated for a lot of awards and critics loved it and that I didn’t really want to see it at the time. (I was 11! I wanted to see Blazing Saddles and The Towering Inferno!)

I’ve seen it now and it was indeed a contrast, if not the polar opposite of Blazing Saddles. I had always thought it was about a woman who was an alcoholic. It isn’t, though she can drink up a storm when she wants to. I think Cassavetes’s films are interesting overall. If you aren’t use to his more naturalistic filmmaking style the results can be quite jarring. The scene that struck me the most was where the husband (Peter Falk) and a few of his co-workers are having dinner prepared by Falk’s wife (Gena Rowlands). I kept expecting some exposition in this scene and then the movie would move on. It didn’t. It stayed with the meal. And it stayed with the meal (spaghetti, by the way). Every cut just lead to something else happening at another part of the table. A co-worker began to sing. A co-worker spilled his food all over himself. Then we see Rowlands begin to talk to some of them and flirt a little bit (I think it was flirting). Finally after about a twenty-minute scene Faulk yells at Rowlands to “Sit your ass down.” The scene struck me as strange, but I it stays with you and I admit was effective.

Gena Rowlands got many accolades for her performance, including an Academy Award nomination. Peter Falk (who died recently as of this writing) is almost as good in a very dramatic role. If you just know him from Columbo or The In-Laws, you might want to check this out.

One thing Blazing Saddles and A Woman Under the Influence do have in common is that the leading character sings a version of “I Get a Kick Out of You.” Now there’s a question you’re unlikely to see on Jeopardy!

Well it’s time for me to stop playing with my pet rock and my Duncan yo-yo.
I’ve enjoyed by trip back to 1974. I’m sure I’ll return.

THE EXORCIST (1973)

2011-08-11T10:27:00.003-05:00

1973 film #3

The first Academy Awards presentation I can remember was the one for films released in 1973. It was an important year in my moviegoing life. I was finally old enough to go see movies of more grown-up fare. When I think back on that year in movies, the three films that stand out in my memory are: The Sting, American Graffiti and The Exorcist. All were popular. All were critically successful for the most part. All were nominated for Best Picture of 1973. And they weren’t at all alike.

The third candidate: The Exorcist.

What was the buzz on The Exorcist?: This was the movie everyone was talking about in 1973. The devil possesses the body of a twelve-year-old girl and two priests try to cast the demon out.

Being under thirteen, I begged my father to take me to see it. He thought I might regret it, but took me anyway. It’s certainly a movie experience I’ll never forget, though I had a lot of trouble sleeping with much comfort the next week.

The Music: Who can forget that scary tubular bell theme? Why it’s ringing in my head as we speak!

MAD magazine reference (the true arbiter of seventies movies value): In the name of research, I went back and read my copy of “The Ecchorcist” from my September 1974 MAD magazine. It ends with the devil agreeing to leave the body of the girl if he signs a six-picture deal. Speaking of that…

Sequel to avoid: The Exorcist II: The Heretic Upon release this highly anticipated sequel was immediately labeled a disaster of epic proportions and has been on much worst film of all-time lists. I’ve honestly never seen it, and I don’t see that changing anytime soon.

But should it have won Best Picture? I’ll be honest. I was pretty much ready to call American Graffiti the Best Picture of 1973. But upon further review, I think the The Exorcist should really get some consideration.

Part of the problem in thinking about this film for me is my initial reaction to it which was that it scared the crap out of me! Forget the quality of the movie; I’m too busy hiding under by bedcovers to care! Then there were bad sequels and cheap knockoffs. Movies about possession or something similar became commonplace. There were also the parodies. I remember the memorable Saturday Night Live skit with Richard Pryor as the Priest and Larraine Newman as the possessed girl.

But looking back at the original, I can think of few movies that built suspense as well as this one. I’m not sure this would even be able to be made this way today, because some might find it gets to the more gory scenes at too slow of a pace. I would disagree. I know where the plot is going and it’s the progression of said plot that builds the story to its suspenseful conclusion.
I also really loved the character of Father Karras and his struggles with faith and life. And let’s just say I found his final moment in the film very moving.

It also strikes me as coming down clearly on the side of faith over science. The priests seem to know everything and medical science doesn't seem to know squat.

So, the final nominees for best picture of 1973 are The Sting, American Graffiti and The Exorcist

And my winner is…I’ll be damned, it’s The Exorcist!

1973 MOVIE SUPPLEMENT
Since 1973 was such an important movie-watching year for me, here is a list of some of the movies I’ve seen released from that year that didn’t make the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die cut.

Battle for the Planet of the Apes
The fifth and final leg of the original Planet of the Apes brings back memories of diminutive singer Paul Williams singing a romantic ballad on The Tonight Show decked out in full ape makeup.

Charlotte's Web
Most memorable voice: Paul Lynde as Templeton the rat.

Cinderella Liberty
It’s been so long that I’ve seen this that all I can remember about it is that Marsha Mason had long hair.

The Devil in Miss Jones
Half of the most infamous pair of films of the 70’s, Deep Throat being the other.

Godspell
May seem a little dated today, but I still think the last supper with Dixie cups is kinda groovy.

Jesus Christ Superstar
The major problem with this version of Jesus Christ Superstar is that the song performances aren’t very good. See it on stage instead.

The Last Detail
Attention 1001 movie editors: This Hal Ashby comedy with Jack Nicholson as a foul-mouthed sailor on leave might be a good addition to the next edition.

Lost Horizon
Maybe the most infamous musical of all-time. Liv Ullman and Peter Finch saw better days.

Magnum Force
Harry’s back and he’s dirtier than ever. C’mon, if you’re a movie fan, you gotta see Magnum Force. The subsequent Harrys after you have my permission to skip.

My Name is Nobody
One of those spaghetti westerns that was "sort of" directed by Sergio Leone.

O Lucky Man!
When I think of this movie, I think of my friend who took a date to this movie only to have her begin punching him after he left the theater. I guess she wasn’t looking for something different.

The Paper Chase
Though some may have more vivid memories of the series, I still really like the original movie.

Paper Moon
Another film I’m surprised isn’t in the 1001 movie book. But, like many, I haven’t seen in awhile and may not hold up as well as I think it might.

Robin Hood
My son liked this Disney cartoon version of the legend and I’ve had to watch it more than once.

Save the Tiger
All right. This one I haven’t actually seen. I just know that at the time Jack Lemmon won an Oscar for this over Al Pacion in Serpico, Jack Nicholson in The Last Detail, Robert Redford in The Stingand Marlon Brando in Last Tango in Paris. I remember saying at the time, “What the hell is Save the Tiger?” Now all these years later, I still ask, “WHAT THE HELL IS SAVE THE TIGER?”

Scarecrow
Probably the prototype of a low-budget, early seventies, indie-type, character study picture with big stars in humble roles (Gene Hackman and Al Pacino in this case). I’ve seen this again recently and it wasn’t bad, but honestly didn’t blow my away.

Sisters Hey, this movie had me at Margot Kidder as Siamese Twins!

Soylent Green Famous for Charlton Heston’s line, “Soylent Green is people!” My favorite part of this movie is Edward G. Robinson’s somber and peaceful death scene.

A Touch of Class
Glenda Jackson won the Oscar for this, but like Save the Tiger, has anybody actually seen it?

Walking TallFor lack of a more acceptable term, I called this 70’s movie genre…redneck movies. Maybe they were a counterweight to blaxpotation movies of the same era. Burt Reynolds was in most of them, but a few of them, like Dixie Dynamite, Sixpack Annie and High-Ballin’ were Reynoldsless.

The World's Greatest Athlete One of those 70’s Disney comedies. A sports franchise is trying to recruit a Tarzan-like native to be on their sports team from what I remember without looking up a plot synopsis. The comedy highlight that I recall was someone dumping a can of trash over Howard Cosell.

AMERICAN GRAFFITI (1973)

2011-08-10T09:28:00.002-05:00

1973 film #2

The first Academy Awards presentation I can remember was the one for films released in 1973. It was an important year in my moviegoing life. I was finally old enough to go see movies of more grown-up fare. When I think back on that year in movies, the three films that stand out in my memory are: The Sting, American Graffiti and The Exorcist. All were popular. All were critically successful for the most part. All were nominated for Best Picture of 1973. And they weren’t at all alike.

The second candidate: American Graffiti

What was the buzz on American Graffiti?: The second major film of the 1973 Best Picture nominees was American Graffiti. The tagline of the movie was “Where were you in 62?” Apparently the answer for director George Lucas was cruising the streets looking for chicks or someone to race.

I remember liking the movie quite a bit when I first saw it. The montage of characters was apparently a new concept, but I didn’t know it was radical; I just liked how the puzzle pieces of characterization all fit together eventually.

I remember at the time people talking about individual scenes such as the wheels coming off the police car, underage Toad trying to buy some liquor, or just that elusive search for the blonde in the T-bird.

Though set in 1962, the film helped bring back a revival of interest in the fifties and led to a couple of popular TV series with a couple of Graffiti stars, Happy Days with Ron Howard and Laverne and Shirley with Cindy Williams. I won’t blame the movie for that, however.

The Music: American Graffiti led to a revival of music from that era in 1973 and 1974. In fact, the soundtrack album had several spin-off records if I remember correctly.

MAD magazine reference (the true arbiter of seventies movies value): MAD’s Graffiti satire was called “American Confetti” The opening frame of the satire features the cast of American Graffiti standing next to Jimmy Stewart! Stewart says he’s there just so the audience will see someone in this movie that they recognize!

Sequel to avoid: More American Graffiti. I’m sure I’m not the first to point out that in this case, more is definitely less.

But should it have won Best Picture?: Today, the movie still seems really fresh. Great characters: Candy “Has anybody ever told you you look like Connie Stevens” Clark as the bleach blonde and Charles Martin “I’d like a pint of Old Harpers” Smith as Toad (and still one of the great screen couples of all-time). Richard Dreyfus as Curt, probably the character most could identify with. Ron Howard and Cindy Williams were the couple who were trying to work out their differences. Paul Le Mat as John Milner, the cool guy with the cool car, unfortunately he’s saddled for most of the night with thirteen-year-old Mackenzie Phillips. Putting the cool guy with an underage, obnoxious girl who he can’t seem to get rid of is one of the film’s brightest ideas. And of course, let us not forget Wolfman Jack as the DJ that makes a commentary on the proceedings.

The multi-character plot fits together well. It’s funny. The characters are great and Suzanne Sommers doesn’t have any lines.

And right or wrong, when I think of ’62 teenage life, I think of American Graffiti.

So despite the case you could make for The Sting, innovative story-telling and characterizations pulls American Graffiti ahead of The Sting by the length of a yellow hot rod.

Tomorrow I will watch THE most talked about movie of 1973.

THE STING (1973)

2011-08-09T09:27:00.007-05:00

1973 film #1

The first Academy Awards presentation I can remember was the one for films released in 1973. It was an important year in my moviegoing life. I was finally old enough to go see movies of more grown-up fare. When I think back on that year in movies, the three films that stand out in my memory are: The Sting, American Graffiti and The Exorcist. All were popular. All were critically successful for the most part. All were nominated for Best Picture of 1973. And they weren’t at all alike.

The first candidate: The Sting

What was the buzz on The Sting?: When it was released, The Sting had a lot going for it. It had the sure-fire team of Paul Newman and Robert Redford playing con men, as well as the presence of their Butch Cassidy director George Roy Hill. It had a clever con story about Newman, Redford and associates pulling a major league con on big-time racketeer Robert Shaw. (I like the names in the movie too; Newman as Henry Gondorff, Redford as Johnny Hooker and Shaw’s character, Doyle Lonnigan) The setup to the con is fun to watch: I suppose my favorite scene is watching Paul Newman cheat Robert Shaw in a poker game or perhaps the one where phony bets are being placed on a non-existent horse race strictly to lure Shaw in. The supporting cast is notable too: Eileen Brennan, Ray Walston, Harold Gould and good ole Charles Durning.

The Music: But for my money, when I think of The Sting, I think of the music of Scott Joplin. The ragtime music featuring The Entertainer wasn’t even written in the era of the movie is based (1936), but it really fits it perfectly. I can’t imagine the movie without it. And I still have the original soundtrack record album on glorious vinyl!

MAD magazine reference (the true arbiter of seventies movies value): I believe the MAD magazine version was called “The Zing,” though I might be wrong. I do remember it changed the famous Newman/Redford promotional image to the image of two even bigger crooks: Richard Nixon and Spiro Agnew! Yes, MAD never missed an opportunity for a good Nixon joke.

Sequel to avoid: The Sting 2. They couldn’t get Newman or Redford for any Sting sequel so instead they got…Jackie Gleason and Mac Davis? Huh?

But should it have won Best Picture? A solid, fun movie. I can see why the Academy gave it seven awards (though interestingly no acting awards). Perhaps the other two movies on my list will prove to be dated and I’ll have to stick with The Sting. I could do worse.

I'll look at American Graffiti tomorrow.

THE KING'S SPEECH (2010, GREAT BRITAIN), THE QUEEN (2006, GREAT BRITAIN)

2011-08-08T07:26:00.002-05:00

You know us bloody yanks are still pretty obsessed, or at least fascinated, with movies about the English monarchy. We even give our most coveted awards to these films at times. Of course, the latest is the Oscar winner for best picture The King’s Speech. If you haven't seen it, it is all about the elocution lessons of the stuttering King George the VI at around the time of World War II.

I will bend over backwards to not criticize this movie. I keep asking for films that aren’t based on comic books, video games and might instead be aimed at ‘gasp’ adults! So I’m not going to nitpick at a film that not only fills my request, but actually drew crowds as well. It was almost universally critically praised, in fact. I should be happy, right? Well, I am happy. I can’t say I’m ecstatic, but I’m happy enough. All right, already. I thought similar stories have been told on screen before, OK? That’s my only criticism. But I’m not complaining mind you. It’s well done. And I’m just grateful for any movie that wasn’t originally based on something I might have first read when I was three. Just smile and be happy.

The Queen is an interesting film. I would have thought that a movie about how the royal family deals with the death of Princess Diana, well, that there wouldn’t be a movie there. It’s to the screenwriter and filmmakers credit that there is, even though I’m guessing most of what the Royals may have said behind closed doors is pure guesswork on the screenwriter’s part.

And of course Helen Mirren(who won an Academy Award-You know us bloody yanks and our awards) and Michael Sheen as Prime Minister Tony Blair are very good in their roles. I also really liked American James Cromwell as the perpetually grumpy Prince Phillip. That’s just the way I always pictured the old boy.

Cheerio.

RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK (1981)

2011-08-04T08:04:00.002-05:00

It’s been thirty years since the release of Stephen Spielberg’s Raiders of the Lost Ark. It is an almost unanimously beloved film by audiences and critics alike. However, there are exceptions…

I’m on the phone with noted New York film critic Simon Johnson, who was one of the few critics who disliked this movie at its release.

Me: First of all, thank you for joining me. So has time changed or at least tempered your view of Raiders of the Lost Ark?

Simon Johnson: Is it overly succinct to just say that “No, it hasn’t.”

Me: You still haven’t come around, I see. So let’s rehash what your problem with it is.

Simon Johnson: I believe my original article said “Unlike Lucas’s Star Wars, which at least scrapped the corpses of some decent representations of celluloid past, Raiders of the Lost Ark unearths the remains of a long discarded adventure genre and revives it as a hulking, feral pastiche that should have remained underground and forgotten.”

Me: You further stated that Raiders of the Lost Ark was the beginning of the end. Do you still believe that?

Simon Johnson: If you want to be technical, it could more accurately be described as the end of the end. Jaws threw the body in the coffin. Star Wars slammed the lid. Raiders of the Lost Ark nailed it shut.

Me: Would you embellish please.

Simon Johnson: Right. Let’s explore today’s film of choice, shall we? Spielberg-Lucas or, really I just call them Lucasberg. I can’t tell the difference really. Lucasberg loved the old Republic serials of the 30’s. But I’m sure even they would admit that they were poorly made. So what we have here is a reproduction of a copy that wasn’t all that good in the first place.

Me: But don’t you think Spielberg just used those as a blueprint and made it into something uniquely his own?

Simon Johnson: That seems to be the common view. And the common view is misguided.

Me: But what about all those iconic scenes like Indiana being chased by a giant boulder?

Simon Johnson: If that thrills you, I suggest you go to Disney World and see the Indiana Jones stunt show. I prefer to see a movie.

Me: So this is the first time you’ve seen it in thirty years. Please restate some of the specifics of your criticisms.

Simon Johnson: There’s too many to name, I’m afraid. I wouldn’t want to take up too much of your time or mine either, for that matter. Let’s take the villains, the Nazis. I saw more depth from Colonel Klink in Hogan’s Heroes. Cardboard cutouts are indeed easy to kill. What else? The introduction of the snakes. He doesn’t like snakes. And later we have the inevitable snake scene. A little foreshadowing is good. An overabundance can be fatal.

It's also interesting that the DVD release has renamed it Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark. Is that so the audience won’t get it confused with Pee Wee Herman and the Raiders of the Lost Ark?

What else? Oh, I like the way they plaster a map on the screen every time they change countries. Not condescending to our audience are we?

Oh, the exposition scene at the school where they go on about why they are searching for the ark in the first place. Not only is it confusing, it’s so slow, I began to nod off with its tediousness! I know you need to get the ark. Get on with it! It made me actually miss the mindless action.

Me: What about the music?

Simon Johnson: Yes, let’s not have anything of consequence happen in this movie without cranking up the theme song. Certainly the images and the character development aren’t enough to allow me to know how to think, so I can see the need for the John Williams clash of symbols every few minutes to tell me when something of significance is happening.

Me: Well, what about the scene where the guy in Cairo spins his weapon only to be disposed of with one shot by Indiana? That always gets a big laugh.

Simon Johnson: Glad you brought that scene up. Indicative of American arrogance, I’m afraid. It’s that type of behavior that has allowed the spread of Colonialism to go practically unchallenged for hundreds of years. But what the heck! Those Nepalese or Egyptians are just a bunch of towel heads who can’t do anything but jump, shout, laugh or shoot a rifle repeatedly in the air while chanting, right? Calling them one-dimensional is an insult to other one-dimensional characters.

Oh, and what about the choice of the naming the main character after an American state? Practically screams out. “I’m an American. I can do whatever I want!” It has more arrogance than a Jane Austen novel!

Me: Jane Austen?

Simon Johnson: If you aren’t sure what I’m referring to, I think you need to read some Edward Said and get back to me on that issue.

Me: Ok. Lets’ see…What about Karen Allen? You’ve got to like Karen Allen.

Simon Johnson: I do. She’s the film’s true hidden treasure. And what did they do with this valuable commodity when they made the next film?

Me: They dumped her.

Simon Johnson: They dumped her.

Me: Yes, I think I actually agree with you on that point. I do have one more question for you. It’s a general one. Why don’t film critics ever change their mind? I see things all the time I feel differently about over time or change my opinion because of my mood or maybe I just see something in second viewings that I didn’t see the first time.

Simon Johnson: I guess that is the chasm that separates someone like me from someone like you. A work of art is what it is. Andrew Sarris changed his mind once. We almost had to kick him out of the club.

Me: Thank you for joining me.

Simon Johnson: A pleasure, I’m sure. Since next year is the anniversary of Porky’s, I’m sure you’ll be dialing me up again.

Me: That was Simon Johnson, acerbic, opinionated and controversial as always.

BACK TO THE FUTURE (1985)

2011-07-25T15:57:00.005-05:00

Sometime in 2014. Chris the ex-librarian has just had his first movie script green-lighted and it is about to be put into production. But what next?

(Hollywood, California. A prominent unnamed movie exec’s office)

Exec: Come on in kid. What have you got for me?

Chris: First I want to thank you again. I know you have limited time.

Exec: Just make sure you don’t waste it. I just wanted to repeat how much I appreciated the originality of your ninja/coal miner story, but you know what they say…

Chris: You’re only as good as your next one?

Exec: Right. I have taught you well. So I repeat…what you working on?

Chris: (standing up to add emphasis to his pitch) I’m working on a remake.

Exec: A remake, eh? A real hit or miss proposition there. What are we remaking? Nothing Victorian I hope. Nothing prestige at all. That’s not in this year. This studio needs money, not awards. And no Westerns! Wait, I forgot about True Grit. Is it a Western? Wait. That’s still to risky. I need something with boffo special effects. Our CGI department is top of the line, you know. I think it’s time for a sci-fi. Is it sci-fi? I do hope it’s something sci-fi.

Chris: You could say that.

Exec: Let me guess. Probably something from the 50’s. Forbidden Planet? No, too cerebral. That movie where five people are left on earth. What was that called?

Chris: That was called Five.

Exec: Five. That’s right. That would certainly save money on casting. One of my favorites is Them! That might work. Our F/X team could make some killer ants. How about The Day the Earth Stood Still?

Chris: They already remade that one and it stunk.

Exec: Oh, yeah. I forgot about that. Why don’t you just tell me? Stop being so shy!

Chris: Well, it’s nothing 50’s. I’m working on an update to Back to the Future.

Exec: Oh! That’s going to be a tough sell. A beloved film for our generation. My kids still watch it. I still watch it. Obviously you still watch it. What’s wrong with the original version?

Chris: Nothing. But don’t you get it? The original is from 1985 and Marty McFly goes back thirty years to 1955. This version will be set in 2015 and he goes back to 1985. Get it now?

Exec: So it’s about mathematics. Thirty is your magic number. Is thirty a prime number? I’m going to buzz my secretary and see if thirty is a prime number or not. Never mind. That’s not important. Anyway, is that all you’re bringing me? It’s going to take more than addition and subtraction for me to sell a Back to the Future remake. So where else you going with this?

Chris: Listen to this. Marty goes back to 1985 and he doesn’t know what to do to get his parents together because nobody has cell phones. Right? And he keeps looking for a computer to get on and he can’t find one and goes to a library and all they have is books! He’s got to get them together before the big Terms of Endearment dance…

Exec: I’m a little interested, but I’m hardly blown away, kid. You got any more?

Chris: Well, a few political jokes. Obviously some Reagan one-liners. Just like in the first one. The real kicker is when Marty tells him that a black man is now president of the United States. It refers to Goldie Wilson the mayor from the first movie, right?

Exec: That’s okay. But there were already two sequels. We know about the future of the series from them.

Chris: They won’t exist in this universe.

Exec: Oh, a full-franchise reboot.

Chris: Reboot. Remake. Whatever! Let’s go for it, C. B!

Exec: Hold your horses. What about the cast? Michael J. Fox’s don’t grow on trees.

Chris: Glad you asked. I was thinking about Dakota Fanning.

Exec: Maybe a good choice for Marty’s mother. That might work. But what about Marty?

Chris: I am talking about Marty. Dakota Fanning as Marty.

Exec: You want Marty to be a girl this time?

Chris: NO! I want Marty to be a boy, but played by a girl. Sort of like Cate Blanchett in I’m Not There.

Exec: That Dylan movie? Are you kidding! How many people saw that? Eight, maybe? So who you got in mind for Doc Brown? You thinking Sean Penn?

Chris: Glad you asked. Here’s the kicker. The Doc Brown character will be changed. The new professor character will be, and remember this is 1985 now….Bill Gates! In between the building of Microsoft, he’s also built a time machine! I’ve got a lot of computer jokes to go with this. You know, we’ll make fun of people not knowing what a floppy disc is. Bill could see an apple and tell Marty how apples aren’t good for him. Get it?. And the catch phrase of the movie will have bad guy Biff saying, “What the hell is DOS?”

Exec: Wait. You got a few strained computer jokes, a female Marty McFly and the founder of Microsoft with a time machine. Have you got anything else?

Chris: Well, the Libyans are now Al-Queda. The Delorean is now an electric car. The clock tower scene would now be a digital clock scene, set at a bank. That would say something about the greed decade, right? And George McFly doesn’t become an author he….wait a minute.

Exec: What is it kid?

Chris: This is all wrong. This isn’t real. I just made this up. I made you up.

Exec: Now see here. You can’t come into my office and-

Chris: Shutup! You’re fictional. I just decided to think of a Back to the Future remake because I can’t believe it’s been almost thirty years since it came out. Thirty years! This is my therapy to deal with the passage of time.

Exec: And you’re trying to find a way to turn back the clock. Well, that explains a lot about me. I was beginning to feel pretty one-dimensional, I admit. Well, since we have determined my fictionalitization, may I go now to wherever it is fictional characters go?

Chris: I don’t think fictionalitization is a word.

Exec: I guess grammar is your problem, kid. By the way, the ninja/coal miner story…it stinks!

(The Exec disappears)

Chris shrugs and pulls out a copy of Back to the Future and decides to watch it again, but without thinking about it so much this time.

PINOCCHIO (1940)

2011-07-21T11:15:00.010-05:00

Pinocchio (1940)

Before Viewing: My final post in three weeks of posts from 1940's films is from my favorite Disney animated movie, Pinocchio. Will it remain so or will the whale of disappointment swallow me whole?

After viewing: Still up at the top of the list. Love Geppetto's cuckoo clocks. Great carnival of villains: Monstro, Lampwick, Honest John, Stromboli and the coachman who takes Pinocchio to Pleasure Island. Animation still looks fresh to my untrained eye and the morality tale doesn't seem forced. "Pinocchio, you are a real boy!"

And the final Elisa Cook Jr. supporting player award for the 1940's goes to...Geppetto. No. Check that. I took a poll of the house and the award will instead go to Jiminy Cricket. Just a poor, humble cricket who wants nothing more than to help Pinocchio and maybe get a nice badge from the Blue Fairy for this trouble. Sorry, Geppetto. If you'd just taken the time to walk with Pinocchio to school the first day, all of his problems may have been avoided.

THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE (1946)

2011-07-20T11:11:00.006-05:00

DOUBLE INDEMNITY (1944)

2011-07-19T16:07:00.006-05:00

I really enjoyed posting two straight weeks of blogs on Hollywood films from the 1930's, and so for the 1940's I'm going to up the ante and try for three weeks worth. Looking at titles I have left from the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die book, this shouldn't be a problem. As before, I’ll list my expectations for each film going in and state whether these expectations are reached or not. And I’ll once again give each film my Elisha Cook Jr. supporting player award because there was such a bounty of great supporting performers from this period and I just like doing it.

Double Indemnity (1944)
Expectations: Another in the category of it’s been many years since I’ve seen it, but remember it as being one of the best of the film noirs.

After Viewing: Billy Wilders’ film based on the James M Cain book is considered by many the first film noir. The plot is about an insurance man (Fred MacMurray) who gets involved with an unhappy young wife (Barbara Stanwyck) and they both plot to do away with her husband and collect the life insurance money. I still really like Double Indemnity, I’m happy to say. Stanwyck is good and the usually likeable MacMurray is even more effective in this change of pace role. The one draw back, which has also been pointed out by others, is the “lack of heat” between the lovers MacMurray and Stanwyck.* They kiss a little and occasionally change positions on the sofa during scene breaks. I honestly can’t tell if they just had sex or were about to play a game of Parcheesi. The major problem, of course, stems from the censorship of the era. I’ve mentioned before that I thought censorship may have actually helped some films from this era as it forced filmmakers to be more creative. In this case, I think if hurt. However, this is a small complaint to a film that would still be on my favorite 100 films of all-time if I ever take the time to compile such a list.** The setting, music, tone, direction and story are all first class in my book.***

And the Elisha Cook Jr. supporting player award goes to…Edward G. Robinson. MacMurray and Stanwyck are impressive in their roles as lovers, but Robinson as the Insurance claims adjuster absolutely steals this movie in every scene he is in. When he goes on and one about statistics on suicides, he’s really fun to watch (I'm not kidding!).

And the first James M. Cain cuckold award goes to…Tom Powers as Stanwyck’s doomed husband. Cheated on and murdered. And not as good a role as Cecil Kellaway had in The Postman Always Rings Twice. Sorry, Tom.

*For more heat of course, you could just watch Body Heat.
** Still haven’t taken the time to compile such a list
***Book for sale in your theater lobby.