Gideon58's Reviews

[Gideon58]

Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile
A bone-chilling performance by Zac Efron playing infamous serial killer Ted Bundy elevates the 2019 Netflix film Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile above the average movie biopic level.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZDgyMjM4ZmYtYTcyZi00YzhhLTkwNzgtMTVhYTdmNjkxMzIzXkEyXkFqcGc@._V1_.jpg
This movie takes a different tack in its look at the crazed serial killer as it actually starts in the middle of his story. As the story begins here, Ted has taken a break from his killing spree and is perhaps trying to start a new life through a relationship with a young, working single mother named Liz Kendall (Lily Collins) who has graciously welcomed Ted into her life and the life of her daughter and is convinced that she's in love with the man until his past begins to catch up with him and Ted is arrested for one of his numerous crimes but Liz refuses to believe that this man that she and her daughter could have fallen in love with the man who did things of which he's been accused.
http://cdn.collider.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/zac-efron-extremely-wicked-shockingly-evil-and-vile.jpg
The irony of the whole situation, is that Liz originally tipped off the police to Ted's whereabouts but soon regrets what she did when Ted proclaims his innocence as loud as anyone can hear. But when Ted becomes wanted in more than one state and actually jumps out of a courthouse window in order to escape custody, it becomes impossible for Liz to turn her back on who Ted is, unfortunately, it doesn't change the fact that she is still in love with the man.
https://www.rollingstone.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Extremely.jpg
This movie is based on a book by the real Liz Kendall called "The Phantom Prince: My Life with Ted Bundy and was adapted for the screen by Michael Merwie. It is to be applauded for its original take on a look at Ted Bundy that actually starts in the middle of his story and doesn't really include a lot of the gore involved in his story like the 1986 mini-series The Deliberate Stranger where Mark Harmon played Bundy. This is a more human look at Bundy, a look at Bundy that is rather one-sided, but does provide a look at the real power behind Bundy, which was a toothy smile, a slick and oily charm, and an undeniable intelligence that had a lot of power over women and allowed him to ingratiate himself to his victims.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjZlN2VkMjgtMTcwOS00OTU0LWExZmMtOTY2YmQ5MGFhNjZhXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyODU3NjY4NjY@._V1_.jpg
Though I liked the approach to Bundy's story this movie took, I was bothered by the fact that it made Liz Kendall and the rest of Bundy's victims look like complete idiots. In this contemporary world of politically correctness and the "Me too" movement, it was aggravating watching Liz and his last girlfriend Carol Boone believe everything this guy was telling them. The guy escaped from custody twice, something an innocent man wouldn't do and yet these women just continued to believe whatever this guy told him. The lid on the coffin of Bundy's credibility here came during a scene where Carol comes to visit him while he's on the phone trying to get in touch with Lily. I did love the way this story made clear that the power Bundy had was only over women.
https://occ-0-8407-2219.1.nflxso.net/dnm/api/v6/E8vDc_W8CLv7-yMQu8KMEC7Rrr8/AAAABay3vNcCp3HdycCAQKz1JNouPTIwc2f5XGda_H7tojmPSjfjdgEvkS9nxt3DOyxonC1ESXOuqrnhVqWc-W_oGwDSvJyuFjrLFQlc.jpg?r=bf5
Zac Efron's surprisingly solid performance in this complex role really did raise the bar on this one, though. Wish I could say the same about Lily Collins' lifeless performance as Liz, a performance that never engaged me to the character. John Malkovich was terrific as the judge though as was Jim Parsons as the prosecuting attorney, but Efron's performance is what makes this movie worth investing in. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Lorenzo's Oil
The creative force behind much of the Mad Max franchise guides the 1992 docudrama Lorenzo's Oil through a myriad of emotions for the viewer, though it's not an easy watch, but there are rewards for those who can stick it out.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51q5otuFjvL._SY445_.jpg
Nick Nolte and Susan Sarandon play Augusto and Michaela Odone, a couple whose seven year old son is diagnosed with a degenerative brain disorder called adrenoleukodystrophy, also known as ALD, a disease that is so new and baffling to the community that all is known about it is that is passed from mothers to sons and basically turns the boys into human vegetables. Eventually, the Odones find a clinical trial to enroll Lorenzo in, but when that fails, Augusto begins to educate himself on the disease while Michaela dedicates herself to the minute to minute care of her son. As they watch their son fade away, Augusto's research does pay off and he discovers the secret to a special mixture of olive oils that begins to arrest Lorenzo's condition.
https://assets.americancinematheque.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/24132001/ac-opt-LORENZOS-OIL_1.jpg
Director and co-screenwriter George Miller has crafted a devastating and gut-wrenching cinematic journey that goes further than the average disease of the week movie because it deals with a disease about which so little is known, not only by laymen, but the medical profession as well. It's disheartening when the Odones originally receive the diagnosis and the doctor is so negative about the condition and is totally adamant about the fact that there is absolutely nothing that they can do. This doctor is so clinical and insensitive about the situation the viewer just wants to punch him in the face. Miller and Nick Enright's complex yet moving screenplay earned them an Oscar nomination For Best Original Screenplay.
https://dp9a3tyzxd5qs.cloudfront.net/lorenzos-oil-1992.jpg
Miller really scores as director as well with his very difficult to watch documentation of the way this disease destroys this little boy. I've seen several movies where disease ravages the body but most of these films had adults as the victim,. It's a totally different experience when the victim is a child...I don't think there is a more horrible sound in the world than the sound of a child struggling to breathe. Watching what happens to Lorenzo in this movie almost made me turn it off a couple of times. The progression of Lorenzo's disease is probably the most difficult portion of this movie to get through.
https://images2.vudu.com/background/5457-576a.jpg
It also wasn't easy watching the lack of support that the Odones were getting, not only from the medical profession, but from other parents whose children were also suffering from ALD. Even when things that the Odones are doing are documented as having a positive effect on Lorenzo, no one wants to hear it because their methods are not FDA-approved. Watching the Odones fight for their son was quite powerful no matter who deserted them in the process. I also loved that, unlike a lot of disease of the week movies, this battle to help Lorenzo did not tear Augusto and Michaela apart. They fought, but they always remained a loving family unit for the sake of their child as well as their own sanity.
https://thumbor.forbes.com/thumbor/960x0/https%3A%2F%2Fblogs-images.forbes.com%2Fandrebourque%2Ffiles%2F2018%2F06%2FM8DLOOI_EC013_H-1200x791.jpg
At the heart of this powerhouse drama are a pair of brilliant performances from Nick Nolte and Susan Sarandon as the Oldones. Sarandon received her third Best Actress nomination for her performance but Nolte matches her note for note, utilizing a very authentic Italian accent that just brought more authenticity to his performance. Mention should also be made of Peter Ustinov as a doctor who is an expert with the disease, Kathleen Wilhoite as Michaela's sister, and James Rebhorn and Margo Martindale as other parents of ALD kids. Like I said, not an easy watch, but have some kleenex handy and experience this emotional powerhouse of a story. It should be mentioned that the real Lorenzo finally succumbed to the disease in 2003 at age 30. 4

[Gideon58]

The West Point Story
A charismatic movie star turn by James Cagney is the anchor of a sparkling 1950 musical comedy called The West Point Story, which was a surprisingly entertaining romp, thanks primarily to its leading man.
https://www.doctormacro.com/Images/Posters/W/Poster%20-%20West%20Point%20Story,%20The_02.jpg
Cagney stars as Bix Bixby, a down-on-his-luck Broadway director who is blackmailed by a producer to direct a musical at the West Point Military Academy because the producer wants his nephew, Tom (Gordon MacRae), who is enrolled at the Academy, to star in his next Broadway show, which Bix has been offered a percentage of if he can deliver Tom. Bix travels to West Point, accompanied by his long suffering assistant/girlfriend, Eve (Virginia Mayo), and is a little thrown when he realizes that all of the roles in the musical are being played by men.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNTVjMzI0ZDEtYzQ4MS00NjM5LWJjODEtOWM3N2Y3YmFiM2U4XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjE5MjUyOTM@._V1_.jpg
Bix is even more thrown by the lack of discipline at the Academy, not understanding that the guys' cadet duties are more important to them than their roles in this musical. Bix loses his temper with a cast member and punches him, which almost gets him thrown out of the academy, but Eve arranges for him to stay by agreeing that Bix enroll in the Academy himself. As a cadet, he is able to get closer to Tom and promises to get him a date with movie star Jan Wilson (Doris Day) if he agrees to leave the Academy and go to Broadway. What Bix doesn't count on is how important the Academy is to Tom or Jan falling in love with him.
https://www.album-online.com/photos/prev/YTU0YThlMA/album_alb248469.jpg
For those who thought Cagney's Oscar-winning turn as a song and dance man in Yankee Doodle Dandy was a fluke, naysayers were surprised when, eight years later, Cagney put his tap shoes back on for another musical comedy and, believe it or not, he absolutely knocks it out of the park here with a deliciously entertaining performance as a guy whose life has always been about show business but learns what real discipline and dedication are about as he finds out that being a man of honor means a lot more than "the show must go on."
http://rarefilm.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/The-West-Point-Story-1950-3.jpg
Director Roy Del Ruth has mounted a real musical comedy here with an unusual setting that provides believable musical comedy complications and misunderstandings that include a final act resolution includes our hero traveling from New York to Paris and back again. And who knew Jimmy Cagney could speak such fluent French?
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/K6or5TMC_9E/hqdefault.jpg
The musical numbers are first rate and serve the story instead of padding it or getting in its way. I especially loved "At The Kissing Rock", "Long Before I Knew You", "Ten Thousand Four Hundred and Thirty two Sheep", "The Military Polka", and "You Love Me". Mention should also be made of an Astaire type solo from Gene Nelson and the terrific finale with Cagney and Mayo called "Brooklyn."
https://victorygirlsblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/The-West-Point-Story-2.jpg
Once again, Doris Day and Gordon MacRae prove their onscreen chemistry was the real thing and Mayo is fun never allowing Cagney to blow her off the screen. The film also features an early film appearance by Alan Hale, Jr., who became a household name about 15 years later playing the Skipper on Gilligan's Island. A breezy and joyous musical romp that was a lot better than I thought it was going to be, thanks primarily to the legendary Jimmy Cagney. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Cyrus
Some directorial flourish and some first rate performances keep a 2010 black comedy called Cyrus watchable, despite a somewhat predictable story that seems to be protecting the wrong characters.
https://i1.wp.com/4.bp.blogspot.com/_VGuIVSLX0Dw/TAM5S9Bjk0I/AAAAAAAAAJY/tG3EwUhV7jU/s1600/cyrus-movie.jpg
Jay and Mark Duplass co-wrote and co-directed this indie sleeper that introduces us to John (John C. Reilly) a needy and insecure guy who is still stinging from his seven year old divorce from Jamie (Catherine Keener) even though they are still really good friends. Jamie convinces John to go to a party with her and her fiancee (Matt Walsh) where John meets a vivacious woman named Molly (Marisa Tomei) and begins a relationship with her. John is convinced he's in love with Molly even though they've only known each other a couple of days but everything changes when John meets Cyrus (Jonah Hill), Molly's 21-year-old son who still lives with her and whose relationship with Mom borders on the unnatural. It's not long before the viewer realizes that Cyrus is going to do whatever he needs to do to keep John and his mother apart.
https://www.aceshowbiz.com/images/still/cyrus05.jpg
The Duplass brothers have constructed a very manipulative story that sets up an obvious villain from the start and then protects said villain for the majority of the story. it's obvious from the moment we meet Cyrus that he is not going to allow this relationship to happen and the story cinches this by having Cyrus playing the victim and removing Molly's brain for the majority of the story. Cyrus plays his mother like a fiddle and he makes all the right moves to gain his mother's sympathy. I have to admit that I didn't understand the first bullet he fired...stealing John's sneakers, but when he spoke to John and Molly individually saying that should slow down and then announced the next day he was moving out, I knew this guy knew exactly what he was doing and that this relationship didn't stand a chance.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/sMBPwTNT-iM/maxresdefault.jpg
The story takes an odd turn during the final third of the film where it's clear that Cyrus has won and he all of a sudden has a change of heart and begs John to return to his mother and I have to admit I was reluctant about John doing this as John seemed to be. That final confrontation between Reilly and Hill was extremely well-acted, as was the entire film. The superb performances by the three stars are really what kept me invested in this somewhat unpleasant story.
https://fromthebalcony.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Cyrus_quqjzf.jpg
The performances by Reilly, Tomei, and especially Hill are the primary ingredient that make this movie worth investing in. The Duplass brothers do prove to have an effective eye with the camera and though their direction trumps their screenplay, they still prove to be filmmakers to watch. 3

[Gideon58]

On the Basis of Sex
A landmark court case of discrimination is the centerpiece of the 2018 docudrama On the Basis of Sex which has been incorrectly marketed and perceived as a biopic of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. The film is about an important case that happened to be championed by Mrs. Ginsburg that remains compelling despite manipulative lapses into melodrama.
https://static1.squarespace.com/static/540402efe4b014c74d2fd2fe/562d024be4b057e30c6d2330/5c5b99f8e4966b048bc39bbb/1551324404024/Nic1.jpg?format=1500w
The film begins in the style of a docudrama in 1956 as we watch Ginsburg entering Harvard Law School where her husband Martin is already a second year law student, whose education was temporarily sidelined when he was diagnosed with cancer. The story intially sets up Ginsburg as some kind of super woman trying to have it all, but the story really being told comes to light when Ginsburg, unable to secure work at a New York law firm, accepts a professorship at Rutgers teaching a class in Sexual Discrimination and the Law, which leads to a case of a man who 3was denied a tax break on hiring a caregiver because he was a man.
https://www.rollingstone.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/on-the-basis-of-sex-rbg.jpg?crop=900:600&width=440
Screenwriter Martin Stiepleman has constructed a slightly preachy story that takes a little too long to get where it's going. Beginning the story with Ginsburg's humble beginnings as law student who was underestimated because she was a woman was rather superfluous. I understand the purpose of it, but it goes on a little too long before getting to the real meat of the story, which is driven home in a very manipulative manner. Director Mimi Leider makes sure that we never forget the opposition that Ginsburg faces from just about everyone she encounters in this case, including her old professors at Harvard. The only unconditional support she receives is from husband Martin, who never wavers in his support and belief in his wife's litigation abilities or her knowledge of laws against discrimination. Loved the scene where Ruth states to her equally passionate daughter that Atticus Finch was a terrible lawyer. How can you not get with any movie that dares to rag out Atticus Finch?
https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/-Paew8fbyFxbRvgFcohJGZULnwg=/0x0:3600x2401/1200x0/filters:focal(0x0:3600x2401):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/13640833/onthebasis3.jpg
The film is handsomely mounted with striking attention to period detail and Leider gets superb performances from Felicity Jones as Ruth Ginsburg and another impressive performance from Armie Hammer, an actor who continues to astonish me with each performance. Justin Theroux is terrific as the ACLU lawyer as are Sam Waterston and Stephen Root as Ruth's Harvard law school opponents. I wish the story had spent a little less time on Ruth's humble beginnings and more on this landmark court case, but the movie is definitely worth watching. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Party Girl (1958)
Nicholas Ray, the director of Rebel Without a Cause scored a few years later with a slick and sizzling crime drama called Party Girl that works thanks to Ray's atmospheric direction and a compelling story that offers several surprises along the way.
https://cdn.cinematerial.com/p/500x/eoew0nfi/party-girl-movie-poster.jpg
The 1958 film takes place in Chicago during the 1930's where we meet Tommy Farrell (Robert Taylor), a mob attorney whose skill at getting criminals out of trouble has made him the go-to legal guy for mob boss Rico Angelo (Lee J. Cobb). Tommy is smart and savvy, knowing exactly when to talk and when to shut up and has learned to enjoy the perks that come with being a mob attorney. Then he meets a sexy showgirl named Vicki Gaye (Cyd Charisse) who won't allow herself to become Rico's property but is very attracted to Tommy, but not so much to his work.
https://www.highdefdigest.com/uploads/jb/Party-Girl-Cyd-Charisse-Robert-Taylor-7.jpg
Vicki begs Tommy to get away from Rico but we all know that once you're in with the mob, you can't get out and when Tommy refuses to defend an associate of Rico's, it initiates an all-out mob war where goodfellas start dropping like flies and Tommy and Vicki find themselves in serious danger as well.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMWQ1ZTA1ZDgtYmZhNS00MTExLTlmNGQtNGRmYTZmMjEzNmU2XkEyXkFqcGc@._V1_.jpg
Ray was not only one of the most underrated directors in the business, but also one of the most versatile. He pretty much invented the teen angst movie when he made Rebel Without a Cause but proved that he knew how to do other kinds of movies as well. The undeniable tension that he brings to George Wells' slightly cliched screenplay is what raises the bar on this one. With the aid of some first rate production values, Ray creates a sizzling atmosphere for a story that actually made a couple of detours I didn't see coming. One example being I loved the reveal that Tommy was married and when Vicki and Tommy's wife came face to face, not only did Vicki not care that Tommy never mentioned being married, she told his wife to hit the bricks. I also loved the jury selection scene for Louie's trial where it was revealed that Rico actually planted someone in the jury pool.
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6tIm4AImfWg/Tqb93OxxFRI/AAAAAAAAEaU/kiUjbuGpJ9Q/s1600/PG3.bmp.jpg
Ray even had the foresight to utilize the casting of Cyd Charisse by giving her two spectacular dance numbers in the film, effectively choreographed by Robert Sidney, that didn't directly affect the story, but did bring an element of sympathy to the character that makes the viewer really care when Rico threatens to throw acid in her face.
https://www.bfi.org.uk/sites/bfi.org.uk/files/styles/full/public/image/party-girl-1958-001-vicki-show-number-with-trumpeters.jpg?itok=67-26U7a
Robert Taylor was a little stone-faced as Farrell and I have to admit I would have liked to have seen someone else in the role, but I went with it. Lee J. Cobb was superb as Rico and John Ireland was also fun as Louie, who also has the hots for Vicki. And if you don't blink, you might catch veteran character actors Benny Rubin and Vito Scotti in tiny roles. This one was a lot more fun than I thought it was going to be, riveting me to the screen from opening to closing credits. 3.5

[Citizen Rules]

Party Girl (1958)
Lee J. Cobb was superb as Rico and John Ireland was also fun as Louie, who also has the hots for Vicki. And if you don't blink, you might catch veteran characters Benny and Vito Scotti in tiny roles. This one was a lot more fun than I thought I was going to be, riveting me to the screen from opening to closing credits. rating_3_5 Alright! I need to watch that one, sounds like my kind of movie.

[Gideon58]

I'm pretty sure you'll enjoy Party Girl Citizen

[Gideon58]

I'll See You in My Dreams (1951)
I had to watch a Doris Day movie today and it had to be something I hadn't seen and I finally settled on a lovely gem from 1951 called I'll See You in My Dreams which is a warm and affectionate valentine to composer Gus Kahn that's principle theme seems to be based on that old saying about what's behind every great man.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/c2/95/b5/c295b5b9595f5b8294f4c2385b0eb379.jpg
The film begins near the turn of the century where we meet a warehouse employee named Gus Kahn who is a budding lyricist and takes his music to a publisher where he meets a pianist and song plugger named Grace LeBoy (guess who) who likes Gus' work, but can't convince her boss (Hans Conreid) to publish the stuff, so she quits him and goes to another publisher (James Gleason) where Gus and Grace find professional success and, eventually, fall in love while Grace continues to push Gus to be everything he can be. Things get a little complicated for the Kahns though when he gets on offer from Florenz Ziegfeld to come to New York and write a show with a new composer named Walter Donaldson (Frank Lovejoy) for the follies and its new star, Gloria Knight (Patrice Wymore).
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/1d/97/38/1d9738c431e9a9231af5773778edc278.jpg
As most buffs know, composer biopics were churned out on a regular basis during the 40's and 50's and as entertaining as they might have been, most were not big on the facts, a story was just fabricated around the music using the songs and their composers. Whether or not this was an exception, I don't know, but I do know that Grace Kahn was still alive when this film went into production, which was a rarity when making films like this, but something about this one felt relatively authentic...and still managed to be genuinely entertaining at the same time.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/U-uEUSZf3es/hqdefault.jpg
This composer biopic also took a little different tack than a lot of these films. Usually in these films, the musician at the center of the story is his own driving force and love and marriage are an afterthought that are usually placed on the back burner so that they can pursue their career full time. In this film, Grace is the one who keeps pushing Gus and making him the best he can be. One of my favorite scenes in the film is when Gus gets the call from Ziegfeld and he turns down the offer. Grace grabs the phone from him and accepts the offer for him. Grace's pushing causes problems later, but it's a movie musical so we know it's all going to come out in the wash.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/DANEE0/ill-see-you-in-my-dreams-1951-doris-day-danny-thomas-michael-curtiz-DANEE0.jpg
Needless to say, all of Gus Kahn's most famous songs get showcased here in one form or another including "Wish I Had a Girl", "My Buddy", "Ukelele Lady", "It Had To Be You", "I'm Through with Love", "The One I Love" , "Ain't We Got Fun", "Makin Whoopee", "Love Me or Leave Me", and the title tune.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYWM5ZDAxZjctMjNkYy00NDc3LWE1MzktZDllYzlmNTY1YzBjXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjE5MjUyOTM@._V1_.jpg
Danny Thomas was on offbeat choice for the starring role as well as a leading man for Doris Day, but it totally worked. Thomas is charming as Gus and I had forgotten what a talented vocalist Danny Thomas was. It goes without saying that Doris Day is completely enchanting as the effervescent Grace, providing equal parts of warmth and strength to this very special character. Lovejoy was fun as Donaldson, Wymore was appropriately bitchy as Gloria the Diva, and Mary Wickes did her patented wisecracking maid. A very special motion picture experience that had me humming and tapping my toes. RIP, Doris, I miss you. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Cobb
A ferociously unhinged, Oscar-worthy performance by Tommy Lee Jones in the title role makes Cobb, the 1994 docudrama that instead of going the traditional biopic route, seems to be a filmed chronicle of the writing of the book upon which the film is based.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQYc079FoN7HBB6YFpm3nobpIFu0cseTYH6uha7C6OoTW5zK2iU
Jones plays baseball icon Ty Cobb, an outfielder for the Detroit Tigers for 22 seasons before finishing his career with the Philadelphia athletics. On and off the field, Cobb was also considered a monster, an egomaniacal lunatic who fixed games, fought with anyone, hated blacks and Jews, used and abused women, chased his medication with bourbon, and took a pistol with him everywhere. This film opens in 1960 when a writer named Al Stump is given the opportunity to write a book about the man and becoming his traveling companion for a ceremony to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, develops a love/hate/love/hate relationship with the man that allegedly drove him to the brink of insanity.
http://see-aych.com/90s-movies/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/cobb-1994.jpg
This movie is based on one of several books that Al Stump wrote on Cobb, but we're really not sure which one because, as we learn as the film progresses, Stump didn't believe a lot of what Cobb was telling him and therefore, actually started writing two different books, one was Cobb's version of his life and the other was Stump's unvarnished view of the man, who he considered an arrogant ass.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/BPEY6W/robert-wuhl-lolita-davidovich-cobb-1994-BPEY6W.jpg
Ron Shelton, a director and screenwriter who is no stranger to sports oriented films (Bull Durham, White Men Can't Jump, Tin Cup) really ventures into new territory for him, mounting a story on a real-life sports figure and I think that might be the problem. Shelton's screenplay seems to be a very stylized and slightly over-the-top look at the relationship between these two men that comes off as a little docudrama, a little biopic, a little character study, but waffles way too much between these sub-genres to be really effective in any area. Anyone looking for a straight look at Ty Cobb here will be disappointed because the film offers very little in terms of Cobb's career, but does offer a peak into the demons that haunted him, but we're never really sure if these demons are real because Al Stump's view of Cobb doesn't even near the neighborhood of objective. It's difficult to put stock in anything this film reveals because it's not really about Cobb, but Cobb seen through Al Stump's subjective eye. Stump's pretentious and predictable narration doesn't endear us to the story either.
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7xPZDSEqf58J8QxHYveCyhgWbCw_ITcsSKPig53C61ucfIK7MOx5jOpV3o6j6-2z0jTiM2eOLpXDQSlp7_RTtR4mwE-IyXnHyJBJY2qITZ2QKGOKMBSSa9bYiCYSallQWz24KN8R7eAkS/s1600/cobb1.jpg
What does work here is the powerhouse performance by Tommy Lee Jones that rivets the viewer to the screen and whenever Jones isn't onscreen, the film comes to a complete halt. Jones completely invests in this unsympathetic vision of this man and provides equal doses of shock and heartbreak...watch the scenes where he interrupts Louis Prima and Keely Smith's club act in Reno or his heartbreak when he sees the condition of the billboard with his name on it, or especially when he puts a pistol in his mouth and can't complete the deed because he starts coughing up blood. Jones offers one of the strongest performances of his career here and Robert Wuhl has never been better as Stump. Also loved Mrs. Shelton AKA Lolita Davidovich as a bubbly cigarette girl who encounters our heroes in Reno. The screenplay is unfocused and overblown, but Tommy Lee Jones makes this one worth a look. 3

[Gideon58]

Brewster's Millions (1985)
Richard Pryor and John Candy make an engaging screen team in an amiable comedy about greed and avarice called Brewster's Millions that is more than passing entertainment thanks to a clever story and a professional cast.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BM2MyMGJmZGEtOGQzNC00ZGMyLWEwNDYtMGExZjBlYjZlZGNkXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNDk3NzU2MTQ@._V1_UY1200_CR73,0,6 30,1200_AL_.jpg
Pryor plays Montgomery Brewster, a minor league baseball player who learns that he has a great uncle (who's white) whose bigotry about being related to a black man motivates him to impose what he thinks is an impossible caveat to an inheritance to his only living relative: The rich uncle informs Brewster via a videotaped will that he will give him 30 million dollars but he has to spend every penny of it in 30 days, without acquiring any assets, and if he does it, he will then inherit 300 million dollars. The only thing is he can't tell anyone about the arrangement.
http://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w780/f0vBOZSnOXjEr77RJoCF4EE49qG.jpg
Candy plays his BFF Spike who happily climbs aboard the gravy train and Lonette McKee plays Drake, the straight-laced accountant who has been hired by the estate to keep track of Brewster's spending.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNWI4YjI0OGQtNDI4Zi00YzQyLTk4MDgtZGQ1YzEzYTcwNTA0XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjUyNDk2ODc@._V1_SX1777_CR0,0,17 77,999_AL_.jpg
This is actually the third version of this story, which was previously filmed in 1921 and 1945, but the story has been effectively updated for the 1980's, a perfect time to resurrect this story as the 1980's were definitely the "me gimme mine" decade where everything was all about who has the most toys. We snicker when his Uncle states in the will that he has a plan to make Brewster sick of spending money because this looks like a dream on the surface but we are surprised at the beginning of the third act when Brewster actually admits that he's sick of spending money. Not to mention the fact that watching him piss away all this money is making him look like a bum in the eyes of Drake, who Brewster is, of course, attracted to.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/9Najox-g4zE/maxresdefault.jpg
The comic situations that can arise from such a premise are expertly mounted by director Walter Hill (48 HRS) whose unobtrusive direction never gets in the way of Pryor's slick interpretation of this central character, who is a lot smarter than he initially appears on the surface...the will does allow him to hire people to work for him and it is a lot of fun watching him buying a staff with such ease by throwing enough money at him. This story seems to be about the evils of money, but money still looks pretty good by the time the credits roll. Pryor and Candy have a strong supporting cast behind them including Pat Hingle, Jerry Orbach, Joe Grifasi, Stephen Collins, Tovah Feldshuh, and in his last theatrical film, David White, who played Larry Tate on Bewitched. It's predictable but Pryor keeps his character smart and likable and the film is rich with re-watch appeal. 3

[Gideon58]

De Palma
The director of Carrie, Blowout, Dressed to Kill, and The Untouchables gets an appropriate, if slightly clinical, tribute in the 2015 documentary De Palma, a film by film breakdown of legendary director Brian De Palma's unprecedented career which offers some great backstage info about the director's career, I just wish a little more imagination had been employed in the execution.
http://images.static-bluray.com/movies/covers/160307_front.jpg
This is a straightforward documentation of De Palma's career, told by the director himself, utilizing a lot of clips from his films as well as production clips as well. The only other director's work that is mentioned in the film is Alfred Hitchcock, who is clearly the primary influence in De Palma's work because, like Hitchcock, De Palma was obsessed with creating suspense than he was in the instantaneous "boo". No movie trickery here, just De Palma sitting in front of a camera and talking about his movies and even though it gets a bit dry here and there, watching a great director discuss his work is always worth investing in.
https://www.rollingstone.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/rs-243885-de-palma-De-Palma-Still-Scarface_rgb.jpg?crop=900:600&width=440
Even though the actor has always been associated with Martin Scorsese, this film reminded me that Robert De Niro made two of his earliest film appearances in films directed by De Palma at the beginning of is career: Greetings and Hi Mom. He talked about the varied difficulties involved in that opening shower scene in Carrie and the eternal build-up to the dropping of the bucket of blood, as well as his opinions on the varied remakes, re-thinkings, and re-imaginings of his 1976 classic. We are also reminded that Scarface was not the instant classic that people believe it to be. It was interesting hearing him talk about projects that he was initially involved with and had to let go of for one reason or another and how a lot of projects he did he had to really be pressured into.
https://www.bfi.org.uk/sites/bfi.org.uk/files/styles/full/public/image/mission-impossible-1996-002-tom-cruise-brian-de-palma-on-set.jpg?itok=_u_85UAx
I was surprised when he revealed that the only project that he was completely passionate about from beginning to end was Casualties of War. He shared some interesting stories about the battles between Sean Penn and Michael J. Fox, who apparently did not get along AT ALL during the making of that film. I also loved learning about the stink that was raised when he was trying to cast the porn actress in Body Double that he originally interviewed an actual porn star for the role and then tells us that Melanie Griffith, who eventually played the role, is the only thing people remember about Body Double.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/jyAo1F0ZpJo/maxresdefault.jpg
He did make me laugh when the subject of Mission: Impossible came up and how everything in involved in that movie was all about pleasing Tom Cruise. De Palma explains in detail the co-screenwriting credits for David Koepp and Robert Towne and how Cruise had a lot to do with that.
https://media.newyorker.com/photos/590977488b51cf59fc4233c9/master/w_727,c_limit/Brody-De-Palma.jpg
I also loved watching his passion and reverence regarding Hitchcock and the parallels in some of his movies to scenes from Vertigo, Strangers on a Train, and North By Northwest. We are informed at the beginning of this documentary that Vertigo is the reason De Palma became a director. Also loved his passion for the "steady cam" and how it has become one of his best suspense-building tools. An unremarkable look at the career of a remarkable director. 3.5

[Gideon58]

The Nanny
Bette Davis offers another latter career, post graduate acting courses in a 1965 psychological melodrama called The Nanny that remains riveting despite a simplistic and confusing screenplay.
https://resizing.flixster.com/ivftp-C0X56lJkwnW-4FZDLsqrk=/206x305/v1.bTsxMjEwNDc2NztqOzE4MDUwOzEyMDA7MTQ5ODsyMTMy
Davis plays the nanny/housekeeper for the Fanes, an English family who are still struggling with the effects of the death of their young daughter a year ago. Joey Fane is the 10 year old brother of the victim who was suspected of drowning his sister and was institutionalized because of it. Joey is now returning home to his stuffy father, Bill, his basket case of a mother Virginia, and his cynical Aunt Pen. Upon his return, Joey finds himself engaged in a battle of wills with the nanny because he believes she is the one who killed his sister , was responsible for him being sent away, and he is now convinced that Nanny is planning for him to be her next victim.
https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-djYO6J2yVr8/Wcj_FgMjt9I/AAAAAAAADsw/nXviCxw7CL8LQLclfEzSUJ-SMQdfWLI0gCLcBGAs/s1600/the%2Bnanny%2B1965%2Baaa.jpg
Jimmy Sangster's problematic screenplay is based on a novel by Evelyn Piper, that simultaneously telegraphs a lot of what is going while throwing the viewer enough red herrings that the viewer is never really sure what happened to the little girl or whether or not Joey's fears about his nanny are legitimate. A flashback about halfway through the film reveals that the daughter's death was an accident but a later peek into Nanny's backstory reveals that this might have not been the case. But the connection between Nanny's backstory and what happened to the little girl doesn't really make sense.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/CMG9oADfvm8/maxresdefault.jpg
Sangster's screenplay also spends a lot of time telegraphing things that are going to happen. During the scene where we meet Joey's eccentric Aunt Pen, it is mentioned three times during a 15 second period that the woman has a heart condition and then five minutes later, Joey asks his mother if his aunt could be scared to death. It's made crystal clear that Aunt Pen is going to be dead before this story concludes, though it doesn't happen the way we expect. A major red herring is offered in the opening scene when our introduction to the character of Joey Fane is a shot of the boy pretending to hang himself.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNTdkYzdiNTEtYTUxZi00MjBhLTg5MGMtY2I0ODI5NmRkYWU5XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjE3NjA1MzQ@._V1_.jpg
Director Seth Holt does display some skill behind the camera, providing a couple of effective "boos" along the way , not to mention pulling some effective performances from his cast. Davis' taut and icy nanny, sporting eyebrows that would put Peter Gallagher to shame, offers a chillingly controlled performance. William Dix is splendid as Joey, one of the most despicable child movie characters ever. Wendy Craig is quite affecting as the hot mess Virginia and Jill Bennett is a lot of fun as Aunt Pen. Pamela Franklin also makes one of her earliest film appearances here as the teenage upstairs neighbor and confidante of Joey. It's an effective little thriller as long as you don't think about it too much. 3

[Gideon58]

What Men Want
An energetic performance by Taraji P. Henson is the centerpiece of 2019's What Men Want, a long-winded re-imagining of a 1999 film that suffers from an overblown and over-complicated story that didn't need all the "help" that this film tries to provide.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51dQbJYGSkL._SY445_.jpg
Henson plays Ali Davis, a sports agent at a large agency who is feeling shut out because she's a woman. She has just lost a bid for partner because most her clients are Olympic athletes instead of baseball, basketball, and football players. She learns she has a chance at redeeming herself if she can sign a college basketball prodigy named Jamal Barry.
https://static.rogerebert.com/uploads/review/primary_image/reviews/what-men-want-2019/hero_what-men-want-image.jpg
Ali goes to a bachelorette party where a fortune teller tells her exactly what's going on with her life and gives her a magical tea to help her with her problem. Later on the dance floor, Ali hits her head and when she regains consciousness in the hospital, discovers that she has the ability to hear what all men are thinking.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNTU5NjAwMDY2MV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwODc2MzgxNzM@._V1_.jpg
If this plotline sounds familiar, it might because back in 1999 Mel Gibson appeared in a film called What Women Want where he played an ad executive who gets partially electrocuted and when he comes to, he can hear what all women are thinking. But in this new "Me too" society we're living in, the director and screenwriter decided this story was ripe for a gender switch. The screenwriters for What Women Want are given onscreen credit for this screenplay, but this one gets a little too bogged down in female empowerment instead of just concentrating on this woman taking advantage of her new found ability.
https://rogermooresmovienation.files.wordpress.com/2019/02/men3.jpeg?w=640
One main difference between this film and the 1999 film is that this protagonist doesn't keep the secret to herself. She tells her assistant and the fortune teller because she thinks that the magic tea was the cause. Even if it was the cause, I was wondering what she thought the fortune teller could do about. She tells Ali from jump that the tea is a very recent discovery and knows very little about it herself. It also seemed to take Ali a lot longer to get a handle on what this power could do for her, something the Mel Gibson character didn't have too much trouble with. It takes forever to get to the requisite happy ending, which is conveniently wrapped up in a neat little bow that was just a little too neat.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNWExY2FmYjYtMmFiZC00YmVhLWIwZGUtOGNkZmQ2ODUzZjE1XkEyXkFqcGdeQXRyYW5zY29kZS13b3JrZmxvdw@@._V1_.jp g
Director Adam Shankman has employed top-notch production values and a large cast to pull off this caper and a lot of the large cast is wasted in thankless roles. Henson works hard in the starring role, but she gets to be exhausting, thanks to the film's extreme over length. Brian Bosworth was surprisingly effective as her boss as was veteran Richard Roundtree as Ali's father. Aldis Hodge is strong and sexy as the single dad/romantic interest who Ali uses and abuses to help her land Jamal and Tracy Morgan was funny as Jamal's dad. Josh Brener impressed as Ali's assistant and SNL's Pete Davidson appears unbilled as Brener's secret office crush. Have to give a shout out to singer Eryka Badu, who was surprisingly funny as the fortune teller. A whole lot of money and talent went into re-thinking a movie that really didn't need to be re-thought. 2.5.

[Gideon58]

Nebraska (2013)
After close to 60 years in the business, veteran character actor Bruce Dern received his first Oscar nomination for Outstanding Lead Actor for his tour de force performance in a loopy road trip/character study called Nebraska, a funny and moving story that perfectly balances laughs with tears.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/9f/52/5e/9f525ee8e2e54208fb63a2d669870ac8.jpg
The 2013 film features Dern as Woody Grant, an aging resident of Billings Montana who is suffering from dementia and is caught by a policeman walking on the side of the highway. Apparently, Woody has a sweepstakes letter claiming that he has won a million dollars and that he has to go to Lincoln, Nebraska to claim his prize. He cannot drive so he has decided to walk to Lincoln. A few days later, Woody's son, David (Will Forte) tries to convince his dad that the letter is a scam but he's not hearing that, so David agrees to take a few days off work and drive his dad to Lincoln.
https://static01.nyt.com/images/2013/11/15/arts/15NEBRASKA_SPAN/15NEBRASKA-superJumbo.jpg
David convinces Woody to take a detour to Hawthorne, Nebraska, the town where Woody grew up, where they are reunited with Woody's older brother (the late Rance Howard), his wife (Mary Louise Wilson), and several other friends and relatives who are thrilled with the news that Woody has won a million dollars and when David tries to explain that Woody hasn't really won anything, they aren't hearing it either and all have their hands out, claiming that Woody owes them all money. Woody's wife (June Squibb) and David's brother, Ross (Bob Odenkirk) join Woody and David in Hawthorne to try and referee the proceedings and keep the greedy relatives from tearing Woody apart.
http://www.eureporter.co/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Nebraska_thumbLG.jpg
Alexander Payne (Election, Sideway, About Schmidt) is no stranger to bringing bizarre stories to the screen, though this is the the first time he is working with a screenplay written by someone else. Bob Nelson's script is joyous in its simplicity and the was it captures the sometimes awkward events that are reuniting Woody's family for the first time in a long time and the new and sometimes ugly places such reunions can go when the possibility of money is involved.
http://www.oscarchamps.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/2013-Nebraska-04.jpg
My heart really went out to the David character in this movie when he finally decided to quit fighting the fact that his father was not accepting the fact that this letter was a hoax, but I didn't understand why he wasn't able to convince the greedy friends and relatives the same and couldn't really get behind all of them refusing to believe it either, I mean they weren't all suffering from dementia. Two of Woody's relatives actually jump him outside a bar to get the letter from him and Woody's former business partner actually threatens him with physical violence if Woody doesn't give him $10,000.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTrqYf3U63qFJuDSs-vT87F6RfNfoBXhE8o2Q&s
The real pleasure in this film was watching this character Woody and seeing how much of his memory is just gone and is in complete denial about it. The only other performance that nailed dementia the way this one does was Phillip Bosco in The Savages. But I loved the two scenes where we some of the light return to Woody's eyes...one was when he returned to the house that he grew up in and during the fabulous finale where David makes him an offer he can't refuse.
http://www.arthousefilmwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/nebraska.jpg
Dern was nominated for Best Supporting Actor way back in 1979 for Coming Home, so it was really nice to see him get recognized for this powerhouse performance. Squibb also received her first ever nomination for supporting actress for her no-nonsense wife simultaneously fed up with her husband and trying to protect him. Will Forte does some impressive work in his first serious film role and it was lovely seeing Rance Howard as Dern's older brother and the always watchable Mary Louise Wilson. An often hilarious and often heartbreaking journey with a finale so special it knocked my rating up half a bag of popcorn. 4

[Gideon58]

The Art of Love
During the third season hiatus from his classic CBS sitcom, Dick Van Dyke and the show's creator Carl Reiner somehow found time to collaborate on a hysterically funny 1965 comedy called The Art of Love that provides fall-down-on-the-floor hysterics as long as you don't think about it.
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5QJ1xe_2UtQ/TxxBCUDszsI/AAAAAAAADCY/uFlm0pIlVjg/s1600/the-art-of-love-movie-poster-1965-1020231829.jpg
Van Dyke plays Paul Sloan, a starving painter living in Paris with his best friend Casey Barnett (James Garner), a struggling writer who decide to fake Paul's death in order to sell his work because Paul has been advised by a local art deal that artists' work sells much quicker after the artist passes away. Casey decides to stash Paul on the top floor of a nightclub owned by the brassy Madame CoCo (Ethel Merman) where he will continue to paint, but then Casey gets greedy and forgets about Paul, only lining his own pockets.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/ENNXM8/the-art-of-love-usa-1965-aka-bei-madama-coco-regie-norman-jewison-ENNXM8.jpg
Paul and Casey's plan gets complicated by a young French woman named Nikki (Elke Sommar) who Paul met during his alleged suicide who falls instantly in love with him and Paul's fiancee, Laurie (Angie Dickinson), who arrives from the States when she hears from Paul's death, but ends up falling for Casey. Things get even stickier for our boys when the police investigating Paul's suicide come to the conclusion that it was not a suicide and that Casey murdered Paul.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYjk3OTA4ZWUtMTU5Yy00ZDYzLTg1ZDEtYmExMDJhN2IzMzEwXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTU2MjI3NTk@._V1_.jpg
Carl Reiner has concocted an outrageously over the top funny story perfectly suited to the stars and lovingly brought to fruition by veteran director Norman Jewison who displays a real gift for slapstick comedy here that rivals his work on another Carl Reiner screenplay The Thrill of it All. There are a couple of small plot points that it was hard to get past, primarily the fact that no one involved in this story seemed to question the fact that Paul's work kept showing up despite the guy had supposedly killed himself.
https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/xV4AAOSwhlZYs4Ww/s-l1200.jpg
I was also a little troubled by the fact that even though this story took place in Paris that this film looked like it never left a Hollywood soundstage. Taking place in Paris, a lot of the supporting characters are French, but they're all played by American actors. I think this movie would have been even funnier with an actual French supporting cast. These nitpicks took a half bag of popcorn off my rating, but they never got in the way of the laughs provided on the surface of the story.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/BP936K/james-garner-dick-van-dyke-the-art-of-love-1965-BP936K.jpg
Van Dyke and Garner are absolutely hilarious in their physically demanding roles, documenting their affinity for physical comedy. Van Dyke even gets to briefly reprise his elder Mr. Dawes character from [I]Mary Poppins[/I. ]Sommar and Dickinson were attractive leading ladies and there is standout support from Roger C. Carmel as the art dealer who springboards the whole plot and the glorious cameo by Reiner as Garner's lawyer. For a movie that's over 50 years old, this one still brings the funny, thanks primarily to comic legends Dick Van Dyke and Carl Reiner. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Light Sleeper
A solid cast delivering some terrific performances help to keep a 1992 crime drama/character study called Light Sleeper watchable though it is eventually weighed down by an air of pretension and confusion over the story.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZDA3YzZhZjAtYWFiMC00M2Q4LTk5YzQtOGY3MTljMzMyOGViXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjc1NTYyMjg@._V1_UY1200_CR91,0,6 30,1200_AL_.jpg
Four time Oscar nominee Wllem Dafoe stars as John LeTour, an upscale drug runner in Manhattan who is forced to re-assess his life when he learns his bosses (Susan Sarandon, David Clennon) are getting out of the business. Trying to figure out what he wants to do next is complicated when John reconnects with an ex-girlfriend and client (Dana Delaney).
https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/original/nYta3vK1JDWm4vW7FJCVa1re7ko.jpg
Paul Schrader, a writer whose impressive resume as a screenwriter includes Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, and Affliction definitely gets an "A" for effort in terms of trying something different. We've seen a lot of movies about drug dealers, but we've never seen a story centered around someone at this level...we've seen 12 year old dealers in films like Fresh and we've seen kingpins like Nino Brown and Tony Montana, but we've rarely seen the guys in between before. John's clientele is upscale and he actually goes to wherever customers are to hand-deliver. He is actually observed making on delivery in a hospital waiting room, but his position in the pecking order isn't really made clear, When the film began, I thought he was working for Sarandon's character, not the other way around.
https://scenebygreen.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/screenshotter-untitledfromottvideosonvimeo-5511.jpg?w=825&h=510&crop=1
Schrader the director works a little too hard at trying to establish a dark atmosphere. He makes a major point of setting this story during a garbage strike in Manhattan, resulting in a lot of scenes of characters walking behind blocks and blocks of garbage that I guess is supposed to symbolize this dirty world these people are supposed to be part of. Drug dealing is a dirty business, we get it. I was also bothered by the fact that LeTour keeps telling people throughout the film that he's clean now...he's stopped using, but nothing else about his life has changed.
https://assets.mubi.com/images/notebook/post_images/26064/images-w1400.jpg?1529335706
The only thing that kept me invested in this somewhat convoluted story were the superb performances by Dafoe, Sarandon, and a surprisingly explosive turn from Dana Delaney that was a real eye opener. Dafoe fans will enjoy this more than the average movie viewer, for which this one is pretty rough going. A disappointment considering the pedigree of the writer and director. 2.5

[Gideon58]

The Apostle (1997)
A dark and ferocious performance from the iconic Robert Duvall that earned him his sixth Oscar nomination is at the center of a sincere, but slightly manipulative 1997 drama The Apostle that has the purest of intentions but is weighed down by self-indulgence direction and a screenplay a little too protective of its central character.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51F41pr6+uL._RI_SX300_.jpg
Duvall plays Eulis Dewey, a fire and brimstone preacher from Fort Worth, Texas who has been preaching the gospel since he was 12 years old. He is also an abusive control freak who has destroyed his marriage through his abuse. He ignores the pleas of his wife (Farrah Fawcett) for a divorce and uses his two children as weapons to hold onto her. One day at a child's baseball game, Dewey's temper gets the best of him and he assaults a man with a baseball bat, putting the man in a coma. He is forced to leave town and start over in a small town in Louisiana, where he changes his name to The Apostle E F and starts preaching on the radio, which leads him to rebuild a rundown church and create a brand new flock who are mesmerized by the charismatic leader.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/TxKxj0ZWEcY/maxresdefault.jpg
In addition to being the star, Robert Duvall also served as executive producer, writer, and director of this film so anything that is right or wrong with this film has to fall at Duvall's feet. Duvall must be applauded for creating a central character that fits his screen persona like a glove....explosive, unpredictable, tender, forceful, everything we've all seen from Duvall's characters over the years. There is some good in this character, but it was hard to be sympathetic this guy during the first scene with his wife where he raises his hand as if to strike her and she jumps away from him. And once he hit that guy with a baseball bat, it was impossible for this reviewer to completely invest in in anything else this character did.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/z_r6KUYYO5E/hqdefault.jpg?v=55c26606
Duvall's direction is sluggish, the movie moves at a snail's pace and once the character becomes The Apostle E F, Duvall works tirelessly to get the viewer behind the characters, showing all the good he does with his new followers. We even witness E F talk down a guy who wants to bulldoze his church to the ground, effectively played by Billy Bob Thornton, but the image of E F and that baseball bat never left my head and colored everything else the guy did. Screenwriter Duvall works very hard at protecting this character, evidenced in the endless finale where E F gives his final service while the police wait outside for him to finish his service. One, I didn't buy that the police would just sit outside and wait for him, and two, if Duvall really wanted the viewer to think E F was a changed man, he would have had him leave the pulpit the moment the police arrive and face the consequences of his actions.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BY2E1YzM0OWUtZjJlNi00ZWJlLWJmZjYtNTEzMWNhMzAxYTAwXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjUyNDk2ODc@._V1_.jpg
Considering all the hats that Duvall wore during this production, I am happy to report that his performance doesn't suffer a bit. Duvall has never been more mesmerizing onscreen and, if the truth be told, was robbed of a second Best Actor Oscar, losing to Jack Nicholson for As Good As it Gets. Farrah Fawcett also impresses in her brief role as the abused wife who's had enough as did Walton Goggins as one of E F's new followers in Louisiana, but this is Duvall's show and he never lets the viewer forget it. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Funny About Love
The late Gene Wilder didn't get a lot of opportunities in his too brief career to go straight romantic leading man but he makes the most of the chance in a forgotten 1990 comedy called Funny About Love, that a charismatic cast helps to smooth out the rough spots.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/UjH8yG91cSA/movieposter.jpg
Wilder plays Duffy, a political cartoonist whose cartoon is about to become a television show. Christine Lahti, another performer not known for romantic leads, plays Meg, an effervescent chef who makes lousy cappuccino and wants a baby. Duffy and Meg meet and marry, but the marriage is strained to its limits when they are unable to conceive a child. Duffy and Meg separate and Meg finds success as the head chef at an upscale Manhattan eatery while Duffy falls for a production assistant on his TV show named Daphne (Mary Stuart Masterson).
https://assets.mubi.com/images/film/54404/image-w1280.jpg?1445916901
As wonderful as the lead actors are here, this film still moves with all the momentum of a funeral dirge that makes a 1 hour and 40 minute movie seem like it's four hours long. Considering what the film actually turns out to be about, the beginning of the film documenting Duffy and Meg's brief courtship could have been eliminated all together. they could have opened the film with Duffy and Meg's wedding and saved us 20 minutes off the top. The screenplay seems to be taking the concept of being unable to conceive a little too lightly and it is manifested mostly through Duffy's character, who is our only conduit into Meg's pain and his often insensitivity into how difficult this is for her doesn't exactly help the viewer like Duffy.
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zV9-B370DOg/VShHDH0N-0I/AAAAAAAAIKo/kLjYV4tnlmY/s1600/303846_full.jpg
I also have to confess that I never really bought the relationship between Duffy and Daphne and was not pleased with the reveal that Duffy actually gets her pregnant, because when he and Meg are trying to conceive, their doctor (David Margulies) would always skirt the issue when Duffy and Meg wanted to know which one of them was making it impossible for them to conceive.
https://ib4.hulu.com/user/v3/artwork/3cb66c57-b17e-445b-9269-76e188de545a?base_image_bucket_name=hummus&base_image=3adc53f2-e14f-4ea8-9852-c38aa150f458&size=600x338&format=jpeg
What does work here is two superb starring performances from Gene Wilder and Christine Lahti that put the viewer in support of their relationship from the minute they meet. Wilder seems to be really enjoying this voyage into new cinematic territory and it's a shame he didn't get anymore opportunities to do this kind of role (he would only do one more theatrical feature after this one). Robert Prosky and Anne Jackson are fun as Duffy's parents and there are cameos from Regis Philbin and Patrick Ewing. The film definitely has its problems, especially the lackluster direction of Leonard Nimoy, but fans of Wilder and Lahti will find some gold here. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Dressed to Kill (1980)
After my recent viewing of the Brian De Palma documentary, I was motivated to finally sit down and watch 1980's Dressed to Kill, a supremely stylish erotic thriller that works not because of the story, but because of the way it's told, much like De Palma's cinematic mentor, Alfred Hitchcock.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/ef/65/23/ef652394fe54eecd031e92adac151de6.jpg
Kate Miller (Angie Dickinson) is a sexually frustrated housewife who cruises a stranger in a museum and has sex with him in a cab and then at his home. She's almost home when she realizes she left her wedding ring at the stranger's apartment but on her way back, she is brutally slashed to death with a razor by a blonde in a dark coat.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNjA4OTEzMjY4NF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNzA4NzQzNA@@._V1_.jpg
A pretty young hooker (Nancy Allen) finds Kate on the elevator covered in blood and sees the killer in the reflection of the mirror in the elevator. The detective investigating the murder (Dennis Franz) is led to believe that the killer is the patient of a prominent shrink (Michael Caine) while the hooker and Kate's teenage son (Keith Gordon) work together to figure out who killed Kate.
https://media.giphy.com/media/QlxSvcEgzhz3i/giphy.gif
Even anyone who didn't know anything about De Palma's directorial style can see the Hitchcock influence everywhere in the crafting of this story. I love De Palma's preference in letting his camera tell the story rather than dialogue. There are long stretches of this film that have no dialogue but still rivet the viewer to the screen because the camera work is so slow and deliberate the viewer is afraid there is something they're going to miss. That steady cam that follows Angie Dickinson in the museum is just brilliantly utilized and actually keeps the viewer on their toes, making the viewer think something's going to happen that really doesn't
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRaPgffaBm-bPMaQfnZMsrcBe_wcaXkuuwnTrwAdzzV03Llpkks
With his stunning camera work and Pino Donnagio's music, there's a whole lot of stylish filmmaking going on here and it has to be stylish because the story is nothing special that the viewer pretty much figures out about halfway through. He even borrows from himself here...there is a definite Carrie influence here as well. But De Palma is the whole show here and this Hitchcock homage is a winner. 4

[Gideon58]

The Leisure Seeker
2017's The Leisure Seeker is a lovely cinematic postcard that becomes something out of the ordinary thanks to the beautiful performances by the stars that give standard material more substance than it deserves.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTg1NTg2MzcyNF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNjMwMDIzNDM@._V1_.jpg
Donald Sutherland and Oscar winner Helen Mirren command the screen as John and Ella Spencer, an elderly couple who have snuck out of their house and packed up a giant Winnebago called The Leisure Seeker for a road trip to the Florida Keys so that John can fulfill a life long dream to see the home of Ernest Hemingway. Unfortunately, John is suffering from severe memory loss and Ella has health issues of her own and their son, Will thinks his parents are no longer able to take care of themselves. Will was apparently planning to place his parents in a home and they were aware of his plan because they got away just before Will arrives at their house.
https://static.rogerebert.com/uploads/review/primary_image/reviews/the-leisure-seeker-2017/hero_Leisure-Seeker-2017.jpg
The viewer is put through an emotional journey as it is clear that John's condition is serious enough that there are moments where he doesn't even remember who Ella is and we begin to wonder if Will's concerns about his parents are legitimate. But then we watch Ella, his devoted wife who still appears to have it together and is doing her best to keep John together. There's a sweet scene where John and Ella are watching family slides and Ella is discreetly quizzing John on who the people in the slides are and giving him the appropriate clues to help him remember. It's also clear that Ella is in some denial about what is happening to John...even though the viewer sees it immediately, we don't hear Ella actually verbalize John's condition until halfway through the film.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjIyNzg0MTc4Nl5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwODE4OTA3MzI@._V1_.jpg
The story is comprised of individual vignettes in this very special road trip that run the gamut. The expected encounter with the police occurs, as well as an encounter with a pair of thugs who attempt to rob the Spencers and there was one that I really didn't see coming at all where John, in a state of confusion, admits to having an affair with their neighbor back home (Dana Ivey). This revelation causes Ella to act out in a way that we don't see coming, but we see through everything that happens in this movie is that these two people would be lost without each other and would rather live out their days alone as opposed to the confines of a nursing home.
https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/mdjonline.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/d8/4d864610-6871-11e6-b808-ab357a82d7f0/57bb065c415b5.image.jpg?resize=1200%2C819
Paolo Virzìs' direction is a little too deliberate, making the film feel a little longer than it should be, but the consummate professionalism of the amazing Donald Sutherland and the breathtaking Helen Mirren, who effectively adjusts her British accent to a southern drawl, makes this occasionally labored journey worth the ride. It goes without saying that fans of the 1981 film On Golden Pond will have a head start here. 3.5

[Gideon58]

I Want To Live! (1958)
After four previous nominations, Susan Hayward finally nabbed the Oscar for Outstanding Lead Actress for her powerful performance in the 1958 docudrama I Want to Live!, an overheated chronicle of Barbara Graham, a woman convicted of murder who is sentenced to death via the gas chamber. Despite an air of stylized melodramatics to the film, it still packs quite a wallop.
https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/1104/4308/products/i-want-to-live-movie-poster-1958-1020460840_1024x1024.jpg?v=1468869046
Barbara Graham was a prostitute who always hung out with the wrong people and agreed to aid Emmett Perkins and Jack Santos in the robbery of an elderly widow, which goes wrong, resulting in the woman's death. When Perkins and Santos are caught, they are convinced that Barbara ratted them out and in attempt to save their own necks, they implicate Barbara in the murder and despite very vocal protestations of her innocence, Graham is sentenced to die in the gas chamber. A reporter named Ed Montgomery whose writing about her led to her initial arrest ends up stepping up to help her when he learns that she's going to be executed.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/A7473G/i-want-to-live-1958-ua-film-with-susan-hayward-A7473G.jpg
Robert Wise, who won Oscars for directing the film versions of two musicals, West Side Story and The Sound of Music, received a richly deserved nomination for his work here, mounting a compelling story that may have been altered to evoke sympathy for the heroine, but the atmosphere Wise creates here is often bone-chilling as he takes us inside the soul of this woman who in the completely unenviable position of knowing exactly when she's going to die.
https://classicmovierev.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/I-Want-to-Live-1958.jpg
Screenwriters Nelson Gidding and Don Mankiewicz do an admirable job of crafting this story for the screen, though they never make a solid commitment regarding Graham's guilt, leaving it up to the viewer. The way the story comes across here, Santos and Perkins lied about Barbara in an effort to save their own asses, but research does reveal that there was strong evidence pointing to her guilt, but the screenplay never really commits the way it should.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/C8CT6R/susan-hayward-i-want-to-live-1958-C8CT6R.jpg
Wise really scores in the second half of the film when Graham is transferred to San Quentin to await the final hours of her life. Her complete defiance of rules at this point is completely understandable and a lot of fun to watch. It was unsettling watching the juxtaposition of Barbara sitting in her cell with scenes of the prison staff preparing the gas chamber for the fateful day. I loved when she was being strapped in and an officer told her to hold her breath and count to ten then hold her breath because it's easier that way, to which she replied "How would you know?"
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTQ1NTY5MzY2NF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNzA3MTI0NA@@._V1_.jpg
1958 was a rough year in the Best Actress category...Rosalind Russell in Auntie Mame, Liz Taylor in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Shirley MacLaine in Some Came Running, but I think they got this one right...Hayward is incredible here in what was definitely the best performance of her career and it's nice to see the Academy actually recognize that once in a while. Simon Oakland also hit all the right notes as Ed Montgomery. Oakland would work with Wise again in West Side Story. There's also an early film appearance from John Marley as a priest and Johnny Mandel also scores with his jazzy music, which beautifully frames this often chilling story. As a docudrama, it doesn't fully commit, but as uncompromising movie storytelling, it still works. The film was remade for TV in 1983 with Lindsay Wagner playing Barbara Graham. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Romy and Michele's High School Reunion
The screenplay is overly complex, but the 1997 comedy Romy and Michele's High School Reunion remains watchable thanks to some stylish direction and a pair of charismatic lead performances.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/2/2e/Romy_and_michele_s_high_school_reunion.jpg/220px-Romy_and_michele_s_high_school_reunion.jpg
Romy White (Mira Sorvino) and Michele Weinberger (Lisa Kudrow) have been best friends since high school and ten years later, they are living together in LA where Romy is a receptionist at a car dealer and Michele is unemployed. Romy learns from another high school friend (Janeane Garafolo) that their ten year reunion is coming up. Romy and Michele are excited about the reunion but decide that their lives in LA suck so they decide to tell everyone that they got rich by inventing post-its.
http://images3.static-bluray.com/reviews/6435_3.jpg
The premise of this film is great and I think, in the hands of someone like John Hughes, this might have worked really well, but Robin Schiff's screenplay, based on her own play, is kind of all over the place and takes way to long to get where it's going. It takes too long for the girls to get on the road to Tuscon and upon arrival, the story takes a couple of huge unnecessary detours that aggravate and confuse the viewer. There's a flashforward that looks at the characters 70 years later that's just a waste of screentime.
https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s--oR7O2AR3--/c_scale,f_auto,fl_progressive,q_80,w_800/qgz0httek6xsvhbufqew.jpg
What does work here is Schiff's on target examination at the high school class wars and the stereotypes that we come to expect from such a story. We have the popular snotty bitch, the geeky nerd who returns to the reunion the richest and most successful guy there, and the potty-mouthed smart-ass who pretends to hate everyone but just wants to be popular. The two central characters are also completely engaging and we really don't understand why the story actually tears them apart at the halfway point, even though we know it's temporary. I love their argument about which one is the "Mary" and which one is the "Rhoda."
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR4q1eLmuieKGIfp1CFkwBJzwWMqnzGdJwULg&s
Sorvino and Kudrow make a wonderful screen team and I'm actually surprised that these characters haven't been revisited in a sequel. Also loved Alan Cumming as the geeky Sandy Frink and Garafolo as the bitter Heather Mooney. The screenplay is a little fuzzy, but the cast and direction make this one worth a look. 3

[Citizen Rules]

I love Romy and Michele's High School Reunion, thought I've only seen it once years ago. I'll have to watch it again now.

[Gideon58]

Executive Suite
A proven director behind the camera, a compelling story of office politics, and an impressive all-star cast are the primary selling points of a sizzling 1954 melodrama called Executive Suite that completely engaged this reviewer with constant surprises along the way and an ending that will induce cheers.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZGY1Yzk0N2MtMmZlYS00OGIyLWFiODAtYTNmYzkzYzczYzhhXkEyXkFqcGc@._V1_.jpg
The canvas for the story is a large manufacturing company called The Treadway Corporation and we learn that Avery Bullard, the president of the company, has sent a telegram calling a meeting of the board of directors for 6:00 pm. After sending the telegram, Bullard is en route to catch the 5:49 train into New York and unexpectedly drops dead. A drama unfolds as Bullard never made any clear cut arrangements for a replacement so a power play is initiated, starting with Bullard's # 2 man, Loren Shaw (Fredric March) who thinks his appointment to the position will be a shoo-in, but that is hardly the case.
https://dp9a3tyzxd5qs.cloudfront.net/executive-suite-1954.jpg
The board members and other primary players in this drama include Don Walling (William Holden), an engineer with the company who really doesn't have experience at the executive level; George Casswell (Louis Calhern) a snake whose only concern after hearing about Bullard's death is getting his hands on as much company stock as he can; Frederick Alderson (Walter Pidgeon), whose made it his mission to make sure than anyone but Shaw take over the company; Julia Treadway (Barbara Stanwyck) the major stockholder in the company who inherited the stock from her late father; and Josiah Dudley (Paul Douglas), a salesman with the firm who is too distracted by his failing marriage and his mistress (Shelley Winters) to focus on what's going at Treadway. And let's not forget Erica (Nina Foch), Bullard's private secretary and Don's wife, Mary (June Allyson).
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYmMxMmU3MjQtM2VhYS00MGUzLWI5NjAtYmE3MzQ4MTFiNWI1XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTk2MzI2Ng@@._V1_.jpg
Director Robert Wise shows a real penchant for developing solid melodrama based on a character whose death actually opens the story. I love that Casswell is the only character who learns of the death right after it happens and his first call is to his broker to buy up Treadway stock. It was interesting that the rest of the characters don't learn about Bullard's death until about 40 minutes in the film and that's where the fun starts. It's made clear immediately that no one wants Shaw running the company and we don't have to wait forever to find out why...Shaw's machinations to get the presidency begin almost immediately, but what makes watching him work so much fun is the subtlety he employs in what he's doing. He claims that every move he makes is for the good of the company but every move he makes is toward furthering his own agenda. Fredric March's casting in this role was inspired, a beautifully underplayed performance that makes the viewer want to strangle the guy.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/F6E7M7/release-date-may-6-1954-movie-title-executive-suite-studio-metro-goldwyn-F6E7M7.jpg
Holden is splendid as the hothead who knows Shaw is wrong for the company and steps up when he needs to and I also loved Calhern in his accustomed slick turn as the guy only concerned about lining his own pockets and is not above kissing Shaw's entitled ass to do it. Stanwyck makes the most out of what is a glorified cameo and Douglas evokes serious pathos in his Dudley. Mention should also be made of the superb performance by Nina Foch as the secretary protecting her boss' legacy and Shelley Winters finally playing a character who wasn't a doormat. Robert Wise and screenwriter Ernest Lehman, who would triumph a decade later with The Sound of Music, produce a winner here, with the aid of a powerhouse cast, all working at the top of their game. 4

[Gideon58]

Teachers
It scores in terms of intentions, but the 1984 comedy-drama Teachers just tries to cover a little too much territory with an air of pretension that negates some strong direction and the work of a really interesting ensemble cast.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/6/6b/Teachers_%28movie_poster%29.jpg/220px-Teachers_%28movie_poster%29.jpg
This episodic story takes place at a fictional high school that is the setting for several interwoven stories, the primary one being that this school is being sued by the parents of a student who was graduated from the school without being able to read and write. The lawsuit is quietly tearing the school apart and a teacher named Alex Jurel (Nick Nolte) is caught in the middle. Alex is the requisite "cool" teacher that the students love but the faculty and administration consider him to be a loose cannon and could be detrimental in their handling of this lawsuit.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/BPBWTG/richard-mulligan-nick-nolte-teachers-1984-BPBWTG.jpg
In addition to the lawsuit, we are also introduced to a troubled student (Ralph Macchio), whose limited reading skills indicate there might be some merit to this lawsuit; a student (Laura Dern) who gets pregnant because she's having sex with a faculty member, a nerdy teacher (Allen Garfield) who is harassed by the students and might be more of a threat to the lawsuit than Jurel; a student psycho who steals cars and has a gun in his locker (Crispin Glover); and a mental patient (Richard Mulligan) who's been working as a substitute teacher in the school for weeks without anyone's knowledge.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYTg5NTAyYzYtMjkyYS00Mzg5LWFjOWQtOWM1ZDhjMTY2NmNhXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjUyNDk2ODc@._V1_.jpg
On the surface, W R McKinney's screenplay is a loving valentine to teachers and the important work they do and they are worthy of the attention they are given here, but this film has the same problem that plagued the Oliver Stone football movie Any Given Sunday...the film just tries to cover too much territory to really make the impact that it should. The idea of a school being sued for graduating an illiterate student would have made a great movie all by itself and could have made a much stronger statement than showing all these other stories that take away from the first story presented, especially the story about the mental patient, which, for my money, was just ridicules what teachers do and makes the educational system we have in place look pretty stupid. The idea that a mental patient could get away with teaching in a high school as long as this one does is rnot as funny as it's presented here. This film would have worked a lot better if it had just concentrated on the lawsuit.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNWM1NGMwNzYtOGY2OS00ZmVjLTljMjItNWM0NzdiNmFiZTBjXkEyXkFqcGc@._V1_.jpg
I also had issues with the character of Lisa Hammond, the lawyer handling the case in charge of taking depositions at the school. One, I think the validity of what she was doing was compromised when she started seeing Alex Jurel socially and two, I couldn't buy that she was supposed to be former student of Jurel's...either Nolte or Williams were too young for their roles to make that work.
https://70srichard.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/ralph-macchio-learns-something-other-than-karate.png
Director Arthur Hiller does show some panache, stirring appropriate emotions from the characters and for the viewers and there are some really good performances,. headed by Nolte, who brings a lot of meat to this troubled Alex Jurel. Judd Hirsch is excellent as the vice-principal and Alex's pal, as are Lee Grant as the superintendent, William Schallert as the bubble-headed principal, and Dern as the promiscuous student. I also have to commend Crispin Glover's almost frightening performance that was almost a little too real for comfort. The film is not what it should be, but it's worth a look. 3

[Gideon58]

Sweet Bird of Youth (1962)
Four years after they triumphed with the screen version of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Tennessee Williams, Richard Brooks, and Paul Newman reunited to bring another Williams stage sizzler, Sweet Bird of Youth to the screen.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNjI1NzQ0YjMtNWMzMi00YjFhLWFkYTgtMDMxZmRkYTVlNGZkXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjUxODE0MDY@._V1_.jpg
Newman and Geraldine Page were actually allowed to reprise the roles they created on Broadway for this 1962 screen translation. Newman plays Chance Wayne, a hustler and womanizer who has spent years in Hollywood struggling to become famous, but is now returning to his hometown, St. Cloud, Florida, to reunite with the girl of his dreams, Heavenly Finley. His plans are complicated by an alcoholic actress named Alexandra Del Lago (Page) who is passed out in Chance's backseat and by Boss Findlay (Ed Begley)a smarmy politician who has most of the town in his hip pocket and doesn't want Chance anywhere near his daughter, Heavenly.
https://www.filmcomment.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/04/shutterstock_editorial_5881893i_FEATURE-1600x900-c-default.jpg
Williams' play premiered on Broadway in 1959 and ran for less than 400 performances, but the story didn't take long making it to the big screen, despite rather steamy material for 1962 movie audiences. I've never seen the piece onstage, but if history with Williams is any indication, the screen version is centered around some pretty adult staff and was probably watered down for 1962 consumption. This Chance Wayne character is no boy scout...this guy has spent years in Hollywood using his body to get wealthy women to finance his career and makes no bones about it. We aren't shocked when it is revealed that he has pretty much kidnapped Ms. Del Lago after a drunken escapade and plans to blackmail her into jump starting his career. It's also made clear that Chance is still in love with the virginal Heavenly Finley and always will be and is determined to win her back. The audience finds themselves scratching their collective heads trying to figure out how he's going to do both.
https://www.picsofcelebrities.com/celebrity/geraldine-page/pictures/large/geraldine-page-house.jpg
Director Richard Brooks, as he did with Cat on a Hot Tin Roof has created another steamy southern atmosphere where we see character morals wilt under the same sun that has most of the characters sweat. We see a central character that we sympathize with even though we really shouldn't though we don't understand a lot of the contempt that he has returned to. It's never really made clear why the Finley clan hates Chance so much, other than what he put Heavenly through, but Heavenly brought a lot of that pain on herself. And in the tradition of Big Daddy Pollitt, Williams has created another totally reprehensible villain in Boss Finley, a smarmy snake who does the majority of his dirt with a great big smile on his face. And in a nice change for Tennessee Williams, most of the characters in this twisted story get what's coming to them.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/BPA0BB/geraldine-page-rip-torn-sweet-bird-of-youth-1962-BPA0BB.jpg
The film received seven Oscar nominations, with Ed Begley winning Best Supporting Actor for his theatrical turn as Boss Finley. Geraldine Page received a richly deserved nomination for her dazzling turn as Alexandra Del Lago, a tragic heroine in the best tradition of Blanche Dubois that did win her a Golden Globe. and Shirley Knight's surprisingly rich performance as Heavenly earning her a supporting actress nomination.
https://cdn2.highdefdigest.com/media/2020/06/17/660/97020/Sweet-Bird-of-Youth-Ed-Begley-Shirley-Knight.jpg
Newman was somehow overlooked by the Academy for his powerhouse performance playing a somewhat reprehensible character that we can't help but love because he's being played by Paul Newman. Rip Torn, who would marry Page shortly after this film was released, also impresses as Boss Finley's son and # 1 stooge. Madeline Sherwood, who was also in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof can also be glanced in a flashy performance here as Boss' mistress, a character nothing like the one she played in Cat. Another solid adaptation of a Tennessee Williams work that was remade for TV in 1987 with Elizabeth Taylor and Mark Harmon playing Page and Newman's roles. 4

[Gideon58]

Oliver!
The 1968 musical version of the Broadway musical Oliver! won six Oscars, including Best Picture of the year, but for the life of me, I don't know why. This spectacle is an overblown, overlong, and depressing movie that is a total bummer and seemed about seventeen hours long.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/d9/Oliver%21_%281968_movie_poster%29.jpg
As stated in the opening credits, "Freely adapted from the novel by Charles Dickens", this is the story of a nine year old English orphan who gets thrown out of an orphanage for asking for a second bowl of gruel. He is sold to a mortician who turns him into a slave but he manages to escape and manages to get to London where he falls in with a rag tag group of child pickpockets, led by the enigmatic Fagin, who promises to take care of Oliver, until Fagin and his partner in crime, Bill Sykes, feel that Oliver might have compromised their business and decide they must disrupt Oliver's newfound happiness when he is adopted by the Magistrate (Oscar winner Hugh Griffith).
https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uvOjOWNXjnM/U0YwGDHmzFI/AAAAAAAANNA/pGtr4phIFrQ/s1600/Oliver!_Jack+Wild_Pickpockets_1968.JPG
It should be noted that this review is coming from someone who never read Dickens' book and perhaps that might have a lot to do with this reviewer's confusion about exactly what was going on here. As presented here, I found the relationship between Fagin and Bill Sykes rather confusing, it was difficult to determine who worked for who. I also didn't understand after Oliver went to court and kept his mouth shut, why Fagin and Sykes still felt they needed to get Oliver back. I didn't understand why Nancy (Shani wallis) was so attracted to the emotionally and physically abusive Sykes, making her rendition of the best song in the score, "As Long As He Needs Me", kind of stupid.
https://content.internetvideoarchive.com/content/hdphotos/11686/011686/011686_1129x635_489187_101.jpg
After over thirty years in the business as a director, Sir Carol Reed won his first Oscar for Best Director and I guess in terms of size and spectacle, his work deserves recognition, though personally I think the other four Best Picture nominees that year were all all superior films. The film spends way too much time on exposition and the musical numbers are interminable. And a couple of them, "Who Will Buy?", and "Reviewing the Situation" brought the film to a dead halt and a film of this length really needs to keep moving.
https://dev.industrycentral.net/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2018-07/Oliver_Reed-Ron-Moody-Oliver%21%20-%281968%29.jpg?itok=4x6d06HW
Lionel Bart's score is a mixed bag that did produce a couple songs that have become pop standards, In addition to the aforementioned numbers, there was "Consider Yourself", "Where is Love?" ,"It's a Fine Life", "You've Got to Pick a Pocket Or Two", "Food Glorious Food", and "I'd Do Anything". It should be noted that this one of three films in history to win an Oscar for choreography...Gene Kelly for An American in Paris, Jerome Robbins for West Side Story, and Onna White for this film, though I think her choreography for the film version of The Music Man trumps her work here.
https://www.intofilm.org/intofilm-production/6266/scaledcropped/3000x1688/resources/6266/oliver-ep-romulus.jpg
I liked that Reed chose actors who were appropriate for the roles and didn't seem concerned as to whether or not they could sing. Ron Moody received an Oscar nomination for his flashy Fagin and Oliver Reed was quite menacing as the evil Bill Sykes, one of the most off-putting characters I have ever seen in a musical. Harry Secombe was impressive as Mr. Bumble and his rendition of "Boy for Sale" was impressive. Mark Lester was adorable in the title role (Lester's singing was dubbed by Kath Green), but for me, the best performance in this movie came from a 12-year old kid named Jack Wild playing the Artful Dodger, a performance so slick and charming that it earned Wild an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor. The production values are top rate, but the unpleasantness of the story really weighs this one down. 3

[Gideon58]

JFK
Possibly the finest docudrama ever made and definitely director Oliver Stone's masterpiece, 1991's JFK is a meticulously crafted look at one man's pursuit of the truth regarding the conspiracy surrounding the death of our 35th president. As I try to do with fact-based dramas, I will do my best to stay off any political soapboxes and discuss this film as a piece of entertainment, nothing more, nothing less.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/28/21/7a/28217a32833e9e06d1e7e8b80eb9144f.jpg
Director and co-screenwriter Oliver Stone has done something here that had never really been done before to such startling effect. He has compiled an unprecedented amount of archival news footage regarding the presidency and the assassination and seamlessly edited into the story of Jim Garrison, the Louisiana district attorney whose own investigation into the assassination is closed down by the federal government. Three years later, Garrison cannot let it go and re-assembles his team to continue his investigation into the death of JFK and, more importantly, that Lee Harvey Oswald did not act alone and was part of a cover up that might have led all the way to the White House.
https://static.rogerebert.com/uploads/review/primary_image/reviews/great-movie-jfk-1991/hero_EB20020429REVIEWS08204290301AR.jpg
The crux of this investigation seems to involve a wealthy businessman named Clayton Shaw who, according to this film, was spotted by more than one witness in the area of the shooting that day and how Shaw wound up as the only person ever actually brought to trial for conspiring to murder the president, even if he was acquitted.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR-dd4h5Vef-M9j_3gWQUIOxNBQe8ChFiM4B3fatR_2i2R3evET
Oliver Stone has taken on a mammoth assignment here and has made his personal agenda clear regarding what is presented. He employs a lot of stylish techniques to bring this story to the screen without the dryness that some of it implies. That famous footage of the assassination that we've all seen a million times is utilized throughout here, but not in the way assumed. Stone cuts up the footage and only uses bits and pieces of it near the beginning of the film but always stops at the moment the first shot rings out, then recreating the reactions all around to what is happening, starting with all the birds flying from the top of the building from where the shots allegedly came, a striking image. The footage isn't used in complete form until Shaw's trial, and even now, after all these years, it's still very difficult to watch and Stone knows that too and makes it clear for the viewer.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYjkxMDYzYzgtNjA3OS00MjBlLTg3MGItZWE0Y2ZmOGNkZDlhXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNTk1NTMyNzM@._V1_.jpg
The continuity between the drama that Stone has directed and the archival footage is often shocking and Stone is to be commended for the unending research and logistics that had to be compiled in presenting these stories. I thought I had seen everything there was to see about this event in terms of archival footage but I was wrong. This film actually features some shocking images of JFK on the operating table after being shot with Jackie pacing in the background...I've never seen anything so horrifying, I thought the footage of the shooting was hard to watch.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYjIxZDdmYWQtOTYwOC00NTAyLTliMGYtNWI4YTgxNzVlMzFkXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjUyNDk2ODc@._V1_SY1000_CR0,0,14 76,1000_AL_.jpg
As can be imagined, all the detail involved in giving a balanced and accurate account of Jim Garrison's investigation, that this film is going to be long and yes, it does run a little longer than it needs to, but I can't see taking anything out of here regarding the investigation. If anything, the footage depicting the effect the investigation was having on Jim's family could have been trimmed a bit...we've seen these scenes in a million different movies and Stone really didn't bring anything new to them and they definitely provided the film's slow spots.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/F4PJ7P/kevin-costner-jack-lemmon-and-michael-rooker-jfk-1991-directed-by-F4PJ7P.jpg
Stone is also to be commended for utilizing mad star power here that never overpowers the story he's trying tell. Kevin Costner is strong and sincere as Jim Garrison, the one man crusade to prove that the Warren Commission Report was crap. Costner imbues a dry humor to the character that is so enjoyable, especially in his summing up to the jury regarding the theory of "the magic bullet", maybe his strongest scene in the film, just brilliant.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/FJHN9E/kevin-costner-walter-matthau-jfk-1991-FJHN9E.jpg
Tommy Lee Jones is brilliant as Clay Shaw...this is the performance that should have won him the Oscar, not The Fugitive...Jones chews the scenery when it's appropriate and underplays when it's appropriate. Sissy Spacek makes the most of her thankless role as Liz Garrison and I also enjoyed Michael Rooker, Laurie Metcalf, Gary Grubbs, Wayne Knight, and Jay O. Saunders as Garrison's investigative teams. Other star turns offered along the way include John Candy, Jack Lemmon, Donald Sutherland, Lolita Davidovich, Walter Matthau, Joe Pesci, and Edward Asner. Special mention to Kevin Bacon as the gay hustler who outs Clay Shaw and Gary Oldman, appropriately creepy as Lee Harvey Oswald, but this film is a tribute to the sometime off-center genius that is Oliver Stone. 4

[Gideon58]

The Flamingo Kid
Some good actors are wasted in a really forgettable comedy called The Flamingo Kid, which seems to be director Garry Marshall's variation on Caddyshack, but doesn't work nearly as well.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/511CQXKFSNL._SY445_.jpg
The 1984 comedy stars Matt Dillon as Jeffrey Willis, a kid who is supposed to work in an office for the summer but instead gets a job at the El Flamingo, the local beach club, where Jeffrey finds his head turned by wealthy fat cat Phil Brody (Richard Crenna) who is the club's gin rummy champion.
https://static.rogerebert.com/uploads/review/primary_image/reviews/the-flamingo-kid-1984/hero_EB19840101REVIEWS401010337AR.jpg
Marshall and his brother Neal collaborated on this simplistic and predictable screenplay that offers no surprises and goes everywhere you expect it to, but the cast so engaging that sometimes you don't notice it. There was serious Oscar-buzz for Richard Crenna's charismatic performance here and Marshall good luck charm hector Elizondo is rock solid as Jeffrey's father, the humble plumber who refuses to let his son be stolen from him by the fat cat. Sadly, the obligatory romance with Carla (Janet Jones) is a real snore and every time she and Dillon share the screen the film comes to a complete halt.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/DYGN0C/the-flamingo-kid-1984-matt-dillon-hector-elizondo-garry-marshall-dir-DYGN0C.jpg
The film does have some real continuity issues...according to the screen, the film takes place in 1963, but most of the music in the background is from the 50's and the settings and costumes are all very 70's and 80's. There's nothing definitive about this movie that says "the 60's" other than a single crawl at the bottom of the screen and sometimes the mixing of the very decades gets very distracting.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSXn-7TltdZ8fW4id2zB4A3wr1PS8RjATzdLpruXP68szFoitFC
Still, this role was a real departure for Dillon, unlike anything he had ever done before. Dillon has never been so sweet and unassuming onscreen before, playing a character completely devoid of ego and full of heart. Fisher Stevens also makes the most of his screen time as Jeffrey's buddy and Jessica Walter is splendid as Crenna's wife, who spends half the movie trying to remember Jeffrey's name. Penny Marshall's daughter Tracy plays Polly and Garry Marshall's son, Scott, appears in the opening scene playing stickball. but as an overall positive film experience, it either just doesn't hit the mark or it just hasn't aged very well. 2.5

[Gideon58]

Rachel, Rachel
The late Paul Newman made an impressive directorial debut guiding wife Joanne Woodward to her second Oscar nomination in a quietly moving character study called Rachel, Rachel that will provide entertainment for viewers who like this kind of cinematic journey.
https://www.pastposters.com/cw3/assets/product_full/JamieF-BON/rachel-rachel-cinema-quad-movie-poster-(1).jpg
The 1968 film stars Woodward as Rachel Cameron, a 35-year old spinster schoolteacher who lives in the small town of Japonica, Conn. with her mother. They live above a funeral parlor that was once run by Rachel's deceased father, but the new owner has allowed them to continue living upstairs. Rachel has never really gotten over the death of her father and has a lot of conflicted feelings about her mother, that have caused her to cut off all forms of socialization. On the other hand, she also uses caring for her mother as an excuse to get out of a lot of social engagements. Things start to look up for Rachel when Nick Kazlik, a childhood friend, returns to town and won't take no for an answer as he pursues a romance with Rachel.
https://alchetron.com/cdn/Rachel-Rachel-images-2fcd05a5-6cdd-4360-931c-f0b32334539.jpg
Newman proves to have a very inventive camera eye here and obviously has no problem communicating what he wanted from Woodward. Rachel's true feelings about her mother and just about everything else were cleverly manifested through visual fantasy featuring Newman and Woodward's daughter, Nell Potts as child Rachel and actual inner dialogue from Rachel beautifully performed by Woodward. We get much more insight into Rachel through these directorial methods than we do in Rachel's outer actions. I loved Rachel's inner dialogue when she's laying in bed after her first time having sex with Nick and she's pleading with God to help Nick to forgive her for being so bad in bed.
https://cinesavant.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/6786b.jpg
The relationship between Rachel and Nick also rings completely true, even if it is only kicked into gear when Rachel's co-worker, Calla (Estelle Parsons, fresh off her Oscar for Bonnie and Clyde) makes a pass at her. I loved the awakening that Nick caused in Rachel...there's this great moment where he wants to spend the weekend with her and she can't talk because her mother's sitting there or when the phone rings and Rachel is in the shower and practically kills herself to get out of the shower and yank the phone out of her mother's hand. The resolution of the relationship was a little fuzzy, but while it was happening, this was one of the loveliest romances I have ever seen in a movie.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/PNY1X0/prod-db-kayos-dr-rachel-rachel-rachel-rachel-de-paul-newman-1968-usa-avec-joanne-woodward-et-kate-harrington-dapres-le-roman-de-margaret-laurence-PNY1X0.jpg
Newman, with grand assists from screenwriter Stewart Stern and film editor Dede Allen, create a beautiful and believable look at a character who we love at the beginning but worry for and are surprised by the growth of the character as the final credits roll. Woodward, as always, is riveting in the title role and, in another year, might have won a second Oscar for this performance. James Olson is a warm and engaging romantic interest and Kate Harrington brings just the right irritant factor to Rachel's mother, where you don't want to strangle her, but you do just want her to shut up once in a while. Newman, Woodward, and Potts would next collaborate on The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man in the Moon Marigolds, but their work here is just as effective. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Us
Jordan Peele won an Oscar for his screenplay for the surprise hit of 2017 Get Out and it is that aspect of his next project that pretty much does it in. Peele got a little full of himself with 2019's Us, a pretentious and overblown horror tale whose primary problem is a screenplay that is beyond comprehension.
https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5e387eca8235c42f2e4dbe6c/5e387f75b9b4566c69603011/5f5eb992d7536c1e1e2e312e/1600048179510/Us-imdb.png?format=1500w
The film opens in 1986 with a little girl named Adelaide who disappears in a carnival fun house which apparently had severe mental effects on her as she was returned to her parents. The movie than flashes forward to the present where we meet an adult Adelaide, her husband Gabe, her daughter Zora and her son Jason who are on the way to their summer home. Not long after their arrival, Adelaide and her family confront a family in their front yard who eventually make their way into the house and as they take off their masks, the family is revealed to be an exact doppelganger of Adelaide and her family, except that they are wearing red suits, their faces are disfigured, and they have superhuman strength.
https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/J-OhxfkGVpXFqS1PpDqjYlNdT9c=/0x0:4000x2034/1200x800/filters:focal(1680x697:2320x1337)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/63209648/US_1.0.jpg
The story is somewhat compelling up to this point even though we're not sure what this has to do with the opening scene from 1986 but we figure they'll get around with it. After the doppelgangers seem to get bored toying with this family, the story suddenly moves next door to the neighbors where it is discovered that they are being terrorized by a doppelganger family as well and this is where Peele lost me....he has us completely engulfed in the problems of this one family and then all of a sudden there is a second family and they only seem to be interested in Adelaide? Seriously?
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNDA5ODUxM2QtMzgwNy00MjY4LTg5NjYtNzc2MjE3MzJjYTUxXkEyXkFqcGdeQXRzdGFzaWVr._V1_.jpg
Unlike Get Out, Peele's direction is definitely superior to his screenplay here, delivering some small scale "boos" and even a couple of laugh out loud moments that are, frankly, a relief, but the story is just too confusing to remain fully invested in. Even when the story makes its way full circle back to 1986 and we think all of this is going to be explained, it's not, and the actual final scene leaves a lot more questions than answers.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjQ0NjY3NjY3MV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNDU0Nzg2NzM@._V1_.jpg
Thanks to the success of Get Out, Peele was afforded a large budget here but it's all for naught. The film is well-acted, with a charismatic performance from Oscar winner Lupita Nyong'o as Adelaide, unfortunately, the messy and confusing story really weighs this one down. A severe case of sophmore-itis for Jordan Peele. 2

[Gideon58]

Meet Me in Las Vegas
The Joe Pasternak unit at MGM brought musical audiences something a little different in 1956 called Meet Me in Las Vegas that provides the accustomed MGM gloss and some serious star power to a rather limp story and almost succeeds in producing the kind of entertainment in we expected from MGM.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/71fj1NB7GAL._SX679_.jpg
This splashy musical comedy stars Dan Dailey as Chuck Rodwell, a rancher who comes to Las Vegas once a year to gamble and believes that holding the hand of a woman increases his luck every time he places a bet. He thinks he may have found the luck he's looking for when he holds the hand of Maria Courvier (Cyd Charisse), a snooty ballerina who has been booked for a two-week gig at the Sands. Chuck is able to convince Maria that the luck is legitimate and they start making some serious money but all the hand holding leads to some more romantic feelings between the two and that's when things begin to get complicated for the couple.
http://rarefilm.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Meet-Me-in-Las-Vegas-1956-2.jpg
Admittedly, this musical takes a minute to get going, but I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I was going to. Dan Dailey is endlessly charming in one of the most likable characters he has ever portrayed and Dailey has definitely portrayed his share of likable characters. I was impressed with the way Dailey's Chuck Rodwell treated all the ladies he held hands with in this movie...he was gracious and honest and never disrespected any of the ladies or led them on thinking that the hand holding meant more than it did. And let's face it, the snooty ballerina is nothing new for Charisse, but this one does a pleasant and believable meltdown that made her a lot more fun to watch than a lot of Charisse's characters.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/B83TRA/meet-me-in-las-vegas-year-1956-usa-cyd-charisse-john-brascia-liliane-B83TRA.jpg
The other way director Roy Rowland scored was surrounding his lead characters with a lot of stars, some doing nothing more than glorified cameos, but it added a nice mystery to the fun as every time a scene changed you never knew who was going to pop up. Jim Backus plays the manager of the Sands, Paul Henreid played Maria's manager, Agnes Moorhead appeared as Chuck's mother, Lilli Darvas played Maria's maid, and Cara Williams was a lot of fun as an old flame of Chuck's who tries to cash in on his newfound luck. There are solid musical guest star turns from Lena Horne and the iconic Frankie Laine and a small role for future Oscar winner George Chakiris, and if you don't blink, you might even catch a tiny cameo from O'l Blue Eyes as a gambler who gets to cash in on Chuck and Maria's luck.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMDZkMDkzYTItYzA3Yi00ZDFiLTllMzYtNmU0NzUxMjQ0MjkyXkEyXkFqcGc@._V1_.jpg
Musical highlights include "The Gal with the Yaller Shoes", a production number at Chuck's ranch which showcases the dance skills of the stars, Horne's "If You Can Dream", Williams' "I Refuse to Rock and Roll", and Charisse's elaborate "Frankie and Johnny Ballet". Both Hermes Pan and Eugene Loring contributed to the choreography and the songs are by Sammy Cahn, Johnny Green, and Nicholas Brodzky and even with all this talent in front of and behind the camera, the movie never quite becomes what it should, but die hard musical fanatics will find something to latch onto here. 3

[Gideon58]

Richard Pryor: Live In Concert
The late Richard Pryor made a lot of contributions to the history of comedy during his too short time with us, but one that a lot of people forget about is that Pryor invented the comedy concert film. Yes, Pryor was the first comic to walk onto a stage to do stand-up and have a camera film the whole thing, then release it as a theatrical feature. Pryor invented a new kind of screen entertainment with the release of 1979's Richard Pryor: Live in Concert.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTM3NjQ1NTM0MV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNzMwOTUyMQ@@._V1_.jpg
This concert was filmed live from the Terrace Theater in Long Beach California and apparently featured Patti LaBelle as his opening act as she is given a large print onscreen credit for it as well as an onstage credit by Pryor himself, which concludes with a very funny impression of LaBelle's sax player. It's so obvious as this film begins that this was definitely something new. Comedians who do concert films now put a lot of thought into making the opening before they go onstage interesting...no such effort put forth here. The film opens with Pryor and then spouse Jennifer arriving at the venue in a limo walking through the back of the theater to an elevator that they board, no music, no talking, they don't speak to anyone. Look at this opening and look at the opening of some of Kevin h
Hart's specials.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GK1vm2EaIAAFLvY.jpg:large
Director Jeff Margolis, who went on to an impressive career directing award shows like the Oscars and the Emmys, doesn't employ a lot of cinematic trickery here. He points the camera at Pryor and lets the man explode with the expected racist and sexual tirades, as well as a funny bit about the death of Pryor's two pet monkeys and a reaction from the dog next door. His routines about having a heart attack and being arrested were also on the money. That was one thing I noticed here was that Pryor did a lot of bits that involved talking animals where he offers his personal interpretation of the way animals are looking at him and it totally works.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMzczNDY3NGYtOGY2My00NThjLWI0MWUtMTlmNDc5MGE3ZjVmXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNTc0NjY1ODk@._V1_.jpg
As this was a new form of entertainment, there were a lot of problems with this initial concert effort that other directors learned how to deal with over the years. The primary problem was a really obnoxious audience, about a third of which were still trying to find their seats when the show began. Then there was this guy right in front of the stage taking flash photographs of the star. Pryor even asks him to stop and he refuses and has to tell the guy to sit down. Every time he would finish a bit, audience members would just start yelling things at him, but Pryor handles it like a pro.
https://pyxis.nymag.com/v1/imgs/725/c3c/c860730fbc966f38c66715f094115ea0b3-richard-pryor-heart-attack.rhorizontal.w610.jpg
And I hate to bring it up, but about 15 minutes into the concert, Pryor develops these HUGE pit stains on his bright red shirt that you can't help but notice and no matter hard I tried to focus on his comedy, my eyes just kept coming back to those pit stains. But like I said, this was something new and there is technology now that can cover up things like this, but it didn't seem to bother the audience who when they weren't yelling at the guy, were pretty much doubled over in laughter. RIP, Mr. Pryor. 4

[Gideon58]

Lies and Alibis
A clever movie premise is weighed down by an overly complex screenplay and a miscast leading man in a 2006 inde called Lies and Alibis that starts off promisingly but eventually collapses from taking itself too seriously.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZThjYmMyNGQtYjZhOC00Yzg4LThlNzItNWMyYmExYTIwZTg1XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjU0NTI0Nw@@._V1_.jpg
Ray Elliott is a former con man who now runs a company that is in the business of providing alibis for adulterous spouses through well-placed phone calls at the appropriate times and making sure someone is present where the spouse is supposed to be. Robert Hatch, a longtime client of Elliott's, asks him to help his son cheat on fiancee but things go bad when the son murders his mistress during rough sex.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTg4NzEzNTg2NF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNzQzMTkyNA@@._V1_.jpg
I think screenwriter Noah Hawley has come up with a very clever premise for a black comedy. The idea of an entire corporation built around the idea of helping adulterers do what they do without being caught is damned clever...I loved the opening scene of Ray actually going into the hotel of cheating lovers and informing them that the photographer in the parking lot is working for the woman's husband. The idea of profiting off of people's infidelity is so twisted, made even more twisted by the fact that Ray seems to be making a very comfortable living from what he's doing.
https://www.suggestingmovie.com/Movies/1875-lssi3.jpg
Unfortunately, the story gets overly complicated after that as we earn that a sophisticated hit man already has his eye on Ray due to events in his past and Robert Hatch is expecting Ray to take the fall for his son as he continues his own adulterous ways and it's all seen through the eyes of Ray's new employee, a tall and willowy blonde named Lola whose moral barometer regarding what Ray's company is doing fades away a little too quickly. Then there's the boyfriend of the murdered girl, who wants revenge on Ray because part of the ruse with Jr. was that Ray and Jr. switch identities.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjE4NTg2NDQ4OF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwOTQzMTkyNA@@._V1_.jpg
Co-directors Matt Checkowski and Kurt Matilla employ some directorial style to this twisted story, but there's so many superfluous characters employed in what's going on, that we stop caring long before the credits roll. Steve Coogan was also a little too straight-faced as Ray, something for which the directors have to take partial blame, but the actor was kind of bland...as I watched, I kept picturing Ryan Gosling or Brad Pitt in the role. I did enjoy Sam Elliott as the hitman pretentiously named "The Mormon", James Brolin and James Marsden as Robert and Wendell Hatch, and John Leguizamo as the avenging boyfriend, but the whole thing just gets too manic for the viewer to stay invested. 2.5

[Gideon58]

Storm Warning (1951)
An uncompromising look at the power of the KKK and two solid leading lady performances make the 1951 drama Storm Warning much more than the rip-off of another famous film of the same year that it appears to be on the surface.
https://ocdviewer.files.wordpress.com/2015/02/storm-warning.jpg
Ginger Rogers stars as Marsha Mitchell, a fashion model traveling by bus to a job but decides to make a quick stop at a southern town called Rock Point so that she can visit her pregnant sister, Lucy (Doris Day) and Lucy's husband, Hank (Steve Cochran), who Marsha has never met. Not long after her arrival in Rock Point, Marsha actually witnesses klan members beating and shooting a man. Two of the men make the mistake of taking off their masks, not knowing that Marsha has seen them. Marsha reunites with her sister and is shocked to learn that one of the faces she saw standing over the murdered man was Lucy's slimy husband.
https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GBaRhHC1DDk/V5VYhAnSuzI/AAAAAAAARuc/K-P_ogjX4vcTYQGsDRzYQLKMF2OAsppGwCEw/s1600/storm%2Bwarning%2B3.JPG
Daniel Fuchs and Richard Brooks have crafted a well-rounded and meaty story that, on the surface looks like a rip-off of A Streetcar Named Desire, the film version of which was released the same year. We have the woman, her pregnant sister, and the sister's husband who makes no qualms about an immediate attraction to his sister-in-law, but unlike Blanche DuBois, the attraction is not mutual...after what she witnessed, Marsha feels nothing but contempt for her brother-in-law, but in an attempt to protect her blissfully happy sister, Marsha agrees not to identify the guy to the DA, played with sincerity by Ronald Reagan. And this is the first of several mistakes that Marsha makes and immediately regrets.
https://wolfmanscultfilmclub.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/storm-warning-1951-ginger-rogers-ronald-reagan-court-room.jpg?w=665
Director Stuart Heisler not only creates an evocative small town atmosphere that has a dark intensity to it, but pulls a couple of very strong performances from his two leading ladies. Ginger Rogers offers one of the strongest performances of her career as the strong but conflicted Marsha and Doris Day proves to be an actress of substance in her first really serious role. Unfortunately, Cochran is laughably bad as Hank and keeps this film from being the really important film it should have been, but the story and the leading ladies still make this one worth watching. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Bob Fosse: Steam Heat
It's another one of those freaky coincidences that right after completing the 2019 FX miniseries Fosse/Verdon that I ran into a 1990 documentary called Fosse: Steam heat, which lovingly documents the amazing career of the legendary dancer, director, and choreographer.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYjk1MTBkODMtOGE1NC00YmQ1LTk5MDYtYmE3ZDEwN2M1OTY5XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjI3MDczMjI@._V1_UY268_CR55,0,18 2,268_AL_.jpg
Originally broadcast on the PBS series Great Performances, this amazingly detailed look at the life of this show business icon begins with a look at his childhood where (there is a lot of footage of Fosse himself as part of the narration) Fosse explained that dancing was an attention-getter he used in the house since the rest of his brothers were athletes. He talks about his first job dancing in a burlesque house, which is the first of several times in the documentary that Bob's real life is juxtaposed with corresponding scenes from his 1979 thinly disguised autobiography All That Jazz.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/7c/2c/71/7c2c71d1097d197e09496509ed0f5d5a.jpg
The documentary contains tons of footage of the man dancing with his first wife Mary Ann Niles and in movies like The Affairs of Dobie Gillis, Give a Girl a Break, and of course, that incredible challenge dance in My Sister Eileen with Tommy Rall that Gwen Verdon tells us was created because Bob wanted to show that he could compete on the same level, dance-wise, with a ballet dancer.
https://img.broadwaybox.com/entry/photo/Bob-Fosse-Gwen-Verdon-Broadway-Musicals-Dancing-Numbers-FX-Movies.jpg
As the film reaches a new plateau in Fosse's life or career, we are treated to footage from a memorial service for Fosse, where several of his best friends, mostly writers, spoke about him in the most loving and humorous terms. Commentary is provided from Paddy Chayefsky, Peter Stone, Steve Tesich, Herb Gardner, and, of course, Neil Simon.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/26PiPUn4AWg/maxresdefault.jpg
We are also treated to a lot of commentary from the legendary Gwen Verdon who provides a lot of insight into Fosse's insecurities as a dancer and a choreographer and how they affected his work. Bob's womanizing, which eventually led to the downfall of his marriage, is discreetly sidestepped here as Verdon only spoke about her husband in the most glowing terms. We are also treated to rare footage of Verdon performing in Sweet Charity as well as on the set of the movie of Charity and All That Jazz. We also get to see the first commercial for a Broadway show ever made, created by Fosse to increase ticket sales for Pippin, the show that won him two Tonys and ran on Broadway for six years. We also get a glimpse at the last movie he directed Star 80 and his last Broadway musical Big Deal. If you enjoyed the Fosse/Verdon miniseries, I'm pretty sure you will enjoy this too. 4

[Gideon58]

Dark Victory (1939)
A breathtaking, Oscar-nominated performance by Bette Davis anchors the ultimate 30's tearjerker, Dark Victory, a compelling melodrama that should have the viewer reaching for the kleenex during the final act.
https://theblondeatthefilm.files.wordpress.com/2015/03/dark-victory-poster.jpg
Davis plays Judith Traherne, a wealthy and self-absorbed socialite who has been in denial about the headaches and blurred vision that have been plaguing her for months. Her family doctor persuades a specialist named Dr. Frederick Steele (George Brent) to examine Judith and after getting second, third, and fourth opinions, determines that Judith has a brain tumor. He operates and doesn't tell his patient that the tumor will eventually reappear and kill her within a year. He decides to keep the truth from her, but that becomes very complicated when he and Judith fall in love with each other.
https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-r7v4or-lb8Y/UsBXRO2bpsI/AAAAAAAAKtE/T885tHb1u1o/s1600/Dark+Victory+1.jpg
This story first found life on Broadway as a play written by George Emerson Brewer Jr. with Tallulah Bankhead playing Judith Traherne. Casey Robinson's screenplay has been lovingly adapted for the screen to fit the talents of Warner Brothers biggest star. Watching this, it's hard to believe that anyone but Bette Davis had ever played this role. A couple of years later, Davis would bring another role originated on Broadway by Tallulah Bankhead to the screen when she would play Regina Giddens in the film version of The Little Foxes.
https://theblondeatthefilm.files.wordpress.com/2015/03/dark-victory-100.jpg?w=800
Loved the was this story unfolds and the myriad of emotions that the central character goes through. Love the scene of Judith prattling on about her glamorous life to Dr. Steele while he is actually examining her. The fatalistic decision of the doctor and Judith's secretary, Ann (Geraldine Fitzgerald) to keep Judith in the dark was foiled thank God. it would have been insane if Judith didn't know of her condition until it hit her. There's one point where poor Judith thinks Ann is trying to steal the doctor from her. Love that scene in the restaurant where she confronts Frederick and Ann and finally shouts, "I'll have a large dose of prognosis negative!." And the last fifteen minutes of this film are absolutely heartbreaking.
https://i1.wp.com/www.filminquiry.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Dark-Victory-2.jpg?fit=1050%2C700&ssl=1
Davis' performance here is nothing short of incredible. Not counting a write-in nomination for Of Human Bondage, Davis had received two previous nominations and won both Oscars and yet, this performance easily trumps her work in Dangerous and Jezebel. Of the performances I've seen, her work in All About Eve is the only performance better than this one. George Brent is his usual wooden self and with another leading man this film could have been something really incredible. Fitzgerald is lovely as the devoted Ann and there is surprising supporting turn from Humphrey Bogart as a sensitive stable man (though his Irish brogue is a little inconsistent). Future POTUS Ronald Reagan can even be glimpsed in a small role, but Davis is the whole show here and this one is a must for fans of the actress. The film was remade in 1963 as Stolen Hours with Susan Hayward and became a two-part miniseries with the original title in 1976 with Elizabeth Montgomery, but those versions don't have Bette Davis. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Clockers
Spike Lee had one of his stronger offerings with 1995's Clockers an uncompromising and visually arresting look at mid-level drug dealers working a Brooklyn project that, despite a rambling and sometimes confusing screenplay, holds the attention of the viewer thanks to some stylish film technique and some first-rate performances.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BY2JmNTUyYWQtMTZhMy00YTE4LTllNGItMDZmNTBiZTkyNjE2XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTMxMTY0OTQ@._V1_.jpg
The night manager at a fast food joint is murdered and three suspects immediately come into focus: Rodney (Delroy Lindo) is the local drug kingpin who wanted the guy dead and implied that his number one "clocker" (hustler), Strike (Mekhi Phifer), take care of it for him. We observe a meeting at a bar between Strike and his older brother, Victor (Isaiah Washington) and as the crowd gathers around the crime scene, we see Strike in the front row and learn that Victor has confessed to the crime, claiming that it was self defense. There is also a 12 year old whose hero worship of Strike gets him a little too involved in the drama at the projects.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/BPF8FA/scene-with-mekhi-phifer-clockers-1995-BPF8FA.jpg
Lee and co-screenwriter Richard Price have crafted another elaborately detailed and self-indulgent screenplay that is so confusing that the story was well into the third act before it was actually made clear who committed this murder and I'm not sure if. even then, I was convinced. As per usual with Spike Lee, he has surrounded his primary story with so many peripheral subplots and characters that the main story often gets lost in the shuffle. The story does take an effective look at the canvas for the story...its presentation of drug dealing in the projects is on the money...I loved a scene not long after the film's opening where we observe someone trying to purchase drugs and Lee's camera moves back and forth between four or five runners signaling each other regarding the transaction and even though the signals go back and forth a couple of times, the customer receives his drugs in about a minute and a half.
https://canvas.tubitv.com/opts/oxD8-r08xCN7Rw==/25fc4b1f-3d87-489e-bc8d-a1a3cc8b61e4/CIAPELgIOgUxLjEuMg==
There are some troubling mixed messages being conveyed in this story. The primary one is that dealing drugs is all right but using is not. There's a ridiculous scene where the 12 year old is watching Strike cut up and bag cocaine and Strike tells the kid if he ever catches him with drugs that he will shoot him. Police officers are not exactly painted in flattering shades here either...the scene where the cops first arrive at the murder scene and are examining the body with this very cavalier and joking manner was not very amusing to me, but it felt very real.
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_KwJgox5Gp1I/TIK_wY7W9lI/AAAAAAAACfM/OVA-zZiHueQ/s640/909438_height370_width560.jpg
Lee gets some impressive performances from his cast, especially Harvey Keitel as the primary cop on the case, Lindo, Phifer, Washington, and John Turturro as Keitel's partner. Keith David also scores as a cop who lives in the project as does Regina Taylor as the mother of the young boy and Sticky Fingaz as a member of Strike's crew.
http://www.imfdb.org/images/thumb/7/79/Clockers_09.jpg/600px-Clockers_09.jpg
Honorable mention to Sam Pollard's editing and this film also features the least annoying music score I've heard in a Spike movie and we are only subjected to Lee's "floating cam" for a few seconds. With a little more coherent screenplay, this film could have been something really spectacular. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Tone Bell: Can't Cancel This
Tone Bell has probably appeared in more cancelled television sitcoms in the last three years than any actor working in Hollywood right now, so it's no surprise that he recently returned to his stand-up roots in a 2019 concert called Tone Bell: Can't Cancel This that does provide laughs but there is an air about Bell's comedy that is rather off-putting.
https://www.sho.com/site/image-bin/images/0_0_3459141/0_0_3459141_00h_1280x640.jpg
Filmed live from Dallas and originally broadcast on SHOWTIME, Bell gets off to a slow start talking about being geographically-challenged, having no idea where Alaska is. Once he gets past this routine, there is a general theme that pervades pretty much the rest of the concert and it is a somewhat subtle air of arrogance that hangs over the rest of his material.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/1WKi_31O2NY/maxresdefault.jpg
He mentions the fact that he is originally from Georgia and when an audience member barks in recognition, he abruptly tells the audience member to shut up and let him tell the jokes. He then begins talking about the modicum of success he has had in the business which has not afforded him unlimited wealth, but has managed to get him out of debt, leading to a very amusing routine about paying off the balance on his student loans that climaxes beautifully with his one on one conversation with an operator named Patrick.
https://www.sho.com/site/image-bin/images/0_0_3459141/0_0_3459141_02_1024x640.jpg
Bell offers some very funny observations about his parents, his father in particular, that had the audience in stitches which leads to a joke about what he has told his parents regarding the reason they aren't grandparents yet. He spends a good deal of time building to the punchline for this joke, but the punchline was not worthy of the buildup. The story about trying to get a packet of jelly at Dunkin Donuts almost made up for it.
https://pixhost.icu/avaxhome/49/64/00636449.jpg
Tone also is guilty of one my biggest pet peeves regarding stand-up...he spends a lot of time onstage laughing at himself, but he did regain a few points when the routine turned to his former homophobia and how conflicted he was when he was in a gay bar and nobody actually hit on him. This is something that I've always felt a lot of straight men are guilty of and I thought it was really cool that he was honest about it. Which also led back to arrogant remarks about being too pretty for jail. His final piece about being pulled over by a cop got WAY too serious for a guy who has starred in half a dozen cancelled sitcoms. Bell provides laughs and has some talent with the microphone, but he needs to put his ego in check a little bit. 3

[Gideon58]

Bottle Rocket
The King of Quirky Cinema, Wes Anderson, actually made his directorial debut with a forgotten little sleeper from 1996 called Bottle Rocket, which provides everything that fans of the director have come to expect from him.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/519USYGNDzL._SY445_.jpg
Owen Wilson plays Dignan, a career criminal wanna-be who breaks his best friend, Anthony (Luke Wilson) out of a mental hospital the day he is being released and along with their friend, Bob (Robert Musgrave), a nebbish who is bullied by his older brothers, decide to go on an elaborate crime spree, hopefully leading them to a partnership with Dignan's former employer and criminal mentor, Mr. Henry (James Caan). The trio hit the road to begin their life of crime but become distracted when Anthony falls in love with a motel housekeeper who doesn't speak English and Bob's brother gets arrested because of marijuana that Bob planted in the backyard.
https://static1.squarespace.com/static/57e05e534402434aa0f846c2/582bbe73e58c626562109436/5aa951890d9297e66d13bb81/1521311605164/bottle-rocket-1200-1200-675-675-crop-000000.jpg?format=1000w
From that brief plot synopsis, it should be pretty obvious that this is Wes Anderson through and through. With the aid of co-screenwriter Owen Wilson, Anderson has crafted a loopy and often silly story about three guys who really want to be criminals, but are REALLY bad it. And of course, Dignan, the presumed leader of the gang and the guy who wants this life way more than the other two, seems to be the most incompetent of the three. Dignan is one of those people who thinks he's an absolute expert on everything and he's really not an expert on anything, but he can't be told this, and even when he is, he doesn't listen and it's upon this silly guy named Dignan that a lot of the comic potential of this story hangs.
https://prd-rteditorial.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/21214358/Bottle_Rocket_Anniversary-Rep.jpg
We are given a clue into Dignan in the opening scene when we learn he's trying to bust Anthony out of the institution on his discharge day. We also know that we are in for something very special when Anthony agrees to go along with the escape plan instead of just walking out the front door because he doesn't want to hurt Dignan's feelings.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/F6G50P/release-date-february-21-1996-movie-title-bottle-rocket-studio-columbia-F6G50P.jpg
As he would later do with films like The Royal Tannenbaums and The Grand Budapest Hotel, Anderson directs with bold strokes creating some arresting visual images with strong assists from cinematographer Robert Yeoman and film editor David Moritz, always standout elements in Anderson's films. The other thing that really works here is the lovely chemistry between brothers Owen and Luke Wilson...it actually took me several scenes before I realized the characters they were playing were not related because the love these two guys project onscreen works like a well-oiled machine, never trying to outshine each other, almost as if their character were one. Fans of Wes Anderson's impressive resume will definitely want to give this is a look. 3.5

[Gideon58]

The Happiest Millionaire
Much of the creative force behind the classic Mary Poppins were reunited for 1967's The Happiest Millionaire, an overblown and endless family musical that, despite some incredible production values and an impressive cast, seemed about seventeen hours long. I think I had a birthday while watching this movie..
https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/the-sherman-brothers/images/e/e1/The_Happiest_Millionaire.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20180205052034
It's turn of the century Philadelphia (why are so many musicals set at the turn of the century?) where we meet John Lawless (Tommy Steele), an Irish immigrant who has been sent to the home of a millionaire named Anthony Drexel Biddle (Fred MacMurray) to be the new family butler. Biddle is a grumpy eccentric who has pet alligators and is on a chocolate cake diet. He is also in complete denial about the fact that his oldest daughter, Cordelia (Lesley Ann Warren) is growing up (and sometimes forgets that she's a girl) and is not happy when her Aunt Mary (Gladys Cooper) arranges for Cordelia to go to an exclusive girls school far from Philly, where Cordelia meets the wealthy man of her dreams (John Davidson).
https://d23.com/app/uploads/2013/04/1180w-600h_a-to-z-the-happiest-millionare.jpg
Apparently, this story has some basis in fact because this movie was adapted by AJ Carothers from a play by Kyle Crichton, which was in turn based on a book by one Cordelia Drexel Biddle. Don't get it twisted, just because this might be a fact-based story, does not change the fact that this story is positively snore-inducing, with a running time of almost three hours and it's three hours that move at a snail's pace. Everything is just overdone here...too much talking, too much singing, too much dancing, I guess in an attempt to recapture some Mary Poppins onscreen magic, but it just doesn't work.
https://myliveactiondisneyproject.files.wordpress.com/2013/09/happiest-millionaire-cordy-angier.jpg
The first two thirds of the movie are spent listening to MacMurray's character bellow at everyone else in the story, including his very patient wife (Greer Garson), between some really unremarkable musical numbers. Some life is injected into the final third of the film when we meet Davidson's mother, played with bitchy perfection by the fabulous Geraldine Page, but by this time in the proceedings, we are just struggling to keep our eyes open.
https://theblondeatthefilm.files.wordpress.com/2016/08/happiest-millionaire-121.jpg?w=800
The rather unremarkable score by Richard M. and Robert B. Sherman, who also wrote the music for Mary Poppins, produced a few highlights, like Steele's "Fortuosity", "What's Wrong with That?" (which loses some of its effectiveness being reprised at least four times), "I'll Always Be Irish", "Are We Dancing", "Let's Have a Drink On it", and an odd love song for Warren and Davidson called "Detroit", but for me, the musical highlight was a crisp duet between Cooper and Page called "There are Those."
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/BP9AJ8/gladys-cooper-tommy-steele-geraldine-page-the-happiest-millionaire-BP9AJ8.jpg
The performances are a matter of taste...MacMurray was one-note and a little abrasive to me and had no chemistry with Garson. Lesley Ann Warren does reveal a glimpse of the actress that she would become and the only performer who had comparable onscreen energy to Tommy Steele was Mickey Rooney. Steele is a scene-stealer as the family butler and Hermione Baddeley pretty much duplicates her role in Mary Poppins and needless to say, Page stole every scene she was in. The film features incredible set designs and costumes, but it's all for naught because this one just drags across the screen...three hours of my life I'll never get back. 1.5

[Gideon58]

Leap Year (2010)
The story is somewhat predictable and the journey to the happy ending is a little more labored than it needed to be, but 2010's Leap Year is watchable thanks to a breathtaking setting on foreign soil and wonderful performances from the leads.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81VkQC2nCmL._AC_UF894,1000_QL80_.jpg
Six-time Oscar nominee Amy Adams stars in this romantic comedy as Anna Brady, a woman who has been in a committed relationship with a handsome cardiologist (Adam Scott) and is crushed when she is expecting an engagement ring and gets diamond earrings. When the doctor has to travel to Dublin on business, Anna decides to follow him there because she heard of an Irish legend that if a woman who proposes marriage to a man on Leap Year, February 29th, he must accept the proposal. Anna can't get to Dublin directly due to bad weather and finds herself stranded in a neighboring town called Dingle, where she is offered a ride to Dublin by a sexy innkeeper named Declan (Matthew Goode), which is the beginning of a somewhat overlong "Murphy's law" adventure that sometimes gets silly, but it sure is pretty to look at.
https://static.rogerebert.com/uploads/review/primary_image/reviews/leap-year-2010/hero_EB20100106REVIEWS100109989AR.jpg
Screenwriters Deborah Kaplan and Harry Elfont are to be credited for taking a familiar story, which reminded me of classics like It Happened One Night and Bringing Up Baby and setting it on foreign soil, which gave the proceedings an air of originality that we don't see coming. The exposure to Irish culture and language is initially unnerving as keeping up with a lot of what was being said and done required complete attention. Some of the thick Irish brogues employed by actors distract at times. The story also gets a little slapsticky at times, almost degenerating to Lucy Ricardo level and it just seemed to be a way of padding the running time.
https://s.hdnux.com/photos/10/74/53/2345701/5/920x920.jpg
Director Anand Tucker, who directed another romantic comedy I enjoyed called Shopgirl, does display an affinity for the genre and a sharp eye for the way a film should look. The Irish scenery is absolutely gorgeous and Tucker must be credited for creating some stunning cinematic pictures here, with a grand assist from cinematographer Newton Thomas Sigel. There was this lovely moment that had to be credited completely to Tucker where Declan thinks Anna has left him by bus and she comes out of a store and realizes, strictly from his body language, that he thinks she's gone. One of my favorite moments in the movie that had nothing to do with dialogue. Also loved Randy Edelman's music.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/y9jS6a7rIVQ/maxresdefault.jpg
The performances by the stars also raise the bar on this, on the surface, ordinary love story. It was nice to see Amy Adams lighten up...she's done a lot of serious work in the last decade that has gotten her acclaim but she is just as enchanting here as she has been in her dramatic work. Matthew Goode, a richly talented actor who has been toiling in supporting roles for years has finally been given the chance to be a romantic leading man and he knocks it out of the park...a performance of comic charisma and sexual heat that galvanizes the screen. This movie was a lot better than it really deserved to be, thanks primarily to its stars. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Raising Cain
Despite a tour-de-force performance from the endlessly talented John Lithgow and stylish direction from Brian De Palma, the 1992 psychological thriller Raising Cain remains a confusing and messy story that will just leave the viewer exasperated and exhausted.
https://horrornews.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/raising-cain.jpg
Dr. Carter Nix, is a prominent child psychologist who has put his practice on hold in order to stay home and raise his daughter, Amy, which has his wife, Jenny (Lolita Davidovich) concerned thinking that his behavior with his daughter is beginning to border on obsession. She thinks this might have something to do with Carter's troubled relationship with his late father, not to mention her recent affair with the widower of a former patient (Steven Bauer). Jenny's concern turns to genuine horror when it is revealed that Amy and two other children are missing, and two mothers and a babysitter are found murdered.
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/proxy/pYsebgwB1hgMQwHWck69J6Moc2htcHXIBpakUXW8-rtYKGb6wvfg5DFC1O1F5b7mdO7i436-KlxSoKxzp588X9f0tJjZxKdhWc5SUfKi9Kf_
As always with De Palma, his undeniable style does offer assistance to the viewer in dealing with the screenplay's deficiencies. De Palma's story is not that tricky and this reviewer figured out what was going on about 15 minutes in, but instead of crafting a genuinely intricate story, De Palma over-complicates the story by filling it with flashbacks, flashforwards, and dream sequences but never giving the viewer a clue as to which is which, making for a very aggravating cinematic journey.
https://thefilmstage.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Raising-Cain-2-759x500.png
On the positive side, De Palma's eye as the ultimate purveyor of erotic thrills is in serious overdrive here...like Dressed to Kill, the movie is beautifully photographed with arresting visual images that stay with the viewer and his skill and adoration of the steady cam once again take center stage here to great effect. We also get the accustomed Carrie-like boo at the end of the film, which is starting to become less effective with each film.
https://i0.wp.com/bloody-disgusting.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Raising-Cain-Lithgow-Margot.jpg?resize=740%2C396&ssl=1
Also on the positive is the post graduate acting course offered by John Lithgow in this multi-character role, a role that not just any actor could pull off. This performance actually rivals and might have even been an inspiration for James McAvoy's performance in Split. Some might find the performance hammy and over the top, but I found it mesmerizing. Lolita Davidovich was also winning, as always, as the confused and tortured Jenny. Pino Donnogio's splendid music also deserves a nod, as it did in all of De Palma's films. A screenplay that tries to be a little too artsy really hurts this one. 2.5

[Gideon58]

Stan & Ollie
No expense was spared in bringing 2018's Stan & Ollie to the screen. This big budget look at the first true Hollywood comedy team is directed with love and respect for its subjects and is brilliantly acted. This review is coming from someone who has never seen a Laurel and Hardy movie, so this review is purely about this film's entertainment value.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNGNkYTJiNWUtMzZlNi00YmZlLTg3ZTctZTY2MWVkNTQ5MTQyXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjM4NTM5NDY@._V1_.jpg
The film opens in 1937 Hollywood when Laurel and Hardy were huge stars but were unhappy with their treatment by Hal Roach studios, which eventually ended up getting Stan fired from the studio. Sixteen years later, the team is persuaded to do a theatrical tour of Europe while the final details of a return to the big screen is being ironed out for them. The story provides insight into the team and their relationship against the backdrop of this European tour that starts slowly but gains enough momentum for them to be playing to sold out houses at the Lyceum Theater in London.
https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2018/12/26/stanollie_wide-81314ff3c7290e89c7e1831d9485ce6652f0cd71.jpg
Like most people, I've glimpsed at Laurel and Hardy and know a little bit about the kind of movies they made, but this movie, based on a book called "Laurel & Hardy: The British Tours" reveals a lot about the team that I didn't know. According to this film, Stan Laurel was really the creative force behind the team and wrote almost all of the material that they did. He was also the one who made sure that Hollywood and everyone else was treating them correctly, always keeping an eye on the bottom line and what was best for the welfare of Stan and Ollie, the people and not so concerned with Laurel and Hardy. I also didn't know that, in Hollywood circles, Oliver was known as "Babe".
https://www.dispatch.com/gcdn/authoring/2019/01/25/NCOD/ghows-OH-8036a597-2911-36e8-e053-0100007f5098-9d38cbef.jpeg?width=1200&disable=upscale&format=pjpg&auto=webp
With the aid of Jon S. Baird's beautifully evocative direction, the viewer gets an up close and personal look at a team that truly defined the phrase "well-oiled machine." Conversations between the two regarding their work were often abbreviated but they always understood each other and it is heartbreaking when the resentments that they had been bottling regarding the breakup in 1937 come bubbling to the surface in front of a theater full of people, the films's most dramatic moment. Adding to the beauty of this brilliantly directed scene is the fact that the people in the theater think the whole scene was a comedy routine for their benefit.
https://www.shockya.com/news/wp-content/uploads/Stan-and-Ollie-Movie.jpg
I was also impressed with an interesting juxtaposition established in the story when we meet Stan and Oliver's wives, whose relationship bore more than a passing resemblance to the relationship between their husbands. It was so much fun watching the wives blame the other husband for anything that their own husband was upset about, not to mention the fact that both women seemed to be "wearing the pants" in their marriages.
https://www.pajiba.com/assets_c/2018/09/ollie-and-stan-trailer-thumb-700xauto-201686.png
Baird and company have employed handsome production values to this story including some beautiful cinematography, art direction, costumes, and makeup. As for the performances they are nothing short of superb. John C. Reilly, another actor incapable of giving a bad performance, and Steve Coogan, both do Oscar-worthy work bringing the title characters vividly to life. The onscreen relationship that these actors establish is just a joy to watch. They are provided solid support by Shirley Henderson as Mrs. Hardy, Nina Arianda as Mrs. Laurel, and an especially greasy turn by Rufus Jones as the smarmy British promotor who arranges the European tour. This is a lovingly mounted and emotionally haunting look at Hollywood legend that during its final act, actually had me fighting tears. 4.5

[Gideon58]

Blind Date (1987)
With a proven directorial commodity behind the camera and an engaging cast of actors in front of it, the 1987 comedyBlind Date is not nearly as bad as its reputation.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/b4/ae/35/b4ae35d56180bace4b95dd6747b3e383.jpg
The film stars Bruce Willis, in a pre-Die Hard film appearance, playing Walter Davis, a workaholic who needs a date for an important business dinner and on the recommendation of his brother (the late Phil Hartman), agrees to date one Nadia Gates (Kim Basinger). Walter is warned before the date that under no circumstances is he allowed to let Nadia drink because she completely loses control when she gets drunk. Walter assumes this means that she gets uninhibited in bed so not long after they meet, he starts plying her with champagne. Because of Nadia's drunken escapades, the next morning Walter is unemployed and looking at ten years in jail. The situation is further complicated by the presence of David (John Larroquette), Nadia's psycho ex-boyfriend who is still completely obsessed with her.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/CjNjDaNpU0s/hq720.jpg?sqp=-oaymwEhCK4FEIIDSFryq4qpAxMIARUAAAAAGAElAADIQj0AgKJD&rs=AOn4CLA_WBRU4JKetC46gOEcVwdLgvaupg
Dale Launer, who also wrote the screenplays for My Cousin Vinny and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, gets a lot of mileage out of a pretty flimsy premise, maybe a little further than than he should have. I'm no doctor, but I found it a little hard to believe that a chemical imbalance to alcohol could actually cause all of Nadia's behavior in the first half of the comedy. The scene where she talks Walter's client's longtime spouse into divorcing him would have been hard to attribute to a chemical imbalance, but most of the situations that manifest from this premise are credible, even if they might get a little too steeped in slapstick.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTcxNTg3MTU4M15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNzM4MzUwNw@@._V1_.jpg
But when a story is rife with slapstick, there were fewer directors I would have liked to have had behind the camera than Blake Edwards, the director of 10, Victoria/Victoria and the entire Pink Panther franchise. There were few directors who knew how to stage outrageous physical/slapstick comedy than Edwards and it is his skill behind the camera that makes a lot of the silliness that goes on here worth sticking around for and laughing at.
https://jokeronthesofa.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/blinddate-2geisha.png?w=1024
Edwards has a cast of pros working for him as well. Bruce Willis gives the role of Walter Davis just the dash of realism that we can believe all the ridiculous situations that he gets in. Basinger works hard to get Nadia's craziness across and she definitely creates chemistry with Willis. Larroquette was very funny as the nutty lawyer who keeps running his car into storefronts and William Daniels also garnered some major laughs as Larroquette's father. This movie also reminded me of how much I miss Phil Hartman. It's no 10 or My Cousin Vinny, but there are laughs to be found here. 3

[Gideon58]

The Hustler
Paul Newman received his second Best Actor nomination for his brilliant performance in 1961's The Hustler, a gritty and atmospheric character study that plays out differently than expected, but is compelling entertainment thanks to an enigmatic lead character who is not the same person at the end of the film that he was at the beginning.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/412lozRC45L.jpg
This is the story of Fast Eddie Felson, an excellent pool player and compulsive gambler who gets the opportunity to play against Minnesota Fats (Jackie Gleason), who is supposed to be the best pool player in the country. After playing for about 12 hours, Eddie is up by about $11.000 but doesn't want to quit. After over 24 hours of shooting pool, Eddie has lost $18,000, which drives him from the pool halls into the arms of a lonely alcoholic named Sarah (Piper Laurie), though all he can think about is getting is getting another shot at the Fat Man. He sees a possible ticket back through a professional gambler named Bert Gordon (George C. Scott) who sees the potential in Eddie to be a great hustler, on the condition of taking 75% of everything Eddie earns.
https://static.rogerebert.com/uploads/review/primary_image/reviews/great-movie-the-hustler-1961/hero_EB20020623REVIEWS08206230301AR.jpg
Producer, director, and co-screenwriter Robert Rossen crafts a haunting and beautifully tragic character study that makes some deceptive turns in its execution and presentation of this lead character. The title of the film is a little deceptive because Eddie is not a hustler at the beginning of the movie, but he thinks he is. This is proven during one scene where Eddie attempts to hustle a couple of strangers at a pool hall who want nothing to do with him on the pool table because he walks in with his own pool cue under his arm. A true pool hustler is going to play strangers with a house cue. Eddie's other fatal flaw is that he doesn't know when to quit...whether he's winning or losing, he doesn't know when to quit and proves that his ego often writes check that his skill can't cash.
https://twscritic.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/the-hustler-paul-newman.jpg
Rossen is also to be credited for his ability to tell large portions of his story without dialogue. I love when Eddie and Fats agree to their first match and everyone present in the pool hall, staff and customers alike, move into position and prepare the room for what is about to happen. Equally impressive was the way Rossen overlapped camera shots during the 24-hour pool game to convey the passage of time without actually showing us every game. The actually pool playing that we are witness too was also impressive. Jackie Gleason was an accomplished pool player IRL and did all of his own shots. After being coached by pool pro Willie Mosconi, Newman performed most of his shots as well.
https://cindybruchman.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/the-hustler-fats-eddie.jpg
Robert Pressen's choice to film in black and white was inspired, intensifying the often seedy atmosphere upon which the story plays. Newman loses himself in this character, offering one of his most powerful and passionate performances. Laurie makes the most of a sketchily written role and is so effective her performance earned a supporting actress nomination. George C. Scott is also brilliant, as always, as the slimy Bert Gordon, a performance that earned him a supporting actor nomination as did Gleason's Minnesota Fats. Rossen also received three nominations for his work and the film also won richly deserved Oscars for black and white cinematography and art direction/set direction. A classic that is more than worthy of its reputation. 4

[Gideon58]

Richard Pryor: Live on Sunset Strip
On June 9, 1980, Richard Pryor was at his home doing freebase and caused an explosion that literally sit the comedian on fire and had him hospitalized for a long time. Richard Pryor: Live on Sunset Strip was his first return to the microphone following his recovery.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51hksCovpWL._SY445_.jpg
The 1982 concert finds Pryor in rare form, handsomely adorned in a fire engine red tuxedo with a black shirt and gold shoes, and even though we have to wait until the final third of the film for it, he does share in hilarious detail regarding the entire incident, starting with a frank and funny routine about how his addiction started, where Pryor actually has conversations with the paraphernalia he utilized to get high and the progression of a disease that has the addict looking on the floor for anything to smoke when his stash is gone and smoking so much that drug dealers actually refused to sell to him. He also shared about how he was treated in the hospital and how close friend, NFL legend Jim Brown attempted a one man intervention on him. I loved right before he began sharing the whole story he made the whole audience promise not to tell anyone.
https://media.blogto.com/events/2018/07/04/9dfd0a0e-a0f4-4c71-a059-94a0568b0af4.jpg?w=2048&cmd=resize&quality=70
Pryor made us wait for this though, starting off with the standard material that we expect from him, there was an initial offering regarding sex and how it was one of the best perks of being in show business, but it then smoothly segued into a discussion of relationships, how to weather them, and how they can break your heart. A lot of comedians talk about sex but not so much about navigating the choppy waters of sustaining a relationship and from someone like Pryor, this was a most refreshing surprise.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BN2IzM2Q0NmMtNWVlNy00ZTZiLTg1OTMtMjNkYWVkNmY3MmRhXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNTc0NjY1ODk@._V1_.jpg
The comedian also shares about his trip to Africa, giving voice to a pair of cheetah eyeing a herd of gazelles and something I didn't see coming: he actually takes an audience request. During a short lull in his routine while he was getting a drink of water, an audience member shouts out a request for someone called Mudbone. Most likely a character he has done in previous concerts, Pryor announced that this would be Mudbone's final performance then launched into a 15 minute routine of a very old black man with no teeth pontificating about the mysteries of life that had the audience on the floor. It made me want to go back and find where this character originated. Loved the closing where Pryor thanked his fans for their support during his recovery but also let them know he was aware of the jokes that were going around about him. A wonderfully entertaining 90 minutes from the best stand up comedian ever who was taken from us much too soon. 4

[Gideon58]

Gia
A practically unknown actress by the name of Angelina Jolie put herself on the map with a powerhouse performance in an HBO biopic called Gia playing Gia Carangi, the first true supermodel of the 1970's whose drug abuse led to her being one of the first females diagnosed with AIDS and dying from the disease at the tender age of 26.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/a/ab/Gia_%28DVD_cover%29.png/250px-Gia_%28DVD_cover%29.png
This lavishly mounted 1998 film follows Gia from her wild years as an out and proud lesbian teen in Philadelphia to her being discovered by New York fashion agent Wilhemena Cooper (Faye Dunaway) and her meteoric rise to the queen of the runways. Sadly, her descent into drug abuse caused an equally meteoric fall from grace. Along the way the film documents Gia's troubled relationship with her mother (Mercedes Ruehl) and her turbulent love affair with a heterosexual makeup artist named Linda (Elizabeth Mitchell).
https://images2.static-bluray.com/reviews/5105_1.jpg
Director and co-screenwriter Michael Cristofer has crafted a loving and respectful tribute to this tragic creature, almost to the point of putting her on a cinematic pedestal but never whitewashing who Gia was. According to this film, Gia was a tornado who blew through lives and was oblivious regarding the damage she caused. She worked incredibly hard at being different and outrageous and was repelled by anything that smacked of being ordinary. This comes blazing through in her pursuit of Linda, who tells Gia that she has a boyfriend but Gia doesn't care...this was the 1970's, a time when sexual lines were beginning to blur and Gia embraced it. There's a wonderful scene where Gia does meet Linda's boyfriend, who suggests that the three of them party together but Gia is having none of it and shoves him into a wall before leaving.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRKWibYCAcnZGec0nb4O8qlfNRhFAFeO0-45vFtGmoWJapsfEjP
Cristofer gets a little carried away with presenting Gia's actual words as part of the film's narration. Cristofer borrowed heavily from a journal that Gia kept in preparing his screenplay, but it gets a little distracting at times. One thing I did like regarding the narration: This was not the first biopic that opened with characters in the subject's story being interviewed documentary-style, but this is the first one where it seemed no two people being interviewed had similar thoughts about Gia. I was also impressed with a wonderful directorial touch where Cristofer opens the film with extreme close-ups of Jolie being made up as if right before a photo shoot but we learn at the end of the film that this is not the case.
https://a.ltrbxd.com/resized/sm/upload/wg/gb/z7/qi/gia-1200-1200-675-675-crop-000000.jpg?v=88073d9f28
Cristofer's biggest coup is the absolutely amazing performance he gets from Angelina Jolie, a combination of fire and ice that is so mesmerizing she received a Golden Globe and an Emmy nomination for her work. This was the start of Jolie's career and now that I've seen this, there is very little she did later in her career that matched her work here, a dazzling performances that should be studied by acting students.
https://assets.mubi.com/images/film/25117/image-w856.jpg?1445916113
Mercedes Reuhl is brilliant as Gia's mother, effortlessly projecting the character's conflicted feelings about her daughter. Elizabeth Mitchell was also terrific as Linda, creating a chemistry with Jolie I didn't see coming...there is a photo shoot near the beginning of the film that features both actresses in the nude which is one of the most erotic things I have ever seen. Oh, and that is a very young Mila Kunis playing a pre-teen Gia in the opening scenes. Cristofer deserves some credit there too. If you would like to see a truly gifted actress before her career got swallowed up by the media, check out Gia. 4

[Gideon58]

The Seven Little Foys
Bob Hope, cast radically against type, anchors a 1955 biopic about Eddie Foy called The Seven Little Foys, a showbiz story beautifully blended with a family drama that was impossible to resist.
https://boredanddangerousblog.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/foys.jpg
Yes, there was a real Eddie Foy and I have no idea how factually accurate this story was, but, according to this film, Foy was a struggling comic who marries a beautiful Italian ballerina and continues to become a star while his wife gives up her career to raise his seven children. The arrangement works for Eddie until the mother passes away from a mysterious illness while he's on the road. When his sister-in-law threatens to take the children away from him, Foy feels he has no option but to bring the kids on the road with him to become a vaudeville act called Eddie Foy and the Seven Little Foys.
http://rarefilm.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/The-Seven-Little-Foys-Melville-Shavelson-1955-2.jpg
Director and screenwriter Melville Shavelson has mounted a warm and engaging story rich with humor, but not the slapstick that we expect from a Bob Hope movie. Shevelson's screenplay actually earned him an Oscar nomination. His vision of Eddie Foy is likable even if it is a little contradictory at times. The beginning of the film establishes Foy as a confirmed bachelor who has no interest in marriage or family and before the halfway point of the film, he is married and the father of seven. The death of his wife does bring about a credible change in Foy (the scene where he learns of her death is quite moving, he was on the road when it happened). The initial scenes of Foy trying to teach the kids how to sing and dance are very funny and their contempt of show business is understandable, making their complete 180 at the climax of the film a little contrived.
https://www.wimp.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/66599d5689db22a8266362a626a6a617_dance_1316_866.jpg
The absolute marvel of this film is an incredible performance by Bob Hope that was unlike anything we had seen him do before. Hope proved for the first time that he was more than a clown with a talent for delivering a great punchline, but comes off as a full-fledged triple threat performer here...whether it is his rendition of the Bert Williams classic "Nobody" or the glorious tap showdown on a banquet table with James Cagney, reprising his role as George M. Cohan, or learning that his children have rejected the Xmas stockings he has provided for them while on the road, Hope easily gives the richest performance of his career in this film, proving what an immensely underrated actor he was.
http://rarefilm.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/The-Seven-Little-Foys-Melville-Shavelson-1955-3.jpg
As mentioned, I don't know how factually accurate this film was, but as far as I know, only one of the seven Foy children continued in the business as an adult. Eddie Foy Jr. managed to carve out a pretty impressive career for himself, including appearances in films like Yankee Doodle Dandy, The Pajama Game, Lucky Me, and Bells are Ringing.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/DXKXB7/the-seven-little-foys-DXKXB7.jpg
Paramount Studios pulled out all the stops for this one, the production values are first-rate, with particular nods to art direction and cinematography, but more than anything, this film opened my eyes to what an incredible actor Bob Hope was and how, when given this opportunity, proved to be an actor of substance. BTW, Foy's oldest son, Bryan, is played by Billy Gray, who squeezed in this movie during his first hiatus from the sitcom Father Knows Best. I've been wanting to see this film for a long time and it definitely lives up to its reputation. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Afterglow
Two severely damaged marriages that are very similar and very different become hopelessly mangled in 1997's Afterglow, a character driven story of two marriages with a common link that, despite some superb performances, suffers to a screenplay that cops out at several points, especially the ending.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/519BSN5VYTL._SY445_.jpg
Lucky Mann (Nick Nolte) is a contractor/repairman married to Phyllis (Julie Christie), a former B movie actress who sits at home all day drinking and watching her old movies. They haven't had sex in years. Marianne Byron (Lara Flynn Boyle) is a sexually frustrated housewife who wants a baby. She's married to Jeffrey (Jonny Lee Miller) a workaholic who has no interest in becoming a father and finds himself fighting off the attraction of a co-worker (Jay Underwood).
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNGFmOWMyNDItNGJlZC00NWY1LWE1ZjMtZjE1YmYwYWRkYTJiXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjk3NTUyOTc@._V1_.jpg
Lucky is recommended to Marianne when she is looking for a contractor to convert one of the rooms of her apartment into a nursery and it is not long before Lucky and Marianne are having an affair. Meanwhile, Jeffrey goes to a hotel to look for Marianne because he suspects her infidelity, but instead of finding her, he finds Phyllis and begins pursuit of her.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/BPG9YD/julie-christie-j-lee-miller-afterglow-1997-BPG9YD.jpg
Director and screenwriter Alan Rudolph attempts to paint a broad canvas for this story unlike the work of his mentor Robert Altman and attempts to move this story in several directions and then backs away. It was really interesting that the initial link between the two couples was a child...for the Manns, it was a child who left home many years ago and for the Byrons, It's a child that doesn't exist yet, a child that Marianne wants more than life and Jeffrey doesn't want at all and yet and because of these children, neither couple has been able to connect and have not been intimate for years.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/BPGA89/nick-nolte-julie-christie-afterglow-1997-BPGA89.jpg
I was initially intrigued by the idea that Jeffrey was having an affair with a man because the character piqued my gaydar almost immediately and it is approached but backed away from a mere thirty minutes into the film, which made the distance between Marianne and Jeffrey make even less sense. As unhappy as the Byrons are, the explosive confrontation that occurs when Jeffrey catches Lucky and Marianne at a bar together is a little unnerving and might even produce unintentional giggles. It would have been nice if Rudolph had painted his story with bolder colors and less gray and the ending is way too ambiguous.
https://canvas.tubitv.com/opts/9WUcw87r8bbl5A==/1eaa5b5d-901b-472e-a8ad-e512f20632f2/CIAPELgIOgUxLjEuMg==
The film is watchable though thanks to the powerhouse performances by Julie Christie, Nick Nolte, and Jonny Lee Miller. Christie's bold and theatrical turn earned her a Best Actress nomination and the chemistry she creates with Nolte is positively kinetic. Not the complete film experience it should be, but Christie and Nolte make it worth a look. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Get On Up
Before Black Panther made him a star, Chadwick Boseman was given the opportunity to play a music industry giant, R&B singer James Brown, "The Godfather of Soul" in a 2014 biopic called Get On Up a pretentious and fatally overlong film that, despite a charismatic performance from the star, turns out to be just another biopic.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/91LGZn51EpL._AC_UF1000,1000_QL80_.jpg
This film takes the same path as a million other biopics, starting with Brown's dirt poor childhood with abusive parents to his flying to Vietnam to perform for troops there, getting his first record deal, which involves him selling out the rest of his group, the Famous Flames. and because we're in the 60's. we also get the obligatory glimpses at Brown dealing with racism and trying to be a successful artist in "white show business".
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTg0NzcwMzczMF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNTk3NjkzMTE@._V1_.jpg
Jez and John-Henry Butterworth have constructed a long-winded and cliche-ridden screenplay that covers so much familiar territory that one could probably just change the names of the principals involved and this could be a biopic on just about any black singer from the 60's. There are obvious parallels with the Jamie Foxx film Ray as the film flashes back and forth between Brown's childhood and his present in the 1960's. Anything you've ever seen in a musical biopic gets touched upon here...the womanizing, the drugs and alcohol, the star turning on the people who have always had his back. There is one ridiculous scene with James' band where he is trying to explain how he wants them to play a certain song and compares all the instruments to drums. His instructions make no sense but the band claim they understand and play it again...James is immensely pleased that he got through to his band members but it doesn't sound any different than the way they played it the first time.
https://media.gq.com/photos/55828c8fe52bc4b477a9812d/master/w_1600%2Cc_limit/blogs-the-feed-get-on-up-movie-james-brown-story.jpg
Director Tate Taylor (Winter's Bone, The Help) provides lackluster and unimaginative direction that contributes to the film being about 45 minutes longer than it needs to be. He attempts to inject something special into the proceedings by having Boseman provide some of the narration speaking directly at the camera, but it just comes off as gimmicky and just contributes to the film's air of pretension.
https://pics.filmaffinity.com/get_on_up-715727443-large.jpg
Chadwick Boseman does deliver a real movie star performance in the starring role, clearly having done his homework on the subject...he brilliantly recreates Brown's most famous onstage moves and manages to convince as a vocalist as well. Research revealed that Boseman only does "some" of the singing. Effective support is provided by Nelsan Ellis as Bobby Byrd, Craig Robinson as a saxophone player in Brown's band, Dan Aykroyd as agent Ben Bart and Oscar winner Viola Davis as Brown's mother. There's also a cute cameo from Oscar winner Allison Janney, but ultimately, the director's overindulgent direction and the cliched screenplay do this one in. A worthy subject of a biopic, James Brown deserved better than this overblown mess. 2

[Gideon58]

The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad
Back in 1980, the late Leslie Nielsen redefined his acting career when he played the role of Dr. Rumac in Airplane!. The character was re-imagined as a cop named Frank Drebin a couple of years later for a short-lived comedy series called Police Squad which only ran for six episodes, but gained a cult following and was so popular it initiated a movie franchise that began with The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BODk1ZWM4ZjItMjFhZi00MDMxLTgxNmYtODFhNWZlZTkwM2UwXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTQxNzMzNDI@._V1_.jpg
The people behind Airplane and Hot Shots are behind this 1988 comedy which finds Frank Drebin, an LA police detective who arrives on the scene when his partner Nordberg (OJ Simpson) is nearly murdered by a dangerous group of drug smugglers led by the evil Victor Ludwig (Ricardo Montalban). Frank must simultaneously try to bring Ludwig and his gang to justice and provide security for Queen Elizabeth, who is touring the US and will be throwing out the first pitch at a California Angels game. Even with all this, Frank manages to initiate a romance with Ludwig's attractive assistant, Jane (Priscilla Presley).
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/koPEnaz0Qm8/maxresdefault.jpg
Screenwriters Jerry Zuker, David Zuker, Jim Abrahams, and Pat Proft have concocted an off-the-wall and goofy story that is a balanced combination of sight gags as well as some silly dialogue that often requires very close attention in order for the viewer to catch what's going on. As they did with Airplane!, the Zuker Brothers provide sight and dialogue gags at lightning speed so that if one doesn't work, the viewer doesn't have time to whine about it because there's another one coming shorty.
https://i2.wp.com/www.moviehousememories.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/The-Naked-Gun-1988-featured-2.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1
I loved Drebin's exchange with a dock foreman, played by Joe Grifasi, centered around a pair of twenty dollar bills. His scaling of a very tall building constructed from anatomically correct statues was very funny as was Drebin's very public trip to the bathroom during a press conference. His initial counter with the Queen was pretty funny as was Simpson's recoil from being shot during the opening scenes.
https://i0.wp.com/nerdsloth.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/CFC_058b.jpg?fit=723%2C499&ssl=1
The straight-faced performances really aid in making this kind of farce work and Nielsen's stone-face is perfect for the nutty goings-on and George Kennedy, Simpson, Montalban, and Nancy Marchand as the Mayor offer fun support. Must also give a shout out to Jeanette Charles as the Queen. There are cameos along the way from Wierd Al Yankovic, Jim Palmer, Curt Gowdy, John Houseman, Reggie Jackson, Lawrence Tierney, Dick Enberg, and Dick Vitale. From the "Put your brain in check and enjoy" school of filmmaking, this was a lot of fun and am looking forward to checking out the sequels. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Ralph Breaks the Internet
Ralph breaks the Internet is Disney Pixar's colorful and action-packed sequel to Wreck-it-Ralph that is all kinds of fun, even if it does suffer from a slight case of "Sequel-itis."
https://www.dvdsreleasedates.com/posters/800/R/Ralph-Breaks-the-Internet-Wreck-It-Ralph-2-2018-movie-poster.jpg
In this story, Ralph (voiced by John C. Reilly) has inadvertently caused the malfunction and eventual unplugging of Sugar Rush, the video game of which his BFF, Vannelope (voiced by Sarah SIlverman) is the star. Vannelope and the other drivers in Sugar Rush are now homeless, but the video characters are intrigued and frightened when a new plug-in comes into the arcade power surge called "Wi-Fi" and after receiving a brief education on the internet, Ralph decides that he and Vannelope should travel to the internet to a magical land called E-Bay, where the part needed to restore Sugar Rush has been located.
http://static1.squarespace.com/static/5574fcfde4b04dc41048fc54/t/5bff6c15575d1f43943b0900/1543466020116/la-1542422253-ra0badzpoc-snap-image.jpg?format=1500w
Upon their arrival, Ralph and Vannelope misunderstand the concept of an auction and have to come up with $27,001.00 in order to get the new part. Further internet research by our pals reveal that they can buy a car at a game called Slaughter Race. Unfortunately, their trip to Slaughter Race might separate our friends forever, as the game terrifies Ralph but Vannelope loves it and wants to make it her new video home.
https://live.staticflickr.com/1847/43904824165_2d0fd985a9_b.jpg
Directors and writers Phil Johnson and Rich Moore are to be applauded for their colorful endlessly concept of the internet, which is a huge futuristic-looking city, like something out of Blade Runner complete with structures labeled things like You Tube and IMDB. The initial set up of the story is a lot of fun, but as we've become accustomed with Disney Pixar, the story becomes overly complex and featuring about three too many endings. The resolution of the story is at the very end of a VERY long tunnel and just when we think we're beginning to see the light, we are thrown one more wrench in the works, which actually degenerates into melodrama, which was completely out of place with the colorful and exciting story we had been exposed to thus far.
https://cdn.mainichi.jp/vol1/2018/11/20/20181120p2g00m0et033000p/9.jpg?1
Some of the detours are a lot of fun. I loved Shank (voiced by Gal Gadot), the owner of the expensive car our friends want to get who has a hair-raising car race with Vannelope and I was absolutely delighted when the story found Vannelope encountering every Disney animated heroine from the past couple of decades where they teach her how to be a Disney heroine and she teaches them how to chill and dress down, climaxing in a Broadway style musical number that was a lot of fun.
http://static1.squarespace.com/static/51b3dc8ee4b051b96ceb10de/51ce6099e4b0d911b4489b79/5b6c880b70a6ade3cf3f9935/1557985568755/the-disney-princesses-get-new-outfits-in-photo-from-ralph-breaks-the-internet-social.jpg?format=1500w
Reilly and Silverman have settled comfortably into their roles as Ralph and Vannelope and Gadot was a lot of fun as Shank. Also enjoyed Alan Tudyk as KnowsMore (the search engine/spacebar), Taraji P. Henson as Yess, the directorr of Buzztube.com, Bil Hader as JP Spamley, and Sean Giambrone as Pop-up. Alfred Molina also gives voice to an evil computer virus called Double Dan. There's also a brief cameo from Buzz Lightyear (voiced by Tim Allen). Disney Pixar has a pretty solid record with viable sequels and this one works too, though by the final act, I have to admit I was checking my watch. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Tango & Cash
One of my favorite guilty pleasures, 1989's Tango & Cash is a by-the-numbers cop/buddy action comedy that seems better than it is thanks to the surprising chemistry between the stars, who are cast against type.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/91wLDJOWetL._SY445_.jpg
Sylvester Stallone plays Raymond Tango, a sophisticated cop who wears Armani suits and dabbles in the stock market. Kurt Russell is Gabriel Cash, the long-haired, hard-drinking cop whose apartment looks like a hurricane hit it. Tango and Cash have been a consistent thorn in the side of a ruthless drugs/weapons dealer named Perret (Jack Palance) who's got a large shipment of weapons coming in and decides to handle his thorn by framing them for murder and sending them to jail for 18 months. The antagonism between Ray and Gabe is intensified further when Gabe meets Katherine (Teri Hatcher), Ray's sister, and is immediately attracted to her.
https://muviefunaticdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2017/01/tango-and-cash.jpg?w=646
Screenwriter Randy Feldman, who also wrote the Eddie Murphy drama Metro has provided us with a very standard story that employs every cop buddy movie cliche that you can think of in its relatively economic running time. Instead of stroking a cat like most movie bad guys, this guy Perret likes to play with mice. Fortunately, the story doesn't take too much time setting up the differences between the two guys because they are obvious from jump and didn't need to be spoon-fed to us.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/S/pv-target-images/424fc6c142ccf3e563c96c383b5e50d39f22ce08174e44a8302b6a80a1d90b79.jpg
Andrei Konchalovsky, who directed the Julie Andrews melodrama Duet for One, proves he has a penchant for mounting solid action sequences, as well as the foresight to cast his stars against type...it was fun seeing Stallone as the urbane sophisticate who manages to stop a a fuel trick of cocaine in the opening scene without mussing his suit. It was just as fun seeing Russelll as the rogue cop who has to wear a bullet-proof vest 24-7 because he keeps getting shot at. And I think this is the only film that offers movie audiences a glance of Kurt Russell in drag.
https://marianithomas.files.wordpress.com/2016/06/tango-and-cash-court.jpg?w=1000
A lot of money went into this movie, it's too bad it didn't have more experience in the genre behind the camera because this could have been something pretty special if it had more going for it than Stallone and Russell, who really make lemonade out of lemons and film a real guilty pleasure. 3

[Gideon58]

The Tunnel of Love
MGM legend Gene Kelly stepped behind the camera as director of 1958's The Tunnel of Love, a sophisticated adult comedy that still provides laughs despite a talky screenplay and some questionable casting.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTY4MzEwOTQyMl5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwODE0MzEyMjE@._V1_.jpg
Isolde Poole (Doris Day) and her husband, Augie (Richard Widmark) have been trying for several years to have a baby to no avail. They receive a visit from a case worker from the Rock-a-Bye Adoption Agency named Miss Novick (Gia Scala) whose initial impression of Augie is not good; but she gives him a second a chance and actually ends up spending the night in a hotel with him. Miss Novick winds up pregnant and Augie, convinced that the baby is his, gives the woman $1000 before she leaves town to have the baby. Then the Rock-a-Bye agency shows up with a baby for the Pooles that bears an uncanny resemblance to Augie.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNWUyYjc3ZWUtYzU3Ny00NjI1LTg5NGItMjc0NWJmZDVkYzYzXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMzk3NTUwOQ@@._V1_SY1000_CR0,0,13 43,1000_AL_.jpg
This movie was based on a Broadway play that opened in 1957 and ran for 417 performances and its origins as a theatrical piece are evident in the fact that the story pretty much takes place in the Poole's home. The idea of a couple being unable to conceive a child was pretty adult stuff for 1958 but this movie doesn't shy away from it, though the theme sinks occasionally amid some overly sophisticated dialogue with hidden meaning that probably was a little too sophisticated for 1980 movie audiences. I did have to chuckle though when halfway through a comedy about a couple trying to conceive a baby it's revealed that they sleep in twin beds.
https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0257/3165/products/RSF14029.jpeg?v=1497474107
Kelly does his best to keep this story moving and engaging to the viewer, but the story plays like an extended episode of a sitcom. There is an emptiness to the proceedings and Day's role in particular that is kind of sad to watch. This film was co-produced by Martin Melcher, Doris' husband at the time, who was going through her money like kleenex, forcing Doris to do a lot of movies that she really didn't want to do and her unhappiness with being involved in this project does come through a bit in her performance.
https://www.dorisdaymagic.com/uploads/1/1/6/0/11608548/4135261_orig.jpg
But the casting of Richard Widmark as her husband is the real problem here. I haven't seen an actor work this hard trying to be funny since Gregory Peck in Designing Woman and i'm still not sure if it was a matter of bad acting or being miscast. I suspect the latter because Widmark is a very talented actor but he just seemed out of his element here. I kept picturing Rock Hudson or Dean Martin in this role. On the other hand, Gig Young, in his second film with Day that year (Teacher's Pet was the other), steals every scene he's in as Augie's unhappily married neighbor and best friend and Elisabeth Fraser reprises her Broadway role as his wife. This movie works very hard at being funny and Day and Young are always worth watching, but this one really doesn't work as it should. 2.5

[Gideon58]

Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star
David Spade starred ad co-wrote the screenplay for the 2003 comedy Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star, a silly and predictable comedy that provides sporadic laughs leading up to a terrific finale.
https://i5.walmartimages.com/asr/2529c6a1-c6b2-4fdf-82d3-c70ae74678ad_1.3f0ff10036512dfae2ad11a40b187023.jpeg?odnHeight=450&odnWidth=450&odnBg=FFFFFF
Spade plays the title role, who was the star of a TV show called The Glimmer Gang at the tender age of five. He hasn't really worked since and has attempted to revive his career via appearances on things like Celebrity Boxing, but to no avail. Somehow, his agent (Jon Lovitz) gets him an audition for a new movie being directed by Rob Reiner. Reiner rejects him for the role because the role requires an adult. Dickie decides that he doesn't know how to be an adult because he really had no childhood so he pays a suburban family a lot of money to be treated as the family's third child so that he can experience a normal childhood.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/P0PE19/original-film-title-dickie-roberts-former-child-star-english-title-dickie-roberts-former-child-star-film-director-sam-weisman-year-2003-stars-jon-lovitz-david-spade-credit-tmparamount-pictures-fellman-mark-album-P0PE19.jpg
Spade's premise is cleverly executed as we meet Dickie with his poker playing buddies, who include Leif Garrett, Barry Williams, Dustin Diamond, Danny Bonaduce, and Corey Feldman and then moves into a totally predictable series of events where where Dickie teaches the son how to discover his inner stud, the daughter how to becoming a great cheerleader, and shows the Mom (Mary McCormack) what a scum her husband (Craig Bierko) is.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/y-qFqfSjN1U/maxresdefault.jpg
Spade had the opportunity to do something really special here. Former child star Paul Peterson started an organization decades ago to protect child actors, but this film is just one silly slapstick scene after another, including Dickie's introduction to a slip-n-slide. The attraction to Mom doesn't really work either because Spade and McCormack have no chemistry whatsoever. The film comes in for a smashing finish with the epilogue documenting how this experience works out for Dickie and make sure to stay tuned through the closing credits, which features a video called "Don't hurt the Child Stars" which features Florence Henderson, Marian Ross, and thirty former child stars, a la "We are the World."
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/IEOqAlmq2NU/maxresdefault.jpg
Needless to say, Spade-haters should definitely take a pass on this. McCormack underplays nicely as the Mom and Bierko is quite effective as the greasy dad. Alyssa Milano is also very funny as Dickie's ex-girlfriend who re-enters his life and you might also catch cameos by Doris Roberts, Dick van Patten, Rachel Dratch, Regis Philbin, Jay Leno, Kelly Ripa, and ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT reporter Jann Carl. It's not great cinema, but Spade seems to be enjoying himself and star-gazers should enjoy it. 2.5

[Gideon58]

The intervention (2016)
Actress Clea DuVall shows potential as a filmmaker as the producer, director, and writer of the 2016 comedy-drama The Intervention that boasts some interesting performances but has just too much of a "been there done that" quality to the story.
https://static.rogerebert.com/uploads/movie/movie_poster/the-intervention-2016/large_large_4J2Vc32juKTSdqm273HDKHsWO42.jpg
The story follows four couples who fly from various parts of the country to meet at the summer house of one of them because five of these people have determined that one of the couples is terribly unhappy and should divorce, so they have decided to bring the couple to this idyllic vacation spot to perform a "marriage intervention" on the couple that also turns an intervening eye on Annie (Melanie Lynskey), who orchestrated this whole thing but has a serious drinking problem which is also addressed.
https://thecriticalcritics.com/review/wp-content/images/the-intervention-still-1-1160x480.jpg
DuVall has mounted a tale that, on the surface, ventures into The Big Chill/Return of the Seacacus Seven territory but doesn't do it with the style and efficiency that Lawrence Kasdan did. The story feels more contemporary, evidenced by one of the couples being lesbian, but this reviewer found it very difficult to get behind what is going on. I don't care how miserable a couple's marriage is, it is no one's place to tell a couple that they are unhappy and should divorce. I found this subject matter cringe-worthy, making it hard for me to legitimately address DuVall's talent as a filmmaker.
https://truemoviebuff.files.wordpress.com/2016/06/theintervention.jpg
A kiss between a straight woman and a lesbian kicks off a very funny scene that had me rolling, but the majority of this film had me squirming. DuVall has employed some top-notch production values to her story and there are some really strong performances among this hand-picked ensemble cast. Lynskey is outstanding as the instigator of this whole thing as are Natasha Lyonne as DuVall's lover, Ben Schwartz as a widower who was going through a divorce when his wife died, who has his new girlfriend accompany him on this trip. Vincent Piazza, who impressed me in Jersey Boys as Tommy DeVito, impresses here as well as the exasperated Peter. DuVall gets an "A" for effort here and shows definite promise as a filmmaker. 3

[Gideon58]

She's Funny that Way
With a proven commodity in the director's chair, the 2015 screwball comedy She's Funny that Way does take a few minutes to get going, but eventually delivers laughs, thanks to meticulous direction and a terrific ensemble cast.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/91LsaWsx16L._SY445_.jpg
This is the story of a struggling actress and part-time call girl named Isabella (Imogen Poots) who finds herself involved with a crazy group of theater people who are all part of a new Broadway show called A GRECIAN EVENING. The other primary players in this contemporary drawing room comedy include the play's director Arnold Adamson (Owen Wilson), his wife and the star of the play Delta (Kathryn Hahn), the arrogant leading man, Seth Gilbert (Rhys Ifans), the playwright (Will Forte); his bitchy psychiatrist wife (Jennifer Aniston); a philandering Judge (Austin Pendleton); and Isabella's parents (Richard Lewis, Cybill Shepherd).
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/IIq1om2twA0/maxresdefault.jpg
About 20 minutes into this movie, I actually said to myself, "this reminds me of that Peter Bognovich movie Noises Off", so imagine my shock when I learned that this film was directed and co-written by Bogdanovich. I was also intrigued to learn that he co-wrote the screenplay with the late Dorothy Stratten's kid sister, Louise. The story also contains elements of Bogdanovich's film with Dorothy, They All Laughed, but the story is a little more focused here...yes, the focus comes in slowly, but once the viewer starts putting together who is who here, this one turned out to be a lot of fun.
https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n99e8CfeNN0/WV4zkwbG94I/AAAAAAAASz8/y8IDD1y4vIMGX4DHK8B4PSpjIy3xQvPFACEwYBhgL/s1600/She%2527s%2BFunny%2BThat%2BWay%2B1.jpg
Bogdanovich proved way back in 1972 that he knows how to do screwball comedy with his classic What's Up, Doc and there are elements of that film here as well. Bogdanovich's work here is definitely influenced by other films, but their his films, so it's OK.
https://imgix.ranker.com/user_node_img/50046/1000911462/original/sorry-i-got-really-into-it-photo-u1?w=650&q=50&fm=pjpg&fit=crop&crop=faces
He's put together a wonderful ensemble cast to pull this caper off with standout work from Wilson, Hahn, Aniston, and Ifans. Poots is a little hard to take at times, that Brooklyn accent was a little much. And if you don't blink, you might catch cameos from Collen Camp, Michael Shannon, Lucy Punch, Tatum O'Neal, Jennifer Esposito, and Quentin Tarantino. Once this one shifts to first gear, laugh-out-loud hilarity is provided right through the closing credits. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Magic
My first exposure to Oscar winner Anthony Hopkins was a bone-chilling and claustrophobic thriller called Magic that doesn't spell everything out for the viewer, allowing them to utilize their imagination in determining exactly what's going on.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/61DFkt68VnL._AC_UF894,1000_QL80_.jpg
The 1978 chiller stars Sir Anthony as Corky, a second rate magician who has been struggling in the business for years until, at the suggestion of his agent, Ben (Burgess Meredith), he adds ventriloquism to his act and, with the aid of his dummy, Fats, finally begins to attract attention. One network wants to build a special around him but Corky refuses because the contract demands a physical exam, which he adamantly refuses to do. He and Fats escape the city and return to Corky's hometown where he connects with his high school sweetheart, Peggy Ann Snow (Ann-Margret). Evidence then starts presenting itself that Fats has developed a mind of his own and is in control of Corky, even though Corky is the one with his hand in Fats' back.
https://kitleyskrypt.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/magic-1.jpg?w=600&h=338
Two time Oscar winner William Goldman adopted this bizarre screenplay from his own novel that sets up a very disturbing premise but never really commits to it. The screenplay never tells us exactly what is going on, allowing the viewers to decide for themselves. There's a lot going on here that defies logic, but it begins to dawn on us that logic is just not an option here. It was interesting to me the way Fats could move around a room and even commit murder, but when he was face down on the floor or ground, he couldn't get up without asking Corky to help him.
https://fffmovieposters.com/wp-content/uploads/19330.jpg
Oscar winner Richard Attenborough, whose career as a director has always seemed a little hit and miss to me, does some of his most effective work behind the camera on this film, producing genuine "boos' as well as scenes of quiet and unbearable tension. My favorite scene in the film is when Corky's agent asks Corky if he can go for five minutes without Fats talking and Corky is incapable of doing it...a brilliant scene rich with "hear a pin drop" tension.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/BKBKXG/magic-1978-ann-margret-anthony-hopkins-mag-001foh-BKBKXG.jpg
Anthony Hopkins was robbed of an Oscar nomination for his kinetic and tragic performance as Corky (and yes, Hopkins provides the voice of Fats as well). Burgess Meredith and Ed Lauter also make the most of their roles. And in addition to an effective performance, I have to say that Ann-Margret has never looked more beautiful onscreen...the soft look with the minimal makeup is most appealing. Bouquets to Attenborough, Goldman, Hopkins, and company for making a story that really doesn't make sense leap off the screen and scare the bejesus out of us. 4

[Gideon58]

Rocketman
The life and music of the legendary Elton John come to the big screen in a dazzling and endlessly imaginative musical epic called Rocketman that breaks all the rules of making musical biopics, producing a respectful,loving, and deliciously entertaining valentine to the subject.
https://direstraitsblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/elton-john-rocketman-sunday-movie-dire-straits-drama-biographical-musical-article-dsb.jpg
This one of a kind biopic chronicles Elton's humble beginnings as young Reggie Dwight, a young piano prodigy who was deeply troubled by his parents' dysfunctional marriage, his introduction to writing partner Bernie Taupin, his first professional gig at the Troubador in LA, the rise to fame and fortune, a rocky and disturbing journey thanks to his never-ending conflict with his mother and the pain caused by his sexual orientation and his initial denial regarding same. Of course, his history with drugs and alcohol are also addressed and are even utilized as the hook upon which the story is presented.
https://mediad.publicbroadcasting.net/p/kmuw/files/styles/x_large/public/201906/rocketman.jpg
This basic outline doesn't even scratch the surface of the amazing cinematic journey anchored by Lee Hall's imaginative screenplay. If you're looking for a typical musical biopic and just a look at the facts of Elton John's life, you've got the wrong movie. This movie does not take the typical route of a biopic. As events are presented, they morph into musical numbers, but each number is presented in a different way. In Bohemian Rhapsody, most of the musical scenes revolved around how the songs were created or concert performances. In this film, each musical number is a story in itself...the only song we see created is ":Your Song". The rest of the numbers are presented as fantasy sequences, inner dialogues of the central character, musical narratives that advance the plot, and concert sequences are clever intertwined with each number. There are a couple of numbers that are presented as if Elton is a character in another musical. One number even begins underwater! Nothing is sacred here.
https://www.rollingstone.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/rocketman-elton-john-film.jpg?crop=900:600&width=440
Even with all the musical pyrotechnics involved in giving us the music we all know and love, the screenplay also gives us insight into Elton's inner demons. There is an underlying theme throughout the film centered around Elton's self-loathing and the pain that the relationship with his mother manifested. Yes, this is another portrait of an artist whose pain is presented through his art, but it's done with such style here.
https://filmschoolrejects.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Rocketman-21.jpg
I was impressed with the way the film dealt with Elton's sexuality. It's addressed directly, but it isn't shoved down our throats either. There are three different scenes where Elton comes out to people and he gets three completely different reactions. I loved the one moment where he tries to kiss Bernie and Bernie says he loves him, but not in that way...that was it. There is a scene of him in bed with longtime manager/lover John Reid that is tastefully done and I love the look on his face at the end of this scene...it's the first moment in the film where Elton looks really happy.
https://static.spin.com/files/2018/10/Screen-Shot-2018-10-01-at-9.47.40-AM-1538401688-640x447.png
All of the Elton music that we want to hear pops up here but the fun thing about this movie is we never know exactly what form the music is going to take and we can't wait to see exactly how director Dexter Fletcher is going to stretch our musical imaginations. I especially loved "The Bitch is Back" (which is actually performed by Elton as a child), "Saturday Night's All Right for Fighting", "Crocodile Rock", "Bennie and the Jets", and "Tiny Dancer." We even get a pretty accurate recreation of the video for "I'm Still Standing"
http://static1.squarespace.com/static/51b3dc8ee4b051b96ceb10de/51ce6099e4b0d911b4489b79/5c741076652deae98e4d761d/1557985553990/watch-elton-john-and-rocketman-star-taron-egerton-perform-tiny-dancer-together-social.jpg?format=1500w
As for the performances, I would be shocked if Taron Egerton doesn't receive an Oscar nomination for his vivid and unabashed inhibiting of this leading character, a performance much richer than Rami Malek in Bohemia Rhapsody because he does his own singing. Egerton never attempts to mimic John, but he does capture his musical essence. Richard Madden created a steamy chemistry with Egerton as John Reid and I loved Jamie Bell as Bernie Taupin as well. A Oscar nomination should also be heading Bryce Dallas Howard's way for her unapologetic performance as Elton's hurtful mother. Sound and costumes deserve nominations as well. I will say that this musical is not for everyone and many will be turned off by its effort to be something different, but I was mesmerized by it. 4.5

[Gideon58]

Places in the Heart
Sally Field won her second Best Actress Oscar for her performance in 1984's Places in the Heart, an emotionally charged and layered look at family, friendship, and difficult times in one of the most difficult periods of US history.
https://boredppl.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/wpid-images-1-jpg.jpeg
It is Depression-era Texas where we find Field playing Edna Spalding, the recently widowed mother of two children who learns the only way to save her home and avoid losing her children is by planting cotton on her farm and delivering it in a timely manner. The only help she really has is a black handyman/drifter named Moses and a blind border named Will that she takes into her home for extra money. There is a secondary story involving Edna's sister, Margaret, whose husband Wayne is having an affair with Violet, a very married schoolteacher.
https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zEn4bhRJMzc/WAJhN7uu5hI/AAAAAAAAQzM/IJuLgS5eW7sH9Coq2BtHLxZmOAgXxLGPQCEw/s1600/Places%2BIn%2BThe%2BHeart%2B1.jpg
Fresh off winning twin Oscars for writing and directing Kramer VS Kramer, Robert Benton won a third Oscar for his beautiful screenplay that unfolds in the fashion of individual vignettes centered around this strong and likable central character who has been thrust into a position that she was not ready for and knows nothing about assuming, but takes the bull by the horns and does what she has to do to keep her home and family. Edna is initially at a loss, but she's no dummy...watch the scene where Moses is caught with her silver and she realizes that she needs his help more than she needs criminal justice. I also love the scene where Edna has to physically discipline her child and asks him how his dad would have done it. This was clearly a case of it hurting her more than it hurt him.
https://70srichard.files.wordpress.com/2014/10/pith-1.jpg
Benton creates a small town atmosphere that is engaging and draws the viewer in almost immediately, making us care deeply about Edna and we get upset with every obstacle that is thrown in front of her. Benton is to be applauded for his mounting of the tornado that almost completely destroys the town. This storm is terrifying to watch and easily rivals anything we saw in The wizard of Oz or Twister and equally terrifying in a different way was an appearance by the KKK, which we don't see coming at all.
http://www.cornel1801.com/video/Places-in-the-Heart-1984/John-Malkovich-as-Mr-Will.jpg
Field really commands the screen here and her Oscar win was richly deserved and yes, this was the Oscar win that motivated her "You like me, you really like me" speech. John Malkovich's warm and intelligent performance as Will earned him a nomination as did Crouse's turn as Edna's strong-willed sister. Danny Glover is also Oscar-worthy as Moses and mention should also be made of Ed Harris and Amy Madigan as Wayne and Violet. Harris and Madigan were married shortly before the release of this film and are still married to this day, but I believe this is the only time they have shared the screen together. A very special motion picture experience that should leave a lump in the throat. 4

[lenslady]

Very good movie,I've seen it several times , Gideon58 and your review is encouraging me to rewatch it again soon.
Very evocative of small town life, beautifullly photographed and realistic cfaracters well portrayed.

My only quibble was with the 'dream-like ending' which I suppose was sort of a wish fulfillment scene from the writer and/or director. Ending just didn't seem to fit, for this viewer, and was a bit confusing first time I saw the film. But that did NOT undermine the entire film for me, Excellent movie.

You know, with only one exception ( the hapless and inane Doris) I think I've enjoyed every movie Sally Field has been in. Sally has made a fine career for herself, playing characters that always seem real and human and likeable - and she shines as a main character or supporting co star. Two films she's in are my all time favorites - Steel Magnolias and Murphy's Romance. Norma Rae is also on my rewatch list.

I don't know if she will ever live down that Oscar cringing moment but for this fan : I like her. I truly do. :)

[Gideon58]

Yeah, I was a little thrown by the ending too...the movie was stark realism all the way through and then they went there during the final moment of the film? Why? I also think Sally Field is the best thing about Steel Magnolias...powerhouse performance.

[Gideon58]

Double Indemnity
Billy Wilder's skill as a cinematic storyteller is probably the primary reason that 1944's Double Indemnity still brings the sizzle 75 years after its release, though the film turned out to be a lot different than what I expected.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51yNWpAzy8L._SY445_.jpg
Wilder directed and co-wrote this film noir classic (with Raymond Chandler) about an insurance salesman named Walter Neff (Fred MacMurray) who arrives at the home of one of his clients to talk to him about renewing the policies on his cars, but finds himself instantly attracted to the man's sexpot of a wife, Phyllis (Barbara Stanwyck) and before we know it, Walter and Phyllis are cooking up an elaborate scheme to murder Phyllis' husband and get $100,000 out of a policy they plan to arrange for Phyllis' husband to take out without his knowledge.
https://www.wsws.org/asset/ac6b0cc3-0c90-434e-ad27-49080cca6a7P/image.jpg?rendition=image480
I've heard a lot about this film for years and have wanted to see it for a long time, but the premise that I believed set up this film is really not the premise of the film at all. I had always heard that this film was about Phyllis talking Walter into helping her murder her husband, but the story was exactly the opposite. From the second their eyes meet, Walter wants Phyllis and it's his idea to get rid of Phyllis' husband and get paid for it through a policy with a double indemnity clause that kicks in if hubby dies the right way. Knowing this whole plan was Walter's idea put a different but no less interesting spin on this story.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/7H30-G58Pu4/hqdefault.jpg
Wilder has the class to start the story at the end, with Neff returning to his office, back to
the camera, limping and clinging to his chest, we know immediately that the guy has been shot but we don't know is that he is getting ready to confess his part in this sordid and ugly mess.
https://debbimacktoo.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/double-indemniity-robinsonmacmurray.jpg
Wilder and Chandler's Oscar-nominated screenplay is surprisingly intricate and detail-oriented. Watching the planning Walter puts into this deed is fascinating leaving nothing to chance, except possibly a couple of wild cards he didn't foresee in the form of Phyllis' stepdaughter and her wiseguy boyfriend. A good deal of the story is told through Walter's confession/narration and Wilder's visualization of same.
https://thefilmspectrum.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Screen-Shot-2014-01-29-at-3.00.46-PM.png
MacMurray is surprisingly effective in a Bogey kind of role, but it is Stanwyck, robbed of the Best Actress Oscar for which she was nominated, who really puts the sizzle in this one. A big shout out to Edward G. Robinson as well, in another classy turn as Walter's boss, who methodically, in the style of Columbo, begins to put together the pieces of what happens here. I loved the fact that even after the police investigated what happened, they were thanked by the insurance company for their work, but they weren't necessarily buying it. Nominated for seven Oscars altogether, this effective film noir had me on the edge of my chair. 4

[Citizen Rules]

Double Indemnity

MacMurray is surprisingly effective in a Bogey kind of role, but it is Stanwyck, robbed of the Best Actress Oscar for which she was nominated, who really puts the sizzle in this one. A big shout out to Edward G. Robinson...this effective film noir had me on the edge of my chair. rating_4Right on! This is one of my all time favorite films. Almost anything from Billy Wilder is great and Barbara Stanwyck is the quintessential femme fatale. I'm with you I thought MacMurray was surprisingly good in this.

So now that you seen a classic film noir that you loved, are you going to watch more?

[Gideon58]

Maybe, I do know that I want to see some more of Barbara Stanwyck's work.

[Citizen Rules]

Maybe, I do know that I want to see some more of Barbara Stanwyck's work. Heres a few of what I think are Barbara Stanwyck's best movies...and I think these would be to your liking.

Baby Face (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0023775/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_91)

Stella Dallas (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0029608/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_76)

Remember the Night (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0032981/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_70)

The Lady Eve (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0033804/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_69)

Meet John Doe (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0033891/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_68)

Christmas in Connecticut (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0037595/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_59)

None of those are film noirs, but they are all superb!

[Gideon58]

Thanks for the recs, Ive heard great things about Stella Dallas, The Lady Eve, and Christmas in Connecticut. Have also heard great things about something called Ball of Fire

[Citizen Rules]

Thanks for the recs, Ive heard great things about Stella Dallas, The Lady Eve, and Christmas in Connecticut. Have also heard great things about something called Ball of FireLove em all! Stella Dallas is a good melo-drama (soap opera) type movie, I love those personal stories, I know you like those too. The Lady Eve is such a smartly written film and Christmas in Connecticut is just oodles of fun, really loved that one. Ball of Fire is fun too, it's not a musical but there's a great song in there...gosh look how hip that club is and how swinging the band is!

Drum Boogie from Ball of Fire 3 minute 25 seconds
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUqd6-11lsQ

[Gideon58]

The Eddy Duchin Story
Don't let the title fool you...the 1956 film The Eddy Duchin Story was hardly one of those dime-a-dozen musical biopics of musicians and composers that were churned out in the 40's and 50's. This was an expensively mounted, if slightly overlong, melodrama with music that goes to some dark places for a biopic, but kept this reviewer riveted to the screen. It was also my first exposure to a Hollywood legend.
https://images.bonanzastatic.com/afu/images/69c4/37fb/299b_7261234195/s-l500.jpg
Tyrone Power stars in this musical epic, playing the pianist who comes to New York and gets a job playing piano at a casino in Central Park during the roaring 20's and before you can say "rise to success", finds himself the leader of the orchestra, who even manages to meet and romance a wealthy socialite named Marjorie (Kim Novak); however, their happiness is short-lived when Marjorie dies shortly after giving birth to their son, Peter.
http://i.imgur.com/PNV2utf.png
Eddy's devastation over Marjorie's death actually causes him to place partial blame on his son, who he originally wants nothing to do with and doesn't come face to face with until he's three years old. Even though Peter has developed a talent for the piano like his dad, Eddy is still unable to connect with the child he pretended didn't exist and when they finally begin to connect, tragedy intervenes again threatening permanent separation.
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/proxy/1_lk3cb_ImjDVcm1Rc4_FqAiUOYftGHAXmtQghi3W7tlgfRwDi4-MYJX63nVtMeca008c7l9o-pXW8qUFivZsaq_g4lJimdPj3mg0ch38mw
Samuel A. Taylor's screenplay, based on an Oscar-nominated story by Leo Katcher, is lovingly detailed in its presentation of this passionate magician, perhaps a little too detailed, because this story definitely could have used a little tightening, particularly the second half where Eddy is trying to be a father to his son. I would like to think the fact that Peter also becomes a pianist, that it would have been much simpler for Eddy to relate to his son, but it didn't seem to help at all, making this movie a lot longer than it needed to be. There is also an odd little red herring thrown at the viewer where it is revealed that Marjorie is afraid of windstorms and are never really told why. We assume a connection will materialize later on in the film and it does, but it's a total letdown.
https://assets.mubi.com/images/film/13419/image-w1280.jpg?1553630216
The screenplay is treated with reverence by director George Sidney, a director known for directing musicals and non-musicals, who was a perfect choice to bring this story to the screen. The sequences of Eddy at the piano are a joy to the eye and ear and the dramatic tension he brings to the second half of the film is admirable. Power's piano solos were played by Carmen Cavallero, but Power's faking was pretty convincing.
http://i.imgur.com/0NoISwY.png
As previously stated, this was my first Tyrone Power movie and I was impressed with his exuberant and emotionally-charged performance. The sparkle in his eye as he fake-tinkled those ivories was infectious and, second only to Vertigo, I have never enjoyed Kim Novak onscreen more and was actually a little sad when her role in the film ended so abruptly. James Whitmore is effective as Eddy's manager and if Rex Thompson, the kid who played older Peter looks familiar, it's because the same year he played Deborah Kerr's son, Louis, in The King & I. The film also received richly deserved Oscar nominations for cinematography, music, and sound. With a little tightening of the screenplay, this film could have been truly incredible. 3.5

[Gideon58]

It Had To Be You (1947)
1947's It Had To Be You is a viable piece of cinematic fluff rich with romance and a dash of fantasy that gets a lot of help from the effervescent performances by the stars.
https://a.ltrbxd.com/resized/film-poster/7/0/4/3/2/70432-it-had-to-be-you-0-230-0-345-crop.jpg?k=058062efdb
Ginger Rogers plays Victoria Stafford, a wealthy heiress who likes to plan elaborate weddings but can never quite get herself to say "I do." The film begins with Victoria leaving three different grooms at the altar and it is not long before a 4th groom named Oliver Harrington (Ron Randell) is in place, but Victoria's parents suggest that before they go to the expense of a big wedding, Victoria should take a month and go somewhere alone and make sure Oliver is the man she wants to be with.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjhkMDc5MzAtNjQ0OS00MWViLThkMWQtOTVjYzNhOTAxNGZkXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjU4NzU2OTA@._V1_.jpg
Victoria decides that Oliver is the man she wants and boards a train back to Manhattan to tell him so. While asleep on the train, Victoria has a dream where in the middle of her wedding to Oliver, a handsome Indian (Cornell Wilde) appears and tells her that she doesn't love Oliver. She wakes from the dream and sleeping in the berth above her is the Indian from her dream, who it turns out is a model named George McKesson. Victoria ignores George's warning to stay away from Oliver, until she meets a fireman named Johnny Blaine (also Wilde) who she learns is her real destiny and that George appeared in order to guide her to Johnny. And just when things look rosy for Victoria and Johnny, it appears Oliver is not out of the picture yet.
https://i.pinimg.com/736x/34/69/3a/34693a26799e291d5a5e404dabf1e9f2.jpg
As the film began, I immediately thought this film was going to be like the Julia Roberts/Richard Gere comedy Runaway Bride, but Norman Panama and Melvin Frank's screenplay is a little more complex and utilizes a little more imagination from the writers and requires a little more from the audience. The coincidence of the Indian sleeping right above Victoria just seemed to be a little too much of a coincidence for us to take at face value and it's kind of difficult to accept George as a manifestation of Victoria's dream, but then it seems that's not what George is at all...or is he? The guidance that George offers Victoria regarding Johnny cannot be explained away too easily, but how do we explain what happens to Patrick Swayze in Ghost or Warren Beatty in Heaven Can Wait? We accept the fact that we're watching a movie that pushes the 4th wall a lot but never quite knocks it down.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNzg2N2RiOGYtZDUwMS00NjAyLThmNWItMDU3Y2M2MTI4MGYyXkEyXkFqcGc@._V1_.jpg
We also get a lot of help in accepting what's going on thanks to the complete investment of the stars in what's going on.. Ginger Rogers offers another smart and vivacious comic performance that has us cheering her on from jump. I was even more impressed with the richly complex work from Cornell Wilde, who actually creates two completely different characters who really aren't different characters at all. Though I haven't seen a lot of his work, this is easily the strongest Wilde performance I've seen. Ron Randell actually seems to be channeling Billy De Wolfe with his whiny Oliver and Spring Byington was a lot of fun as Victoria's mother. Another pleasant surprise from the Ginger Rogers library. 3.5

[Gideon58]

This Must Be The Place
Despite a consistently fascinating performance by Oscar winner Sean Penn in the starring role, 2011's This Must be the Place is a fatally overlong and pretentious drama that works so hard at being quirky and unique that it eventual drowns in its own pretensions.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81uSt-FEZ0L._SY445_.jpg
Penn plays Cheyenne, a burnt out rock star who has retired and has been living off his royalties in Dublin who returns to the States to hunt down a Nazi war criminal whom he believes was responsible for the recent death of his father.
https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/11/02/arts/02THISMUST_SPAN/THISMUST-jumbo.jpg
Director and co-screenwriter Paolo Sorrentino, also responsible for 2015's Youth, has created a fascinating central character that rivets the viewer to the screen; unfortunately, the story that surrounds this character isn't really that interesting. Of course, it doesn't help that Sorrentino's direction is leaden and has this movie at a snail's pace, making for a two hour movie that seemed five hours long.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTk3MjgxOTgzOV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNzc3OTUxNw@@._V1_.jpg
There are a couple of interesting vignettes during Cheyenne's journey that pique some interest. A brief encounter with a waitress and single mom (Kerry Condon) which climaxed with Cheyenne confessing that he's married and then buying the woman an above ground swimming pool. An encounter with a former teacher (Joyce Van Patten), or claims was a former teacher but she doesn't remember him at all, was kind of creepy.
https://assets.mubicdn.net/images/artworks/502762/images-original.png?1670859266
The other thing that really hurt this story was that it was hard to gauge Cheyenne's true dedication to this mission. Maybe it's the fact that his brain is fried from all those years of sex, drugs, and rock and roll, but the guy's focus was way too easily distracted making it hard to invest in his mission. The IMDB page for the film says that the character of Cheyenne was inspired by Robert Smith of The Cure, but he reminded me more of Ozzy Osbourne, especially in the opening scenes with his wife (Oscar winner Frances McDormand).
https://lwlies.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/this-must-be-the-place-sean-penn-768x539-c-default.jpg
As always, Penn loses himself in this role and if anyone other than Penn had been playing this role, I probably would have shut this off. McDormand and VanPatten make the most of thankless roles and I also enjoyed Judd Hirsch as an overzealous Nazi hunter. There's also an appearance from David Byrne of Talking Heads. I also have to admit that the confrontation between Cheyenne and the Nazi was chilling, but the viewer has to wade through a whole lot of dull and artsy movie tricks to get there. 2

[Gideon58]

Fugly!
John Leguizamo is a very talented actor/comedian, severely underrated, but he really missed the boat with a semi-autobiographical comedy called Fugly! that works overtime to provide laughs, but actually provides very few.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/617ewuk4atL._AC_UF894,1000_QL80_.jpg
Leguizamo also co-wrote this mess which features him playing Jesse Sanchez, a fictionalized version of himself, an actor/comedian who we learn at the film's opening has just tried to commit suicide. As Jesse recovers from the failed attempt, he utilizes it as an opportunity to reflect on his mistakes in relationships and his career, sharing every sordid minute of his life from college up to the suicide attempt.
https://media2.s-nbcnews.com/i/newscms/2014_45/753191/141106-leguizamo-mitchell-arp-845a_6765fcd2681a9e4f0984035b68cbcd31.jpg
I was baffled and extremely disappointed with the final product here. Leguizamo has been doing standup for years and has always brought the funny, but this 90 minute snooze fest was just excruciating. Leguizamo provides an off-screen narration for the Jesse character that is over-written and unnecessary, full of loathing and self-hatred, something I have never really gotten from this guy in his standup...Leguizamo infuses this Jesse with so much insecurity and self-hatred at the beginning of the story and it becomes very tiresome very quickly. At the beginning of the third act, all that insecurity turns into unabashed arrogance, which actually was equally tiresome.
https://images.mubicdn.net/images/film/128600/cache-155389-1466417999/image-w1280.jpg
The bulk of the film concentrates on Jesse's relationships with two very different women (Radha Mitchell, Rosie Perez) and I think that was another problem. I think if the story had been a little more about Jesse's career than his whacked-out love life, we might have had something here. There are some brief standup sequences with Leguizamo onstage with the mike that are very funny, but even these sequences get mucked up with too many close-ups of friends and family in the audience laughing their asses off or being offended.
https://images3.static-bluray.com/reviews/11235_3.jpg
Leguizamo's supporting cast looks like something more akin to a sitcom than a feature film, but I'm sure budget restraints had a lot to do with that, as Leguizamo was definitely provided with a limited budget. Mitchell and Perez work very hard at creating chemistry with Leguizamo but neither really succeed.Olga Merediz has some funny moments as Jesse's mom as does Ally Sheedy (who still looks great) as Jesse's agent, but even she can't save this. What a shame. 1.5

[Citizen Rules]

You couldn't pay me to watch the last two movies that you reviewed, they sound really lame:eek:

[Gideon58]

Yeah...three hours of my life I'll never get back.

[Citizen Rules]

Yeah...three hours of my life I'll never get back.Do you ever shut off movies when you don't like them? I do, all the time. I give a movie 15 minutes and if I'm hating it, I bail and watch something else.

[Gideon58]

Wanda Sykes: Not Normal
Netflix has treated us to another lukewarm version of what was a very funny stand up. I think I'm going to call it the Netflix Curse. In the past few months, I have seen several comedy concerts starring people who used to have me rolling on the floor in laughter, but something comes over them when Netflix gets hold of them and they are only a shell of the comic they used to be. The curse continues with a 2019 concert called Wanda Sykes: Not Normal.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BOGZlNTQ0MjQtMDBmMi00OGQ2LTlmODUtMTI1ZGI5ZTAzY2ZkXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTMxODk2OTU@._V1_UY268_CR4,0,182 ,268_AL_.jpg
Let me start off by saying that Wanda Sykes is a funny woman. She stole every scene she had in movies like Monster-in-Law and Evan Almighty, as well as every scene she gets with her recurring role on ABC's Black-ish, but the Netflix Curse seems to be a mighty force that has crippled people like Kevin Hart and Chris Rock, and they seemed to have done the same thing with poor Wanda.
https://pixel.nymag.com/imgs/daily/vulture/2019/05/17/17-wanda-sykes.w1200.h630.jpg
This concert filmed in New York, gets off to a slow start with what should have been sure-fire material. Just like every other stand-upon the planet right now, Sykes starts off by ripping into Donald Trump and even though the audience seems to be in hysterics, this material did nothing for me. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I've been watching the cast of SNL rip into Trump on a weekly basis for the last two years, so a lot of what Sykes does here just has the air of recycled material we've all heard other places ever since Trump was sworn in...she just doesn't bring anything fresh to the Trump-bashing party. There's one point where she complains that Trump doesn't know what to do with his hands and when she demonstrated what he does, I didn't get it.
https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/05/21/arts/21wanda-sykes/merlin_155158047_44a33a54-1088-4e20-8d0a-c91b1735ae25-superJumbo.jpg
Once she gets off Trump, the show does start getting funny. Her takes on reality TV shows like The Bachelor and Naked and Afraid were very funny, but her segue into the expected tirade on racism, which I'm beginning to think is required by law of all black comics, gets a little preachy when she starts talking about the large confederate flag that still hangs near the entrance to her hometown in Virginia. Racism is bad, we get it.
https://occ-0-8407-2219.1.nflxso.net/dnm/api/v6/9pS1daC2n6UGc3dUogvWIPMR_OU/AAAABbd3viKJ_M604eRrMeptcv8Hnk5tpwFp445sGasbvDxY4UFOBIYIURcMN8YU2cM60FTf6kTd-JwR-gtLdHsnM8qphcxe8EjCwKNp7TDmzDe-lK9ZV-2BPYG3AA.jpg?r=94d
She does scores when she starts talking about her French wife and her two white stepchildren. The bit about getting a phone call from her wife about the kids having head lice was very amusing and I also loved the voice she uses for her wife, I don't know why, but the voice she employs for her wife really cracked me up. Wanda Sykes is a very funny woman, but judging from this concert, it's kind of hard to tell. 3

[Gideon58]

Do you ever shut off movies when you don't like them? I do, all the time. I give a movie 15 minutes and if I'm hating it, I bail and watch something else.

Yes, I shut off movies all the time...I've shut off Gravity five times...I just can't get through it. I shut off Slumdog Millionaire about 30 minutes in. I've tried three times to watch Interstellar...can't get through that one either.

[Gideon58]

Swing Shift
A 1984 drama called Swing Shift is a sweet and nostalgic period piece centered on a romantic triangle that's nothing special, but this film does have a footnote in cinema history as the birth of one of Hollywood's greatest off screen love stories.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMDFkZjBlMGMtYzQ1Mi00YjdlLWEzYmEtMDA5ODQzODAyMWVhXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTA0MjU0Ng@@._V1_UY1200_CR85,0,6 30,1200_AL_.jpg
The film begins on the day before the Japanese bomb Pearl Harbor where we meet Kay Walsh (Goldie Hawn), a housewife, married to the hard-working Jack (Ed Harris). They live in the same housing complex as Hazel (Christine Lahti), a nightclub singer Jack thinks is trash but Kay is fascinated with, witnessing a lot of the ups and downs Hazel has with her moronic boyfriend Biscuits (Fred Ward). Almost immediately after hearing about Pearl Harbor on the radio, Jack enlists in the Navy and Kay finds herself, along with millions of other women, adrift and not knowing what to do.
https://quadcinema.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Swing-Shift-3.png
Like millions of other women, Kay and Hazel timidly apply for jobs at the local defense plant where they become "Rosie the Riveters." Kay finds herself attracted to a co-worker named Lucky Lockhart (Kurt Russell) who plays jazz trumpet when he clocks out at the plant. It's not long before Kay finds herself in a passionate affair with Lucky and just when things with the couple seem to be on solid ground, Jack gets a 48-hour pass from the Navy and can't wait to be with his wife.
http://hookedonhouses.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/Goldie-Hawn-Ed-Harris-Swing-Shift-611x343.jpg
Director Jonathan Demme and screenwriter Nancy Dowd have mounted an attractive period romance, awash in 1940's settings and costumes which give the film a dash of originality that it doesn't really deserve, but it's what happened off the set that made history. Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell first met on the set of a 1968 Disney musical called The One and Only Genuine Original Family Band, in which Goldie made her film debut billed as "Giggling Dancer" and Kurt, still a kid at the time, had a starring role. Sixteen years later, they were signed to make this film together. Sparks flew on the set, they fell in love, and they have been together ever since. They never married, but they have been together ever since making this movie.
https://i.redd.it/pjs6ftgsxykz.jpg
There is no denying the chemistry between Kurt and Goldie in this movie. It aids in making this movie seem a lot better than it is. Christine Lahti's intelligent turn as Hazel is also a big plus, a performance that earned her a Best Supporting Actress nomination, the only nomination the film earned. Harris and Ward are solid as well, and if you don't blink you'll also catch future Oscar winner Holly Hunter, Chris Lemmon, and Stephen Tobolowsky in his second feature film. The chemistry between Kurt and Goldie does raise the bar on this one. 3

[Gideon58]

The Lion in Winter [
Robbed of the 1968 Oscar for Best Picture, The Lion in Winter is an intimate story of love, greed, politics, betrayal, and family dysfunction told on a breathtaking canvas, rich with the wit of Oscar Wilde and the tragedy of Shakespeare, not to mention a pair of leading performances which defy description.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTkzNzYyMzA5N15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwODcwODQ3MDI@._V1_.jpg
It is 1183 AD as the viewer is boldly introduced to the primary players on this cinematic chessboard: King Henry II (Peter O'Toole) is the conflicted monarch trying to decide which of his three sons will inherit the crown; Eleanor of Aquitaine (Katharine Hepburn) is the queen in name only who is kept prisoner in a dungeon but is released and brought to the castle for this Christmas celebration; Richard (Anthony Hopkins) is Eleanor's choice to inherit the throne; John (Nigel Terry) is the whiny youngest son who insists that he's Daddy's favorite and therefore the crown will automatically be his; Geoffrey (John Castle) is the son lost in the middle who thinks his parents hate him; Phillip II (Timothy Dalton) is French royalty who is the son of Henry's oldest friend and good friend to Richard who is after the Aquitaine, the large,valuable parcel of land that belongs to Eleanor and Alais (Jane Merrow) is Henry's mistress who has been promised in marriage to Richard in order to distract him from the throne.
https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QK04qeNs5mY/WUM0woM8wvI/AAAAAAAAAos/ansWStdodegDQhs72ziMHP1TzVAOURJxACLcBGAs/s1600/the%2Blion%2Bin%2Bwinter%2B02.jpg
James Goldman won an Oscar for his brilliant adaptation of his own play for the screen, which beautifully expands the story beyond the confines of a stage and makes this movie look like an actual movie. Though the characters here are actual historical figures, this story and the events presented within are fictional. This movie also fascinates with its often bristling humor and sophisticated wit that actually provides the occasional chuckle to a story that, on the surface, is very serious. Goldman's screenplay is rich with humor and humanity and never talks above its audience, the way Shakespeare sometimes does, but does provide a Shakespearean atmosphere to the proceedings that requires attention from the viewer that is rewarded in spades.
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MeVWJ7CAPis/TtDVOf6UYWI/AAAAAAAAB0c/bqWr1LDELug/s1600/The+Lion+In+Winter+3.jpg
It is the relationship between Henry and Eleanor that fuels this drama, a relationship unlike anything I have ever seen. It was rather unsettling that the first glimpse we get of Eleanor is in a dungeon and even more unsettling to learn that she is only released from her prison on holidays. Henry and Eleanor are explosive and venomous and are acutely aware of each other's achille's heels and know how to hurt each other, but no matter how vicious the mud that is slung between them becomes and it becomes quite ugly at times, there is love between these two people that politics and time and jealousy cannot erase.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQj6_z-5LIUUykTstH5xZyf16dIYYdckw2w5cPX0mioUsyw_YBo5edqOSwb0RmwYaJXY6g&usqp=CAU
Director Anthony Harvey has mounted this sizzling story with a great deal of care and respect for the project applying first rate production values, including beautiful cinematography, art direction/set direction and costumes and John Barry won an Oscar for his magnificent music. Peter O'Toole was robbed of a Best Actor Oscar for his ferocious and funny Henry and with her delicately nuanced Eleanor of Aquitaine, Katharine Hepburn became the third actor to win back to back lead Oscars and the first actor to win three lead actor Oscars. She was also part of the first ever tie in the category, sharing the Oscar with Barbra Streisand for Funny Girl. Hopkins and Dalton are solid and show a glimmer of the actors they would become, but it's the work of Harvey, Goldman, O'Toole, and Hepburn that make this movie appointment viewing. The movie was remade for TV in 2003 with Glenn Close as Eleanor and Patrick Stewart as Henry. 4.5

[Citizen Rules]

I'm really surprised you liked The Lion in Winter, it doesn't seem like something you usually would watch, but cool that you liked it. I respected it, more than I liked it, I reviewed it and rating it a little lower than you. I had a hard time follow the dialogue. It was really well written and performed.

[Gideon58]

It is a little hard to follow

[Gideon58]

The Professor
A bold and colorful screenplay and a delightfully unhinged performance by Johnny Depp in the title role are the primary selling points of a 2018 comedy-drama called The Professor which unintentionally evokes the style of other writers and directors but said style manifests itself in the film's own untarnished originality.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNWU1NDgxNjktZmE0Ny00ZmE0LThhOTItODUxMTc5MWQwOTNhXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjg3MDMxNzU@._V1_.jpg
Depp plays Richard Brown, a married college professor with a teenage daughter who has just been diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer and with six months to a year to live, decides to toss conventional living out the window and do exactly what he wants until the disease takes him. He starts by weeding the students out of his class who don't want to be there and then telling his wife, Veronica, that they no longer need to continue living the lie that is their marriage and that they can do what they want as long as they don't hurt their daughter.
https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/05/16/arts/16theprofessor/merlin_154785423_c11bcc7f-f191-42d6-b2df-4e42b3d92ba2-superJumbo.jpg
An unknown director and writer, Wayne Roberts, shows real promise as a filmmaker here, mounting a story that unfolds before us completely without filter. Roberts' screenplay has the absurdist sense of Edward Albee and the cringe-worthy frankness of Woody Allen's darker work. His direction brings to mind people like Wes Anderson and David Fincher, producing arresting visual images and nervous laughter that could produce guilt with the viewer wondering whether or not they really should be laughing.
https://cache.moviestillsdb.com/i/500x/mrukrgjm/the-professor-lg.jpg
This is the first movie in a long time where, despite the personal hell that Richard is going through, is the first movie character in a long time who I actually envied and wished I was. I loved the idea of abandoning all conventions of life and doing exactly what I want, particularly things that I have never done before and I love that Richard tastes a lot of forbidden fruit here that never would have occurred to him if he hadn't gotten sick. I was a little troubled by the fact that he doesn't tell his wife and daughter about his illness until the final act. I was shocked that his wife learns the news at a college function, along with 30 other people. This is the only thing that Richard does in the movie that I couldn't get on board with. The scene where he tells his daughter did have me fighting tears.
https://i2.wp.com/www.qwipster.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/theprofessor.jpg?resize=980%2C450&ssl=1
Depp gives one of his most fascinating performances in the title role, can't remember the last time I've enjoyed Depp onscreen this much. There is solid support from Rosemarie DeWitt as Richard's wife, Danny Huston as his BFF, and Zoey Deutch as one of his students. For an independent feature, the film boasts first rate production values and I'm looking forward to seeing what's next for this talented new filmmaker named Wayne Roberts. 3.5

[Gideon58]

The Lady Eve
My first exposure to the genius that was Preston Sturges was a delicious comic romance called The Lady Eve that features a sharp screenplay and a cast of pros at the top of their game.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BOTQzNWM4Y2QtMWVhYS00MTNkLTgxMGMtNjM5Y2FmNjQ2MWFiXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTAwMzUyOTc@._V1_.jpg
Henry Fonda plays Charles, a milquetoast who has a passion for studying snakes and is also the heir apparent to a brewery empire, who is targeted by a trio of card sharks and con artists who plan to bilk the guy out of as much money as he can. The plan gets messy when the female member of the trio, Jean (Barbara Stanwyck) falls for Charles and he falls just as hard as she does. Unfortunately, Charles learns who Jean really is and they decide to part ways. Jean feels burned and wants revenge on Charles and shows up at the home of Charles' family pretending to be a titled English aristocrat named Lady Eve in an attempt to torment Charles, but he just falls in love with her all over again.
https://filmforum.org/do-not-enter-or-modify-or-erase/client-uploads/hank_and_jim/_1000w/LADY-EVE2050.jpg
Sturges has constructed a slapstick comic romance that hearkens back to comedies like Bringing up Baby where the lady is holding all the cards (so to speak) and easily manipulates the man into one embarrassing situation after another. Of course, there is a plot point here and there that I found it difficult to reconcile. I had a hard time accepting that once Jean arrives at Charles' home pretending to be Lady Eve, that he actually believes lady Eve is who she says she is. The only difference between Jean and Eve is an English accent and it made no sense that Charles didn't recognize her. I was sure he was just pretending not to recognize her but that turned out not to be the case. Eve's confession scene to Charles on their honeymoon train was absolutely hysterical.
http://moviemezzanine.com/wp-content/uploads/lady_eve_2_converted.jpg
The chemistry between Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda is a big plus here and loved the way Fonda played the comedy with such a straight face, which made everything he did even funnier. I loved his pratfalls during the dinner party that caused him to change clothes three times. Charles Coburn and Eugene Pallette steal every scene they're in as Jean and Charles' fathers. The film also features first rate set direction and Stanwyck is draped in some gorgeous drop dead gowns by the one and only Edith Head. Despite some minor plot holes and some dated elements, this one still holds up. 3.5

[Citizen Rules]

The Lady Eve
My first exposure to the genius that was Preston Sturges was a delicious comic romance called The Lady Eve... Yeah:up: you watched this, that's cool...Two of Preston Sturges best films are:
Sullivan's Travels (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0034240/?ref_=nm_flmg_dr_11)
The Palm Beach Story (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0035169/?ref_=nm_flmg_dr_9)
The Miracle of Morgan's Creek (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0037077/?ref_=nm_flmg_dr_8)

[Gideon58]

I was thinking The Miracle of Morgan's Creek would be my next journey to Sturges Land.

[Gideon58]

Steve Martin and Martin Short: An Evening You Will Forget For the Rest of Your Life
It seems that the curse of Netflix has no effect on true comedy icons, evidenced in a 2018 concert called Steve Martin and Martin Short: An Evening You Will Forget the Rest of Your Life, an evening of song and laughter that pretty much had me rolling on the floor for most of the running time.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNTBiODhkYWYtOTYxZS00ODJjLTk3NTEtZTk2NWE0MjFhMjk3XkEyXkFqcGdeQXRodW1ibmFpbC1pbml0aWFsaXplcg@@._V1 _.jpg
Broadcast live from the Peace Theater in Greenville, South Carolina, this magical evening begins with Martin giving us false starts on introducing Short who keeps having to run on and offstage several times, which leads right into the expected jabs at each other about their respective careers. Loved when Short described Martin as a drawing in a coloring book that hadn't been colored in yet. We are then treated to childhood photos of both stars with the expected biting commentary, sometimes commenting on their photos and sometimes commenting on the other guy's photos. One photo of Short motivates Martin's quip: This photo is proof to me that anyone can make it."
https://images.seattletimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/06272018_martinshort_165047.jpg?d=780x551
My favorite part of the evening was when the guys sat in chairs and shared stories of encounters with famous people, with fans, and stories about their families' reactions to their fame. Short shares a great story about Frank Sinatra that allowed him to do several impressions while Martin talks about his 1970 meeting with Elvis Presley. Short also shares a hysterical story about how he created an SNL character based on the show's makeup lady who had no idea the character was based on her. Memories were also shared from the first movie they made together, The Three Amigos.
https://www.indiewire.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Steve-Martin-and-Martin-Short-Netflix-1.jpg?w=780
As expected, some of the funniest moments in the concert were unplanned and unscripted, which is OK because these are two guys who have never needed a script to produce laughs. The rapport and respect that these guys have for each other comes shining through during this show. The only two guys I've ever seen do comparable work as a team were Tim Conway and Harvey Korman. We also get a glimpse of Short's Jimminy Glick, who offers stinging jabs at today's political figures.
https://i2.wp.com/thecomicscomic.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/JiminyGlick_SteveMartin_Netflix_2018.png?resize=900%2C614
I was also pleased that the show allowed the stars to show off their often forgotten musical talent. Short does a ridiculously funny number that he claims he sang in a religious musical that he did off-Broadway. Of course, Martin breaks out the banjo, but his introduction of the Steep Canyon Rangers to back him up went on a little too long, but a tiny misstep in a pretty dazzling evening of song and laughs. 3.5

[Gideon58]

The Old Maid (1939)
A grand old fashioned melodrama in the truest sense of the word, The Old Maid is a moving and weepy soap opera that got lost in the shuffle of being released during the golden year of movies, but for fans of the genre, it doesn't get much better than this.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/K66EMR/the-old-maid-1939-warner-bros-film-with-bette-davis-K66EMR.jpg
The story begins shortly before the Civil War where we are introduced to Delia Lovell (Miriam Hopkins), a flighty bride to be who learns that her ex-fiancee, Clem Spender (George Brent) has returned to town, on Delia's wedding day, after two years and expects to pick things up with Delia right where they left off. Delia doesn't want to see Clem and is surprised when her cousin, Charlotte (Bette Davis) agrees to meet Clem off at the pass at the train station. Charlotte is unable to hide an attraction that she has always had to Clem but is unable to stop him from confronting Delia. Clem can't stop Delia from marrying Jim Ralston (James Stephenson) so he leaves town and Charlotte impulsively follows him leading to a brief romance that produces a daughter. Clem then goes off to the war but dies on the battlefield.
https://4.bp.blogspot.com/_jCwWtnZZuyk/TL0KRLegklI/AAAAAAAAD_k/gF0EKEwYeFw/s1600/old-maid-hopkins-fazenda-davis.jpg
Delia wants to protect Charlotte from the shame of being an unwed mother, so she agrees to raise Charlotte's daughter, Tina, as her own and has Charlotte move in as well, telling Tina that she is her Aunt Charlotte. Years pass and Tina comes to love Delia as her mother and resent Charlotte's interference in her life as a meddling spinster aunt, something which Delia really does nothing to discourage, but as Tina grows up and begins making her own wedding plans, Charlotte longs to claim her daughter as her own.
https://alchetron.com/cdn/The-Old-Maid-1939-film-images-e6f74293-c0a4-4bbc-9622-7a19eb92b90.jpg
This film is based on a Pulitzer Prize winning play by Zoe Akins that opened on Broadway in 1935 and starred Judith Anderson as Delia and Helen Mencken as Charlotte. The play has been beautifully expanded for the screen and is just the kind of melodrama that movie audiences were clamoring for in 1939. Caught in the right frame of mind, this one can play havoc with the viewer's emotions because it is often torturous watching poor Charlotte bursting to tell her daughter the truth and not being able to, further aggravated by the fact that Delia relishes Tina treating her like the mother and Tina making it clear at every opportunity that Aunt Charlotte will never be her mother. There were moments where I wanted to slap Tina, she reminded of Veda in Mildred Pierce. The story is dated now because the stigma of being an unwed mother doesn't exist anymore, but during the 1860's it makes perfect sense.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMmMwZTIwYmYtMmYyMS00ZTM4LTkxZmUtYjQyY2UwNGZkMjA5XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjU4NzU2OTA@._V1_.jpg
The story is still strong and is further strengthened by the charismatic performances by Bette Davis and Miriam Hopkins in the starring role. Davis, as expected, is particularly impressive in another role where her character ages during the story and the actress is playing well beyond her years. The transition that Davis makes from the passionate wild child at the beginning of the film and the bitter and hardened spinster that she becomes is a joy to behold. Davis received an Oscar nomination the same year for her performance in Dark Victory, but her performance here is Oscar-worthy as well, a one woman acting class.
https://cinenthusiast.files.wordpress.com/2014/05/1047811935.jpg
I was also thrilled that the eternally wooden George Brent's role in this film was brief. Donald Crisp and Jerome Cowan offer solid support, but Davis and Hopkins keep this one on sizzle. Sadly, being released the same year as Gone with the Wind, The Wizard of Oz, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and many other classics probably kept this film getting the attention it deserved. 3.5

[Gideon58]

A Hard Day's Night
Once upon a time a long time ago, there were four musicians from Liverpool, England named John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr who formed a rock and roll band called The Beatles and changed the face of music forever. On February 9, 1964, they appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show and were suddenly the biggest stars on the planet. It wasn't long before Hollywood came calling, wanting their cut of this cash cow and the result was what was basically the first ever music video, a little something called A Hard Day's Night.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/61dsG67U9dL._SX425_.jpg
Under the direction of a practically unknown director named Richard Lester, moviegoers were treated to a fictionalized look at two days in the life of the group as they travel by train to London for an important television appearance. On the train they encounter Paul's grandfather (Wilfred Brambell), a nutty old geezer who is baffled by the boys' sudden fame but is not above cashing in on it when he can either.
https://d2ycltig8jwwee.cloudfront.net/features/401/fullwidth.8a3bbb9e.jpg
Screenwriter Alan Olun actually received an Oscar nomination for his slightly exaggerated look at this musical phenomenon that turned the entire music industry on its ear and had teenager girls all over the world going out of their minds. Olun takes a very slender plot thread of the boys getting ready for a big show and looking out for Paul's grandfather into a breezy, free-form look at celebrity obsession and how these boys attempted to understand and embrace it at the same time, effectively framed by the Beatles' incredible music.
https://static.rogerebert.com/uploads/review/primary_image/reviews/great-movie-a-hard-days-night-1964/hero_EB19961027REVIEWS08401010326AR.jpg
The unabashed fun and joy in this film lies in its simplicity...there is no attempt to produce some kind of elaborate musical extravaganza here with complex plotting and sophisticated characters. Lester and Olun make no attempt to turn the boys into actors...they do give them lines to memorize which they do and with the aid of some imaginative staging, let the boys' personal appeal and their incredible music do all the work.
https://flashbak.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Hard-Days-Night-behind-the-scenes-1280x754.png
Lester lets us know what we're in for from the very opening scene which features the boys being chased to the train station by thousands of screaming girls, while the title tune fills the audio. There's no attempt at realistic transitions into musical numbers here either. There's one scene near the beginning of the film where grandpa and the boys are on the train in a sleeping car and, in the blink of the eye, all of sudden, all of their instruments just magically appear in the train car so they can perform a song on the train...with two teenage girls watching with their nosed pressed against the glass of the car.
https://pixel.nymag.com/imgs/daily/vulture/2014/07/07/07-hard-days-night-2.w700.h700.jpg
Of course, the classic songs on display here will conjure up all kinds of memories for those of us old enough to remember the sensation that was the Beatles. In addition to the title tune, we are also treated to "Tell Me Why", "And I Love Her", "Can't Buy Me Love", "If I Fell", and "I Should Have Known Better". A movie musical curio from an era in music and movies that's gone forever but shouldn't be forgotten. This movie was all kinds of fun. 4

[Gideon58]

Wildlife
Actor Paul Dano steps behind the camera for the first time and hits a bullseye as the director and co-screenwriter of a scorching 2018 drama called Wildlife, an emotionally charged drama about a teenager watching his family implode before his eyes and being powerless to do anything about it. This one had me talking back at the screen.
https://cdn.flickeringmyth.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Wildlifeposter-300x225.jpg
This edgy and challenging story is set in Great Falls, Montana in 1960. Jerry Brinson (Jake Gyllenhaal) is married to Jeanette (Carey Mulligan), has a 14-year old son named Joe (Ed Oxenbould). and works as a maintenance man at the local golf course. Jerry is fired from his job for "being overly familiar with the customers", but a few days later, the golf course offers to take him back, but his pride won't let him go back. Jerry doesn't put a lot of effort into getting another job, but Jeanette immediately gets a part time job teaching swimming at the Y. Joe also gets a job as a photographer's assistant. Eventually, Jerry accepts a job in the mountains battling some dangerous brush fires which pays $1.00 an hour.
https://www.simbasible.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/2-5.jpg
Jerry's absence from the house seems to release Jeanette's inner tramp, who almost immediately drifts into an affair with one of her swimming students, an older wealthy businessman who is separated from his wife. Jeanette puts a little effort into concealing the affair from Joe and though he is not fooled, he can't be honest with his mother about what she's doing nor the fact that watching his family implode is killing him on the inside.
https://images.bauerhosting.com/legacy/empire-images/reviews_films/5be0225bfd0c0bc844478005/wildlife-1.jpg?ar=16%3A9&fit=crop&crop=top&auto=format&w=1440&q=80
Dano and co-screenwriter Zoe Kazan have crafted a textured story that initially presents what appears to be a picture perfect family, a glossy veneer that is peeled away methodically as Jerry's alleged laziness about getting another job subtly begins revealing backstory that we don't see coming. It becomes clear pretty quickly that this marriage has bee a sham for a long time and that Jerry and Jeanette have worked pretty effectively to shield from Joe, but once Jerry's gone, Jeanette decides to stop pretending that her life is what she wants it to be, often leaving her son out in the cold. There's a scene after Jerry gets fired where Joe discovers his dad is sleeping on the sofa and it is obvious from Jerry's lack of concern at being seen that this absolutely not the first time in his marriage that he has slept on the couch.
https://www.rollingstone.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/wildlife-movie-still-2018.jpg
Dano's direction is intense and arresting, putting some really ugly behavior and its heartbreaking consequences center stage through this icy and bitter woman who has been screaming on the inside for years and is not going to do it anymore. Dano shows a real skill with the steady cam as it follows Joe through the darkened hallways of his home trying to figure out what his mother is doing.
https://www.oklahoman.com/gcdn/authoring/2017/12/05/NOKL/ghnewsok-OK-5614493-1c4dc3ef.jpeg?width=660&height=357&fit=crop&format=pjpg&auto=webp
Dano also pulls solid performances from his cast. Gyllenhaal makes the most of his role as Jerry and Ed Oxenbould is a revelation in a star making turn as young Joe, but the real story here is the powerhouse performance from Carey Mulligan as Jeanette. I've only seen two other performances of her, but I have never seen her command the screen the way she does here. This is a performance of brass and balls and fire that makes it impossible to take your eyes off of her. This performance is fascinating because Mulligan creates a character who you never know at any point in this movie what the character is thinking. On the other hand, a lot of the character comes through in Mulligan's body language...Jeanette's moves tell us so much more about her than her dialogue. This performance reminded me of Jessica Lange in her prime. I think her work here is Oscar-worthy and am surprised she was overlooked. As I look over last year's nominees, I would have nominated Mulligan over Melissa McCarthy or over Lady GaGa. This movie had my stomach tied up in knots, talking back to the screen and credit must go to Dano who makes a seriously impressive debut as a filmmaker. 4


.

[Gideon58]

Mr. Holland's Opus
A terrific Oscar-nominated performance by Richard Dreyfuss notwithstanding, 1995's Mr. Holland's Opus is a pretentious, predictable, and fatally overlong epic about another dedicated teacher featuring a cliched screenplay that brings nothing new to the "dedicated teacher movie" cinematic table.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/611jEh%2Bq0QL.jpg
We are introduced to Glenn Holland during the turbulent 1960's, a composer who reluctantly takes a position as the music teacher at a high school in order to pay the bills and the so-called "profound effect" he has on his students and vice versa, that actually plays into the 1990's when the music program at the school gets eliminated due to budget cuts and Holland loses his job after 30 years.
https://a.ltrbxd.com/resized/sm/upload/22/jc/49/ky/mr%20holland-1200-1200-675-675-crop-000000.jpg?v=ad3f43a7cd
This is another one of those movies that scores in terms of intentions but ultimately loses the moviegoer with Patrick Sheane Duncan's cliched and manipulative screenplay which finds our hero casting magical spells over every single student he comes in contact with, even though his heart is allegedly not in it. I had to bust out laughing when one of clarinet students, who couldn't play four measures of music without squeaking, returns at the end of movie where it is revealed she is now the governor. The story also loses points when it is revealed that Holland's teaching did not leave him enough time to learn how to sign properly in order to communicate with his deaf son. This is did not endear me to the character at all.
https://www.rollingstone.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/sija098_ec080_h-ce7b06e0-c5dc-4bdb-9a06-65c5a854bb26.jpg?crop=900:600&width=440
Every single dedicated teacher cliche you've seen in the movies in the past 50 years gets recycled here...there's the lecture from the school principal (Oscar winner Olympia Dukakis) about resenting people who consider teaching "something to fall back on", saving the school wrestling hero (Terrance Howard) from losing his spot on the team by teaching him how to play the bass drum to the pretty and talented soprano (Jean Louisa Kelly) who gets a crush on Mr. Holland, but that doesn't stop her from boarding a bus to New York at Holland's encouragement. This kind of stuff was addressed way back in 1967 with To Sir with Love and was done much better in that movie.
https://authenticteachingcharacters.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/mr_hollands_opus_1995_685x385.jpg
Stephen Herek, whose directorial credits include Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure and Critters seems to be a little out of his element here. The direction is heavy-handed and manipulative and the film definitely tries to cover too much territory, evidenced in a lack of continuity that manifested itself in one major goof that I noticed: there's a scene where Holland's wife, Iris (the late Glenne Headley) is checking the program of the Gershwin revue her husband mounted because she wants to see the name of the pretty soprano and the program says that the girl's theater credits included "The Wiz", a musical that features an all-black cast. Jean Louisa Kelly is not black. This documented for me that Herek was just out of his element here.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/BPF7PY/richard-dreyfuss-alicia-witt-mr-hollands-opus-1995-BPF7PY.jpg
On the positive side, Dreyfuss is absolutely superb in the only performance of his to earn an Oscar nomination outside his win for The Goodbye Girl and I have to credit Dreyfuss for doing his homework here. He was very convincing as a musician and especially as a conductor. His conducting was on the money and far superior to JK Simmons' conducting in Whiplash. I was also impressed with William H. Macy as the tight-assed Vice Principal and Joseph Anderson as his teenage deaf son, but I can't recall the last time I had such high expectations for a movie and was more disappointed. 2

[Gideon58]

Frankie and Johnny (1966)
Elvis Presley got the big budget treatment in Frankie and Johnny, a colorful and lavish period spectacle that re-thinks the classic song.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/61RmrroMOKL._SX425_.jpg
In this film, Johnny is a riverboat singer and compulsive gambler who is in love with showgirl Frankie (Donna Douglas), but thinks sultry readhead Nellie Bly (Nancy Kovack) brings him luck at the roulette table. Johnny's pal Cully writes a song about Frankie and Johnny which is turned into an elaborate production number on the riverboat that an important producer catches one night and offers to take the show to Broadway, but Johnny finds that gambling is the only way to earn enough money to get him and Frankie to New York, but he only thinks he can do it if Nellie is standing next to him when he places the bet.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMWI2NTZlZGYtOGU1OS00NGEzLWFmNWItNjgyNWRiZTZhNWZhXkEyXkFqcGc@._V1_.jpg
This movie was actually a lot more fun that i thought it was going to be. I had heard the song for decades ever since I was a kid and couldn't imagine how this song could be fashioned into a full length movie, but screenwriter Alex Gottlieb has taken the story beyond the simple romantic triangle from the song. In this story, the third part of the triangle is really Johnny's gambling and Nellie is only using Johnny to make Braden (Anthony Eisley), the owner of the riverboat jealous because he's the man she really loves.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/BPJA2T/elvis-presley-sue-ane-langdon-frankie-and-johnny-1966-BPJA2T.jpg
Director Frederick DeCordova seems to have been afforded a pretty big budget here because the film is expensively mounted with some impressive settings and gorgeous costumes, which do give the film an air of importance I'm not sure it deserves, but the visual bling provided here is definitely an asset.
https://aliciadean.files.wordpress.com/2016/01/frankie.jpg
As always with Elvis movies, the score is unremarkable, but Elvis always had a way of making the score work and this move is no exception. Highlights include "Come Along", "Shout it Out", "Look Out Broadway", "what Every Woman Lives for" and a mashup of "Down by the Riverside" and "Amazing Grace."
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNDE5OGNlOWEtNzA2My00MDNhLWI4YTctZDM3NGI4MmMxNDY2XkEyXkFqcGc@._V1_.jpg
Elvis also had a stronger cast than unusual behind him. About five seasons into her role as Elly May on The Beverly Hillbillies, Donna Douglas found time to play Frankie and held her own against the Pelvis, the first time I have ever seen her play anyone but Elly Mae. The leads get terrific support from Harry Morgan as Cully, Audrey Christie as his wife, Robert Strauss, and Sue Ane Langdon in a scene stealing performance as a showgirl named Mitzi. It's a little slow in spots, but there's fun provided. 3

[Gideon58]

Ben is Back
Writer director Peter Hedges and his son Oscar nominee Lucas Hedges (Manchester By the Sea), collaborate for the first time with a balanced and unflinching look at the disease of addiction called Ben is Back that takes a couple of illogical detours along the way, but for the most part, is superbly acted look at the consequences of addiction, primarily the trust an addict often loses permanently.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/2/2f/Ben_is_Back.jpg/220px-Ben_is_Back.jpg
Lucas Hedges plays Ben, a young man who has arrived home on Christmas Eve, fresh out of rehab, with 77 days clean, wanting to be with his family. Stepfather Neal (Courtney B. Vance) thinks it's too soon for Ben to be home but his mom, Holly(Oscar winner Julia Roberts) is willing to allow him to stay for Christmas as long as he doesn't leave her sight for the entire time he is there. Things go relatively smoothly until the family returns home from the Christmas service at church and find the Christmas tree knocked over and the family dog missing.
https://www.indiewire.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Screen-Shot-2018-08-24-at-9.31.17-AM.png?w=780
Quick research revealed that this film wasn't exactly autobiographical, but Peter Hedges' screenplay is a compilation of experiences he has had with people in his life who were addicts, including the late Philiip Seymour Hoffman. I suspected the autobiographical slant because what Hedges has given us here is a frighteningly accurate and surprisingly balanced look at addiction from all angles. We see a family that wants more than anything to trust the addict who feels like he's riding on a pink cloud after 77 days clean, but it's revealed pretty quickly that once this trust is lost it is never completely regained. I loved that the minute it is decided that Ben is going to be allowed to stay that the first thing Holly does is go upstairs and hide all her medication and all her jewelry.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZWUyYjUyNTYtYjVlNS00YmQ0LWEyYTMtMjBlNGIxMGQwNjkwXkEyXkFqcGdeQW1yb3NzZXI@._V1_UX477_CR0,0,477,268 _AL_.jpg
There were a couple of plot points that were a little difficult for me to completely reconcile. I question the validity of Ben taking those drugs from that addict he met at the meeting. His intentions were golden, but I don't buy that just held onto those drugs long enough for his mother to find them on him. I also found it hard to swallow that a drug dealer owed money would break into a person's house and not take anything but the family pet and knock over the Christmas tree, but these were small points that I decided not to let me be deterred from the big picture, which was pretty much, dead on.
https://cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/181205133127-ben-is-back-julia-roberts-lucas-hedges.jpg
Julia Roberts is nothing short of superb as the mother who wants more than anything to believe that her son is a different person and every scene has her belief challenged. Hedges offers another Oscar-worthy performance in the title role and Courtney B. Vance is nicely controlled as the very patient stepdad. It's no musical comedy and those who know nothing about addiction will probably not be able to invest in it the way addicts and people who love addicts will, but for that demographic, this one hits a bullseye. 4

[Gideon58]

Gold Diggers of 1933
Released the same year as the classic 42nd Street, Gold Diggers of 1933 surpasses that film thanks to a much meatier story that never gets in the way of those incredible production numbers from mad genius Busby Berkley.
https://cometoverhollywood.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/gold-diggers-of-1933-2.jpg?w=584
Carol (Joan Blondell), Trixie (Aline MacMahon), Polly (Ruby Keeler), and Fay (Ginger Rogers) are four unemployed showgirls who live next door to an aspiring songwriter named Brad (Dick Powell). Producer Barney Hopkins (Ned Sparks) has an idea for a new show, but no money. Brad mysteriously agrees to back the show upon the conditions that Polly be given a leading role and that Brad doesn't appear onstage. Trixie and Carol discover a story about a crime that leads them to suspect that the money Brad puts up for the show is stolen and that's why he doesn't want to appear onstage even though Barney insists that he do.
https://songbook1.files.wordpress.com/2010/04/gold-diggers-of-1933-shadow-waltz-berkeley-violin-dance-3a.jpg
The male lead in the show gets sick and Brad does have to step into the show after all, much to the delight of Polly, who is nuts about the guy. It is then revealed the reason Brad didn't want to appear onstage is that he's from a very wealthy family who think show business is sinful and that show girls are ruthless parasites. Brad's older brother (Warren William) comes to New York with the family lawyer (Guy Kibbee) to talk Brad out of being in show business and marrying Polly. Big brother decides the only way to prove his point is to make Polly fall in love with him, but he ends up mistaking Carol for Polly and falls for her instead.
http://pre-code.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/GoldDiggersOf193324-650x493.png
This movie was a delicious surprise that had me thoroughly entertained from opening to closing credits. This is one of the few early musicals where the story is front and center, instead of a bunch of musical numbers with dialogue inserted around them. The story actually leaves the confines of the Broadway theater at times, but still remains a completely theatrical story about the people who have no qualms about starving if it will aid in their road to becoming a star.
https://hollywoodrevue.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/gold-diggers-of-1933-ginger-rogers.png
Of course, there are elements of the basic premise that look silly in 2019. Needless to say there is no way four unemployed women could afford a two bedroom apartment in Manhattan. We don't even see a landlord bothering them about the rent, though we do get to see a note slipped under their door reminding them and also glimpse Trixie stealing a bottle of milk from a neighboring apartment, but in 2019 these women would have been on the street, but this movie doesn't take place in 2019, thank God.
https://live.staticflickr.com/6006/5917919614_13c82d0857_b.jpg
Busby Berkley's genius as a choreographer was in serious overdrive for the musical numbers. "We're in the Money" featuring Ginger Rogers singing in Pig Latin, features the entire set and all the costumes covered in coins; "Pettin in the Park" is probably the first musical number I've ever seen in a musical that actually features changes in the weather and the season during the number; and The Shadow Waltz features glow in the dark violins. And let's not forget the memorable finale, "Remember My Forgotten Man", led by Joan Blondell, a stunning tribute to the military which features a couple of hundred dancers on a set that would never fit in an actual Broadway theater.
https://hollywoodrevue.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/gold-diggers-forgotten-man.png
The performances actually remain surprisingly fresh. Joan Blondell is a lot of fun and, of course, Dick and Ruby are adorable together, but it is Aline MacMahon who steals the show, in a performance that puts acclaimed wisecrackers like Eve Arden and Thelma Ritter to shame. It's so much fun when a film surpasses my expectations and this one definitely did. What a treat. 4

[Citizen Rules]

Gold Diggers of 1933

It's so much fun when a film surpasses my expectations and this one definitely did. What a treat. rating_4 Glad you liked it! It's one of my Top 10 movies on my profile.

[Gideon58]

Glad you liked it! It's one of my Top 10 movies on my profile.

LOVED this movie, Citizen, It was better than 42nd Street.

[Citizen Rules]

LOVED this movie, Citizen, It was better than 42nd Street.I thought so too. I really liked Ruby Keeler in this and she did other musicals with Busby too.

[Gideon58]

Adam Sandler: 100% Fresh
After close to three decades of making us laugh on television and in the movies, Adam Sandler has returned to his stand up roots under the watchful eye of Netflix, but doesn't fall prey to the curse that Kevin Hart and Chris Rock did with his 2018 concert Adam Sandler:
100% Fresh, which gives the traditional formatting of a comedy concerts a long overdue tweaking with very positive results.
https://i.scdn.co/image/ab67616d0000b2738b23c8f70ab60e221661cfd2
An evening with Adam Sandler unplugged of course implies that nothing conventional should be expected and Sandler delivers on that promise. What Sandler has done here, with assistance from directors Steven Brill (who directed Sandler in Mr. Deeds and Little Nicky) and Nicholas Goossen and editors Tom Costain, Brian Robinson, and JJ Titone, have taken film from Sandler's recent cross country tour and seamlessly edited portions of several concerts into one piece of film. Since Sandler pretty much performs the same material at each concert, the only way they viewer can discern that they're watching material from different performances is the fact that Sandler is seen in different clothes throughout.
https://pixel.nymag.com/imgs/daily/vulture/2018/10/23/23-adam-sandler.w700.h700.jpg
There is even a snippet of Sandler performing, initially undetected, in a New York subway station. He's wearing a hoodie and shades and is not immediately recognizable so a lot of people are observed passing through the subway thinking they are being serenaded by some crazy homeless person and just go on about their business. But eventually, people notice the camera equipment and figure out what's going on and get their own private show with "The Sandman."
https://www.indiewire.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Adam-Sandler-100-Fresh-Netflix.png?w=780
The other thing that sets Sandler's comedy apart from most other comics is his music and the off-the-wall songs that had these audiences on the floor with laughter. The genius of these songs, even though he is flawlessly accompanied on keyboard by Dan Bulla, it is often hard to tell if these songs are actually rehearsed or if Sandler is making them up off the top of the head, because they follow no normal song structure and often don't rhyme where they are supposed to. I loved a song called "Everybody knows a Guy Who" and what I will call "The Candy Rap", a patter song where he rattles off the name of every candy in candy history. I lost it when the introduction for one song began and he asked the audience to clap along and almost immediately said, "No, never mind, stop that, I hate it." Sandler also offers the touching vocal tribute to his pal, the late Chris Farley, that he performed on SNL a couple of months ago. For Sandler fans, this is appointment viewing. 4

[Gideon58]

You Don't Know Jack
Oscar winning director Barry Levinson and Al Pacino hit a bullseye with 2010's You Don't Know Jack, a somewhat romanticized look at "Doctor Death" AKA Dr. Jack Kevorkian who became famous for assisting terminally ill people in allegedly ending their lives with some semblance of dignity.
https://gcaggiano.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/you_don_t_know_jack_tv-740882945-large.jpg
The HBO film introduces us to Jack and his sister, Margo (Brenda Vaccaro), the survivors of Armenian genocide attacks who, with aid of Neal Nichol (John Goodman) and his lawyer, Geoffrey (Danny Huston), helps someone end their life in Michigan and Kevorkian begins to be questioned about the possibility of what he's dong as being murder, which only fuels his passion to help these people.
https://resizing.flixster.com/1xMyOcbvE7MDLUECagxdLGEhbzU=/fit-in/705x460/v2/https://resizing.flixster.com/-XZAfHZM39UwaGJIFWKAE8fS0ak=/v3/t/assets/p8037541_i_h9_aa.jpg
This is another one of those very prickly subjects that tend to get very preachy when being translated into a viable screenplay, but Adam Mazer provides a balanced and relatively factual account of this doctor whose passion made him a butcher to many, but director Levinson does such an effective job of showing the pain these people are in, one can almost look at Kevorkian as an angel of mercy. The tables begin to turn in this story when one of his patients backs out of the process just as Kevorkian starts it but instead of just walking away, Kevorkian goes about it a different way and assists in the ending of the guy's life anyway. In many eyes, his role as judge and executioner was considered more his opinion than anything else. Another issue raised is if Kevorkian had the right to do what he was doing if the patient wasn't actually documented as terminal.
https://play-lh.googleusercontent.com/yFSZG38ZL7BFPdYy1dkyvsD65gYguz3aXuvQDgxNy9jdHuDK4D0z5atDdTit6AiiUm0=s1280-w1280-h720
Levinson's direction is a combination of rich sensitivity combined with often unbearable tension as we watch patients begging Kevorkian to put them out of their misery, with full support of their loved ones, while courts and religious fanatics labeled him as a murderer.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/P4B3M8/original-film-title-you-dont-know-jack-english-title-you-dont-know-jack-film-director-barry-levinson-year-2010-stars-al-pacino-susan-sarandon-john-goodman-credit-hbo-films-album-P4B3M8.jpg
Al Pacino's quietly understated performance as Kevorkian has a lot of punch to it, and a lot of it comes out during his scenes with Brenda Vaccaro as his sister, who I don't think has ever been better. Actually, Danny Huston wins the acting honors here as Jack's attorney Geoffrey Fieger, who has Jack's back for most of the story but turns on him in the final reel. This film is really a triumph for screenwriter Adam Mazer and director Barry Levinson who have crafted a compelling story with surprising balance. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Ball of Fire
With Howard Hawks and Billy Wilder behind the camera and Barbara Stanwyck and Gary Cooper in front of it, there's no way the 1941 comedy Ball of Fire couldn't be appointment viewing for classic cinema fans.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51gfcFTMKuL._SY445_.jpg
Cooper plays Bertram Potts, one of eight college professors who live together and are currently collaborating on an encyclopedia. Bertram is planning to write a section for the encyclopedia on American slang and decides to actually venture outside the college campus to do some research. He finds himself at a nightclub where he is immediately drawn to a hard-as-nails nightclub singer named Sugarpuss O'Shea (Stanwyck)who is on the run from the police who are trying to get her to turn on her gangster boyfriend (Dana Andrews).
http://torontofilmsociety.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/ball-of-fire-7-620x400.jpg
On the surface, the film might seem like a live action re-thinking of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs but you know with Barbara Stanwyck playing her, this girl is no Snow White and it is Stanwyck's vivacious, Oscar-nominated performance on which this entire goofy premise hangs. Stanwyck is just dazzling here as the gal who's been around the block a few times, but finds her head turned by a most unlikely source. I loved the way Sugarpuss not only falls for Potts, but for his seven colleagues as well...watch her in that scene at Potts' bachelor party...there's some real acting going on there.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/FUqd6-11lsQ/maxresdefault.jpg
Director Howard Hawks, no stranger to fast-paced comedy, keeps this thing bubbling at a nice pace and makes the most of the surprising chemistry between Stanwyck and Cooper. They also appeared onscreen the same year in Meet John Doe and I'm not sure which was released first, but I'm sure it was no accident. Stanwyck's woman of the world was a perfect counterpart to Cooper's intelligent and folksy quality that reminded me of Jimmy Stewart or Kevin Costner. SZ "Cuddles" Sakall and Richard Haydn were standouts among the seven professors and Kathleen Howard was also very funny as the guys' housekeeper. Even Dana Andrews was surprisingly effective as Stanwyck's gangster boyfriend. It might seem a little dated, but Stanwyck's performance alone made this worth the watch. 3.5

[KeyserCorleone]

There's an Al Pacino Jack Kevorkian movie? Now I'm mad at myself for not knowing about this.

[Gideon58]

That Funny Feeling
Bobby Darin and Sandra Dee go the Rock and Doris route in the final film they made together That Funny Feeling,a 1965 film comedy in which Darin and Dee provide sporadic laughs, but they are no Rock and Doris.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMGNiMGZmMTEtYWE1Yy00NjAyLThjYjctMGM0NDE0YTZhMmU5XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMzk3NTUwOQ@@._V1_.jpg
Joan works as a maid-for-hire for a wealthy businessman named Tom Milford, though she was hired for the job sight unseen. Suddenly, she starts bumping into Tom everywhere and they do start dating. Joan is too embarrassed to bring Tom back to the cramped apartment she shares with her girlfriend, Audrey, so she takes Tom to his own apartment. In order to keep seeing Joan, he doesn't tell Joan that it's his apartment and when it's suggested that they go to his apartment, Tom takes Joan to his boss' Harvey's apartment.
http://makingniceinthemidwest.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/That-Funny-Feeling-1965.jpg
Screenwriters David R Schwartz and Norman Brasna should have given credit for this script where it really belongs...to the writing team who did it much funnier and way more efficiently with their Oscar-winning screenplay for Pillow Talk. Schwartz and Brasna make an attempt to revive the "Will they or won' they?" comedy, but the entire thing just comes off as recycled and Darin and Dee just don't have the chemistry that Rock and Doris did, even though Darin and Dee were married at the time. Actually, this was made at the end of the relationship and they were divorced two years after the release of this film and it wouldn't surprise me if this film had something to do with it.
https://img.icdn.my.id/cover/w_1200/h_500/that-funny-feeling-12389.jpg
Bobby Darin really put his heart and soul into this film, he even scored the film and wrote and sung the title tune, but he just seems out of his element. Research revealed that the role of Tom was originally offered to Warren Beatty, who turned it down and when Darin got the role that's probably when Dee got involved, an actress who has never possessed a gift for farce and plays the role with a little too straight a face.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/BP8GPC/sandra-dee-bobby-darin-that-funny-feeling-1965-BP8GPC.jpg
There is some fun though watching all the familiar faces that pop up in the supporting cast. Donald O'Connor admirably steps into the Tony Randall role as Tom's boss and Nita Talbot, a gifted comedy actress from the 60's, has her most significant film role as Audrey. And if you pay attention, you might also catch Larry Storch, Reta Shaw, Robert Strauss, Kathleen Freeman, Leo G. Carroll, Benny Rubin and Arte Johnson along the way. Everyone involved works very hard but with middling success. 2.5

[Gideon58]

A New Leaf
She began her career in New York working with the late Mike Nichols, but Hollywood did eventually beckon and after a few minor film appearances, May impressed as the director, writer, and star of a delicious black comedy called A New Life that provides a generous share of cringe-worthy moments thanks to a really despicable central character.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZGE1YTk0YzUtMDRlNC00NWM5LWE3MWMtMjk1ZWM1MDdjM2IxL2ltYWdlXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjI4MjA5MzA@._V1_.jpg
Walter Matthau stars as Henry Graham, a snooty, miserly, woman-hating playboy who has been living on a large trust fund for years. After finally coming to grips with the fact that he has gone through all his money, Henry decides that the only answer is to find a wealthy woman, marry her, and then murder her. He thinks he has found the answer to his prayers in the form of one Henrietta Lowell (May), a painfully shy and dim-witted heiress who is hopelessly clumsy and can't get through a meal without spilling half of it on her lap.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNWEwMTJlYzItNmU2My00MTlmLWE2NjYtNDkyODY5ZDAwY2JlXkEyXkFqcGc@._V1_.jpg
May has written a deft and intelligent screenplay whose exterior darkness methodically conjures up laughs through these two main characters. May really scores in the creation of this Henry Graham character, who really doesn't have a redeeming characteristic to speak of not to mention that this plan to continue living the way he wants is reprehensible. The character is smart though sometimes his arrogance and laziness covers up his intelligence. There's a whole lot we have to accept with the Henrietta character...she comes off as the dumbest person on the planet, but I guess this was necessary in order to make Henry's plan viable. When Henrietta's attorney (Jack Weston) suggests that Henry sign what is basically prenup before their wedding, it just doesn't register with her and I found that a bit hard to swallow. She didn't even have a glimmer of suspicion when she finds out they have twin beds on their honeymoon. We realize there is a glimmer of hope when Henry realizes that Henrietta's lawyer and staff have been ripping her off for years and Henry fires most of them.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZGIxODMxNmItOThiMS00ZDI5LTk3MmEtNDcxYjNlODZhY2JjXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjUyNDk2ODc@._V1_SX1777_CR0,0,17 77,999_AL_.jpg
There is one funny scene after another here. The scene where Henry's attorney (William Refield) is trying to explain to Henry that he's broke and he's just not hearing him was absolutely hysterical. Also loved the attorney trying to expose Henry and the scene where Henry fires his bride's staff was brilliantly executed by Matthau. There was also this very funny bit of physical comedy involving May having her nightgown on incorrectly that was surprisingly funny.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNDdmZmIzM2MtY2VkMS00OTUzLTlmMDAtZTFhNjZiZGZlMTM1XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjUyNDk2ODc@._V1_.jpg
Walter Matthau offers one of his sharpest performances playing a thoroughly unlikable character who the actor completely invests in. May is warm and winning as the hapless Henrietta and in addition to Weston, Doris Roberts, James CoCo, Renee Taylor, and especially George Rose as Henry's faithful manservant offer solid support. A slick and funny comedy that offers laughs and hisses and really makes the viewer wait for a happy ending that is not guaranteed. Matthau and May were reunited onscreen six years later in Neil Simon's California Suite. 4

[Gideon58]

John Wick: Chapter 2
John Wick: Chapter Two is the thunderous and eye-popping 2017 sequel to the 2014 smash which finds poor John still trying to retire, but folks just won't leave the guy alone and immediately begin regretting it.
https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/john-wick8561/images/b/bd/John_Wick_Chapter_2_Coming_Soon.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20161128160701
Wick has a reunion with a ruthless crime lord named Santino D'Antonio, who has a marker from John from many years ago and has comes to collect right after John has returned from retrieving his precious car stolen from him in the first film. When John doesn't want to hear anything D'Antonio has to say, the guy burns his house down. Now that he has John's attention, D'Antonio informs John that he wants John to assassinate his sister, who has ascended to an all new level of assassins, but this assignment is just the beginning of troubles for our reluctant hero, including another enormous bounty on is life, more than double the one put on him in the first film
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMzA0NjIyODY4OV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwMTUyOTIyMTI@._V1_.jpg
Screenwriter Derek Kolstad is to be applauded for mounting a viable sequel, which actually meets most of my requirements for a good sequel. Kolstad somehow manages to establish the reputation of the central character for those who might be joining him for the first time without really rehashing events from the first time. The character of John Wick has literally come to redefine the phrase "your reputation precedes you"...no matter where he goes, or what he needs, or what he does, his search for assistance always finds him hooking up with the very best in the business and they already know who he is. I loved when he first arrived in Rome and he was asked if he was after the Pope When he replied no, the subject was closed, they didn't care what his plans were, as long as they didn't involve harming the Pope.
https://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/d2853593742eac5f9304a263901872465abcee55/c=0-122-4460-2642/local/-/media/2017/02/11/USATODAY/USATODAY/636224255165331365-AP-FILM-REVIEW-JOHN-WICK-CHAPTER-2-88580686.JPG?width=580&height=326&fit=crop
John Wick is not a typical hitman...I love the fact that there is a wit and sophistication to the character that one doesn't see in a lot of movie hitmen. This guy is a polished wordsmith who always knows exactly how to verbalize what he wants or needs. There's a wonderful early section of the film where John is shopping for weaponry and when asked exactly what he was looking for John tells him "something robust." I loved his referring to weaponry as "robust", just the last adjective I expected to come out of the guy's mouth.
https://crookedmarquee.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/john-wick-chapter-2-movie-4k-on.jpg
This film is non-stop logic defying action that never gives the viewer a chance to breathe or figure anything out. I was puzzled by the lack of resistance from the sister when John confronted her to complete his mission. If I had dwelled on this, I would have missed director Chad Stahleski's artistry in his staging of one of the most amazing gun battles I have seen, not to mention a one on one confrontation between John and a killer named Cassian (Common) that rivaled the final fight between Riggs and Mr. Joshua in Lethal Weapon. These movies are not to be taken too seriously because there's not much steeped in realism here...Keanu Reeves spends a lot of time running through crowds of extras covered in blood and no one seems to notice...or do they?
https://sc0.blr1.digitaloceanspaces.com/large/829479-51546-utqnbnqsne-1487228763.jpg
The reported $40,000,000 budget is all over the screen here with some absolutely extraordinary production values, including incredible location photography in Manhattan and Rome, as well as outstanding editing, sound, art direction, and a heart-pumping music score. Reeves again commands the screen as he did in the first film and there are a couple of flashy movie star turns from Ian McShane and Laurence Fishburne in supporting roles. Buckle up and don't try to figure it out, just try to keep up because there are surprises throughout including a creepy finale that effectively sets up the third film. 4

[Gideon58]

The One and Only Genuine Original Family Band
Walt Disney continued his search for the kind of magic he created with Mary Poppins with another dull and pointless live action musical called The One and Only Genuine Original Family Band that tries to be a musical for the entire family, not just Disney's normally intended demographic of children. The film has earned a footnote in cinema history though because it features the film debut of one of the industry's most beloved actresses.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/510pwRHHJbL._SY445_.jpg
The film takes place in the 1880's where we are introduced to the Bower family, a large family who live on a farm but they seem to spend the majority of their time as a band that they've formed with Grandpa Bower (3 time Oscar winner Walter Brennan) at the baton. Grandpa has written a song for the re-election campaign of Grover Cleveland and is thrilled when the family is chosen to perform the song at the next Democratic National Convention. There is a romance going on as well between a newspaper editor (John Davidson) and Grandpa's eldest granddaughter Alice (Lesley Ann Warren). Mr. Editor persuades the Bower clan to move to the Dakota territory where Grandpa and the editor becomes involved in a political scandal revolving around the plan to divide Dakota into two states, allowing more congressional eligibility. There's also the fact that Grandpa is democrat and just about everyone else in the story is a republican.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/9b/76/e6/9b76e65197ee3c92fc4ffaa539a1d355.jpg
Prior to this film, Disney had mounted a lavish and overblown musical called The Happiest Millionaire, which also featured John Davidson and Lesley Ann Warren as the young lovers and apparently Disney thought they really had something with these two, because they decided to recreate another entire film around them, but I'm just not sure who the intended demographic was here. In the 1960's, Disney Studios were the unrivaled leader in children's entertainment, but I really don't see what appeal this story about political machinations almost a century prior would have had with children. It wasn't as long as The Happiest Millionaire, but it sure felt like it. I think if the story had been more about the title family and not all that political mumbo-jumbo, screenwriter Lowell S. Hawley might have had something here. The original score by Mary Poppins composers Richard M and Robert Sherman is uninteresting and Michael O'Herilhy's leaden direction didn't help either.
https://static.wixstatic.com/media/b7f4f5_2186eb0166fb44779fe24bdf798dbb00~mv2.png
There were a lot of familiar faces in the cast...Buddy Ebsen took time out from playing Jed Clampett to play the head of the Bower clan, allowing Ebsen the opportunity to sing and dance for the first time since the 1930's. Film vets like Richard Deacon and Wally Cox appear in supporting roles and the Bower children were played by some future stars like Kurt Russell, Pamelyn Ferdin, Bobby Riha, and Jon Walmsley, who would earn his fifteen minutes a few years later playing Jason on The Waltons. There's even an appearance by Butch Patrick, who you might remember as Eddie Munster, but this film made history when it introduced a young dance billed as Goldie Jeanne Hawn to the screen, billed as "Giggly Dancer." She is in a production number near the end of the film called "West o' the Wild Missouri"...she actually has a nice amount of screentime and even gets a single line to speak...this film would be the first meeting between Hawn and future common-law husband Kurt Russell though their romance didn't really happen until they made Swing Shift.
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KWixen_Hyf8/T75rh0m1otI/AAAAAAAAAB0/sthUto6iwv8/s1600/vlcsnap-2012-05-24-16h33m24s63.png
The idea of a family band was a really good one, but the film forgets all about the band about twenty minutes in and that's where the movie falls apart. 1.5

[Gideon58]

Dead Ringer (1964)
Back in 1946, Bette Davis played twin sisters named Kate and Patricia in a melodrama called A Stolen Life. A couple of decades later, Davis again took on the challenge of playing twin sisters in a campy 1964 melodrama called Dead Ringer that isn't nearly as good as A Stolen Life, but Davis still makes it worth watching.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81cVb2hSqeL._AC_UF350,350_QL50_.jpg
Edith Phillips runs a saloon and is involved with a police detective named Jim Hobson.
Edith arrives at the funeral of her brother-in-law Frank DeLorca, where she is reunited with her snooty twin sister, Margaret, who seems to be taking Frank's death very well. Edith was in love with Frank first but Margaret stole him from Edith by pretending to be pregnant. Fed up with Margaret throwing her wealth and station in her face, coupled with the revelation that Margaret faked a pregnancy to get Frank, Edith takes the opportunity when it presents itself and kills Margaret, deciding to resume Margaret's life. Things are going pretty smoothly for Edith until the arrival of Tony Collins, Margaret's young lover who Edith knew nothing about.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/C5K9H7/dead-ringer-year-1964-usa-director-paul-henreid-bette-davis-C5K9H7.jpg
Albert Belch and Arthur Millard's screenplay might seem to be a rehash of A Stolen Life on the surface, but these twins are very different than the twins Davis played in '46. The twins in A Stolen Life are drawn in very primary colors of black and white...one is very sweet and one is calculating and manipulative. Edith and Margaret are drawn in serious mud tones and one might feel allegiances change throughout the story. As a matter of fact, Margaret comes off as such a frosty bitch at the beginning of the film, it felt like she totally deserved what was coming to her, but then I saw what Edith's "death" was doing to Jim Hobson, not to mention when Tony Collins comes on the scene and figures out almost too quickly that Margaret is really Edith.
https://www.metacritic.com/a/img/resize/afc760c9d8f5c984d92f66558ead4609919a1132/catalog/provider/2/13/2-94c6600509c074a0fba3181ef81c3024.jpg?auto=webp&fit=crop&height=675&width=1200
There were some wonderful touches to the story that have to be credited to the director, Davis' Now Voyager co-star, Paul Henreid. Really enjoyed the subtle inferences in the way the butler and maid treat Edith when she comes as Margaret....it seems like they suspect, but it's never overt and effectively piques viewer curiosity. I also loved that Frank's dog, hated Margaret and loved Edith and was the only character in the story who knew instantly that Edith was not Margaret. I loved the way Edith never stopped thinking. Her solution to being unable to duplicate Margaret's signature was inspired.
https://offscreen.com/images/made/images/articles/_resized/Dead_Ringers-bigger_1000_420_90_c1.jpg
Davis has a ball creating two very different characters, but is at her most fun and challenging when Edith is pretending to be Margaret. Though there is some impressive editing in the final scene with the twins where Edith knocks Margaret's purse out of her hand and pushes her into the chair. Karl Malden is sincere as Hobson and Peter Lawford was surprisingly slimy as Collins. Andre Previn's music was, at times, a little intrusive, but it enhances the campy quality the piece has and the ending is a dandy. Davis is always worth watching and this film is no exception. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Shazam!
It takes a minute to get going and it takes a little too long to wrap things up, but the 2019 spectacle Shazam is an eye-popping, slam-bang comic book adventure that takes just about any comic book movie we've seen and mixes in a generous portion of the Tom Hanks classic Big to give us something quite unlike anything we've seen.
https://resizing.flixster.com/Hm4c08vS5kceTzWphzzqJN2FtNY=/ems.cHJkLWVtcy1hc3NldHMvbW92aWVzLzUxMDhmN2IxLTE0OWYtNDIwYy05ZjVlLTk1MWUwNzJhYjEwMi53ZWJw
So this spoiled son of a rich businessman named Thad Sivana and a 15- year old orphan who lives in a group home named Billy Batson have both been summoned by a Wizard named Shazam to be his Champion. Billy was selected to be the Champion but Thad was rejected and was endowed the powers of the Seven Deadly Sins. It's not long before Billy discovers that uttering the word "shazam" turns him into a superhero of undetermined powers, but Dr. Sivana is not happy with the power of the Seven Deadly Sins and has decided he wants to be Champion instead and, after destroying his father's company and murdering his father and brother, goes after Billy Batson to steal his powers.
https://hips.hearstapps.com/hmg-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/images/shazam-1548006444.jpg
What gives this story an air of distinction is that Billy's adventures are carefully monitored by Freddy, a crippled kid who also lives in the group home, who works tirelessly to get Billy to embrace his new life as a superhero, as well as helping Billy determine exactly what kind of powers he has. Of course, as expected in a situation like this, Freddy begins to take advantage of his friends' new powers while, at the same time, Billy's powers start to go to his head and starts blowing Billy off.
https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s--eCoOqZXd--/c_scale,f_auto,fl_progressive,q_80,w_800/zohk7tlbkef9ob2gy31y.jpg
Screenwriter Henry Gayden is to be applauded for his seamless blending of comic book fantasy and childhood friendship even if it is overly-detailed. The opening scenes with the Wizard go on way too long and are a might confusing. but once Billy becomes aware of his powers, this is where the movie becomes so much fun. Remember those scenes of Peter Parker experimenting with his new powers in the Sam Rami Spiderman? Well this movie takes that to a whole new level as we watch Billy and Freddy trying to figure out exactly what Billy's new powers are, not to mention their difficulty in finding a proper name for the superhero or their initial disappointment at the fact that he can't fly.
https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s--xdtpL5ch--/c_scale,f_auto,fl_progressive,q_80,w_800/k1ij8p7r0mkoziulpai8.jpg
What also makes this movie fun is the almost child-like innocence and joy that Billy experiences as he realizes what kind of powers he has inherited...loved when he and Freddy encountered the thieves in the convenience store and Freddy immediately knew that the thieves had to shoot Billy in the face to determine whether or not Billy is bulletproof or if it's the suit. I also LOVED when Billy was strutting through the mall charging everyone's cell phones. Turning his group home family into superheros was a lot of fun but it should have happened a little sooner. The whole story just could have been a little tighter.
https://www1.cbn.com/sites/default/files/styles/original/public/shazam-movie_SI.jpg?itok=rfFA7HPo
Director David F. Sandberg has employed first rate production values in pulling off this terrific popcorn movie, with special nods to film editing, sound, and visual effects. Zachary Levi appears to be having a ball in the starring role and golden-voiced Mark Strong made an impressive Dr. Sivani, but the real scene-stealer here was Jack Dylan Grazer as Freddy, who impressed a couple of years ago in It. Grazer steals every scene he's in. This overlong but effective combination of comedy and CGI action has a wide appeal that should make it appealing to multiple demographics. 4

[Gideon58]

Hud
Director Martin Ritt triumphed with 1963's Hud, a beautifully photographed tale of family dysfunction mixed with an enigmatic character study that earned Paul Newman a fourth Oscar nomination for Best Actor.
https://cover.box3.net/newsimg/dvdmov/max1405274004-frontback-cover.jpg
Based on a novel by Larry McMurtry, this story revolves around the Bannon family. Homer Bannon (Melvyn Douglas) is an aging cattle rancher trying to deal with the fact that his cattle have become diseased while dealing with his son, Hud (Newman), a rebellious, arrogant, hard-drinking smart-ass who likes to chase after married women. Homer is doing what he can to keep Hud from being a hero to his grandson, Lonnie (Brandon de Wilde) but is not doing a good job with that, despite the fact that Hud's drinking led to the death of Lonnie's father many years ago. In the middle of all this is Alma (Patricia Neal), the world weary housekeeper who cares for this family maybe a little too much for her own good.
https://moviecrashcourse.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/image-1.png
There are few authors out there who capture small town/western sensibility better than McMurtry, who also wrote The Last Picture Show. Irving Ravetch and Harriet Frank Jr. have effectively adapted the novel into a workable screenplay that takes a close look at a family coming apart at the seams through an often reprehensible central character who simultaneously evokes laughs and anger from the viewers.
https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LK0wdZDw-NY/V6dqTQVnx8I/AAAAAAAAQc8/DbiIm7ZSVkMEHTlakx1zOqLjvbWpnqKjgCEw/s1600/Hud%2B1.jpg
Director Martin Ritt is to be credited for a lot of the mini-dramas that manifest themselves here, one in particular. Ritt creates an undeniable sexual tension between the characters of Hud and Alma that explains Hud's attraction to married women. It's not so much the dialogue exchanged between the characters but everything else that happens between them, which does eventually come to a boil in one unforgettable scene. The tension here is not just on Hud's side either...Alma clearly feels something for Hud as well but is fighting it with every fiber of her being.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYTA5NmYwZDktMjJiNC00YjM1LWE5NjItMDZmMWZlNzhhY2M4XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNTI4MjkxMDE@._V1_.jpg
The rest of the drama here comes from the emotionally charged relationship between Hud and his father, who has never really gotten over the fact that Hud was responsible for the death of his other son. The resentment does come full circle when Hud has decided that his father is incompetent and decided to take a short cut to obtaining his birthright. The resolution of the problem with the diseased cattle is also dealt with in a startling manner that is extremely difficult to watch.
https://i2.wp.com/flickersintime.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/hud-2.jpg
Ritt has mounted a lovely story here, highlighted by the breathtaking cinematography by the legendary James Wong Howe that won him his second Oscar. Patrica Neal's smoky Alma earned her the Best Actress Oscar, though some might debate as to whether or not the role is lead or supporting. Melvyn Douglas won his first Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his strong and prideful Homer and despite all this, what you go away from this film remembering is the dazzling performance by Paul Newman that will rivet you to the screen and make you a care about a character that doesn't really deserve it. 4

[Gideon58]

Gloria Bell
Though not aimed at the cherished 18-34 demographic, the 2018 indie sleeper Gloria Bell is a poignant and thoughtful character study that those of us over the age of 30 will be able to relate to a little better than the younger crowd. It doesn't hurt that there are some stylish directorial touches that almost overcome minor problems in the screenplay and a wonderful ensemble cast breathing life into the story, led by a dazzling performance by one of the best Oscar winners in the business.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/a/a3/Gloria_Bell_%282018_film_poster%29.png/220px-Gloria_Bell_%282018_film_poster%29.png
Julianne Moore plays the title character, a middle-aged divorcee who works for an insurance company and is the mother of two grown children. Her son has been abandoned by the woman he loves to raise a toddler by himself and her daughter wants to move to Sweden to be with her boyfriend. There's a hairless cat that keeps sneaking into her apartment and a psychopath lives directly above her. She seems to be living a fishbowl existence but there are attempts at socialization, her most favorite seems to be hanging out at LA dance bars. One night at one of these bars she meets Arnold, a divorcee on paper, who is still more emotionally tethered to his wife and daughters than he cares to admit.
https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/03/08/arts/08gloriabell-print-1/08gloriabell-print-1-superJumbo-v2.jpg
Director and co-screenwriter Sebastian Lelio has done an admirable job of creating an original motion picture experience that, on the surface, seems to be a re-thinking of films like Looking for Mr. Goodbar and the Blythe Danner indie I'll See You in My Dreams, rivets the viewer to the screen through its glorious central character who is not promiscuous like Theresa in Goodbar, but is working very hard to remain a relevant human being in contemporary society like the Blythe Danner character. I love in the early scenes where Gloria is observed in several kinds of socialization like yoga classes, but the very first glimpse we have of her she is leaving voice mails for her children and feels the need to identify herself at the end of the voice mails.
http://static1.squarespace.com/static/5483bceae4b091ba6b198ffb/54848b2ae4b0bf7baa0606a4/5c8fa66ee5e5f051501809ca/1553241628632/GLORIA-BELL_01591.jpg?format=1500w
The initial connection between Gloria and Arnold is lovely...I love when they are getting undressed before having sex for the first time and it is revealed that Arnold is wearing some kind of girdle to hold in his stomach. The story then makes a couple of very disturbing moves that don't make sense near the end of the second act that are akin to spitting in Gloria's face before bouncing back for a terrific finale. There is a lengthy scene where all the central characters are gathered for Gloria's son's birthday party where the tension cuts like a knife, the kind of squirm worthy tension that recalls some of Woody Allen's strongest work, easily my favorite scene in the film. Lelio never allows us to forget that this is Gloria's story either. I love the two scenes of Gloria and Arnold's dates being interrupted by calls from Arnold's family and the camera stays focused on Gloria.
https://productplacementblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Tippmann-Paintball-Gun-Used-by-Julianne-Moore-in-Gloria-Bell.jpg
Lelio gets a glorious, Oscar-worthy performance out of Moore, which was no surprise and John Turturro is warm and natural as Arnold, despite some of the dumb moves the character makes. Michael Cera was surprisingly good as Gloria's son as was Brad Garrett as her ex-husband and Jeanne Tripplehorn (where has she been?) as his new girlfriend. I also thought it was an interesting move that most of the song score consisted of disco hits from the 70's and 80's. I don't think there was a song on the soundtrack recorded after 1985. A very special film experience thanks to the talent in front of and behind the camera. 4

[Gideon58]

My Dream is Yours
Doris Day and Jack Carson so impressed audiences in Day's film debut Romance on the High Seas that they were reunited the following year for 1949's My Dream is Yours, which isn't nearly as successful because it makes our gal Doris look like an idiot chasing the wrong guy for most of the running time.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMmM4Y2M1MzctZTA5Mi00YjdjLWFlOTItM2ZlYjA4MjVkYWQzL2ltYWdlXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMDI2NDg0NQ@@._V1_.jpg
Carson plays Doug Blake, an agent who works for a popular radio show who can't get the show's arrogant star crooner, Gary Mitchell (Lee Bowman) to sign a new contract. Blake promises the sponsor of his show he can find better talent for the show and flies to New York where he discovers Martha Gibson (Day), a war widow and mother of a young son turning records in a jukebox factory. He flies her out to California but the owner of the show (SZ "Cuddles" Sakall) thinks Martha is a little too "hip" for his show, but Doug is determined to make a star out of Martha somehow and, of course, falls for her, but for some reason, Martha only has eyes for Gary.
http://images5.fanpop.com/image/photos/27500000/Doris-Day-in-My-Dream-Is-Yours-doris-day-27503257-1067-800.jpg
This musical revolves around a common plot for musicals, the romantic triangle; unfortunately, in this film, the screenplay has Doris falling for the wrong guy. It makes no sense that Martha can't see that Doug would walk through fire for her while Gary really doesn't care about her. More than once, the guy puts up obstacles to Martha getting her big break and during the final act, he even suggests that she give up her career completely. Martha's fascination with this guy is further muddied by the fact that he is played by the eternally wooden Lee Bowman, whose performance is about as interesting as watching paint dry. Hell, Bowman doesn't even do his own singing (his songs are dubbed by Hal Derwin).
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/91/4e/8d/914e8d2c259796bb8a7265ac47fa6842.jpg
Ralph Blane, Harry Warren, Johnny Mercer, and Al Dubin do contribute to a very tuneful score to the outing, including songs like "Tick, tick, Tick", "You Must Have Been a Beautiful baby", "With Plenty of Money and You", but the definite musical highlight of the movie was the fantasy number "Freddy, Get Ready", a fantasy number which featured Day, Carson, and Warner Brothers' biggest star, Bugs Bunny.
https://live.staticflickr.com/7048/7049481575_71316414bc_b.jpg
The film is shot in gorgeous technicolor and the women are gorgeously gowned by Milo Anderson. Carson is terrific, Sakall, and Adolph Menjou make the most of thankless roles, but, as expected, Eve Arden steals the show as the wisecracking Vi. Sadly, Arden cannot make up for a screenplay that has the leading lady falling for the wrong fella. 2.5

[Gideon58]

The Sisters Brothers
2018's The Sisters Brothers is a sumptuously mounted western drama that simultaneously respects the genre and gives it a healthy tweak that never really defies logic. The film takes a minute to get going but works thanks to moody direction and some really charismatic performances.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQr5MtcBd-1ORTDgPSdyRa3HNyBgUik9XpzzHD3pYg68a_yOZ1k
Based on a novel by Patrick DeWitt, the story opens in 1851 Oregon where we meet Eli Sisters (John C. Reilly) and his brother, Charlie (Joaquin Phoenix) who are professional hitmen who have been hired by someone called The Commodore (Rutger Hauer) to find a gold prospector named Herman Kermit Warm (Riz Ahmed) who has apparently perfected some kind of formula that allows mining for gold without all of the traditional gold prospecting equipment. Warm has already hooked up with another bounty of The Commodore's named John Morris (Jake Gyllenhaal) who quickly strikes a deal with the guy and the hunt begins though what happens when these four men finally come face to face isn't exactly what we expect.
https://www.romania-insider.com/sites/default/files/styles/article_large_image/public/2019-02/the_sisters_brothers_-_photo_filmdefestival.ro_.jpg
When I first saw the premise of this film, I checked the credits to make sure it wasn't a Tarantino film. I mean, a pair of Old west hitmen sent by someone called The Commodore" to kill a mad scientist named Warm? If that doesn't sound like a Tarantino film, I don't know what does this. Actually, Jacques Audiard is credited as director and co-screenwriter of this unique cinematic, which featured some authentic western dialogue that had an almost, old world, even Shakespearean sensibility to it, though it is peppered with enough adult language that the 18-34 year olds will stay awake. But what comes through as the prime attraction of this story is the relationship between the Sisters Brothers...a very complex relationship rich with buried resentments that quietly simmer to the surface as the story progresses.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/zSh-OWN4Lk8/maxresdefault.jpg
What we have here is a pair of brothers whose sense of family has kept them doing what they do for a long time, partly because they don't know how to do anything, but as we learn, partly out of obligation to each other. We're not terribly surprised when it is revealed that Eli wants to stop what they're doing or that Charlie doesn't, but what is surprising is why Eli is so protective of his brother, a reveal that left a lump in this reviewer's throat.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dj_p0_gXsAEmNVI.jpg
Reilly, arguably the busiest actor in Hollywood right now, shows why with another bravura performance and is beautifully matched by Phoenix with a raw nerve of a performance that gnaws at the gut and once again Ahmed proves to have what it takes to be a real movie star. Ahmed and Gyllenhall are reunited onscreen for the first time since Nightcrawler. Mention should also be made of Benoit Debie's extraordinary cinematography and Alexandre Desplat's lilting music. It takes a minute to get going and gets a little saggy in the center, but this offbeat western delivers western action and thoughtful character study in perfect tandem. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Autumn Leaves
Joan Crawford wrings her hands appropriately throughout Autumn Leaves, a weepy and overheated melodrama from 1956 that should produce some genuine conflicted emotions among the viewer, but mostly just produces unintentional giggles.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BOTdjY2I0NzAtOGQ1Yi00NTQxLThkMWMtZDFmZjg4MmMxNGU4XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMDI2NDg0NQ@@._V1_.jpg
Crawford plays Millicent Wetherby, a stenographer who meets a nice young man named Bert Hanson, who is way younger than Millicent, at a diner and there is an instant attraction between the two, which excites Bert but somewhat confuses Millie. Bert pursues Millie claiming that he is head over heels in love with her and even when she pushes him away and encourages him to date women his own age, he comes right back and wears Millie down until she agrees to marry him. Not long after their marriage, evidence begins to surface that Bert might be mentally disturbed and it might be up to Millie to make the decision to have him institutionalized and lose him in the process of treatment.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/EF8YCT/joan-crawford-cliff-robertson-autumn-leaves-1956-EF8YCT.jpg
For some reason, it took the collaboration of four writers to come up with this overbaked story that I'm sure the star could smell miles away well, because there is a lack of commitment in Crawford's performance here that makes it difficult for the viewer to commit to the silliness as well. Crawford's disdain for the script comes through in her performance, though there are a couple of scenes worth viewer attention: the scene where she tells off Bert's no good father and Bert's trampy ex-wife, which actually includes use of the word "slut" is pretty much worth the price of admission.
https://assets.mubi.com/images/notebook/post_images/24552/images-w1400.jpg?1508668080
Robert Aldrich's direction is a little over the top. Aldrich would later direct Crawford to much greater effect in Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?. The film suffers from a rather cheap look too...the film appears to have been made on a budget of about $1000 and judging from Crawford's performance, that $1000 came out of her own pocket. Cliff Robertson, in his second theatrical film, works very hard to believable as the psycho Bert but the performance eventually becomes whiny and annoying, though he does shine in the scene where he accuses Millie of conspiring with his dad and his ex, well-played by Lorne Greene and Vera Miles. I guess hardcore Crawford fans might enjoy this one, but this one might be hard going even for them. You can't beat that title song though, dreamily crooned by Johnny Mathis. 2

[Gideon58]

Isn't It Romantic (2019)
Netflix continues to destroy American cinema as we know it with a piece of rom-com tripe called Isn't it Romantic, which has a great idea for a story, unfortunately the casting kills it.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/91ju70Wrn8L._AC_UF894,1000_QL80_.jpg
Rebel Wilson, who put herself on the map with the Pitch Perfect franchise is sans-Bellas here as Natalie, a romantically challenged architect who is treated like she's invisible at the office and displays her rampant cynicism with a long and detailed rant about romantic comedy movies. One night on her way home on a subway platform, a guy tries to steal Natalie's purse and in the ensuing struggle, she hits her head. When she wakes up, she finds her life has turned into the leading character of a romantic comedy.
https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/02/15/arts/15isntitromantic/15isntitromantic-superJumbo.jpg
Everyone at the office treats her like a goddess and can't wait to see what she's prepared for "the big presentation", her apartment has gotten bigger and prettier and the gay drug dealer who lives down the hall is now REALLY gay and her very gay BFF. Her neighborhood has become more Soho and whenever she's in Washington Square Park, dozens of park goers burst into choreographed dance routines, but most important of all, she is now receiving attention from a handsome millionaire in a limo, whose making her forget about Josh, her office BFF.
https://www.rollingstone.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/rev-1-IIR-10862_High_Res_JPEGW.jpg
To be fair, Screenwriters Erin Cardello and Dana Fox have a really clever idea here, even though the territory is not completely unheard of. Back in 1991, John Candy starred in Delirious, where he played the writer of a soap opera who hits his head and wakes up as a character on the soap. The problem here is that the whole thing is done with "Netflix" cast instead of A-list stars, who could have turned this silly idea into something really special, but Wilson is the biggest star that director Todd Strauss-Schulson was able to wrangle for this catastrophe. Throughout the brief yet still agonizing running time, I kept picturing other stars in just about all the roles, the lead one in particular. I understand the point of casting Wilson, but a real actress in the role of Natalie someone like Drew Barrymore or Emma Stone, would have given this story the legitimacy it deserves, even though it is a fantasy.
https://c.ndtvimg.com/2019-02/o6qs5rs_isnt-it-romantic-netflix_625x300_28_February_19.jpg
The leading men are equally problematic. Adam Devine seems to be becoming the Netflix version of Tom Hanks. I thought he was the best thing about a previous Netflix mistake called When We First Met, but his character here just seems to be retread of that one and Liam Hemsworth seriously overacts as the millionaire in the limo. I guess because the film is supposed to be a comedy, the director thought it was OK for these guys to overact. Sometimes less is more.
https://i0.wp.com/www.michigandaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/it-IS-romantic2.jpg?fit=720%2C480&ssl=1
Maybe a lot of my disenchantment with this movie stems from my basic misunderstanding of the appeal of Rebel Wilson. I didn't find her funny in the Pitch Perfect movies and didn't find her funny here either and some really unflattering wardrobe didn't help either. That reproduction of the Julia Roberts-shopping-on-Rodeo-Drive suit from Pretty Woman did nothing for the star. And needless to say, with Wilson in the lead, we are subjected to her vocal abilities as well, which are, in this reviewer's opinion, overrated. Great idea that fell completely flat in its execution. 1.5

[Gideon58]

Save the Tiger
A frightening unhinged performance by the late Jack Lemmon notwithstanding, the 1973 drama Save the Tiger is a dated and pretentious character study that hasn't aged very well over the years, primarily due to a screenplay that works very hard at trying to be important and never quite achieves same.
https://static.rogerebert.com/uploads/movie/movie_poster/save-the-tiger-1973/large_zP3O8iCnZ0frWvE3FADyxS2Ac1N.jpg
This film chronicles about 36 hours in the life of one Harry Stoner. Harry is a middle-aged dress manufacturer who has a passion for baseball, suffers from a slight case of PTSD dating back to WWII and is pretty disenchanted at the state of his life right now. His business is in serious financial straits that have him considering arson as a possible solution and is not thrilled that sometimes the only way to get business out of important clients is by acting as a pimp. He has also attracted the attention of a 21 year old pot-smoking hitchhiker who is house sitting at the beach.
https://static1.squarespace.com/static/524fc875e4b05c977ba53361/t/594fc8d99f7456424682713e/1498400994172/?format=1000w
Director and writer Steve Shagan has crafted a story about a man at a serious crossroads and the moral barometer that has completely taken control of his life and how angry he is about it, but the impetus for all of the emotional upheaval in Harry's life is not really explained for viewer satisfaction. Yes, there are myriad problems at work, but who doesn't have problems at work? Shagan attempts to provide a look at what he believes is a singularly unique at a singularly unique character, but there is nothing particularly unique about this guy that deserves all this attention.
http://www.widescreenings.com/savethetiger2.PNG
Things happen in this movie that are supposed to be emotionally charged but primarily come off as pretentious and affected. The scenes of Harry and his boss, Phil (Jack Gilford) meeting the arsonist (Thayer David) seemed silly and Harry's speech at the fashion show where he suddenly imagines the audience being his WWII buddies just didn't ring true for me and neither did his frantic word game at the beach house with the hippie.
http://www.widescreenings.com/savethetiger9.PNG
What does work here is Lemmon's often powerful performance as Harry Stoner, which won him his second Oscar, but was he really better than Pacino in Serpico, Brando in Last Tango in Paris, and Nicholson in The Last Detail? Gilford received a supporting nomination for the performance of his long and distinguished career and Laurie Heineman made the most of a pointless role as the pot-smoking hitchhiker. Lemmon is excellent, as always, but the years have not been kind to this one. 2.5

[Gideon58]

Tully
The Oscar-winning writer of Juno and the director of Up in the Air collaborated on a lovely little 2018 comedy-drama called Tully, which works thanks to a fresh look at some well-worn subject matter and some on-target performances.
https://filmmomaticreviews.files.wordpress.com/2018/05/dcvxpwtxkae6uj.jpg?w=723
The film stars Oscar winner Charlize Theron as Marlo, the mother of three who is at her wit's ends. Her son, Jonah, is a special needs child, though his specific needs have not really been determined and she has just given birth to a newborn she has named Mia. Marlo has pretty much given up on everything in her life outside of motherhood, including sex, and has resigned herself to the fact that she will never have a full night's sleep again. As a present for the birth of Mia, her wealthy older brother decides to gift Marlo with a night nanny, a woman who comes to the house at night to take care of the baby (except for breastfeeding) and give the mother a chance at a life. The night nanny is a luminous, 26-year old free spirit named Tully who ends up forming a remarkable bond with Marlo in addition to giving Marlo her life back.
https://friendsonflicks.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/tully.jpg?w=1200
Diablo Cody has crafted a starkly realistic yet often humorous look at the toll that motherhood can have on a woman. This Marlo has basically had three children back to back and her entire life has been reduced to diapers and expressing breast milk and carpools. She feels guilty about not being a supermom who bakes cookies and runs the PTA but feels no guilt about the extra attention she has to give Jonah, even though no one seems to be able to tell her exactly what's wrong with him. Marlo is also refreshingly realistic about what being a mother has done to her physically and how she has basically stopped caring about what she looks like anymore. I would have liked the screenplay explore the feelings of Marlo's daughter, Sarah, who between special needs Jonah and newborn Mia, has to have felt some serious neglect at some point. it would have been nice to see this addressed in at least one scene.
https://www.anothergaze.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/1523989372_tully-movie_charlize-theron_asher-miles-fallica.jpg
Director Jason Reitman does a marvelous job of crafting the evolution of the relationship between Marlo and Tully...love the first time Tully knocks on the door and Marlo looks terrified as she hesitantly approaches the door. I also felt Marlo's awkwardness the first time Tully hands Mia over to breastfeed and Tully sits there and watches. It's lovely watching Tully become a friend and confidante to Marlo, but the change that having a break night brings about in Marlo. It's great to see Marlo start to care about things like bathing, makeup, and sex again and beginning a deliberate journey back to the person she was pre-babies. Watching the journey Marlo makes during the running time is an absolute joy.
http://www.austinchronicle.com/binary/229e/tully.jpg
Charlize Theron gives a rich performance as Marlo, meticulous and detailed even in its tiniest moment. One of my favorite Theron moments comes when Tully is asking Marlo about what she wanted to be before she became a mother and you see Marlo bow her head and her heart break a little inside. Theron, like she did in Monster, sheds any pretense of glamour in order to make her character more real, which includes a tummy pooch and sagging breasts. Mackenzie Davis lights up the screen as Tully and Ron Livingston has one of his best roles as Marlo's husband. There's a slow spot here and there, but for the most part, an engaging comedy-drama which will have a special appeal to young mothers. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Strangers on a Train
Since joining this site, I have become acquainted with a lot of Alfred Hitchcock's greatest work and movies like Psycho, Vertigo, and Rear Window lived up to their reputation. I wish the same could be said for 1951's Strangers on the Train, a psychological thriller that features some stylish direction from the master and a fantastic performance from Robert Walker, but the changes to the original story ust don't make sense.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51VUKdo0nvL._SY445_.jpg
The film stars Farley Granger as Guy Haynes, a tennis pro who is taking a train back to his hometown to get his trampy wife, Miriam (Kasey Rogers) to give him a divorce so that he can marry the daughter (Ruth Roman) of a US senator (Leo G. Carroll). On the train, he meets Bruno Antony (Walker), a tightly wound and slightly unbalanced young man who agrees to murder Miriam for Guy if Guy will murder Bruno's father for him, because Bruno thinks if they "swap" murders, they can get away with it because there is no motive if they're murdering strangers. Bruno wastes no time in dispatching of Miriam but things get complicated when Guy refuses to have anything to do with murdering Bruno's father.
https://the.hitchcock.zone/files/carousel/37_03.jpg
The premise here is a good one and classic Hitchcock material, unfortunately, the original novel by Patricia Highsmith was severely altered by the screenwriters, who included Raymond Chandler. I loved the idea of two people exchanging murders that wouldn't have motives attached to them, but since Guy refuses to have anything to do with murdering Bruno's father, the story just becomes a standard blackmail drama, where Bruno threatens to implicate Guy in Miriam's murder since he won't complete his part of the deal. This story would have been SO much more interesting if Guy had actually murdered Bruno's father, which I'm told is what happens in the original novel.
https://the.hitchcock.zone/files/gallery/org/3073.jpg
But even a standard blackmail drama is afforded a little sophistication under the directorial eye of Alfred Hitchcock. Hitch's style is all over this one, creating wonderful cinematic images that remain burned in the memory forever. I love that shot of Bruno strangling Miriam through Miriam's broken glasses or the juxtaposing of Guy's final tennis match with Bruno trying to retrieve that cigarette lighter from the storm drain. And I swear my knuckles actually got sore when Bruno started kicking Guy's hands during that over-the-top runaway merry-go-round finale.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/0c/ab/c0/0cabc0547cd7cb6c15f32df6148c8a02.jpg
Hitch also pulls an absolutely brilliant performance from Robert Walker that anchors the proceedings, no matter how nonsensical the story gets. Leo G. Carroll was terrific as the senator and it was also great to see two future cast members of the ABC sitcom Bewitched in the cast: Kasey Rogers (Louise Tate) as Miriam and Marian Lorne (Aunt Clara) as Bruno's dotty mother. I just wish Hitch and the Hayes code would have had the guts to present the story in its original form. The film was re-thought in 1964 as Once You Kiss a Stranger and again in 1987 as Throw Momma From the Train.3.5

[Citizen Rules]

1959's Imitation of Life was one of those lush, weepy, Ross Hunter melodramas that Lana Turner had a copyright on during this decade. The film followed the relationship that developed between a struggling actress (Turner) and an unemployed black woman (Juanita Moore) and their daughters. Lana becomes a Broadway star in about 10 minutes and Moore becomes her housekeeper. Their daughters grow up and turn into Sandra Dee (Susie) and Susan Kohner (Sarah Jane).

Sarah Jane's father was white and she has spent much of her life trying to pass for white because she is very light-skinned but her mother will never let her forget that she is black. There is an unintentionally funny scene where Sarah Jane's high school boyfriend finds out she's half-black and beats her up. I know that may not seem comical, but Kohner's half-baked performance takes it to that level as she's lying in an alley wiping her face and screaming at her boyfriend to come back.

Lana has her share of funny moments too...especially laughable is a scene where she agrees to accompany a lecherous agent (Robert Alda in a very amusing performance)to a party and finally realizes what he expects in exchange for helping her with her career, symbolized (as it had to be in the 50's) by his "gift" of a mink coat to wear to the party. Sandra Dee also garners chuckles as Lana's neglected daughter grows up and falls in love with her mother's boyfriend (John Gavin) and loses it when he rejects her.

The only completely satisfying performance in the film is by Juanita Moore as Annie, who brings so much more substance to the role than the script provides. She received an Oscar nomination for her performance as did Susan Kohner (God knows why). For unintentional giggles, this movie rates right up there with VALLEY OF THE DOLLS. rating_2_5 I just watched this last night and I thought it's subject mater was very important, especially for the 1950s during the civil rights movement. Sometimes the acting goes over top and it's not my favorite Douglas Sirk film. But there's scenes that are powerful, like the gospel song in the church during the funeral. I liked Juanita Moore and Susan Kohner in it. I liked Sandra Dee too, I'm not a fan of Lana Turner but she played the icy cold, self absorbed mother to a tee. Did you know that this was her first film after the scandalous trial in which her own 14 year old daughter fatally stabbed Lana's mob connected boyfriend.

You really should check out the original version of Imitation of life (1934) with Claudette Colbert, Rochelle Hundson and Fredi Washington. It has a much, much different tone to the film and even the storyline is different. The 1934 movie closely follows the ground breaking 1933 novel of the same name.

[Gideon58]

Midnight Cowboy
Despite some dated elements, the 1969 Oscar winner for Best Picture, Midnight Cowboy still packs an emotional wallop thanks to highly imaginative direction and a pair of superb lead performances, one of which should have won the Best Actor Oscar that year.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNTgwZmIzMmYtZjE3Yy00NzgzLTgxNmUtNjlmZDlkMzlhOTJkXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjUwNzk3NDc@._V1_.jpg
Based on the novel by James O'Herlihy, this film is, at its core, the story of the friendship that develops between two people who really never should have become friends. Joe Buck is a wide-eyed Texan who has just arrived in Manhattan to fulfill his dream of being a male prostitute who finds himself connecting with a sickly, two-bit hustler named Enrique Salvotore "Ratso" Rizzo.
https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,h_1178,w_2100,x_0,y_36/f_auto,q_auto,w_1100/v1558792030/shape/mentalfloss/74222-20thcenturyfoxhomeentertainment.jpg
This film has a footnote in cinema history as the first "X" rated film to win the Oscar for Best Picture, but understand, back in 1969, an "X" rating didn't mean the same thing that it does today? An "X" rating simply meant that the film was for adult audiences only and there is no argument there. This is a story for and about adults and even 50 years after its release, I don't think anyone under the age of 18 should be watching this film. This film's bold and uncompromising look at life on the streets of New York was unlike anything moviegoers had seen up to this point. The idea of a central character whose ambition in life was to be a male prostitute was virgin territory for mainstream theatergoers but it is actually made digestible here when Joe Buck reveals that his desire to be a male prostitute stems from the fact that he doesn't really know how to do anything else.
https://media.gq-magazine.co.uk/photos/5d72286722f23e0008122cdd/16:9/w_2560%2Cc_limit/20190906-Midnight-02.jpg
Waldo Salt's Oscar-winning screenplay effectively presents a provocative backstory for the Joe Buck character in a methodical manner. Aided by John Schlesinger's Oscar-winning direction, Joe's backstory is revealed in brief and brilliantly edited flashbacks that reveal Joe's history with the opposite sex and how his believed power over women have him believing that he was put on this earth to serve women, though his encounters have gotten him in just as trouble as they have provided him pleasure. These flashbacks are juxtaposed with Joe's stepping off the bus in Manhattan and learning that sex hustling is not going to be as easy he thought. As a matter of fact, Joe doesn't actually earn any money having sex with a woman until the final act of the film.
https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/05/midnight-cowboy-movie-1.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&w=1200
Joe finds aid in surviving on the streets of New York with the aid of Ratso Rizzo, a guy who has clearly been hustling and stealing for years to survive, while ignoring multiple health issues. Somehow, Ratso has been able to squat in a dirty vacant apartment for years right in the middle of New York, something no one would be able to get away with today, but the story of Joe and Ratso's friendship was so compelling I was able to let this go as the dated plot element that it is.
https://dev.industrycentral.net/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/2018-07/John_Voight-Brenda_Vaccarro-Midnight_Cowboy-%281969%29.jpg?itok=xuVbuRQ-
Schlesinger also does a wonderful job of establishing the midnight to dawn atmosphere that directors like Martin Scorsese would later perfect in films like Taxi Driver. The seedy atmosphere Schlesinger creates here is vividly realistic. Mention should also be made of Hugh A. Robertson's film editing, the first African American to receive a nomination in that category.
http://www.jonathanrosenbaum.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/MC-Voight.jpg
But the real selling points of this film are the breathtaking performances by Jon Voight as Joe Buck and Dustin Hoffman as Ratso Rizzo, which earned both actors Oscar nominations, and, I am of the opinion that this should have been the first Oscar Hoffman should have won. After his success in The Graduate, it would have been so easy for Hoffman to take on more pretty boy roles, but he goes the polar opposite here and gets lost in this pathetic character, delivering a powerful performance that galvanizes the screen. Sylvia Miles also received a supporting actress nomination for her flashy, virtual cameo as Joe's first New York sexual encounter and Brenda Vaccaro does a star making turn as well as a glamorous socialite who score with Joe in the final act. There is also an eye opening turn by veteran John McGiver, cast radically against type, that was a shocker. And if you pay attention, you might catch Phil Bruns, Bob Balaban, and Barnard Hughes in small roles. It might be slightly dated, but this is a Best Picture winner the Academy got right. 4

[Gideon58]

The Little Foxes
A bone-chilling, Oscar-nominated performance by Bette Davis is the centerpiece of the 1941 film version of Lillian Hellman's most famous play The Little Foxes, a sizzling family drama that invented a lot of the entertainment genre that has come to be known as the soap opera and its influence on the genre lives on today.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/GX45D8/bette-davis-the-little-foxes-1941-directed-by-william-wyler-movie-GX45D8.jpg
Davis stars as Regina Giddens, a wealthy matriarch in turn of the century deep south who is anxious to participate in an important business deal with her brothers Oscar (Carl Benton Reid) and Ben (Charles Dingle). Regina is unable to participate without her husband, Horace (Herbert Marshall) who still controls the purse strings. Horace, however, is in a hospital in Baltimore being treated for a terminal heart condition. Regina sends her daughter, Alexandra (Teresa Wright) to Baltimore to bring her father home, but Horace is not so easily swayed and though Regina asks for more time to persuade him, Oscar and Ben have figured out a way to close the deal and cut Regina out, thanks to Oscar's wimpy son, Leo (Dan Herlihy).
http://thecinemaarchives.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/wyler-little-foxes.jpg
Other pertinent players in this potent melodrama include Birdie (Patricia Collinge), Oscar's flighty, chatterbox of a wife, William Marshall (Russell Hicks), the man who initiates this all-important business deal, and David Hewitt (Richard Carlson), the handsome aspiring writer who is in love with Alexandra and would love to free her from Regina's tentacles.
http://www.davidbordwell.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/Bette-2-400.jpg
Hellman's play premiered on Broadway in February of 1939 and ran for over 400 performances with Dingle, Reid, Herhily, and Collinge originating the roles they play in this film. Fortunately, director William Wyler probably took a calculated risk replacing the legendary Tallulah Bankhead with Bette Davis, but this was a risk that totally paid off. Anyone who follows my review thread knows that I have seen a healthy chunk of Davis' work and I have never found Davis more chilling onscreen. There was a moment where Ben is questioning Regina's next move in persuading Horace and she turns to him and says "I know what I'm doing" and I swear a chill went down my back. The look on her face when Horace drops his medication and her reaction to Horace trying to climb the stairs to get to his medication are images that are burned into my memory forever. After seeing this film, I am of the opinion that this film should have won Davis a third Oscar and is probably her finest performance.
https://lassothemovies.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/littlefoxes2.jpg?w=640&h=209
I was also impressed with Theresa Wright as Alexandra and loved the substance she brought to this seemingly simplistic character. The chemistry she created with Carlson was charming and she actually holds her own opposite Davis, which I think was enough to earn her a Best Supporting Actress nomination, but this movie is the Bette Davis Show all the way and anyone who has ever doubted the power of this actress need look no further than this classic that defines the soap opera genre. Just about anything ever seen on Peyton Place, Dallas, or Dynasty owes something to The Little Foxes. 4.5

[Gideon58]

Tower Heist
The director of Rush Hour ventures into Ocean's Eleven territory with an overblown and hard to believe heist comedy called Tower Heist which features some serious star power, but suffers due to some very odd detours in the story that make the story a lot longer than it needs to be.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTY1NDQxMTcwOV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNzMzNTExNg@@._V1_.jpg
Arthur Shaw (Alan Alda) is a billionaire financial whiz who lives in the penthouse of an elegant hotel where Josh Kovacks (Ben Stiller) is the Building Manager. It is revealed that Shaw is actually a crook who has been arrested for insider trading as well as stealing the pensions of the hotel employees which Josh asked Shaw to invest for him. When Shaw appears to show no remorse for what he's done, Josh enlists the aid of the concierge (Casey Affleck), the elevator operator (Michael Pena), a hotel squatter (Matthew Broderick), a housekeeper (Gaborey Sidibe) and a childhood acquaintance who is now a thief (Eddie Murphy) to help him break into a safe in Shaw's penthouse which Josh believes contains $20 million dollars.
https://www.patriotledger.com/gcdn/authoring/2011/11/04/NPAL/ghows-WL-041f01b1-cad3-4dfb-a218-0cb674f8d143-e1d089e9.jpeg
There's really nothing wrong with the basic premise of this movie, but the screenplay is overly detailed and takes way too long to get to the matter at hand. Director Brett Ratner's pacing of the story is too deliberate and consistently challenges viewer patience for most of the running time. The exposition introducing the characters took too long, the scene where Murphy forces the guys to shoplift to prove they're worthy criminals was totally unnecessary. I was also troubled by the fact that Affleck's character was originally part of the crime and then turns around and takes Stiller's job from him. And it might be a bit of a nitpick, but why would a state of the art hi-rise hotel smack dab in the middle of Manhattan allow a squatter? And why would Stiller's character trust virtual stranger Murphy to help him with his mission?
https://static1.colliderimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/tower-heist-movie-image-ben-stiller-matthew-broderick-eddie-murphy-01.jpg
Still, the film definitely provides plenty of action and humor...every moment Stiller and Murphy share onscreen was comic gold and Alda was brilliant in another of his smarmy villains that have made up a lot of his post-Hawkeye career. Affleck and Pena are always watchable and this film is no exception, though I had a hard time buying Tea Leoni as an FBI agent. This was a good idea on paper, but as a complete film experience, it doesn't quite come together as it should. 3

[Gideon58]

The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes (1969)
An 18-year old Kurt Russell made one of his first serious impressions on movie audiences in a silly 1969 Disney comedy called The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes that still provides a chuckle here and there, but is definitely creaking around the edges.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYTcwMmEzZWUtMWZjNy00MDE2LWFhYmMtNTQ1NmJmMjE2NGMwXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNzc5MjA3OA@@._V1_.jpg
This was the first of three Disney comedies that starred Russell as Dexter Riley, a student at fictional Medfield College. In this film, Dexter gets accidentally electrocuted while messing around with the college's new computer and instead of dying, the shock turns Dexter into a human computer with complete knowledge of everything. Of course, his new brain makes him an instant worldwide celebrity and said celebrity does initially go to the kid's head. Unfortunately, when Dexter got zapped, his brain also picked up information already in the computer regarding the shady business dealings of a gangster named AJ Arno (Ceasar Romero).
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/vMANHddBfQo/maxresdefault.jpg
There's so much silliness going on here that it's hard to believe that kids in 1969 (myself included) went nuts for this and made it a box office sensation. The opening scenes were amusing with Dean Higgins (Joe Flynn) trying to weasel out of buying a computer for the school. This was a time when computers were still those huge mainframes with those huge reel-to-reel tapes but now in a day and age where computers are hand-held, this all looks pretty silly now. Not to mention the fact that all the people in the movie over the age of 19 are made to look like idiots. Hard to believe when the kids come to Arno's hideout to find a kidnapped Dexter that Arno's stooge actually buys the story that they're painters, despite the fact that they're painting the house four different colors. I also wasn't sure how having a computer brain gave Dexter the ability to pick horses or know how to cut a diamond.
https://d23.com/app/uploads/1969/12/DEC31-the-computer-wore-shoes-TDID1180x600.jpg
Kurt Russell does offer a glimpse of the actor he would become when he grew up. I love him in the scene at the college quiz show when his computer brain is starting to malfunction and he is barely able to spit out the answers. Russell does infuse a real likability and intelligence into Dexter that actually legitimizes the character being revisited in two more films. Flynn and Romero are both very funny as are Richard Bakalayan as Arno's stooge
and Alan Hewitt as the Dean of another college who wants to steal Dexter for his school. Pat Harrington is seen in an early role as the quiz show moderator and Jon Provost of Lassie fame has a small role as one of Dexter's buddies. Vets like William Schallert and Fritz Feld can also bee glimpsed here. And if you look closely, you might recognize a very young Ed Begley Jr. as one of the opposing students on the quiz show.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/DXKEBB/the-computer-wore-tennis-shoes-DXKEBB.jpg
Dexter Riley was featured in two more Disney comedies, Now You See Him, Now You Don't and The Strongest Man in the World. This film was also remade for television in 1995 with Kirk Cameron playing Dexter Riley, though looking at this film today, I can't imagine why anyone would think a remake was a good idea. 2.5

[Gideon58]

Murder Mystery
Netflix poured a lot of money into Murder Mystery,but money doesn't always translate into quality. This lavish comic mystery tries to rely on the leads to cover up some sluggish direction, an overly complex screenplay, and some questionable casting in key supporting roles.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNTA2YTI5YjUtZWI4Zi00NWQ5LWFiYmEtOTBmNTUyNDAwNjllXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjIzNzM4NzA@._V1_.jpg
Reunited onscreen for the first time since 2011's Just Go With It, Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston star as Nick and Audrey Spitz, an NYPD officer and his hairdresser wife who meet a titled aristocrat named Charles Cavendish who invites the Spitzes to his Uncle's yacht to hear the reading of his uncle's will and find themselves in a lot of trouble when bodies around them start dropping like flies.
https://variety.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/MCDMUMY_EC028.jpg
Actually, this movie was a lot better when Woody Allen did it and entitled it Manhattan Murder Mystery which found a couple neck deep in a mystery where the wife is intrigued by what's happening and the husband thinks they should mind their own business. That part of this movie works...it's fun watching Audrey become amused and fascinated by the going-on because they remind her of the murder mysteries she loves to read while Nick just wants to sleep and eat gourmet shrimp, but when a pattern begins bubbling to the surface that Audrey predicted, it wakes up Nick and the couple become a detective unit.
https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/06/14/arts/14murder-mystery/5da11389a9aa4d839950a1aa13fdc654-superJumbo.jpg
Where this movie loses us is in a very messy and over-complicated screenplay by James Vanderbilt that makes the viewer wait forever to find out exactly who did it and Kyle Newacheck's sluggish direction doesn't help either. The movie runs a little over 90 minutes but feels twice that long. I was also troubled by the use of a lot of unknown actors in the principal roles of the family on the yacht. I think this story would have been much more effectively served by comic actors we know and love using phony European accents. The film also had at least three too many endings...almost turned the movie off twice because I thought it was over and it wasn't.
https://cdn.theatlantic.com/thumbor/haDhDZbWhn0mwc3VZ79HEWjGrso=/101x0:1398x973/1200x900/media/img/mt/2019/06/sandler/original.jpg
Sandler and Aniston are always watchable and were very believable as a couple married for 15 years. Luke Evans was also charm and sophistication personified as Charles Cavendish. Mention should also be made of the classy cameo by Terrence Stamp as Malcolm Quince, the billionaire whose murder kicks off all this insanity. I have to admit I was also amused by Gemma Arterton as the arrogant actress who likes to call out her own name during sex. .
https://s3.r29static.com/bin/entry/7aa/0,425,6000,3150/x,80/2202295/image.jpg
As mentioned, there was a big budget employed for this production...it's filmed on location in Monaco and is just gorgeous to look at, featuring some breathtaking art direction/set direction, but it's not enough to make up for what's lacking in direction, story, and casting. 3

[Gideon58]

Tab Hunter Confidential
Homosexuality was taboo in 1950's Hollywood and any aspiring actor during the 50's who was gay and wanted to have a movie career was forced inside the closet. It wasn't until the 1980's that we learned that Rock Hudson was one of these actors, and it has also recently come to light that Tab Hunter was another, chronicled in a 2015 documentary entitled Tab Hunter Confidential, a detailed and somewhat poignant look at the life of the tortured former matinee idol that revealed a lot about the star that was news to me, other than his sexuality.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51KVoJdn5gL._SY291_BO1,204,203,200_QL40_.jpg
Based on the autobiography Hunter co-wrote with Eddie Muller, I loved the way this documentary opened...Hunter tells us about being arrested at a Hollywood party in 1950 where everyone at the party was arrested for apparently no other reason than being homosexual, the same year Hunter made his film debut. The documentary then shifts to the traditional route as we are introduced to a young man who was born Arthur Gelien, who, along with his older brother, was raised by his independent single mother after walking out on Arthur's father. By the time Arthur was in high school, girls were chasing him down school hallways but he wanted nothing to do with it, though he wasn't really sure why.
https://images2.static-bluray.com/reviews/14664_5.jpg
Hunter talks frankly about his unspectacular film debut in a forgotten melodrama called Island of Desire where he had his first onscreen kiss with the smoky Linda Darnell. His first significant role in the film Battle Cry was completely orchestrated by agent Henry Wilson (who also handled Rock Hudson) and Warner Brothers chief Jack Warner. We also learned that he was actually fired and re-hired from one of his biggest hits, Damn Yankees because he didn't get along with co-director George Abbott at all.
https://www.indiewire.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/tab-hunter-confidential-08.jpg
This film revealed other areas of the business that Hunter dabbled in that were news to me...did you know that Hunter was a championship-worthy figure skater and that his first relationship with a man was with another figure skater? This relationship was the only thing in the film that Hunter seemed a little reluctant to discuss. Hunter also had a brief albeit serious recording career, which included the original recording of the song "Young Love". I had always though that his singing in Damn Yankees was dubbed but apparently not.
https://prod-images.tcm.com/Master-Profile-Images/tabhunterconfidential2015.2194594.jpg
The most shocking reveal for me in the film was the revelation of Hunter's long and stormy affair with Anthony Perkins. Of course, it became very complex in order to protect both their careers but it was their careers that put an end to it as well. The beginning of the end of the relationship was when Hunter played Jimmy Pearsall in Fear Strikes Out on television but the movie version went to Perkins, earning Perkins his only Oscar nomination.
https://media.vanityfair.com/photos/54f875fd97f1355556493835/1:1/w_690,h_460,c_limit/tab-hunter-confidential.jpg
In addition to frank narration from Hunter, commentary is also provided along the way from Robert Wagner, Lainie Kazan, John Waters (who directed Hunter in Polyester and Lust in the Dust), Debbie Reynolds, Connie Stevens, Terry Moore, Noah Wylie, and a woman who won a date with Hunter in a contest when she was a teenager. We are also introduced to a FOX movie executive named Allan Glaser who helped get Lust in the Dust greenlighted, which evolved into a relationship with Hunter that lasted over 30 years.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMGU4ODBkNTQtYjM1OS00ZThiLWEwNGEtMTQ2NTEyNGM2NTM2XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjAwODA4Mw@@._V1_.jpg
This documentary reminded a lot of the one that I saw about Adam West in that it revealed Hunter as a man who was always realistic about his career and where it took him, but holds no ill will about the downward spiral his career eventually took. Mr. Hunter passed away on July 8, 2018 at the tender age of 86. RIP. 4

[Gideon58]

Rudy
From the Rocky school of film making comes 1993's Rudy, a fact-based sports melodrama that is slightly corny and manipulative, but the manipulation works...sort of. So does the charismatic performance from the actor in the title role.
https://fffmovieposters.com/wp-content/uploads/21702.jpg
Rudy Reuttiger is part of a large family in a steel mining town in Indiana who has dreamed of playing football for Notre Dame pretty much from the time he could crawl. His passion for football is unparalleled, unfortunately, his grades are less than spectacular and he is about half the size of the average football player. But Rudy has drive and determination and works harder at his dream than any guy on the team. Rudy has a long uphill battle ahead of him including a year of school at a different school before he can even glimpse his dream at the end of the tunnel.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BODliM2Y0MDUtMWQ3NS00NGFhLWFjODEtNzQxNDU3NGQxMDA5XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMDc2NTEzMw@@._V1_.jpg
Not really sure what all the fuss is regarding this film, which I have heard for years has brought grown men to tears. If the truth be told, it doesn't take a lot for a movie to make me cry. This movie really didn't do anything to ignite my tear ducts and it might be the fact that the movie is basically Rocky, transferred to an Indiana town, a college campus, and a football stadium. We have the pushed around underdog established from the beginning with a dream that is beginning to evaporate finally get a chance at said dream, but the journey to that shot is a very long one.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/TY0LUIIwo8k/maxresdefault.jpg
Angelo Pizzo's screenplay is too overly detailed, taking way too much time with exposition. As a matter of fact, it felt like so much time was taken with exposition and backstory that the most important parts of the story end up getting short shrift. We're halfway through the film before Rudy even gets the letter that says he's been accepted to Notre Dame, a moment in the film that I felt was severely underplayed. He reads the letter, gets a little choked up and takes it straight to his father. I think it should have been played with the same exuberance as the moment when Rudy learned that he actually made the team. And when he reconsiders and returns to the team after quitting, his return is actually greeted with the slow motion clap? Seriously? I thought the team all turning in their jerseys so Rudy could play was a bit much, but I LOVED when Rudy ran out of that tunnel for the first time.
https://y.yarn.co/0d3903a0-571f-4f45-92c3-4e7cd1508990_screenshot.jpg
Sean Astin does light up the screen in the title role and makes up for a lot of the predictable screenplay and David Anspach's manipulative direction. Future stars like Jon Favreau, Vince Vaughn, and Lili Taylor do pop up in small roles. The film is handsomely mounted with outstanding cinematography, loved that shot of the Notre Dame football stadium covered in snow and Jerry Goldsmith's music was superb, but this one did not quite live up to its reputation in this reviewer's opinion. 3

[Gideon58]

Anything Else
Woody Allen provided a real hit-and-miss tale with 2003's Anything Else, a pretentious and nonsensical comedy that provides some very superficial laughs, but never quite becomes what it should be thanks to some really unlikable and not very bright characters doing some ridiculous things.
https://static.rogerebert.com/uploads/movie/movie_poster/anything-else-2003/large_qa6qH0379Tft6Y1nCCjjswExSAn.jpg
Jerry Falk (Jason Biggs) is a comedy writer and bundle of neuroses who is the only client of a third rate agent named Harvey Wexler (Danny DeVito). Jerry becomes fast friends with a much older comedy writer named David Dobel (Allen), a cynical, tightly wound gun nut and closet survivalist who becomes Jerry's adviser in all aspects of his life, particularly, his maddening relationship with Amanda (Christina Ricci), a self-absorbed drama queen who redefines the term "high maintenance."
https://amblin.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/anythingelse_2003_photo_11.jpg
Woody hasn't done anything this strange since Melinda and Melinda, I'm just not sure what he was trying to do here. The story initially appear to be about Jerry's relationship with Dobel, which really doesn't make sense anyway because Dobel is 30 years older than Jerry. These two guys have nothing in common but their profession. Every time they have a conversation, Dobel manages to work a word into their conversation that no one ever uses and the way that Jerry and David refer to each other by their surnames was pretentious and maddening. I've never known anyone in my entire life that I only referred to them by their surname.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTY3NzcxNjUyMF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNDY1NDYyMDI@._V1_SY1000_CR0,0,1474,1000_AL_.jpg
The real problem with this story is this character Amanda and all the crap she puts Jerry through. She is a flighty and full of herself chain smoker who thinks she wants to be an actress and embraces any opportunity she can to get Jerry to spend money on her. She also hasn't had sex with Jerry in six months but seems to have no problem having sex with other men and justifies it by telling Jerry to sleep with other women. She also does nothing to stop her equally self-absorbed mother (Stockard Channing) from moving in with them so that she can work on her new nightclub act. It's not only everything Amanda does, but, as a viewer, we scratch our heads wondering why Jerry puts up with this crap.

http://img.yts.am/assets/images/movies/anything_else_2003/large-screenshot3.jpg
Allen still has an ear for funny dialogue, though this screenplay seems to be talking above his audience more than usual, but these mostly unappealing characters and the stupid stuff they do here make the sporadic laughs kind of empty and unmotivated from anything genuine.
https://static.fusionmovies.to/images/movies/bt8lnypWEiELlwa4vRoqEr3ICNDgNZmFwhsnwyhY5kehY8gvWzZTWw5KQsaIYnzqSsgblVimhsXZKyKaFz40c_VhuEVzoYfCifIo qVfAaVE.jpg?1
As unappealing as the character was, Christina Ricci delivers a blistering performance as the toxic Amanda, one the most fascinating performances I have ever seen from her. Jason Biggs works hard as Jerry, who serves as our narrator for the story and speaks directly to the camera, but I never really buy him as a comedy writer because there was nothing funny about this guy. Channing and DeVito also make the most of their screen time, but becoming completely engaged in this bizarre little comedy was impossible. 2.5

[Gideon58]

Life (2015)
I have complained in other reviews about alleged biopics of famous stars that focus on the star at the end of their career. The 2015 independent production Life actually focuses on a movie icon at the beginning of his career, but other problems eventually wear this one down as well.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/96/Lifefilmposter.jpg/220px-Lifefilmposter.jpg
This docudrama is about the 1955 photo essay "Moody New Star" focused on the not-yet-famous James Dean and shot by a freelance photographer named Dennis Stock who has managed to sell the idea of the essay to Life Magazine and now has to sell the idea to the enigmatic Dean. The events here occurred after Dean has finished filming East of Eden but it hasn't been released yet and he's still waiting to hear whether or not he's going to get the lead in Rebel Without a Cause.
https://edencaceda.files.wordpress.com/2015/09/life-2015-film-anton-corbijn1.jpg
The story begins with Stock and Dean meeting at a party at Nicholas Ray's house where Stock initially pitches the idea to Dean then has to get his boss, John Morris, to get Life magazine on board. With Dean still an unknown quantity, Morris wants to know why they should be doing this and Stock offers that he sees something special in the young actor and is convinced that someday this photo shoot is going to make him very famous.
https://i2.wp.com/i.imgur.com/xr28lEH.jpg
Luke Davis' screenplay is wordy and attempts to be sophisticated in its approach to this story and the theory it presents that one freelance photographer could spot a future star that no one else could. The film implies that Dean was troublesome on the set of East of Eden and that Dean wasn't even sure if the film was any good. Nicholas Ray has to chase him around at his own party in order to introduce Dean to important people which didn't concern Dean at ll. Jack Warner has already labeled the guy a troublemaker and tries to get him in line. The story told here is that, despite all of this, Dean was going to be worth the trouble and this unknown freelance photographer saw it before anyone else did.
https://cdn.theplaylist.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/15044638/life-bts.jpg
I did like the relationship that develops between Stock and Dean, which was a lot more interesting than the relationship between Stock and his ex-wife, or Dean's ill-fated romance with Pier Angeli. Enjoyed the scenes where Dean took Stock back to his hometown and the farm where Dean grew up. I loved the way Stock was rarely seen without his camera and found myself anticipating when the next picture would pop into his head. It was a like a musician who always has his instrument under his arm.
https://www.transmissionfilms.com.au/uploads/images/LIFE_4208.jpg
Robert Pattinson gives a performance of such richness that I kind of wished he had been playing Dean because Dane DeHaan was rather one-note as James Dean. DeHaan never really captures the essence of the Dean I've seen onscreen. Was also impressed with a classy cameo by Ben Kingsley as Jack Warner and the insertion of the actual photo shoot into the closing credits, but I really would have liked to have seen what a major studio and a real budget could have done with this story. And could they have used a little more imagination in coming up with a title? Do you know how many movies have been made with this title? It really doesn't fit this film at all.They should have used the title of the actual photo essay, "Moody New Star." 2.5

[Gideon58]

The Three Faces of Eve
A powerhouse performance from Joanne Woodward that won her an Oscar and a Golden Globe anchors the 1957 docudrama The Three Faces of Eve, an emotionally-charged look at a special kind of mental illness that features some hard-to-swallow and logic defying plot elements, but Woodward's performance allows the viewer to forgive most of what's wrong with the story.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZTAzMjE5YmItN2NjOS00MmEwLWJmMmYtZTYzNmRhYWYxZTE2XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNTg4MDc2NTQ@._V1_.jpg
The story actually begins with a lengthy introduction to the story by Alistair Cooke, speaking directly to the camera, explaining exactly what we are about to see. We are then transported to six years before this film's release, where we are introduced to Eve White, a timid housewife and mother whose bizarre behavior, including elaborate shopping sprees and wrapping a curtain cord around her daughter's neck have Eve and her husband looking for answers. While meeting with a sensitive psychiatrist named Dr. Luther, we learn that Mrs. White has an alternate personality named Eve Black, a hard-drinking party girl who is aware of Mrs. White, but Mrs. White knows nothing about her, which motivates Dr. Luther to have Ralph, Eve White's husband, commit her to treatment, which actually reveals a third personality who decides to call herself Jane.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/df/34/45/df34456f32f45b204c8f80701b84ec4e.jpg
This was unexplored territory for writer and director Nunnally Johnson and for moviegoers as well. The introduction of the Eve Black character is alternately funny and heartbreaking, as we watch a side of Eve that she really seems to enjoy, but has husband Ralph completely bamboozled. Once Eve is committed is where problems start occurring in the story...it seemed unbelievable that Eve White had no knowledge or control of Eve Black, yet Dr. Luther was able to talk to whichever personality he wanted simply by asking to speak to them. We never really get a sense of exactly what kind of treatment Eve is receiving for her disorder, save the occasional session of hypnosis. The appearance of the Jane personality also seems to come from nowhere, despite the fact that she is aware of both Eves. Multiple personalities are usually the result of a childhood trauma and the reveal of the trauma was a bit of a letdown but transitions to a satisfactory conclusion.
https://images4.static-bluray.com/reviews/9028_5.jpg
The real joy here was watching the gifted Joanne Woodward create three separate and distinct characters in Eve White, Eve Black, and Jane. These three women actually care very much about each other, even if they are denial about it and Woodward conveys this beautifully. Woodward nailed the ultimate acting challenge during the scene in which Eve Black pretends to be Eve White in order to seduce Ralph, even though she stated in her initial appearance that she hates Ralph. This was another minor plot point that initially nagged at me, but Woodward is so fascinating to watch in the scene that I was able to let it slide.
https://resizing.flixster.com/bTQ_144TCqavHf8LuTdaepdxgdU=/1100x618/v2/https://resizing.flixster.com/-XZAfHZM39UwaGJIFWKAE8fS0ak=/v3/t/assets/p4358_i_h10_ab.jpg
Joanne Woodward has done a lot of incredible work in her long and distinguished career, but this is still her finest and most complex performance, which earned her a richly deserved Oscar and Globe. Lee J. Cobb is beautifully understated as Dr. Luther and David Wayne offers the performance of his career as well as the perplexed Ralph White. Future stars Vince Edwards and Nancy Kulp can also be glanced in small roles, but Joanne Woodward is the one you come away from this one remembering, with a slight chill going down your spine while you do. 3.5

[Gideon58]

American Pie
The teen comedies that dominated the 1980's entered a new phase of sophistication without losing the slightly raunchy humor of teen angst with the funny and engaging American Pie, that took a lot of what we saw in the 80's and turned it on its ear, still providing consistent laughs thanks to an intelligent screenplay and a terrific ensemble cast.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/91tEx5Ym8aL._SY500_.jpg
The 1999 comedy centers on four high school seniors who have made a pact to have sex before the senior prom: Jim (Jason Biggs) is a sexually obsessed virgin who has a close encounter with a foreign exchange student (Shannon Elizabeth) before actually finding the girl of his dreams in a band geek named Michelle (Alyson Hannigan); Oz (Chris Klein) is a hunky jock who finds himself drawn to a girl in jazz choir (Mena Suvari); Kevin (Thomas Ian Nicholas) has been going out with Vicky (Tara Reid) forever, but they just haven't been able to make that crucial move to the next level; Finch (Eddie Kaye Thomas) attempts to spread rumors about himself to get a prom date but an embarrassing incident limits his chances of getting a date. And let's not forget Stifler (Seann William Scott), the spiritual leader and crassly insensitive stud who also serves as our boys' cheerleader/whipping boy.
http://www.themoviebuff.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/americanpie3.jpg
Screenwriter Adam Herz has crafted a clever and believable story centered around high school boys that perfectly captures the teenage male psyche the same way Mean Girls did with the teenage female psyche. The guys in this story have nothing but sex on their minds and though most of them aren't getting it, spend a lot of time pretending that they are. It's not surprising when Jim gets his chance with the foreign exchange student and it ends up broadcast on the internet that every teenage boy in town is tuned in, externally offering their opinion how Jim should be doing better than he is, but secretly seething with jealousy because Jim has been given an opportunity that they might never have.
https://www.shortlist.com/media/imager/202109/52974-original.jpg
The story not only offers varied looks at teenage male obsession with sex, but at the high school class system as well. The characters are all carefully placed in those annoying cliques that we all had to struggle with in high school. We get to see the jocks make fun of the jazz choir, as well as everyone making fun of the band, even though we later become privy to the nonstop sexual depravity that happens at band camp. Though if the truth be known, my favorite scenes in the film involve Jim and his father, beautifully played by Eugene Levy, as dad, after catching Jim trying to watch porn, decides it's time to deal with his son regarding the facts of life.
https://s3.drafthouse.com/images/made/AMERICAN_PIE_Image_1_758_427_81_s.jpg
The performances are pretty much on the mark, featuring star-making performances from Biggs, Scott, and Klein (whatever happened to him?). A special nod to Eddie Kaye Thomas as Finch, the teen who tries too hard to be an adult but probably makes the biggest score out of all the guys on prom night. It was also interesting seeing Suvari playing a role the polar opposite of the one she played the same year in American Beauty. This film was also my first exposure to Jennifer Coolidge, who lights the screen on fire playing cinema's first "MILF" and if you look closely, you'll catch a very young John Cho in a small role. The movie is over 20 years old, but it still brings the funny. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Forget Paris
Billy Crystal produced, directed, co-wrote and starred in Forget Paris, a richly entertaining romantic comedy from 1995, which borrows from past romantic comedies but Crystal definitely puts his own stamp on the proceedings, providing what moviegoers expect from a romantic comedy.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BM2ZkYTUxZjQtODhkMy00NWI3LWFlMDMtMzYzZTQ3YmFjMjg4XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTQxNzMzNDI@._V1_.jpg
Crystal plays Mickey, an NBA referee who travels to Paris to bury his father and meets a vivacious airline executive named Ellen (Debra Winger), when the airline loses Micky's father's body. Sparks fly after a romantic week in Paris but Mickey's work forces him to return to LA, though he can't stop thinking about Ellen. Ellen impulsively quits her job in Paris and moves back to LA and agrees to marry Micky but the road to happiness is a very bumpy one for the couple. Most of the bumps come from their careers and their attempts to have children.
https://assets.mubi.com/images/film/48407/image-w1280.jpg?1445902255
Crystal provides a very clever Woody Allen-ish type hook upon which the story unfolds. Mickey's best friend, Andy (Joe Mantegna) is getting married and he and his fiancee (Cynthia Stevenson) meet at a restaurant with other married friends of Mickey (Richard Masure, Julie Kavner, John Spencer, Cathy Moriarty) where they take turns telling Mickey and Ellen's story to Andy's fiancee while waiting for Mickey and Ellen to join the party.
https://www.filmnod.com/media/picture/f/forget-paris-1995.jpg
The screenplay by Crystal, Lowell Ganz, and Babaloo Mandel, who also collaborated on the Crystal comedy City Slickers and its sequel, have crafted a sweet and funny story that is rich with Crystal's humor...the dialogue often moves at breakneck speed and doesn't allow the viewer to finish one laugh before another one approaches, and despite some obvious inspiration from films like Annie Hall and another Crystal classic When Harry Met Sally, this story stands on its own as a singular Crystal creation.
https://cache.moviestillsdb.com/i/500x/8hmbsctw/forget-paris-lg.jpg
Crystal lets a couple of story elements get away from him...the story spends a little more time than necessary setting up Mickey's occupation, which I think was just a way to allow Crystal to spend more time onscreen with his NBA idols. There are a couple of scenes with Ellen's senile father (William Hickey) that bring the film to a halt. The story also gets a little one-sided...there are certain points in the story where the story sets up Ellen as the villain of the piece, but both characters equally contribute bumps to this relationship, but it's Crystal's movie...I did love the way Crystal worked the title of the movie into the screenplay three separate times in three separate contexts.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQKFKRqlcHFJQTQ0Iz5dLccaxRFji9B34sBCs1aSiiljCzCod9p
The most pleasant surprise about this movie was the chemistry between Billy Crystal and Debra Winger, which is hard to imagine just seeing their names together on a marquee, but the relationship totally works. It actually rivals his work with Meg Ryan and Winger gives one of her loveliest and most engaging performances here. Mantegna, Stevenson, Masur, and Kavner are a lot of fun as our narrators and, thanks to Mickey's profession, we get cameos from Kareem Abdul Jabar, Charles Barkley, Marv Albert, Bill Walton, Patrick Ewing, and Reggie Miller. A bouquet for the lovely location shooting in the City of Lights too. For all the hats Crystal was wearing for this production, this works surprisingly well. 3.5

[Optimus]

Good work as always. This thread deserves more attention.

[Gideon58]

Always Be My Maybe
Perhaps the success of last year's surprise hit Crazy Rich Asians inspired Netflix to team the co-stars of two ABC sitcoms in Always Be My Maybe, a by-the-numbers romantic comedy that is a basic rehash of several better romantic comedies, but thinks it's fooling us into thinking it's something original because the leads are Asian.
https://flixchatter.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/alwaysbemymaybe.jpg?w=640
Marcus (Randall Park) and Sasha (Ali Wong) are BFF's who grew up together living next door to each other in 1990's San Francisco. Everything was fine until their senior year of high school when they finally gave in to pent up passion and had sex for the first time in the back seat of Marcus' Toyota Corolla. A wall went up between them and they eventually went their separate ways. In the interim, Sasha has become a wealthy and famous gourmet chef with her own restaurant chain while Marcus has remained in San Francisco, still living and working with his father and heading his garage band in dingy downtown clubs. Fate does eventually reunite Marcus and Sasha but they are different people in different places now and work very hard at trying to deny the feelings they've buried for each other.
https://imgix.bustle.com/uploads/image/2019/6/5/3a3b0b9f-945a-48e0-a423-25dc9ae35fc1-screen-shot-2019-06-05-at-12258-pm.png?w=970&h=546&fit=crop&crop=faces&auto=format&q=70
Don't get me wrong, I have enjoyed Randall Park's work as the dad on Fresh off the Boat and Ali Wong steals every scene she has on American Housewife, but two actors of the same ethnicity is not a guarantee of chemistry and it's not really the actor's fault, it's just that Park and Wong are very two different kind of actors. Randall is a strong romantic leading man, but Wong is not a leading lady..in the great tradition of actresses like Eve Arden and Thelma Ritter, Wong is the wisecracking best friend and her onscreen persona is just not suited to being the next Meg Ryan.
https://image.cnbcfm.com/api/v1/image/105970107-1560547850526screen-shot-2019-06-14-at-5.06.01-pm.jpg?v=1560548048
Park and Wong are also hampered by a long-winded screenplay co-written by the stars and Golamco that tries to play to the stars strengths, but I think it just tries a little bit too hard. The dialogue just seems to be working overtime to be hip and cool and relevant and therefore just comes off as affected and phony. The exposition setting up Marcus and Sasha's relationship was way too long and the over-plotting to bring them back together took too long as well. We know what's going to happen here 15 minutes in, why prolong it and bring viewer patience to the boiling point?
https://boygeniusreport.files.wordpress.com/2019/05/always-be-my-maybe.jpg?quality=98&strip=all&w=782
I have never seen two actors work harder at making a movie work than Park and Wong, but this just wasn't the vehicle. If the truth be known, the funniest thing in the movie was a glorified cameo by Keanu Reeves, playing himself, popping up halfway through the story as a romantic interest for Wong. This seems to be another one of those projects that looked better on paper; unfortunately, TPTB @ Netflix didn't have the foresight to see that. 2

[Citizen Rules]

Always Be My Maybe

https://www.nation.co.ke/image/view/-/5166138/highRes/2376828/-/7h91xb/-/Moviepic.jpg
rating_2 That just screams lame movie from the poster. You should watch more classics.

[KeyserCorleone]

Adam Sandler movies aren't really that bad. I saw I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry and Grown Ups a while back and both had some interesting things to say and some good jokes. Grown Ups, whether your a dad or not, is an extremely relatable movie because it really gets down to who we are as men and women in this world.

[Gideon58]

State Fair (1945)
Warner Brothers poured a lot of money into their 1945 remake of State Fair, a colorful mounting of the classic Rodgers and Hammerstein musical that still provides nostalgic family entertainment.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/cMtuq3xX6eY/maxresdefault.jpg
This is the story of Abel and Melissa Frake who are preparing to travel to the state fair with their daughter Margy and their son Wayne. Abel (Charles Winninger) is looking forward to entering his prize boar, Blue Boy, in the boar competition; Melissa (Oscar winner Fay Bainter) has prepared pickles and mincemeat for the domestic arts contest, using alcohol in her mincemeat recipe for the first time; Margy (Jeanne Crain) is looking for excitement beyond her dull as dishwasher fiancee Harry and Wayne (Dick Haymes) is crushed because his girlfriend can't come to the fair.
https://media.beliefnet.com/~/media/photos/entertainment/movies/galleries/spring-movies/statefair.jpg?as=1&w=400
While Abel and Melissa nervously await the results of the varied contests that they have entered, Margy actually finds herself falling for a handsome stranger she meets on the roller coaster (Dana Andrews). Wayne also finds romance with a glamorous singer at the fair (Vivian Blaine), who has some serious baggage she is trying to keep secret.
https://rodgersandhammerstein.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/State-Fair-32.jpg
This is one of Rodgers and Hammerstein's most family-friendly musicals, which first came to the screen in 1933. It's rich with colorful and fun characters involved in many of the classic musical comedy misunderstandings that we musical lovers have grown accustomed. I was surprised to find there were still some actual laugh out loud moments in this musical that is over 70 years old. The three judges who were tasting the pickle and mincemeat had me on the floor and Jeanne Crain was cute as a button being terrified on the roller coaster.
https://jnpickens.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/statefair1.jpg
Dick and Oscar crafted one of their most lilting and melodic scores for this movie including "It's a Grand Night for Singing" "That's for Me", "Isn't it Kinda Fun", "I Owe Ioway", and, of course, "It Might As Well Be Spring", which won the Oscar for Best Song of 1945.
https://i0.wp.com/wearinghistoryblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Statefari.jpg
The chemistry between Jeanne Crain and Dana Andrews was off the charts (though their singing is dubbed) and would be revisited in three other films. He's not much of an actor, but Dick Haymes' velvety voice forgives just about anything. A couple of familiar faces do pop during the proceedings including Percy Kilbride as the Frakes' back home neighbor, Harry Morgan as a carnival barker, and John Dehner as the hog contest announcer. Warners put a lot of money into this musical and it all shows on the screen, providing charming family entertainment. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Twilight (1998)
A proven cinematic storyteller behind the camera and a healthy dose of star power are the primary attractions for a nearly forgotten salute to film noir from 1998 called Twilight that is so entertaining that the viewer almost doesn't notice how convoluted the story is.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/BPGCTR/susan-sarandon-gene-hackman-paul-newman-twilight-1998-BPGCTR.jpg
Paul Newman lights up the screen as Harry Ross, a retired cop and private detective who lives with a wealthy actor dying of cancer named Jack Ames (Gene Hackman) and his actress wife, Catherine (Susan Sarandon). Jack asks Harry to deliver an envelope of money to a woman named Gloria Lamar and it is this simple chore that plunges Harry waist deep into a sordid case of murder and blackmail unlike anything he or the viewer have seen,
https://bloodymurder.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/twilight-coc.jpg
Oscar winning writer and director Robert Benton re-visits territory he explored back in 1977 with a sleeper called The Late Show in this contemporary film noir that provides just about everything we expect from the genre, including the slightly cliched narration we get from the central character. Considering the three stars headlining the story, a romantic triangle is expected and is delivered but this story has a lot more layers to it than that, as a matter of fact, maybe a few too many layers, but that was the fun of this story...every time we think we've figured out exactly what's going on, we're wrong. This is one of those squirm-worthy stories where innocent people are punished and the truly guilty walk away scott free.
https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XyZ6vB5WC2A/VOE_Mo1rEfI/AAAAAAAANRU/wuXvyOCMdBY/s1600/Twilight%2B2.jpg
Benton wisely distracts us from the confusion of the screenplay by dazzling the viewer with some unbelievable star power. A decade before his death, Paul Newman delivers a dazzling performance that was just as charismatic as when he played Brick Pollitt and Eddie Felson. He is matched scene for scene by the incredible Hackman, who once again reminds us why he is so sadly missed in Hollywood. We are even treated to a brief moment where Hackman is watching himself on TV in Downhill Racer. Sarandon brings an icy elegance to her character that earns the protection the screenplay provides for her character.
https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WvcSLpn4qEM/WyPL_hkIrgI/AAAAAAAApAs/VOXg-VGaX0E-cWloY8QyhA6UQrU10PZ4gCK4BGAYYCw/s1600/Twilight%2B1.jpg
The stars receive wonderful support from Stockard Channing as a hard boiled police detective, Margo Martindale as the brassy Gloria Lamar, Liev Schreiber as her dim-witted partner in crime, Giancarlo Esposito as Newman's leg man and an undeniably classy turn from the iconic James Garner as a former security expert and old pal of Harry's. There's also a brief appearance from future Oscar winner Reese Witherspoon playing Hackman's daughter. David Bomba's art direction and Elmer Bernstein's music deserve mention as well, but it's the skill of Robert Benton and an amazing cast that are the ticket. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Footlight Parade
In the tradition of films like 42nd Street and Golddiggers of 1933 comes Footlight Parade, another dazzling backstage musical from Warner Brothers that owes a large portion of its appeal to the ridiculously imaginative Busby Berkeley and his uncanny ability to continue reinventing the art of presenting dance onscreen.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjM1MjA5NTY1Nl5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNTQ1OTg5MTE@._V1_.jpg
The musical stars James Cagney, once again displaying his underrated skills as a song and dance man, as Chester Kent, a director of stage musicals who learns with the advent of sound movies, that he might be out of work permanently. After his materialistic wife demands a divorce, Chester may have found a way to continue is work by staging something called prologues, which are like mini-musicals staged to be shown before a movie.
https://hollywoodrevue.files.wordpress.com/2014/11/footlight-parade-by-a-waterfall.jpg
With the help of his loyal assistant, Nan (Joan Blondell), Chester becomes the king of prologues until rival directors begin stealing his ideas. Given a mammoth assignment of multiple prologues and suspecting there might be a spy within his company, Chester gets the idea to lock the company in the theater until the show opens. Chester also finds his romantic life being complicated by Nan's best friend, Vivian and the reappearance of his ex-wife, and not even noticing that the devoted Nan only has eyes for him.
https://ilarge.lisimg.com/image/7513780/1118full-footlight-parade-%281933%29-photo.jpg
This one takes a minute to get going, but once it does, director Lloyd Bacon, Busby Berkeley and their very talented cast really deliver. Bacon is to be applauded for the offbeat casting of Cagney as this Broadway director since this was nine years before he won an Oscar for playing George M. Cohan in Yankee Doodle Dandy. As a matter of fact, this was the first film ever where Cagney danced onscreen and, as he always did, knocked it out of the park. As I watched Cagney in this film, I couldn't help think how good he might have been playing Julian Marsh in 42nd Street. He is beautifully complimented by the scene-stealing Blondell, who doesn't make a false move onscreen as the devoted assistant obviously madly in love with her boss, but always putting his happiness and the good of the show over her personal happiness. Blondell's performance in this film is what musical comedy is all about.
https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/files.geekgirlauthority.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Footlight-Parade-4.jpg
Harry Warren, Al Dubin, Sammy Fain, and Irving Kahal are among the composers who contributed to the score for this musical comedy feast with songs like "Sitting on a Back Yard Fence", which featured Ruby Keeler dressed as a cat; "Anchors Aweigh", "One Step Ahead of My Shadow", and three incredible Busby Berkeley-staged creations that absolutely defy description and belie the fact that these numbers are supposedly taking place in a movie theater. "Honeymoon Hotel" is an elaborate mini-musical that covers the courtship of Ruby and Dick Powell through their check in at a fancy hotel where we meet the staff and their family. "By a Waterfall" is an indescribable water fantasy that was probably the inspiration for Esther Williams' entire film career and "Shanghai Lil" found Cagney and Keeler tapping their way into our hearts as a sailor and an Asian good time gal, accompanied by about two hundred tap-dancing sailors. These three numbers alone added a half bag of popcorn to my rating. This celebration of everything that is movie musical comedy has to be seen to be believed. 4

[Gideon58]

Jerry Before Seinfeld
It should come as no surprise that Netflix was there when Jerry Seinfeld returned to his standup roots in the 2017 special Jerry Before Seinfeld, which provides the laughs we expect from Jerry that might be more carefully orchestrated than they were in the beginning of his career, but there really isn't a better wordsmith in the world of comedy right now.
https://images3.static-bluray.com/products/20/68129_1_front.jpg
This special finds Seinfeld returning to The Comic Strip. the club where Seinfeld got his start and motivated the recurring theme of the entire concert as Jerry, in his own inimitable style, tells how he got from there to here. Talking about his upbringing in Brooklyn and Long Island allowed him to transition into a very funny routine about living "in" Brooklyn but living "on" Long Island" and the difference between getting "in" a train and getting "on" a train.
https://www.thewrap.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/jerry-seinfeld.jpg
The actual standup is periodically interrupted with home movies of Jerry growing up "in" Brooklyn and "on" Long Island, informing us that being a standup comedian was the only thing he ever wanted to be. He talks about how different being a child of the 60's was to being a child today and actually chastises the young members of his audience for having the nerve to be young. Jerry and I are around the same age so I found it very easy to relate to a lot of his childhood memories. His observation about his social life consisting purely of whatever his parents were doing was on the money. His bits about going with his parents to the bank and the wallpaper store were very funny. At one point offstage, Jerry introduces us to some of the comic influences he grew up, sitting on his front porch. One of the items in this scene was the George Carlin album Class Clown, which I grew up with and had memorized at one point.
https://cdn.newsday.com/polopoly_fs/1.14210674.1505752903!/httpImage/image.jpeg_gen/derivatives/landscape_768/image.jpeg
There were a couple of things that did gnaw at me. Ever since his classic NBC sitcom left the air, Jerry has done whatever he can to distance himself from that show. He never talks about it, he never mentions it, he has expressed no interest in a reunion special or a reboot. So imagine my surprise when he actually pulled material from the sitcom and used it here, still, never mentioning the sitcom. I was also disappointed by Jerry's joke about when cops arrest someone that they brutally handcuff and headlock them but are so careful to make sure that they don't hit they head when they get in the patrol car...is there any comic in the last 50 years who hasn't told that joke?
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMmY4OGJjYTYtYjdmZC00NTI3LTk4YzMtYzkwOWYxZWU1NWI2XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjgzNDU2ODI@._V1_.jpg
Jerry also shocked me at one point...Seinfeld has always impressed me as one of the few standups in the history of standup who never worked blue, so imagine my shock when the phrase "God damn" came out of his mouth during this concert. For the most part though, a funny and engaging special from a guy who still knows how to keep a live audience in stitches. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Long Shot (2019)
The surprising chemistry between the stars is a big asset to the 2019 comedy Long Shot, but its predictability and fatal over-length keep this film from matching its intentions.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/3/34/Long_Shot_%282019_poster%29.png
The romantic comedy stars Seth Rogen as Fred Flarsky (terrible character name), a recently unemployed writer who has been hired by his former babysitter, Charlotte Field (Charlize Theron), who is now the Secretary of State and planning to run for POTUS, to be her new speechwriter as she hits the presidential campaign trail.
https://images.forwardcdn.com/image/720x/left/top/images/cropped/screen-shot-2019-02-15-at-42513-pm-1550266035.png
The basic premise of this movie is decent, if a little predictable. Dan Sterling and Liz Hannah's screenplay offers a pair of protagonists who have nothing in common and no business being together, but we know from jump that the film's intention is to bring these two people together. Unfortunately, the screenplay is so long-winded providing way too many roadblocks for the star-crossed romance that the viewer begins to demand. Because Charlotte is the Secretary of State, it is assumed almost immediately that Charlotte's career is going to affect her relationship with Fred, so why do we have to wait so long for it actually happen? I also have to admit to being very amused by the bit of the current POTUS being a former actor who played the POTUS on a TV show and now wants to leave the Presidency so he can go back to acting.
http://reelreviews.com/images/stories/2019/long-shot-lg.jpg
On the other hand, I did enjoy the very slow burn of Charlotte and Fred's relationship...I love that Fred is even hesitant to accept the job at the beginning and that the possible romantic relationship between Charlotte and Fred isn't even addressed until their lives are actually in danger. The scene where they share their first kiss is absolutely maddening, so maddening that we almost believe there isn't gong to be another one...almost. I also loved later on when trouble began to rear its head for the couple that Fred agreed to be "Marilyn" to "Charlotte's "JFK."
https://static-cdn.jtvnw.net/s3_vods/kao43aylen/400413249/5664f3c2-8114-445e-956a-222758d17478/thumb/custom-d59a93b2-cc60-4d04-a1f2-86ce811584c4-640x360.jpeg
I also was pleasantly surprised by how much chemistry there was between Rogen and Theron. My initial reaction to seeing their names together on a movie poster was "seriously"? but they work hard at making this onscreen relationship believable. It was nice to see Rogen combine his goofy charm and affinity for physical comedy with a strong dash of romantic leading man. I also LOVED seeing Charlize Theron embrace her glamor again. She's played way too many "deglammed" characters lately and it was incredible seeing her outer sexy onscreen again.
https://i1.wp.com/lylesmoviefiles.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/long-shot-review-june-diane-raphael-charlize-theron-and-dev-patel.jpg?ssl=1
Mention should also be made of June Diane Raphael as Diane's bitchy assistant who hates Fred from jump, O'Shea Jackson Jr., who played his father in Straight Outta Compton, as Fred's BFF, Andy Serkis as a greasy political fatcat, and Bob Odenkirk as POTUS. Production values are first rate, but because we know exactly what's supposed to happen, this movie had no business being as long as it was. 3

[Gideon58]

Shadow of a Doubt
Once again, Alfred Hitchcock's unparalleled directorial eye raises the bar on a deceptively simple psychological drama from 1943 called Shadow of a Doubt that requires viewer patience, but the master delivers an effectively layered drama rich with what the director did better than anyone else...suspense.
https://journeysinclassicfilm.files.wordpress.com/2016/07/shadow.jpg
The film stars Teresa Wright as Charlotte "Charlie" Newton, a restless young woman who is a little bored with her small town life, which includes living with her flighty mother (Patricia Collinge), her quiet banker father (Henry Travers) and her kid brother and sister. Charlie is excited when she learns that her uncle, Charley Oakley (Joseph Cotten), who she was named after, comes for a visit. Charlie adores her uncle and has always considered him her spiritual animal, but certain behavior after Uncle Charley's arrival begins to concern her. She catches him tearing an article out of the newspaper and stuffing it in his coat pocket and when a census taker and photographer come to the house to interview the family. Charley wants nothing to do with it and when the photographer manages to get a picture of him anyway, Charley demands that the guy give him the film.
https://static1.squarespace.com/static/57e05e534402434aa0f846c2/582bbe83c534a51764ea03d9/58fa781ea5790a4f1951aa06/1492813406644/5234.jpg?format=1000w
Uncle Charley's behavior and the constant conversations between her dad and his best friend, Herbie (Hume Cronyn) about the best way to commit murder piques Charlie's curiosity which is confirmed when it turns out the census take and photographer reveal themselves to be detectives and suspect that Uncle Charley might be "The Merry Widow Murderer" , who has killed three wealthy widows and took off with their money. On top of all of this, Charlie accompanied her Uncle to her father's bank, where Uncle Charley opened a savings account with $40,000.00.
https://live.staticflickr.com/4062/4655622417_46ac9ae49c_b.jpg
This story was something a little different for Hitchcock. The screenplay was written by Thornton Wilder (Our Town) and Sally Benson (Meet Me in St. Louis), writers who were accustomed to writing stories about small town family life. Wilder is even awarded special billing in the opening credits and to juxtapose their keen insight regarding small town sensibility with an unsettling story about a possible murderer on the run turned out to be an effectively layered drama that takes a very deliberate pacing in setting up the exposition that we're almost halfway through the film before it becomes clear exactly what this movie is about.
https://www.cineluxe.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Shadow-of-a-Doubt-HERO-III-1024x610.png
What the screenplay doesn't offer and leaves unexplained, is almost made up for Hitchcock's masterful storytelling pinache. The opening scene of Cotten sleeping in a small rented room with money all around him on the dresser and the floor effectively introduces a character who's got a whole lot going on but we have no idea what. The camera zooming in on Cotten as he roughly grabs the newspaper article out of Wright's hand or the camera following Wright as she rushes to town to get to the library to figure out what's up with her uncle...suspense is created without really giving anything away.
http://the.hitchcock.zone/1000/29/0802.jpg
There were a couple of small plot points that confused me. It seems like someone else has been arrested for Charley's crimes but for some reason, he still feels he has to silence his niece. And why would he give the ring that he took off one of his victims to his niece as a gift? I still found this riveting entertainment for the most part, even if it did take a minute to get going. Joseph Cotten was robbed of an Oscar nomination for his chilling performance and Wright is lovely as the fragile Charlotte whose transition into doubt and fear about her uncle is completely believable. Patricia Collinge was also wonderful as Wright's mother. She had Wright were fresh off playing family members in The Little Foxes. And who knew Hume Cronyn was ever that young with a full of head of hair? It's not the type of film that most would associate with Hitchcock, but the master's magical hand is all over this one. 4

[Gideon58]

The Bride Came C.O.D.
A fun story, energetic direction, and sparkling performances from the stars make the 1941 slapstick comedy The Bride Came C.O.D. worth a look.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZTg5N2Q1NWQtMDU5MC00OTJlLTljZjEtZWMyYjgyMGFhZDllXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMDI2NDg0NQ@@._V1_.jpg
The comedy stars James Cagney, as Steve Collins, a marriage-shy private pilot who is about have his plane repossessed when he makes a deal with a millionaire named Lucius Winfield to get his spoiled daughter, Joan (Bette Davis) away from the obnoxious band singer that she's about to marry named Allen Brice (Jack Carson). Steve gets Allen off the plane and spirits Joan away but the plan becomes complicated when Joan tries to escape from the plane by jumping and the plane ends up crashing just outside a practically deserted ghost town called Bonanza, California.
https://crystalkalyana.files.wordpress.com/2015/02/da40fcf0e308ac1569b54486a6021e63.jpg?w=600&h=9999
This outrageously silly comedy owes a lot of its success to films like It Happened One Night and Bringing Up Baby, which also found two people with nothing in common on the run together and having to depend on each other even though that's the last thing either wants to do. Julius J. and Phillip G. Epstein's screenplay is smart and clever, peppered with funny one-liners that held up surprisingly well in 2019. William Keighley's fast-paced direction, that doesn't always allow the viewer to think about what they're watching, is also a huge asset.
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qNJ0C-52LP8/U0X-mqNLc2I/AAAAAAAALVM/0H80J-YrOTU/s1600/The+Bride+Came+C.O.D.+1.jpg
But it is the incredible cast that really keeps this one humming, led by the legendary James Cagney and Bette Davis, both wonderful actors but definitely working out of their comfort zones here. Cagney did have some musical comedy experience but nothing like this and this kind of physical comedy and this was definitely foreign territory for Davis, but both actors completely invest in the manic goings-on here and they actually seem to be having a lot of fun doing it. Especially loved right after the plane crashes when Joan falls into a cactus and Steve has to pull the stickers out of her pampered bottom. I've seen a lot of the work of both of these actors recently and was pleasantly surprised by the chemistry between them, which is definitely at the core of why this movie was so much fun.
https://www.shutterstock.com/editorial/image-editorial/N6Tek9x4OcDdA410OTg5Ng==/bette-davis-james-cagney-1500w-5877875d.jpg
Jack Carson was properly pompous as Allen Brice and mention should also be made of Harry Davenport as Pop Tolliver, George Tobias as Steve's mechanic and especially Pallette who had me on the floor with my favorite line in the movie..."Why am I running" I've got thirty million dollars!" For fans of Cagney and Davis, this is appointment viewing that still provides pretty consistent chuckles throughout. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Cadillac Records
Beyonce Knowles was the executive producer and one of the stars of 2008's Cadillac Records, an ambitious and handsomely mounted fact-based drama that chronicles the rise and eventual fall of Chess Records, a recording company that represented artists who became known as pioneers in rhythm and blues as well as rock and roll.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81sCj-CwDqL._SY445_.jpg
The film opens in the late 1940's where we are introduced to Leonard Chess, a nightclub owner who really wants to begin a record label with the aid of his first discovery, Muddy Waters. As Len and Muddy get the label off the ground, we are also introduced to other artists who come to the label, including singer and harmonica player Lil Walter, Howlin Wolf (Eamonn Walker), Chuck Berry, and Etta James.
https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s--bFHj2Thh--/c_scale,f_auto,fl_progressive,q_80,w_800/mgypswjeyzxtomh8bzlq.jpg
Director and writer Darnell Martin is applauded for the effort put into bringing this story to the screen. It put me in mind of the 2016 film Hidden Figures because it tells a story that has apparently been buried for decades, specifically that a lot of the music that we grew up on and influenced artists today was not only influenced by the musicians around which this film is centered, but in some cases, was directly stolen from them. Unfortunately, this was such an epidemic during the 1950's and between this and the greed-manifested payola scandal of the 50's, there was so much ugliness going on behind the scenes in the music business that it's pretty much impossible to document it all in a single movie and that's where the problem lies with this film, it just tries to cover too much territory, a virtually impossible task, but the spirit of what Martin is trying to do does shine through.
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_QPIc_6yUO7E/SPyG6df2WtI/AAAAAAAAAAY/dyHUNL80Iq0/s400/cadillac-records-leonard-chess-and-etta-james.jpg
The film did provide some little known facts for this reviewer that were a complete surprise. Did you know that the music for the Beach Boys' "Surfin USA" was actually stolen from a melody written by Chuck Berry? Or did you know that Led Zeppelin used Willie Dixon's music in "A Whole Lotta Love". The film also informs us that Etta James believed she was the illegitimate daughter of pool legend Minnesota Fats. Of course, with a story set in the 1950's, racism makes its way into the story and is delivered with a sledgehammer, but I wish the story had focused a little more on these musicians and not so much on the rampant bigotry that has already been documented in dozens of other movies.
https://www.lahiguera.net/cinemania/actores/mos_def/fotos/8531/mos_def.jpg
Martin's direction is a little stilted, making the film drag in spots, but he does get some very strong performances from some of his cast. Jeffrey Wright is splendid, as always, as Muddy Waters and Oscar winner Adrien Brody brings a take charge presence to the Leonard Chess character. Mos Def made a terrific Chuck Berry and there's a dazzling, star-making performance from Columbus Short as Lil Walter. Executive producer Beyonce gives herself a plum role as Etta James, though her acting hasn't improved since Dreamgirls. Her vocal take on James' classic "At Last" was on the money though. I also could have done without Cedric the Entertainer's over-the-top narration.
https://www.pluggedin.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/cadillac-records-scaled.jpg
The film features effective attention to period detail, but the screenplay just needed to be economized and maybe concentrated more on a couple of artists instead of trying to document the entire history of Chess Records. I was pleased to see during the epilogue that all of the musicians profiled in this film were eventually inducted into the Rock and Roll Gall of Fame. 3

[Gideon58]

How Stella Got Her Groove Back
A smart and charismatic performance from Angela Bassett in the leading role brings a little substance to 1998's How Stella Got Her Groove Back,a glossy romantic comedy that attempts to be hip and relevant, but suffers from lethargic direction and a cliched story rich with often juvenile dialogue.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/91BW2sNfQ6L._SY445_.jpg
Stella Payne is a workaholic 40-year old divorcee with a young son who talks her best friend, Delilah into taking a vacation to Jamaica. While on the island, Stella meets a well-built 20-year old stud named Winston Shakespeare and sparks fly. Stella initially dismisses it as an Island romance until an unemployed Winston shows up on her doorstep in Los Angeles insisting that he's in love with the woman, but some of the people in Stella's pre-Jamaica life aren't quite as accepting of Winston, particularly her bitchy sister.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/qS2Np6zxXm0/maxresdefault.jpg
As she did with Waiting To Exhale, Terry McMillan was allowed to adapt her own novel into a screenplay that tries to be some sort of battle cry for independent women of the 1990's but the story is just so contrived and convenient and overly cute that it grows tiresome very quickly. It starts when she calls Delilah (a scene-stealing turn by Whoopi Goldberg) to suggest the vacation and then calls her right back to say she cant do it right now. Even when she gets to Jamaica, her initial fighting any attempt to enjoy the island gets equally tiresome. The constant reminders about the differences in Stella and Winston's ages totally telegraph just about everything that happens here, except for the unexpected turn to melodrama involving Delilah, which made the already deadening pace of the story even more deadening and the whole story just gets way too serious after that.
https://iv1.lisimg.com/image/12829799/500full-how-stella-got-her-groove-back-screenshot.jpg
Even if it wasn't in the credits, it's easy to tell that this is a Terry McMillan story because all of the women in the story are unrealistically empowered and all the men, especially Winston, are made to look like blithering idiots, but their lack of brains seems to be a non-issue when they can make a woman have an orgasm.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/NH_wHu33CMw/maxresdefault.jpg
Angela Bassett works very hard to make Stella Payne a viable screen presence and Taye Diggs made a sex-on-legs film debut as Winston. Oscar winner Regina King steals a couple of scenes as Angela's girlfriend and Suzzanne Douglas is fun as Stella's snooty sister. A bouquet as well to Phyllis Yvonne Stickney, who makes the most of her one scene as Winston's mother, who's only a year older than Stella. This is another one of those movies that's like a beautifully wrapped package with nothing inside. 2

[Gideon58]

Clambake
One of Elvis Presley's most lifeless performance is one of several problems with a 1967 piece of fluff called Clambake, which is probably best known for its stable of once and future stars.
https://beachmovies.files.wordpress.com/2015/05/15808826_1-e1431519038282.jpg
Elvis plays Scott Hayward, the son of an oil millionaire who doesn't want to work for his father anymore and is tired of women chasing him because of his money. En route to Florida, Scott meets a goofball named Tom Wilson (Will Hutchins) who is on his way to a hotel in Florida to take a job as a water skiing instructor. Tom thinks Scott is an idiot for hating his life and tells him he would gladly trade places with him, so that's what they do. Tom jumps in Scott's expensive sports car and Scott hops on Tom's motorcycle and they both arrive at the Shores hotel, where Scott pretends to be Tom, becoming the hotel's new water skiing instructor and Tom becomes Scott Hayward, romancing women and spending Scott's money with ease and enthusiasm.
https://www.corvetteblogger.com/images/content/2018/010618_18b.jpg
Scott then meets Dianne Carter (Shelley Fabares), a woman who has come to Florida to land a millionaire playboy and amateur boat racer named JJ Jamieson (Bill Bixby), and even though Scott is attracted to Dianne, he agrees to help Dianne with her mission. And just when we don't think the proceedings could get sillier, it's revealed that Scott developed a scientific formula for a special glue called "Goop" that might help him win $10,000 in a boat race for him and the owner of a boating company (Gary Merrill).
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/3a/7f/9f/3a7f9fdc5b25a7c1560d9f1561177724.jpg
This film has all the ingredients for a typical Elvis romp, but it has such a feeling of "been there done that" around it that I think Elvis even saw it. Arthur Browne Jr.'s screenplay is silly and predictable and Arthur H. Nadel's pedestrian direction doesn't help. This is probably the first Elvis film I've seen where Elvis' disdain for the script comes through in his performance...he just seems to be phoning it in here.
https://onceuponascreen.files.wordpress.com/2015/06/13.jpg?w=798
The musical numbers are nothing to write home about either, though this film did feature a musical highlight that I've never seen before. Elvis actually performs a duet with a male co-star, which I think was a first. Elvis and Hutchins do a duet on the road to Florida called "Who Needs Money" (Hutchin's singing is dubbed by Ray Walker). There's a number Elvis does with a bunch of kids called "Confidence" that brings the film to a dead halt and there's a number where Elvis and a bunch of pretty girls are working on the boat called "Hey Hey Hey" that reminded me of "Greased Lightning" in Grease. The musical highlight of the film was definitely Elvis' take on the Ray Charles classic "You Don't Know Me."
http://www.new-video.de/co/clambake.m.jpg
This film featured two of the biggest television stars of the 1960's in Hutchins and Bixby. Bixby brings an effective sleaziness to his character, but Hutchins really grates on the nerves. Fabares was an effervescent leading lady and James Gregory was a lot fun channeling Foghorn Leghorn to play Elvis' dad. For hardcore Elvis fans only. 2

[Gideon58]

Reversal of Fortune
Reversal of Fortune is a meticulous and often chilling docudrama that recreates the events centered around the attempt to overturn the conviction of someone everyone thought was guilty that is riveting screen entertainment due to a brilliant, Oscar-nominated screenplay that tells the story from three points of view and three stunning lead performances, one of which won the Oscar for Outstanding Lead Actor of 1990.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/61DiVwG6PJL._SY445_.jpg
This 1990 docudrama chronicles the story of Claus von Bulow, who was convicted of attempting to murder his wife, Sunny, by injecting her with a fatal dose of insulin in 1980. After being convicted of two counts of attempted to murder, von Bulow contacts attorney and law professor Alan Dershowitz and asks him to appeal the conviction, aided by a select group of his best law students.
https://d32qys9a6wm9no.cloudfront.net/images/movies/backdrop/3d/6e1ad9c6ed7f172bef0fc9ef46583a55_1280x720.jpg?t=1636109773
This film fascinates from jump due to a richly complex, Oscar-nominated screenplay by Nicholas Kazan that allows this often ugly story to unfold in front of the viewer from three different angles. First we see Dershowitz and his team reluctantly drawn into this case. I've seen a lot of courtroom dramas in my day, but this was the first one revolving around an appeal of an already convicted defendant and the only one I recall where NO ONE involved in this appeal believes in the innocence of this client. We also see the von Bulow's marriage unfold before us, in reverse, through the viewpoint of Claus and through the viewpoint of Sunny, as we watch Sunny transform from human vegetable to a desperately unhappy woman whose marriage appeared to be a sham from the start from her own point of view. Naturally Claus' point of view paints a different picture and actually tries to infuse Claus von Bulow with some sympathy. It was undeniably creepy having Sunny von Bulow serve as the film's narrator.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/F6H85B/release-date-october-17-1990-movie-title-reversal-of-fortune-sutdio-F6H85B.jpg
The viewer's personal feelings about von Bulow and his possible innocence become irrelevant. What does engage the viewer is watching the dedicated Dershowitz break down this case and actually creating plausible alternate theories to what happened without committing to any of them.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/B817CH/reversal-of-fortune-year-1990-usa-japan-uk-ron-silver-annabella-sciorra-B817CH.jpg
Barbet Schroeder's rich atmospheric direction is a big plus as are the solid performances from his cast. Jeremy Irons' icy detachment as Claus von Bulow was chilling enough to win him the Best Actor Oscar that year and he is matched scene for scene by the late Ron Silver, turning in the performance of his career as Dershowitz. Glenn Close is fragile and heartbreaking as Sunny von Bulow, a performance of such delicacy that fascinates throughout. Strong work from Annabella Sciorra and Felicity Huffman as part of Dershowitz' team and Fisher Stevens as a greasy witness is also worth mentioning. Handsome production values are the topper on this effectively haunting docudrama. 4

[Citizen Rules]

Clambake looks fun, I'll have to see that sometime. At least the car is cool!

[nebbit]

Nice reviews as always :up:

[Gideon58]

Cassandra's Dream
Woody Allen has broached similar subject matter in films like Crimes and Misdemeanors, Match Point, and Irrational Man, but he takes it to another level in a dark and disturbing entry from 2007 called Cassandra's Dream, which takes a little too long to becomes the first rate nail biter it eventually morphs into.
https://www.nordicposters.com/movie-poster/cassandras_dream_07.jpg
It's contemporary London where we meet Terry Blaine (Colin Farrell) and his brother, Ian (Ewan McGregor) who are both having some serious financial troubles that they think can be taken care of when word that their wealthy Uncle Harold (Tom Wilkenson) is coming for a visit. Harold agrees to help his nephews if they agree to do something for him: One of Harold's employees is about to give some damaging testimony regarding Harold's business dealings to legal authorities and Harold feels his only option is to eliminate said employee and asks his nephews to do it.
https://static01.nyt.com/images/2008/01/18/arts/18cassandra.600.jpg
Woody has crafted yet another tale centered around one of his favorite cinematic subjects and that is the concept of getting away with murder. He does go to another level here, in that after the murder has been committed, one of the brothers is unable to live with himself and wants to clear his conscience, believing he can do without implicating his brother or his uncle.
https://www.slantmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/12/cassandrasdream.jpg
Woody's screenplay starts off a little soft and unfocused and we're not really sure where this story is going. The film almost begins as two separate films as we watch Terry's gambling and drinking get him in a lot of trouble. At the same time, we watch Ian beginning a new romance and wanting to get in on a new business deal because he's going bonkers working in his father's restaurant. It isn't until Uncle Harold appears on the canvas that we know exactly what this film is about and the exposition setting up Uncle Harold's entrance is pretty slow going, but after Uncle Harold made his proposal, this movie had me riveted for the rest of its running time. I loved that even though his problems weren't as serious as Terry's, it was Ian that had to talk Terry into carrying out Uncle Harold's request.
http://madeinatlantis.com/movies_central/2008/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/cassandras-dream.jpg
It's been awhile since I've seen work from Woody that created such nail-biting suspense, courtesy of a couple brilliantly false starts. Woody establishing Terry's guilt by having him have a conversation with their intended victim at a bar before it happens was such a smart storytelling tool. The scene where the brothers plan the murder at the man's flat and freak out because he doesn't come home alone was incredible. Allen's utilization of the steady cam as the brothers later follow their victim down deserted streets and alleys created the kind of tension that might have a viewer holding their breath. And Woody's double reverse ending added a half bag of popcorn to my rating.
https://picfiles.alphacoders.com/837/83798.jpg
Colin Farrell and Ewan McGregor give focused and intense performances as the Blaine brothers, with standout work from Farrell, who I don't think I have ever enjoyed onscreen more. The scene where he's talking to the victim in the bar is amazing...the viewer can actually see every pore on Terry's face filling with perspiration. Tom Wilkenson is completely invested in the negative of Uncle Harold and I was also impressed with Hayley Atwill as Ian's actress/girlfriend. it takes a little to long to kick into gear, but once it does, this one works, right up to that incredible kick-ass ending. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Defending Your Life
The recent passing of Rip Torn motivated a long overdue re-watch of 1991's Defending Your Life, Albert Brooks' undeniably stylish interpretation of purgatory that offers a twisted view of one man's life and his roads less traveled.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNTE4M2NmOTgtMjVhOS00MTY3LWFmMjAtMWRhYmI1YzE3NWY0XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNzc5MjA3OA@@._V1_.jpg
Brooks plays George Miller, an advertising executive who minutes after picking up his new car, is killed by a bus. When he regains consciousness, he finds himself on a special tram headed for someplace called Judgement City, which is a sort of a resort strip that consists of five different hotels and the Hall of Past Lives. George learns from his judgement attorney (Torn) that he has nine days to prove that he faced all of his fears during his lifetime. While he faces a tough prosecutor (Lee Grant) during the day, he finds himself falling in love with another client named Julia (Meryl Streep) who is housed in a different hotel.
https://i0.wp.com/film-cred.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/defending.png?fit=1276%2C718&ssl=1
Writer/director/star Brooks not surprisingly takes a much different tack on the concept of purgatory than we are accustomed to in film. This journey to the afterlife is made to look as fun and alluring as possible. One of the bonuses of life in Judgement City is that you are allowed to eat as much as you want of whatever you want and never gain any weight, which is Julia's favorite part of being here.
http://www.awardsdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/RIP-1140x641.jpg
The underlying message Brooks seems to be conveying here is a little troublesome, the fact that peace in the afterlife can only be achieved by facing all of your fears. It seemed odd that George was so apprehensive about this experience and Julia just seemed to be embracing it, though we weren't really let into the details of Julia's story, this was George's story. It was amusing watching the flashbacks through George's life, dating all the way back to his infancy and it was fun gauging just by the look on his face which days in his life used as evidence he remembered exactly what happened that day and which ones he didn't remember at all. After the third or fourth day, there was an odd moment between George and the prosecutor where she offered to spill her entire life story to him after this was all over that didn't make a lot of sense, but a minor quibble. There are a couple of dangling plot holes near the climax but they become irrelevant as the credits roll.
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IdkIKFAQRfs/UVpi-EukuFI/AAAAAAAAGs4/sYfenZ8ryUc/s1600/dualpasts.png
Brooks the director gets a nicely understated performance from Brooks the actor and Streep is simultaneously luminous and human as Julia. Torn and Grant bring a sparkle to their roles that really isn't in the screenplay and there's a fun cameo from Buck Henry too. One of Brooks' most engaging film comedies that could motivate definite warm fuzzy feelings. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Bound (1996)
The creative forces behind the Matrix franchise tried something a little risky and knocked it out of the park with 1996's Bound, a richly stylish and sexy noir-ish type thriller that is riveting entertainment thanks to imaginative direction and the surprisingly steamy chemistry between the stars.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/1/18/Bound_movie_poster.jpg/220px-Bound_movie_poster.jpg
The film stars Gina Gershon as Corky, an ex-con who has been hired by a landlord to restore one of the apartments in his building. One day on the elevator, she locks eyes with Violet (Jennifer Tilly), the mistress of a not-too-bright wiseguy named Ceasar (Joe Pantoliano) and before she even realizes it, Corky finds herself involved in a sexual affair with the woman. Violet asks for Corky's help in getting out of her life with the mob and collecting a two million dollar booty while they're at it.
https://chrisandelizabethwatchmovies.files.wordpress.com/2015/06/bound_001.jpg
Directors and screenwriters Lana and Lilly Wachowski were billed as The Wachowski Brothers and submitted this screenplay under that moniker, most likely because it was the only way to get the film made. Lana and Lily have since publicly come out as transgendered individuals but it really doesn't have a lot to do with their superior work on this sexy film nior, with directorial touches that are seriously inspired by the likes of Hitchcock and DePalma, creating a crackling suspense that seamlessly weaves with a sexual chemistry between two actresses unlike anything I have ever seen. Research revealed that Gershon prepared for her role by watching films starring Marlon Brando, Montgomery Clift, and Robert Mitchum.
https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s--heeeP4HS--/c_scale,f_auto,fl_progressive,q_80,w_800/i1lt4wx1vmlzwguk70w3.jpg
As expected, the sex scene here is one of the film's highlights, but it's not just that particular scene, Gershon and Tilly ignite sparks ever single moment they spend onscreen together, even with their clothes on. Tilly is an absolute revelation here, creating a character that's part Ava Gardner, part Marilyn Monroe, and part Faye Dunaway. Tilly is electric sex on legs here and her performance is worth the price of admission alone.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNjEzYmUyZDgtZGU5MS00ZTYwLWFmZDYtNDg5ZDNjYzRhZjAxXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNzc5NjM0NA@@._V1_.jpg
But there's so much more going on here...the camera work is inventive and inspired...I loved that shot of the toilet bowl that Gershon is working on and it morphs into the toilet bowl next door which is slowly filling with blood thanks to Ceasar and his goons roughing up a fellow wiseguy trying to skim money from the mob. Or where Ceasar meets his fate in a sea of thick white paint, with the aid of slow motion photography. The Wachowskis display a skill and passion for the art of film noir and know exactly what they're doing.
http://images6.fanpop.com/image/photos/39300000/Violet-and-Caesar-bound-39356744-1280-720.jpg
Pantoliano, best known for playing Guido the Killer Pimp in Risky Business, turns in the performance of his career as Ceasar, a thoroughly greasy and wonderfully entertaining sleazebag who you know just has to get what's coming to him. A pre-Law and Order Christopher Meloni also shines in an early role as a dumb ass mob heir apparent, but it is the stylish direction and the deliciously erotic chemistry between Gina Gershon and the fabulous Jennifer Tilly that keep this one on sizzle. 4

[Gideon58]

Aquaman
Another DC comic book hero gets the big screen treatment in 2018's Aquaman, an overlong and overblown epic that really doesn't bring anything new to the superhero table, except possibly bigger and better movie pyrotechnics.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/91qc-4BkJbL._AC_UF894,1000_QL80_.jpg
According to this film, Aquaman, actually named Arthur at birth, was a half-breed...his father was a lighthouse keeper and his mother was actually the Queen of the Lost Kingdom of Atlantis. The King of Atlantis sent soldiers to return his Queen to her place, leaving a lost and alienated Arthur confused about his eventual destiny. Arthur finds he must do battle with his half-brother, King Orm, for the throne as King of Atlantis and has been asked to stop a war that King Orm has declared against the surface dwellers.
https://static01.nyt.com/images/2018/12/23/arts/23aquaman-anatomy2/aquaman-anatomy2-videoSixteenByNine1050-v4.jpg
The rambling screenplay initially doesn't spend a lot of time on exposition, unfortunately, as the present story begins forward progress, it is interrupted every ten minutes to flash back to Arthur's formative years, including his combat training by the enigmatic Vulko (Willem Dafoe). Though i did enjoy the scene at the aquarium where Arthur is being bullied and the sharks come forward to protect him and Arthur first embraces his legacy. The constant battles our hero is put through are hard to keep track of and seem to have little to do with the sibling rivalry that is established as the core of the story. And, of course, poor Arthur is getting it from both sides of the surface...the kingdom of Atlantis seems to resent him as much as the surface dwellers do...ah, the curse of the half-breed.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYjc4MjQ2OWEtMzFmZi00NGFlLWJlOGUtNGIzYmUyMzcxZmQ4XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyOTM5ODE1NTA@._V1_SX1777_CR0,0,17 77,728_AL_.jpg
In terms of pure action, there are a couple of scenes that do standout. I loved when those gremlin looking beasts attacked the ship that Aquaman and the Princess were on and the final battle with little brother was pretty memorable, but the whole thing had that "been there done that" air about it that has been plaguing the action/adventure genre ever since The Avengers first hit the screen...there is nothing going on here that we haven't seen in a dozen other comic book heroes.
https://filmschoolrejects.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/aquaman-map.jpg
Jason Momoa was properly chiseled as the title character and I was impressed with Patrick Wilson as King Orm and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (who stole ever scene he had in Baywatch) as Manta. Production values were first rate...Atlantis resembled something out of Blade Rinner with just a dash of The Jetsons thrown in, but scenery and special effects do not a great movie make. 2.5

[Gideon58]

The Glass Bottom Boat
During the final decade of her film career, the late Doris Day made several less than stellar comedies and 1966's The Glass Bottom Boat, a silly slapstick comedy only goes so far on Doris' charisma and an impressive veteran supporting cast.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/91d2OK9GlnL._SY445_.jpg
Day plays Jennifer Nelson, a widow who works as a secretary at a space research center on Catalina Island during the weekend and as a mermaid on her father's boat tour during the weekend. Jennifer meets cute a couple of times with Bruce Templeton (Rod Taylor) the wealthy scientist who has just invented a gravity-defying formula who is attracted to Jennifer but she won't give him the time of day. In order to spend time with her, Bruce pulls Jennifer from her secretarial duties and asks her to be his biographer. Things are gong OK until important people around Bruce begin investigating Jennifer and have come to the conclusion that she's a Russian spy.
http://makingniceinthemidwest.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/The-Glass-Bottom-Boat-01_17_08.jpg
Everett Freeman's screenplay actually asks the audience to believe that sweet little Doris Day is a Russian spy, which never really washes. There are reasons that these suspicions come to light, but they're pretty thin and make a pretty silly premise upon which to base a comedy. Frank Tashlin, who spent a lot of the 50's and 60's directing people like Jerry Lewis, and Danny Kaye displays his affinity for slapstick here which Doris invests in, though leading man Taylor seems a lot less comfortable with it than she does.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/X2LeOrbmOPc/maxresdefault.jpg
There is selected fun to be found here, if the viewer looks for it. The scene in Bruce's automated kitchen that worked like something out of The Jetsons was a lot of fun as was Doris' wild adventure on an out of control motor boat that causes major havoc on the ocean off Catalina, but a lot of what happens here just doesn't offer an hour and fifty minutes of entertainment.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/b1/1c/91/b11c910829a4a99eaf204a6e0dc4d2bb.jpg
Day and Taylor create a semblance of chemistry here and it was nice to see television icon Arthur Godfrey make a rare movie appearance as Doris' father. The terrific supporting cast is the real selling point here. Dom DeLuise, Dick Martin, Paul Lynde (who appears in drag in one scene), John McGiver, and Edward Andrews do garner major laughs. I was also amused by the casting of Alice Pearce and George Tobias, the original Gladys and Abner Kravitz on Bewitched, as Doris' next door neighbors here. It's better than a hot poker in the eye, but not much. 2.5

[Gideon58]

Just before I Go
Actress Courtney Cox made her directorial debut with a 2014 mixed bag called Just Before I Go, which appears to be a black comedy on the surface, but an unfocused screenplay that doesn't take any real risks in the story keep this fragmented story from coming together as a complete story.
https://resizing.flixster.com/4wdQ5p-ET7Zc0Qrp1iOcZYCjZuE=/206x305/v1.bTsxMTE5MDg1MztqOzE4MjE5OzEyMDA7Mjg0OzQwNQ
The film stars Seann William Scott as Ted Morgan, a loser who has come to a crossroads in his life where he is actually debating as to whether or not he wants to continue his hot mess of a life. Ted has decided that he wants to kill himself and feels before he does, he has to face the demons in his life, more specifically, his family who he holds responsible for the loser he has become. However, upon arrival home, Ted finds himself drawn into the chaos of the lives he left behind and resents the fact that he doesn't have time to blame these people for what went wrong in his own life.
https://variety.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/justbeforeigo.jpg
Devid Flebotte's very safe and somewhat predictable screenplay is the primary culprit here. Most movies that broach the subject of suicide, are either very serious like The Hours or done in the vein of a black comedy like the Burt Reynolds comedy The End, but Flebotte's screenplay is kind of all over the place and is really not sure how he wants the story to play. Parts are played very seriously and parts are played as a farce and blended together, they make for a rather uneven film experience.
http://i59.fastpic.ru/big/2015/0513/6b/e569e5477797b5b11294e49a9a2ce86b.jpg
If the truth be told, the two strongest elements of the film actually felt like they were separate movies and could have been movies by themselves. I enjoyed the story of Ted reconnecting with a girl named Vickie (Mackenzie Marsh) he had a crush on when he was a kid, who is now fat, married, the mother of five, and working in a supermarket. I also actually liked the story of Ted helping his nephew, Zeke (Kyle Gallner) deal with the fact that he's gay, but neither story seemed to connect to the story at hand, which seemed to be about Ted confronting people who felt negatively impacted his life. The scene where confronts a dying teacher (Beth Grant) who made his grade school years a living hell, just came off as unintentionally cruel but what happens between his older brother Lucky and his wife, who masturbates in her sleep (don't ask) rings true.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/k_V_cIddmcQ/maxresdefault.jpg
Cox's direction displays some imagination, particularly during the final act, but she needs to work on pacing a story because this one seemed so much longer than its actual 90-minute running time. Seann William Scott plays the starring role a little too straight-faced for my opinion, but Garret Dillahunt stole every scene he was in as Ted's brother and it was nice to see the long-absent-from-the-big-screen Connie Stevens as Ted's mother in her first screen appearance since Grease 2. Cox's ex-husband, David Arquette also makes the most of his two scenes as Vickie's husband. The story is unfocused and doesn't go anywhere we think it's going to, but Cox does display potential behind the camera. 3

[Gideon58]

National Lampoon's Animal House
Movies like Caddyshack, Revenge of the Nerds, Fast Times at Ridgmont High, and Porky's all owe their existence to the granddaddy of all raunchy comedy classics that still provides solid laughs 41 years after its release, a little something called National Lampoon's Animal House that introduced several future movie stars and made a genuine movie star out of a guy named John Belushi.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/e/ea/Animalhouseposter.jpg/220px-Animalhouseposter.jpg
The setting is 1962 at fictional Faber College where we are introduced to the worst frat house on campus, the Delta House, which is basically a 24-hour party, which, unknown to the fraternity has placed them on "double secret probation" by the evil Dean Wormer. After letting new pledges Larry Kroger and Kent Dorfman, the frat, led by Otter, Boone, and Bluto, decide the only way to deal with double secret probation is by throwing a toga party. When the toga party gets their house shut down, a road trip which includes a trip to an all black nightclub is next on the schedule before returning back to town for an annual parade the town will never forget.
https://static01.nyt.com/images/2018/12/04/arts/best-netflix-animalhouse/best-netflix-animalhouse-videoSixteenByNineJumbo1600.jpg
The screenplay by Harold Ramis and Douglas Kenny, the director and one of the writers of Caddyshack is raunchy, but never obscene, rich with outrageous physical comedy, unbelievable set pieces, and is very protective of this ridiculously funny fraternity and the nutballs that inhabit it. This one of a kind, completely over-the-top story is hysterically mounted by John Landis, who would later cement his reputation as the director of Trading Places and Coming to America.
https://s2.dmcdn.net/v/BzOmZ1Vo1r-rt9U4n/x1080
This episodic laugh-riot is filled with one roll-on-the-floor funny scene after another. The toga party is one event that you will never forget and, somehow, John Belushi manages to garner huge laughs all by himself in a scene getting his tray in the cafeteria lunch line, which leads to a food night, a scene which learned later was completely improvised. The scene in the all black nightclub, featuring Otis Day and the Knights also produces big grins.
https://www.portablepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/animal-house.jpg
Tim Matheson had the most significant role of his oddly sporadic film career as Otter and Thomas Hulce who would later earn an Oscar nomination for Amadeus is too cute as Larry. The late Stephen Furst is funny as Dorfman and the late great John Vernon created one of the all-time great comic villains in Dean Wormer, but Belushi is the one you go away from this one remembering...perhaps the funniest movie performance from an actor utilizing the least dialogue. Also making an impressive film debut is a very young Kevin Bacon. No matter how you slice it, a comedy classic that still brings the funny. 4

[Gideon58]

Sisters (1972)
An early bulls eye from the resume of Brian De Palma is an often chilling psychological thriller from 1972 called Sisters that already shows the Hitchcock influence that would permeate so much of De Palma's work.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMDljZDliM2YtMjNlMS00ZjY2LWFjNjctMDU5ZmU0NjhhZjk0XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjI4MjA5MzA@._V1_.jpg
Jennifer Salt plays Grace Collier, a rookie reporter for a small Staten Island newspaper who witnesses a brutal murder in an apartment building across the courtyard from hers. The apartment is occupied by an attractive French Canadian model named Danielle (the late Margot Kidder) who brought the victim home with her the night before. Grace calls the police but they are unable to turn up any evidence of a murder, so Grace hires a private investigator (Charles Durning) to help her figure out exactly what happened.
https://s.hdnux.com/photos/74/13/40/15775759/5/920x920.jpg
De Palma, even at this early point in his career, is already displaying a definite affinity for creating nail-biting suspense as opposed to the immediate but temporary "boo" which has become the trademark of so many later horror/slasher films. Very subtle clues are offered as to exactly what's going on here and strict viewer attention is demanded, if not always rewarded. My first clue that the victim was in trouble was when he was in the bathroom putting on his shirt and he knocked her pills down the drain. Somehow I knew right then that this guy's death was an inevitability.
https://criterion-production.s3.amazonaws.com/carousel-files/df2ed38c766c7b9eb6719926fb35f242.jpeg
De Palma employs a couple of brilliant storytelling techniques here that I didn't see coming at all, particularly the use of the split screen right after the murder. On one side of the screen we see the murder being covered up and the other we see Grace calling the police and meeting them downstairs. This was such a clever tool of De Palma's that forced the viewer to pay attention...it was slightly maddening, but extremely effective.
https://a.ltrbxd.com/resized/sm/upload/35/k6/6r/lg/sisters-1200-1200-675-675-crop-000000.jpg?v=266e7a77b9
The screenplay by De Palma and Louisa Rose is a little muddled at times. We are told early on that Danielle has a twin sister named Dominique, but when Grace talks to a doctor (Barnard Hughes) and reveals that Danielle and Dominique were Siamese twins who had been separated, it took the entire story in a disturbing and unsettling direction we don't see coming. De Palma's use of real-life conjoined twins and freaks during the nightmarish sequence where Grace is silenced was a master stroke. I was also troubled by the ambiguity of the ending, leaving a major plot point dangling.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/PNYP48/prod-db-aip-pressman-williams-dr-soeurs-de-sang-sisters-de-brian-de-palma-1972-usa-avec-jennifer-salt-et-charles-durning-epouvante-suspense-horreur-PNYP48.jpg
Kidder is surprisingly effective as the damaged Danielle and Jennifer Salt is a commanding screen presence as the energetic Grace. Durning is also a lot of fun as the private eye. Bill Finley scores as Danielle's ex as does Dolph Sweet as the frustrated police detective and if you look close, you might catch future Oscar winner Olympia Dukakis playing a bakery employee. The story has a couple too many holes, but De Palma's storytelling skill allows you to forgive the film's minor problems. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Thousands Cheer
America was deep into WWII in 1943 and Hollywood was one of the military's biggest champions, churning out countless films about the war effort and showing how appreciative they were for what our boys were doing. MGM only had moderate success with Thousands Cheer, an overblown military-themed musical comedy that scores in terms of intentions but goes on forever.
https://dyn1.heritagestatic.com/lf?set=path%5B1%2F3%2F1%2F6%2F7%2F13167916%5D%2Csizedata%5B850x600%5D&call=url%5Bfile%3Aproduct.chain%5D
Based on a story called Private Miss Jones, this is the story of Kathryn Jones (Kathryn Grayson) a pretty classical singer and the daughter of an army colonel (John Boles) who decides to sideline her career to join the army and assist her father, while attempting to get him to reconcile with her mother (Mary Astor), from whom he's been divorced for many years and both of them seem to like it that way. Kathryn meets a young soldier named Eddie Marsh (Gene Kelly), a trapeze artist who has joined the army but, for obvious reasons, would rather be in the air corps. Kathryn finds herself very busy trying to help Eddie get a transfer, getting her parents back together, and organizing a huge variety show that features just about every star under contract to MGM at the time, with Mickey Rooney serving as Master of Ceremonies.
http://i.imgur.com/FQdXuCV.png
Outside of the military setting, there wasn't much out of the ordinary regarding the story except possibly the fact that Kathryn's parents are divorced and she is actually living with her father instead of her mother. Though I will admit that having John Boles and Mary Astor play Kathryn's parents brought an air of sophistication to the proceedings that I didn't expect. The film was clearly produced by the Joe Pasternak unit at MGM because Pasternak made sure that director George Sidney kept Grayson and her lyric soprano center stage for most of the proceedings. Grayson is given three solos, including an aria from La Traviata, while Gene Kelly is only given a single opportunity to dance in the entire film.
http://rarefilm.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Thousands-Cheer-1943-1.jpg
As for the big variety show, it takes a while to get there, but when it does, a lot of it is just not very interesting. The only real highlights for me were Judy Garland belting out "The Joint is Really Jumpin' Down at Carnegie Hall" and Lena Horne's sexy rendition of "Honeysuckle Rose". Frank Morgan's comedy skit with Ann Southern, Lucille Ball, and Marsha Hunt wasn't nearly as funny as its length, ditto Red Skelton's skit. There's also a second reprise of a song called "I Dug a Ditch" featuring Kay Keyser and his orchestra that went on forever. Why Pasternak and Sidney felt this song needed to be performed three times is a mystery. There's also a ballet featuring a pair of unknown dancers named Don Loper and Maxine Barrat that was over 10 minutes of my life I'll never get back. Rooney was kind of funny recreating a scene from Test Pilot imitating Clark Gable and Lionel Barrymore, but if MGM wanted to show their support of the war effort, maybe they should have just made a cash contribution. 2.5

[Gideon58]

Mike's Murder
A solid Debra Winger performance notwithstanding, 1984's Mike's Murder is an overbaked salute to film noir that degenerates into a standard damsel-in-distress potboiler thanks to a swiss cheese screenplay and several characters who are dumb as a box of rocks.
https://resizing.flixster.com/WFLQJoCHfhd-Eggyz7AEIaPCfi8=/206x305/v1.bTsxMTU1OTA3ODtqOzE4MjIzOzEyMDA7NjAwOzEwOTI
Winger plays Betty Parrish, a bank teller who had a one night stand six months ago with a part-time tennis pro and small time drug dealer named Mike (Mark Keyloun) who contacts her again and keeps saying wants to reconnect but keeps standing her up because of some dirty deals that his partner, Pete (Darrell Larson) keeps getting him involved in shady drug deals, one of which actually gets Mike murdered. Betty can't get Mike out of her mind and decides she has to find out exactly what happened to Mike and why.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYjk4OGI5NzEtOTQzZi00ZjFkLThmNTYtNmEwOWFlODkzOGNkXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjUyNDk2ODc@._V1_.jpg
This film is actually the brainchild of Oscar nominated director/screenwriter James Bridges, who was nominated for The China Syndrome and directed Winger in Urban Cowboy. Casting Winger was the smartest thing Bridges did, because the rest of this movie is a hot mess. There's all kind of stuff going on here that doesn't make sense primarily why Betty is so obsessed with this guy...she had sex with the guy once and then he made a habit out of asking her to go out again and then standing her up. She should have come to her senses after being stood up three or four times, but then as she begins her little investigation, she learns that Mike was once the boy toy of a wealthy, gay record producer. Most women would have closed the book on Mike as soon as they learned that, but not our Betty.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BOTQyY2EwZjgtZjViYy00YzNiLWE3NzktMGQzNmM1YTYzYzY4XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjUyNDk2ODc@._V1_.jpg
I have to admit I was intrigued by the instant suspense created here just by the film's title. We meet Mike in the opening scene and we already know he's going to die, so why does it take almost 45 minutes for it to happen. Bridges actually telegraphs when it's going to happen during that visual exchange between Mike and Pete when they are trying to decide whether or not to steal some of that cocaine...then somehow Pete ends up holding the cocaine, but Mike is the one that gets murdered? And after hearing about Mike's murder, why would that record producer not get rid of videotape of him fighting with Mike?
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTc0ZmY2M2ItMGE0MS00ODBkLTg5NzgtMzhkM2E4MTE2ZDE5XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjUyNDk2ODc@._V1_.jpg
Bridges direction does have flashes of style, though a lot of the film is poorly lit and its often hard to tell what's going on, but I suspect that was intentional to create suspense but it just created aggravation for this reviewer. Winger does try to inject some life into this limp murder mystery and Paul Winfield does a classy turn as the record producer, but Keyloun is no actor and Larson is ridiculously over-the-top as Pete. Considering the talent involved on both sides of the camera, a major disappointment. 2.5

[Gideon58]

John Leguizamo: Latin History for Morons
The severely underrated John Leguizamo makes a long awaited return to the stand up microphone with a 2018 Netflix special called John Leguizamo: Latin History for Morons which finds the comic schooling a Broadway theater on inaccuracies and the blatant neglect of Latino history in the history books that are part of most kids curriculum today.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYzYwMmM3ZDYtOTdiOS00MWNlLThjNzEtOTE1YWY5ZWRhOTlmXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyODc5NDYwMTI@._V1_FMjpg_UX1000_.j pg
Apparently, the inspiration of this special was a couple of specific incidents involving John's son, who is now in the 8th grade. "Buddy" (I suspect that this is not his son's real name, which I'm sure Leguizamo withholds to respect and protect his son) has been bullied at school and has not been equipped with enough education regarding his people in order to provide effective responses to the often insensitive hazing that can be part of being a 14 year old Latino kid. He is also given a homework assignment where he has to do a report on great Latino heroes in history and is absolutely clueless on the subject. These two events motivated Leguizamo to return to the stage and provide an overview of neglected Latin American history that also provides pretty consistent laughs.
https://districtfray.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/John-Leguizamos-Latin-History-for-Morons.jpg
I understand perfectly where Leguizamo is coming from here because I felt the same way after seeing the 2016 docudrama Hidden Figures about a group of black female mathematicians who provided statistics that were instrumental in running the space program at NASA during the early 1960's. As a black male who grew up in the 1960's, it was infuriating that what these women did NEVER came up in a history class when I was growing up. Leguizamo provides insight into a lot of historical Latinos whose names we've hard but know precious little about.
https://i0.wp.com/www.americantheatre.org/wp-content/uploads/Latin-History-for-Morons-Berkeley-Rep_opt.jpg?fit=900%2C599&ssl=1
Initially, the instinct when watching what Leguizamo is doing here is making up a lot of stuff that he talks about, but before approaching each subject that he brings up here, John pulls out a book, tells us the title and author, and tells us that this book will document what he's about to say. This put Leguizamo in a whole new light for me because I had no idea how well read the man is. I loved when he told the audience that his drug of choice was books.
https://media-cldnry.s-nbcnews.com/image/upload/t_fit-1500w,f_auto,q_auto:best/newscms/2019_14/2806001/190401-john-leguizamo-ew-1036a.jpg
Leguizamo uses minimal props here, with the exception of a large blackboard and never lets the audience forget they are in school. There is one bit where he is about to impersonate President Andrew Jackson and in order to gray his hair, bangs and eraser all over his head and then confesses that he knows he looks more like Frederick Douglass than Andrew Jackson and he's OK with that. The comic provides facts and figures that are hard to argue with and his heartwarming recreation of his son's eighth grade graduation actually left a lump in the throat concluding with his son's declaration that "Violence is the lowest form of communication." From the mouths of babes...4

[Gideon58]

johns
A pair of solid performances from the leads makes a somewhat sordid but realistic look at life on Hollywood Boulevard from 1996 called johns worth a look.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTcxNTU3NTc4MV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMjgyNDAzMQ@@._V1_UY268_CR4,0,182,268_AL_.jpg
It's the morning of Christmas Eve on Hollywood Boulevard when we meet John (David Arquette), a 20 year old male prostitute who has sex with men for money even though he is heterosexual. John has been planning for several months to spend Christmas Day at the Park Plaza Hotel because Christmas Day is also his birthday, but most of the money he was going to use to pay for his suite gets stolen from him in the opening scene. We also meet Donner (Lukas Haas), the teenage son from a wealthy family who was kicked out of the house when he came out to them and has only been on the streets a couple of months, but is clearly in love with John.
https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5QBqa0gh4lc/Vt3eCaZ3QVI/AAAAAAAALp4/zyxv5GyyjdY/s1600/johns-starring-david-arquette-and-lukas-haasx633.jpg
Writer/director Scott Silver, who was nominated for an Oscar for his screenplay for The Fighter provides the viewer with an episodic look at life on Hollywood Boulevard that is a far cry from Vivian in Pretty Woman. John is homeless, has no idea what each day is going to bring, but has figured out that men are attracted to him and has decided it is the easiest way for him to make a living. Unfortunately, he finds himself seeking out shortcuts that get him in a lot of trouble. He stole money from a drug dealer and never seems to be where he's supposed to be because he receives three Christmas presents from different characters in the movie and they all give him watches.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNTFjYmExNzktMWMzNS00NzcwLThjNjQtMDRiM2I4NDA5YWUzXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjUyNDk2ODc@._V1_.jpg
As sick as it might appear on the surface, the relationship between John and Donner is quite believable. We can tell from their first meeting that Donner is in love with John and John is just using him, but John is at least honest about it and, for some reason, Donner seems to enjoy being teased, abused, and often ignored by John. The danger associated with being a sex hustler is also driven home with a sledgehammer. Both John and Donner spend a lot of time during the running time getting bloodied up.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/TzmjlOKqHek/hqdefault.jpg
Silver's story works overtime at making the title of the film work, not only in terms of what John and Donner do, but by naming several other characters in the story John, which seemed a little contrived to me. Silver does get a dazzling performance from David Arquette as the main John, a character who is sexy, funny, engaging, and slightly pathetic. Watch his joy as he's checking out the Park Plaza Hotel for the first time, or his rage when the john he tries to rob only has $42 in his wallet. Arquette wouldn't really get noticed until he appeared as part of the Scream franchise, but he is superb here and is matched by Haas as the sad and touching Donner. Some familiar faces pop up along the way like Terrence Howard, John C. McGinley, Elliott Gould, Richard Kind, and Keith David, but it is Arquette and Haas that demand attention and make this movie worth a look. 3

[Gideon58]

Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
After creating the character of Ali G on HBO, Sacha Baron Cohen became a Hollywood player as the star and co-screenwriter of a 2006 melange of shock, vulgarity, and, yes, laughs simply known as Borat that barrages the viewer with some nearly obscene visual images and adult themes that redefine the phrase "something to offend everyone."
https://ntvb.tmsimg.com/assets/p161918_v_h10_aa.jpg?w=960&h=540
Borat Sagdiyev is a television correspondent in his native land of Kazakhstan, a Jew-hating country, who has been sent to America with his assistant Azamat and a cameraman to film a documentary about American culture. The first night in his hotel, Borat is watching a rerun of Baywatch and falls instantly in love with Pamela Anderson. He tries to forget about Anderson because he's married, but then he gets a telegram informing that his wife is dead. After a brief celebration of the news, he and Azamat buy an old ice cream truck and decide to drive cross country to California so that Borat can find Pamela Anderson and make her his bride.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTg5MTQ5OTEwOV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMTE2NTMyMw@@._V1_.jpg
Anthony Haynes, Peter Baynam, Dan Mazer, and Cohen actually received an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay for this bizarre road trip comedy that definitely earns points for originality but loses an equal amount of points for tastelessness. There is nothing that happens in this movie that even approaches the neighborhood of decorum or appropriateness. This story seems to have been created to see just how much offensive material an audience would be able to tolerate and still generate laughs. I've seen a lot in my over half a century of movie viewing, but there are things in this movie that even I found hard to watch...but I also couldn't stop laughing either.
https://www.canwestillbefriends.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Borat-DI.jpg
From the minute Borat arrives in New York and keeps trying to greet men with kisses on the cheek (thought it was rather strange that he only greeted male characters with kisses), we know we're in for something different. When he is being instructed on how to tell a joke, we know we're in for some silliness. When he sings the national anthem of his country to the tune of our national anthem to a rodeo full of rednecks, we're not sure if we're supposed to be laughing or not. When Borat uses the bathroom at a dinner party and brings his "deposit" downstairs, we're repulsed, but when Borat and Azamat have a nude wrestling match that leaves their hotel room and enters a crowded convention room, we just have to turn away. And don't even get me started on his actual attempt at kidnapping Pamela Anderson.
https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/images/newsite/Borat__600.jpg
Director Larry Charles and Cohen display major cajones in their in-your-face presentation of this often repugnant but often equally hilarious fish out of water story. Charles and Cohen are also to be applauded for their casting of the characters interacting with Borat trying to teach him what he should and shouldn't be doing. Some of them don't even come off as actors, bringing an air of reality to the proceedings that's a little unsettling. Cohen's fearless and funny performance as Borat is something cinema historians should study. This is one of those movies that people are going to really really love or really really hate. Needless to say, I'm somewhere in the middle. 3.5

[Gideon58]

The Mating Game (1959)
Veteran character actor Paul Douglas made his final feature film appearance in a warm and engaging romantic comedy from 1959 called The Mating Game.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/61PdZ0e-WSL.jpg
Douglas plays Pop Larkin, a sweet-natured farmer with a wife and five kids who has run his farm and supported his family as a trader, trading whatever he has ever needed instead of paying cash for anything and, therefore, has never paid any taxes or even filed a return. The IRS sends a prickly young agent named Lorenzo Charlton (Tony Randall) to the Larkin farm to investigate. Things get complicated when the Larkins get Charlton drunk and he starts falling for Pop's prettiest eldest daughter (Debbie Reynolds).
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYTY1NWIxOWQtZjA3NC00NDk5LTgyYWEtM2YzOGZhZmFlNTJjXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjAyODg1OA@@._V1_.jpg
Based on a novel called The Darling Buds of May, the beauty of William Roberts screenplay lies in its simplicity centered around very universal themes, particularly the differences between big city and country living. The script also works thanks to one of the most likable family units in a movie I have seen in a long time. The Larkins are a tightly knit clan who would do anything for each other and though it's sometimes hard to believe their naivete regarding the trouble they're in with the IRS, their unassuming "seduction" of the Lorenzo character has no malice behind it and we keep hoping it's going to work. I also loved the subtle inferences of a very healthy sex life between Pop Larkin and his beloved Ma (Una Merkel).
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNTQ4M2E2ZmUtMjhkNy00ZTJkLTkwOTMtNGNmYTRhOGMzZjRkXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjAyODg1OA@@._V1_.jpg
The real surprise here is the crisp and undeniably funny performance by Tony Randall in the leading role. An actor usually relegated to supporting roles, Randall was given the chance to anchor a story and he knocks it out of the park. Randall somehow effortlessly manages to combine urbane sophistication with his uncanny knack for physical comedy, creating a loopy and charming leading man who is hard to resist. Randall's drunk scene and his fight scene with a couple of Reynolds' country bumpkin boyfriends are definitely comic highlights.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/BPAJ4D/debbie-reynolds-una-merkel-tony-randall-paul-douglas-donald-losby-BPAJ4D.jpg
Randall gets first rate assistance from Douglas, who is terrific in his final film appearance and works very nicely with Reynolds, providing the story with a bubbly and energetic leading lady. Fred Clark brings another of his mustache-twirling comic villains to the screen and Phillip Ober and Charles Lane make the most of their screentime as well. The film is shot in gorgeous MGM technicolor and the finale is a dandy. Oh, and that is Debbie singing the title song. 3.5

[Gideon58]

The Interview
The creative forces behind Superbad take on some very sticky subject matter in 2014's The Interview, the controversial, big budget comic extravaganza that caused such a firestorm that the country of North Korea actually tried to stop the film from being released.
https://s3.amazonaws.com/static.rogerebert.com/uploads/movie/movie_poster/the-interview-2014/large_large_20ut2U5DmGl6SzdU0ADaQ8u5zoC.jpg
James Franco plays Dave Skylark, the slightly dim and arrogant host of a celebrity tabloid talk show called "Skylark Tonight" who learns that North Korean dictator Kim-Jong-un is a big fan of his show, which motivates Dave's producer, Aaron Rappaport (Seth Rogen) to contact the man and see if he would agree to do the show. Aaron flies to North Korean and learns that President Kim will do the interview. Dave and Aaron are thrown though when the CIA shows up at Aaron's apartment, having learned about the interview, and request that while they are doing the interview, they murder President Kim through a poisonous strip they will place on Dave's hand that will poison the dictator when they shake hands.
https://occ-0-8407-2219.1.nflxso.net/dnm/api/v6/E8vDc_W8CLv7-yMQu8KMEC7Rrr8/AAAABRO1e2SYa6s12zb5Ti7Dkn7SxrfurzfJRtdyehZEsBe_K1ET2xYjPJnKvEsH09TDQbPxlE1m9xbUi2pU5wMQMK67Ku-urNWyTRmZ.jpg?r=b0f
Things get even more complicated when, upon their arrival, Dave and President Kim bond, becoming instant BFF's, who enjoy margaritas and Katy Perry. Aaron also starts falling for one of President Kim's top aides who, in reality, can't stand Kim and agrees to help Dave and Aaron in their mission.
https://compote.slate.com/images/3f09c341-54f5-4d3e-b773-89c155fc60b9.jpg
Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg have come a long way since Superbad and have to be applauded for their creation of a story that they had to know would piss a lot of people off. After all, this is a work of comic fiction based on a real life political leader that comes right out and says that the guy is starving and destroying his people, and is pretty much insane. Rogen and Goldberg make it clear that this film is a work of fiction, but one can definitely see how this film might have raised the dander of the North Korean people. The film makes North Koreans look just as stupid as it makes President Kim look insane.
https://compote.slate.com/images/5d5f1c94-9567-4d71-8a71-4b490ce42aaf.jpg
One thing I really liked about the story was the character of Dave Skylark. He comes off as a sort of comic re-working of Kimberly Wells, the character Jane Fonda played in The China Syndrome, a fluff reporter who longs to be taken seriously as a journalist and I got the same feeling from Dave Skylark, even if he might not be as passionate about it as Wells was, but he doesn't shy away from the opportunity when it drops into his lap and I liked that. Dave also had a delightful man-child quality to his personality that injected a lot of fun in to this story. I loved the day he spent with President Kim when they first arrive, where they bond over Katy Perry and blow up a forest area in Kim's tank.
https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/seth-rogen-james-franco-the-interview-2014.jpg
Rogen and Goldberg's estimated $44,000,000 budget is all over the screen, documented by incredible North Korean and China location photography, some unforgettable set pieces, art direction, and some superb film editing. Rogen is very funny as the producer who reluctantly agrees to this career-changing interview and Randall Park is just brilliant in this comic re-working of President Kim, but it is James Franco's deliciously over-the-top performance as the slightly nutty Dave Skylark that really energizes this movie and actually finds Franco lip locking with both Rogen and Park. The cameos at the beginning of the film by Eminem and Rob Lowe are also funny, but all the controversy this film caused upon its initial release seems kind of silly now. Lighten up, North Korea...it's a movie. 3.5

[Tugg]

"They hate us cause they ain't us" Dave Skylark ("The Interview")

I love this movie. You're right about Kim/ Dave bonding, it probably is the best part of this great movie.

[Gideon58]

A Shot in the Dark
Blake Edwards and Peter Sellers wasted no time in following up the smashing success of The Pink Panther with an even funnier sequel called A Shot in the Dark, which has earned a reputation over the years as the funniest film in the Pink Panther franchise and deservedly so.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/b2/Shot_in_the_dark.jpg/220px-Shot_in_the_dark.jpg
This 1964 laugh riot finds Inspector Clouseau (Peter Sellers) assigned to investigate the murder of the driver of wealthy Benjamin Ballon (Oscar winner George Sanders) and the primary suspect appears to be Ballon's buxom and beautiful maid, Maria Gambrelli (Elke Sommar), but Clouseau refuses to accept Maria as being guilty, which not only gets him in a lot of trouble with his boss, Commissioner Dreyfus (Herbert Lom), but has a hand in an additional seven deaths that happen in the course of the investigation.
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0gA-TsxqAn4/UHi-isrruSI/AAAAAAAABGA/--S9N_t6HX4/s1600/AShotInTheDark02Quote.jpg
A film that features eight murder victims hardly seems to be material for a film comedy, but Blake Edwards and William Peter Blatty have concocted this outrageously over-the-top black comedy, which is actually based on a play by Harry Kurnitz, who was clearly influenced by writers like Noel Coward in coming up with this bizarre murder mystery that really isn't that mysterious. Director and co-writer Edwards stages a brilliant staging of the murder at the opening of the film, before the opening credits, that already clue in on the audience that we are not being told everything...during the opening, we observe several people going in and out of various doors on the Ballon estate and we see four people go into the same room before the shots ring out, so we know there are at least two more people who know something but are saying nothing.
https://rogersmovienation.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/shot2-1.jpeg
It's not the story that makes this movie so funny, it is the brilliant collaboration between Blake Edwards and Peter Sellers, whose uncanny ability to concoct hysterical physical comedy out of practically nothing at times that makes this movie works. You know you're in for some major laughs when Ballon suggests that he and Clouseau engage in a game of billiards and hands Clouseau a curved pool cue, not to mention later when he asks him to return a pool cue to the rack. Watch Sellers' face when he is questioning Maria in his office and every time she grabs him, a piece of his suit comes off in her hand. Their misadventure in a nudist colony provides major chuckles as well. I also loved the running bit of Clouseau donning different disguises to follow Maria after having her released from jail and getting arrested repeatedly for occupations that require a license. And that scene where Clouseau and his assistant (Graham Stark) are trying to synchronize their watches had me on the floor.
https://prod-images.tcm.com/Master-Profile-Images/ashotinthedark1964.17766.jpg
Edwards and Blatty have also come up with the perfect comic foil for Clouseau in Dreyfus. Love the look on his face when he first learns that Clouseau has been assigned to the case and how frustrated he gets when he learns that Ballon doesn't want Clouseau taken off the case. It's so funny how working with Clouseau has turned Dreyfus into a basket case who can't eat or sleep, has a problem with self-mutilation, an eye that won't stop twitching at the mention of Clouseau's name, and is deep in therapy.
https://alchetron.com/cdn/A-Shot-in-the-Dark-1964-film-images-ce9e2717-9890-4893-8935-1be85350f28.jpg
Peter Sellers proves to be the master physical comedian here, bringing a goofy dignity to this character, while barely allowing a smile to cross his face during the entire running time. Lom and Sanders underplay beautifully and Sanders must be applauded for keeping a straight face with Sellers, but the lion's credit for why this works has to go to director Blake Edwards, whose undeniable skill at slapstick comedy gets a full work out here. So if you're a fan of his later work like 10 and Victoria/Victoria, you might want to give this classic a look. 4

[Gideon58]

Aladdin (2019)
After being thoroughly entertained by their live action remake of Beauty and the Beast, I was looking forward to seeing what Disney Studios would do with their live action remake of their 1992 instant classic Aladdin, a lavish and fast-paced musical fantasy where everything works except for the one thing that made the 1992 animated film so special.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjQ2ODIyMjY4MF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNzY4ODI2NzM@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_.jpg
Aladdin is a streetwise Arabian hustler and thief who meets and is immediately attracted to the beautiful Princess Jasmine, who is doing the Roman Holiday bit away from the castle and pretending to be her handmaiden Dalia. The Sultan, Jasmine's father, is being pressured by his second in command, the ruthless Jafar, to give up his throne and decides to take a shortcut to the throne by sending Aladdin to a magical cave filled with treasures to retrieve a very special lamp for him. Before he can get the lamp to Jafar, Aladdin rubs the lamp and out pops a big blue genie who has been in the lamp for about 10,000 years and offers Aladdin three wishes.
https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/976/cpsprodpb/15FEF/production/_107059009_crop-al-02936rcsm.jpg
Director and co-screenwriter Guy Ritchie might seem an unusual choice to helm this gargantuan undertaking but he and co-screenwriter John August do an admirable job of establishing exposition without taking up too much running time while simultaneously flashing out certain characters and their motivations that were somewhat glossed over in the 1992 animated film. Jafar is a far more three dimensional character than he was in the first film. We actually understand the resentments behind his behavior. As expected, we also get a more enlightened heroine in Princess Jasmine...initially she appears to be bored and somewhat trapped in her princess clothes, but she is eventually revealed to be interested in taking over as Sultan, which provides a layer of strength to the character that I found most refreshing.
https://img.cinemablend.com/filter:scale/quill/2/8/8/3/7/7/288377b26eec16d0fbf513d056ef2fd2939376fc.jpg?mw=600
What just didn't work for me here is the character of the genie, so brilliantly brought to life by Disney animators and the late great Robin Williams in 1992. This consistently entertaining character whose unending morphing not only involved the story at hand but current pop culture as well, just doesn't work here. Even a crack visual effect team is never able to produce the kind of wonder and magic that the genie had in 1992 and I'm afraid that had way too much to do with the fact that this character worked the way it did because of the late Robin Williams' voicing of the character, which was one of a kind magic. Will Smith's genie is all over the place here...he's part streetwise thug, part gay fashion designer, part Yente the matchmaker, and we never really believe any of it.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/QFKTt1DBIWA/maxresdefault.jpg
What does work here is Guy Ritchie's meticulous direction which keeps the story moving and doesn't allow too many lulls in the action. His camera work is innovative and imaginative with especially effective use of the steady cam and some amusing fast-action shooting during "One Jump Head", Aladdin's opening number. I also enjoyed "Prince Ali", the lavish production number featuring some terrific choreography by Jamal Sims and the Princess' two versions of "Speechless", especially the reprise that is staged as sort of an inner monologue in Jasmine's mind. Also loved Aladdin and Jasmine's magic carpet ride to the Oscar winning "A Whole New World." Loved Aladdin's monkey sidekick, Abu, who I wasn't sure if he was real or CGI and I think that was the intention. Iago's transformation from Jafar's comic relief to a winged monster in the climax was genuinely terrifying.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/WFITK3y3lOo/maxresdefault.jpg
Mena Massoud gives a real movie star performance in the title role and creates mad chemistry with Naomi Scott's Jasmine. Marwan Kenzari's quietly underplayed Jafar was a master acting class and I also loved former SNL player Nasim Pedrad as Dalia, but even with all the technical help he receives, Will Smith prevents this film from being what it should have been. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Ask Any Girl
Sparkling performances by the stars notwithstanding, the 1959 romantic comedy Ask Any Girl has not held up well due to some outdated plotting and some questionable casting, not to mention a little too much resemblance to other better films of the period.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51D74jYueHL.jpg
The comedy stars Shirley MacLaine as Meg Wheeler, a virginal career girl who has managed to fend off the advances of a lecherous playboy (Rod Taylor) long enough to get herself a job at a cigarette company run by Miles Doughton (David Niven) and his younger brother Evan (Gig Young). Meg finds herself enamored with the marriage shy Evan but can't get a commitment out of him, so she goes to Miles for assistance in getting Evan to put a ring on it. Miles decides to help Meg by stealing Evan's little black book and trying to model Meg into a little bit of all the girls in the book.
https://assets.mubi.com/images/film/47702/image-w1280.jpg?1445900748
George Wells' screenplay is terribly dated, offering some silly statistics about male female relationships and what would basically be considered sexual harassment today. There is a lot of talk among Meg and the other female characters in the story about enjoying being working women, but admitting that they are only doing it in order to land a husband, a common disease among female movie characters in the 1950's that is just a little too hard to take in 2019. The Meg Wheeler character reminded me a lot of Jan Morrow, the character Doris Day played in Pillow Talk the same year and the Doughton brothers reminded me a lot of the Larrabee brothers, played Humphrey Bogart and William Holden five years earlier in Sabrina.
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Ep-Z85YdmMg/TEicRwNRQwI/AAAAAAAAH4A/2y6fnkp6JA4/s1600/14.jpg
Actually, it is the Doughton brothers who provided one of my biggest aggravations with this film. I just never bought David Niven and Gig Young as brothers, and not just because Niven is British and Young is not, there was just no familial feelings resonating between the two actors to make them believable as brothers. Both are talented actors and are fully committed to what they're doing, especially Young in his accustomed slick, lady-killer turn, but I never believed the relationship between the two, which made investing in the proceedings difficult.
https://icdn.cda.pl/vid/thumbs/d76dcb6748a2fc9dfa8bef81f2c7510aec3a5474c8a67cff9545f7605fb74d8d-191.jpg_ooooxooxox_1280x720.jpg
MacLaine is utterly enchanting going the Doris Day route, though and works well with Young. Rod Taylor was also surprisingly funny as were Jim Backus, Elisabeth Fraser, and sexpot Claire Kelly in supporting roles, but the whole concept of the film is just a little too dated to be viable entertainment in 2019. 2.5

[Citizen Rules]

Ask Any Girl
Sparkling performances by the stars notwithstanding, the 1959 romantic comedy...Sound like my kind of movie! I've not heard of it, but I will add it to my watch list.

[Gideon58]

It is your kind of movie, Citizen, you'll probably like it a little more than I did.

[Gideon58]

Hobson's Choice
Meticulous direction by the legendary David Lean and some superb performances make 1954's Hobson's Choice appointment movie viewing, a warm and engaging comedy-drama centered on family values and the real power of the woman behind the man.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZDA5NGZkNWItYmNmMS00YTYzLWIxOWEtNDNjMzc5ZmNhNjk0XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMzk5OTkyNDE@._V1_.jpg
Oscar winner Charles Laughton plays Henry Hobson, the owner of a boot-making business and the father of three daughters. Eldest daughter Maggie (Brenda de Banzie) really runs the business and Willie Massop (Oscar winner John Mills) is the gifted shoemaker who actually makes the boots. Henry plans on marrying off his younger daughters, Alice and Vicky, until he learns that he is expected to provide dowries (referred to here as "settlements") for them. In Henry's mind, Maggie is a spinster who will never marry and will run the business for him until the day she dies. Maggie, on the other hand, has other ideas and spinsterhood is the last thing on her mind.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTJlNmRmMjMtOTk5ZS00YjIyLThhN2QtNzAyYTUwOTM3MzBlXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTQ1NDUyNzI@._V1_.jpg
Oscar winner Lean is known for mounting spectacular epics like Lawrence of Arabia and Bridge on the River Kwai, but has also shown an affinity for intimate human drams like Brief Encounter and Pygmalion and it is his quieter work that I have always preferred, including this engaging family comedy served by an extraordinary cast who who are fully committed to the vision of director and co-screenwriter Lean.
http://torontofilmsociety.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/Annex-Laughton-Charles-Hobsons-Choice-NRFPT-02-620x400.jpg
The most engaging and entertaining aspect of this cinematic journey is, of course, the magical relationship between Maggie and Willie, completely manipulated by Maggie from the start...a strong, determined woman who has decided that she will be married no matter what her father thinks. It's a little unsettling watching Maggie's initial manipulation of Willie, but we learn that being manipulated is exactly what Willie the doormat needed and watching the kind of man that Maggie molds Willie into is just a joy to watch. Willie is even involved with another woman at the beginning and the scene where Maggie puts an end to it had me on the floor. It's hard to believe the Willie and the beginning of the movie and the one at the end are the same character.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/vfAbTXs8jL4/maxresdefault.jpg
And what can be said about the extraordinary performance Lean pulls from Charles Laughton? This actor was never known for subtlety in his acting but this performance entertains and rivets from opening to closing scene and was there ever any actor who nailed a drunk scene the way Laughton did? That scene in the dark jumping in the mud puddles was really funny. Brenda de Banzie is extraordinary as Maggie, commanding the screen in a perfect melange of strength and warmth and John Mills is a revelation as the seemingly hapless Willie. A richly entertaining comedy-drama that works because of the talent behind the camera as well as the talent in front. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Cape Fear (1991)
Martin Scorsese followed up his masterpiece Goodfellas with a blistering and bloody remake of Cape Fear which is best remembered for the bone-chilling, Oscar-nominated performance from Robert De Niro in the lead.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41wNrOX4YSL._SY445_.jpg
This remake of the 1962 classic finds De Niro playing Max Cady, a man who has just been released from prison after 14 years and goes straight to the lawyer who defended him, Sam Bowden (Nick Nolte) who he feels dropped the ball and is responsible for him losing 14 years of his life, and begins blatantly stalking the man, his wife (Jessica Lange), and his 16-year old daughter (Juliette Lewis).
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjE2NTEwOTcwN15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNTc3Njg1MDI@._V1_.jpg
The screenplay has been adapted by the 1962 screenplay by James R. Webb, which was based on a novel by John B.McDonald, which eventually turns out to be a biting indictment on the contemporary justice system, which often seems to be just as protective of criminals, maybe a little too protective, as it is of the victims. The progression of this story aggravates as we watch the very dangerous Max Cady bring nothing but terror to the Bowden family and the more he does, the more the law seems to protect him instead of the Bowdens. There's a point in the story where we actually see Max take Sam Bowden to court so that he can have a restraining order put out on him so that Sam has to stay away from him!
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/BPDX4J/jessica-lange-nick-nolte-juliette-lewis-cape-fear-1991-BPDX4J.jpg
On the other hand, the story is consistently intriguing primarily because the character of Max Cady is no moron. When we are first introduced to the character, Scorsese pans the wall and bookshelf in his jail cell, packed with all kinds of white supremacist posters and many books while we see the heavily-tattooed Cady doing pull-ups. We know this guy has not spent the last 14 year doing pull-ups. He feels that education is not only perhaps a way to a better way of life for himself, but also as his most important tool in exacting the revenge he has obviously been planning on Sam Bowden ever since he got locked up. I love his flawless use of legalese on the boat while he's throwing Sam around like a rag doll.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/M6HxD6sZ-I0/maxresdefault.jpg
But the real story here is De Niro, in an absolutely chilling performance that earned him a sixth Oscar nominaton. De Niro has played a lot of creepy characters over the years, but I don't think he has ever made my skin crawl the way he does here. He and Scorsese continue to be an unbeatable writer/director combo, artists whose intuitive understanding of each other is unparalleled.
https://www.filmlinc.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/capefear1991-1600x900-c-default.jpg
De Niro gets a strong antagonist in Nick Nolte, who is rock solid as Bowden, bringing a real meat to the character that's not really in the screenplay. Ironically, Nolte was also an Oscar nominee that year, but for a different film. Juliette Lewis also received a supporting actress nomination for her performance as Notle's daughter. Jessica Lange's work in this film has always been overlooked and underrated, but she's great here, especially in that scene on the boat where she's trying to keep Max from raping her daughter. Scorsese also casts three actors from the '62 film, Robert Mitchum, Gregory Peck, and Martin Balsam in supporting roles, but this is De Niro's show and for fans of the actor, this is appointment viewing. 3.5

[Gideon58]

The Princess and the Frog
Disney Animation scores with a 2009 animated musical called The Princess and the Frog which features colorful characters, animal and human, and a terrific musical score by a movie music legend.
https://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0786936795332_p0_v2_s550x406.jpg
In this re-thinking of the classic fairy tale The Frog Prince, the setting is New Orleans where the viewer is introduced to Tiana (voiced by Anika Noni Rose), a hard-working waitress who is very close to having saved enough money to open up her own restaurant, a dream she shared with her late father. We also meet Prince Naveen (voiced by Bruno Campos) who has arrived in town and after an encounter with a voodoo magician named Dr. Facilier (voiced by Keith David), has been turned into a frog and can only be returned to human with a kiss from a princess and convinced that Tiana is a princess, talks her into kissing him, which instead of returning Naveen to human, turns Tiana into a frog while Dr. Facilier is able to turn Naveen's manservant Lawrence (voiced by Peter Bartlett) into Naveen who finds himself being chased by Tiana's man-hungry BFF Charlotte (voiced by Jennifer Cody).
https://static.rogerebert.com/uploads/review/primary_image/reviews/the-princess-and-the-frog-2009/hero_EB20091209REVIEWS912099996AR.jpg
Other pertinent players who become part of Tiana and Naveen's complicated journey to a happy ending include a trumpet playing alligator named Louis (voiced by Michael Leon-Wooley), a firefly named Ray (voiced by Jim Cummings), an old blind lady (voiced by Jenifer Lewis) and Charlotte's father (voiced by John Goodman), the King of this year's Mardi Gras, whose conclusion is also the timetable for Tiana and Naveen to be returned to human.
https://blogs.libraries.indiana.edu/refportal/files/2016/06/Frog-full-princess-and-the-frog-disneyscreencaps.com-8282.jpg-1024x572.jpg
The creative forces behind the animated Aladdin, Ron Clements and John Musker, have concocted another overly complex story out of a very simple fairy tale, which attempts to be very hip by setting the story in New Orleans and making several of the central characters African American. Unfortunately, the way these characters and the city of New Orleans are portrayed broadcast loudly to the viewer that Clements and Musker are the whitest guys on the planet who apparently know little or nothing about New Orleans, but what happens on this vanilla canvas they establish is so entertaining that we are able to forgive the slightly whitewashed settings and characterizations.
https://cdn.thismamacooks.com/images/2016/02/Tianas-Famous-Beignets-Princess-and-the-Frog-2.jpg
Once again, Disney has brought us another fiercely independent female heroine to get behind. It's nice that nothing else is really important to Tiana than realizing her dream with her father, that is, until she meets Naveen. I have complained in several past reviews about films that spent too much time on exposition and I am pleased to say that this film spends just the right amount of time, especially the scene with young Tiana and her parents (voiced by Terrence Howard and Oprah Winfrey).
http://images5.fanpop.com/image/photos/25700000/Tiana-Prince-Naveen-in-The-Princess-and-the-Frog-disney-couples-25727099-1280-720.jpg
One of the biggest selling points of this film was the toe-tapping score by Oscar winner Randy Newman that will have you humming and toe tapping right through the closing credits. I especially enjoyed "Gonna Take You There", "Ma Belle Evangeline", "When we're Human", "Down in New Orleans", and the exuberant, Oscar-nominated "Almost There".
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjE2OTg0NDk2Ml5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMTUwMjIyNw@@._V1_.jpg
The voice cast is wonderful with Rose making an enchanting lady with solid support from David, Campos, Lewis, and Cody. Keith David is especially impressive revealing a musical talent I had never seen from him, another Disney specialty, allowing actors not known for being musicians to show off their musical talent. Another winner from Disney. 4

[Gideon58]

Pickup on South Street
The Hollywood Blacklisting was having a serious impact on Hollywood, not only on the artists bringing material to the screen, but the material itself. A prime example of this change in material was a tidy little noir-ish thriller from 1953 called Pickup on South Street that tells a compelling story in an economic manner and features a superb, Oscar-nominted performance from, arguably, Hollywood's greatest character actress.
http://rmpraino.weebly.com/uploads/5/3/0/0/53006983/published/pickuponsouthstreet_2.jpg?1528305488
This dandy little nail-biter stars Richard Widmark as Skip McCoy, a two-bit pickpocket who has only been out of jail for a week when he lifts the wallet out of a purse belonging to a tough-as-nails-hooker named Candy, who is instructed by her boyfriend to come home immediately when he learns the the wallet is gone. Neither Skip nor Candy are aware that the wallet contained a piece of secret microfilm that is connected to a communist plot and that Candy's boyfriend is secretly communist. Candy and the police are able to locate the microfilm with the assistance of a hardened police informant named Mo Williams (Thelma Ritter), but Candy's boyfriend wants that microfilm back and has no qualms about going through Candy and Mo to do it.
https://a.ltrbxd.com/resized/sm/upload/hv/h7/2b/jt/pickup-south-street-1200-1200-675-675-crop-000000.jpg?k=c4ef79c296
Samuel Fuller, probably best categorized as a "B" movie director, created his masterpiece, mounting an atmospheric crime drama in the city that never sleeps, where the city of Manhattan almost becomes another character in the story. This is the earliest film I can recall that so effectively establishes that midnight to dawn atmosphere that was so prevalent in crime dramas of the 1970's and 80's. It's given an added air of distinction by making the main antagonist a communist, something that probably never would have found its way to the screen if the film had been made five years before it was, but the Hollywood witch hunt was on the front burner in 1953 and many filmmakers felt the need to comment on what was going on through their work.
https://imgc.artprintimages.com/img/print/pickup-on-south-street-jean-peters-thelma-ritter-1953_u-l-ph4vh90.jpg?h=550&w=550&background=fbfbfb
Fuller gives the film a real Hitchcock kind of opening that absolutely demands viewer attention. When we see Candy on the subway, the camera shows us several men watching her and we're really not sure why. An immediate sense of danger was established for the Candy character that draws the viewer in immediately. Someone who tunes in after the opening credits would have been hard pressed to tell which one of these guys was going to be a problem for Candy...at least until Widmark enters the picture.
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-o8CzDwTL0gE/VBkECp-t-TI/AAAAAAAAJzA/D9EgnNXcdV8/s1600/toppickupss.jpg
Widmark brings a sexy and dangerous quality to Skip McCoy and Jean Peters is seriously cast against type as Candy and works very hard at being believable in the role. As expected, the acting honors go to the incomparable Thelma Ritter, who earned the 4th of her six career Best Supporting Actress nominations for the pitiful Mo Williams. Her final scene in the film is a total heartbreaker. This film works because of the best work of the respective careers of Samuel Fuller and Thelma Ritter. 4

[Gideon58]

Charade
Stanley Donen ventures into Hitchcock territory with 1963's Charade, a sophisticated and undeniably stylish melange of mystery, romance, and suspense that consistently entertains thanks to skillful direction and a superb cast.
https://theblondeatthefilm.files.wordpress.com/2014/08/charade-poster.jpg?w=640
The irrepressible Audrey Hepburn is at her most beguiling playing Regina Lampert, a woman who finds herself pursued by a group of men who are after a large amount of money that Mrs. Lampert's recently murdered husband stole. Mrs. Lampert finds herself drawn to one of the men, who calls himself Peter Joshua (Cary Grant), but she's not even sure she can trust him.
https://i1.wp.com/www.solzyatthemovies.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Charade.jpeg?resize=800%2C600
Peter Stone, who won an Oscar for writing another Cary Grant classic (Father Goose), also wrote this overly complex mystery that unfolds slowly and actually gives the viewer a little time to figure out what's going on instead of moving at a breakneck speed that doesn't allow the viewer time to think. I will admit that I figured out what was going on here about thirty minutes in, but that's where the story starts taking a back seat to the direction.
https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0RwZdA_R84w/W-jHrpffbwI/AAAAAAAAHjQ/yaTBO_x50ksAwkDd81nge36lEt4ou38lgCLcBGAs/s640/500px-Charade-ColtDS.jpg
Donen's eye with the camera is imaginative and inventive here, not only utilizing stunning European location photography, but some terrific set pieces and planting just enough red herrings for the viewer that we're never 100% sure about what's going to happen, except for the fact that the slightly dim Mrs. Lampert is underestimating the danger she's in and might be just a little too trusting of this Peter Joshua and that her heart might be taking over for her common sense.
https://a.ltrbxd.com/resized/sm/upload/9j/m6/8v/ia/charade-1200-1200-675-675-crop-000000.jpg?k=7e467f6f5e
Certain scenes were definite standouts for me that effortlessly combined suspense and grins. Loved Mr. Lampert's funeral where we see three guys show up and, in their own way, want to make absolutely sure that Lampert is dead. Loved the fight with Grant and George Kennedy on that very tall rooftop and the final showdown in the music hall, which reminded me of the finale of The Man Who Knew Too Much was a winner.
https://cdn.britannica.com/s:500x350/69/172369-004-9E47136D.jpg
It should go without saying that the best thing about this film is the chemistry between Grant and Hepburn, which is off the charts. Once again, the magical Hepburn is able to create viable onscreen chemistry with an actor much older than she was. Walter Matthau and James Coburn offer solid support, and Henry Mancini's music was memorable, but it's the stars and the director that really put the sparkle in this one. 4

[Gideon58]

Frozen River
A powerhouse performance from Melissa Leo that earned her first Oscar nomination anchors a 2008 indie gem called Frozen River, a gripping and emotional drama revolving around family values, racism, sacrifice, and second chances.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81YlM9qYwgL._RI_.jpg
Leo plays Ray Eddy, a single mother of two boys, whose part-time job is not enough to pay for the new double trailer she and the boys were planning to live in until the boys' father ran off with their money. Ray meets another single mother named Lila (Misty Upham) who is Indian and resides on a reservation that Ray is able to drive to via the crossing of a frozen solid river. Even though Lila is a mother, her mother-in-law has custody of the child. After getting off to a very shaky start, the two women begin making money by smuggling illegal aliens over the nearby border in their car.
https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/images/ic/1200x675/p01gyjg8.jpg
Director and writer Courtney Hunt has crafted a compelling drama which really felt really personal to Hunt. The movie felt fact-based but I was unable to confirm this. This is an intimate and prickly story that starts off in a very unconventional manner and this reviewer did not see the relationship that evolves between the two women coming at all, or what they end up doing.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/2JDPHET/melissa-leo-frozen-river-2008-2JDPHET.jpg
I've seen a lot of films that deal with racism, but this was a different look at the issue that was actually refreshing. We not only see the difficulties that Lila experiences because she's a native American, but we also see her simplistic view of how simple Ray's life is because she's white. More than once in the film, we see Ray hesitate about something that Lila suggests and Lila informs her that no one is going to stop her because she's white.
https://www.alternateending.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/9oPSK2S4FJFSb8AkM0002M1MJWX.jpg
The story takes some unexpected detours, but it does sustain interest for its running time. Leo commands the screen earning her first lead actress Oscar nomination and her performance alone is worth the time, though Misty Upham definitely holds her own as the tragic Lila. Upham's promising career would come to a halt a mere six years later with her brutal murder. Mention should also be made of Charlie McDermott, playing Ray's teenage son. You might remember McDermott as Patricia Heaton's eldest son on the ABC sitcom The Middle. A film with strong female power in front of and behind the camera. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Cabin in the Sky
Remember those old cartoons where the main character is trying to do what's right and he has a little angel and a little devil on each shoulder advising him what to do? This kept flashing through my head as I watched the MGM musical Cabin the Sky, a groundbreaking film from 1943 that featured an all African-American cast, not exactly standard cinematic fare in the 1940's.
https://i.etsystatic.com/11352370/r/il/26065d/1060880917/il_794xN.1060880917_q6xp.jpg
This is the story of a womanizing gambler named Little Joe Jackson, who gets shot during one of his gambling sprees and as he lies on his deathbed, Lucifer's son and his crew arrive ready to take Joe to hell where he belongs. However, Joe's wife, Petunia, prays so sincerely to have Joe's life spared that "The General", God's second in command, also shows up and gives Joe six months to change his ways and make things right with Petunia. Lucifer Jr. is not giving up on Joe's soul and decides to tempt him with a winning sweepstakes ticket and a smoking temptress named Georgia Brown. And despite all that Joe is put through here, it is fun watching Petunia never give up on the man she loves but not allowing him to get away with anything either.
https://dia.org/sites/default/files/styles/responsive_event_main_976_x_auto_/public/2024-01/webcabin.jpg.webp?itok=-Mi-O2Ub
MGM took a calculated risk bringing this Broadway musical to the screen at a time where blacks in the movies were limited to playing chauffeurs and maids, The film is based on a musical that premiered on Broadway in 1941 and ran for an unimpressive 156 performances, which is not surprising. What was surprising is that MGM and director Vincente Minnelli saw the genesis of a winning movie musical here.
https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2016/02/10/gettyimages-134441838-cbfb95b058220913ae397014519b5ab74b9f1746-s800-c85.jpg
Yes, the possible hesitance of the studio is up there on the screen, evidenced in the limited budget, which included filming in black and white, but the budget does nothing to cover up the energy, exuberance, and humor that jumps off the screen at the viewer and envelops them in the fun of this musical fantasy. It was no accident that the composers of The Wizard of Oz were responsible for a lot of the music here. I loved that actors were used in multiple roles just as the leads were in The Wizard of Oz.
https://rowereviews.weebly.com/uploads/1/2/3/2/12321416/2633433_orig.jpg
Harold Arlen, EY Harburg, Duke Ellington, and Vernon Duke are among the contributors to the score, including the title tune ""Taking a Chance on Love", "Life is Full of Consequence", "Honey in the Honeycomb" and the Oscar-nominated "Happiness is a Thing Called Joe."
https://silverscreenings.files.wordpress.com/2016/12/cabin-in-theh-sky-1943.jpg?w=640
Ethel Waters is allowed to reprise her Broadway role as Petunia Jackson and lights up the screen in the process. Eddie "Rochester" Anderson is a laugh riot replacing Dooley Wilson as Joe and Lena Horne is a smoking hot Georgia Brown. There's also a brief appearance by Louie Armstrong as one of Lucifer's crew, billed as "The Trumpeter." With Vincente Minnelli and an uncredited Busby Berkeley behind the camera, this is an energetic musical romp for those looking for something a little different. 3.5

[Gideon58]

The Big Short
Adam McKay, who received dual Oscar nominations last year for directing and co-writing Vice, actually won an Oscar for co-writing the original screenplay for an ambitious and overblown docudrama called The Big Short, a pretentious and confusing look at the mortgage housing crisis of 2005, that eventually drowns in its own pretension and its consistent work at trying to be innovative film making.
https://resizing.flixster.com/-XZAfHZM39UwaGJIFWKAE8fS0ak=/v3/t/assets/p12157971_p_v13_al.jpg
The film attempts to construct a look at this major American financial disaster through three separate stories that eventually attempt a cohesion into a single story . We are first introduced to Dr. Michael Burry, a slightly nutty ex-physician who gave up medicine to become a hedge fund manager who works in a half empty office in shorts and bare feet. A banker named Jared Vennett, who also serves as the film's narrator, gets wind of Burry's mortgage scams and attempts to cash in on it,as does Mark Baum, an idealistic Morgan and Stanley executive whose business dealings have been severely affected by the recent suicide of his brother.
https://images.nrc.nl/1i4GvkIuj5vHHFmMe16Z8QiY17Q=/1280x/filters:no_upscale()/s3/static.nrc.nl/images/gn4/stripped/data35699876-d8f413.jpg
McKay is to be applauded for attempting to bring this very important story to the screen, I just wish that he and co-screenwriter Charles Randolph had constructed the screenplay with more of a straight face, because, on its own, what happens here was very difficult to understand and I have to confess that I had a very difficult time following everything that was going on here, and I think a lot of my problems with comprehension had to do with this Oscar winning screenplay, which never apologizes for its meandering confusion but tries to make up for it by interrupting the story with analogies that McKay and Randolph think will help the viewer understand more clearly what's going on. There's one point early on the story where a possibly confusing phrase is used and McKay decides that having it explained to us by Margot Robbie sitting in a bathtub sipping champagne will clarify it for us.
https://media.timeout.com/images/102991549/image.jpg
McKay's direction is far superior to the writing here, using what appears to be interesting forms of symbolism to help us understand the players involved here. I don't think it was a coincidence that Burry, Vennett, and Baum were all outfitted in really bad hairpieces, somehow symbolizing either their phony veneers or their stupidity at thinking they might be fooling someone. McKay also makes sure everything moves at a lightning pace, with a strong assist from film editor Hank Corwin, allowing the viewer no time to figure out what was going on or figure out what the analogies explaining what was going on meant. I did like the care McKay out into the finale, showing us that a lot of the people who did wrong in the course of the story got what was coming to them.
https://www.factmag.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/BaleBigShort-616x440.jpg
McKay assembled some solid actors to pull this story together. Ryan Gosling was electric as Vennett and Steve Carell made an explosive Mark Baum. Something about Christian Bale's performance just made me squirm though...I felt like he was playing the character as if he were high. There was also a very interesting turn by a seriously deglammed Brad Pitt as a former mortgage investor trying to keep his involvement in this mess very hush hush. This was a real hit and miss effort for me which would have been a lot more effective with a more straightforward screenplay. 3

[Gideon58]

Now You See Him, Now You Don't
Dexter Riley and the gang from fictional Medfield college return for another round of college hijinks in the 1972 Disney comedy Now You See Me Now You Don't, which is pretty much a retread of The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes with just enough tweaks to the story to fool the undiscriminating 12 year old.
https://i1.wp.com/manapop.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/MPW-48312.jpg
This time around, Dexter Riley (Kurt Rusell), with the aid of the same bolt of lightning that made him a computer brain in the first film, has come up with a liquid formula that makes anything it touches invisible and reverses itself with water. Dean Higgins (Joe Flynn) hopes that the formula will win the school a $50,000 science prize so that he can pay off the school's mortgage, which is now owned by gangster AJ Arno (Ceasar Romero), who plans on tearing the college down and turning it into a gambling empire.
https://parentpreviews.com/images/made/legacy-pics/now-you-see-him-now-you-dont_668_330_80_int_s_c1.jpg
Screenwriter Joseph McEveety's lazy screenplay doesn't put a lot of effort in making a distinct film from the first Dexter Riley comedy. As a matter of fact, this film is presented in some sort of alternate Disney universe where the first film didn't exist. AJ Arno is seen being released from jail at the beginning of this film and running straight into Dexter Riley and they act like they have never met before. On the other hand, the kids still have Dean Higgins' office bugged and even though he learns that it's bugged in this movie, he never finds the listening device.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMzhmYjc1NzktNzBkZS00ODE2LThlMWMtYzgyOWE3ZDkwZTFjXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjUyNDk2ODc@._V1_SY1000_CR0,0,17 61,1000_AL_.jpg
The whole idea of a liquid that makes you invisible but reverses by contact with water seemed kind of silly. What's the point of making yourself invisible if all someone has to do is throw a bucket of water on you to make you visible again? It seems to me that a formula for invisibility wouldn't have any real value unless the effects were more permanent and not as easily reversed, but millions of 12 year olds (myself included) didn't care about all that and, flocked to the theaters. And even for 1972, the special effects for making things look invisible were kind of cheesy. Can't believe the same movie studio that created all that cinema magic 8 years earlier in Mary Poppins, couldn't come up with more believable looking effects in this comedy.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYjM2OGQ5ZWQtYWExYi00YTMxLWJjZDItMWQ3YjQzMjMyYjlkXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjUyNDk2ODc@._V1_SY1000_CR0,0,17 61,1000_AL_.jpg
Russell still makes the quintessential 70's teen hero in Dexter Riley and Romero and Flynn are a lot of fun as AJ Arno and Dean Higgins, respectively. It was interesting that Richard Bakalyan reprised his role as Arno's stooge from the first film. His name in the first film was Chili but in this film, he became Cookie, not to mention young Ed Begley Jr, who was a student from another school in the first film, is featured here as a Medfield student. Other familiar faces pop up along the way, including the late Mike Evans, who found time while he was playing Lionel on All in the Family, to play one of Dexter's buddies here. I just wish everyone involved here had put a little more effort into making this film distinctly different from The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes. 2

[Gideon58]

Dumbo (2019)
Tim Burton lends his imaginative directorial eye to Disney's lavish, live action remake of Dumbo, that gives the 1941 animated story a darker and more straightforward story, but with Tim Burton in the director's chair,"darker", should come as no surprise.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/91/Dumbo_%282019_film%29.png/220px-Dumbo_%282019_film%29.png
In this version of the story, Dumbo is a baby elephant who is born with grossly over-sized ears which eventually reveal the ability for the elephant to fly, providing financial success for a struggling circus run by Max Medici (Danny DeVito), even though Dumbo is not happy about being separated from his mother. Just as Medici's circus begins to achieve success, they are bought out by a much bigger circus called Dreamland, run by a megalomaniac named V A Vandevere (Michael Keaton), who, of course, is only really interested in Dumbo and not the rest of the circus performers.
https://static.rogerebert.com/uploads/review/primary_image/reviews/dumbo-2019/hero_dumbo-image.jpg
Having never seen the original film, some quick research revealed that Dumbo is encouraged to be everything he can be by a mouse named Timothy, but that part of the story has been altered. In this film, Dumbo is trained and encouraged by a one-armed war veteran and former trick rider named Holt Farrier (Colin Farrell) who has returned from the war faced with the prospect of raising his two children alone, but put in charge of training Dumbo not only reinvigorates his own life, but his relationship with his two kids.
https://blogs.lcms.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Dumbo.jpg
Like he did with Sweeney Todd, Tim Burton has again done the impossible and mounted a story that, on the surface, seemed un-filmable. With the aid of a slightly long winded screenplay by Ehren Kruger (Arlington Road), Burton has taken what was a children's story and blown it up to adult size, filled with colorful yet believable characters and providing just enough exposition for those who loved the '41 film to except the adjustment and for those of us who didn't, enjoy meeting the first elephant who was at the center of a Disney animated film.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNmUyMWZhNDItNWEyZS00Y2RmLWFlN2QtYTVmY2QyMWMyOTNhXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjg2NjQwMDQ@._V1_.jpg
Burton is commended for the care and intricate detail involved in the presentation of this completely enchanting central character, This Dumbo, who I think is partially CGI enhanced, has the most beautifully expressive eyes I have ever seen on an animal character in a movie I wish I had seen in this movie when I had done my list of favorite non-human movie characters. We understand Dumbo and every emotion he's feeling, especially his disappointment at being separated from his mother. There's a heartbreaking moment where Dumbo is in the middle of his flying routine for a full house and he hears a car pull up. Mistaking the noise for his mother, he abandons the act and flies straight to the noise and the look on his face when he realized it wasn't Mama, was one of a few lump-in-the-throat moments in the movie for me. And the final scene actually had me fighting tears.
https://img.ecartelera.com/noticias/fotos/53100/53139/1.jpg
It was nice to see Burton reunite with his Beetlejuice star Michael Keaton, who provides a deliciously entertaining comic villain for the piece and Eva Green was an exotic leading lady, the trapeze artist and Vandevere's mistress. Burton's production values are nothing short of spectacular...cinematography, art direction, film editing, costumes, and yes, Danny Elfman provides the heart-pumping music. Disney and Burton land a solid bullseye here. 4

[Gideon58]

Missing
Atmospheric direction, an uncompromising, Oscar-winning screenplay, and a pair of breathtaking performances by the leads anchor a devastating 1982 docudrama called Missing that tells a disturbing story against an equally disturbing canvas that aggravates in the circles the story travels and kept this viewer's stomach tied in knots.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/518s0gqWLOL._SY445_.jpg
This story takes place during the military coup d'edat that took place in Chile in 1973 and how a young American journalist named Charlie Horman and his wife, Beth have found themselves in the middle of this revolution and how Charlie's investigation to what exactly might be the cause of this revolution that is leaving an unprecedented body count in its wake, might have led to Charlie's disappearance. Beth initiates a search for her husband but things don't really start happening until Charlie's father, Ed, flies from New York to Chile and connects with his daughter-in-law to find out exactly happened to his son.
https://miro.medium.com/v2/resize:fit:960/1*zycIGc8xTOb4-3LjWeqc2A.jpeg
The monster share of the success of this film must go to the legendary Costa-Gavras, who has not only co-wrote an effective recreation of real events that is equally as aggravating for the viewer as it is for Ed and Beth, who as they delve deeper into their search for Charlie, can't get a straight answer from anyone about what happened. I did find it interesting that for almost the entire running time, the theory that Charlie might be dead is never mentioned by anyone on either side of the investigation.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/BP717K/melanie-mayron-sissy-spacek-john-shea-missing-1982-BP717K.jpg
Costa-Gavras' direction is just as compelling as his screenplay. Not since The Killing Fields, have I seen a more disturbing and unsettling use of human carnage as a storytelling tool depicting the ugliness of what is going on here. There are bodies everywhere here and it seems so odd watching characters in the story step over bodies everywhere without a thought of it. The scene where Ed and Beth are brought to a large warehouse basement filled with dead bodies looking for Charlie is something that will be burned in my memory forever. And that scene in the football stadium filled with political refugees just stopped me cold. Another effective tool in establishing the atmosphere was the sound of gunshots punctuating just about every scene in the movie, sometimes deeply in the background, but no less chilling. A military truck providing gun fire while puling up right next to Ed and Beth's cab in one scene was another dramatic highlight of this disturbing story.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/X1WiQxDAeV4/maxresdefault.jpg
Jack Lemmon received his 8th and final Oscar nomination for his stunning performance as Ed Horman and he is beautifully complimented by Sissy Spacek, who received her thir nomination. I loved that the relationship between Ed and Beth was not at all what I was expecting. There is a viable tension between Ed and Beth from the first time they share the screen that brings a complexity to their mission that we really don't see coming. In the first scene, Ed implies that Beth is somehow responsible for what happened to Charlie which galvanizes the viewer to this story, wondering where it could go from here. This a bold and adult cinematic experience that foreshadows but never provides answers while riveting the viewer to the screen, demanding the same answers being sought onscreen. 4.5

[Gideon58]

The Out-of-Towners (1999)
Even the previously proven chemistry between the stars can't salvage the 1999 remake of The Out-of-Towners that works a little too hard at trying to bring something new to an old Neil Simon comedy.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/3/39/Outoftownersmp.jpg/220px-Outoftownersmp.jpg
The film first came to the screen in 1970, a discarded act from Simon's play Plaza Suite that starred Jack Lemmon and Sandy Dennis as a long-married couple from Ohio who fly to New York for Lemmon's job interview and having everything that can possibly go wrong for them go wrong for them. In this version, the couple is played by Steve Martin and Goldie Hawn and except for the names of the characters, the basic premise is the same this time.
https://robsmovievault.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/out-of-towners-470-75.jpg
Hawn and Martin first shared the screen seven years earlier in a somewhat entertaining comedy called Housesitter that went a long way on the chemistry between the actors, but even their chemistry can't save this dumb remake that starts off OK and just gets dumber and dumber with each scene. The main culprit being a screenplay by Marc Lawrence (Miss Congeniality) that completely disrespects and disregards Simon's unparalleled skill with comic dialogue and decides to substitute it with a lot of silly and unmotivated slapstick comedy. Lawrence has also decided to modernize the story by having Martin and Hawn's marriage suffer from empty nest syndrome and Martin being fired from his last job without telling his wife. These changes only made it more easy to notice that a 90 minute movie seemed twice that long. The 1970 film actually moved at a nice clip, but the pacing of this film is deadly.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMWQyYjM1MWYtZGRkMC00YzlmLTlmODAtMzk1YTRmY2FlNjFiXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyOTc5MDI5NjE@._V1_.jpg
Scenes of Goldie seducing a hotel guest for the key to his room, Martin climbing the sign outside of the hotel, trying to get his wife out of a ladies room in order to catch a train, and the pair having sex on the grounds outside of Tavern on the Green even seemed to be embarrassing to the stars. By the time we are subjected to Martin hallucinating in Central Park, we just want all this dumb stuff to stop. The only real laughs here come from John Cleese playing the snooty hotel concierge.
https://www.pluggedin.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/the-out-of-towners-1024x575.jpg
Steve Martin and Goldie Hawn are long proven commodities who work very hard at making this viable entertainment and they almost succeed, but Cleese easily steals their thunder. Cynthia Nixon has a cute cameo as a sex maniac and Goldie's real-life son, Oliver Hudson, does make a cameo at the beginning of the film as her onscreen son, but this one really tries viewer patience. What a shame. 2

[Gideon58]

Blue Sky
A bold, sex-on-legs performance by Jessica Lange that won her a second Oscar anchors a slightly messy melodrama called Blue Sky.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNTQ1NTA3MTU5Ml5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMzc3NDcyNA@@._V1_UY1200_CR85,0,630,1200_AL_.jpg
Lange gives a brassy and riveting performance as Carly Marshall, the wife of Major Hank Marshall (Tommy Lee Jones), a career army man who is involved in military nuclear testing. Marshall has recently been transferred to another base for the third time in recent history and a lot of it has to do with Carly. See, Carly suffers from bipolar personality, but it was the 1960's and no one knew what bipolar was back then. During her manic phases, Carly's already in-your-face sexuality goes into serious overdrive, throwing herself at anyone in pants, which simultaneous aggravates and fascinates Hank. There's a part of Hank that likes the fact that other men are drawn to his wife, but things reach a fever pitch when Carly gets too close to Hank's new commanding officer (the late Powers Boothe) and a tragic accident during a testing that puts Hank in some serious hot water.
http://i.dir.bg/kino/films/653/1880.jpg
This film was the final directorial assignment of Tony Richardson, who won two Oscars back in 1964 for producing and directing Tom Jones and shows that he hasn't forgotten how to mount more intimate dramas, His work here is more on par with some of his lesser known work like A Taste of Honey and The Hotel New Hampshire. He does do an admirable job of establishing the tightly knit military base atmosphere where there isn't a lot of privacy and conformity is assumed. Richardson establishes immediately that conformity is just not a word in Carly's vocabulary...watch her in that opening scene where she is half nude on the beach putting on a show for the soldiers in the helicopter or the disgust on her face as she's in the car on the way to their new base. This is the work of a gifted director working with a perfect marriage of actress and character.
https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w500_and_h282_face/mcFAhNqy9N2EkHAHcPOUfEEvomJ.jpg
And yes, Jessica Lange is really the show here. Second only to Meryl Streep as probably our greatest living actress, who breathes life into this endlessly mesmerizing central character who is part Marilyn Monroe, part Vivien Leigh, and part Elizabeth Taylor, creating a character of raw sexuality and bristling vulnerability that takes a rather ordinary story and makes it seem so much more special than it really is. It should be noted that this film had a troubled history as the final project at Orion Pictures. The film was shot in 1991, but because of the troubles at Orion, got shelved, It finally found life in theaters in 1994 and Lange was awarded her second Oscar, the first for Outstanding Lead Actress.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSVdKl88xzW3LAKaRb7eqoeYCtnZG3jbaFDh5e0SUvVMXgC36d0
Tommy Lee Jones is never blown off the screen by Lange, being everything that Hank needs to be for Carly...watching his progression of being fascinated by Carly to being disgusted by her was an acting class in itself. Love when he scoops her up in his arms off a dance floor and throws her into a pool. Powers Boothe manages to generate chemistry with Lange too and mentioned must also be made of future sexpot Amy Locane, playing Lange's older daughter. The story gets a little fuzzy at the middle of the second act and seems to forget about Carly's bipolar disorder, but Lange keeps this movie worth investing in. 3.5

[Gideon58]

The Glenn Miller Story
Universal Pictures went the MGM route with their glossy, big budget biopic The Glenn Miller Story, which featured James Stewart in what would become one of his most popular roles.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMzc1NGQ1NzQtY2I2ZS00NzE4LWI4ZDQtNWRiNmIyMzUwZmFmXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjI4MjA5MzA@._V1_.jpg
The film follows Glenn from his days as a struggling trombone player who had to get his instrument out of hock every couple of weeks to his first job with the Ben Pollack band, where Pollack wants to hire Glenn to play trombone, but Glenn hopes to persuade the bandleader to use some of his arrangements, because it's revealed here that though he was known as a trombone player, Miller's real passion was arranging because it was part of his pursuit of something he referred to as "the sound." Of course, Pollack hires Miller to do both and the rest is history. We are also witness to Miller's lightning fast courtship of a girl from Boulder, Colorado named Helen Burger (June Allyson).
http://emanuellevy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/the_glenn_miller_story_5_stewart.jpg
This 1954 musical valentine is lovely and nostalgic and is an entertaining trip down memory lane, but one should be reminded that this was a 1954 musical biopic and films of this genre at this time were not big on the facts, so if you're looking for a blow by blow account of the life of this legendary musician, this is probably not the place to look, but if you're looking for a warm and colorful romantic drama rich with some of the most wonderful music ever recorded, you've definitely come to the right place.
https://bradleybasement.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/the-glenn-miller-story1.png?w=625
The screenplay was co-written by Valentine Davies, who wrote the screenplay for Miracle on 34th Street and is a little on the corny side. The whole Glenn/Helen romance is definitely rushed. One minute Miller's in Boulder trying to revive a romance he abandoned two years ago and the next, he's on a pay phone demanding Helen give up her life in Boulder (including a fiancee) and come to New York and marry him. And since it's a movie, she actually does it.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/D1MTBP/die-glenn-miller-story-glenn-miller-story-james-stewart-june-allyson-D1MTBP.jpg
Director Anthony Mann has mounted this story with a loving hand, displaying special attention to Miller's glorious music. There's a scene where Miller is forced to re-write his arrangement for "Moonlight Serenade" and the look on his face when he finally hears "the sound" is an absolute joy. And who knew that his fateful phone call to Helen would eventually become one of Miller's biggest hits. I can't deny that I did get a little misty,just like Helen did, with his final arrangement of "Little Brown Jug."
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/BKD0KK/the-glenn-miller-story-1953-james-stewart-gms-001-BKD0KK.jpg
Despite all of this, the anchor for this movie is the exuberant and charismatic performance from James Stewart that lights up the screen. Never been a big fan of Stewart's work, but I must admit that I have never enjoyed him onscreen more and I've seen The Philadelphia Story, Vertigo, and Bell, Book, and Candle. June Allyson is a little sugary as the devoted Helen but I've come to expect Allyson to deliver the sugar and she works really well with Stewart. Harry Morgan, George Tobias, and Barton MacLane have supporting roles and because of the subject matter, we are also privy to cameos from Gene Krupa, Louis Armstrong, James Young, Marty Napoleon, and Frances Langford. It's a little corny, but richly entertaining. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Nothing Sacred
The same year that William Wellman won an Oscar for the screenplay for the original version of A Star is Born starring Fredric March, he and March also managed to put together a brilliant little comedy confection called Nothing Sacred, that not only spotlighted Wellman and March's talent but showcased the comedic gifts of the taken-from-us-much-too-soon Carole Lombard to maximum effect.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BM2I3NzViYzgtMzdjYS00NjNkLWJhYWQtMjZhZTY4MGNmY2ZmXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMzg1ODEwNQ@@._V1_.jpg
This zany comic romp finds March playing Wally Cook, a recently disgraced reporter for a New York newspaper called The Morning Star who learns of a woman living in a sleepy little town called Warsaw, Vermont named Hazel Flagg (Lombard) who has been diagnosed with radium poisoning and is going to die. Cook decides it would be great public relations to fly Hazel to New York and give her one last fling before the end on the newspaper's dime. After Wally arrives in Warsaw, Hazel learns from her doctor (Charles Winninger) that she is not going to die after all, but Hazel decides to pretend that she's still dying for a free trip to New York.
https://www.filminquiry.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Nothing-Sacred.jpg
Ben Hecht and James Street's deft screenplay has a delicious cynicism to it that was pretty sophisticated for the 1930's. It's rich with very clever dialogue and unfolds deliberately without being three hours long. Loved the way the townspeople of Warsaw treat Cook upon his arrival and close ranks to protect Hazel from him and how quickly Hazel formulates her plan to get a free trip to Manhattan. There seemed to be a scene from the story that should have been there that wasn't. Hazel's doctor accompanies her to New York and it seemed like there should have been a scene of Hazel having to convince the doctor to lie about her condition so she could make this plan work. That scene doesn't happen, but the doctor's culpability definitely comes into focus later in the story, so i was able to forgive.
https://backlots.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/carole.jpeg?w=300&h=225
Wellman's directorial hand is showcased as well...watch those opening moments after Wally arrives in Warsaw or that scene in the nightclub where Hazel's guilt is starting to overwhelm her as she is being introduced and the camera zooms in on several guests who are trying not to cry...Wellman mines major giggles through his camera.
http://www.silentfilmstillarchive.com/stills/nothing_sacred057.jpg
The real joy of the film though was the sparkling performances of Carole Lombard and Fredric March in the leads. My first exposure to Lombard was non-stop pleasure. Apparently, Lombard was one of those Hollywood rarities...a beautiful woman who was also really, really funny. This woman had more comic timing than she knew what to do with. There's never a second in the film where you don't see Hazel not only enjoying her New York adventure, but feeling guilt about it as well. This was my fourth Fredric March film and he continues to amaze me as one of the most talented and versatile actors of the classic period. Equally adept at comedy or drama, March offers a beautifully underplayed performance that was a perfect balance to Lombard's antics.
https://theblondeatthefilm.files.wordpress.com/2019/04/nothing-sacred-17.jpg
Pay attention and you'll catch cameos from Margaret Hamilton as a country store owner and from Hattie McDaniel, who two years later, would become the first African American to win an Oscar for playing Mammy in Gone with the Wind. This film was remade in 1955 as Living it Up, with Jerry Lewis in the Lombard role, Janet Leigh in the March role, and Dean Martin playing the doctor, but this movie was WAY funnier. 4

[Gideon58]

The Wrecking Crew (1968)
Dean Martin made his fourth and final film appearance as super spy Matt Helm in a campy 1968 adventure called The Wrecking Crew that was definitely the most enjoyable Matt Helm adventure since The Silencers.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/9/9b/TheWreckingCrew.jpg
In this film, Matt has been assigned to retrieve a billion dollars in gold that has been stolen by a millionaire/madman named Count Massimo Contini (Nigel Green) from a train in Copenhagen en route to London. The Count has a trio of deadly females (Elke Sommar, Nancy Kwan, Tina Louise) in his corner to help distract our hero and the British government has sent an agent named Freya Carlson (Sharon Tate) to help Matt, but she turns out to be a lot more trouble than help.
https://a.ltrbxd.com/resized/sm/upload/zt/8u/28/hx/zL3WDqWMaIq7w5QZGsG5a04Gyio-1200-1200-675-675-crop-000000.jpg?v=cde4dac6e8
I can't lie, this movie was a whole lot of fun, thanks to William McGiven's screenplay that was a lot simpler than the previous two Helm films and due to a serious shot of female star power. We get everything that we're accustomed to from a Matt Helm movie...a script with sexual double entendres, wall to wall females, outrageous set pieces, including a new secret weapon provided for Matt in the form of a bomb wrapped in a blank handkerchief that Matt referred to as "hankie pankies".
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/c0/97/8a/c0978a13df0bfeed36a53d9603e9a801.png
The real surprise and pleasure of this film was the performance by Sharon Tate as Agent Carlson, a role very similar to the role Stella Stevens played in The Silencers (they even made the character a redhead like Stevens' character). I overlooked the fact that Tate didn't even attempt an accent even though her character was supposed to be British, but Tate definitely understood her character and provided perfect comedy relief throughout, which included a prominent amount of camera time focused on Tate's well-shaped posterior.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Zs_H9Hxu0pE/hqdefault.jpg
Sommar, Kwan, and Louise were sizzling femme fatales, though Louise's attempt at an accent was laughable, she should have passed on that the way Tate did. Nigel Green was on the bland side as the Count and James Gregory was sorely missed as McDonald, but this was a lot more fun that I though it was going to be. It should be noted that after the final scene, an onscreen announcement of the next Matt Helm adventure was shown called The Ravagers, but that film was never to be. 3.5

[Gideon58]

The Insider
The screenplay could have used a little tightening, but 1999's The Insider is an ambitious, engrossing, and often ugly docudrama bringing an important story to the screen with great style, with the lion's share of credit going to a director working out of his comfort zone.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51Y28RGA5AL._SY445_.jpg
Al Pacino plays Lowell Bergman, a producer at the CBS new magazine 60 Minutes, who receives a box of documents from Big Tobacco but can't make heads or tails of it and is eventually referred to a former research chemist at Big Tobacco named Jeffrey Wigand (Russell Crowe), who has just been fired and warned about a confidentiality agreement he signed. Nonetheless, Wigand reveals to Bergman that Big Tobacco has been adding additional chemicals to nicotine in order to make it even more addictive than it already is. Bergman wants Wigand to do an interview with Mike Wallace (Christopher Plummer) but legally, Wigand can't do that until he goes to court regarding what Big Tobacco is doing and his actions at this point are beginning to methodically destroy Wigand's life.
https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/images/newsite/the-insider-6_600.jpg
Director and co-screenwriter Michael Mann has taken on subject matter that was and still is relevant today and the final result of what ends up onscreen here definitely has the air of a filmmaker who wanted to get this story right. There is a disclaimer at the end of the film stating that certain events in the film have been altered for dramatic effect, but is not specific. But when real names like Lowell Bergman, Mike Wallace, and Don Hewitt are involved, there's only so much altering of facts a filmmaker can do.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYzY5Njc0MjgtMDMxZS00NDg0LTljYTAtNzE1MDI0Yzk3YzJmXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjUwNzk3NDc@._V1_.jpg
Mann makes no bones about the alleged power and lack of conscience that Big Tobacco showed in protecting their very pampered asses and well-lined pockets. Watching the way they destroy Wigand's life is frightening...to think that protecting themselves was SO important that they felt justified in threatening Wigand's wife and children...this just sent a chill down my back. Another disclaimer stated that no one was ever charged or even arrested regarding the threats against the Wigand family. These people not only manage to destroy Wigand's life, they even poke holes in the credibility of a journalism giant like 60 Minutes.
http://www.remotecentral.com/dvd/insider-2.jpg
Mann's direction is undeniably stylish, allowing the camera to take us inside Jeffrey Wigand and vicariously experience his pain and anger. There is some great camera work too...I loved that shot inside the mailbox of the bullet that someone placed in Wigand's mailbox. Russell Crowe gave the finest performance of his career as Wigand that earned him an Oscar nomination and he should have won...a performance far superior to his muscle-flexing scenery chewing in Gladiator. Christopher Plummer made a completely credible Mike Wallace and I also loved Diane Venora as Wigand's wife. Production values are first rate, with special nods to cinematography and sound, Haven't seen all of his work, but for my money, Michael Mann's masterpiece. 4

[Gideon58]

Bernie (2011)
Richard Linklater, the creative force behind Dazed and Confused and Boyhood hits a squirm worthy bullseye with a bizarre black comedy from 2011 called Bernie, which is, incredibly, based on a real story that could only become a bizarre black comedy.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81O5Zb0ZnmL._AC_UF1000,1000_QL80_.jpg
Jack Black stars as Bernie Tiede, a sweet-natured funeral director who begins a friendship with wealthy Marjorie Nugent (Oscar winner Shirley MacLaine) after assisting in the burial of her husband. The friendship blossoms into a full-blown relationship where Mrs. Nugent gives Bernie complete access to her life, including her sizable bank account, but there's a price for her generosity. Mrs. Nugent soon becomes grasping and possessive of Bernie, to the point where his whole life revolves around her and finds that he has to free himself from her iron grip.
https://idrawonmywall.files.wordpress.com/2017/11/bernie-movie-2.jpg?w=656
Naturally, I was drawn to this film by the cast and especially the director because this seemed like really foreign territory for Linklater. Yes, Dazed and Confused was a comedy, but that comedy was told with a straight face. This story is told in the form of a documentary, sprinkled with cleverly written commentary from various townspeople that was so effective because the population of Carnage, Texas, the story's setting, seemed to be divided almost exactly down the middle regarding their feelings about what Bernie did. As a matter of fact, I was initially confused by the comic documentary set-up the film initiates because there was a sweet innocence to Bernie and Marjorie's relationship at first and foul play is the last thing we're expecting.
http://www.jonathanrosenbaum.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/jack-black-bernie-and-shirley-maclaine-marjorie.jpg
Linklater's screenplay with Skip Hollandsworth is a marvel in its presentation of this leading character. Bernie Tiede's character is very sweet, almost effeminate, to the point where a lot of the townspeople suspected he was gay. We are shocked when we learn what he's actually done, but the story also makes him sympathetic by having him spread Mrs. Nugent's money all over town doing all kinds of good for the community.
https://s.hdnux.com/photos/13/17/73/2948860/10/1920x0.jpg
Linklater's casting of Jack Black in the title role was a master stroke. The actor has never been better in what is a surprisingly complex role that even allowed Black to show off his musical talents. Matthew McConaughey, who Linklater directed in Dazed and Confused also scores as the local DA determined to bring Bernie down as does Richard Robicheaux as Lloyd, Mrs. Nugent's very nervous financial adviser. Linklater even gives a role to McConaughey's real-life mom. And if you have any doubt that this is a true story, there is a shot of Black at the end of the film chatting with the real Bernie, who is still behind bars. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Ma
Fans of the 1976 Brian DePalma classic Carrie will definitely have a head start with a nasty little 2019 psychological thriller called Ma, that takes a somewhat bumpy and squirm-worthy ride to a bloody finale that will leave the viewer emotionally spent.
https://www.aceshowbiz.com/images/still/preview/ma-poster02.jpg
Tate Taylor, who directed Octavia Spencer to a 2011 Best Supporting Actress Oscar in The Help places Spencer center stage this time playing Sue Ann, a lonely veterinary assistant who one day agrees to buy liquor for a group of teenagers and even invites them to party in their basement. The kids think they have hit pay dirt, finding a place where they can party anytime they want, but eventually things start happening with Sue Ann that make the kids think there is more going on than meets the eye. What they don't know is the kids are actually going to be collateral damage in a very elaborate plan of revenge for Sue Ann.
https://media.gq.com/photos/5cf01d61ba720517c8a43102/1:1/w_1296,h_1296,c_limit/ma-movie-review-gq.jpg
Tate Taylor brings a very deliberate pacing to Scotty Landes' muddy screenplay that creates initial confusion for the viewer, but as the flashbacks begin revealing what happened to Sue Ann when she was in high school, we understand where she is coming from, even though this plan of revenge is extremely elaborate and ends up involving a lot of innocent victims, including Sue Ann's own daughter, who didn't deserve anything that happened to her in this story.
https://compote.slate.com/images/4b6a6df1-895e-4b3b-a42d-97e39b97a2c4.jpeg?width=780&height=520&rect=1503x1002&offset=0x0
As always with most thrillers, there are little plot holes here and there that kept nagging at me. I couldn't figure out how Sue Ann was able to get all of the kids' cell numbers. not to mention their parents. Had trouble understanding Ma's eventual treatment of the kids since it was their parents who were the cause of most of her pain, but the kids' eventual hazing of Ma sealed their fates as well.
http://https://deadline.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/ma.jpg?w=699
As the story progressed, I kept seeing all kinds of parallels with Carrie,a film that Taylor and Landes obviously have some familiarity with, but they have taken the story of Carrie White and have told it from a different point of view. Suppose Carrie had lived to become a crazy spinster or cat lady and then decided to get revenge on Chris Harginson and Billy Nolan? That's what's happening here. Though Ma's revenge is more imaginative than Carrie White, more along the lines of torture...can't remember the last time I saw a movie character's lips literally sown shut.
https://variety.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/octavia-spencer-ma-2.jpg
Until this film, I have found Octavia Spencer to be rather one-note as an actress with a definite limit to the range of the characters she plays. She always seems to play the sassy black friend or sassy assistant, but Taylor definitely knew what Spencer was capable of and pulls a dazzling, full-bodied performance from her that makes it easy to forgive a lot of the film's problems. Pretty much limited to supporting roles before this, Spencer was finally given the opportunity to carry a film and she knocked it out of the park. She receives solid support from Luke Evans as Ben, Diana Silvers (who was also in this year's Glass) as Maggie, and Juliette Lewis as Maggie's mother. Oh, and that is the director playing the police officer. The story takes a little too long to come into focus, but when it does, it delivers and the finale is a dandy. 3.5

[Gideon58]

The Great Outdoors
The writer and director of Pretty in Pink reunited for a mostly forgettable slapstick comedy from 1988 called The Great Outdoors that really hasn't aged well, but does provide some believable character relationships, though the film isn't as roll-on-the-floor funny as I remembered, especially a lot of human VS bear interaction.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51CYW41BKDL._SY445_.jpg
The late John Candy plays Chet Ripley, who is excited about the family getaway he has planned with his family at the Canadian mountain cabin where he spent his honeymoon. Chet's plans for a blissful vacation come to crashing halt with the arrival of his obnoxious brother-in-law, Royal, played by Dan Aykroyd and his family, who show up at the cabin uninvited.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ6JA21Fpa1soX2SX_-nwj8z0QWiGw1Wy3ilA&s
With names like John Hughes behind the camera and John Candy and Aykroyd in front of it, one expects a comedy with non-stop laughs and plenty of physical comedy. There is plenty of physical comedy and there are sporadic laughs provided along the way, but not as many as one would expect given the film's pedigree. On the other hand, the film remains watchable thanks to some very realistic performances by the stars and by Stephanie Faracy and Annette Bening, who bring a richness to their roles as the guys' wives that really isn't in the screenplay.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/q_215iQ7KDs/hq720.jpg?sqp=-oaymwEhCK4FEIIDSFryq4qpAxMIARUAAAAAGAElAADIQj0AgKJD&rs=AOn4CLBpOIWAYzgg7aIvyuP6h0hHLgKXug
Another unexpected element of this comedy is the casting of the two leads. On the surface, the role of Chet seems more suited to Aykroyd and the role of Royal seems more like Candy. As the film progresses though, it seems that Hughes and director Howard Deutch did this on purpose because we don't expect Candy to play the straight man, but the surprise is that he does a superb job of it, playing a lot of what happens here with a pretty straight face and letting Aykroyd shine in the showier role and yet he never allows Aykroyd to blow him off the screen either. Candy shines in that scene where he scares the hell out of his family telling them the ghost story about the bear and during his triumphant consumption of a 96-ounce steak. Was also impressed with the argument between the four principles that concludes with Roman and family packing up to leave...a viable tension is created by the four actors that is quite effective.
https://jaredmobarak.com/wp-content/filmstills/greatoutdoors02.jpg
What I didn't buy is a lot of the slapstick involving the characters' various interactions with bears that just didn't ring true. I didn't believe for a minute that two bears would ride on top of Candy's car because of a Zagnut bar and there's no way the principals would have survived that bear attack in the finale IRL, which just got really silly, but the casting of Candy against type and Aykroyd investing in a pretty annoying character do sustain interest, if not big belly laughs. 3

[Gideon58]

Breakdown (1997)
Despite a couple of dangling plot points, 1997's Breakdown is a tidy little nail-biter that demands viewer attention thanks to a very durable hero, a very hissable villain, and an experienced creator of action films behind the camera.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNjQ5MThkYzMtOTAyMC00YWIxLTg1MWEtMGRiZmFiYWJjNTUyXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMDEwMjgxNg@@._V1_UY268_CR1,0,182 ,268_AL_.jpg
Kurt Russell and Kathleen Quinlan play Jeff and Amy, who are traveling across country from Massachusetts to California when, shortly after a brief stop at a gas station, their vehicle breaks down on the highway. A trucker (the late JT Walsh) happens by and offers to drive the wife to a nearby diner so that she can call a tow truck while Jeff stays with their vehicle. About half an hour later, Jeff is able to get the vehicle started and drives to the diner where no one claims to have seen his wife or the trucker. Jeff leaves the diner and spots the truck going the opposite direction and when he flags him down, the guy claims to have never seen Jeff before and has no idea where his wife is.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/D5R9Y9/kathleen-quinlan-kurt-russell-breakdown-1997-D5R9Y9.jpg
Director/screenwriter Jonathan Mostow does have experience mounting credible action films with later projects like U-571 and Terminator #: Rose of the Machines, but he was still cutting his teeth as a filmmaker with this project and his inexperience in setting up a suspense story comes through in both his writing and direction, which both do a little too much foreshadowing what the viewer is about to see. The way the thug played by MC Gainey approaches Russell at the gas station and the instantaneous and unjustified hostility of the bartender at the diner were dead giveaways as to what was going on here and if a little more subtlety had been employed with these scenes, suspense could have been sustained a lot longer than it was. Not to mention the one thing I really couldn't reconcile in my mind: After the trucker grabs and stashes Ann, why does he go right back out on the highway in order for Jeff to flag him down?
https://assets.mubicdn.net/images/film/40242/image-w1280.jpg?1674046070
If you can let this stuff slide, this story becomes a nightmarish journey for Jeff that actually has him questioning his sanity initially, but fortunately Mostow had the wisdom not to make Jeff a complete moron and he does catch on pretty quickly to what's going on, though he does play a little fast and loose with the kidnappers about that money, which was kind of a dangerous thing to do, which could have cost Ann her life? And that brings up another point....before they even demand the money, several attempts are made on Jeff's life including a deadly highway chase which ended with his vehicle in a river...how did they expect to get the money they wanted from him if he was dead?
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/BHJHPP/breakdown-1997-tcf-film-with-kurt-russell-in-car-boot-BHJHPP.jpg
Mostow does show an affinity for creating atmospheric suspense and he really puts the viewer on the bottom of that 18-wheeler with Jeff at the beginning of the final act and I was literally holding my breath during the final ten minutes. Russell is solid as Jeff and Walsh made a bone-chilling antagonist in this riveting cat and mouse thriller. It's an exciting little thriller as long as you don't think about it too much. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Bully (2001)
A lot of horrific crimes have occurred where the underlying cause was nothing but bad parenting...kids with too much time on their hands because their parents don' take enough time to find out what their kids are doing when they leave the house, This was the case with the 2006 docudrama Alpha Dog and is also the case with an ugly and senseless 2001 docudrama called Bully featuring a handful of solid performances that do make it worth a look.
https://resizing.flixster.com/nknO2hY9lrVosXz_HfqJQ8ssAm0=/206x305/v1.bTsxMTI5MjU5MTtqOzE4MjIwOzEyMDA7OTAwOzEyMDA
We are introduced to the twisted relationship of Marty (the late Brad Renfro) and Bobby (Nick Stahl), BFF's since childhood despite Bobby's constant physical and emotional abuse of Marty, not to mention actually pimping him out to gay men for sex, despite the fact that Bobby seems to be the one confused about his sexuality. Marty's new girlfriend, Lisa (Rachel Miner) and her friend Ali (Bijou Phillips) who has been raped by Bobby, are fed up with the guy and Lisa decides that the only solution is to murder Bobby. Rachel enlists the aid of a small circle of acquaintances, who don't even know Bobby, to do the deed but the consequences of their actions quickly manifest among these kids in varying ways.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/4hxbVQlrsLU/maxresdefault.jpg
Director Larry Clark (who also makes a cameo appearance) has mounted a sordid tale of sex, drugs, and murder based on a book by Jim Schutze and adapted into a screenplay by David McKenna that attempts to glamorize the appeal of a disgusting true life crime by surrounding it with a lot of gratuitous sex, nudity, and drug use. What this film is about takes too long to come into focus as we watch Bobby pimping Marty out in a gay strip club and a few scenes later, Marty has just met Lisa who becomes pregnant with his child.
https://s3.amazonaws.com/static.rogerebert.com/uploads/review/primary_image/reviews/bully-2001/EB20010720REVIEWS107200302AR.jpg
This Lisa character is really the story's most repellent character. Even though she denies it later, Lisa is the one who sets this whole murder plan in motion and even elicits help from people who don't even know Bobby, including a semi-professional hitman. When it comes time to do the deed, Lisa refuses to actually participate but wants credit for putting the whole plan together. On the other hand, she is the first one to become unraveled after the crime and works overtime at covering her own pampered ass.
https://p7.storage.canalblog.com/70/41/110219/6497646.jpg
Possibly the most disturbing aspect of this story was the willingness of some of these people to be complicit in the murder of a virtual stranger. Fortunately, the epilogue at the film's finale does reveal these kids got what they deserved, but it's a sadly arduous journey to get there. But in that final courtroom scene where the camera pans the faces of all the parents, we know who's really complicit here.
https://a.ltrbxd.com/resized/sm/upload/d6/8n/qu/e9/bully-1200-1200-675-675-crop-000000.jpg?k=694f907b48
There are some interesting performances though...Brad Renfro once again displays what a major talent he might have become if he hadn't been taken from us. The young Sean Penn quality he brings to Marty is quite powerful and Nick Stahl, who also appeared in the award winning In the Bedroom is an eye-opener as the degenerate Bobby. The film also features an early role for Daniel Franzese, who would make a name for himself later playing Damian in Mean Girls. it's extremely unpleasant and has no re-watch appeal but Renfro's performance alone make it worth a look. 3

[Gideon58]

Se7en
Director David Fincher has spent a lot of years behind the camera redefining the psychological thriller but I don't think he has ever done it to greater effect than in the 1995 instant classic Se7en, which took an, on the surface, simple story and made it appointment viewing through arresting visual images and strong performances.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BOTUwODM5MTctZjczMi00OTk4LTg3NWUtNmVhMTAzNTNjYjcyXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjU0OTQ0OTY@._V1_UY1200_CR69,0,6 30,1200_AL_.jpg
Morgan Freeman plays Somerset, a veteran NYC cop six days away from retirement, who is assigned a new partner in David Mills, played by Brad Pitt, and a completely baffling case involving a serial killer who is using the Seven Deadly Sins as the motivations behind the murders.
https://lwlies.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/seven-morgan-freeman-brad-pitt-1108x0-c-default.jpg
Andrew Kevin Walker's screenplay is definitely the strongest of his career, seamlessly blending the story of two very different cops learning how to co-exist with a relentlessly ugly story of murder by a genius who has appointed himself judge, jury, and executioner and never stops thinking, formulating, and re-formulating his plan, which re-defines words like elaborate and reprehensible.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/hImAmM5-Fpg/maxresdefault.jpg
What makes this movie work though is Fincher's Hitchcock-type approach to mounting this story, drowning it in so much dreary and depressing atmosphere it's very easy to become wrapped up in the ugliness of the story. It seems to be raining during most of the story and the midnight to dawn atmosphere that seems to be prevalent throughout the film even during the scenes that take place during the day. Aided by a superb production team, Fincher produces shocking images that are impossible for the viewer to erase from the mind....that ugly apartment building, that nasty apartment with the rotting body that we initially think is dead...there are no pretty pictures here but they're all memorable.
https://queervisualcultures2015.files.wordpress.com/2015/03/se7en-sevendeadlysins.jpg
Morgan Freeman's Somerset is elegance and intelligence personified, perfectly offset by Pitt's explosive hothead and Kevin Spacey's Charles Manson-like John Doe is perfection. Love the scene where he walks into the police station and turns himself in. A one of a kind motion picture experience from a one of a kind filmmaker. A master class in the art of suspense cinema. 4.5

[Gideon58]

I Am Richard Pryor
Richard Pryor was a gifted and tortured artist who enjoyed making people laugh, but it was more important to him that there was truth behind that laughter and that seems to be the dominant theme of a 2019 documentary called I Am Richard Pryor, which strips the artist bare, reveals things some of us never knew about the guy, and, of course, his monumental influence on comedy and comedians today.
https://target.scene7.com/is/image/Target/GUEST_78fdfebd-992a-4beb-b710-a5e08bd2b0df?wid=488&hei=488&fmt=pjpeg
Director and co-writer Jesse James Miller has mounted a lovingly detailed look at this extraordinary talent going back to his now well-documented childhood centered around his prostitute mother, pimp father, and his grandmother, the madam of a brothel who raised him. Unfortunately, Pryor knew that his path to commercial success had to go through white America and he knew they could not take his childhood unvarnished, and early clips of Pryor stand-up revealing him giving the audience a completely fabricated upbringing in order to get his foot in the door that Bill Cosby had already opened.
https://www.slashfilm.com/img/gallery/i-am-richard-pryor-documentary/intro-import.jpg
Ironically, it was when Pryor stopped whitewashing his past and embracing his blackness was he able to achieve the kind of attention he really wanted. Pryor is portrayed here as a man extremely devoted to his people and a more than willing spokesperson, whether it was a politically correct or not, evidenced by his participation in the documentary Wattsax.
https://thumbor.forbes.com/thumbor/960x0/https%3A%2F%2Fblogs-images.forbes.com%2Fandrewhusband%2Ffiles%2F2019%2F03%2Fi-am-richard-pryor-review-1200x798.jpg
Of course, it is also revealed how Pryor's anger and dissatisfaction with a lot of his career led to his drug addiction, a place that allowed him to temporarily forget about how unhappy he was. It's also revealed that between his upbringing in a brothel and his history with drugs, Pryor also had a lifelong fear of prison that he was clearly uncomfortable with, though it didn't stop him from getting high. We are shown an interview with Pryor on the set of Stir Crazy where he is clearly high. The hell he went through with his four episode variety show on NBC is also documented here. When he had the control, Pryor refused to censor himself, evidenced in a clip at a benefit for gay rights where his bashing of his audience actually results in his being booed. We also learn about the influence the first comedy concert film, Richard Pryor: Live in Concert and his album This *****'s Crazy changed the business of stand up comedy forever.
https://bgn2018media.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/27143731/Screen-Shot-2019-03-11-at-11.15.58-PM.png
Commentary is provided along the way by Tiffany Haddish, Howie Mandel, Jimmie Walker, Lily Tomlin (who when given her 1st television special, insisted upon Pryor as a guest), Mike Epps, director Michael Schultz, who directed Pryor in Car Wash and Which Way is Up?, director Henry Jaglom, who talks about the time he and Pryor did acid together, and of course, the one person who probably knew Pryor better than anyone, second wife Jennifer Lee, who probably provided more insight into the man than anyone else here. Her frank discussion of his drug use and his womanizing is often quite moving. She is also at the center of the film's poignant finale, where we get to witness Jennifer spread Pryor's ashes on the Hawaiian island of Hana, one of Pryor's favorite places. Nothing groundbreaking in terms of storytelling technique, but a respectful and informative look at a show business legend taken from us much too soon. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Easy Rider
The recent passing of Peter Fonda motivated me to finally sit down and watch 1969's Easy Rider, the instant classic that is still a riveting cinematic time capsule that spoke to an entire new generation of filmgoers and filmmakers and this voice was not happy.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/3/32/EasyRider.jpg/220px-EasyRider.jpg
Fonda plays Wyatt and Dennis Hopper plays Billy, a pair of second rate drug dealers who have just finished a huge transaction in California. They invest part of their earnings in a pair of expensive motorcycles and stick the rest of the cash in the gas tanks of one of the bikes and begin a cross country odyssey to New Orleans before eventually retiring in Florida and their adventures along the way, including a respite in a convent, a chance encounter with an alcoholic lawyer, and some bigoted encounters that provide serious surprises.
https://images.mubicdn.net/images/film/21439/cache-33494-1546815613/image-w1280.jpg
Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda were the creative forces behind this bold and unflinching anti-establishment that went places films hadn't gone before. This movie takes an inside look at sub-cultures that had been previously hidden in the cinematic closet. This is the first film that I recall having a commune as one of its settings and though bigotry had been dealt with, it was mostly about black and white. We see these guys get hassled for no other reason than having long hair. That scene in the restaurant where the male patrons are all trying to figure out how to mess with them while the teenage female patrons are just dazzled by them, was rife with a tension I haven't experienced in quite awhile. And I will say that the finale bumped my rating up half a bag of popcorn. This is also the first mainstream film which featured characters smoking marijuana.
https://cdn.britannica.com/87/90587-050-E56FF6E5/Peter-Fonda-Dennis-Hopper-Easy-Rider.jpg
Hopper, Fonda, and Terry Southern's Oscar-nominated screenplay is fresh and uncompromising, going a lot of places we don't expect it to. Hopper's directorial debut is probably one of the best directorial debuts I've ever seen, a breathtaking postcard rich with arresting visuals, with a strong assist from cinematographer Lazlo Kovacs that puts the viewer right on the back of those bikes and in the center of this story. Hopper doesn't shy away from the statement he wants to make as a filmmaker here.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/BP3C8T/jack-nicholson-peter-fonda-easy-rider-1969-BP3C8T.jpg
Just like the screenwriter and the director, actor Hopper hits a home run and Fonda is properly laid back as Wyatt, but, needless to say, acting honors go to Jack Nicholson, who completely energizes the middle section of the film with his drunken George Hansen, a performance that earned the actor his first Oscar nomination. Also enjoyed Karen Black and future one-hit wonder Toni Basil ("Oh Mickey") as a pair of pathetic hookers. And if you look closely, you might notice Fonda's daughter, Bridget, as one of the kids in the commune. Kudos as well to a superb song score that perfectly frames this story. A classic that lived u to its reputation. RIP, Mr. Fonda and Mr. Hopper. 4

[Gideon58]

The Front
One of the few occasions where Woody Allen stepped in front of the camera as an actor only was as the star of a meaty drama from 1976 called The Front that was an uncompromising look at the power behind the Hollywood Blacklisting of the 1950's and its still felt effects on the careers and lives of those involved.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjFkYjU4MDgtNWQ1NS00OWRhLWJlYWItMWMxNGQ3MmJmOTlmXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTMxMTY0OTQ@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182 ,268_AL_.jpg
Woody plays Howard Prince, a cashier who agrees to put his name on a television script written by an old friend of his named Alfred Miller (Michael Murphy) who is no longer able work because he's been blacklisted. Howard finds the perks of this ruse appealing and starts fronting for two other blacklisted writers as well. Howard really has no political views, but between his budding romance with an editor on the television show (Andrea Marcovicci) and the firing of the show's star, Hecky Brown (Zero Mostel) because of his alleged communist past, Howard comes to realizes he can longer be silent and has to take some sort of stand regarding this witchhunt.
https://crackedrearviewer.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/tf2.png
It should come as no surprise that the often stinging screenplay for this story comes from Walter Bernstein, a formerly blacklisted writer who wrote the screenplays for films like Semi-Tough, Yanks, Fail Safe, and The Molly Maguires, is quite telling in its depiction of the often unseen power of the HUAC and their unshaken belief that communism was poisoning Hollywood. It seems the HUAC felt that if they could get a handle on communism in Hollywood, they could keep it out of the rest of the country. It wasn't only the power of this committee that was so frightening, but their approach to what they were doing. People's lives were being monitored and examined 24/7 and they had no idea it was happening.
https://www.3aw.com.au/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2017/05/httpwww.3aw.com_.aucontentdamimagesgmxe8y.png?resize=600%2C349
Bernstein's screenplay has been put in the more than capable hands of Martin Ritt, a director of strength and control who this reviewer has always found very detail-oriented as an actor. Ritt has never been known for making an audience work too hard, while always treating the story with the respect it deserves. The opening shots of 1950's pop culture underlined by Frank Sinatra singing "Young at Heart" beautifully set the mood for the story we were about to see and was an effective reminder of what a socially and politically turbulent period the 1950's was.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRQqzLM-sY-IEBdgIcA4b0AVZOWE6VbT6fcjf4HDwIAMQpLdh6f
Ritt also scored with a couple of risky casting moves that really paid off. This is one of the few times Woody Allen appeared in a film that he didn't also write and direct, and if the truth be told, he delivers one of his strongest performances as the naive schnook who has grasp of the gravity of what's going on. Zero Mostel also delivers a master acting class the hyperactive clown Hecky Brown, a performance that should have earned him an Oscar nomination. Mostel was an actor known mostly for his work in the theater, but whenever he was allowed to hit the big screen, he always delivered and this film is no exception. Despite an ending that panders to the viewer too much, it's the work of Ritt, Bernstein, Allen, and Mostel that keep this one on sizzle after all these years. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Dave Chappelle: Sticks and Stones
I guess even Netflix likes to play with fire a little as they actually dared to lure one of the most angry comic voices since Richard Pryor back to the microphone with an evening of edgy and challenging humor called Dave Chappelle: Sticks and Stones.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BOWQ2NDZhNGMtOWMwNS00ZWJhLTk2ZGEtY2VkOTY3ZTljNDQ2XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTkxNjUyNQ@@._V1_.jpg
Any fans of this comic knows that an evening with Chappelle is never going to be an average evening of stand-up comedy. Most comparable specials begin with the star being introduced and five minutes of the video is wasted watching the audience applaud and the star soak up the love, but no such nonsense here. The show, filmed live from Atlanta, beings with the camera at the top of the venue movimg downwards while we hear our star reinterpreting the lyrics to the Prince record "1999" and all of a sudden, the star is onstage and we're off.
https://www.hollywoodintoto.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/dave-Chappelle_netflix-woke-jokes-1.jpg
Chappelle takes on several topics, but there is nothing spontaneous nor apologetic about it. Chappelle has never been a guy to shy away from his opinions and this evening was no exception. His pointed observations about the recent Michael Jackson documentary (also reviewed in this thread) did put the audience on his side without sugarcoating the issue at hand, concluding with an almost shocking, but hysterical comment about Macauley Culkin that had me on the floor. He also brought a surprising amount of humor to the subject of school shootings and the drills that children have to take now because of them.
https://www.pajiba.com/assets_c/2019/09/Dave-Chappelle-Sticks-and-Stones-Netflix-thumb-700xauto-215716.png
His tirade on drugs was a little more detailed than most comics get on this subject, comparing the demographics involved in the crack epidemic of the 1980's and the opioid crisis of today. I loved that he described heroine as a drug for "poor white people." Chappelle also gains the support of the venue with his observations on abortion. There was also an allegedly unscripted and hilarious moment where a cell phone went off in the middle of the show and Dave's handling of it was perfect. His story about a meeting with the Standards and Practices lady from The Chapelle Show also garnered major laughs.
https://media.vanityfair.com/photos/5d654a6cb5890000082acd57/master/w_2560%2Cc_limit/Chapelle-3__credit-Lester-Cohen%2520(1).jpg
I've complained in other reviews about standups who laugh at themselves and I have to admit that Chappelle does a lot of that here, but it doesn't really bother me with him because his setup of a story is often so deliberate and well-structured that he actually earns the laugh, which he does justify to an extent by running to the back of the stage when he does it. He's little older and a little heavier, but the darkness and anger of his humor is still there, something even Netflix couldn't mess with. 4

[John-Connor]

hysterical comment about Macauley Culkin that had me on the floor.
:yup::rotfl:

[Gideon58]

Loverboy
A couple of decades before he became an official star playing Dr. Derek Shepherd on Grey's Anatomy, Patrick Dempsey made the most of an opportunity to carry a surprisingly smart and funny teen comedy from 1989 called Loverboy, which also benefits from some effective directorial touches and a cast full of familiar faces.
https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/1416/8662/products/Loverboy_1989_original_film_art_2000x.jpg?v=1551785050
Dempsey plays Randy, a college dropout who gets a job as a pizza delivery guy who delivers a pizza to a beautiful wealthy businesswoman (Barbara Carrera) who orders a pizza to get him into bed, pays him for his services, and is never seen again. The woman does, however, start referring all of her beautiful, wealthy, and lonely friends to Randy by telling them to order a pizza with extra anchovies. Before you can say "gigolo", Randy is servicing women all over Beverly Hills and getting $200 a pop for it.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BN2RmNjMwNGYtZWEwYy00MTJkLTgyMzQtNWI3NTYyMzkyNjdmXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMDAyMTY3Nw@@._V1_.jpg
The story has an extra layer, provided mostly by his parents. Due to a misunderstanding, Randy's dad (Robert Ginty) thinks his son is gay and his mom (Kate Jackson) is convinced that her husband is cheating on her so a friend of hers (Kirstie Alley) recommends that she order a pizza with extra anchovies.
https://images.justwatch.com/backdrop/284395/s1440/loverboy-1989
This movie is a lot of fun as long as the viewer understands from jump that this movie is a complete fantasy and that what happens to Randy in this movie would NEVER happen in real life. Robin Schiff's screenplay has just enough meat to it that it doesn't become quite as complicated as one might think, even if it is a little overprotective of our young hero, who actually gets away with what he's doing for so long that he actually comes a mere $200 away from earning the $9000 he needs to return to college. Schiff has provided a really likable character in Randy and we are actually pleased when he finds his "special purpose" and equally scared from him when things begin to unravel for him.
https://y.yarn.co/048b2ee9-d761-4bc4-9aa6-ccd3a442422b_screenshot.jpg
Director Joan Micklin Silver provides the story with a lot of effective camera work and elaborate physical comedy that serve the story. There are some subtle touches to the story that can only be the brainchild of Silver. I love in the middle of the story when Randy gets busy, Silver takes a moment to take us back to the pizza parlor where five or six huge boxes of anchovies are being delivered.
https://canvas.tubitv.com/opts/HEnGeoPM6KEGVw==/0398d0cb-8798-402f-b033-46352c9c8a99/CIAPELgIOgUxLjEuMg==
Patrick Dempsey is utterly charming in the title role and proves to have an affinity for physical comedy that is Jerry Lewis-level, not to mention strongly hinting at the sex appeal that would later make him a major movie and TV heartthrob. Ginty and Jackson are a lot of fun as his parents and a lot of other familiar faces pop up along the way including Carrie Fisher, Kim Miroyi, Dylan Walsh, Nancy Valen, Robert Picardo, and Vic Tayback. There is also an appearance by a young man named Rob Camilletti, who many years later would get his 15 minutes as a bagel shop employee who became a boy toy for Cher. It's not Merchant/Ivory but it was a lot more entertaining than I thought it was going to be. 3.5

[Citizen Rules]

Loverboy
rating_3_5 I watched that one too, thanks to a reconmedation here at MoFo. I reviewed it and gave a similar rating. It was a fun movie and I really liked seeing Carrie Fisher. She was so much more than just Princess Leia in Star Wars.

[Gideon58]

Carrie Fisher was terrific in this movie.

[Gideon58]

The Watch
The creative force behind the hysterically funny Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping was not nearly as successful with a silly and improbable comedy from 2012 called The Watch that never really finds its footing as the kind of movie it wants to be.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/6/6d/The_watch_movie_poster.jpg/220px-The_watch_movie_poster.jpg
Set in a fictional town called Glenview, Ohio, a security guard at the local Costco is brutally murdered and Evan (Ben Stiller), the Costco manager, decides to form a neighborhood watch so that he can find out what happened to his security guard. Unfortunately, only three guys show up for the first meeting: Bob (Vince Vaughn) is only interested in participating as an excuse to get out of the house; Franklin (Jonah Hill) is a bitter gun nut who was rejected by the local police department and wants some outlet for his tendencies for violence; Jamarcus (Richard Ayoade) is a recent divorcee who thinks being part of the watch will help him get laid. It's not long before the watch discovers that the security guard was murdered by an alien and that there are more.
https://www.myfilmviews.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/thewatch21.jpg
Director Akiva Schaffer is really only one of the culprits here...Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, who wrote Superbad also wrote the screenplay for this confusing movie comedy that really doesn't know what it really wants to accomplish. Like a lot of Rogen's work, a reasonable premise is set up here and the idea of neighborhood schnooks forming a neighborhood watch is a premise that has legs, but the legs really were not a science fiction adventure including aliens of varying skills and powers who are not only apparently hiding in the basement of Costco but have found hosts among the citizens of Glenview. And why would aliens planning to take over the world start with Glenview, Ohio?
https://static01.nyt.com/images/2012/07/27/arts/27WATCH_SPAN/WATCH-jumbo.jpg
If this story had been presented as a straight up comedy about a neighborhood watch doing a genuine investigation into the death of this security guard, that might have worked. If the story had been mounted in the form of a Mel Brooks or Zucker Brothers type satire of movies like Alien or Predator, that might have worked too. Unfortunately, Rogen and Goldberg attempt to meld two very different kind of movies together and it never really gels as a singular movie experience. The whole subplot revolving around Evan's fertility just came off as filler to expand the running time and really had nothing to do with the story at hand, such as it was.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/SSJ62_lHBoA/hqdefault.jpg
Stiller offers another of his uptight everymen who wasn't that much different than a half dozen other characters he's played and Vaughn just grates on the nerve as the guy who never takes what's going on seriously until he has to. Jonah Hill does provide some genuine laughs as the intense Franklin as does Will Forte as an obnoxious cop, but this is really only for hardcore fans of the stars. 1.5

[Gideon58]

Ironweed
Ironweed is an intense and atmospheric look at alcoholism, homelessness, and loneliness that goes on a lot longer than it needs to, but is worth a look thanks to the extraordinary, Oscar-nominated performances by Jack Nicholson and Meryl Streep.
https://resizing.flixster.com/g14-xcQF4d9qklJLxn6WYtjKRe8=/206x305/v1.bTsxMTIxODE4MDtqOzE4MjE5OzEyMDA7MTAzMzsxMzc3
It's Halloween Night in 1938 Albany, New York where we meet Francis (Nicholson) who has returned to his hometown for the first time in years, reuniting with his best friend Rudy (Tom Waits) and his best girl Helen (Meryl Streep). As we watch the reunion of these homeless comrades, we do learn that Rudy is dying from cancer, that Helen was once a professional singer and that Francis was once a major league baseball player. The story is an up close look at how these three people choose and don't choose to deal with the demons that have haunted them by attempting to drown them in alcohol.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYzA1ZTczYjQtYzczYi00YzJjLTgzYTUtZGRmYzkyNTUyZDY4XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjUyNDk2ODc@._V1_.jpg
William Kennedy has crafted a period appropriate screenplay, based on his own novel, that takes an up-close look at the plight of the homeless and alcoholic that has a different look than we're accustomed to because it's set in the 1930's, when the homeless were referred to as "bums" and people were even more uncomfortable with them then than they are today. Like most homeless, we're never privy to what got them to that state, but we get a little insight into it here...Francis apparently was responsible for the death of his infant son, separating him from his family and forcing him deep into the bottle. The detail that goes into Francis' story probably had a lot to do with this film's severe over-length.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQcynK2Qka5hJXevvaaX35QmFRaO0qJ5Y4oBnWnA1LXA6KmZq8XWTMW1nXKdq0sf9AlYVI&usqp=CAU
Hector Babenco has provided very detail-oriented direction to this somewhat depressing tale, perhaps a little over-detailed as this film is really much longer than it needs to be, but aided by his production team. Babenco creates an atmosphere of deep pathos that pervades every scene. He drives home the desperation of people not knowing where their next meal was coming from or where they were going to sleep that night, but, for some reason, always seem to have a pint stuffed in their pocket. This might be one of the underlying reasons why people today are still a little reluctant to help the homeless because they really don't seem interested in helping themselves.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR8uiHpZ93ok1g2UM9374BcGf-srk3hlwoQdw&s
These people may not work too hard at helping themselves, but they once had goals and ambitions, sometimes manifested in fantasy here. I love the scene where Francis, Helen, and Rudy are in a bar and Helen is asked to sing a song for the patrons. Babenco and Kennedy give Helen a moment of triumph that is cheer-inducing and then jerk it right away from her, taking us right back to the often dank reality of this story, which includes an attack on the homeless near the film's climax that is comparable to the KKK attacking blacks in the deep south that is quite unsettling.
https://mojtv.hr/thumb.ashx?path=/images/3fd8f07b-f4fb-42c8-9ebf-de76d135b8ce.jpg&w=491&h=250
Nicholson's powerful and heartbreaking turn as Francis won him a sixth Lead Actor Oscar nomination and a fifth Lead Actress nomination for Streep, the only nominations the film received. They get solid support from Waits, Carroll Baker, Michael O'Keefe, and the intense Diane Venora, an actress who has been known to give me chills. Art direction, cinematography, and music deserve bouquets as well, but it is Nicholson and Streep that make this long and labored journey worth a shot. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Broadcast News
After winning twin Oscars for directing and writing Terms of Endearment, James L. Brooks followed up with the lavishly mounted Broadcast News, a long-winded, but fairly engaging romantic comedy that is rich with the colorful and offbeat dialogue we expect from Brooks, but it tries to encompass a little too much and goes on a little too long.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51EkZQdlmOL.jpg
The 1987 film is set in contemporary Washington DC where we meet a quirky, control freak news producer named Jane, played by Oscar winner Holly Hunter, who is not happy with the trend that television news is becoming more concerned with entertainment than information. Jane finds herself involved with two different men who represent both sides of the controversy: Tom (Oscar winner William Hurt) is a pretty boy reporter who has never really had to work very hard for everything he's achieved and when it comes down to it, is no Rhodes scholar. Aaron (Albert Brooks) is brilliant, talented, an encyclopedia of current events, and is Jane's best friend, who also happens to be madly in love with her.
https://macthemovieguy.files.wordpress.com/2017/02/broadcast-news.jpg?w=610
Basically what we have here is your basic movie romantic triangle, but with James L. Brooks in the driver's seat, we know right away there is going to be nothing basic about what happens. As expected, Brooks puts his own spin on these three classic characters that we've all seen a million times before, but the originality they are given here is quite refreshing. We fall in love with the Tom character right away because unlike most characters of his ilk, Tom is more than aware that he he has skated by on his looks, but has the passion to be better at his job. We love Aaron because even though he is the smartest character in the movie, we still feel bad for him because we know that he would probably trade his brilliance for Tom's looks in a minute, especially because they're luring Jane away from him.
https://s3.drafthouse.com/images/made/film_552w_broadcastnews_d_original_758_426_81_s.jpg
And as always with the apex of a romantic triangle, it turns out that Jane is not seeing either of these men for what they really are. She is in complete denial about the fact that she is drawn to Tom's looks and feigns ignorance regarding Aaron's feelings for her even though she is totally aware of how he feels and this is where the control freak in the character comes in, symbolized throughout the story with Jane giving directions to drivers every time she has to take a taxi. What I love that Brooks does with these characters is that he makes all three characters so likable that we're not sure if we really want to see this triangle resolve itself.
https://thegirlwhoknewtoomuch46.files.wordpress.com/2017/05/broadcast-news-movie-image.jpg?w=1200
I also love that Tom and Aaron are both big enough to admit when they need each other. Loved when Aaron got his first chance to anchor the weekend news and he asked Tom for advice in being on the air. The scene where Aaron does the weekend broadcast and can't stop sweating is fall on the floor funny. Unfortunately, the subplot about the 24 million dollar budget cut causing the firing of half the staff just slows the film down. When the story stays focused on our principals, it's a lot of fun.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DYvZQuBWsAEAUUS.jpg
The film received seven Oscar nominations including Best Picture and nominations for all three leads, with standout work from Brooks, brilliant in one of the few performances where he is being written and directed by someone else. There's also a glorified cameo by Jack Nicholson, who won an Oscar for Terms of Endearment, as the no-nonsense anchorman who stays above all the behind the scenes tension. It's not as good as Terms of Endearment, but Brooks does put his very special stamp on this story, giving it a freshness that doesn't quite sustain its length. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Undisputed
Rocky meets The Longest Yard in the 2002 sports drama Undisputed that suffers from a cliched and predictable screenplay, but is watchable thanks to its leading man, one of the most underrated actors in the business.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51X0Y7MGXAL._SY445_.jpg
Sweetwater State Penitentiary is a facility located in California's Mojave Desert that is so huge they actually have a boxing program, which has been dominated for the last decade by a lifer named Monroe Hutchen (Wesley Snipes) who is undefeated after 69 matches but his reign may come to an end when George "Iceman" Chambers (Ving Rhames), the current heavyweight boxing champion, is convicted of rape and sent to the same prison. Anyone who has ever seen a boxing movie or a prison movie can pretty much figure out what happens from there.
https://i1.wp.com/kungfukingdom.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Undisputed.jpg?fit=770%2C472&ssl=1
Walter Hill, the creative force behind films like 48 HRS and The Warriors, provides the viewer with a screenplay that is rich with every cliche we've ever seen from the genre and beats them into the ground in order to beef up what is really a paper thin story. A story that, by the way, doesn't present the American prison systems in a very flattering light. Chambers taunts Hutchen minutes after his arrival and, for some reason, Hutchen gets put in solitary. Why would the authorities put the world heavyweight boxing champion in general population anyway? There's also a lot of screentime devoted to establishing the fact that Chambers is guilty of the rape charge and that he is deep financial trouble, which precipitates the need for him accepting the climactic match, but it's so unnecessary. The man wouldn't be sent to such a large facility if he wasn't guilty.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Z1N_U1c-fUo/maxresdefault.jpg
I was also troubled that a lot of the events in the course of the story are orchestrated by an aging mafioso/inmate, beautifully played by the late Peter Falk. It was a little hard to swallow that this guy practically had the entire prison population under his thumb and not just the population. He actually arranges a meeting with the Warden, who has decided to forbid the big fight, and discreetly advises the guy that he better go on vacation for awhile. As for the climactic battle itself, it's well-staged and photographed, but honestly, after years of watching Rocky movies, it was hard to buy a boxing match where not a drop of blood was shed...I kid you not, no blood, not even a scratch above the eye that the corner man had to cut open.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTY0MTI3MTExNF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwMDU5OTc3._V1_.jpg
The best thing about this movie was the 100-megawatt, movie star performance from Ving Rhames as the Iceman. This guy has more screen charisma than he knows what to do with, which he had already proved in Pulp Fiction, but even with rather contrived material to work with, he still manages to light up the screen. Snipes is appropriately stone-faced as Hutchen and Falk, Michael Rooker, and Fisher Stevens also make the most of their screentime, but it is Ving Rhames that makes this one worth a look. Followed by a sequel.2.5

[Gideon58]

The Lost Weekend
1945's The Lost Weekend won 4 Oscars, including Best Picture, but this allegedly realistic look at the horrors of alcoholism has not aged well at all, rich with dated elements and scenes that are almost comical now.
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/MSDLOWE_EC001.jpg?w=1296
Don Birnham is a writer who lives in New York with his brother, Wick and is getting ready to go to the country for the weekend with Wick when his girlfriend, Helen drops by before an afternoon classic music concert to see if Don is OK for the weekend. We then learn that Don is a heavy drinker, but has been sober ten days. Sadly, it's not long before Don has talked Helen into going to the concert with Wick and found $10 that Wick left for the cleaning lady, which initiates the beginning of a four-day drinking spree for Don from which there is no rescue.
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_lost_weekend.jpg
Billy Wilder was the force behind this, at times, horrifying look at a deadly, incurable disease that probably frightened 1945 audiences out of their socks with its no-holds barred portrayal of what alcoholism can do to a person. In terms of intentions, this film hits a bullseye, driving home the dangers of drinking with a somewhat sledgehammer approach, but there's so much that goes on here that just looks silly in 2019.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/BP9XXA/phillip-terry-jane-wyman-ray-milland-the-lost-weekend-1945-BP9XXA.jpg
On the positive side, I like the way Wilder chose to begin the story in the middle of Don's addiction...he's been sober ten days and is brimming with confidence about it, but it drives home another message that sober time is no guarantee of continued sobriety. Watching Don in this movie, there is nothing in his actions that indicate the man has not been drinking except for the fact that the screenplay tells us so. He walks into bars and bartenders look terrified and don't want to serve him.
http://pop-verse.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/natsbar_thelostweekend-620x330.jpg
There's just way too much going on here that just doesn't fly in 2019. Stealing the women's purse at the restaurant would have landed him in jail today. So would that scene where Don just walks into a liquor store and just takes a bottle without paying for it. And trying to buy a drink by hocking his typewriter just looked stupid today, as did that almost laughable scene near the climax where he hallucinates seeing bats eat a rat in his apartment.
https://homemcr.org/app/uploads/2017/07/the-lost-weekend.jpg
Wilder won two Oscars for his direction and for his screenplay with Charles Brackett and Ray Milland's sincere work as Don won him the Lead Actor Oscar. Jane Wyman was lovely as his enabling girlfriend and Howard DeSilva was terrific as a not-so-sympathetic bartender. This was probably quite an eye opener in 1945 but it's definitely getting rusty around the edges. 3

[Gideon58]

Drowning Mona
2000's Drowning Mona is an underrated black comedy that provides solid entertainment from opening to closing credits, thanks primarily to a terrific ensemble cast, a few of whom are cast seriously against type.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/cf/Drowning_Mona.jpg
Set in one of those small New England towns where everybody knows everybody, the story opens with a woman named Mona Dearly (Bette Midler) getting into a car where we see the brakes fail and Mona drive the car off a mountain curb, into a river to her death. As word spreads of Mona's death, it is revealed that this woman is the town's most hated citizen and no one, including her husband Phil (William Fichtner) and son Jeff(Marcus Thomas), is terribly upset about her death. Other suspects on the canvas include Bobby (Casey Affleck), Jeff's business partner and Rona (Jamie Lee Curtis), the waitress with whom Phil is having an affair. Watching police Chief Rash (Danny DeVito) trying to piece together exactly what happened to Mona makes up the crux of this loopy little comedy.
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/plNgeu9caahZPeeNH6iwUrFqFgik98EujBO6ZeYNHA-ZIxiC861Ps7b_HdQl3XwAdio=w720-h405-rw
Peter Steinfeld's clever screenplay is set up around the murder of a town's most hated citizen, making just about everyone a suspect while simultaneously establishing the very close relationships between said suspects. With every scene, a new connection is established between the various suspects that we don't see coming which could be confusing. Of course, anyone paying close attention can figure out exactly how Mona's death came about but the fun is watching Chief Rash and the rest of these not-too-bright folk try to figure it out. We also get flashbacks of Mona's past encounters with the suspects in order to establish possible red herrings that provide a lot of laughs.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/SiwIgLE05jI/hqdefault.jpg
Director Nick Gomez keeps things moving at a nice clip, demanding viewer attention, and just when we think we've got it figured out, the third act throws another corpse into the mix negating a lot of what we think we've learned, but it is all resolved in a clever and economic fashion.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTM0MjAwMjY5OV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwOTgwODYyNA@@._V1_.jpg
The best thing about the film is the superb ensemble cast that Gomez has assembled for this whacked out romp, with standout work from Midler, Fichtner, Curtis, and Affleck. One surprise was Danny DeVito as the sheriff, playing the role with one of the straightest faces he has ever presented onscreen in order to let the other nutty characters shine. Also loved Paul Ben Victor and Paul Schulze as DeVito's dim-witted deputies. There are also a couple of small roles provided for future stars Will Farrell and Melissa McCarthy. A twisted comic romp that delivers laughs and surprises throughout. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Basic Instinct
Basic Instinct was one of the biggest box office smashes of 1992, though today it is probably best known for a single scene, the slick psycho-sexual thriller does have other things going for it like stylish direction and steamy chemistry between the stars.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51345BY7R9L._AC_SY445_.jpg
Michael Douglas plays a San Francisco police detective named Nick Curran who is assigned to the case along with his partner, Gus (George Dzundza) when a former rock star is murdered. The investigation immediately points our heroes in the direction of one Catherine Tramell (Sharon Stone), a sexually uninhibited crime novelist who has just written a book about a former rock star who is murdered. Curran is thrown when Catherine appears to know a lot about him that she would have no way knowing until it's revealed that she is modeling the lead character in her next book on Nick and has been doing research on him. The investigation draws these two people together, two people who are more alike than they care to admit, though trust becomes an issues as more bodies continue drop around them as the investigation deepens.
https://www.bfi.org.uk/sites/bfi.org.uk/files/styles/full/public/image/basic-instinct-1992-004-sharon-stone-interrogation.jpg?itok=McoFXwxw
Joe Eszterhaus, who also wrote Jagged Edge and Showgirls has constructed an overly complex screenplay that seems to be constantly trying to manipulate the viewer into believing things are going on that aren't going on, though I do like the seriously flawed character of Nick Curran...we learn that Nick has just been through an Internal Affairs investigation after shooting two suspects and even had an affair with the police psychologist (Jeanne Tripplehorn) in order to expedite the investigation. Eszterhauz also provides layers to Catherine Tranmell that complicate the story and fuel the mystery surrounding her characater, her bisexuality and her striking up friendships with killers in the name of research for her book.
https://people.com/thmb/P2fAFQ9-TpK-z3fYnNEZYbAJAh8=/1500x0/filters:no_upscale():max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(749x599:751x601)/basic-instinct-e957efdac61a46838adcafecf97a2c74.jpg
Where this film scores are director Paul Verhoeven's stylish directorial touches that he brings to the story, particularly an eye for the erotic that wasn't quite so effective in Showgirls, but it is everywhere here...the camera roaming the floors of the dance club and eventually leading to the restroom where Catherine is having sex and snorting cocaine or Douglas' heated sex scenes with both Tripplehorn and Stone, shot and edited for maximum effect. And as for the film's most famous scene...Stone in the interrogation room crossing and uncrossing her legs, seems to have been inserted for titillation purposes and really has nothing to do with the story. Ironically, it's the first thing people think about today when the film's title is brought up. The film has a little more to offer.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/9d/ac/a9/9daca9fdd99510325ab5f67d284ae860.jpg
Douglas completely invests in the complexities of Nick Curran and after a few other minor roles, Sharon Stone officially became a movie star with this blazing, sex-on-legs performance as Catherine Tramell. Jan De Bont's cinematography and Jerry Goldsmith's music also deserve mention, but it's the chemistry between Douglas and Stone that carry this one. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Love Affair (1994)
Warren Beatty struck gold back in 1978 when he remade Here Comes Mr. Jordan as Heaven Can Wait. Wish the same could be said about his lavish big budget remake of Love Affair, which is only carried so far by the chemistry of Mr and Mrs. Beatty.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/E5NHHN/love-affair-from-left-warren-beatty-annette-bening-katharine-hepburn-E5NHHN.jpg
Mike Gambril (Warren Beatty) is a sportscaster who is engaged to an Oprah-like media queen (Kate Capshaw) who meets Terry McKay (Annette Bening), a singer engaged to a wealthy businessman (Pierce Brosnan) on a flight to Sidney, but the plane has to make an emergency landing and Mike and Terry are put on an ocean liner where they have a whirlwind romance. They decide that after the boat docks, they will give themselves three months to extricate themselves from their current romantic entanglements and meet at the top of the Empire State Building; however, tragedy intervenes and one of them doesn't make the fateful meeting.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/G/01/digital/video/hero/Movies/1994/B004J0EW4C_LoveAffair_UXWB1._V391273507_SX1080_.jpg
This story first came to the screen in 1939 with Charles Boyer and Irene Dunne in the starring roles and was remade in 1957 as An Affair to Remember with Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr taking over the roles in what was probably the more famous version of the two, though Warren Beatty really missed the boat here as producer and co-screenwriter of this remake that went back to the original title and the 1939 screenplay by Leo McCarey and Donald Ogden Stewart. Unfortunately, Beatty and co-screenwriter Robert Towne seemed a little overly concerned with "updating" the story for the 1990's with a lot of unnecessary changes to the original story. The whole thing of Mike and Terry meeting on a plane that has to de-board and put everybody on a ship was just one of several reasons why this movie, with a running time under two hours, seemed more like four.
https://www.thesun.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/2578005.main_image.jpg?strip=all
Warren Beatty and Annette Bening prove that the chemistry they had previously displayed in Bugsy and actually developed into a real life marriage, was no fluke, but it just wasn't enough to keep this film engaging. There's a whole lot of screentime consisting of planes and ocean liners and the Empire State Building being shot from different angles that did nothing but pad the running time. Producer Beatty also continues to be very protective of actor Beatty, making sure the actor is shot in dark lighting and with those filters they used to use on Doris Day, in an attempt to cover up the fact that Beatty is aging, something Beatty has been denial about for a long time.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNjVkNjFlZmQtN2U5MC00ODk0LThlYTctY2ZlYjRlMzVkMGQyXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjUyNDk2ODc@._V1_.jpg
It was curious that Beatty gave up the director's chair for this project that he produced and co-wrote. Glenn Gordon Caron, a director mostly known for his work in television, but did direct the excellent Clean and Sober, employs flawless production values, which don't disguise the fact that this movie moves at snail's pace. The late Garry Shandling makes the most of his role as Beatty's agent and there is a classy cameo by the legendary Katharine Hepburn, in her final feature film role, but what this film comes down to is the chemistry between the stars, which is there, but it's just not enough. 2

[Gideon58]

Kevin Hart's Guide to Black History
Kevin Hart has a major misfire with the 2019 Netflix special Kevin Hart's Guide to Black History, a good idea on paper that definitely loses something in execution.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZGQ5Y2ZiNjQtNzM0YS00MGNkLWE2NDQtOGY4Yjc0YzIxNDVjXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMzcwMjcwNQ@@._V1_.jpg
This look at some of the unsung heroes in black history is framed around Hart trying to understand why his daughter is mistreating her little white friend. She explains that they were watching 12 Years a Slave and decides to take 200 years of oppression out on her little friend, which motivates Kevin to share stories of important black figures in history.
https://bckonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Hart.jpg
This was a good idea...it was interesting to see someone talk about black figures in history other than George Washington Carver. We are afforded looks at people like Matthew Henson, the first back explorer to set foot on the North Pole, Mae Jamison, the first female black astronaut. a civil war soldier named Robert Benson, and the legendary Josephine Baker, but these stories aren't afforded the respect they deserve. There is also a look at Dr. Vivian Thomas, whose story was already told in a respectful manner by HBO in Something the Lord Made
https://bckonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Netflix.jpg
In addition to the smirking and hip tone that Hart utilizes for the narration, portions of these stories are brought to life in the form of comic reenactments played by actors but said reenactments are so not funny. Maybe budget limitations were an issue, but these were pretty much unknown actors for the most part, who really didn't seem to get the humor in Evan Waite's screenplay. Waite's biggest credit prior to this was as a writer for The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt so maybe it might have helped if Hart had actually written this himself. Not to mention, Hart has enough juice in Hollywood now that he could have gotten some "A" list actors to participate in the reenactments.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNjA4NTZmODItYzE0Ny00MGFiLThmODEtNDk0NzA3Y2Y0OTA2XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjYwMzk2OTM@._V1_.jpg
It doesn't help that the young actors playing Hart's daughter and her little friend are beyond annoying, as is Lil Rel Howery, playing Hart's gambling pal. Even cameos by Tiffany Haddish and Weird Al Yankovick couldn't help this one. 1

[Gideon58]

Black Rain
From the producers of Fatal Attraction and the director of Gladiator, 1989's Black Rain is a by-the-numbers mob thriller that attempts originality by being set on foreign soil, unfortunately, the setting works against the film as much as it works for it.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYjZjZDU1OWItNjQ2YS00MGY4LWE0ODgtODlkMzU3ZjlmODkyXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTQxNzMzNDI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182 ,268_AL_.jpg
The film stars Michael Douglas as Detective Nick Conklin, another movie cop fresh off an internal affairs investigation who is at a bar one night with his partner, Charlie Vincent, played by Andy Garcia, where they witness a meeting between New York mobsters and members of the Yakuza (the Japanese Mafia), which results in two people being murdered in cold blood in front of dozens of witnesses. Conklin and Vincent nab the guy who did it who has been ordered back to Japan and our boys are assigned to accompany the guy. Upon arrival in Tokyo, a group of men claiming to be Japanese police take the prisoner off their hands, but it turns out they were imposters and dogged by a stuffed-shirt Japanese detective (Ken Takamura), Conklin and Vincent find themselves waist deep in the Yakuza and an elaborate counterfeiting operation.
http://static1.squarespace.com/static/59e512ddf43b55c29c71b996/59ece61c14fd83f0bbe30ee9/59ece6e814fd83f0bbe325af/1567187088786/blackrain.jpeg?format=1500w
Director Ridley Scott is to be applauded for the look of this film, which is dark and haunting, thanks to superb production values, but his work is overshadowed by a long-winded and often incomprehensible screenplay by Craig Bolitin and Warren Lewis that plunges the two main characters in the middle of a fish out of water mob story and often forgets that the story takes place in a foreign country. Approximately one third of the screenplay is not in English and there are no subtitles provided. Don't get me wrong, I hate reading at the movies and have never been keen on subtitles, but when most of the characters onscreen are not speaking English for the majority of the running time, attention begins to wane pretty quickly.
http://www.freakinawesomenetwork.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/br2.jpg
The film is beautifully photographed and mounted, with gorgeous Asian scenery, making Tokyo look like the most beautiful city in the world. The cinematography by future director Jan De Bont is first rate as are film editing, music, and the Oscar-nominated sound. Douglas is solid as Conklin and Andy Garcia is a lot of fun as Charlie, but the inability to understand Japanese really hindered my enjoyment of what was going on here. 2.5

[Gideon58]

8 Heads in a Duffel Bag
Once again, I judged a book by its cover and let myself be enticed into viewing a movie because I liked the title. Despite a brilliant performance by Oscar winner Joe Pesci, 1997's 8 Heads in a Duffel Bag is a big mess, even with a screenplay by the Oscar winning writer of Dead Poets Society.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMWQyOTZhYmUtZTE3NC00MTg5LWE3YzAtNjI0YmFlOWYwZGM1XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTQxNzMzNDI@._V1_.jpg
Pesci plays Tommy, mafia courier who has been assigned to deliver the heads of eight murdered men to a mob boss who paid $80,000 to have these guys killed. Tommy gets on a plane and is seated next to Charlie (Andy Comeau), a college student who is on his way to Mexico for a holiday with his girlfriend (Kristy Swanson) where he'll be meeting her parents (George Hamilton, Dyan Cannon) for the first time. Of course, Tommy and Charlie pick up each other's bags and before you know it, Charlie's girlfriend's mother is the first one to discover that Charlie has a duffel bag with eight heads in it.
http://www.imfdb.org/images/thumb/5/52/8heads-usp3.jpg/600px-8heads-usp3.jpg
Tom Schulman, who not only wrote Dead Poet's Society, but the hilarious What About Bob? is also in the director's chair for this one, and maybe that's one of the problems. Schulman is not someone known for effectively wearing multiple hats behind the scenes. The story starts off promisingly with Pesci driving everyone on the airplane crazy trying to protect his precious cargo, but when he realizes Charlie's not in Mexico, the only clue he has is the name of Charlie's college, where he makes a beeline and starts torturing Charlie's two roommates (David Spade, Todd Louiso) to make them spill where Charlie is. Now these scenes are quite funny, but the focus of the film starts to wane from Tommy and the roommates and goes back to Charlie and his family, where the story goes from funny to silly to stupid. I was hanging to a shred of interest until halfway through the third act when an over-the-top fantasy sequence came out of nowhere and made me want to check out permanently.
https://usercontent1.hubstatic.com/5506142_f520.jpg
Fortunately, Joe Pesci is always worth watching, offering one of his most subtle performances as the angry hitman, but Pesci doesn't have enough screentime in the story to keep viewer interest piqued. Andy Comeau, whose biggest credit prior to this was a supporting role on the SHOWTIME series Huff, works very hard at looking comfortable with all the physical comedy, but when you have to work this hard to look comfortable, maybe casting someone with a little more comic experience might have been the ticket. Spade and Louiso are very funny though. Swanson offers her accustomed unlikable screen persona and Cannon redefines the word "shrill" here. An hour and a half of my life I'll never get my back, Pesci earned this film half a bag of popcorn on its rating. 2.5

[Gideon58]

Solitary Man
Some clever and colorful writing and some really good acting help to make a 2009 character study called Solitary Man a lot better than it really is.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/71MbXKauK2L._SY445_.jpg
Ben Kalmen is an arrogant, youth-obsessed, unscrupulous businessman with a questionable moral barometer, who once made a fortune with his own automobile franchise and has pretty much lost everything and is now trying to start over; however, a health scare and signs of his past catching up with him are making that pretty much impossible.
https://dev.thewallpapers.org/zoom/27526/solitary-man-064.jpg
Screenwriter and co-director Brian Koppelman has created an effectively layered screenplay that simultaneously establishes the central character through backstory while providing consequences for a lot of the character's past behavior. Unfortunately, said consequences don't keep the character from making similar bad choices during the course of this story and there is no justification for a lot of Kalmen's behavior in this movie, but the character has an element of likability to him that has us hoping for his redemption and by the time the credits roll, it looks like redemption is possible, but we're not 100% sure.
https://garethrhodes.files.wordpress.com/2017/03/solitaryman_1024x768_wp2.jpg?w=640
This central character and the kind of guy he is gets established during the opening scene where he is greeted by his daughter and grandson and tells them they are not to call him "Daddy" or "Grandpa" in public. We also see him sleep with the daughter of the woman he's currently dating and one of his daughter's friends and not thinking twice about it. On the other hand, we see a lovely friendship with his ex-wife, who apparently accepted who Ben was years ago, divorced him, and came out of the relationship relatively unscathed.
https://cdn.shortpixel.ai/spai/q_glossy+ret_img+to_auto/www.slantmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/solitaryman.jpg
The primary selling point here is the charismatic movie star performance by Michael Douglas in the starring role, pulling out all the acting stops here in the kind of role that, 30 years ago, would have been played by Jack Nicholson. This character is a smart-ass know-it-all who loves to give bad advice to people and is unapologetic for a lot of really detestable behavior though we get the sense that he's never forgotten about the wrong he has done. There's this lovely moment where he's visiting his old college where buildings are now named after him, where he sits down on a campus bench and we see the memories of his wrong and regret sweep over his face. I think this was the first moment in the film where I actually started to like the character, a guy whose only positive attributes comes out during moments with his grandson.
https://static01.nyt.com/images/2010/05/21/movies/21soli-2/21soli-2-popup.jpg
The direction by Koppelman and David Levien is pretty unimaginative for a collaborative effort, but the cast is so good you almost don't notice. Douglas gets solid support from Susan Sarandon, Imogen Poots, Jenna Fischer, Danny DeVito, and Mary-Louise Parker as past and present collateral damage in the life of Ben Kalmen. Michael Penn's music also deserves a nod, perfectly framing this often squirm-worthy character study anchored by one of Michael Douglas' most interesting performances. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Come September
Some gorgeous Italian scenery, a surprisingly witty screenplay and a charming performance from Rock Hudson are the best things about Come September, a 1961 generation gap comedy that still provides a fair amount of laughs for a movie over 50 years old.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYWQyZGJkNTEtMjQwMi00N2ZiLWI4MWQtMTBiYWQ3ZjdhMGVhXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjEwMTA0NTc@._V1_UY1200_CR82,0,6 30,1200_AL_.jpg
Hudson plays Robert Talbott, a wealthy American businessman who owns an elegant Italian villa that he only visits once a month every September. As this story begins, Talbott has decided to make his annual visit two months earlier than usual and plans a reunion with an old girlfriend named Lisa (Gina Lollobrigida) who is about to marry someone else but agrees to meet Robert at the villa. Upon arrival at the villa, Talbott learns that his major domo (Walter Slezak) has been making a lot of money turning the villa into a hotel for the other eleven months of the year. Talbott orders his major domo to throw out the virginal teenage girls who are currently staying there until the arrival of a group of oversexed college boys arrive and set their eyes on the girls.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/72/d1/cc/72d1cc6415f0bfec37c66ef2b2819da2.jpg
Stanley Shapiro, who won an Oscar for his screenplay for Pillow Talk, has written a story that is an effective combination of a generation gap comedy and a battle of the sexes comedy, once again approaching the "will she or won't she" kind of comedy that Shapiro introduced in Pillow Talk, but this story has an extra layer with Hudson's character protecting the girls from exactly the kind of character that Hudson portrayed in Pillow Talk.
https://hollywoodontheitalianriviera.files.wordpress.com/2014/10/come-september-sml-villa-delle-palme-film-15.jpg
Though split screen images are utilized in only one scene here, this film presents the same kind of lighthearted romance , breezily directed by Robert Mulligan that provides a character for Hudson that is the polar opposite of Brad Allen, his character in Pillow Talk. I love when Talbott is just moments from kicking these girls to the curb, he all of a sudden becomes their protector and does whatever he can to make sure these girls stay pure until their wedding day.
http://www.2020-movie-reviews.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/come-september.jpg
Rock Hudson is completely enchanting in the title role, methodically endearing us to a character who comes off initially as a cad. Gina Lollobrigida brings her physical assets and a definite affinity for light comedy to her role and creates viable chemistry with Hudson. Bobby Darin and real life girlfriend Sandra Dee aren't nearly as interesting but they try hard. Slezak and Brenda De Banzie, playing the girls' chaperone, provide laughs. Future Oscar winner Joel Grey can also be glimpsed in a small role as one of Darrin's buddies. Fans of Pillow Talk will have a head start here. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Dial M For Murder
Even second tier Hitchcock is better than a lot of the crap being produced today, evidenced in the Master's 1954 film Dial M for Murder, which is unable to escape its stage origins, but Hitch's undeniable style and a winning cast do make it viable entertainment.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/48/Dial_M_For_Murder.jpg/220px-Dial_M_For_Murder.jpg
Ray Milland stars as Tony Wendice, a tennis pro disenchanted with his cheating wife, Margo (Grace Kelly) and has decided to get revenge by blackmailing an old college acquaintance named Lesgate (Anthony Dawson) into murdering Margo, offering him a portion of the money Tony would inherit from Margo's will. Lesgate agrees to the deed, but the plan doesn't go as planned and Lesgate ends up dead, but Wendice finds a way to even work this to his own advantage and keep his hands cleans...or so he thinks.
https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,h_826,w_1468,x_15,y_0/f_auto,q_auto,w_1100/v1554997225/shape/mentalfloss/dial_m_hed.jpg
This film is based on a play by Frederick Knott (Wait Until Dark) that opened on Broadway in 1952 and ran for 552 performances, with Dawson and John Williams as Inspector Hubbard playing the roles they were allowed to reprise in this screen version. It's pretty obvious that the story began onstage since most of the film plays on a single set, but Hitchcock is still able to create an atmosphere of tension here that is actually made more viable by the confines of the setting.
http://www.davidbordwell.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/Men-Key-2-500.jpg
The story is a little unsettling because as the story unfolds, it comes to light that this Tony Wendice character has been planning the murder of his wife for almost a year and has done so down to the last detail. I love the scene when he is laying out his plan to Lesgate while simultaneously setting the guy up for the crime so that he has no choice but to accept and he is walking around the room wiping fingerprints off everything. The scene is staged with such subtlety that it actually takes a minute to actually catch on to what Wendice is doing. Equally effective is the scene where Margo's lover, Mark (Robert Cummings) is methodically piecing together what happened to Tony and getting no confirmation, even though he's getting it all right. Love the fact that we never see Tony Wendice sweat...his plan doesn't go as planned but he never stops thinking.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/DaWi5EoJVGA/maxresdefault.jpg
Ray Milland brings a smarmy slickness to Tony Wendice that works and of course, Grace Kelly is a breathtaking damsel in distress and Robert Cummings offers one of his best performances as Mark Halliday. Though if the truth be told, John Wiliams steals the show reprising his Broadway role as Inspector Hubbard. His entrance into the story actually energizes the proceedings and gives the story real forward movement. Dimitri Tomkin's music is a perfect accompaniment to the story, a story that is lifted out of the ordinary by an extraordinary director. 3.5

[SeeingisBelieving]

Jerry Goldsmith's music also deserve mention

The music's great. Seems to be a real homage to earlier works in the genre.

[Gideon58]

Late Night
A glorious performance by Oscar winner Emma Thompson is the main reason to check out the 2019 comedy Late Night, which was actually written by Thompson's co-star, Mindy Kaling. who is definitely overshadowed by acting powerhouse Thompson.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNjZmOTEwMGEtOWVmMy00Njg4LWI1OGEtMGYwN2VmYzJiYzAzXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyODE1MjMyNzI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182 ,268_AL_.jpg
Thompson is cleverly cast as Katherine Newbury, the hard-as-nails hostess of a late night talk show who is being threatened with being replaced when she hires an aspiring female comic named Molly Patel (Kaling) to become the only female member of her writing staff who immediately antagonizes her co-workers and aggravates her new boss because she knows there's something wrong with the show that has been in a ratings slump for about a decade, but she really doesn't know what to do about it. Things get stickier for Newbury when it becomes public that she has had an affair with one of her writers (Hugh Dancy), who has also been flirting with Molly.
https://fullertonobserver.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/latenight.jpg
As star and screenwriter, Mindy Kaling was definitely looking for that breakout role that would make her a star; unfortunately, this isn't it. If the truth be told, Mindy Kaling is like a poor man's Will Smith, no matter what role she's playing, she's pretty much Mindy Kaling in everything she does and this movie is no exception. She brings nothing special to this role that she wrote herself, except possibly a fancier wardrobe than usual.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYzAzNDI3OTItMDZiMC00NGI4LWIwMDMtNDA2ZmY2NDYyZWJiXkEyXkFqcGdeQXRyYW5zY29kZS13b3JrZmxvdw@@._V1_UX4 77_CR0,0,477,268_AL_.jpg
Thompson, on the other hand, is another matter. The two time Oscar winner has proven to be one of the most powerful and versatile actresses in the business, unwilling to back down from any challenge as an actress. I was doubtful getting behind the idea of Thompson playing a female Johnny Carson, but Thompson really sinks her teeth into this role and makes this movie worth watching. She creates a character who is a little intimidating, a little sad, a little insensitive, and a whole lot of funny. Thompson has not made me laugh this hard since her Oscar acceptance speech for writing Sense and Sensibility. Watch that scene where she takes the stage at the cancer benefit...Thompson makes some really bold and edgy acting choices. She is fire and ice and her performance alone made this Amazon Pictures production worth sitting through.
https://cdn01.justjared.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/late-trailer/mindy-kaling-emma-thompson-late-night-trailer-05.jpg
Mention should also be made of the endlessly talented John Lithgow, who makes the most of his role as Katherine's invalid husband and Denis O'Hare as Katherine's producer. Also enjoyed Reid Scott and John Early as other writers on Katherine's staff, Ike Barinholtz as the standup scheduled to replace Katherine and Amy Ryan as the no nonsense network president. It's not the intended breakout intended for Mindy Kaling, but Thompson, Lithgow, and O'Hare provide solid entertainment value here. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Death to Smoochy
Imaginative direction by Danny DeVito and some terrific performances help to make the 2002 black comedy Death to Smoochy, two thirds of a really merciless look at the cutthroat world of children's television, but the story goes way off the rails during the final act and the genuine fun that precedes turns far-fetched and a little too black for this reviewer's taste.
https://resizing.flixster.com/mlL_sgDSr7Yj43ZO5wCCxt0P6wU=/206x305/v1.bTsxMTI5MTI2ODtqOzE4MjY1OzEyMDA7MTUzNjsyMDQ4
A children's TV host named Rainbow Randolph (the late Robin Williams) is fired from his show under a cloud of controversial disgrace and is replaced by Sherman Mopes (Edward Norton), playing a fuchsia-colored rhino named Smoochy discovered by one of the shows producers, Nora (Catherine Keener), giving weekly concerts in a methadone clinic. Sherman/Smoochy are a smash hit and it is not long before Sherman is made executive producer of the show, but the suits behind the show and other interested parties are becoming aggravated with Sherman, who has no interest in corporate games centered completely around money and go to some extreme lengths to get Sherman to tow the corporate line. Not to mention the fact that Rainbow Randolph is not taking his firing very well and is determined to get his job back at any cost.
https://lwlies.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/death-to-smoochy-1108x0-c-default.jpg
Screenwriter Adam Resnick, who has served as a writer on both SNL and
Late Night with David Letterman gives us a loopy and often entertaining look at the world of children's entertainment that starts off quiet brilliantly, almost in the form of a straight up satire in the style of Mel Brooks or the Zucker Brothers, but the story gets away from Resnick, creating screentime for unnecessary characters and taking the darkness of the story a little too far. I'm on board with just about everything that goes on during the first two acts of this story, but when characters start getting kidnapped, injured, and even murdered and in front of live children audiences, it was hard for this reviewer to stay invested in the proceedings through the closing credits. There was one character, a retarded former boxer named Spinner, played by Michael Rispoli, who was a complete and utter waste of screentime.
https://resizing.flixster.com/6l1WGDbmOuM5k-WI7DtirEWkqxM=/1100x618/v2/https://resizing.flixster.com/-XZAfHZM39UwaGJIFWKAE8fS0ak=/v3/t/assets/p29151_i_h10_ad.jpg
There is a manic quality to Danny DeVito's direction that really fits the story. His elaborate attention to detail in creating the world of children's television is quite ingratiating and his almost uncomfortable use of the close-up and the silhouette are effective as well. DeVito also scores in his onscreen role as Sherman's agent, Burke Bennett.
https://assets.mubicdn.net/images/film/27877/image-w1504_overlaid.jpg?1445873570
Robin Williams is exhausting, funny, and a little heartbreaking as Rainbow Randolph and Catherine Keener is again a natural and vivacious leading lady. Jon Stewart, Harvey Fierstein, and Vincent Schiavelli make the most of small supporting roles, but it is Edward Norton, whose dazzling performance as Sherman/Smoochy, anchors this film and makes the viewer care about what happens to him. Norton has rarely been so charming onscreen and he's the main reason that you'll want to stick this one out and see how it ends. 3.5

[Gideon58]

The Americanization of Emily
It is commonly believed that Julie Andrews made her film debut in the Disney musical Mary Poppins, but Andrews' actual film debut was in a 1964 black and white comedy drama called The Americanization of Emily, a surprisingly adult look at romance and standard views on the absurdity of war.
http://thenewbev.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/emily-1.jpg
James Garner, in one of the best performances of his career, lights up the screen as Charlie Madison, a naval officer who is living the high life in the navy, working as an attache for an important admiral (Melvyn Douglas). Charlie's work for the admiral primarily consists of making sure the admiral gets the very best food, wine, and women available days before D-Day in 1944. Charlie finds himself falling in love with a military driver named Emily Barnham (Andrews), who hates everything Charlie stands for, including the fact that he's American, but that doesn't change the fact that she loves the man. Things get sticky when Charlie's admiral suffers a nervous breakdown and assigns Charlie to a very dangerous overseas mission in the midst of his breakdown.
https://images2.static-bluray.com/reviews/9635_5.jpg
I'm pretty sure that it was no coincidence that this film was released in 1964, the same year that a more absurdist look at war called Dr. Strangelove was released. Oscar winner Paddy Chayefsky's screenplay for this film is crafted with a little more of a straight face than the Stanley Kubrick classic, but it still effectively examines the insanity of war and brings into question the mental capacities of those guys actually barking out the orders. This story was a lot different than I thought it was going to be. I had been under the impression that this film was about a wartime romance, but this film is more about life in the military during WWII and how opposing views on this conflict tears this couple apart.
https://images.static-bluray.com/reviews/9635_4.jpg
This was actually the first film that Julie Andrews made and it was on the strength of her work here and on the Broadway stage, that Walt Disney personally chose her to star in Mary Poppins. Serious buzz surrounded Mary Poppins during production and it was decided that the Disney film would be a stronger beginning to Andrews' film career, so even though she made this film first, Mary Poppins was released first and this film second a masterstroke that kicked off Andrews' incredible career.
https://s3.drafthouse.com/images/made/a_the_americanization_of_emily_julie_anders_dvd_review_pdvd_003_756_426_81_s.jpg
If the truth be told, as charming as she is here, Andrews' role is basically a supporting one and somewhat thankless at that, this is the guys' story the actors really deliver here. I'v always considered James Garner one of the industry's most underrated actors we ever had, and he proves it here with a gangbusters performance, simultaneously creating mad chemistry with Andrews that would be re-visited in two other films. Douglas is solid and James Coburn steals every scene he's in with his dazzling turn as Charlie's fellow officer and BFF. Some other familiar faces pop up along the way including Keenan Wynn, Steve Franken, and two future Laugh In stars, Judy Carne and Alan Sues. Lovely little comedy with just the right touch of romance. 3.5

[Gideon58]

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl
A forgotten treasure from 2015, Me and Earl and the Dying Girl is an edgy and intelligent comedy drama that takes the viewer through a myriad of emotions vicarious memories before leaving a serious lump in the throat.
https://nathanzoebl.files.wordpress.com/2015/07/me-and-earl-and-the-dying-girl-trailer-della-commedia-premiata-al-sundance-1.jpg
The film introduces us to Greg, a smart, savvy, and sensitive high school kid whose passion is making parodies of classic movies with Earl, his "co-worker", who he has known since they small children. Greg's mother gently pushes him into spending time with a schoolmate named Rachel, who has just been diagnosed with leukemia. This time turns into what Greg terms a "doomed friendship", but this journey becomes a rich and rewarding experience for both of them.
https://i0.wp.com/www.michigandaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Screen-Shot-2021-05-11-at-2.17.02-PM.png?fit=2400%2C1600&ssl=1
Screenwriter Jesse Andrews has done the impossible by creating a story that simultaneously unfolds slowly but never stops its forward motion. I love the opening scenes of Greg explaining his high school survival techniques by becoming mildly acquainted with ALL of the school cliques. The opening scenes of Greg and Rachel's first meetings dancing around each other exploring boundaries are squirm-worthy as they should be but Greg makes the inspired decision to have Earl accompany him on this journey and Earl's lack of concern regarding boundaries breaks down a lot of walls between Rachel and Greg.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjE5NzMzNjAyMF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwMDcxODMyNTE@._V1_SX1777_CR0,0,1777,742_AL_.jpg
Needless to say, the ending is a foregone conclusion but neither the screenplay or the characters ever allow us to believe that. There is actually a moment at the end of the second act where Greg assures us that Rachel is not going to die and the sincerity in his voice makes us believe him. Loved Greg's narration of this story...haven't enjoyed a movie narration this much since Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. Also loved the finale where Greg goes into Rachel's room and discovers what she has done to all of her books.
https://dl9fvu4r30qs1.cloudfront.net/1b/8b/ffca81244aa98bc0baf7db7467e0/me-and-earl-and-the-dying-girl-1.jpg
Director Alfonso Gomez-Rejon is to be applauded for the imagination utilized in mounting this take, including striking camera work, some inventive and offbeat music, and some claymation fantasy sequences used to illustrate some of Greg's survival techniques. Thomas Mann, RJ Cyler, and Olivia Cooke light up the screen as Greg, Earl and Rachel, respectively. Mention should also be made of Connie Britton and Nick Offerman as Greg's parents and Molly Shannon as Rachel's mom. An extraordinary film journey that is not as predictable as the storyline suggests. 4

[Gideon58]

See No Evil Hear No Evil
The late Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor were teamed onscreen for the third time in a forgettable 1989 comedy called See NO Evil Hear No Evil, which is basically a one-joke movie stretched over an hour and 45 minutes, that makes for a pretty tiresome moviegoing.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81QmJoI5hmL._SX385_.jpg
Wilder's Dave and Pryor's Wally work together at a newsstand where a woman murders a man in her pursuit of a rare gold coin, which we later learn is worth $8,000,000. When the police arrive to question Dave and Wally about the murder, they are unable to get a complete description of the woman because Wally is blind and Dave is deaf. Dave only glimpsed her legs as she was fleeing the scene and Wally was only able to smell her. The woman and her partner learn that there were witnesses to the murder and even though they were blind and deaf, the still feel they can't take any chances and decide that Dave and Wally have to be silenced.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMDFhYmRhYWYtYTU1OC00YmMwLTg0MDctMDkzYmUyMmU3ZjViXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNzQ1NjgzOTA@._V1_.jpg
Amazingly, it took five writers, Wilder included, to come up with this convoluted story based on a single comic premise that is set up in detailed fashion in the opening scenes. In the opening scene we witness Wilder almost get run over by truck because he doesn't hear the approach and Pryor actually escorting another blind man across the street. These scenes are amusing, even if they run on a little longer than need be. There's also a scene at a medical conference with Pryor pretending to be a Swedish doctor that reminded me a little too much of a similar scene in Mel Brooks' High Anxiety.
http://see-aych.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/see-no-evil-hear-no-evil-1989.jpg
Unfortunately, continuity becomes an issue as the film progresses as we witness both characters doing things they really shouldn't be able to do. This is particularly obvious with Wilder's Dave, legitimizing a lot of what he gets away with by giving the character the ability to read lips, which doesn't cover the scope of a lot of what Dave does here, though he is pretty convincing not reacting to loud noises like gunshots and alarms. I did love the final confrontation between Pryor and Anthony Zerbe's Sutherland, who was also blind.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/dc/d9/d7/dcd9d71539d50809d9242a90e8817ac1.jpg
The problems with the film never really get in the way of the chemistry between the stars which is still there and the respect that they had for each other as performers shines through in every scene. Sadly, they just don't have a vehicle worthy of their talent this time. Joan Severance is a rather bland villainness but future Oscar winner Kevin Spacey is a lot of fun as her accomplice. Veteran character actress Audrie Neenan is very funny as a cop trying to take a mug shot of Wilder and provides some of the sporadic laughs here. What a shame. 2

[Citizen Rules]

http://see-aych.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/see-no-evil-hear-no-evil-1989.jpg


Who's the actress in that photo? She looks real familiar.

[Gideon58]

Her name is Joan Severance

[Gideon58]

Alfie (1966)
Michael Caine earned his first Best Actor nomination for his bold and unapologetic performance in Alfie, an adult drama that looks at the sexual mores of the 1960's through the eyes of a truly reprehensible central character who learns there are consequences related to his behavior.
https://www.udiscovermusic.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Sonny-Rollins-Alfie.jpg
Alfie is a womanizing stud who thinks sex with as many women as possible is the only reason to live. He doesn't care how old they are or their marital status, as long the "birds" are in "beautiful condition." During the course of this story, we see Alfie's backstreet affair with a married woman (Millicent Martin), a young woman who he actually gets pregnant (Julia Foster), a wealthy American divorcee (Shelley Winters) and a young hitchhiker (Jane Asher) Alfie brings home to cook and clean for him.
http://www.nicksflickpicks.com/alfie66rev.jpg
This film is based on an unsuccessful play by Bill Naughton, that premiered on Broadway in 1965 with Terrence Stamp in the starring role and ran for an unimpressive 21 performances. I'm sure the play's limited run had a lot to do with the subject matter and the central character, a slime bucket who treats women like possessions. More than once when talking about women here, Alfie actually uses the word "it" instead of "she" or "her". His reaction to learning that he's gotten a woman pregnant doesn't exactly burst with politically correctness, but we do see him begin to bond with the child and think there might be some redemption for this character, but it's not to be.
https://resizing.flixster.com/YbPWe8mprrlT0VAIDrjF1u7wTs4=/1100x618/v2/https://resizing.flixster.com/-XZAfHZM39UwaGJIFWKAE8fS0ak=/v3/t/assets/p95_i_h10_ab.jpg
This was also one of the first mainstream theatrical films where the central character actually talks directly to the camera, taking us inside Alfie's world and hopefully making the character a little more sympathetic, but that never really happens. Alfie is a charmer on the surface and as much as we want to like him, watching the way he treats these women makes that pretty much impossible.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/F6EJ1P/release-date-march-29th-1966-movie-title-alfie-studio-paramount-pictures-F6EJ1P.jpg
Michael Caine delivers a rich performance that simultaneously works hard at making the character likable and wanting to punch him in the mouth for treating these women the way he does. Shelley Winters is terrific as Ruby and Vivien Merchant's pathetic Lily earned her a Supporting Actress nomination. Lewis Gilbert's direction employs some really interesting camerawork and makes the viewer comfortable with Alfie speaking directly to us, even though the guy is such a jerk, but the character gets payback for his behavior even if it isn't enough, but it's enough to make Alfie's journey a credible one. Gilbert would direct Caine to another Oscar nomination 17 years later in Educating Rita. This film was remade in 2004 with Jude Law playing Alfie. 3.5

[Gideon58]

King of California
The story is silly and strains credibility at every turn, but the performances by the stars do make 2017's King of California worth a look.
https://resizing.flixster.com/NaBqA5YtKb3OCHiw3RVkHpQdBYs=/206x305/v1.bTsxMTIxMzgzMztqOzE4MjY0OzEyMDA7MTUzNjsyMDQ4
The comedy stars Oscar winner Michael Douglas as a recently returned home mental patient who turns his estranged daughter's life upside down as he tries to convince her that there is a Spanish treasure chest full of gold buried somewhere in the suburban neighborhood where his daughter lives.
https://static01.nyt.com/images/2007/09/14/arts/14king-600.jpg
Writer/director Mike Cahill does manage to give this loopy story some legs by immediately establishing the relationship between this father and daughter. Utilizing flashbacks and other film techniques, we learn that this a father who has been letting his daughter down long before he was ever committed. The relationship between them is so contentious that the girl refers to him throughout the movie as Charlie instead of "Dad."
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSVq57vt3Xq3NbLesGX6Uj-BiipUx9DJRNd3wsGDpZxOiTOiKgo
Miranda, the daughter, has carved out a decent existence for herself despite the lack of a father figure in her life. We admire Miranda's independence, but Charlie is so darned likable that we really want to see he and Miranda mend fences, as old and rickety as those fences might be We want this to happen because of Michael Douglas' colorful performance in the starring role, a performance that endears the viewer to the character and makes us want for him everything he wants.
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xk5v0tSxfUM/TcHbmskCmBI/AAAAAAAAC5s/0ZVH_YnLz3c/s1600/King%2Bof%2Bcalifornia%2Bwallpaper.jpg
Evan Rachel Wood's large, soulful eyes have rarely been used to better advantage in bringing the often fiery Miranda to the screen. This performance actually rivals her work as Mickey Roarke's daughter in The Wrestler and it is this performance that really is the anchor of this over-the-top comedy.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/C1CJEC/king-of-california-2007-mike-cahill-dir-michael-douglas-001-moviestore-C1CJEC.jpg
The film features effective cinematography, editing, and David Robbins' music is wonderful. Michael Douglas offers one of his loopiest characterizations as Charlie and works extremely well with the luminous Evan Rachel Wood. The movie is a little labored but the stars and the bittersweet ending make it worth a look. 2.5

[Gideon58]

East of Eden (1955)
After four years of working in television and a few bit parts in movies, James Dean exploded on the Hollywood scene with his first leading role in 1955's East of Eden, the big budget adaptation of the John Steinbeck novel that is emotionally charged by its compelling story and some first rate performances.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6b/East_of_Eden_%281955_film_poster%29.jpg
The setting is Salinas Valley, California right before the outbreak of WWI. Adam Trask (Raymond Massey) is a hard working, God-fearing rancher who is working on a new idea for preserving vegetables called refrigeration. Adam has two sons: Aron (Richard Davalos) seems to be the apple of his father's eye and the desperately angry and unhappy Cal (Dean) can't seem to do anything right where his father is concerned. Cal's anger has a lot to do with the fact that he has recently found out that his father lied to him about his mother's death. Kate Trask (Jo Van Fleet) is alive and well in the neighboring town of Monterrey where she operates a very successful whorehouse.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/f2SskRLd4F4/maxresdefault.jpg
Aron is in a relationship with the flighty and intelligent Abra (Julie Harris), but the girl clearly is attracted to Cal as well and is in deep denial about it. As much as Cal wants to get to know his mother, he is still obsessed with pleasing his father and actually turns to his mother for her help with that while trying to fight his attraction to Abra.
http://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_9Su9wcFedtTUzrAk6bT_OLZUiUnf66rWroXuSCzMDlrVqJliruX27yKuBCa7_rKpfa4qlFrq5yILDOCEsSh-g=s600
First of all, this review is coming from someone who never read the book so I cannot comment on how faithful this film version is to the book. What I can say is that this contemporary re-thinking of the story of Cain and Abel was a breathtaking and mesmerizing motion picture experience that had me glued to the screen. It's been awhile since a story tied my stomach up in knots the way this one did. I really felt for the character of Cal, not only being kept in the dark about his mother, but the complete inability to get any sign from his father that he loves him. The scene of Adam's birthday party where we think Cal is finally going to get what he wants was absolutely heartbreaking.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/VfOrY7CidTA/maxresdefault.jpg
Conflicted feelings also arose regarding the character of Kate. On the surface, this is a woman who abandoned her children and has made no attempt to keep connected with them. She didn't even know that, until Cal told her, Adam had told them she was dead. There is another layer of Kate though that shines through...a woman who was desperately unhappy with Adam and had to get away from him for the sake of her own sanity, so she went out and made a name and a life of her own. Such an interesting, three-dimensional character for a 1950's film...the scene where she and Cal actually sit down and talk for the first time sizzles with tension.
http://natedsanders.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/eastofeden-dean.jpeg
Elia Kazan provides the kind of sensitive direction he did to A Streetcar Named Desire and would provide for his next film A Face in the Crowd. It goes without saying that James Dean's powerhouse performance absolutely dominates the proceedings but, and I can't believe I'm saying this, I think this was the best performance out of the "big 3" movies he did. Dean died five months after the release of the film and received the Academy's first posthumous Oscar nomination for his work here. I can't think of a performance more worthy of the honor. Raymond Massey was a lovely combination of warmth and strength as Adam and Jo Van Fleet won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her hard-as nails Kate. Julie Harris is luminous in the complex role of Abra and I also loved future Oscar winner Burl Ives as the sheriff. A sad and haunting film experience.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/dG6C9JuB4YA/maxresdefault.jpg
Remade as a TV miniseries in 1981 with Sam Bottoms as Cal, Hart Bochner as Aron, Timothy Bottoms as Adam, and Karen Allen as Abra. But like I always say, stick to the original. 4.5

[Citizen Rules]

East of Eden (1955)

Elia Kazan provides the kind of sensitive direction he did to A Streetcar Named Desire and would provide for his next film A Face in the Crowd.

It goes without saying that James Dean's powerhouse performance absolutely dominates the proceedings but, and I can't believe I'm saying this, I think this was the best performance out of the "big 3" movies he did.

rating_4_5 Yes! I knew you'd love this. I'm so glad you finally watched it and I agree with everything you said.

[Gideon58]

I'm assuming Kate is the one you wanted to appear on my bad moms list

[Citizen Rules]

I'm assuming Kate is the one you wanted to appear on my bad moms listYup Kate was a crummy mom, but a great character.

[Gideon58]

OK, I'm glad you brought this up, because I'm really on the fence regarding this character as a bad mother. First of all, Kate was pretty much forced into her marriage to Adam and was completely open about her contempt about married life and being tied down. She wanted a life of her own and her marriage to Adam was suffocating her. Yes, she was a mother, but she didn't want to be. Adam pretty much forced her into that too. Yes, she chose not to communicate with her sons once she left, but Adam told them she was dead. And when she was finally reunited with Cal, she did give him that $5000 he wanted, even if it was guilt money. So unless you can give me an argument to sway me, right now I'm inclined not to put Kate on my bad mothers list.

[Citizen Rules]

OK, I'm glad you brought this up, because I'm really on the fence regarding this character as a bad mother. First of all, Kate was pretty much forced into her marriage to Adam and was completely open about her contempt about married life and being tied down. She wanted a life of her own and her marriage to Adam was suffocating her. Yes, she was a mother, but she didn't want to be. Adam pretty much forced her into that too. Yes, she chose not to communicate with her sons once she left, but Adam told them she was dead. And when she was finally reunited with Cal, she did give him that $5000 he wanted, even if it was guilt money. So unless you can give me an argument to sway me, right now I'm inclined not to put Kate on my bad mothers list.I'm just happy you seen the movie! East of Eden is one of my favorites, such a powerful performance from James Dean. It's so sad he only starred in 3 major films.

[Gideon58]

I was so impressed with this movie...I didn't think James Dean could be better than he was in Rebel Without a Cause, but he was. Dean was amazing in this movie.

[Gideon58]

The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
A crisp and charismatic performance by the divine Maggie Smith that officially made her a movie star, anchors the 1969 film version of a luminous and adult blending of character study and romantic melodrama called The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51KJJ1M53YL._SY445_.jpg
The central character of this drama is one of the most fascinating characters to have a movie wrapped around her. Jean Brodie is an intelligent, articulate, and deliciously self-absorbed history teacher at an exclusive girls' school in 1930's Scotland. Miss Brodie considers her girls the "creme de la creme" and adopts certain girls each year and gives them special treatment, treatment which included assigning futures to each of the girls, whether or not the girls are really interested and how one girl named Sandy (Pamela Franklin) refuses to conform to the future Miss Brodie has concocted for her.
https://www.thegrandmacon.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/jean-brodie.jpg
The story also features a romantic drama involving the endlessly fascinating Miss Brodie, who pretends to be above such nonsense as love and sex, but underneath is a bubbling cauldron of sexuality, which has garnered her attraction from the sweet but dull Gordon Lowther (Gordon Jackson), the school's music teacher and the passionate Teddy Lloyd (Robert Stephens), the art teacher and married father of six children. We are also witness to the school's headmistress (Celia Johnson) trying to figure out a way to oust Miss Brodie from the school, disturbed by Brodie's influence on her girls.
https://media.aintitcool.com/media/_versions/social_image/MissJeanBrodieSandy_large.jpeg
This is the film version of a play by Murial Sparks that premiered on Broadway in January of 1968 with the legendary Zoe Caldwell playing the title role. Smith inherits the role for the film and gives the performance of a lifetime. Aided by director Ronald Neame (Brief Encounter), Smith gives a delicately nuanced and rich performance where every move she makes and word she utters is carefully crafted before they happen. Smith is absolutely fascinating here, so fascinating that it's very easy to overlook some of Miss Brodie's lesser qualities, like her unabashed arrogance. Her refusal to accept being terminated at the end of the second act is pretty ballsy and hard to swallow, but that scene is also the highlight of the film. The fire bubbling through Brodie, brought brilliantly to life by Maggie Smith, is an acting class in itself.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/K3768H/the-prime-of-miss-jean-brodie-robert-stephens-and-maggie-smith-date-K3768H.jpg
Favorites for the Best Actress Oscar that year were Jane Fonda and Liza Minnelli, but Smith blindsided both and once you witness this performance, you will understand why. Also loved Robert Stephens as the explosive Teddy Lloyd and Franklin as the wise beyond her years Sandy. Franklin was one of the hardest working and most underrated actresses of the 60's and this might be her best work. Shortly after this film was released, Smith and Stephens were actually married IRL. A high octane soap opera given its gas by the divine Maggie Smith. 4

[Gideon58]

Second Act
Netflix decided to throw Jennifer Lopez a lifeline regarding her fading film career with a lame 2018 vehicle called Second Act that starts off as one kind of movie, and then becomes a completely different movie, but neither movie is really very funny.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMjQ2MjI5Njk0MF5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTgwNDQ2NzczNTM@._V1_.jpg
Lopez plays a bulk store mid-level supervisor who loses a big promotion at work while her best friend's son sets her up for a job interview on Madison Avenue with the aid of a souped up resume and social media presence. With her newly established backstory and a few choice words at the interview, Lopez gets the job but immediately clashes with the young female second in command, played by Vanessa Hudgens. Lopez is thrown for a loop when it eventually comes to light that Hudgens is the daughter that Lopez gave up for adoption when she was 17.
https://www.indiewire.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/SECOND_Unit_00652R2.jpg?w=780
This film coasts a long way on Lopez' reputation, because the story is slightly pretentious and long-winded, trying to put across a couple of well-worn messages like the importance of honesty in business practices and in your personal life, as well as being satisfied with who you are and making the most of who you really are. Unfortunately, these messages get lost in a lot of scenes about marketing and merchandising cosmetics that seem more suited to daytime drama.
https://www.heraldnet.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/14860289_web1_M-second-act-edh-181220.jpg
The film is well mounted, offering first rate production values, including a wardrobe department that does their best to make the most out of Lopez' ever expanding physical assets, which have continued to expand over the years, to the point where I found myself unable to concentrate on what was going on in the story because I couldn't take my eyes off Lopez' ass. This was only made worse by the casting of the perfectly chiseled Milo Ventimiglia (This is Us) as her boyfriend.
https://www.etonline.com/sites/default/files/styles/max_970x546/public/images/2018-12/second_act_jlo_hudgens.jpg?itok=oqZ4NejH&h=c673cd1c
Both Lopez and Hudgens plays this story a little too straight-faced which adds to the deadening pace of the story. A few familiar faces pop up in the supporting cast including Leah Remini (when was the last time you saw her in a movie?), Larry Miller, and Treat Wiliams, but their thankless roles are just there to prop up Lopez, who needed more help from the writer than from the cast. 2

[Gideon58]

Toy Story 4
I concluded my review of Toy Story 3 by saying that I would be able to live with it if there never was a Toy Story 4, but now that 4 has become a reality, I am here to humbly and apologetically eat my words, as the geniuses of Disney Pixar have done what I never thought they could: Come up with another dazzling and effectively layered comic yarn set in Toy World that challenges cinematic tradition, provides consistent belly laughs throughout and can ignite tear ducts if caught in the right mood.
https://popcornusa.s3.amazonaws.com/movies/650/2275-10555-ToyStory.jpg
As we return to our friends, Andy is off to college and all of our friends have been given to a little girl named Bonnie who is very apprehensive about her first day in kindergarten. Worried about Bonnie, Woody (voiced by Tom Hanks) hides in her backpack and goes to school with her. Woody observes Bonnie build her own toy out of a plastic fork which she cleverly names Forky (voiced by Tony Hale) who Woody introduces to the rest of the gang and tries to make them understand how important Forky is to Bonnie, which comes to light when Woody and Forky are kidnapped by an insane doll named Gabby Gabby (voiced by Christina Hendricks), who is trying to win her kid, Harmony, back. During this adventure, Woody is reunited with Bo Peep (voiced by Annie Potts), who belonged to Andy's little sister, Molly.
https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/06/23/arts/23Box-Office/23Box-Office-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale
This was the best entry in the franchise since the first one. Director Josh Cooley and the screenwriters, including story creator John Lasseter and actress Rashida Jones, have once again done Oscar-worthy work in giving us a toys-eye-view of the world and class separation and how things in toy world might or might not be different than in the real world. This film gives the viewer a true sense of the size and scope of toy world as opposed to the size and scope of human world. This is impressively overlaid with a look at class separation in toy world...the difference between being a lost toy and being a toy who actually has a kid.
https://media.swncdn.com/cms/CW/68907-toy-story-4-disney.1200w.tn.jpg
Of course, there are so many characters that are part of this franchise by now that they can't all be center stage. Characters who have been glorified extras in previous films get more screentime here and characters who dominated previous films have been pushed to the back burner. The relationship between Woody and Bo Peep was purely a product of this film...Bo was only in about three minutes of the first film and, if memory serves, wasn't in 2 or 3 at all, but she is center stage here, still voiced by the brilliant Annie Potts, who is more than up for the challenge. Also loved the character of Gabby Gabby, the first character in this franchise who comes off as insane, giving this film an edgy, squirm-worthy quality missing from the previous films.
http://media.altpress.com/uploads/2019/04/toy-story-4.jpg
The look of this film is nothing short of spectacular. Animation is Oscar-worthy, producing some breathtaking visuals that will be difficult to erase from the memory. When Buzz (voiced by Tim Allen), is shot out of the carnival toward the neighboring highway, the highway looks absolutely real. The climb to the roof of the antique store that Woody and Bo make offers a thrilling view as well, and that antique store...can we talk about that antique store? Just incredible the way everything was stacked on to of everything else as far as the eye could see with ventriloquist dummies overlooking the place like gargoyles.
https://compote.slate.com/images/d1f38209-4b9b-4847-9a52-c77f700b9155.jpeg?crop=1560%2C1040%2Cx0%2Cy0
The actors are comfortable providing these toys their voices, but they still take what they are doing seriously. Tom Hanks' work as Woody in this film is just as moving as it was in the first film and there is also outstanding work from Potts as Bo Peep, Hendricks as Gabby, Hale as Forky, and especially Keanu Reeves as a toy stunt motorcycle driver named Duke Caboom...Reeves is completely unrecognizable and a total scene stealer. An animated joy from start to finish. 4.5

[Gideon58]

The Beguiled (1971)
Before De Niro and Scorsese and Depp and Burton, there was Eastwood and Siegel. Clint Eastwood and Don Siegel spent a lot of the 1970's collaborating as actor and director and the most intriguing of their work together was The Beguiled,a bizarre and often chilling psycho-sexual melodrama blistering with suspense and sexual tension unlike anything we had seen onscreen.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BN2YyYThmZWMtOWFiNC00Njc1LTgxNjYtOTExZjcyMjlmMjkzXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjc1NTYyMjg@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182 ,268_AL_.jpg
Set during the Civil War, Eastwood plays John McBurney, a Union soldier who has been severely injured and is taken back to a small Confederate girls' school to be nursed back to health. Initially treated as a prisoner, it's not long before McBurney awakens sexual desire among more than one woman at this school, escalating in an internal battle of wills between the women, which finds them turning on each other, and eventually on McBurney.
https://reviewswithatude.files.wordpress.com/2017/08/beguiled.jpg?w=614
The screenplay, based on a book by Thomas Cullinan is bold and adult in its depiction of this John McBurney character and how his seemingly innocent need for a place to heal melds with a sexual awakening that he causes with some of these women. And instead of trying to navigate around it, McBurney embraces it and decides to use his sexual prowess as not only a way of not returning to the war, but having his own private set of concubines at his beck and call. We are given our first major clue that we are not going to be treated to the traditional Civil War drama when the first kiss McBurney has onscreen is with a 12 year old girl...Gone with the Wind this ain't.
http://www.californiaherps.com/films/filmimages/thebeguiled9.jpg
I especially loved the beginning section of the story as McBurney gets cleaned up and looking right and how the girl have been forbidden to go into his room, which doesn't stop any of them. As soon as one leaves his room, another is knocking and McBurney just rolls with it.
https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZjFChRw3RJY/WQLBjsXQa3I/AAAAAAAAOdY/-fqZRt9cY3AoTuabbmGtCjieITX-lIX7gCLcB/s1600/The-Beguiled-02-4.jpg
This movie was made when Clint Eastwood was still smoking hot and Siegel takes full advantage of that, pulling an electric sex on legs performance from the rising star. Geraldine Page was superb, as always, as the head of the school, as were the lovely Elizabeth Hartman as the teacher and JoAnn Harris as a horny 17 year old who throws herself at McBurney throughout. And if they look closely, Young and the Restless fans might recognize a teenage Melody Thomas Scott playing the role of Abigail. A sizzling adult drama fraught with sexual tension and directed with some genuine style. 4

[Gideon58]

The Happytime Murders
Brian Henson, son of the legendary Jim Henson and the creative force behind the Muppet versions of A Christmas Carol and Treasure Island tries for something more original with 2018's The Happytime Murders a film that worked a lot better when it was called Who Framed Roger Rabbit?
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/91lUOsd4rFL._RI_SX300_.jpg
This film is set in a world where human beings and puppets co-exist but puppets are considered second class citizens. When the cast members of an old puppet television show called "The Happytime Gang" begin getting bumped off one by one, a former cop who is now a private eye (and a puppet) named Phil Phillips (voiced by Bill Barretta) stumbles onto the murder scene and finds his former human partner, Detective Connie Edwards (Melissa McCarthy) and when it turns out that someone is trying frame Phil for these murders, he and Connie decide to team up in order to clear Phil's name.
https://variety.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/m186_hm_unit_07890r_rgb.jpg
It's hard to tell exactly what Henson was attempting to do here. The film's setting is contemporary, but Todd Berger's screenplay has a very 1940's noir-ish sensibility to it. You can almost hear the lone saxophone wailing in the background of a couple of scenes. But this story seems to be trying be hip and relevant, pointing out the jets and Sharks-type war going on between the humans and the puppets. The canvas is laid out in the opening scenes and firmly established with the central characters who are human and puppet, but they're both spouting dialogue that sounds like something out of an old Humphrey Bogart movie.
https://media.vanityfair.com/photos/5b7d96e3f9a65f4b9ec05fbc/master/pass/the-happytime-murders-review.jpg
There are selected laughs provided mostly through Henson's merciless treatment of the puppets that symbolically breaks the 4th wall...we see button eyes get pulled off some puppets and when one puppet is murdered and found in the ocean, the CSI unit actually twist him up like a dishrag and wring him dry. There is also a very funny scene where McCarthy's Connie gets suspended and she storms through the office telling everyone in the squadroom off. This scene features a cameo by McCarthy's husband, Ben Falcone and I wish the rest of the movie had been as funny as this scene was.
https://media.newyorker.com/photos/5b807458365d9e63bb6dbc21/master/pass/Brody-Happytime-Murders.jpg
McCarthy works very hard at creating viable relationships with puppets and there are some good bits contributed along the way by Maya Rudolph as Phil's secretary and Joel McHale as McCarthy's boss, but this attempt to have Who Framed Roger Rabbit? lightening strike twice, never really catches on. 2.5

[Gideon58]

The Favor
Released during a very good year for movies, 1994's The Favor is a silly sex comedy featuring unappealing characters doing stupid things and thanks to lead-footed direction, the film seems twice as long as it really is.
https://cdn.cinematerial.com/p/297x/utudskrh/the-favor-movie-poster-md.jpg?v=1456696691
Kathy is a happily married housewife and mother of two daughters residing in Portland who, for some reason, can't stop fantasizing about her high school boyfriend, Tom, who now resides in Denver. When Kathy's best friend, Emily, has to go to Denver on business, she begs Emily to look Tom up but realizes she can't put her fantasies to rest unless Emily actually sleeps with Tom. Emily returns from Denver and informs Kathy that her one night stand with Tom was the best sex she ever had and now wants to dump her current boyfriend, Elliott. Things get even messier when Kathy comes on to Elliott to get back at Emily and Emily turns up pregnant.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTExOTAzMjMyMDleQTJeQWpwZ15BbWU3MDA3MzY3MzQ@._V1_.jpg
Even though this film was released in 1994, it was actually filmed in 1990 and shelved, like the Jessica Lange drama Blue Sky because of the financial troubles at Orion Studios. Unfortunately, this film isn't nearly as good as Blue Sky and the blame must go partially to a ridiculous story centered around a really unappealing central character whose behavior in this film redefines questionable. This woman Kathy has been married for years and still having fantasies about a high school boyfriend? She then pretty much demands that her best friend sleep with her old boyfriend and then resents her when she actually does it? And there's no justifying Kathy's behavior when she learns Emily is pregnant. This is where any appeal the character had goes out the window.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/1c/16/7e/1c167e846bbe98882d5fd88b27cb75fb.jpg
The rest of the blame has to go to Donald Petrie, a proven commodity behind the camera lens with films like Grumpy Old Men and Miss Congeniality to his credit. This film only runs 90 minutes, but Petrie's wooden direction keeps this story moving at a snail's pace and makes the film seem twice as long as it is. I swear I didn't think this movie was ever going to end.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Anbw_q9a1SM/maxresdefault.jpg
There's some odd casting here as well...Harley Jane Kozak, a former soap actress who appeared in films like Parenthood and Arachnophobia, works very hard trying to make Kathy likable but the story is fighting her all the way. Not to mention she's trying to be convincing in a role that was clearly written for Meg Ryan. Elizabeth McGovern gives one of her most wooden performances as Emily, which doesn't exactly help keeping us invested in the story. Bill Pullman and Brad Pitt made the most of thankless roles and there was a funny cameo from Holland Tayor as a lamaze coach, but this movie is pretty forgettable. 2

[Gideon58]

Halloween (2018)
John Carpenter, Debra Hill, and director David Gordon Greene reach back to the roots of the 1978 film that began the whole franchise with their 2018 version of Halloween, which brings the gore we expect from the franchise, but the backstory and character development supporting this new story just don't make sense.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/b1/Halloween_%282018%29_poster.jpg/220px-Halloween_%282018%29_poster.jpg
Jamie Lee Curtis returns to the role that made her a star, Laurie Strode, much older but maybe not wiser, still living in the same town where Michael Meyers terrorized her 40 years ago. Laurie now lives like a survivalist, in a home that she has converted into a security nightmare when she is approached by a pair of podcasters who want to interview her about her history with Michael. Laurie's daughter and her granddaughter think Laurie is a little on the nutty side and then, while Michael Meyers is being transferred to another facility, Michael escapes, killing three people in the process.
https://www.slashfilm.com/wp/wp-content/images/halloween-sequel-new.jpg
Personally, I had felt this franchise had run its course 20 years ago with Halloween H20, but decided that this film might be worth checking out since original writer/director John Carpenter appeared to be the screenwriter but that turned out to not be the case after all. Three other writers did the screenplay with "characters created by" Carpenter and this becomes obvious pretty quickly as the backstory established here just doesn't make a whole lot of sense, starting with the incarceration of Michael Meyers. This guy has been locked up, studied, poked, prodded , drugged, studied, and analyzed for the last four decades and he is the exact same guy who was locked up four decades ago? It seems to me that after 40 years of treatment, some kind of mellowing would have occurred with this character but no such thing happens here...Michael is just as destructive and dangerous as he was in 1978.
http://cdn.collider.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/andi-matichak-halloween-jlc.png
The changes in the Laurie Strode character completely disregard the Laurie Strode we met in Halloween H20, where Laurie was a college dean working under an assumed name who had become an alcoholic. In this film, Laurie is presented as a slightly crazier variation on Sarah Conner in Terminator 2, who knows the danger but can't get anyone else to believe her, except for the wimpy local sheriff. Even Laurie's own family is confused and embarrassed by her and it was a little disheartening seeing the woman's own family unwilling to have her back.
https://images.newrepublic.com/42f5f2463ea2393c8758580d51a81cdb3c8119dd.jpeg
Then there were some other big gaps in story logic that were hard to swallow, especially regarding the transportation of Michael to another facility. First of all, what was going to be the benefit of transferring Michael somewhere else for 40 years and as dangerous as Michael is, wouldn't it have been prudent to have him secured a little more effectively, akin to the way Hannibal Lecter was secured in Silence of the Lambs or Garland Green in Con Air?
https://www.screengeek.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/halloween-movie-2018-1.jpg
Director David Gordon Green takes a little too much time with exposition, but once the killing starts, this does demand viewer attention, but the first 40 minutes are pretty slow going. Curtis rolls nicely with the constant changes in Laurie and Judy Greer got the most significant role of her career as Laurie's daughter. Also enjoyed Will Patton as the aforementioned sheriff. Green and his writers know how to bring the gore, but a little more attention to logical storytelling would have been nice. 2.5

[Gideon58]

The Pacifier
Disney offered action star Vin Diesel a welcome change of pace with 2005's The Pacifier, a contrived and predictable action comedy awash in cliched plotting and a rampant predictability that really tries viewer patience.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTE5MTcxOTQxNl5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwMzk3Nzg2._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182,268_AL_.jpg
Diesel plays Shane Wolfe, a Navy SEAL who is assigned to guard the five children of a recently murdered government scientist because the program he was working on is believed to still be in the house and the widow and mother of the kids has to leave the country for a few days to retrieve another part of the program.
https://cache.moviestillsdb.com/i/500x/pp5envl2/the-pacifier-lg.jpg
This film really suffers from a serious lack of surprises in Robert Ben Grant and Thomas Lennon's screenplay. The fish out of water concept of a soldier turned suburban babysitter is a concept rife with possibilities, unfortunately, most of what Grant and Lennon come up with is pretty predictable. Of course, we get the initial defiance from the kids having to take orders from a soldier, but it just gets sillier, from Shane's first encounter with a dirty diaper, a scene we've seen in a million other movies, the tired comments about Shane's man boobs, to his having to do a stupid dance in order for one of the kids to sleep, but all credibility goes out the window when Shane agrees to take over as the director of the eldest son's production of The Sound of Music and it's pretty much checkout time for the viewer.
https://thecriticalcritics.com/review/wp-content/images/the_pacifier-still_1-1160x480.jpg
There were also certain issues with the premise that I couldn't wrap my head around. First of all, we are told that this murdered scientist was away from home for seven or eight months at a time, but somehow he found time to father five children? I also didn't buy the way the scientist died...he and Shane are standing alone on a beach and when Shane leaves the guy alone for a second, he kills the dad and wounds Shane. And why wouldn't the mother (Faith Ford) make it clear to her children how much danger they were in? I guess that was so the scene where the ninjas break into the house and the kids finally get it made a little more sense. I have to admit that I did enjoy the film's take on an action movie staple...the "suiting up" scene which involved pampers and juice boxes.
https://bingeddata.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2020/12/the-pacifier-3.jpg
Adam Shankman, whose next directorial assignment would be the film version of Hairspray, provides lethargic direction, though he does display an affinity for action sequences. Diesel's straight-faced performance sucks all the humor out of the character. The only real laughs in the film are provided by Brad Garrett playing the school's smart-ass vice principal. A good idea on paper that definitely lost something in execution. 2

[Gideon58]

The Game (1997)
A relentlessly frightening story and the uncompromising directorial style of David Fincher make a logic-defying nightmare from 1997 called The Game riveting motion picture entertainment, even if we don't always have a clear picture as to what exactly is going on.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/2/22/The_Game_film_poster.jpg
Michael Douglas stars as Nicholas Van Orton, a wealthy investment banker who reunites with his estranged brother, Conrad (Sean Penn) on his 48th birthday. Conrad gives his brother a gift certificate for a special "game" from a mysterious entertainment company called Consumer Recreation Services. After a long and involved registration process for the game, it is not long before Nicholas finds himself caught in the middle of a hellish nightmare
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/z0ZnN4mivGw/maxresdefault.jpg
The screenplay for this enigmatic film experience is from the writers of The Net and Terminator 3, rich with red herrings everywhere, consistently offering more questions than answering them. We know that something's not right when we see that elaborate registration process that Nicholas has to go through and all of the questions that he has to answer. IRL, most people would have run screaming for the hills during that testing process, but if Nicholas had done that, we wouldn't have had a movie.
https://www.slashfilm.com/wp/wp-content/images/the-game-harlequin-doll.jpg
The most frightening aspect of this story is the power that Consumer Recreation Services is able to wield over Van Orton simply through the information they gleaned during the testing. Most frightening is the fact that setting up Nicholas' game took just a little over 24 hours and I loved that they told him he was deemed ineligible so that he didn't see it coming.
http://see-aych.com/90s-movies/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/the-game-1997.jpg
Once again, David Fincher's direction is inventive, providing arresting visuals and an air of tension that pervades the film from opening credits to the somewhat hard to swallow ending. Michael Douglas offers one of his best performances as Van Orton and gets solid support from Deborah Kara Unger, Peter Donat, James Rebhorn, and Carroll Baker. Sadly, Penn is wasted in a surprisingly thankless role, but just like he did with Fight Club, David Fincher takes a confusing and muddy story and makes it sparkle. 4

[TheUsualSuspect]

Re: Halloween.

I'm not sure if you know this but this is a direct sequel to the original movie only, disregarding every other film in the series. So whatever character building they did with Halloween 2 and H20 is ignored. Have you seen Resurrection? She dies in that one. As a Halloween film, this is one of the better entries, has solid style (that one-take of him entering houses was nice) and subversion of females in danger help elevate this film for me.

Re: The Game.

The often forgotten about Fincher movie. Maybe because his other films are so highly regarding, but this one always falls through the cracks for people. It's really well executed and showcases Fincher's early talents. I feel like a lot of people like/dislike this movie based on how they feel about the ending, which is the marking of a good film in my eyes.

[Gideon58]

Re: Halloween.

I'm not sure if you know this but this is a direct sequel to the original movie only, disregarding every other film in the series. So whatever character building they did with Halloween 2 and H20 is ignored. Have you seen Resurrection? She dies in that one. As a Halloween film, this is one of the better entries, has solid style (that one-take of him entering houses was nice) and subversion of females in danger help elevate this film for me.

Re: The Game.

The often forgotten about Fincher movie. Maybe because his other films are so highly regarding, but this one always falls through the cracks for people. It's really well executed and showcases Fincher's early talents. I feel like a lot of people like/dislike this movie based on how they feel about the ending, which is the marking of a good film in my eyes.

I learned everything you said about Halloween before watching it. None of that changes my opinion of the film. As for The Game, I found the ending troublesome too, but the movie totally works until then.

[Gideon58]

The Singing Detective
Even a hardcore Robert Downey Jr fan like myself found it extremely difficult staying invested in a 2003 cinematic acid trip called The Singing Detective that scores some originality points but loses just as many for its confusing approach to a rather simple premise.
https://i.redd.it/ci5xlrs0duuy.jpg
Robert Downey Jr. plays Dan Dark, a writer who is suffering from a very serious skin disease that has him looking like a burn victim. The author is re-working the first book he ever wrote in his head, a 1950's detective tale centered around a murdered prostitute. As Dark lies in his hospital bed, he begins to hallucinate about his disease, the book, his childhood, and his marriage. These hallucinations manifest themselves in the form of elaborate musical numbers, characters from the book visiting Dark in his hospital room, and intimate looks at how his childhood and marriage are connected to this book, which he is trying to work into a screenplay, which apparently has gone missing.
https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/images/newsite/singing_600.jpg
The screenplay is based on a BBC television series created by Dennis Potter, who was also the screenwriter for the 1981 Steve Martin musical Pennies from Heaven, where the actors lip-synched to original 1930's recordings and the same gimmick is employed here with some great music from the 1950's, but Potter really let this one get away from him, with Downey's character jumping from hospital bed to nightclub stage to becoming the central character in his novel at an absolutely exhausting pace. The supporting characters are also moving from the hospital to the novel to the middle of Dan Dark's brain. What we have here is an author trying to decipher the meaning of his life, an outrageous variation on films like 8 1/2 and All that Jazz that utilize extreme theatricality in order to glam up the kind of story we've seen many times before.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BOTBhMjEyODMtOTU1Yi00N2YzLWI3ZGItZGEzMTAyNTc0MTI2XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyOTc5MDI5NjE@._V1_.jpg
It was no surprise to learn that this film was directed by actor Keith Gordon, who played teenage Joe Gideon in All that Jazz. Clearly, Gordon was paying attention to what Bob Fosse was doing on the set of that film because there's a real Fosse influence in the look of the film and the staging of the musical numbers which are seamlessly woven into the narrative. Unfortunately, keeping track of said narrative gets tiresome pretty quickly.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn%3AANd9GcTajXIP8Ccm1FVjXr6DkPP6K13jA7G5YrgwS_qyVHJic1D79jyk
Robert Downey Jr's unhinged performance in the starring role is a big plus and he does have a strong cast behind him including Robin Wright as his wife, Jeremy Northam, Adrien Brody and Jon Polito as characters from the book, and Saul Rubinek, Alfre Woodard and an unrecognizable Mel Gibson as hospital personnel, but the frantic direction and exhausting story eventually weigh this one down. 2

[Gideon58]

The Taking of Pehlam One Two Three (1974)
Joseph Sargent, a director known primarily for his work in television, scored a big screen triumph with a dandy nail-biter from 1974 called The Taking of Pelham One Two Three that takes a pretty unlikely premise and turns it into a first rate tale of unbearable tension and suspense that rivets the viewer to the screen.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/41/Taking_of_Pelham_One_Two_Three_%281974_film%29.jpg/225px-Taking_of_Pelham_One_Two_Three_%281974_film%29.jpg
This is the story of four men who walk onto a New York subway car and hijack it, with 18 hostages and inform the transit authority that they have one hour to deliver $1,000,000 to the train or they will kill a hostage for every minute they are late with delivery. The head bad guy (Robert Shaw) communicates demands and instructions to a world weary transit cop (Walter Matthau) who is doing whatever he can to keep the hostages alive and get these guys at the same time.
https://static.rogerebert.com/uploads/review/primary_image/reviews/the-taking-of-pelham-one-two-three-1974/hero_EB19741002REVIEWS906089998AR.jpg
Sargent gets a big assist from Peter Stone's screenplay, adapted from a novel by John Godow, that offers us an effectively layered story rich with New York atmosphere and colorful characters and pointed observations from all angles of this horrific situation. It turns out transit can't promise anything without consent from the mayor. There is a brilliantly written scene with Matthau's character and the mayor with his posse where they actually take a vote as to whether or not they should pay the ransom. The other thing I loved about the story is that the four criminals hijacking the train weren't exactly lifelong buddies or a cohesive unit. We actually watch as they learn their stories from each other during down time in the crisis. We also see how one of the guys is very uncomfortable with the idea of killing hostages while another one can't wait.
https://coolidge.org/sites/default/files/featured_images/Taking_Pelham_123_1974_29%20copy.jpg
The story is also injected with very human touches to the characters and situations, providing just enough humor to offset the unbearable tension that the story creates. I loved that one of the henchman had a really bad cold and that at the time of the incident, the mayor is also sick in bed. The opening scenes of Matthau providing a tour of the transit offices to some Asian businessmen was a perfect lighthearted prelude to the story that follows.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTgxMjg5NzkzN15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNjAzMTM3NA@@._V1_.jpg
Sargent's direction is fluid and focused and keeps the story moving at a nice clip. We aren't given a lot of time to breathe once the hijakers take the train and we don't really require it. Matthau is surprisingly effective cast against type and Shaw is chilling as Mr. Blue. Martin Balsam was terrific as the criminal with the cold and LOVED Hector Elizondo as the trigger happy Mr. Gray. Other familiar faces pop up along the way, including Dick O'Neill, Jerry Stiller, James Broderick, Kenneth McMillan, and Lee Wallace, in a perfect Ed Koch mockup as the mayor. This film had me on the edge of my seat for most of the running time.

The film has been remade twice...it was remade for television in 1998 with Edward James Omos and Vincent D'Onofrio in the Matthau and Shaw roles. It also had a theatrical remake in 2009 with Denzel Washington and John Travolta, but something tells me either of these versions would be hard pressed to be better than the original. 4

[Steve Freeling]

I saw the 2009 remake back in 2010 and even though I like Travolta and Washington, I thought it sucked.

[Gideon58]

I saw the 2009 remake back in 2010 and even though I like Travolta and Washington, I thought it sucked.

I had heard the same thing about the remake but felt it was wrong to watch it without seeing the original and now I'm pretty sure that a remake will disappoint...if you've never seen the original, please treat yourself.

[Steve Freeling]

I had heard the same thing about the remake but felt it was wrong to watch it without seeing the original and now I'm pretty sure that a remake will disappoint...if you've never seen the original, please treat yourself.
After wondering for eight and a half years if the original was any better, I saw it for the first time a few months ago and having seen both, I can say that if you want my honest opinion, it handily advances on the remake. The biggest problem with the remake is what Michael Reuben mentions in his review (https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/The-Taking-of-Pelham-One-Two-Three-Blu-ray/24735/#Review) of the original film's first Blu-ray release and that comes down to the script that has Travolta keep talking and drop cluster F-bomb after cluster F-bomb until he talks all the menace out of the character and as Reuben says, "until all the tension was talked out of the film." For a more positive take on the remake, you can read Martin Liebman's review here (https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/The-Taking-of-Pelham-1-2-3-Blu-ray/6742/#Review) just to have both sides of it. Judging by the first paragraph, Liebman seems to also think highly of the original, so I guess that's probably worth considering when evaluating whether or not the remake is your kind of movie.

[Gideon58]

Scarecrow (1973)
If the idea of watching two of the industry's greatest actors near the beginning of their careers delivering Oscar-worthy performances in a movie nobody saw holds appeal, then you might want to take a look at Scarecrow, an evocative blending of buddy movie and character study from 1973 that took this reviewer through a myriad of emotions, not to mention a master class in screen acting that riveted this reviewer to the screen.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYWI4YjlhYTEtMGNkZi00MjJmLWI3M2QtM2NiM2I1YjZiOTg0XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNjUwNzk3NDc@._V1_.jpg
Gene Hackman stars as Max, an ex-con who loves to fight and is fresh out of jail after six years, who is hitchhiking to Pittsburgh to get his hands on a large amount of money he has stashed there which he plans to use to open his own car wash. Al Pacino stars as Lion, an ex-sailor who is hitchhiking to Detroit to deliver a gift to a child that he has never met. A chance meeting leads these two drifters to become fast friends and eventual business partners who embark on an incredible episodic cross country odyssey.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/A14WMH/scarecrow-1973-jerry-schatzberg-gene-hackman-grand-prize-at-the-1973-A14WMH.jpg
I'm at a loss as to why this movie was such a box office bomb because it was made at a time when both stars were really coming into their own as box office champions. Hackman had just won his first Oscar for The French Connection and Pacino had just earned his first nomination for The Godfather, so one would think this film would have been box office gold but it laid a big fat egg art the box office and I don't know why. Hackman and Pacino not only create a magical chemistry onscreen but two distinct and fascinating characters who create their own backstory through their performances and the focused and sensitive direction from Jerry Schatzberg (Tha Panic in Needle Park).
https://gartnerjevfilmskisvet.files.wordpress.com/2018/03/scarecrow-1.jpg
I love the way the story opens...Max and Lion are hitchhiking on opposite sides of the same road competing for a ride while trying to feel each other out to determine if the other can really be trusted. I loved that the breaking point of the impasse turned out to be Max being unable to light his cigar because his zippo was dead and Lion offering him his last match.
https://c8.alamy.com/comp/A14XDM/scarecrow-1973-jerry-schatzberg-al-pacino-grand-prize-at-the-1973-A14XDM.jpg
Garry Michael White's screenplay is more focused on establishing who Max and Lion are than the somewhat ordinary buddy story that is the canvas here. The story has us falling in love with these two guys and completely behind their journey until the halfway point where they are pulled apart and the story takes some very dark detours that we really don't see coming. Fans of the 1969 Best Picture winner Midnight Cowboy will definitely have a head start here.
https://resizing.flixster.com/btFejEzccMcJAcFWvTXg6oRMYHc=/fit-in/705x460/v2/https://resizing.flixster.com/-XZAfHZM39UwaGJIFWKAE8fS0ak=/v3/t/assets/p1107_i_h9_ab.jpg
Gene Hackman, giving a performance he claims is his favorite, is a glorious combination of unhinged and unaffected, a dazzling performance where he is never caught "acting" and Pacino is loopy and explosive, lighting up the screen at every turn. Mention should be made of performances by Dorothy Tristan and the fabulous Ann Wedgeworth as a pair of good time girls and a brief appearance by Eileen Brennan. A big bouquet to Vilmos Zsigmond's cinematography as well. An unsung hero in the resumes of Hackman and Pacino and probably the best movie of 1973 that nobody saw. 4

[Gideon58]

Captain Ron
A breezy, sex-on-legs performance by Kurt Russell in the title role is the best thing about 1992's Captain Ron, a lavishly mounted comic adventure that starts off promisingly but eventually gets weighed down by an over complicated screenplay that gets silly and makes the final third of the film very tiresome.
https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BOWZkYTk4YjAtZmViZS00ZTY5LWE2YmItOGQ3Y2Y0N2MzODkyXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTQxNzMzNDI@._V1_UX182_CR0,0,182 ,268_AL_.jpg
Martin Short plays Martin Harvey, a Chicago businessman who inherits a broken down boat from his deceased uncle. Unfortunately, the boat is docked near a Caribbean Island and the only way for Harvey to get the boat back to Miami where he can sell it is to fly down to the Caribbean with his family where he has to hire an experienced boat navigator with questionable credentials named Captain Ron to sail the boat for them.
https://i0.wp.com/silverscreenanalysis.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/captain-ron-1992-2.jpg?fit=700%2C472&ssl=1
This film gets off to a strong start by establishing comic credentials immediately with the casting of Russell in the comic role and Short in an unaccustomed role for him as the straight man. The movie is very funny as we watch Captain Ron charm Martin's wife (Mary Kay Place) and his two kids, similar to the spell Bill Murray puts on Richard Dreyfuss' family in What About Bob?, but John Dwyer's screenplay gets away from him with the addition of some Latin American soldiers who become guests on the boat as well as some actual pirates who want to take the Harveys' boat from them. By the time the pirates show up, we begin checking our watches.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/98/25/c3/9825c39212a51616144ded4bb4f82b5e.jpg
One refreshing thing I did find in the story is that when Captain Ron begins charming Martin's family, he doesn't concentrate his charms on Martin's horny teenager daughter but on Martin's wife, who seems blissfully unaware of what's going on. What happens between Captain Ron and the Harvey family was enough to make this story work, but so much happens that Captain Ron eventually gets temporarily shoved off the canvas and when he's not onscreen, the film comes to a screeching halt.
https://prd-rteditorial.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/22171011/Captain-Ron-Steering.jpg
This film works as long as Kurt Russell remains center stage, completely investing in this slightly smarmy, but utterly charming character who actually has a conscience. Short works hard to be a convincing straight man and Mary Kay Place makes the most of the most significant role of her career as Martin's wife, but the screenwriter really lets this one get away from him. 3

[Gideon58]

The Night of the Hunter (1955)
A compelling and layered story, atmospheric direction by actor Charles Laughton and a chilling performance by Robert Mitchum in the starring role make the 1955 thriller The Night of the Hunter appointment viewing.
https://s3.amazonaws.com/criterion-production/films/4769edd08606508fb82f823c778297f4/6EpySxomWsrT7vfmRGVtFhIvfBDFva_large.jpg
Set during the Depression, the story introduces Ben Harper (Peter Graves) a man who has just robbed $10,000 from a bank and killed two people in the process. Before being arrested, he hides the money inside his daughter Pearl's doll and swears Pearl and his son, John to secrecy. While in jail, Ben encounters Harry Powell (Mitchum), a phony preacher who is really a con man who has murdered six widows for their money. He talks about what he did but Harry is unable to find out exactly where Ben hid the money. Ben is found guilty of murder and executed and, upon his release from jail, Harry decides the way to the money is through Ben's God fearing, simple-minded widow, Willa (Shelley Winters).
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Y8dX6ZKJe2o/maxresdefault.jpg
James Agee has crafted an edgy and adult screenplay (based on a novel by Davis Grubb) that takes a noir-ish thriller and mounts it atop a squirm-worthy canvas of seriously religious overtones that pervade the story. Though it doesn't always paint religious zealotry in the most flattering light, it does provide an uneasy and challenging basis for this often stomach-churning cinematic ride.
http://thefilmspectrum.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/Screen-Shot-2013-12-16-at-4.07.09-PM.png
The central character of Harry Powell is a cinematic enigma who scratches at the viewer's gut while commanding complete attention, thanks to Laughton's presentation of the character. On more than one occasion, the character enters a scene in complete silhouette singing a hymn, giving the character a creepiness that made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. We cringe as we watch a con man spitting out religious platitudes while abusing poor Willa and threatening her children with dismemberment.
https://cdn.britannica.com/45/176345-050-78325569/Robert-Mitchum-The-Night-of-the-Hunter.jpg
Laughton's dark direction gives this film an almost Hitchcock-like quality...many of the scenes are bathed in rich shadows and Laughton takes some memorable cinematic snapshots throughout. The image of Harry coming over that mountainside on that horse singing that hymn or the kids on the boat floating over that spider web or kindly old Mrs. Cooper, sitting on the porch, again in silhouette, rocking in her chair and holding a shotgun. These are images that will be burned in my memory for some time to come. I also loved Laughton's utilization of music throughout the film in all kinds of form as ways of creating atmosphere as well as advancing story.
https://flashbak.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Sally-Jane-Bruce-Billy-Chapin-and-Robert-Mitchum-in-The-Night-of-the-hunter-directed-by-Charles-Laughton-1955.jpg
Robert Mitchum does Oscar-worthy work as Harry Powell, undeniably chilling in its power and Shelley Winters once again shows why she was one of 1950's most popular cinematic doormats as the pathetic Willa. Lillian Gish was lovely as Mrs. Cooper as was James Gleason as a hard-drinking boat repairman. I also have to commend young Billy Chapin, who delivers a star-making performance as young John Harper. There were some minor story moves, or lack thereof, that I found puzzling, but for the most part I found this film to be a riveting experience. The film was remade for television in 1991 with Richard Chamberlain as Harry and Diana Scarwid as Willa. 4

[Gideon58]

A Perfect Murder
Some solid performances notwithstanding, 1998's A Perfect Murder is an overheated and overdirected re-thinking of Hitchcock's Dial M For Murder that provides a lot for the viewer to stay invested in, but interest wanes due to sledgehammer direction that takes away any pretense of what Hitchcock was a master at...suspense.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/5/5f/Perfectmurder.jpg/220px-Perfectmurder.jpg
Michael Douglas stars as Steven Taylor, a wealthy Wall Street wizard who, on the surface has a perfect life, including a glamorous trophy wife named Emily (Gwyneth Paltrow), a trust fund baby who works for the UN. When it comes to light that Emily is having an affair with an artist named David Shaw (Viggo Mortensen), instead of eliminating his rival, Taylor persuades David to murder his duplicitous wife, dangling the carrot of her huge trust fund in front of him, but the murder does not goes as planned and Steven's is not the only plan that begins to unravel.
https://seaofshoes.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Screen-Shot-2019-09-08-at-4.15.21-PM.jpg
Director Andrew Davis, who fared much better five years earlier directing Harrison Ford in The Fugitive, mounts this story with such obvious and labored direction that offers no suspense or imagination. Davis leaves nothing to chance in this story, crafting in often annoying detail every single aspect of this story, employing such a sledgehammer approach to the story that no surprises are found along the journey and no work is required from the viewer at all. Even the detective arriving at the scene of the murder seems to have figured out the entire thing the first moment we see him. The only thing Davis makes us do is tolerate the deadly pacing employed in his direction that makes an hour and 45 minute movie seem four hours long.
https://robsmovievault.files.wordpress.com/2013/09/846261.jpg
Davis does know how to create an appealing cinematic package. The film is beautifully photographed and first rate production values are employed, though a couple to the film's detriment. James Newton Howard's overbearing and headache-inducing music grated on the nerves as one of Davis' most essential tools in his spoon feeding of this story.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/m2tk7RatWsk/maxresdefault.jpg
On the plus side, I found Michael Douglas' effectively underplayed Steven Gold quite entertaining and Viggo Mortensen was properly smarmy as the artist/lover/blackmailer. Gwyneth Paltrow fails to convince as the adulterous wife, but my personal feelings about Paltrow as an actress may have colored my feelings about her work. There's nothing wrong with the idea of remaking Dial M For Murder, but I had to wonder if even Frederick Knott would have recognized what was going on here. 2.5