Welcome to the 292nd Edition of my series. Last weekend, I took part in
a local Ball State University film called NERDVANA as an extra along
with my mom. I have no idea if I will see the movie and what they will
show. I really hope in the future I can get some feature role in a
film. I'm a little later than usual but I now have weekends off for now
and will likely start posting on Sundays again. Let's now get to my
selections for this week.
Yes (2004): This is the 32nd link on
The Chain and this one continues with Joan Allen. This is a film told
in the form of iambic pentameter. Joan Allen plays the character of
She, yes you read that right, who is a scientist in a loveless marriage
with a devious politician, played by Sam Neill. Simon Abkarian plays He
in this film and is a Lebanese doctor in self-imposed exile and working
as a chef in a London restaurant. They soon form a very passionate
affair where soon He dumps She which makes She look for answers as to
why. What I liked most was the narration scenes with Shirley Henderson
who is credited as Cleaner. This will be of interest to some but you
must really follow and accept the slow pace with the iambic pentameter.
Invaders
from Mars (1953): This is my sci-fi film of the week which goes beyond
the B-movie and is an actual good film. Jimmy Hunt stars as young boy
David who is convinced he sees a spaceship. When his father goes to
investigate, he comes back a very changed man. A man who was once very
outgoing and very good to his son has turned very rude and
confrontational and soon more townspeople are becoming like this. David
is then able to get a scientist friend of his father and female
psychologist to help him knowing he is not one to just make things up.
This is a sci-fi film which has some pretty strong messages and a good
story. This is available on Instant Netflix.
The Good Egg
(1945): This is my animated short for the week which I found on my
Pub-D-Hub app on my Roku which is through Looney Tunes and a WWII
propaganda short. This features a pig named Mr. Hook who must decide on
whether or not to invest in War Bonds. This was a pretty interesting
propaganda short and a rather short-lived Looney Tunes character which
would likely lose to Porky Pig but still watchable short.
Ratatouille
(2007): This is part two of my Ian Holm series which features his
voice in this great Pixar film. The movie centers around a rat named
Remy, voiced by Patton Oswalt, who is tired of the conventional food and
wants something bigger. Remy also idolizes the late Gusteau, played by
Brad Garrett, who wrote a book called ANYONE CAN COOK. Remy soon ends
up in Paris at Gusteau's restaurant and is curious to find some good
food. Soon joining the business is Linguini, a rather clumsy young man
who Remy learns to control to make dishes making everyone thing Linguini
is a great cook but the manager there is determined to find out what is
really happening. This movie has some great moments and holds its
place high in Pixar as well as animated history.
Craig Ferguson: Does This Need to be Said (2011): Tony found this on
Instant Netflix and I made the decision to watch this and consider it a
movie. This is a stand-up comedy concert in which he emphasizes that he
loves to swear. He also has some pretty funny pop-culture references.
There is also a pretty good impersonation on Ellen Degenerous'
dancing. His final dance number is hilarious. This is really for fans
of the late night host.
Son of Rambow (2007): I had no idea what to expect for this one. This
movie takes place during the time of the release of FIRST BLOOD. We
first meet a boy named Will who is part of a very strict religious
family and has to go to the hall when watching videos in a classroom.
He then meets Lee who is more rebellious and makes strange films. They
soon form an unusual bond and decide to make a movie of the title in
tribute to Rambo. This movie takes a great look at childhood and make
believe.
Imitation of Life (1934): I was looking for something from this era and
when searching through titles on my Instant Netflix on Roku, I was sold
right away. Claudette Colbert stars as the widowed Bea who is a single
mother to Jessie who in the beginning is about two or three. She
struggles to make it but things change when a very respectful black
woman named Delilah and her daughter Peola come to her home by mistake
when Delilah is answering a job ad. Bea lets her know that it was not
the right place and Delilah asks her to let them stay in their home and
she would cook food and other things so they agree. Through the years,
they become a great team with Delilah's skills in cooking pancakes. It
also focuses a lot on the daughters in their growing up. Louise Beavers
was great as Delilah and Colbert was good as Bea. This is a great film
that focuses on these characters and how they grow through the years. I
had never heard of it but Instant Netflix really came through for me on
this one and might for many others.
The Saragossa Manuscript (1965): This is my Polish film for the week
which was directed by Wojciech Has. Zbigniew Cybulski stars as Alfonse,
a soldier during the Napoleonic Wars and finds a book that relates to
his Grandfather's story. We then see him in a fantasy world and telling
this story. This is quite the epic fantasy film that mixes well with a
war story. This is great for foreign film buffs.
Midnight Cowboy (1969): Jon Voight stars in this film as the naive Joe
Buck who has had enough in Texas and moves to New York trying to become a
hustler. He soon meets Ratzo Rizzo, played very well by Dustin
Hoffman, who helps him become a good hustler and forms an unusual
friendship. There were some pretty steamy scenes that people were not
used to and the film was originally rated X and the only X-rated film to
win an oscar. This movie is not for everyone but it does have a pretty
good story and performances which I believe was Voight at his best.
This also contains the Harry Nilsson hit EVERYBODY'S TALKIN'.
True Grit (2010): Tony got this movie on Netflix and I jumped right at
it looking forward to seeing Jeff Bridges as marshall Rooster Cogburn in
the Coen Brothers remake. Hailee Steinfeld stars as Mattie, a tough
and stubborn 14 year old girl who is determined to bring her father's
killer to justice. When hearing about Rooster Cogburn and how mean and
unsympathetic he is, she looks to hire him to find the killer. He
reluctantly takes the job and along with Texas Ranger Labeouf, played by
Matt Damon, they set out to find the gang who killed Mattie's father.
Barry Pepper plays Lucky Ned Pepper and is almost unrecognizable but
very good. Josh Brolin plays Chaney who killed Mattie's father. This
was a great western and a very good remake of a film that once starred
John Wayne. I did like the original but am not one of John Wayne's
bigger fans so I had no problem with a remake starring Jeff Bridges.
Steinfeld was very good in her breakthrough performance. The Coen
Brothers paid great respect to the western genre and to a classic film
to show how to make a good remake.
Well, that is it for this week. I kind of wrote a lot of this at the
last minute so please forgive what may be lackluster writing. Tell me
what you like and dislike. Stay tuned for next week which so far
includes more Joan Allen, Kristen Bell, and many others. This week I
decided to do an honorable mention from the world of theater.
HONORABLE THEATER MENTIONS
Avenue Q: I got to see this last Thursday night at the Phoenix Theater
in Indianpolis. This show has been a hit on Broadway for years now. I
suppose this could be referred to as the adult SESEME STREET. There are
three human characters in Brian, Christmas Eve, and Gary Coleman. Yes,
Gary Coleman and the lady playing Coleman was great. Coleman is the
super in the apartment complex this takes place. The other characters
have the use of puppets which centers around a recent college graduate
named Princeton who is struggling to find his purpose in life. Other
puppet characters include Kate Monster, Trekkie Monster, Nicky, Rod,
Lucy the Slut, among others. This musical deals with many controversial
issues like race, sexuality, and many other things. There are also
puppets having sex. The Phoenix Theater cast this show very well and is
playing into July so check out their website on phoenixtheatre.org to
see their performances. Thursdays are $15 and the rest are $30. As I
have described so far, this is likely not a show to take your children
to but is a great puppet show for the adults.
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