Welcome to the 329th Edition of my series. This week was a great
week for me as my friends Ashley and Stephen made a visit from
Philadelphia and Ashley's first visit in Indiana since her big move.
It's been a bit cold lately but good to know it is March where I know
the warm weather is coming soon. Now let's get to the recommendations
for the week.
Second City: The First Family of Comedy (2006): This
is my documentary for the week which is technically a mini-series.
This documentary takes a look at Second City known for improv that has
been around for many decades and has made the careers of many
comedians. It takes a look through the beginnings, their stint on tv as
SCTV, and into the modern day where they still teach classes
nationwide. It takes a look at many of their alums like Mike Myers,
Martin Short, Dan Aykroyd, Tina Fey, and many others. It also takes a
look at some of the most known characters like Ed Grimley, the McKenzie
Brothers and many others. Remember, this is a documentary. There is
some footage but mostly just talks about the history and people
reflecting on their times. Don't expect some all out comedy but this is
pretty insightful and is available on Instant Netflix.
Into
the West (1992): This is my tribute to actor David Kelly who recently
left us and is most known for playing the Grandfather in WILLY WONKA AND
THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY. This is my family oriented film for the week
where Kelly plays Grandpa Ward who finds a horse to give to his two
grandchildren. He is a lot of funny as the Irish storyteller. Gabriel
Byrne plays the father of the boys who means well but has alcohol
problems and lives in a slum. The boys soon take the horse to their
slum home but the horse is soon taken and sold to a shady businessman
provoking the boys to set out and find the horse. Ellen Barkin, Colm
Meaney, and Brendan Gleeson co-star in this very moving film that
orients to both the children and adults. I really liked Gabriel Byrne
in his part of playing the single father. I also liked the Irish
elements of the film. This is available on Instant Netflix and
something you can enjoy with the kids.
The Road Home
(2000): This is my Asian film that was directed by Yimou Zhang and
starred Ziyi Zhang and they went a much different route. They usually
do martial arts films but this one was a simple but beautiful love
story. The movie starts out in the modern day where a man's father dies
and his elderly mother wants a traditional burial. Honglei Sun plays
the part of Luo Yusheng who loses his father and reflects on the story
of how his parents meet that takes it to the flashback where Ziyi Zhang
plays Zhou Di who takes a liking to a new teacher, played by Hao Zheng,
who falls in love back but have a hard time being together in the class
system. I have always loved the Hong Kong cinema and this one did not
disappoint me. The story, acting, and music was beautiful. I can
always enjoy Ziyi Zhang in her films. This is another one available on
Instant Netflix.
Dr. Pyckle and Mr. Prick (1925): This
is my silent short for the week which is an early parody of I'm sure
you can guess. Stan Laurel of Laurel and Hardy fame plays the dual role
where he finds a potion hoping for balance and when taking it he turns
into quite the practical joker and eluding the police everywhere he
goes. These were some of the many solo shorts for Laurel before he
formed the famed comedy duo with Oliver Hardy. This is great for the
silent film and early cinema buffs. I found this on my Pub-D-Hub app on
my Roku player.
In the Heat of the Night (1967):
Sidney Poitier stars as Detective Virgil Tibbs who ends up in a small,
racist Mississippi town where a murder has occurred. He soon missed his
train and is soon asked to help in the case due to his homicide work in
Philadelphia. Rod Steiger plays the police chief Gillespie who does
not like having to work with Tibbs but knows it is important to solve
the murder. Warren Oates plays a deputy who seems to have some
secrets. This movie is filmed in a time where segregation was at a high
rise and Poitier once again does a movie where people are forced to
reexamine their beliefs. It was also a very well-done film directed by
Norman Jewison that turned into a successful tv series in the late 80s
but this film is far more significant.
The Importance
of Being Earnest (1952): This is a movie based on the play from Oscar
Wilde that takes place during Victorian London. Michael Redgrave and
Michael Denison star as Jack Worthing and Algernon Moncrieff and both
pretend to be someone they are not where they both are named "Earnest"
which leads to a case of mistaken identity with their significant
others. This movie does deliver a lot of laughs which is a satire on
the social norms of the era and wanting to escape all the social
obligations. This is one that is hard to explain but fun to watch.
This is available on Instant Netflix.
The Letter
(1940): I now bring Bette Davis who plays Leslie who is the wife of a
plantation owner. She soon kills another man and claims self defense.
The people around her believe her but then a letter comes about which
could prove her undoing. This was a very atmospheric film and a good
performances from Davis. There are a lot of gray areas in her character
where people will continue to guess. It is a great mystery taking
place in Singapore. William Wyler directed this film that I hope to put
back on the radar.
Black Swan (2010): Darren
Aronofsky directed this film that takes a look into the ballet
industry. This is not your inspirational film that many movies
provide. I honestly was not sure to expect that is was a dark movie on
ballet that stars Natalie Portman. Portman stars as Nina who is a
dedicated ballet student in New York whose life is ballet and living
through her mother, played by Barbara Hershey. Winona Ryder co-stars as
Beth who for years was the lead in ballets but gets replaced due to her
older age than the others. Soon Nina gets the part but finds
competition in Lily, played very well by Mila Kunis. Nina so goes into a
world of darkness where the line between real and fantasy becomes
blurred. Portman was great in her Oscar winning performance. Vincent
Cassel was also enjoyable as the dance instructor who is very
over-bearing to his dancers. This was quite a strange film but very
well-done if you are into this kind of thing.
Women
in Cages (1971): This is part two of my two-part Pam Grier series and
another one that takes place in a women's prison except that Pam is the
sadistic head of the prison in this one. When a prisoner out of line
she has quite the torture chamber and a variety of ways to torture
women. She is also a lesbian and seduces some of them. This is not
something for everyone just like last week's THE BIG BIRD CAGE. This
would be a good double feature though if a group of friends is looking
for this type of movie. This was B-movie and an exploitation film which
was before Grier became the Blaxploitation queen. This is available on
Instant Netflix.
The Last Lullaby (2008): I was
looking for something on Instant Netflix on my Roku and took interest in
this one. Tom Sizemore stars as hitman Price who is retired but does
not have that life of peace he was hoping for and instead has boredom
and restlessness. He is soon hired for another job that brings him out
of retirement. In searching for his target, he begins to fall in love
with a librarian named Sarah, played by Sasha Alexander, who has a dark
past. Price must soon decide what is more important between the job he
was hired to do or the happiness of his life. I like the complicated
love story element of the movie. Sizemore did a pretty good job in this
film and I would much prefer this over SHOOTING SIZEMORE.
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