Welcome to the 325th Edition of my long running series. Tonight we
witness the Super Bowl which takes place in my own state in
Indianapolis, Indiana where the most hated team the Patriots get to
play. This is a rematch from where the Giants defeated the Patriots in a
Super Bowl. I am actually a 49ers fan as most know and they got
knocked out and I have always had a rather neutral view towards the
Patriots and part of me just hopes they win so that I can see all the
posts from the angry Colts fans on Facebook. On the other hand, we have
a Manning winning the Super Bowl. What do I really want? I think I'd
really rather just see a good game.
Saturday Night
Live: The Best of Alec Baldwin (2005): I guess this technically is not
a movie but it's my blog and in my mind this qualifies so I'm pushing
the envelope. Alec Baldwin is known as one of the best hosts of all
time and they put together a few sketches they believe are his best.
They did a Joe Pesci Show where he impersonates Robert De Niro and feel
he has done the best of those impersonations. He also has the Tony
Bennett show where he impersonates Bennett and does a great job. There
is also an impersonation on Charles Nelson Reilly. We also see his
famous character Pete Schweddy who came up with "Schweddy Balls". There
was one Family Feud sketch I recall where his brothers were all on it I
would have liked to see but there are still some good laughs on here.
Twisted:
A Balloonamentary (2007): This a documentary on balloon making and
features a handful of balloon artists who are very passionate about what
they do. I really learned a lot on this film and did not know how much
people really make a living out of this. It also features many balloon
conventions in some very clever work from balloons which were actually
quite amazing. One person who did it for religious reasons made Jesus
on the cross. Another made a wedding dress out of white balloons. The
list here is endless for balloons but what fascinated me even more was
the personalities of these people. I noticed that on imdb.com there is
not much response to this so I'm hoping to get this on the radar. I got
this on DVD from Netflix. Jon Stewart narrates an amusing animation
scene.
Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole
(2010): This is my animated film for the week through Fox Studios and
directed by Zack Snyder. As you might have guessed this movie is
centered around owls. Jim Sturgess voices Soren who comes from a good
owl family but along with his brother is abducted by owls of St. Aggies
who abduct young owls to brainwash them to be part of their army. He
soon makes a daring escape and joins the owls of Ga'Hoole who look to
stop the St. Aggies. Helen Mirren, Sam Neill, Geoffrey Rush, Hugo
Weaving, and many others lend their voices to this rather compelling
film. Keep in mind this is rated PG so it may not be for really young
children as it has some pretty disturbing action scenes. If you can get
past that though, this is very enjoyable. This is based on a comic
book series.
Dick Tracy: The Gold Ship (1937): This
is an episode of a serial in which the famed comic book detective is
brought to life for the first time in a 15 episode serial which I
suppose was a tv series for that era. Ralph Byrd plays the title
character who throughout the serial goes against his rival the Spider.
In this one he is on a burning boat and must save everyone and survive.
I found this on TCM On-Demand. I really did not watch any after this
but looks like this was a pretty good serial with this episode. This is
based on the comic book series from Chester Gould that ran from 1031 to
1977 which was pretty groundbreaking for that era. This was pretty
violent for a comic strip and the villains were always very creative.
Gould also tried using the most current crime techniques to make it
rather realistic.
The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (1947): This
is one of my favorites from this era. Gene Tierney stars as the
widowed Lucy Muir who moves her daughter and maid to a seaside cottage
shortly after her husband dies. She soon learns that the house is
haunted where she soon meets the former owner Captain Gregg, played very
well by Rex Harrison. They soon form an unusual relationship but must
decide their feelings for her when a living man named Miles, played by
George Sanders, enters her life. Natalie Wood plays Lucy's daughter as a
child. I really enjoyed this love story and the way Lucy and the
Captain interact. There is a blend of drama and comedy in this film
that make it very enjoyable.
Bonnie and Clyde (1967):
Arthur Penn directed this account of the famed robbers Bonnie Parker and
Clyde Barrow. Warren Beatty played the part of Clyde and Faye Dunaway
plays Bonnie. Gene Hackman plays Clyde's brother Buck and Estelle
Parsons plays his wife Blanche. Michael J. Pollard plays C.W. Moss who
was their getaway driver. Together they went on quite the crime spree
during the depression and focuses on the love affair between the two
characters. Gene Wilder makes his film debut in a small part as someone
who gets picked up by the gang. This is considered by many to be one
of the best films of all time and started kind of an anti-hero approach
with other films like with DILLINGER and BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE
KID. The film is quite romanticized but has quite a bit of historical
accuracy with it. The leads were great and the film entertains
throughout.
Suspicion (1941): This is part two of what
will likely be a two part Alfred Hitchcock series. Joan Fontaine stars
as Lina who is a shy Englishwoman who falls for a charming man named
Johnnie, played by Cary Grant. Soon after they meet, they get married
but the marriage becomes quite difficult when Lina begins to suspect her
husband will kill her. Fontaine was very good as the suspicious wife
and Grant plays his part very well. Like much of Hitchcock, it combines
suspense with dark comedy very well. The only issue with this film is
the ending of which Hitchcock was forced to use due to the strict
censorship standards but I won't reveal anything so that you can all
find out for yourselves and you should because it's still a great film.
Persona
(1966): This is the Co-Op film series selection for the week that was
presented by Travis last Tuesday. Ingmar Bergman directed this Swedish
film which stars Liv Ullmann who plays an actress named Elizabeth Vogler
who will not talk. Bibi Anderson stars as Alma, the nurse assigned to
help Elizabeth. Alma soon begins to confess her secrets to Elizabeth
who she feels is a great listener with her lack of talking but soon
finds her personality being submerged into Elizabeth's persona. This is
a film of which is not for everyone and for those who watch it will
continue to have questions but that is the beauty of the film. Both
actresses work so well together. This is something that if you're
brought in, you cannot let go. This may also demand multiple viewings.
When Travis chooses his films, he likes to challenge his audience and
really succeeded on this one. On Tuesday, he will be presenting the
2008 film ATONEMENT so if you're in the area, come out to Bracken
Library for a free movie.
The Last Survivor (2010):
This is my second documentary for this week. While the first one is
more fun and upbeat, this one is quite sad but inspirational. This
movie looks at a handful of survivors from the Holocaust and the
genocide in Rwanda, Darfur, and Congo who become advocates for a better
future. They give a great first-hand experience of the horrible things
they went through but how they came to be survivors. I am hoping that I
can get this on the radar as I see it has not had a lot of distribution
but it is very obtainable. If you go on
http://www.thelastsurvivor.com, it gives a lot of information about the
film and even a place to donate to the cause. This documentary is
available on the website snagfilms.com and I have Snag Films as an app
on my Roku player where people who love documentaries can find some very
good ones.
Fright Night (1985): I end this week with
this classic vampire comedy which still gives some chills. William
Ragsdale stars as high school student Charley who is a vampire film buff
and learns that his new next-door neighbor is a vampire. When Charley
tries to tell people, no one will believe him, even his girlfriend Amy,
played by MARRIED...WITH CHILDREN alum Amanda Bearse. He soon turns to
washed up actor Peter Vincent, played very well by Roddy McDowell, who
hosts Charley's favorite show of the movie title where Charley believes
he really is that person. He finally agrees to help Charley for the
money even if he does not agree but soon sees the truth. Chris Sarandon
plays the vampire Jerry Dandridge who is not one of those vampires who
sparkles or looks for love with Kristen Stewart. Dandridge is a vampire
who is charming, but very ruthless and actually kills people. This is a
classic from the 80s and a great entry into the vampire genre.
Well
that is it for this week in the film selections but I have an honorable
mention below. Tell me what you like and what you dislike. Stay tuned
for next week so far includes Bette Davis, Jeff Bridges, and many
others.
HONORABLE THEATER MENTION
Monty
Python's Spamalot: Last night, my mom and I went to Wabash, Indiana to
the Honeywell Center to see this touring musical. Monty Python alum
Eric Idle wrote this musical as they say lovingly ripped off of MONTY
PYTHON AND THE HOLY GRAIL. This musical is one that will give lots of
laughs and even spoofs musicals and talking about what goes into a
musical. In this, King Arthur leads his knights in search of the Holy
Grail. One of the highlights was the Lady of the Lake and being
portrayed like a diva. Mike Nichols who directed films like THE
GRADUATE and THE BIRDCAGE directed this musical. This was a very fun
night with my mom with a great musical. Before seeing this show, it
would likely help to have seen MONTY PYTHON AND THE HOLY GRAIL and LIFE
OF BRIAN. When seeing that you'll see the black knight, the killer
rabbit, and many other references from the films. I just want to tell
everyone to always look on the bright side of life.
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