Welcome to the 135th Edition of my series. I
got quite a bit of response from my top ten list I did which I
appreciated. I really hate trying to rank or rate movies myself. I just
choose ten I feel should be watched or which accomodate to everyone. I
do look forward to the American Film Institute special on Tuesday where
they will do their own top ten lists in ten different categories. I'm
sure that shortly after I will see many blogs on what should have and
should not have been on that list. Every year I look foward to these and
I never really put any critique to it because no matter what they do,
there will be debate. If you put ten people in the same room to discuss
each AFI top 100 list, you will get such an endless debate and maybe one
as pointless as a devout Christian and an atheist debating over the
existence of God. I may not always agree with AFI's choices but they are
the ones who gave me an appreciation of the classic cinema which is
credited to this blog which I have been doing for over two and a half
years now, yes I said it a weekly series for over TWO AND A HALF years. I
know, I don't believe it either. I think I have gone on long enough so
now for what you came to see.
Fritz the Cat (1972): This is the rated X movie I promised. I'm not sure if it still is or not but it is a very obscene cartoon about the cat of the title name who drops out of college and finds a world of sex and drugs. This was clearly satire to the 60s. This was a character created by underground comic-book artist Robert Crumb who is said to have had a lot of issues with this movie. This film had a lot of bizarre imagery which is very enjoyable but it is definetly not for everyone. While it may not call for an X rating by today's standards, it is clearly rated at least R.
The Spitfire Grill (1996): Now we tone down a bit where we go into a very small town in a film directed by Lee David Zlotoff. I decided to view this after seeing the musical version of this in a theater near my town which included my Myspace and Facebook friends Shanna (Percy), Brittney (Effy), and Jason (Sheriff). Allison Elliott stars as Percy who is paroled and decides to go to the small town of Gilead to start over and after getting a job in the local restaurant there is a lot of talk as to where she has been. In the meantime, she also builds a friendship with the restaurant owner and another female employee and helping to get the restaurant sold. This was a pretty decent portrayal of a small town and they also did a very good job at the Portland theater.
The Flame of New Orleans (1941): Rene Clair directed this film starring Marlene Dietrich. She plays a woman in the 1800s who juggles two identities who schemes to marry her banker but also has feelings for a sea captain who is not nearly as wealthy and she must figure out what she really wants. This was something that I enjoyed, not the greatest but it was still pretty good.
Superbad (2007): The Facebook friend I chose for this week was Bobby whose older brother was a friend of mine through high school. Greg Mottola directed this comedy. Jonah Hill and ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT alum Michael Cera star as long-time best friends who are dealing with both going to different colleges. They along with another friend scheme to score some alcohol hoping the girls are right behind so that they can get laid. I admit, while these movies are funny they are not always my favorite but I did feel a good message was sent at the end. Seth Rogen and Bill Hader are good as the two cops. Hill and Cera were very good in their breakthrough movie roles. Another that is not really for everyone but for many.
Urbania (2000): Jon Matthews directed this strange odyssey. Dan Futterman plays Charlie who is a gay man wandering New York City with one hour of daylight savings time left and must fulfill his goals whatever they might be. In his journey, he encounters many strange people, one of which a tattooed man he befriends. Alan Cumming is amusing in his small role. There is not much to say on this but it is shot in flashbacks so it needs to be watched closely and is quite dark.
The Wrong Man (1956): I now bring in the "Master of Suspense" Alfred Hitchcock who uses his common theme of mistaken identity but the biggest difference from all his other movies was that this was true which Hitchcock has a disclaimer about how this story is stranger than fiction. Henry Fonda plays Manny, a musician who is mistaken for an armed robber who has been commiting many robberies and had some resemblance. Vera Miles is great as his wife who has a rough time dealing with her husband's ordeal. Hitchcock filmed a lot around New York where he shot a part in the cell that the real-life Manny was in at the time and he cast a lot of the real-life witnesses as extras. This was a very well-shot, well-acted and an all-around good film.
Story of Women (1988): This is my foreign film for the week which takes place in WWII France in a true story based on Marie-Louise Giraud who was the last woman to receive the guillotine in France. Her crime was committing abortions in a time where she needed money and many resorted to some extreme measures. Isabelle Huppert plays Giraud and plays the role very well where she is also having a lot of problems with her marriage. This movie also had some disturbing images but it was a very well-done movie.
Charlie Chan at the Circus (1936): I now introduce Charlie Chan to this blog and I will also admit that this is the 1st Charlie Chan film I have seen. While I don't believe I am going to prioritize to watch each Charlie Chan film like I do the James Bond movies, this was very entertaining, especially after some of the dark stuff I have featured. Warner Oland, the first Charlie Chan, stars in the title role and after taking his family to the circus, a murder occurs and he stays to try to solve it. Yes, Warner Oland was one of many Americans to play the chinese detective and if anyone tried doing it today, it would be absolute racist. Keye Luke, an actual Asian, plays Chan's funny nephew. The other entertainment was all the circus elements and the tension after the murder.
Ronin (1998): I chose this movie in tribute to actress Natasha McElhone whose husband recently died. This is also the start of a Robert De Niro series which might run about 4 weeks. Here, he plays a former US Intelligence officer named Sam who is hired, along with other freelance workers, to find a mysterious case wanted by the Russians and Irish. French actor Jean Reno plays one of the professional killers hired who forms a close friendship with Sam which is a very notable moment in this movie in my opinion. This is something that needs to be followed very closely. The term Ronin refers to Samarai who were banished and must look for work by hire or become a bandit. John Frankenheimer directed this thriller.
Lord Love a Duck (1966): I end with this
tribute to the late Harvey Korman. This was a strange comedy starring
Roddy McDowell who helps a young, blonde girl, played by Tuesday Weld,
get the things she wants in life. This movie is a satire to the teen
mores like beach movies. Korman is good as the principal trying to keep
things together and Roddy is hilarious in a very underrated performance
who seems to be able to help anyone get what they want.Fritz the Cat (1972): This is the rated X movie I promised. I'm not sure if it still is or not but it is a very obscene cartoon about the cat of the title name who drops out of college and finds a world of sex and drugs. This was clearly satire to the 60s. This was a character created by underground comic-book artist Robert Crumb who is said to have had a lot of issues with this movie. This film had a lot of bizarre imagery which is very enjoyable but it is definetly not for everyone. While it may not call for an X rating by today's standards, it is clearly rated at least R.
The Spitfire Grill (1996): Now we tone down a bit where we go into a very small town in a film directed by Lee David Zlotoff. I decided to view this after seeing the musical version of this in a theater near my town which included my Myspace and Facebook friends Shanna (Percy), Brittney (Effy), and Jason (Sheriff). Allison Elliott stars as Percy who is paroled and decides to go to the small town of Gilead to start over and after getting a job in the local restaurant there is a lot of talk as to where she has been. In the meantime, she also builds a friendship with the restaurant owner and another female employee and helping to get the restaurant sold. This was a pretty decent portrayal of a small town and they also did a very good job at the Portland theater.
The Flame of New Orleans (1941): Rene Clair directed this film starring Marlene Dietrich. She plays a woman in the 1800s who juggles two identities who schemes to marry her banker but also has feelings for a sea captain who is not nearly as wealthy and she must figure out what she really wants. This was something that I enjoyed, not the greatest but it was still pretty good.
Superbad (2007): The Facebook friend I chose for this week was Bobby whose older brother was a friend of mine through high school. Greg Mottola directed this comedy. Jonah Hill and ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT alum Michael Cera star as long-time best friends who are dealing with both going to different colleges. They along with another friend scheme to score some alcohol hoping the girls are right behind so that they can get laid. I admit, while these movies are funny they are not always my favorite but I did feel a good message was sent at the end. Seth Rogen and Bill Hader are good as the two cops. Hill and Cera were very good in their breakthrough movie roles. Another that is not really for everyone but for many.
Urbania (2000): Jon Matthews directed this strange odyssey. Dan Futterman plays Charlie who is a gay man wandering New York City with one hour of daylight savings time left and must fulfill his goals whatever they might be. In his journey, he encounters many strange people, one of which a tattooed man he befriends. Alan Cumming is amusing in his small role. There is not much to say on this but it is shot in flashbacks so it needs to be watched closely and is quite dark.
The Wrong Man (1956): I now bring in the "Master of Suspense" Alfred Hitchcock who uses his common theme of mistaken identity but the biggest difference from all his other movies was that this was true which Hitchcock has a disclaimer about how this story is stranger than fiction. Henry Fonda plays Manny, a musician who is mistaken for an armed robber who has been commiting many robberies and had some resemblance. Vera Miles is great as his wife who has a rough time dealing with her husband's ordeal. Hitchcock filmed a lot around New York where he shot a part in the cell that the real-life Manny was in at the time and he cast a lot of the real-life witnesses as extras. This was a very well-shot, well-acted and an all-around good film.
Story of Women (1988): This is my foreign film for the week which takes place in WWII France in a true story based on Marie-Louise Giraud who was the last woman to receive the guillotine in France. Her crime was committing abortions in a time where she needed money and many resorted to some extreme measures. Isabelle Huppert plays Giraud and plays the role very well where she is also having a lot of problems with her marriage. This movie also had some disturbing images but it was a very well-done movie.
Charlie Chan at the Circus (1936): I now introduce Charlie Chan to this blog and I will also admit that this is the 1st Charlie Chan film I have seen. While I don't believe I am going to prioritize to watch each Charlie Chan film like I do the James Bond movies, this was very entertaining, especially after some of the dark stuff I have featured. Warner Oland, the first Charlie Chan, stars in the title role and after taking his family to the circus, a murder occurs and he stays to try to solve it. Yes, Warner Oland was one of many Americans to play the chinese detective and if anyone tried doing it today, it would be absolute racist. Keye Luke, an actual Asian, plays Chan's funny nephew. The other entertainment was all the circus elements and the tension after the murder.
Ronin (1998): I chose this movie in tribute to actress Natasha McElhone whose husband recently died. This is also the start of a Robert De Niro series which might run about 4 weeks. Here, he plays a former US Intelligence officer named Sam who is hired, along with other freelance workers, to find a mysterious case wanted by the Russians and Irish. French actor Jean Reno plays one of the professional killers hired who forms a close friendship with Sam which is a very notable moment in this movie in my opinion. This is something that needs to be followed very closely. The term Ronin refers to Samarai who were banished and must look for work by hire or become a bandit. John Frankenheimer directed this thriller.
That is it for this week. I focused on a lot of depressing moments this week but I still balanced with comedy. So as always, leave your comments, what did you like and what did you hate?
HONORABLE MENTION
Lenore: The Cute Little Dead Girl: This was one of the many strange things I have seen at Bill's house that we all watched one night. This was a collection of many weird animation shorts with a girl of the title character. This was inspired by the Edgar Allen Poe story LENORE and these are many dark, bizarre, and funny animation shorts. These are very hard to explain and they can be seen on youtube. These are not for everyone but those who it is for will probably like these, even I couldn't help but sit through these, something laughing, sometimes in shock and always just curious to this girl who does wrong but seems to think she is doing right.
CONNECTION TIME
-Ellen Burstyn (The Spitfire Grill) and Roddy McDowell (Lord Love a Duck) were in the 1994 film The Color of Evening
-Ellen Burstyn (The Spitfire Grill) and Tuesday Weld (Lord Love a Duck) were in the 1986 tv movie Something in Common
-Marcia Gay Harden (The Spitfire Grill) and Dan Futterman (Urbania) were in the 1996 film Far Harbor
-Will Patton (The Spitfire Grill) and Dan Futterman (Urbania) were in the 2007 film A Mighty Heart
-Will Patton (The Spitfire Grill) and Paige Turco (Urbania) were in the 2001 tv series The Agency
-Marlene Dietrich (The Flame of New Orleans) and Henry Fonda (The Wrong Man) made cameos in the 1949 film noir Jigsaw
-Marlene Dietrich (The Flame of New Orleans) and Warner Oland (Charlie Chan) were in the 1931 film Dishonored and the 1932 film Shanghai Express
-Bruce Cabot (The Flame of New Orleans) and Henry Fonda (The Wrong Man) were in the 1965 film In Harm's Way
-Bruce Cabot (The Flame of New Orleans) and Vera Miles (The Wrong Man) were in the 1968 films The Green Berets and Hellfighters
-Melville Cooper (The Flame of New Orleans) and Henry Fonda (The Wrong Man) were in the 1941 films The Lady Eve and You Belong To Me and the 1943 film Immortal Sergeant
-Dan Futterman (Urbania) and Robert De Niro (Ronin) are in the upcoming 2008 film Righteous Kill
-Alan Cumming (Urbania) and Stellan Skarsgard (Ronin) are in the upcoming 2008 film Boogie Woogie
-Alan Cumming (Urbania) and Sean Bean (Ronin) were in the 1994 film Black Beauty and the 1995 Bond film Goldeneye
-Henry Fonda (The Wrong Man) and Roddy McDowell (Lord Love a Duck) were in the 1962 film The Longest Day
-Harold J. Stone (The Wrong Man) and Roddy McDowell (Lord Love a Duck) were in the 1965 film The Greatest Story Ever Told
-Robert De Niro (Ronin) and Tuesday Weld (Lord Love a Duck) were in the 1984 film Once Upon a Time in America
-Ronin actors Sean Bean, Jonathan Pryce, and Michael Lonsdale have all been arch-enemies to 007 James Bond
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