Welcome to the 383rd Edition of my series. I hope you've all had a
good St. Patrick's Day. Next week, my friends Ashley and Stephen return
for one night only and play at the Folly Moon from 7-8 so come on out
if you can. I will now get to my recommendations for the week.
Silver
Linings Playbook (2012): I start this week off with one of the most
successful films from the year which was directed by David O. Russell
and adapted from a Matthew Quick novel. Bradley Cooper stars as former
teacher Pat Solitano Jr. who has just been released from a mental
institution for his bi-polar disorder and beating up the lover of his
wife Nikki who has since put a restraining order on him. He moves back
with his parents and tries to reconnect with them and hopes to reconnect
with his wife. Robert De Niro is great as his football crazed father
and Jacki Weaver is good as his mother. In his hoping to reconnect with
his wife, he meets a girl named Tiffany, played very well by Jennifer
Lawrence, through some of his friends and form a bit of a love/hate
relationship. Tiffany has issues of her own but together, they begin to
help each other making Pat see things a bit different. Cooper appears
to finally be getting out of his HANGOVER typecast in this very good
performance. Chris Tucker, Julia Stiles, Dash Mihok, among others
co-star in this well-done independent film. Going into this, I honestly
did not really know what to expect or what the movie was really about
but really liked it. I liked that it took place in Philadelphia after I
had visited there last summer and plan to visit again this summer. I
also liked Tucker more than I have in a more toned down role. The
acting, story, and characters made this a great watch for me and feel it
has deserved all the awards it has been given.
Marley
and Me (2008): This is part two of my Jennifer Aniston series. Owen
Wilson and Jennifer Aniston star as John and Jennifer Grogan who when we
first see them have just gotten married. John is advised to get his
wife a dog in order to stall her "biological clock" so he does just that
and gets a dog they call Marley. They find this dog has no
self-discipline and have a very hard time controlling the dog, even when
he becomes fully grown. John works for a newspaper and becomes a
columnist and is able to use the antics of Marley for his new column
which becomes very entertaining to readers. The couple soon begins
having kids and having a family where while Marley is wild, he is still
very loving to the family. This is more a portrait about a family
through the years where the dog is a part of that family and it focuses
on the ups and downs of real-life. I really did not know what to expect
but I really liked this movie and is a good family movie that can teach
everyone the value of family. Eric Dane, Kathleen Turner, and Alan
Arkin co-star in this movie. I did not know until afterwords that this
is based on a true story and based on a book by the real John Grogan.
It is also interesting and accidental that both of my movies are at
least partly filmed in Philadelphia.
Che (2008): This
is part two of my two-part Julia Ormond series in which she plays
interviewer Lisa Howard. This is two-part film that focuses on
Argentine doctor Ernesto "Che" Guevara which was directed by Steven
Soderbergh. This focuses mostly on him and Fidel Castro, played by
Demian Bichir, who lead a military effort to overthrow Cuban dictator
Fulgencio Batista. Benicio Del Toro plays Guevara and does a very good
job. He portrays a man who really believes in the cause and will do
whatever he can to see that it happens which make him very revered as
well as reviled through the years. This is based on writings Che which
include REMINISCENCES OF A CUBAN REVOLUTIONARY WAR and something called
BOLIVIAN DIARY. Franka Potente, Catalina Sandino Moreno, Lou Diamond
Philips, and Matt Damon all have parts in this rather compelling biopic
Through the years Guevara has gone onto being quite the pop-culture
icon as a revolutionary with that iconic photo that people use and even
parody with other things. He is seen by many as a freedom fighter.
Others will dismiss his hero ways and consider him more of an
executioner than anything. This is in some ways from the point of view
of Guevara as it was based on his writings and portrays him as human and
really believes in his cause so people can take it how they want. Both
parts are available on Instant Netflix and they are borth a little over
two hours each so about four and a half hours total but be aware that
they are mostly English subtitles. Del Toro was the perfect casting and
worth a look.
Hoppy-Go Lucky (1952): This is my
animation short for the week which feature Sylvester the Cat and his
bigger cat friend Benny who always refers to Sylvester as George. Benny
is determined to get a mouse as as a pet and wants Sylvester to get it
for him. He soon encounters the Hippety Hopper who he believes is a
giant mouse but is really a kangaroo. Sylvester makes many unsuccessful
attempts so Benny tries on his own but is not much more successful.
These characters are based on the characters George and Lennie from the
Steinbeck novel OF MICE AND MEN and if you have read the book or seen
any film or play adaptations it really shows here. I don't really know
much background on the Benny character since we all know Sylvester would
go onto being one of the main characters. This was a very funny short
that is well worth a watch. It is something that can be found on
youtube.
The Girl Who Knew Too Much (1963): This is my
Italian movie for the week directed by Mario Bava. Leticia Roman plays
a tourist named Nora whose vacation takes a turn for the worst when she
witnesses a murder which is suspected to be from a serial killer called
the Alphabet Killer. At first, no one believes her because the body
was not found but is determined to get to the truth. John Saxon
co-stars as Dr. Bassi who comes to believe Nora and helps her
investigate the murders. This is the start of the Giallo films and is a
great start. Giallo is a very significant part of the horror genre and
Bava was one of the best. This is a very intriguing and well-done film
available on Instant Netflix.
Our Hospitality (1923):
This is my silent comedy for the week which stars Buster Keaton who
also co-directed. Keaton stars as Willie McKay has lived in the city
for many years due to a family feud that his mother did not want him to
be part of but returns to claim his estate. When returning he meets a
woman who turns out to be one of the Canfields which his family has
feuded with for years and puts his life in danger by the men in her
family. This is an obvious jab at the real-life Hatfield and McCoy name
and a not so subtle renaming of the families. This is a great satire
and in my opinion Keaton's best movie. He performed some pretty extreme
stunts like the waterfall scene. This movie is available on Instant
Netflix and is a must for any silent movie buff and is a comedy that
many can enjoy.
Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003):
This is part two of my two-part Johnny Depp series. Robert Rodriguez
directed this which is the third part of his "Mariachi" trilogy. In
1992, he directed the Mexican independent film EL MARIACHI which starred
Carlos Gallardo as the title character who is mistaken for an assassin
who carries a guitar full of guns and shows how the mariachi becomes who
he becomes. The next one came in 1995 and you may know that as
DESPERADO which Antonio Banderas takes over the role and possible what
got him the mainstream exposure here in the United States. In this one,
Banderas reprises his role as the assassin. This takes place in both
the modern era and flashbacks from El Mariachi. In this one, he is
hired by a corrupt CIA agent named Sands, played by Johnny Depp, to go
after a powerful drug lord. In some ways, this is my guilty pleasure as
this movie has some pretty good stylized shooting scenes. One of the
problems is there is less focus on the main character and more on
Sands. That being said, Depp is a lot of fun as the psychotic cop who
always has his own motives for doing things. Salma Hayek, Cheech Marin,
Mickey Rourke, Eva Mendes, Willem Dafoe, Enrique Iglesias, and many
others. While I liked the first couple better, this was still a lot of
fun and always enjoy it when I see Mickey Rourke who always had his
chihuahua with him. This is a good way to end a good trilogy and this
one is available on instant Netflix but don't overlook the first two
movies in the trilogy.
Bedtime for Bonzo (1951): I
found this at my local library and it is something my Dad likes so
decided to give it a shot. Our former president Ronald Reagan stars as
Professor Peter Boyd who is engaged to be married to the dean's
daughter, played by Lucille Barkley. The dean becomes really uneasy
about this arrangement when finding out that his father was a habitual
criminal. He then decides to take in a lab chimp named Bonzo in an
experiment to prove that it is the environment that affects the reaction
to right and wrong. Diana Lynn co-stars as Jane who is hired as the
housekeeper and to be the mother figure to Bonzo. This is a very fun
movie and possibly Reagan's best in his film career. This actually
became more popular during Reagan's 1980 presidential campaign and is at
least worth a look.
The Candidate (1972): I figured
this political satire would be fitting for the times we are having.
Michael Ritchie directed this film and Jeremy Larner wrote the Oscar
winning screenplay. Robert Redford stars as attorney Bill McKay who
always fights for the everyday people. He is the son of a former
politician, played by Melvyn Douglas, and is soon asked to run for
senate in a race where he does not stand a chance nor do they intend for
him to win. With this, he is under the understanding that he can
handle the campaign in his own way and unexpectedly begins to win over
more and more people with his ideals. This is a formula that most
notably started with the 1939 classic MR. SMITH GOES TO WASHINGTON where
a more everyday, idealistic person gets to be a politician and portray
that person that we all want in office. This movie does a very good job
with it and Redford is really good as Bill. Peter Boyle, Karen
Carlson, and Allen Garfield co-star in this well-written political
comedy.
X-Men (2000): I end with this Marvel film.
Bryan Singer directed this superhero film which in some ways started a
resurgence in this genre, especially with Marvel. I watched that
cartoon some on tv when I was a kid after school and admit this was the
only real exposure I ever had of them so I cannot judge this movie based
on the comic book. This movie is more of an introduction movie where
we first meet Wolverine, played by Hugh Jackman, and Rogue, played by
TRUE BLOOD star Anna Paquin, who are a couple loners and mutants trying
to figure themselves out and have a chance encounter. Unexpected
circumstances lead them to a private mutant academy where they meet the
X-Men and find their identity. One of the main ideas about this movie
is that it takes place in a world where there are humans and mutants
which are people who have special powers. In this world, the mutants
are quite feared by the humans who fear the unknown. The main
characters that are X-men in this one are its leader Professor Charles
Xavier, played by STAR TREK alum Patrick Stewart, Cyclops, played by
James Marsden, Storm, played by Halle Berry, Jean Grey, played by Famke
Janssen, and the two I mentioned. Xavier is determined to win over the
humans and co-exist with them but his team is being challenged by his
former friend Magneto, played by Ian McKellan, and his guys which mainly
consist of Sabretooth, played by Tyler Mane, Mystique, played by
Rebecca Romijn, and Toad, played by Ray Park. This is the movie which
made Hugh Jackman famous in America who was perfect in terms of his
looks and personality to be Wolverine. The other casting choices were
pretty good as well. It then leads up into a good climax in the statue
of liberty. I have heard that these characters were created by Stan Lee
as a statement against segregation which may very well be true. There
were some X-men characters that appear in more minor roles, some of
which have bigger parts in the sequels.
Well, that is
it for this week. Tell me what you like and what you dislike. Stay
tuned for next week which so far includes Steve Martin, Maris Tomei,
Morgan Freeman, Paul Newman, Drew Barrymore, Pam Grier, and many others.
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