Shaun Berk's 10 Movie Recommendations- 667th Edition

Welcome to the 667th Edition of my series.  We just got through our first weekend of LIFE, DEATH, AND THE SHIT IN BETWEEN and has been well received.  We still have performances on Friday and Saturday at the Heorot Pub and Draught House in Downtown Muncie.  Shows are at 7:30 and tickets are $10.  Come out and support this independent theater if you can.  I also want to take this time and talk on my Facebook friend Robert Joseph Butler who is a filmmaker in Michigan.  He has put out quite a few short films that have gone over well with independent film festivals and is now doing a feature film and is looking for help in funding.  If you are able to help, even if it is a $10 donation, please go to the website https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/love-immortal-feature-film#/ and there is a preview to it as well as a place to donate if you can.  I will now get to my selections for the week.

Jerry Maguire (1996):  This is part one of a possible Tom Cruise trilogy.  I start the week out this this romantic comedy but please don't run for the hills when seeing that sub-genre name.  Cameron Crowe wrote and directed this film which falls into the romantic comedy genre and also takes a look at the behind the scenes of the sports world.  Our favorite Scientologist Tom Cruise stars as the title character who is a high profile sports agent seeing that all they focus on is how they benefit in the end and not really focusing on their athlete clients enough.  He goes into work with a new moral epiphany and shortly after expressing it, he gets fired from his job.  When leaving, he looks to become an independent agent with the help of his former employee Dorothy, played by Renee Zellweger, who admires his philosophy and risks all by going with him.  They soon form a relationship while also bonding with her son Ray, played by Jonathan Lipnicki.  Cuba Gooding Jr. co-stars as football player Rod Tidwell who keeps Jerry by his side while everyone else goes with the corporate agents.  Kelly Preston, Jerry O'Connell, Jay Mohr, Bonnie Hunt, Regina King, Todd Louiso, and many others co-star in this film as well as many athletes that have cameos as themselves.  This takes a good look at both the romantic relationship as well as the professional one he has with Rod as both his agent and friend.  I used to complain about the length which is a little under two and a half hours but then I started thinking further and I think they needed that time to show the depth of the relationships.  My friend Brandon named this as one of the movies for the 10 day Facebook Cinematic Challenge, so they obviously had him hello, hopefully they'll have the rest of you at hello.

Goofy Goofy Gander (1950):  This is my animated short for the week which features the character Little Audrey.  This takes place in a school setting where she must recite a Mother Goose rhyme but Audrey does not like rhymes and recites a comic book of bank robbers instead which gets her in a little trouble.  The comic stuff in it really makes this worth it.

The Battle of the Sexes (1960):  This is part one of a possible Peter Sellers trilogy.  Charles Crichton directed this comedy which was based on a short story by James Thurber.  This centers around what has been a British men only factory until American businesswoman Angela Barrows come in and shakes its foundation.  Sellers stars as staff member Mr. Martin who does not like the newer ways that Barrows is bringing in and goes through some comedic schemes in an attempt to stop her.  Robert Morley, Ernest Thesignor, Donald Pleasence, and many others co-star in this comedy.  It is really more the new ways versus the old ways and the newer ways just happen to have a woman.  I had not heard of this movie until I came across it and I laughed quite a bit when watching this movie.  This is available to watch on Filmstruck.

Oliver Twist (2007):  This is my mini-series for the week which was directed by Coky Ciedroyc and based on the classic novel by Charles Dickens.  William Miller plays the orphaned boy Oliver Twist who when asking for more gruel at the orphanage and his life spirals from there.  I don't think I need to give much explanation as I think most of us know the basic story and even the characters like the Artful Dodger, played by Adam Arnold, Mr. Bumble, played by Gregor Fisher, Nancy, played Sophie Okonedo, Fagin, played by Timothy Spall, Bill Sikes, played by Tom Hardy, Mr. Brownlow, played by Edward Fox, just to name a few.  Connor Catchpole, Morven Christie, Sophie Okonedo, Julian Rhind-Tutt, Nicola Walker, Rob Brydon, and many others co-star in this BBC mini-series.  There have been many movie adaptations as well as the popular musical that most of us know this story by and this actually is one of my favorite musicals.  This is about three hours long or so and obviously has the basic stuff we know if we have seen the musical on stage or some of the movie adaptations but this obviously covers more ground.  Usually we know BMill Sykes as the villain and Fagin as more of the gray area but most seem to leave out another villainous character from the story that I did not know about until watching this version in Mr. Monks, played by Rhind-Tutt, who had much different motivations than Sykes.  I felt this was pretty well done and is available on Amazon Prime.

St. Martin's Lane (1938):  I find this is my third British selection in a row for this week.  Tim Whelan directed this comedy that takes place in the London theater district and centers around the buskers, which we usually call street performers.  Charles Laughton stars as Charles who in a sense in like the leader of the group and soon meets Libby, played by Vivien Leigh, who joins the group but becomes far more.  I don't want to share too much more in fear of giving it away.  Rex Harrison, Larry Adler, Tyrone Guthrie, and many others co-star in this comedy.  This was a pretty good look at the world of street performers in this era and place.  This is also known as SIDEWALKS OF LONDON.  This is available to watch on Filmstruck.

Tangled (2010):  This is my Disney movie for the week that gives their take on the story of Rapunzel, voiced by Mandy Moore.  Rapunzel is known to have healing powers and as a child, she is kidnapped by Mother Gothel, voiced by Donna Murphy, who acts as her mom and uses her to stay looking young.  The most known thing about Rapunzel is her extremely long hair so I thought I would take time to point that out.  Mother Gothel has managed to keep Rapunzel in the house for many years until Rapunzel meets bandit Flynn Rider, voiced by Zachary Levi, who agrees to take her on an adventure outside the home that she has never had.  Ron Perlman, M.C. Gainey, Jeffrey Tambor, Brad Garrett, Paul F. Tompkins, Richard Kiel, Delaney Rose Stein, and many others provide their voices.  This also has a good soundtrack from Alan Menkin and Glenn Slater.  This is also a very fun Disney princess movie that has been turned into a few shorts through the years.

The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946):  This is my Film Noir for the week that was directed by Tay Garnett and based on the novel by James M. Cain.  This takes place in a small town where married couple Nick and Cora Smith, played by Cecil Kellaway and Lana Turner, own a roadside restaurant.  Nick hires drifter Frank Chambers, played by John Garfield, to work at the restaurant.  Frank and Cora soon fall in love and talks Frank into murdering Nick in a scheme that would make it look accidental.  Obviously these never go as planned and we get what could be the best Film Noir of all time.  Hume Cronyn and Leon Ames add a lot as rival attorneys who do what they can to one-up each other.  Audrey Totter, Alan Reed, and Jeff York also co-star in this film.  Turner is great in this film and has said this is her favorite role.  This is a very gritty tale from the era and really deserves a look.  This is available to watch on Filmstruck.

Tanner Hall (2009):  I guess you could say this is my coming of age movie for the week.  Francesca Gregorini and Tatiana von Furstenberg wrote and directed this coming of story in an all-girls boarding school.  Rooney Mara, Georgia King, Brie Larson, and Amy Ferguson all star as the girls this movie center around and all have their own unique story.  Tom Everett Scott, Amy Sedaris, Chris Kattan, Shawn Pyfrom, Susan Misner, Tara Subkoff, Annika Peterson and many others co-star in this movie.  This would probably be more enjoyed by younger girls.  This is a much earlier film for Rooney Mara and all of them do good playing the contrasting character.  I also really liked SNL alum Kattan in his role against type.  This is available to watch on the Hoopla Digital website.

My Brilliant Career (1979):  Gillian Armstrong directed this film that was based on the novel by Miles Franklin.  Judy Davis stars as Sybylla Melvin in 1890 Australia and is an aspiring young writer wanting to live an independent life without marriage in a time where that was the absolute norm.  She rejects all of her suitors but considers her childhood friend Harry Beecham, played by a young Sam Neill, more than the others but still very complicated with her own not wanting marriage.  Wendy Hughes, Robert Grubb, Max Cullen, and many others co-star in this film.  This is a really well-done film done on a shoestring budget from Armstrong.  Davis and Neill are good together and was good to see Neill long before he lead expeditions through Jurassic Park.  This underrated film is available to watch on Filmstruck.

The Mountains of Mourne (2017):  I end the week with this short film.  Jim Cummings wrote and directed this short and also co-stars in this film.  Casey Brown stars as Jordan who appears to be pretty famous in the world of social media and makes the announcement to his viewers that he is making his last post.  Through the next few minutes, we learn more of the reasons.  This is only about twelve minutes long but is still a very good twelve minutes with some great interaction between Cummings and Brown.  This is available to watch on Filmstruck and hope to get this a little more exposure.

Well, that is it for this week.  Tell me what you like and dislike and stay tuned for next week which so far includes Tom Cruise and many others.

Shaun Berk's 10 Movie Recommendations- 666th Edition

Welcome to the 666th Edition of my series and I'm sorry to say, nothing symbolic of the number.  Next weekend is my debut show with Think, Dog Productions at the Heorot Pub and Draught House in a series of short plays that are both comedic and rather deep at times.  Ticket information is located on the bottom of the series so get your tickets reserved and come out to support this independent theater group.  I will get on with my selections now.

No Holds Barred (1989):  I start the week out with this wrestling movie.  Thomas J. Wright directed what is essentially the first movie from WWE Films.  Hulk Hogan stars in this film as Rip who is pretty much playing Hulk Hogan who at this time was extremely on the rise with the WWF which most of us know now as the WWE.  Kurt Fuller co-stars as ruthless tv exec Brell whose network is struggling and comes across wrestling thinking that will save his network.  He does everything possible to get Rip to sign with his competition but when Rip refuses, he finds a mysterious man named Zeus, played by Tommy 'Tiny' Lister, and through Brell's ruthless ways, he coerces Rip to fight this seemingly invulnerable man in Zeus no holds barred as the title implies.  Joan Severance, Mark Pellegrino, Bill Henderson, David Paymer, Patrick O'Bryan, and many others co-star.  There are some cameos from people in the wrestling industry which include former Minnesota governor Jesse Ventura, Mean Gene Okerlund, ring announcer Howard Finkel, referee Joseph Marella, Stan Hanson, and Bill Eadie.  Hanson is very amusing in his role of the Neanderthal.  Eadie is Rip's first opponent in Jake Bullet and most probably know him as Ax of the tag team Demolition.  Since working at home, I have been listening to a lot of wrestler shoot interview and wrestler podcasts.  Recently I started the podcast "Something to Wrestle with Bruce Prichard aka Brother Love and Conrad Thompson".  They discuss various things on wrestling like wrestlers, pay-per-views, and other significant events.  They had an episode to discuss this movie so I decided to watch the movie before listening to the episode as I had not seen this in a long time.  This is more of a guilty pleasure than anything and will be most enjoyed by wrestling fans.  I could also see Rifftrax taking on this movie.  Lister went onto play the Zeus character for a brief period of time in wrestling feuding with Hulk Hogan and was in WCW at one point.  One thing that I could not help but notice was near the end of the movie, they had a six sided wrestling ring in which TNA wrestling would use that ring many years later and when Hogan got involved with TNA, one of the first things he did was do the standard wrestling ring.  Just a little irony or was it?  I might as well plug the podcast which is at website http://www.mlwradio.com/something-to-wrestle-with-bruce-prichard.html and is on itunes.

Magic and Bird:  A Courtship of Rivals (2010):  I go from a silly wrestling movie to this basketball documentary.  Ezra Edelman directed this documentary which most will infer from the title is focused on Larry Bird and Earvin "Magic" Johnson.  This is a rivalry which started in the NCAA with Johnson playing for Michigan State and Bird playing for the college in my state of Indiana State and how they were very different but also very similar.  It gets even bigger when they are both drafted to the NBA which at the time was struggling and these two players brought more fans back after people knowing them from the NCAA.  They form a bond where they were absolute rivals and slowly become friends.  I got into the NBA more around the rise of Jordan so while I was aware of these players, I was not aware of the significance of their rivalry or that they even had one of this magnitude.

Phantom Thread (2017):  Paul Thomas Anderson wrote and directed this film that takes place in '50s London and centers around the fashion industry.  Daniel Day-Lewis stars as renowned dressmaker Reynolds Woodcock who has formed a very successful partnership with his sister Cyril, played by Lesley Manville.  Reynolds lives under the belief he is a confirmed bachelor until a strong-willed woman named Alma, played by Vicky Krieps, comes into his life becoming his inspiration and muse.  Julie Vollono, Camilla Rutherford, Gina McGee, Brian Gleeson, Eric Sigmundsson, Phyllis MacMahon, Richard Graham and many others co-star in this film.  This is apparently the swan song of Day-Lewis but since he never really did much to begin with, I guess we'll never really know.  If this is his last movie, this is a good one to go out on if he just feels the need to retire.  Obviously this centers around a backdrop but like any good movie is more about the people, most notably the relationship between Reynolds and Cyril and then Reynolds's relationship with Alma that complicates his relationship with his sister.  This is probably not for everyone but if you enjoy the work of Anderson and the last project of Anderson and Day Lewis in THERE WILL BE BLOOD, I feel this will be enjoyed.

Daffy- the Commando (1943):  This is my animated short for the week and I bring some good old WWII propaganda from this era.  As most will probably guess, this one features Daffy Duck.  Daffy goes behind enemy lines to disrupt Colonel Von Vulture and even Hitler.  These were some pretty bold shorts in this era.  This is very entertaining with the really good use of Rotoscope on realistic image of Hitler.  This is available on Amazon Prime as part of the "Patriotic Cartoon Classics" and is easily found on Youtube.

Every-Night Dreams (1933):  This is my Japanese film for the week and my silent film for the week.  Mikio Naruse directed this film which centers around single mother Omitsu who works at a Ginza bar entertaining docked sailors to make ends meet.  Her estranged husband and father of her child Mizuhara returns promising to find work to support his wife and son but finds the job market is very difficult.  I don't really know what the film situation was like in Japan in this era.  The first talkie was here in our own country in 1927 of THE JAZZ SINGER while in Japan, they did not accommodate to these ways until 1930 so they were still putting out silents at this time.  If into silent film, this is a really good one to watch and is only a little over an hour.  This is available to watch on Filmstruck.

Badlands (1973):  Terrence Malick makes his directorial film in this movie about young love in which he also wrote.  Sissy Spacek stars as Holly, an impressionable teen that has a rather difficult relationship with her father, played by Warren Oates.  She soon meets twenty-something Kit, played by Martin Sheen, and form a relationship while being on a killing spree as they try evading the law.  This could be Malick's most linear film of his career but still puts a lot of emphasis on his cinematography that his movies are most known for.  I suppose this could be a rather toned down version of what years later would become NATURAL BORN KILLERS which is more of a satire.  Sheen and Spacek work well together as lovers on the lam.  This is also available to watch on Filmstruck.

Baby Driver (2017):  I continue with some violence.  Edgar Wright wrote and directed this heist film.  Ansel Elgort stars in this film as the partially hearing impaired Baby who is in debt to crime boss Doc, played by Kevin Spacey, and must use his talents as a getaway driver in heists always doing it to his music.  As far as Baby knows, he works off his debt and is ready to continue his crime-free life with his new girlfriend Debora, played by Lily James, but finds it not that simple when being coerced into doing one more job which is the one that does not go planned.  Jon Hamm, Elza Gonzalez, Jon Bernthal, Jamie Foxx, Flea, Paul Williams, CJ Jones, and many others co-star in this film.  Elgort is good as the music obsessed youngster who does not fit into a crime group.  This has a really good soundtrack and some really good action along with some dark comedy in this really fun action film.

Adventures of a Dentist (1965):  This is my Russian selection for the week which was directed by Elem Klimov and based on a play by Aleksandr Volodin.  A young dentist named Chesnokov, played by Andrey Myagkov, finds that he has an ability to remove a tooth without pain which at first people look highly upon but his colleagues soon fear their future and look to ruin him.  This has some really funny moments and was controversial for its time with a lot of anti-communist messages and in turn had a very limited release and still is hard to come by as I understand it is not available on video or DVD.  It is available to watch on Filmstruck.

The Magician (1958):  I leave Russia to go to Sweden and visit the man likely synonymous with Swedish film-making in Ingmar Bergman who wrote and directed this Swedish film.  Max Von Sydow stars as Dr. Vogler who is the leader of the touring 19th Century magic group Vogler's Magnetic Health Theater.  When arriving in Stockholm, the leading townspeople are suspicious of their work and demand that a sample of their act be performed before doing the whole show.  Ingrid Thulin, Gunnar Bjornstrand, Naima Wifstrand, Bengt Ekerot, Bibi Anderson, Gertrud Fridh, Lars Ekborg, and many others co-star in this film.  Bergman is known for movies that focus on the existential crisis, most notably THE SEVENTH SEAL but this one goes away from that and has more of a comedic and disturbing battle of wits.  This is also available to watch on Filmstruck.

Pupil (2013):  I end the week on this live-action short film.  Chung Ki Chan directed this short film which was written by Christopher Browne.  Eugenia Yuan stars as a struggling artist trying to fulfill her dreams while experiencing traumatic events.  She is soon forced to see the world in new ways.  Yuan is the only person in the movie and she conveys through her emotions and movement but not through dialogue.  Her performance and the cinematography contribute to this compelling 13 minute film and is available to watch on Amazon Prime.

Well, that is it for this week.  Tell me what you like and dislike and stay tuned for next week which so far includes Renee Zellweger, Peter Sellers, and many others.

Shaun Berk's 10 Movie Recommendations- 665th Edition

Welcome to the 665th Edition of my series.  The show is getting closer and closer.  BIRTH, DEATH, AND THE SHIT in BETWEEN is on August 24th, 25th, 31st, and September 1st at the upstairs Heorot Pub and Draught House in Muncie at 7:30 pm.  Tickets are 10$ and $5 for BSU students.  This has four short plays and between each one there will be live music and poetry.  There will also be food prepared after each one and extra cost will apply to these.  Go see this link https://www.facebook.com/events/491296254614967/ for further information.  I will get on with my selections for the week.

My Country, My Country (2006):  I start the week out with this political documentary where they are in post-Saddam Iraq.  Laura Poitras directed this film in the summer of 2004 where Iraq is to have elections and mainly centers around local physician Dr. Riyadh al-Adhadh who is an everyday person in the community seeking election.  I suppose this looks at the pros and cons of a democracy after a dictatorship.  This is a very compelling film to watch and has some really good footage.  Poitras would go onto direct such documentaries as THE OATH and CITIZENFOUR that are looked at as a trilogy and she has been quite the thorn in the side of our wonderful government.

Gigantic:  A Tale of Two Johns (2002):  I go from the world of politics to some more enjoyment in the way of a music documentary.  AJ Schnack directeed this documentary that takes a look at the two Johns that the title implies in John Flansburgh and John Linnell who are part of the alternative band They Might Be Giants.  I think most by now have at least heard of the band and if you have no familiarity with them, their biggest claim to fame is likely having the theme song for MALCOLM IN THE MIDDLE.  This goes mostly into the inner workings of the band in their work like concerts, music videos, and the use of their music on television.  This is a pretty fun and informative look into the band

Night on Earth (1991):  Jim Jarmusch directed this film that has five different short films that involve cab rides and manages to do them in Los Angeles, New York, Paris, Rome, and Helsinki.  Each one has its own interesting and unique story.  Winona Ryder, Gena Rowlands, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Giancarlo Esposito, Rosie Perez, Isaach De Bankole, Beatrice Dalle, Roberto Benigni, Paolo Bonacelli, Matti Pellonpaa, Kari Vaananen, Sakari Kuosmanen, and Tomi Salmela all play those involved in the cab rides.  I think my favorite one was the one in Paris where the cab driver underestimates a blind woman but they are all well done.  This is available to watch on Filmstruck.

Now Hear This (1962):  This is my animated short for the week from Warner Brothers.  This is a very abstract cartoon that involves a British elderly man who finds a red horn and uses it as a megaphone not knowing it belongs to the Devil.  The best I can describe this is that it is much different that other Looney Tunes animated shorts.  This is available to watch on the dvd of last week's feature CRITIC'S CHOICE.

Crime School (1938):  This is part two of my two-part Humphrey Bogart series.  This stars the youth group the Dead End Kids who end up doing a two year sentence in reform school.  In the beginning, the conditions are very tough and harsh until Deputy Commissioner of Correction Mark Braden, played by Bogart, gets appointed to run the place in the hopes to change conditions and create a fair environment for the youth to learn.  Gale Page, Billy Halop, Bobby Jordan, Huntz Hall, Leo Gorcey, Bernard Punsly, Gabriel Dell, George Offerman Jr., and many others co-star in this film.  This takes a look at the juvenile system in this era.  This is in a time where Bogart was usually typecast as gangsters and gets to play someone on the right side of the law fighting corruption in the juvenile system.  This is a pretty decent watch and is available to see on Filmstruck.

I Shot Jesse James (1949):  Samuel Fuller make his directorial debut in this film which might be the first movie to center around Bob Ford, played by John Ireland, over Jesse James, played by Reed Hadley.  Just about everyone knows this moment of history where James Gang member Bob Ford assassinates Jesse James.  This is a mostly fictional account into the aftermath of Ford's life.  Barbara Britton co-stars as his love interest Cynthy and have not really found if she is based on someone in his life and Preston Foster co-stars as Kelley which is based on someone in Ford's life.  J. Edward Bromberg, Tom Tyler, Tommy Noonan, and many others co-star in this film.  In his era, most movies portrayed James as a folk hero and Robin Hood type but Fuller did not seem him this way favoring Ford's actions.  Many years later, a similar and more accurate movie would come out in THE ASSASSINATION OF JESSE JAMES BY THE COWARD ROBERT FORD would come out and anyone that knows me just a little bit know it is one of my favorites.  This is also a pretty good story about Ford and is available to watch on Filmstruck.

Boiling Point (1990):  This is my Japanese film for the week which was written and directed by Takeshi Kitano and co-stars in the movie as his acting name 'Beat' Takeshi.  This centers around a couple of players in a Japanese baseball minor league team who go after the Yakuza when their coach is attacked.  It is very hard to put this into description.  It is a very dark comedy to say the least with a pretty interesting premise.  This is also available to watch on Filmstruck.

The Garment Jungle (1957):  Vincent Sherman directed this film centered on a garment business.  Lee J. Cobb stars as business owner Walter Mitchell whose business is under mob muscle keeping out the unions he is determined to keep away from the business.  His son Alan, played by Kerwin Matthews comes back to town and joins the business but not liking what he sees becoming determined to convince his father that his business needs a union.  Gia Scala, Richard Boone, Valerie French, Robert Loggia, Joseph Wiseman, and many others co-star in this film.  I usually favor these types of movies from this era.  Cobb is great as the business owner who slowly sees that the mob rule is not good for business.  This is one that gets overlooked but maybe this will help get at least some exposure.

Our Time (1974):  Peter Hyams directed this film that takes place in the 1950s in a strict boarding school for girls.  Pamela  Sue Martin stars as Abby who is the new girl in school.  She soon meets Michael, played by Parker Stevenson, but meets difficulties and disapproval from everywhere.  Betsy Slade co-stars's as Abby's friend Muffy who is the opposite personality wise contrasting very well in her part of the story. George O'Hanlon Jr., Debralee Scott, Edith Atwater, Carol Arthur, Hope Summers, and many others co-star in this film. This is a good look into a teen relationship of this era where the stars of the movie Martin and Stevenson would go onto play amateur sleuths in Nancy Drew and one of the Hardy Boys.  This is another one available to watch on Filmstruck.

Certain Women (2016):  I end the week with another multiple stories movie and this was directed by Kelly Reichardt.  Laura Dern, Michelle Williams, and Kristen Stewart star in their segments of the film.  Dern is dealing with a disgruntled client, played by Jared Harris, who is about to fly off the handle at any time.  Williams and her husband, played by James Le Gros, are looking to build a new home but clearly have marital issues that complicate what they are trying to do.  Stewart plays a young attorney teaching an adult education class having a female ranch hand, played by Lily Gladstone, take an interest in her.  Ashlie Atkinson, Guy Boyd, John Getz, Sara Rodier, Rene Auberjonois, and many others co-star in this movie.  I think the story involving Laura Dern was the best one in my opinion.  This is very subtle and driven by the characters.  This is available to watch on Netflix.

Well, that is it for this week.  Tell me what you like and dislike and stay tuned for next week.

Shaun Berk's 10 Movie Recommendations- 664th Edition

Welcome to the 664th Edition of my series.  I have started rehearsals for my new show BIRTH, DEATH, AND THE SHIT IN BETWEEN.  Showdates for this show are August 25th, 26th, 31st, and September 1st and is at the upstairs of the Heorot/Valhalla in Muncie.  I do not know as of now how much tickets will be but will provider more info as is comes out.

Idiocracy (2006):  I start the week out with this satire on modern-day society.  Mike Judge directed and co-wrote this comedy which stars Luke Wilson as Private Joe Bauers.  He is trying to do little as possible before his discharge and could be the definition of the "average American".  He agrees to take part in the Army's secretive program the Human Hibernation Project.  Things go awry and him and another test subject Rita, played by Maya Rudolph, end up 500 years later where society has dumbed down more and more with the corporate media and finds that he is now the smartest man there.  Terry Crews, Anthony Campos, David Herman, Justin Long, Patrick Fischler, Darlene Hunt, Andrew Wilson, Scarface, Thomas Haden Church, and many others co-star in this film.  This delivers a lot of laughs and has a rather good message for us to think about and we do not end up like them at some point.  It is also a very clever sci-fi comedy.  There is an end credit scene so don't just stop at the credits.

Grand Canyon, Pride of Creation (1943):  This is one my short film for the week and is part of the Traveltalks series of this era.  This obviously takes a look at the Grand Canyon or as they call it America's Painted Desert.  This gives a couple of views with one being from the rim looking down in an automobile and the other being within the canyon  where mules take tourists along the various trails.  This is a pretty informative short and gets quite a bit in within the nine minutes.

Critic's Choice (1963):  Don Weis directed this comedy which is based on the play by Don Weis.  Bob Hope and Lucille Ball star as married couple Parker and Angela Ballantine.  Parker is a New York theater critic and a pretty harsh one at that.  Angela decides that she wants to write a play herself and Parker must choose between his principles or jeopardize his marriage.  Marilyn Maxwell, Rip Torn, Jessie Royce Landis, John Dehner, Jim Backus, Rickey Kelman, Dorothy Green, Marie Windsor, and many others co-star in this comedy.  This is nothing great but good to see Hope and Ball working together and this is the last of their four teamings.  I also found it of interest to see a young character Rip Torn in kind of a leading man role before he would go to play more authority type roles that I have mostly seen him.

Free State of Jones (2016):  This is my Civil war film which was directed and co-written by Gary Ross.  Matthew McConaughey, I will never be able to memorize that spelling, stars as Newton Knight who is a disillusioned Confederate soldier and becomes a deserter.  He is able to get together a group of fellow deserters to form the Free State of Jones to revolt against the local Confederate government.  Keri Russell, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Materhala Ali, Christopher Berry, Sean Bridgers, Jacob Lofland, Thomas Francis Murphy, Thomas Francis Murphy, Bill Tangradi, Brian Lee Franklin, Kerry Cahill, Joe Chrest, Jessica Collins, Donald Watkins, and many others co-star in this film.  This is based on a true story of Newton Knight who is probably more famous down south where he is a rather controversial figure.  Maybe this is another reason the Confederate did not win.  This is a pretty compelling Civil War film to focus mostly on the Confederate side.

Olympia Part Two:  Festival of Beauty (1938):  Last week I featured the first of this two-part documentary series of the 1936 Berlin Olympics which was directed by Leni Riefenstahl.  This one takes a look at the gymnastics, equestrian, cycling and boating events.  This also features the seemingly great leader Adoph Hitler as one of the main spectators and who commissioned Riefenstahl to do this fim.  The camera work is absolutely amazing with the sporting events and has some really good footage.  Along with the first one, this is available to watch on Filmstruck.

I, Daniel Blake (2016):  Ken Loach directed this British film which takes a look at the employment system.  Dave Johns stars as the title character who is a carpenter and has a heart attack making him unable to work.  He must fight the bureaucratic system in his struggle to get Employment and Support Allowance while he really just wants to get back to work.  In his battle, he meets and befriends the younger single mother in Katie, played by Hayley Squires, and tries to help her and her two children.  Briana Shann, Dylan McKiernan, Sharon Piercy, and many others co-star in this film.  Many could read the plot and if they don't see something about Britain could easily think "Murica" but this happens everywhere.  While having its comedic moments, this is a pretty sad movie about what people might resort to if they are screwed by the system.  Johns makes his film debut in this movie and does a great job making us take the journey with him.  Unfortunately, this has gone onto become quite underrated but maybe this will help.

Dark Passage (1947):  This is part one of a two-part Humphrey Bogart series.  Delmer Daves directed this film noir based on the novel by David Goodis.  Humphrey Bogart stars as Vincent Parry who is wrongly convicted of murdering his wife and escapes prison hoping to clear his name and prove his innocence.  He meets Irene Jansen, played by Lauren Bacall, who is aware of his situation and believes in his innocence agreeing to help him try to prove his innocence.  Bruce Bennett, Agnes Moorehead, Tom D'Andrea, and many others co-star in this film.  The most intriguing part of this film is that it is from a first person point of view from the camera where we do not see that face of Bogey's until later in the film when he gets plastic surgery.  This is driven by a great cast where the supporting players do just as good as the leads.  This is a rather overlooked film for Bogey and this is available to watch on Filmstruck.

21 Jump Street (2012):  Phil Lord and Christopher Miller directed this reboot of the popular '80s series of undercover cops in high school.  Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum star as Schmidt and Jenko who are a couple underachieving cops being sent to undercover to be high school students in order to bring down a drug ring from within the school.  Brie Larson, Dave Franco, Rob Riggle, DeRay Davis, Ice Cube, Dax Flame, Chris Parnell, Ellie Kemper, Jake Johnson, Nick Offerman, and many others co-star in this comedy and some of the tv show alums have cameo appearances.  Jonah Hill co-wrote the screenplay.  I don't have much knowledge of the show so I have no way of knowing how faithful this was to the series.  Watching this movie, I got quite a bit of laughs when knowing not to take it too seriously.  The plot mostly speaks for itself so no sense in saying much more so check out this comedy.

Three Resurrected Drunkards (1968):  I continue my week with more comedy than usual and this is my Asian comedy for the week.  Nagisa Oshima directed this film which is a comedy but also a satire on social injustice from what I can see.  Three Japanese friends are mistaken for illegal Koreans after their clothes were stolen and replaced with the other clothes that get them mistaken leading to a lot of comic misadventures.  This was pretty interesting as one does not usually associate slapstick comedy with Japan but this is the one.  There is a song that plays throughout the film that some might think the Japanese Alvin and the Chipmunks.  This is available to watch on Filmstruck.

The Look of Silence (2014):  I end this week with this documentary which was directed by Joshua Oppenheimer.  This is Oppenheimer's sequel or companion piece to his 2012 film THE ACT OF KILLING.  I want to touch on that one first which takes a look at survivors of the former Indonesian death squad who in the '60s killed many people during the "Communist" purge.  They are asked to reenact the murders in very unorthodox ways.  On this one, Adi Rukun, whose brother was one of the victims, watches the 2012 movie and decides to confront some of these people on what happened as well as their families.  I will start by saying that it is best in my opinion to start with the 2012 movie and then watch this one.  These are some pretty compelling documentaries and this particular one is available on Netflix while the 2012 film unfortunately is not available on Netflix.

Well, that is it for this week.  Tell me what you like and dislike and stay tuned for next week which so far includes Janeane Garofalo, Winona Ryder, Humphrey Bogart, and many others.