Welcome to the 808th edition of my series. Pending my background check, I will be starting a new job at Innovista Health Solutions as a claims examiner. This will be more like what I did before so I'm excited and nervous but will make the most of this job. There is not much else happening right now so I will just get on with my selections for this week.
The Queen's Gambit (2020): I star the week out with this mini-series which was directed by Scott Frank and based on the novel by Walter Tevis. This series centers around Beth Harmon, played by Anya Taylor-Joy, who is orphaned at the age of nine and secretly learns the game of chess from janitor Mr. Shaibel, played by Bill Camp, at the orphanage. Harmon would go onto become a chess prodigy but for most, the fame and success came at a price. Chloe Pirrie, Marcin Dorocinski, Marielle Heller, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Moses Ingram, Moses Ingram, Isla Johnston, Annabeth Kelly, and many others co-star in this mini-series. As I'm watching this series, I could have sworn it was based on a grue story but I was wrong. This was still a very compelling series though with lots of attention to detail. I know very little about chess myself and could likely never win a game if my life depended on it but I was still consumed to what I was watching. This is available on Netflix and has seven episodes that are about an hour each.
Wayne's World (1992): Penelope Spheeris directed this comedy based on the popular SNL sketch of the same name. Mike Myers and Dana Carvey reprise their roles of Wayne and Garth who are slacker friends with a public access cable show. Rob Lowe stars as sleazy producer Benjamin who offers to take their public access series to do professionally. They find that it is not the same when they have people they must answer to. Tia Carrere co-stars as Wayne's love interest Cassandra who is also trying to get her music band some more success. Brian Doyle-Murray, Lara Flynn Boyle, Michael Deluise, Lee Turgeson, Kurt Fuller, Sean Sullivan, Colleen Camp, Donna Dixon, Frederick Coffin, Mike Hagerty, Chris Farley, Meat Loaf, Charles Noland, Robert Patrick, Ione Skye, Alice Cooper, Ed O'Neill, and many others co-star in this comedy. This is possibly the best of the SNL produced movies. In addition to having a lot of funny moments, it also boasts a great soundtrack which gave further success to some of the songs, most notably Queen's BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY. I learned that Myers had to fight for the Queen song as the studio was looking to use a Guns and Roses song. This is a movie you probably just want to miss, NOOOOTTTTT! This is a timeless comedy that every generation can enjoy.
In the Loop (2009): This is my political satire for the week which was directed and co-written by Armando Iannucci. Tom Hollander stars as Simon Foster who is the Minister for International Development and unintentionally stirs things up when he says that a war with the Middle East is "unforeseeable". Peter Capaldi co-stars as spin doctor Malcolm Tucker who must do what he can to prevent war. Gina McKee, Olivia Poulet, Chris Addison, James Smith, Zach Smith, Mimi Kennedy, Anna Chlumsky, Enzo Cilenti, David Rasche, James Gandolfini, Steve Coogan, and many others co-star in this political comedy. Lots of funny lines and moments making comedy of a potentially bad situation. I cannot explain this any further but political people will love this one.
Streamlined Greta Green (1937): This is my animated short for the week. Long before Pixar brought us humanistic cars, Looney Tunes brought us an animated shorts with cars. Junior wants to be a taxi but his mom wants him to be a respectable touring car. He gets rebellious and runs out of gas at one point having to be towed. This is a very interesting short from this era. I guess they decided talking cars just were not going to work. This is available to watch on HBO Max as part of Looney Tunes.
Rio Grande (1950): This is my western for the week which was directed by John Ford. John Wayne stars as cavalry officer Kirby Yorke in this post-Civil War film when the Union had to focus on the Apaches. Yorke is put in charge of training young officers, including his own estranged son Jeff, played by Claude Jarman Jr. He also gets visited by his separated wife Kathleen, played by Maureen O'Hara, who shows up intending to take their son out of there but in the end leaves it up to Jeff and he decides to stay. Ben Johnson, Harry Carey Jr., Chill Wills, J. Carrol Naish, Victor McLaglen, Grant Withers, Karolyn Grimes, and many others co-star in this western. This is a western that combines action and romance so could make a good compromise for a date night. This is also a good look at an estranged family trying to reunite. This is available to watch on Amazon Prime.
The Magic Sword (1962): Now I bring some cheesy fantasy which was directed by Bert Gordon. Gary Lockwood stars as George who is the son of a sorceress, played by Estelle Winwood, and is looking to rescue the beautiful Princess Helene, played by Anne Helm, from the evil wizard Lodac, played by none other than Basil Rathbone. Liam Sullivan, Danielle De Metz, Angus Duncan, and many others co-star in this fantasy movie. This is a very fun movie if not taken to seriously. Winwood ham it up very well as the sorceress. This is available to watch on Hoopla Digital.
True Stories (1986): Talking Heads frontman David Byrne directed this this musical comedy where he also stars as the narrator. He is going around in a small Texas town where he observes the citizens as they prepare for a local parade and talent show. John Goodman, Spalding Gray, Swoosie Kurtz, Pops Staples, John Ingle, Tito Larriva, and Jo Harvey Allen co-star as the colorful characters he meets along the ride. Byrne shows his directorial talent in this film which might be an overlooked '80s movie. This also has a really good soundtrack from the Talking Heads. Each character has their own unique and entertaining traits, especially Goodman. It is hard to describe this movie beyond this except to just check this out.
Winter Fever (1979): This is my documentary for the week which was directed by Warren Miller. This takes a look at the world of skiing where Miller takes us into places like New Mexico, Lake Placid, Canada, among others where we see some of the top skiers from this era. This has a lot of nice visuals and some great ski footage. This is available to watch on Hoopla Digital as well as other works by Warren Miller.
No Man of Her Own (1950): Mitchell Leisen directed this film based on the novel I MARRIED A DEAD MAN by Cornell Woolrich. Barbara Stanwyck stars as Helen Ferguson who is pregnant and left on her own with nowhere to go. While on a train, she meets married couple Patrice and Hugh Harkness, played by Phyllis Thaxter and Richard Denning, who befriend her until tragedy strikes when a trainwreck happens leaving the couple dead and Helen to survive. Helen is mistaken as Patrice by the Harkness family so tries to pose as Patrice to give her child a better life. Things are going well until her devious ex Steve, played by Lyle Bettger in his film debut, comes to blackmail Patrice. John Lund, Jane Cowl, Henry O'Neill, Carole Mathews, Harry Antrim, Catherine Craig, Esther Dale, and many others co-star in this film. This is a pretty compelling drama of a woman taking to extreme measures to survive for herself and her child. This is available to watch on the Criterion Channel.
A Hard Day (2014): I end the week with this Korean film which was directed by Seong-Hun Kim. Sun-Kyun Lee stars as the crooked Detective Ko Gun-soo who has a lot going on in his life and one day when driving recklessly, he commits a fatal hit and run. He goes through some very extreme measures to cover it up and just when he thinks he is in the clear, he gets a call from someone claiming to be a witness. This starts quite the cat and mouse game of a detective's corruption catching up to him. This movie just keeps on going with the action and has a bit of dark comedy to go along with it. It is also a pretty suspenseful film and is available to watch on Hulu.
Well, that is it for this week, tell me what you like and dislike. Stay tuned for next week which so far includes Brad Pitt, Alec Baldwin, Will Ferrell, Charlie Chaplin, Sylvester Stallone, Evan Rachel Wood, Alfred Hitchcock, Jodie Foster, Sean Penn, and many others.
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