Welcome to the 846th Edition of my series. I am off work this week while I prepare for next weekend which is the opening of MURDER AT CAFE NOIR. Dates and times are at the bottom and it is going for two weekends. Tickets are $15 and $5 for children 12 and under. Tickets can be reserved online at http://pulseoperahouse.org or by calling 260-3757017 so I hope to see some familiar faces out there. I will now get on with my selections.
The Light Between Oceans (2016): This is part three of my five-part Rachel Weisz series. Derek Cianfrance directed this film which is based on the novel by M.L. Stedman. Michael Fassbinder and Alicia Vikander star as married couple Tom and Isabel. Tom is a lighthouse keeper and eventually meets Isabel as they fall in love. Isabel is unable to have children of her own but they find a baby girl in a rowboat where the adult has died. They take in the child as their own but learn the mother, played by Weisz, is still looking for her which complicates the lives of many. Jack Thompson, Garry McDonald, Anthony Hayes, Benedict Hardie, Emily Barclay, Bryan Brown, Stephen Ure, Peter McCauley, Leon Ford, Elizabeth Hawthorne, Caren Pistorius, and many others co-star in this film. This is a very beautiful and sad story filmed in Australia so some great scenery as well. Fassbinder and Vikander are great together as a couple through their ups and downs.
Freejack (1992): This is part three of my possible four-part Anthony Hopkins series. Geoff Murphy directed this sci-fi movie which is based on a novel by Robert Sheckley. Emilio Estevez stars as race car driver Alex Furlong who is seemingly dead but is in another dimension in the future where his body will be replaced by an ailing rich man. Alex fights for survival and hopes to revive his relationship with his fiance Julie, played by Rene Russo. Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger co-stars as mercenary Vasendak who is in heavy pursuit of Alex. Jonathan Banks, David Johansen, Amanda Plummer, Grand L. Bush, Frankie Faison, John Shea, Esai Morales, Wilbur Fitzgerald, Jerry Hall, and many others co-star in this sci-fi movie. This is some harmless fun for a group of friends. This has some good '90s special effects and can be enjoyed if not taken too seriously. How can one go wrong with a little Mick Jagger? This is available to watch on HBO Max.
The Tune (1992): Bill Plympton directed this animated movie and co-wrote with P.C. Vey and Maureen McElheron who also wrote the music. This centers around a singer named Del, voiced by Daniel Neiden, who is in love with Didi, played by McElheron. He is also on thin ice to write a new song for his demanding boss but just cannot bring it to a finish. He ends up in an the alternate world of Flooby Nooby where he meets various people that are looking to teach him to write a song from the heart. Marty Nelson, Emily Bindiger, Chris Hoffman, Jimmy Ceribello, Ned Reynolds, Jeffrey Knight, Jen Senko, and many others provide their voice in this animated film. This seems to be Plympton's answer to ALICE IN WONDERLAND. This also has a very versatile soundtrack. Plympton has been an independent animator since the late '70s and has written some pretty clever shorts and feature films. This particular movie is available on the Criterion Channel and Prime with a subscription from Shout! Factory TV. It is also available on TUBI along with some of his other work.
The Hilarious Posters (1906): This is my silent short from the week where I go way back in time. Georges Melies directed this unusual silent short of a wall full of advertising posters come to life. This is some pretty clever effects for this time period. Melies is most known for A TRIP TO THE MOON which is said to be the first sci-fi movie of all time. He is also portrayed in 2011 film HUGO. This is available to watch on HBO Max along with other works by the pioneering filmmaker Melies.
Adam's Rib (1949): This is my courtroom movie for the week which is also a Tracy/Hepburn vehicle. George Cukor directed this courtroom film that takes an early look at the double standards between men and women. Tracy stars as assistant district attorney Adam Bonner who gets the case of an unhappy wife that shoots her husband when finding him with another woman. Hepburn co-stars as Adam's wife Amanda who decides to take the case and oppose her own husband in the courtroom. Judy Holliday, Tom Ewell, David Wayne, Jean Hagen, Hope Emerson, Eve March, Clarence Kolb, Emerson Treacy, Polly Moran, Will Wright, and many others co-star in this film. This is a great blend of comedy and drama with the leads being perfect together. This is available to watch on HBO Max.
Valdez is Coming (1971): This is part one of a possible Burt Lancaster trilogy. This is my western for the week which was directed by Edwin Sherin and based on the novel by Elmore Leonard. Lancaster stars as Mexican-American sheriff Bob Valdez who tries to get compensation for a widowed wife of a man that was wrongly accused. His efforts get him attacked and left for dead where he must resort to violence to get justice and revenge. Susan Clark, Frank Silvera, Jon Cypher, Richard Jordan, Barton Heyman, Hector Elizondo, and many others co-star in this western. This is a very action packed and dark western with Lancaster rising to the occasion. This is available to watch on Amazon Prime.
Swan Song (2021): Todd Stephens wrote and directed this film. Udo Kier stars as the aging and flamboyant Pat Pitsenbarger who is in a nursing home but was at one time a respected hairstylist. He leaves the nursing home to do a favor for a late friend. He relives his younger days in his journey where he ends up in a gay bar where they have a drag show. Jennifer Coolidge, Linda Evans, Michael Urie, Stephanie McVay, Tom Bloom, Shanessa Sweeney, Bryant Carroll, Shelby Garrett, Dave Sorboro, Annie Kitral, Eric Eisenbrey, Jonah Blechman, and many others co-star in this film. This is mostly a character driven film where Kier is great as Pitsenbarger. This is a very good look at the LGBT community as well as forgiveness and redemption. This is available to watch on Hulu and is worth a look.
Soleil O (1967): Med Hondo wrote and directed this race drama. This centers around an immigrant, played by Robert Liensol, from Mauritania who decides to go to Paris in hopes of a better life. When getting there, he learns that racial inequity is a thing there where whites are favored even if they have less skill. This is part of the French New Wave and is rather surreal at times, especially in the beginning. There is drama, comedy, musical numbers, and even some animation. This is hard to explain any further from what I did but this is something that is clearly just as relevant today. You'll laugh, cringe, be sad, among other thing. This was as low-budget as it gets but the filmmakers still managed to make a good movie combining Africa and France. This is available to watch on the Criterion Channel.
The Importance of Being Earnest (1952): This is my British comedy for the week which was directed by Anthony Asquith and based on the play by Oscar Wilde. This is kind of a comedy of errors when Algernon, played by Michael Denison, learns that his friend Earnest creates a fictional brother and poses as that brother leading to all kinds of misunderstandings. Richard Wattis, Walter Hudd, Edith Evans, Joan Greenwood, Dorothy Tutin, Margaret Rutherford, and many others co-star in this comedy. This is a fun look at the flaws of upper British society. This is a must for those that love British comedy and is available to watch on the Criterion Channel.
Can't Buy Me Love (1987): Steve Rash directed this '80s comedy. Patrick Dempsey stars as outcast Ronald Miller who tires of his status at school and decides to pay the popular Cindy Mancini, played by Amanda Peterson, a sum of a thousand dollars to be his pretend girlfriend for a month. He learns more about "popularity" which soon goes to his head and alienates those who have always cared about him. Courtney Gains, Tina Caspary, Seth Green, Sharon Farrell, Darcy DeMoss, Dennis Dugan, Devin DeVasquez, Eric Bruskotter, Gerardo Mejia, Cort McCown, Ami Dolenz, Max Perlich, and many others co-star in this movie. I took to this movie a lot more than I thought I would. I thought it would be some '80s beauty and the nerd sort of romantic comedy but it goes a lot deeper. I found this to be a satire on the price of "popularity" and something I related to a lot unfortunately. This is available to watch on Hulu.
Well, that is it for this week. Tell me what you like and dislike and stay tuned for next week which so far includes Rachel Weisz, and many others.
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