Shaun Berk's 10 Movie Recommendations- 582nd Edition

Welcome to the 582nd Edition of my series.  I've just been trying to survive this freezing weather and glad to announce that I won my fantasy league this year.  There is not too much else going on so far so I will just get to my selections for the week.

Fences (2016):  Denzel Washington directed this film based on a play by August Wilson who also wrote the screenplay before his death in 2005.  Denzel stars as Troy Maxson and I am just going to post the imdb plot on this one in "An African-American father struggles with race relations in the United States while trying to raise his family in the 1950s and coming to terms with the events of his life."  The reason I am doing that is because I feel this is best to watch the way I did and using that phrase "the less you know, the better".  Viola Davis co-stars as Troy's wife Rose who does great as the wife trying to keep things together.  Stephen Henderson, Jovan Adepo, Russell Hornsby, Mykelti Williamson, Saniyya Sidney, Christopher Mele, and many others co-star in this film.  This would not be the one to see if looking for something really inspirational but was a film driven by characters.  This was first done on Broadway in 1987 in which James Earl Jones starred and done again in 2010 in which Denzel Washington and Viola Davis reprise their roles in this film from.  This is a really good look at a black family in this era and I thought it was going to be this year's A RAISIN IN THE SUN but I was quite wrong.

Fog City Mavericks (2007):  Gary Leva directed this film industry documentary on film achievements in San Francisco.  Some of the filmmakers featured are from San Francisco and some decided to go there feeling they had more freedom there than in Los Angeles.  Some of the main people featured are George Lucas, Francis Ford Coppola, and Clint Eastwood.  It has a segment about the studio American Zoetrope founded by Coppola and Lucas which did a lot for film in which many say "can't be done".  It also has a really good segment on Pixar Studios and how it started in San Francisco.  Peter Coyote narrates this documentary that also features Brad Bird, Chris Columbus, Sofia Coppola, Milos Forman, Philip Kaufman, Irvin Kershner, John Lasseter, Anthony Minghella, Saul Zaentz, Charlie Chaplin, and many others.  I think what interested me the most was the one on producer Saul Zaentz who is admired for his guts on movies he has produced. I also liked the segment on Chaplin who joined San Francisco and where he got his movie studio giving him freedom in his projects.  This was very insightful and if I was to pursue a film career, I think I'd rather go to San Francisco where it is more like a film community.

Layer Cake (2004):  Matthew Vaughn directed this British crime film which is based on a novel by J.J. Connelly who also wrote the screenplay.  Daniel Craig stars as a successful cocaine dealer and not really having a name except credited as XXXX.  He plans a retirement but gets a very tough assignment on the eve of his retirement making him question who around him can be trusted.  Tom Hardy, Jamie Foreman, Sally Hawkins, Burn Gorman, George Harris, Tamer Hassan, Colm Meaney, Ben Whishaw, Sienna Miller, Jason Flemyng, Michael Gambon, and many others co-star in this film.  This has a lot of action and even some comedy.  This was shortly before Craig became my favorite James Bond and gives a good and flashy performance as the rather charismatic drug dealer who prefers the term businessman.  This is also the movie in which Barbara Broccoli saw that made her believe he would be a good fit for Bond.  A good soundtrack, some cool characters, good action scenes, and some comedy make this worth a watch.

Poetry of Nature (1939):  This is my short film for the week and is a Pete Smith Specialty.  This takes a look at the wildlife in the California redwoods.  This centers around a black crow and his adventures like an encounter with a scarecrow which he does not fear.  Smith's narration brings life to these animals and brings in some laughs.  A short film for the Golden Age of Cinema as many say on year 1939.

The Sheriff of Fractured Jaw (1958):  Raoul Walsh directed this western comedy which is based on a short story by Jacob Hay.  Kenneth More stars as British gentleman Jonathan Tibbs who is an arms dealer and believes the wild west is the place to do it ending up in the lawless town of Fractured Jaw.  When there, he inadvertently stops an Indian attack mostly due to his naivety.  Due to other accidental occurrences that happen, he is appointed sheriff while the Indians make him a "blood brother".  Jayne Mansfield co-stars as Kate who is a tough female saloon owner and nightclub singer with her voice being dubbed by Connie Francis when singing.  Robert Morley, Henry Hull, William Campbell, Bruce Cabot, and many others co-star in this film.  This was a different sort of western comedy in my mind having an English gentleman get in over his head and underestimating the sort of town he is going.  Kenneth More is great as Jon and was worth a look.

Track of the Moon Beast (1976):  This is my b-movie for the week.  Chase Cordell stars as Paul Carlson who during a meteor storm gets part of the meteor lodged in his body.  The side effect is him turning into a giant reptilian monster at night going on murderous rampages.  Leigh Drake co-stars as his girlfriend Kathy who does not want to give up on Paul to get cured of his problem.  I don't think I need to explain much more.  Let's just say this earned its place into an episode of MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATER 3000 so if you're looking for something that is actually good this may not be the one.

The Kill Team (2013):  This is second documentary for the week.  This takes a look at a military unit in Afghanistan and war crimes that happened within that unit.  It centers around Private Adam Winfield who tried to report murders that were going on along with the help of his father, they went unheeded and got threats of his life from the unit.  He is eventually put on trial for war crimes among others.  Much of this centers around Adam and his parents who stand by him no matter what happens.  It is hard to really describe this film which is rather compelling but at the same time quite sad.  There are interviews on just about every side of the story.  This is available to watch on Amazon Prime.

Invitation to the Dance (1956):  Gene Kelly directed this film which I think qualifies as an experimental film.  This has three stories all in which Kelly stars.  One is called CIRCUS where Gene is a circus clown who is in love with a trapeze artist but is taken forming a love triangle.  The second one is RING AROUND THE ROSY where he plays a marine in a love story centering around a gold bracelet.  The third one is SINBAD THE SAILOR in which he plays Sinbad and has some animation from the Hanna-Barbera team.  Now for the kicker, this movie has no dialogue except some audience cheer moments and is all set to dance.  This was at the time considered a flop likely because it is not really for a mainstream audience.  It was an interesting idea and has some very good dancing out of Kelly and some really good animation in the last segment.  It is really hard to put this one into words but was a good effort by Gene Kelly.

A Patch of Blue (1965):  Guy Green directed this film based on a novel by Elizabeth Kata.  Elizabeth Hartman stars as Selina D'Arcey who is an uneducated blind girl mostly imprisoned to her apartment home by her abusive mother Rose-Ann, played by Shelley Winters, and grandfather played by Wallace Ford.  She does get times where she can just hang out at the park where she meets a friendly black man named Gordon Ralfe, played by Sidney Poitier, who she forms a friendship and even relationship with much to the dismay of her mother who is also racist and remember this took place in the '60s.  I think this is my favorite Sidney Poitier film and has gone onto be very underrated in my opinion with even him citing this as one that holds a special place in his heart.  This is the debut of Elizabeth Hartman and makes a great debut but unfortunately becomes plagued by depression leading to a suicide a couple decades after the film.  Poitier is also good as a very rational black man who becomes determined to get Selina out of her abusive home.  One thing I noticed and liked is that the two people most looked down upon in the film which were a blind girl and a black man where the most reasonable people in the film.  This is one that I will refer to as a beautiful film and hope to get more people to see this movie.

Louis C.K.:  Chewed Up (2008):  I end the week with this stand-up special with Louis.  Technically this is a tv special but I make the rules so I can decide what is a movie on this blog.  This is about an hour long stand-up special from C.K. mostly just talking about everyday life.  The first part appears to be an homage to George Carlin and talking about what he feels is the misuse of words and when they are okay which is similar but different to Carlin's routine.  The part of him talking about abbreviating works like the "N-word" was very interesting and really made me think.   Most of his other material is his personal life and on parenting.  He does get pretty daring at times but C.K. fans will love it.  This is available on Instant 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 Gary Busey, Sasha Baron Cohen, Anne Hathaway, Henry Fonda, and many others.

Shaun Berk's 10 Movie Recommendations- 581st Edition

Welcome to the 581st edition of my series and the first of the new year.  I hope everyone is having a good new year and hope that you all have a good 2017.  I look forward to seeing what the year brings and I'm one of the few it seems that will say I had a good 2016.  At the same time, I have never referred to any year as a "bad year" as I feel they all will have their ups and downs and I guess I just try to make the good outweigh the bad.  Here's to the beginning of the new year and now my selections.

I'm Not There (2007):  Todd Haynes directed and co-wrote this film based on different aspects of Bob Dylan.  Marcus Carl Franklin, Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Ben Whishaw, Richard Gere, and Cate Blanchett each play Dylan in different ways and different parts of his life.  They all have different names as none of the are named "Bob Dylan" in the film.  Kris Kristofferson does the narration while Julianne Moore, Peter Friedman, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Bruce Greenwood, Michelle Williams, David Cross, Craig Thomas, Benz Antoine, Richie Havens, and many others co-star in this unconventional biopic.  Blanchett does a great job in her part of the film while I felt Bale also does a great job.  It also is shot in many different ways like some of it is like a documentary while other parts are more like a conventional film but the whole thing comes together very well in the end.  I don't really have much more explanation to give except that it is a must if you are at least a casual Bob Dylan fan.

Rocky Mountain Grandeur (1937):  This is my short film for the week and is part of the Traveltalks short film series.  This takes a look at the Rocky Mountains in the springtime like with tourist time and some of the various activities like swimming in the mountain lakes and horseback riding in the mountain trails.  This is a pretty informative eight minutes and worth a look in my opinion.

A Tale of Two Critters (1977):  This is essentially another short film but is a lot longer than the last selection and is about 48 minutes.  I found this when it was on TCM On-Demand and noticed it was from Disney though appears to not have had much exposure since there was not much on imdb.com about it like no fan reviews and an empty message board.  Jack Speirs wrote and directed this film that takes a look at a bear cub and a raccoon which form an unlikely friendship when they are swept away down a river from their families.  They must look to each other for survival and learn things that have not been taught yet by their parents.  This really works with the narration of Mayf Nutter who essentially tells the story and the song TRAVELIN' ON.  I guess I'm a sucker for animals being featured in a movie and this is one for the family, just one that seems to have been forgotten by Disney but remembered by TCM.  This can rented and bought for streaming on Amazon.

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (2008):  This is set during WWII and is seen through the eyes of an 8 year old boy named Bruno, played by Asa Butterfield, whose father, played by David Thewlis, is the commandant of a concentration camp which is rather close to their new home.  Bruno is rather unaware of what is happening and befriends a boy named Shmuel, played by Jack Scanlon, who is in the concentration came and can talk across the barbed wire fence.  Vera Farminga and Amber Beattie co-star as Bruno's mother and older sister that also play significant parts.  Cara Horgan, Rupert Friend, David Hayman, Jim Norton, and many others co-star in this film.  It is a very sad but moving story of a boy who does not understand what is happening and the horrible things going on around him under his own nose.  It also conveys in many ways the consequences of being left in the dark of what is happening like his father mostly being secretive about what he is doing.  This is available on Instant Netflix and is a really well-done and well-performed film on the Holocaust.

Charley's Aunt (1941):  Archie Mayo directed this film adaptation of the play by Brandon Thomas.  Richard Haydn and James Ellison play Oxford students Charley and Jack who manage to get fellow student Babbs Babberley, played by Jack Benny, top pose as Charley's aunt Donna Lucia, played by Kay Francis.  Babbs is being the chaperone for Charley and Jack in their visits with Amy and Kitty, played by Anne Baxter and and Arleen Whelan.  He manages to play his art of a woman so well when faculty members Stephen Spettigue, played by Reginald Owen, and Sir Francis Chesney, played by Laird Cregar.  Benny plays this part to perfection and maybe one of the first known performances of a man playing a woman.  This also has a lot of very funny moments and is a fun watch.

The Honorable Woman (2014):  This is my mini-series for the week, brought by the BBC network.  Maggie Gyllenhaal stars as Nessa Stein who inherits her father's arms business and uses what she has in hopes to promote a reconciliation between the Iraelis and Palestinians.  In this she must deal with a lot of conflict and betrayal in her quest.  Stephen Rea, Andrew Buchan, Lubna Azabel, Janet McTeer, Katherine Parkinson, Tobias Menzies, Lindsey Duncan, Igal Naor, Genevieve O'Reilly, and many others co-star in this mini-series.  This consists of eight episodes that are about an hour each.  Gyllenhaal carries this very well with Rea also really good as the MI6 agent of the middle east.  This is available on Instant Netflix.

A Big Hand for the Little Lady (1966):  This is my western comedy for the week which was directed by Fielder Cook and centers around a game of poker.  Henry Fonda and Joanne Woodward star as married couple Meredith and Mary who are coming through and are about to buy a farm in San Antonio.  Meredith hears of a poker game and wants to go watch in which Mary reluctantly allows showing that he obviously has a gambling problem.  As he sits there, he cannot resist but to join in using the money they already have and begins to lose it.  Mary must take over when Meredith has a heart attack and must quickly learn the way of poker leading into some interesting situations.  Jason Robards, Paul Ford, Charles Bickford, Burgess Meredith, Kevin McCarthy, Robert Middleton, John Qualen, and many others co-star in this film.  I didn't really know what to expect but came out really enjoying it.  They managed to make a good western and not have a lot of gun action within it.  Everything was centered around the poker game going on and made the most of it.  This is some rather unknown Fonda and deserves some more recognition.

The Incredible Petrified World (1959):  We will call this my bad movie of the week.  A group of adventurers set out on the depths of the ocean and end up underwater through some caverns but somehow come into another world where an older man informs them there is no way out.  I don't have much more explanation that that unfortunately.  John Carradine co-stars in this film and had quite a career in his mixture of both good and bad movies.  Fans of B-movies should get a kick out of this one.

Hero (2002):  Yimou Zhang directed this martial arts film.  This takes place in Ancient China and Jet Li stars as the nameless assassin who defeats three warriors, played by Donnie Yen, Tony Leung, and Maggie Cheung, all out to assassinate the King of Qin, played Daoming Chen.  The king summons the nameless one to tell him about the defeat of his warriors leading to a lot of Rashomon types of flashbacks.  Ziyi Zhang co-stars in the film in a more minor role than others but still gets to do some fighting.  I feel this is the second of a trilogy, I suppose the Ziyi Zhang trilogy which stars with CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON, then this one, then HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS which I actually consider the best of these three.  These are the three known ones that have the fantasy sort of fight style that involves flying.  I will admit this took me a couple watches to really get into  but find I enjoy it more every time with some of these twists and turns of Nameless explaining his story.  It has some really good fight scenes, beautiful scenery, and a really good music score.  This has its audience and is going to have some that do not like it.  This is available on Instant Netflix.

Meru (2015):  I end the week with this documentary on a group of mountain climbers.  Married couple Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi directed this documentary and Chin is one of the climbers.  This takes on a group of elite climbers looking to climb the seemingly impossible Mount Meru in the Indian Himalayas.  In 2008, they made an attempt but fell short of getting to the top of what they call "Shark's Fin".  Through lots of adversity, they decide to attempt it again.  This is one of those kinds of things I'll never understand why anyone would want to do but I understand that other people's passions are more dangerous than others and these guys were very determined.  This does take a good look at the intense climbing that almost always happens in really cold weather.  This is available 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 Denzel Washington, and many others.

Shaun Berk's 10 Movie Recommendations- 579th Edition

Welcome to the 579th Edition of my series.  Hope everyone is having a good holiday however celebrated.  I'm glad to say that I am in the playoffs for my Fantasy Football league so we'll see how this goes.  It feels weird not having a show to be in as I have been busy with plays since September but it is good to have a break and be in Muncie more.  Not much more to say right now so on with my selections.

The War Room (1993):  I start the week out with this documentary directed by Chris Hegedus and D.A. Pennebaker.  This focuses on the 1992 campaign for Bill Clinton and focuses on spin doctors James Carville and George Stephanopoulos.  The title brings a bit of negativity in my opinion.  It is mostly about the adventures of these two guys in trying to help Bill Clinton elected and goes into the inner workings of a campaign.  This was not really pro or anti Clinton, just a look into his campaign.  We also don't see a lot of Clinton himself but the two spinsters who also deliver some laughs in the process of this political documentary.

It's a Wonderful Life (1946):  Frank Capra directed this holiday film and probably my favorite one.  Earlier in the month, I had the opportunity to be in a theatrical version at the Marion Civic Theater playing Mr. Gower in one of the most intense scenes I have done.  I have been watching this movie since my high school days usually with my mom or my dad depending on where I am on Christmas Eve on NBC.  I'll give a rather small synopsis.  James Stewart stars as small-town boy George Bailey who wants to get out of Bedford Falls but things always happen and ends up staying there.  He marries his childhood friend Mary, played by Donna Reed, and has four kids.  He does what he can to prevent Mr. Potter, played by Lionel Barrymore, from taking over the town and screwing everyone over.  Something happens where George feels he has hit rock bottom and contemplates suicide.  An unusual angel named Clarence, played by Henry Travers, comes down to stop him and show him a world that would have happened had he not been born.  Thomas Mitchell, Ward Bond, Beulah Bondi, Gloria Grahame, H.B. Warner, and many others co-star in this film.  I love the message of this movie which I feel is what one person does for another can go a long way no matter how small a favor may seem at the time.  This started out as quite a flop and did not become the classic it is known until the 70s when it was in public domain and it started airing on television.  Supposedly there is a sequel in the works but has been "in development" for a long time on imdb so I will believe that when I see it.  This is on NBC at 8 pm on Christmas Eve so after you have had many viewings of A CHRISTMAS STORY, this would also be a great watch.

Christmas Comes But Once a Year (1936):  This is my animated short for the week from Dave Fleischer.  This is a holiday selection in every sense of the word and this takes place at an orphanage among children who all receive gifts but find they are all broken.  Professor Grampy hears the cries and decides to make a good Christmas for the children through his inventing ways.  This was a character that was usually in Betty Boop cartoons and this is the only one he made without her.  I came across this on my Pub-D-Hub app on my Roku player and was a pretty good and different watch.

2 Days in the Valley (1996):  This is part four of my four-part Jeff Daniels series where he plays a burned out vice cop.  John Herzfeld wrote and directed this crime comedy which centers around multiple stories that all come together in the end.  Danny Aiello and James Spader star as Dosmo Pizzo and Lee Woods who are involved in an insurance exam until Dosmo learns it was a setup and fights for survival as well as revenge.  Charlize Theron stars as Lee's partner in crime and I believe this was the first time I really saw her.  Eric Stoltz co-stars as Wes who is a more idealistic vice cop being partnered up with Alvin, played by Daniels, but not agreeing with the undercover work he is doing and ends up getting in the investigation of the crime this film centers around.  Teri Hatcher, Peter Horton, Glenne Headly, Paul Mazursky, Keith Carradine, Louise Fletcher, and many others co-star.  I have always enjoyed this movie with the blend of action and comedy that is given.  This has a lot of very well-written characters and always feel this has been a very underrated flim.

The Iceman Cometh (1973):  This is part two of my two-part Fredric March series and part one of a possible two or three part Jeff Bridges series.  John Frankenheimer directed this film based on the play by Eugene O'Neill.  This takes place in a bar and as far as I know they were there the entire time of this four hour film.  Many of the bar patrons are contemplating their lost faith and dreams and then their friend Hickey, played by Lee Marvin, shows up saying he is reformed and hoping to get through to the other patrons in hopes they will give up their pipe dreams and focus more on reality.  Robert Ryan, Jeff Bridges, Bradford Dillman, Juno Dawson, Clifton James, and many others co-star in this film.  This is the final film for both Ryan and March.  I was amazed on how this movie was able to keep my attention for four hours that is only at one place.  It also managed to do this without any sort of music score or violence and just had great dialogue among the bar patrons.

The Great Beauty (2013):  This is my Italian film for the week which was written and directed by Paolo Sorrentino.  Toni Servillo stars as reporter Jep Gambardella who has made and seduced his way through Rome nightclubs for decades but as his 65th birthday hits, he gets a shock from the past and starts to see Rome past the bars and nightclubs.  Carlo Verdone, Sabrina Ferilli, Carlo Buccirosso, Iaia Forte, and many others co-star in this film.  Servillo is great as Jep in his soul searching journey and has some really great cinematography.  Also takes a look at a darker side of rome than we are used to seeing.  This is really good for foreign film buffs.

My Sister Eileen (1955):  This is my musical for the week.  Richard Quine directed this film which stars Betty Garrett and Janet Leigh as small town sisters Ruth and Eileen trying to make it in Greenwich Village.  Ruth is trying to make it as a writer while Eileen wants to be an actress but find that it won't be that easy.  Jack Lemmon stars as publisher Bob Baker who gets the attention of Ruth while she tries to pass herself off saying the Eileen in the stories is really her.  Bob Fosse co-stars as Frank who lends a sympathetic and supporting ear to Eileen.  Kurt Kasznar and Dick York also co-star in this musical.  This is a rather overlooked musical with some really fun numbers from Jule Styne and Leo Robin.  There are also a lot of good comedic moments like the apartment the sisters take.  Garrett is perfect for the role of Ruth while Lemmon lends his singing talent.  This is a pretty fun musical that deserves a look.

Hacksaw Ridge (2016):  This is the time of year I start going to the movie theaters more often and I start the Oscar season out with this war film.  Mel Gibson goes back behind the camera to direct this film based a true story of WWII soldier Desmond Doss, played very well by Andrew Garfield, who goes into war but refuses to take up a gun due to part religious beliefs but we learn there is a lot more to it than just religion.  This starts with his upbringing and what lead to his beliefs but also felt he had a duty to serve in the war.  It then goes into him in boot camp where no one could understand his not wanting to pick up a gun.  He finally gets what he wants and become a medic slowly winning over his fellow soldiers in battle during WWII due to his resourcefulness and bravery not having a gun.  Sam Worthington, Luke Bracey, Teresa Palmer, Hugo Weaving, Rachel Griffiths, Vince Vaughn, Milo Gibson and many others co-star in this film.  This was a very moving war film to me.  I don't usually favor the war genre but was really into this one and liked it over last year's war film AMERICAN SNIPER though really enjoyed LONE SURVIVOR from 2013.  Garfield does great as the rather naive small-town boy looking to make a difference but standing up for what he believes.  The rest of the cast does really well including Vince Vaughn in a more serious role.  The end has a very touching tribute to the real Desmond Doss which I admit really made me tear up a bit.

That Darn Cat (1965):  Now I go from a war movie to this fun live-action Disney classic.  The protagonist of the story is essentially an adventurous Siamese cat named D.C. aka Darn Cat.  This cat manages to stumble upon a kidnapping of a bank employee Margaret, played by Grayson Hall, and she puts her watch around the cat's neck.  D.C. manages to make it back home to his owner Patti, played by Hayley Mills, who concludes it is part of the kidnapping scheme and calls the FBI with her theory prompting to send FBI agent Zeke to come to her town in order to look into it.  This is some good fun of an overzealous teen and an FBI agent teaming up to look into a crime.  Dorothy Provine, Roddy McDowall, Elsa Lanchester, Neville Brand, Frank Gorshin, and many others co-star in this Disney film.  This is the first Disney film for Dean Jones who would go onto be in many of the live action Disney films and was the last Disney film for Hayley Mills until the mid-80s.  This is some good and harmless fun for the family to watch unlike my next and last selection for the week.

Filth (2013):  I end the week with this film that has been on my list for some time.  My original intention was to get a group of movies together, then draw out which one gets featured but then as I look more into it, this is a holiday selection.  Jon S. Baird directed this film based on the novel by Irvine Welsh.  James McAvoy is far from Professor X in this British film where he stars as the corrupt cop Bruce who is trying to get a promotion pretty much by any means necessary while also wanting to get back with his wife, played by Shauna MacDonald, and daughter who have left him.  Jamie Bell, Eddie Marsan, Imogen Poots, Brian McCardle, Jim Broadbent, Shirley Henderson, and many others co-star in this film.  This takes place during the holidays and plays a lot of Christmas songs.  There are a lot who love those sappy Hallmark Christmas movies while there are others who want more action in a holiday film like DIE HARD and LETHAL WEAPEN.  There might be some who prefer things like BLACK CHRISTMAS or SANTA'S SLAY.  There might be those that prefer the more raunchy comedies like the BAD SANTA films.  This the holiday film to a whole new level.  The title pretty much says it all so if you offend easy, this is not a holiday movie for you.  It is also not really one for the family.  It is mostly a character study on this corrupt cop manipulating his way to the top but also shows his more human side at times.  McAvoy was great in his performance as the cop.  This is available on Instant 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 Emma Stone, Christopher Lee, Zooey Deschanel, and many others.

Shaun Berk's 10 Movie Recommendations- 578th Edition

Welcome to the 578th Edition of my series.  IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE was very well received at the Marion Civic Theater and am grateful for the experience of this new group of actors I got to work with and have one more performance today at 2 pm.  As of now I am not doing anything and could be taking a break until at least spring but as always I'll keep everyone posted.  While I do like the holidays, I hate snow and cold weather but will do what I must to get through it.  That is all for now so on with the selections.

The Ref (1994):  I start the week out with this underrated holiday comedy.  Ted Demme directed this film that takes place on Christmas Eve.  Denis Leary stars as cat burglar Gus who takes a couple hostage when his partner abandons him during a heist.  Kevin Spacey and Judy Davis co-star as the couple Lloyd and Caroline that is taken hostage and Gus gets far more than what he bargains for when he finds that they are a very bickering couple and even more than he bargains for when he meets the rest of the dysfunctional family that is coming over for the holidays.  Robert J. Steinmiller Jr., Glynis Johns, Raymond J. Berry, Richard Bright, Christine Baranski, Adam LeFevre, J.K. Simmons, B.D. Wong, and many others star in this comedy.  This does have a lot of very funny moments with a hostage taker unexpectedly becomes a counselor in a sense.  This never usually gets mentioned in holiday comedies but believe it should be mentioned more.  This is available on Instant Netflix.

Paper Man (2009):  This is part three of my four-part Jeff Daniels series.  Kieran and Michele Mulroney wrote and directed this independent film.  Daniels stars as struggling author Richard Dunn who is also struggling with a marriage to his wife Claire, played by Lisa Kudrow, and is spending time in a home in Long Island hoping to come up with his next novel.  While there, he meets a teen named Abby, played by Emma Stone, and forms an unlikely friendship when seeing they are both struggling to cope in their own way.  Ryan Reynolds co-stars as Richard's imaginary friend he has not let go of so it would be safe to say he has not been able to fully grow up.  Most people know that Reynolds has played two superheroes in both the Green Lantern and Deadpool but most do not realize before these two he was Captain Excellent albeit being a figment of the imagination.  Kieran Culkin, Hunter Parrish, Chris Parnell, and Arabella Field also co-star in this film.  I guess I am a sucker for movies like these that are driven by characters and this is one.  Watching this, I felt I was there with Daniels and Stone in their struggles.  There were also quite a bit of laughs to go along with this moving story.  This is available on hoopladigital.com.

Babe (1995):  This selection does have a scene that takes place during the holidays.  Chris Noonan directed this animal comedy which is based on a novel by Dick King-Smith.  Farmer Arthur Hoggett, played by James Cromwell wins a pig and is named Babe, voiced by Christine Cavanaugh, by the animal community.  A motherly border collie named Fly, voiced by Miriam Margolyes, takes in Babe and find that the unusual pig can her sheep which Farmer Hoggett begins to notice.  With Babe's rise as a sheepherding pig, some of the animals are a bit dismayed for him not sticking to tradition, espcially Fly's husband Rex, voiced by Hugo Weaving.  Magda Szubanski co-stars as Farmer Hoggett's wife and Danny Mann, Miriam Flynn, Russi Taylor, Evelyn Krape, Roscoe Lee Browne, and many others lend their voices.  I suppose this could be a more modern-day CHARLOTTE'S WEB where its protagonist Wilbur has a resourceful spider that made really cool spider-webs to help save him from becoming a meal and in this one Babe takes to the border collies and forms its own unique trait for a pig in sheepherding that helps him not become dinner.  The scene in the beginning makes me believe that the writers of this movie are vegans and animal rights activists.  It is still a good family film and a very well done one.  This is available on Plex On-Demand.

Night Mail (1936):  This is my documentary short for the week.  Harry Watt and Basil Wright directed this short which shows the mail system in England in this era.  These were put on by the postal service themselves and hired professional filmmakers to put documentaries like this one together with the inspiration of early documentary NANOOK OF THE NORTH.  This shows many elements of the system like the delivery and sorting of the mail.  This was rather revolutionary for the documentary world at this time.

O. Henry's Full House (1952):  This is a holiday selection that I had not heard of until now.  This was a movie of segmented stories and features five short stories from William Sydney Porter whose pen name was O. Henry.  His stories dealth with the early 20th Century and is known for his surprise endings.  Author John Steinbeck makes a rare film appearance is the host in a sense introducing the stories and talking about the author who he obviously had a lot of respect for as a writer.  This was probably a very daring and risky project where each story was assigned a different director, writers, and actors.  Henry Hathaway and Richard L. Breen were assigned THE CLARION CALL.  Howard Hawks and uncreditted writers Ben Hecht, Nunnally Johnson, and Charles Lederer were assigned THE RANSOM OF RED CHIEF.  Henry King and Walter Bullock where assigned THE GIFT OF THE MAGI which I auditioned for in Alexandria.  Henry Koster and Lamar Trotti were assigned THE COP AND THE ANTHEM.  Jean Negulesco, Ivan Goff, and Ben Roberts were assigned THE LAST LEAF.  Actors include Fred Allen, Anne Baxter, Jeanne Crain, Farley Granger, Charles Laughton, Oscar Levant, Marilyn Monroe, Jean Peters, Gregory Ratoff, Dale Robertson, David Wayne, Richard Widmark, Lee Aaker, Fred Kelsey, Richard Garrick, and many others that were willing to take supporting roles out of respect for this project.  This was a nice and unexpected gem I came upon.  I was probably most moved by THE LAST LEAF, but the rest were all very enjoyable and while not all of them necessarily take place during the holidays, there is enough for a holiday selection and hope to get this more on the radar.

Black Christmas (1974):  Now I bring some classic holiday horror for those who don't like the sappy Christmas movies.  It is Christmas break at a sorority house and begin to get strange phone calls.  One of the girls disappear which does not draw much concern from the police and it takes a murder for them to investigate.  They are soon pitted against a stalker and I started realizing that horror movies seem to have a rather incompetent police force.  Olivia Hussey, Keir Dullea, Margot Kidder, John Saxon, Andrea Martin, Art Hindle, Lynne Griffin, and many others co-star in this film.  This is another rather overlooked holiday film and horror film in general.  It was good to see Olivia Hussey who plays Juliet in my favorite version of ROMEO AND JULIET in 1968 and always good to see John Saxon.  Check out some horror in December.

Hedda Gabler (1962):  This is my tv movie for the week which is based on the play by Henrik Ibsen.  Ingrid Bergman stars as Hedda who is a scheming woman marrying a nice but rather dimwitted acedemic in George, played by Michael Redgrave.  The marriage is obviously not out of love and things become very complicated when George's former colleague and rival Ejlert, played by Michael Redgrave, comes into the picture.  Ralph Richardson and Ursula Jeans also co-star in this BBC film.  While this is an abridged version, it was still very compelling to watch though I guess I have not seen this so it didn't matter for me.  This comes from a boxed set of other Ibsen adaptations put on by BBC through the years.  Ibsen did a lot for the genre of drama and this boxed set I found pays good tribute to this important playwright.

Young Sherlock Holmes (1985):  Barry Levinson directed this film and was written by Chris Columbus.  Alan Cox stars as a young John Watson who is recalling his time at an English Boarding school and his meeting with the teenage Sherlock Holmes, played by Nicholas Rowe.  While there, some murders are happening that are made to look like suicide which leads into finding a cult.  Sophie Ward, Anthony Higgins, Susan Fleetwood, Freddie Jones, Nigel Stock, Roger Ashton-Griffiths, and many others co-star in this film.  This is meant to be an imaginative story on how the two iconic characters written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle meet since Doyle never really wrote a story on their meeting and how they became the people they became.  I remember watching this in high school and remembered it being pretty enjoyable.  This is a rather overlooked movie of the '80s in my opinion.  It was a pretty clever story and even have some good special effects to go along with it in the hallucination scenes.  I believe Doyle would have liked this back story on his characters.

Middle of the Night (1959):  Delbert Mann directed this film based on the play by Paddy Chayefsky and possibly part one of a two part series for both Fredric March and Kim Novak.  March stars as widowed businessman Jerry who takes an interest in his employee Betty, played by Novak, who is young enough to be his daughter.  This drama takes a look at the complications of a relationship with a big age gap which is still looked down upon today but likely moreso in this era.  Glenda Farrell, Albert Dekker, Martin Balsam, Lee Grant, Lee Philips, and many other co-star in this film.  March and Novak were really good together in trying to get through their own issues with age difference and dealing with the objections from their friends and family.  I find I have focused on quite a few classic writers in O. Henry, Ibsen, Chayefsky and in a sense Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.  This is a really good love story that is very complex and really deserves a look.

A Most Violent Year (2014):  This is part two of a two-part Jessica Chastain series.  J.C. Chandor wrote and directed this crime drama.  This takes place in 1981 New York City which is said to be the most violent year in that city.  Oscar Isaac stars as immigrant Abel Morales who tries to operate a successful business but must deal with violence and corruption in their efforts to expand their business.  Chastain co-stars as Abel's wife Anna who remains strong in her effort to keep the family together and safe.  David Oyelowo, Albert Brooks, Elyes Gabel, Catalina Sandino, Moreno, Christopher Abbott, Peter Gerety, Alessandro Nivola, and many others co-star in this film.  This is a good look at an ambitious man and the measures he will take to keep what he has going.  This 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 Charlize Theron, and many others.

Shaun Berk's 10 Movie Recommendations- 577th Edition

Welcome to the 577th Edition of my series.  This weekend we opened for IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE at the Marion Civic Theater and we still have one weekend left next weekend.  Check out this website http://www.marion-civic-theatre.org/ for ordering information.  Tickets are $12 and shows are Friday and Saturday at 7:30 pm and Sunday at 2 pm.  That is all that is really going on in my life so now for my selections.

The Great Gatsby (2013):  This is part five of my five-part Leonardo DiCaprio series.  Baz Luhrman directed this adaptation of the classic F. Scott Fitzgerald novel.  Tobey Maguire stars as Nick Carraway who recalls an encounter with millionaire Jay Gatsby in the Roaring 20s where they become friends but soon slips into obsession and tragedy.  Carey Mulligan, Joel Edgerton, Isla Fisher, Jason Clarke, and many others co-star in this film.  If anyone has seen Luhrman's ROMEO AND JULIET and MOULIN ROUGE, you will expect rather lavish cinematography which does not fall short in this film.  Also has an interesting way that it works into rap an hip hop during the depression era like the way rock and pop music is worked into Moulin ROUGE  It has a rather complicated story that I have a really hard time describing.  It did manage to keep my interest with the way it was shot and the performances.

The Martian (2015):  This is part two of a potential four-part Jeff Daniels series.  Ridley Scott directed this Sci-Fi film based on the novel by Andy Weir.  Matt Damon stars as Mark Watney who is an astronaut that gets left behind in a misson to Mars by his crew assuming he is dead.  He has indeed survived and is stranded on Mars where he must fight for survival and looks to get word that he is alive to NASA.  When it is found he is still alive, a team at NASA, a group of scientists, and his crew fight tirelessly for his rescue.  Mark's resourcefulness and botany skills are what keeps him alive while they look to bring him home. Daniels, Jessica Chastain, Kristen Wiig, Michael Pena, Sean Bean, Kate Mara, Sebastian Stan, Aksel Hennie, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Benedict Wong, Donald Glover, Nick Mohammed, Shu Chen, and many others co-star in this film.  I suppose this is a predictable film at least towards the ending.  I find I don't always mind predictability when I am on an enjoyable journey to get there.  Damon does really well carrying this film when he is by himself on Mars.  It is also a rather inspirational film on people coming together for a cause and when the rest of the world is shown rooting for his return to earth.  This could be a good double feature to go with GRAVITY, another sci-fi film that has a rather possible scenario.  It could also be a double feature to go along with 127 HOURS where on each one the protagonist is in some way stuck and they video themselves to give update in the event that they die or I suppose in the event they survive and maybe it can get used as a documentary.  This one really exceeded my expectations and is available on HBO On-Demand.

Rent:  Filmed Live on Broadway (2008):  With December starting, the more I thought of this, I realized this is in a sense a holiday film where much of it takes place Christmas Eve and has Christmas lyrics in the music.  In 2005, there was an actual film version of this musical and this is a live version that they filmed and put on DVD.  Will Chase, Adam Kantor, Michael McElroy, Rodney Hicks, Tracie Thoms, Justin Johnston, Renee Elise Goldsberry, and Eden Espinosa star as a group of friends in New York City's East Village during the rise of the AIDs crisis where they all struggle to live and survive.  Most know this is a musical but is more of a rock opera.  The difference between this version and the 2005 film is that the movie version used some of this as dialogue whereas the stage version is mostly singing.  As much as I liked the movie version, I find that I prefer this one.  Tracie Thoms is the only one from the movie that is in this version where she reprises her role of Joanna.  I think it is great that there is more and more live theater they put on DVD.  I really liked Goldsberry as Mimi especially when I think of the original Broadway soundtrack and always am a bit bothered by the singing voice of Mimi in the soundtrack.  The rest of the cast does great and cameos of Wilson Jermaine Heredia, Jesse L. Martin, Anthony Rapp, and Daphne Rubin-Vega happen after the finale.  They were all part of the original cast with Heredia, Martin, and Rapp being part of the movie version.  One of my favorite musicals and glad I thought of this one for the holidays.

The Bespoke Overcoat (1955):  This is my short film for the week.  Jack Clayton directed this film based on the one-act play by Wolf Mankowitz.  This takes place in a clothing manufacturing warehouse.  Alfie Bass stars as Fender who is an aging worker looking to have an overcoat at work which is refused by his cold-hearted boss Mr. Ranting, played by Alan Tilvern, so he turns to his co-worker friend Morry, played by David Kossoff, to make one for him.  Morry makes the coat but Fender dies before he can get the coat and gets buried with the coat.  Fender returns as a ghost asking Morry to steal a coat for him.  This is about a half hour long and is an Oscar winner.  It is a pretty moving story with great performances from the leads and a very well done half-hour that I recorded from TCM.

Gabriel Over the White House (1933):  This is my political film for the week.  Walter Huston stars as the newly elected President Judson Hammond who at first taking a very hands off approach to the presidency but things change when he survives a near fatal car wreck.  He soon tries to get rid of all the social ills like helpilng the unemployed and addressing the mob by essentially becoming a dictator.  Karen Morley, Franchot Tone, Arthur Byron, Dickie Moore, and many others co-star in this film.  This is a pre-code film with some interesting irony of trying to make America a better place but by resorting to tactics of people like Hitler and Mussolini for it to happen.  Great movie to watch during the time of the recent election and one that has gone onto be mostly unknown but hoping to get it on the radar courtesy of TCM which is the channel I recorded from.

Pretty Baby (1978):  Louis Malle directed this film and co-wrote with Polly Platt.  This is not for everyone would be a bit of an understatement.  This takes place in 1917 New Orleans where Susan Sarandon stars as Hattie who is a prostitute from the era and lives with her 12 year old daughter Violet, played by a young Brooke Shields, who later starts working at the brothel herself.  Keith Carradine co-stars as Bellocq who takes an interest in photographing Hattie and Violet playing a pretty big part in their lives, especially Violet's life.  Frances Faye, Antonio Fargas, Diana Scarwid, Barbara Steele, Gerrit Graham, and many others co-star.  This in a sense is one of those coming of age stories but takes coming of age to a new level.  To watch this film, the mind must open up to the extreme.  Lots of actors declined this film on account of the content of the script.  Making a movie of this sort would never be acceptable in a modern society so I tried to keep in mind that in this era that times were much different.  Keeping the mindset, this was a really good portrait of this time period being very well shot and a look into the world of prostitution in what was essentially a depression even though it would be years before the official depression in 1929 started.  This is not very upbeat but still very well done with good performances especially out of young Shields.  I guess if we are talking about double features, this would go along well with TAXI DRIVER which also features an underage prostitute where then a debate of Brooke Shields vs. Jodie Foster can get started.

Nascar:  The Ride of Their Lives (2008):  Now I follow up with this documentary talking about the history of the racing world in Nascar from its beginnings into the modern era.  It starts with some of the pioneer days of racing where Lee Petty was involved to his son Richard that would become a name synonymous with racing.  It mostly featured how Nascar got into the spotlight and the racers who helped get it there.  It takes a look at the Earnhardt family, the Allison family, Tim Richmond, Jeff Gordon, Darrell Waltrip, and many others.  Kevin Costner provides the narration to this documentary.  I will say I'm not really into auto racing but am usually interested in the history of something and was able to get into this documentary that I found pretty insightful.  It also shows how much safer racing has become from the beginning and anything involving fast cars will never be fully safe but they have come a long way.  I believe this can be enjoyed by fans and non-fans alike since it focuses more on the people than the sport.

Gumby's Christmas Capers (1957):  This is my holiday short for the week which is really a compilation of holiday skits.  I have been exposed to the claymation of Gumby from a rather early age as my dad has always been a big fan of the character.  This is a green humanoid character and is always with his best friend Pokey which is a talking orange pony.  One of the abilities of this world is that people can enter books.  In this one, they had stories involving Ebenezer Scrooge and Santa Claus and Gumby as Sherlock Holmes at one point.  These are some very iconic characters and this is a fun watch for the holidays that most people may not know about.  This was about a half hour long and it is available on the website http://hoopladigital.com.

Salesman (1969):  This is my second documentary for the week and there is some singing of Christmas Carols and involves the reason for the season in Jesus though not sure how he feels about these people.  This involves a group of salesmen who try to sell rather expensive bibles mostly to families that are in poor to lower-middle class standing.  These are illustrated bibles, even calling the Catholic Encyclopedias pretty much doing what they can to make families feel obligated to buy these even if they are not very affordable.  Even these salesmen seem to think they are doing everyone a big favor in paying to upgrade from a more basic bible.  I had not heard of this one but am glad to have come across it.  It was a very interesting look into bible salesmen.  I actually played one in INHERIT THE WIND which was possibly my favorite show I have done.  Great documentary, especially from this era and a good look into the world of sales.  This is available through the Criterion Collection and if nothing else, it can be watched on Youtube.

Meerkats:  The Movie (2008):  I end the week with my third documentary which is into the animal world.  Paul Newman narrates this documentary that focuses on the title animal which is from the Kalahari desert in Africa.  They filmed it by creating a character out of one of the meerkats and named him Kolo which is new to the world and showing his struggles in life as well as him maturing among his family.  It shows the dangers of other predator animals and the meerkats doing what they can to survive in this difficult world.  It is a very insightful documentary and I was amazed by the way they were able to film some of these scenes like some scenes underground.  I featured documentaries this week regarding race car drivers, bible salesmen, and get to end the week with some animals.

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