MOVIES FROM THE 1990'S (MONTH 2)

Since I STILL had quite a few movies from the 90's left on my 1001 list, I decided to re-watch ten this month that I've seen but haven't seen for awhile.

Thelma and Louise

Thelma and Louise is a sort of 90's feminist Easy Rider about a pair of women whose unfortunate circumstances lead them to be on the run from the law. The movie is a bit of a fantasy ride, yet still rings true more often than not. Mark this one down as one is even better than I remember. Susan Sarandon and Geena Davis are both excellent and Callie Khouri won a well-deserved Oscar for her strong screenplay.

The Sixth Sense

Another from the if you know what is going to happen it might not be as good a movie experience files, The Sixth Sense is a supernatural story that never pulls it's punches enough for you to figure out exactly what is going on underneath the surface until close to the end. That was true the first time I saw it and I still feel a bit dense about not figuring it out sooner. It's been hard for director and M. Night Shyamalan and star Haley Joel Osment to top their respective contributions here. Maybe some day.

Clueless

Clueless is one I'm less sure about. What is the connection to Jane Austen's Emma again? But I can see that this has a similar appeal to a later generation to the appeal that I have to Fast Times at Ridgemont High. I honestly didn't know both films were directed by Amy Heckerling until I watched Clueless again. I also got the opportunity to watch this one with my niece (she's a big fan of the film), which is always a plus.

Boogie Nights

Boogie Nights is the complex and funny character study of the pornography industry during the 70's and 80's. I liked writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson's flair and style in this film as well as his subsequent film, Magnolia. And where is my old Betamax copy of Debbie Does Dallas, anyway?

Short Cuts

After finally reading Raymond Carver's collection of stories on which it is based, I was looking forward to watching Robert Altman's adaptation of Short Cuts again after many years. Not of all of what Altman's fly by the seat of your pants filmmaking worked during his career, but it really works for Short Cuts. He takes Carver's stories and changes them where he needs to, has the characters interact with each other in ways they never did in the short stories and puts it all together as a cohesive whole. Some Carver purists may not approve, but I'm not among them. I think it's a brilliant film.

Magnolia

Magnolia is a film I also compare to Short Cuts because of multi-character nature of the piece. I like this one almost as much as Short Cuts, though the second half, where all the characters break into song for no reason and are attacked by a shower of frogs, doesn't quite live up to the first half. Still highly recommended with a fine cast headed by John C. Reilly as the world's nicest cop and Tom Cruise, who plays a cross between Tony Robbins and Andrew Dice Clay.

Rushmore

I have to admit, I liked Wes Anderson's Rushmore seeing it now more than when I first saw it. Teenage overachiever Max Fischer (Jason Schwartzman) and millionaire businessman Herman Blume (Bill Murray) vie for the affection of teacher Ms. Cross (Olivia Williams). It's a movie with a great deal of charm and warmth. Probably (now) my favorite of Anderson's movies.

The Crying Game

Part of The Crying Game game is watching it with someone who hasn't seen it before and see if they can guess the radical plot twist that happens about half way through the movie. Spoiler: My wife didn't see it come it and failed this test. Sorry, dear. Overall, the film works well as a thriller and as a social commentary on human sexuality as well. I also really like the scorpion/frog joke and try to use it in my own conversation where applicable.

Jurassic Park

Yes, dinosaurs are cool, I've always thought they were cool since I got those little dinosaur booklets at Sinclair stations when I was a kid. But maybe I'm just Jurassic Park'd out. I've read the book...seen all the films...seen Michael Crichton's Westworld, which is definitely a forerunner of Jurassic Park. Maybe I'm taking the special effects for granted and know how the plot is going to go and was a little bored by it this time out. I will say the triceratops was always my favorite dinosaur too, Dr. Grant! In fact I always rooted for him in my imaginary battles against T-Rex as depicted in the colorful picture from the Sinclair Dinosaur booklet below.

Saving Private Ryan

Who can forget that long and horrifying opening of Saving Private Ryan, which depicts D-Day in an unglorified and violent way that few war films had done before. We also get on board for an epic journey following the squad led by Captain Miller (Tom Hanks) that spends most of the movie searching for the elusive Pvt. Ryan (Matt Damon), who gets to go home because his brothers were all killed on Omaha Beach. And Spielberg won his second Oscar for this and a lot of people think it should have won Best Picture, too.  So, we can pretty much put this in the war classic category and move on, right? 

Not so fast.

I wanted to read famed screenwriter William Goldman's essay on Saving Private Ryan after I saw the movie again because I heard he dishes out some tough criticism on the film.

Goldman's major problem with Saving Private Ryan #1: The movie starts with an older man in modern times and his family visiting a veteran's cemetery in an emotionally charged scene. We fade to a close up of the man and cut to a flashback to the story which begins with the D-Day invasion. The logical assumption is that it this Captain Miller's (Tom Hanks) story until we discover at the end of the film that Captain Miller is killed and the man in the opening scene is Pvt. Ryan himself. The problem Goldman sees in this is that Ryan only comes into the movie at well past the half way point. How can he be recounting the story if he wasn't even there for most of it?

Goldman's major problem with Saving Private Ryan #2: The squad (minus two who have already been killed) finally locates Pvt. Ryan to take him back. However, Ryan stubbornly wants to stay with his squad and help his brothers in arms fight in the upcoming battle with the Germans. However, the ridiculous part for Goldman is the fact that Captain Miller's squad decides to join the other squad and fight the oncoming Germans! What? Now they are going against their mission after rigidly sticking to it for almost three hours of film time? Goldman points out that there would have been an easier out if they had just let Ryan stay and tried to get back but were blocked in by oncoming Germans and forced to stay and fight out of necessity.

Goldman's major problem with Saving Private Ryan #3: 
 Here is Goldman's direct quote.
The other disgrace of this storytelling is this: there is no pregnant moment to the story. (I'm not going all intellectual on you—remember, the Zipper scene and Matt Dillon trying to electrocute the dog back to life were my happiest moments this year in a theatre.) But all stories do and must have them. They are the reason the story is being told. The pregnant moment of Shakespeare in Love is this: Will has a block. We do not tell of Joe and Gwyneth after he's written King Lear—the whole point is the guy can't write anything. Armageddon happens when it happens because the meteor is on its way.

There is absolutely no reason for this story being told now since Matt has no specific reason for visiting the cemetery.

Goldman also has problems with the film's patriotic over-sentimentality during the modern day scenes (I disagree with him here. I find those scenes effective). He also hates Ryan's one long speech (the girl hit by an ugly stick one) which is the viewer's one opportunity to know something about Ryan and doesn't put him in an overly positive light. (I think he's right about that one.)

Anyway, food for thought from the always interesting Mr. Goldman.

Glad to revisit these films from the 90's, but there are plenty from this list that I've never seen....I'll take a look at some of those next month.

FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMONT HIGHT (1982), BLADE RUNNER (1982)

1982

"Am I hallucinating here?" Sean Penn and Ray Walston in
Fast Times at Ridgemont High

I was in the last stages of being a teenager when Fast Times at Ridgemont High came out. Maybe that's why I still have such an affection for it. This comedy about some urban teenagers trying to live and get through high school is still fun to watch. Most of the characters have their flaws, but are pretty likable for the most part. And we also have characters that we recognize from high school: The unobtainable pretty girl (Linda), the schemer (Damone), and of course, Sean Penn as Spicoli, the stoner. The scenes between Penn and Ray Walston as Mr. Hand are my probably my favorite ones in the film. Character I see relate to the most? Why, the nerdy and socially challenged Mark Ratner, of course!

Stu Nahan appreciation society: Stu Nahan is probably best know to moviegoers as the play-by-play announcer in the Rocky movies. But he is also the guy who interviews Spicoli on the beach in Fast Times. 

Stu, Sean and friends..."Hey, bud let's party!"

And those nude scenes: Yes, any male who watched this movie back in the day certainly remembers when Stacy (Jennifer Jason Leigh) takes off her clothes and seduces Damone (Robert Romanus). Not to mention the fantasy scene of Brad (Judge Reinhold), where Linda (Phoebe Cates) emerges from the pool and takes off her top (Hello...Brad!). But on sober reflection, the first scene ends up with Damone ejaculating immediately, getting Stacy pregnant and going out of his way to avoid paying for her abortion. The second scene ends up with Linda catching Brad in the bathroom masturbating while thinking of  her...Ah, nothing like a little male humiliation upon sober reflection.

Hello, Brad!...Phoebe Cates in Fast Times at Ridgemont High

Blade Runner

Blade Runner

Blade Runner is based on the sci-fi novel by Phillip K. Dick about a Blade Runner named Deckard that is reluctantly hired to hunt down some refugee replicants that are almost indistinguishable from humans. The entire plot synopsis is put forth in the opening crawl, but the plot isn't the main reason to watch Blade Runner. The main reason to watch it is for the stunning visuals. The sets, the design, the make-up, the costumes, the lighting...all these elements took me to another place like few films have. Absolutely in my book.

The original book asks Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, a query that is irrelevant to the film Blade Runner as the electric animals of the book play pretty much no part here. But at least they changed they did change the title for the film.

Blade Runner

Fast Times at Ridgemont High and Blade Runner made the 1001 list, but here are some other films released in 1982 that didn't make the 1001 cut.

1. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
Still the gold standard of Star Trek movies for me, not to mention having one of the all-time great movie villains.

The Wrath of Khan
For hate's sake I spit my last breath at thee!

2. Airplane II
The precise type of humor that the Zuckers and Abrams brought to Airplane! mostly falls flat in this sequel without them.

3. The Verdict
Tailor-made role for Paul Newman as an aging, over-the-hill, alcoholic lawyer who finally gets a shot at a big case.

4. Author Author
I mostly remember this comedy with Al Pacino as being a little on the bland side. Might be worthy of a revisit, though.

5. Liquid Sky
When I first got a VCR, I wanted to check out some off-beat things that you couldn't see easily elsewhere. This movie about space aliens, lesbians and heroin addiction certainly fits the bill and should be at the top of any 80's cult movie list.

Liquid Sky
Sex, Drugs, Rock 'n Roll and aliens. What better way
to break in your new VCR?

6. Cat People
Remake of the 40's classic does have a sexy Natassia Kinski, a plot that can be much more adult than the original and the David Bowie theme song which is really the first thing I think of when I think of Cat People.
"Puttin' out fire...with GAS-O-LEENE!"

7. Creepshow
You don't see too many horror feature films anymore that are just a section of vignettes. If I ever did watch this one again, it would mostly be for the section that we get to see Stephen King act!

8. Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid
Black and White film noir comedy with Steve Martin I'm sure is still fun to watch, though I'll bet the then groundbreaking special effects of putting 40's movie stars in the scenes with Steve are officially no longer state of the art. Damn CGI!

9. Deathtrap
Remake of Sleuth, but with Christopher Reeve sort of in the Michael Caine role and Michael Caine in the Laurence Olivier role. Or something like that.

10. The World According to Garp
One of my favorite parts of John Irving's book is T. S. Garp's stories within the main story. You can't really show that in a movie adaptation, but I always have liked what George Roy Hill did with the movie version anyway. I honestly think this is Robin Williams's signature role, though I may be in the minority on that one.

Mr. and Mrs. Garp

11. Lookin’ to Get Out

Before my first trip to Las Vegas, I wanted to watch some movies set in Las Vegas. So I picked this Hal Ashby comedy with Jon Voight and Ann-Margaret...which was universally panned, but not as bad as all that if I remember correctly. Or maybe I was just excited about my Vegas trip and want to go easy on it?

12. My Favorite Year
I liked the depiction in this film of the early years of television and how could you not love Peter O'Toole as an egocentric slumming movie star?

13. Missing
I'm a little surprised this critically acclaimed Costa-Gavras political thriller isn't in the 1001 movie book.

14. A Midsummer Night’s Sex Comedy
Woody Allen denied that this film was based on Bergman's Smiles of a Summer Night, but I can't watch Woody's film without thinking about the Bergman film.

15. Pink Floyd-The Wall
The music of Pink Floyd + Alan Parker + Imagination run wild=One of my favorite midnight movie experiences of that year.

Bob Geldorf does some rearranging
Pink Floyd-The Wall

16. The Man from Snowy River
One day in 1982 I just decided to go see a movie at the theater and picked The Man from Snowy River for no reason in particular. This Australian Western with Kirk Douglas was enjoyable enough from what I remember. Or maybe I just felt a need to balance out my midnight movie excursion with The Wall with a more family oriented film.

17. An Officer and a Gentleman
I liked this movie when I saw it. Then I took a college film class the next year and realized how An Officer and a Gentleman had so sneakily manipulated my emotions! I still don't know what to think about it, though the final scene will always remind me of the similar scene of Homer and Marge in one of the early episodes of The Simpsons.

18. Night Shift
Lighthearted, but not a bad start to Ron Howard's post Happy Days feature film directing career. He also directed a high school TV movie in the 70's called Cotton Candy. I wonder if anyone else remembers that one?

19. Porky’s
This may have been the breaking point where I was getting less enthused about slob sex comedies. It did have some funny moments, but wasn't inspired enough to see Porky's II when it came out.

20. Swamp Thing
Is this the one with Adrienne Barbeau or Heather Locklear? I'm trying to get them straight in my mind.

That's Adrienne Barbeau with
Swamp Thing.

21. Rocky III
Probably the III'rd best Rocky film.

22. The Seduction
Morgan Farichild was never going to be a big movie star. But her poster shall remain on my wall (hypothetically) forever!

23. Personal Best
I went to see this movie for the great reviews it got, not all the buzz about nude scenes and Mariel Hemingway Playboy spreads and such. Well...maybe a little of all of the above. I do remember during the steambath scene, the guy sitting in the seat ahead of me leaned over to his date and whispered, "subtle breasts" when speaking of Ms. Hemingway.

A more "subtle" scene from Personal Best

24. The Atomic Café

Why my dating life wasn't so hot in 1982...

Me: Hey, would you like to go see a movie?

Potential date: Oh, how about Officer and a Gentleman? Or maybe you would prefer to see First Blood?

Me: I was thinking about this movie called The Atomic Cafe. It has all this archival footage from the 50's about military manuevers and how to duck and cover all put together in a narrative whole for a new generation to look back in a historical context at our post nuclear-age paranoia!

Potential date: I think I'm busy tonight, come to think of it.

 (I went to see it by anyway...alone)

And finally...

One Movie I Must See Before I Die Because My Wife Told Me I Needed To:

25. First Blood

I may have seen An Officer and a Gentleman and The Atomic Cafe, but I never got around to seeing First Blood. I never saw any subsequent Rambo movie either (Son of Rambow doesn't count). I"m not much of a fan of Sylvester Stallone action movies in general, but I guess this is one I should see once and I'll try to go into it with an open mind.

The movie starts off promisingly with a Vietnam veteran named John Rambo (Stallone) finding out the last man in his unit has died before drifting aimlessly into a town where he is treated with hostility by local law enforcement. They take him in for no real reason, treat him badly before he escapes and the film quickly turns into a action movie that seems to forget about the roots of Rambo's psychological issues and basically just falls into him just blowing stuff up and causing mayhem as he is being chased into the woods by Brian Dennehy and the rest of the "Jerkwater, USA town" sheriff's department. He's a one man wrecking machine, or so says his former Vietnam Commander (Richard Crenna) who comes along to see if he can save the authorities from Rambo (and not the other way around, as he puts it). At this point, some local reserves presumably kill Rambo, but of course he isn't really dead and decides to make sure everyone knows this by stealing a truck and blowing lots more stuff up! Rambo finally has some dialogue at the end of the movie when he tells us about how he was never able to fit in since returning from the 'Nam (I liked Stallone in this scene, got to give him credit). He is then talked into turning himself in by his old commander and the end credits roll.

The movie does have overtones of Billy Jack., which also had a soft spoken Vietnam Vet who had a tendency to be provoked into violence.

Well I'm glad to have finished that short movie list of one.

October, 2015-finally saw a Rambo movie.

GLADIATOR (2000)

MILLENNIUM MONTH (MM): MOVIES FROM THE YEAR 2000...

AND IN MEMORIAM

(Post 5 of 11)

Gladiator

2000's Academy Award Winning film Gladiator certainly owes a debt to previous films like Spartacus and Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire, but the story of General Maximus, the Roman leader turned gladiatorial slave certainly has a lot going for it in its own right. Epic story from Oscar nominee David Franzoni turned into a most memorable ancient Rome by Oscar winning director Ridley Scott and highlighted by the the subdued Oscar winning performance from Russell Crowe make this one an all-around success.

2000 IN MEMORIAM

Obituary of person with 1001 movie connection: I know I'm cheating with this one, but I'm listing Oliver Reed. Oliver (1938-1999) technically died in 1999, but since he was in Gladiator and is given a memorial credit in the end credits, I'll go with it. Oliver had many acting credits in the 60's, but the earliest movie I can remember him in is as the evil Bill Sikes in Oliver! in 1968. He was also in Ken Russell's The Devils (a 1001 movie entry) and played Athos in the fun Three Musketeers and Four Musketeers. He played Ann-Margaret's husband in the Who's Tommy, though his singing in that film may be best forgotten. His credits from the late 70's and beyond were a bit on the cheesy side, including the horror films Burnt Offerings and The Brood and the awful Two of a Kind. But one of his best roles was his last, as the before mentioned Proximus in Gladiator. He plays the ringleader of the gladiators who cares only about the show and the profits until later (as the line in the movie goes) when he succumbs to the temptation of becoming an honest man.

Or does he? Reed died during the filming with several of his scenes left to shoot. Expensive computer generated imagery of Reed was used to complete the film and his death scene was filmed from the back (Fake Shemping?) Despite these handicaps, it is a nice final film role for Mr. Reed.

Oliver Reed (I think) in Gladiator