IAN HOLM

     Ian Holm (83 and still working) is one of those character actors whose face you can't come up with- until you see him in a movie and think "Oh, yeah, that guy." A reader requested I write an article about him, and with over 135 acting credits, there is plenty to choose from, so here goes:

     Most recently you would find Ian Holm appearing in most of the Lord Of The Rings and Hobbit films. He also could be heard as the voice of Skinner, the head chef in the animated Ratatouille (2007).

     In Alien (1979) Holm is cast as Ash, a really bad guy who tries to scuttle the mission along with the human crew. Fortunately, though maybe not so much for him, he is decapitated and turns out to be an android!

     In Robin And Marian (1976) Holm is the hated King John, who hunted the noble Robin Hood like a dog and who was forced to sign the Magna Carta. Sean Connery and Audrey Hepburn shine was the title characters, middle-aged lovers, still charming. 

     In Chariots Of Fire (1981) one of the two British runners who are the movie's heroes is Harold Abrahams (Ben Cross). In 1919 he breaks with tradition and hires a professional trainer. And that trainer is Sam Mussabini, played adeptly by Ian Holm. Later his protege makes headlines by refusing to compete on the Jewish sabbath.

     In Kenneth Branagh's marvelous adaptation of Shakespeare's Henry V (1989) Mr. Holm is Captain Fluellen,the right hand man of the fighting king. I think this version is only a half-step behind the 1944 Henry V with Sir Lawrence Olivier.

     Franco Zefferelli's splendid adaptation of Hamlet (1990) has Ian Holm as the foolish and doomed Polonious. He is surrounded by a stellar cast including Mel Gibson as the title character, Glenn Close, Alan Bates, Paul Scofield and Helena Bonham Carter. 

     Playing the part of a rather quackish physician is no problem at all for Ian Holm, and he is such as Dr. Willis in The Madness Of King George (1994). His idea for curing the king's craziness is to strap him into a tight vest whenever he goes off the tracks. Right...

     Ian Holm is the dastardly Pascal in Big Night (1996). Brothers Primo (Toy Shaloub) and Secondo (Stanley Tucci)are trying to succeed with a new Italian restaurant. Pascal tells them he will have a famous opera star appear there at a certain time, on the Big Night. I will just say that Pascal is a competitor and doesn't play fair.

     Atom Egoyan's The Sweet Hereafter (1997) involves a horrific school bus accident in which many children are killed. Many of the parents are recruited by attorney Michael Stevens to file a class action lawsuit. That lawyer is played by none other than Ian Holm, and this is one of his best roles. I will reveal no more!

     Joe Gould was a semi-famous gadfly in New York in the 1920's and after. He compiled an "oral history" of characters he encountered and many people were intrigued by this opus. One of them was Joseph Mitchell, who put together this story and this movie. Joe Gould's Secret (2000) is the result and Mr. Holm plays the title character. What is the secret? My lips are sealed!

     Ian Holm can also be seen as the somewhat evil Gideon Largeman in Garden State (2004) and as the quirky Professor Fitz in Martin Scorcese's The Aviator (2004).

     All of these movies are available on DVD and for streaming. All of them are adult films.

DEMENTIA

     I recently saw Julianne Moore's incredible performance in Still Alice (2014). She plays a university professor in the throes of early-stage Alzheimer's disease. She deservedly won the Best Actress Oscar, conveying the terror and helplessness that must affect those stricken with this terrible disease. It occurred to me later that I had seen several really excellent films centered on a character with some form of dementia.

     The earliest example I can think of is On Golden Pond (1981). Before that one, such people were generally relegated to comic relief. Henry Fonda plays the patriarch of a small family. Daughter Jane plays his daughter (!) and the legendary Katherine Hepburn is his wife. Both female characters sense Dad's gradual mental ebbing before he does. In a crucial scene, he becomes lost in a familiar setting and realizes something is terribly wrong.

     There were three splendid films on this subject in 2001, all from foreign countries. Firefly Dreams is from Japan. A petulant teenager's parents send her to the countryside to work at her uncle's inn and cafe. She reluctantly puts up with her retarded cousin who makes her finally realize how fortunate she is. She is dispatched to help an elderly woman (Maho) who lives nearby who is sliding into dementia. The girl gradually realizes that the old lady had quite a life as a young woman and that everyone is of value, regardless of their mental state. 

     From Sweden comes A Song For Martin. The afflicted character here is a renown classical music composer. Imagine standing before a huge orchestra in a packed theater to conduct your own concerto and forgetting what to do next. He does not go gently, but go he does. Martin falls in love with the lovely first violinist and they have a few months of happiness before he is diagnosed with Alzheimer's. His descent is fast: at one point while out in the water he forgets how to swim. 

      And from England we have Iris about the famous author Iris Murdoch. Kate Winslett plays Iris as a young woman and Judi Dench plays her as a mature celebrated writer who gradually loses her bearings to dementia. Jim Broadbent is very good as her long-suffering husband. All three actors were nominated for Oscars and Broadbent won. 

     Finally, the wonderful Julie Christie is the central character in Away From Her (2007). As she slides deeper and deeper into dementia, forgetting what happened the day before and who her husband (Gordon Pinsent) is, he makes the ultimate sacrifice. She has fallen in love with a fellow patient and her husband does everything he can to aid that relationship, placing her happiness ahead of everything. 

     I rate every one of these films at 9 out of 10!  All of them are available on DVD and for streaming. All are definitely for grown-ups. 

EVEN MORE BASEBALL!

     After my last effort, about the best baseball movies, an alert reader pointed out that there are quite a few very recent baseball films that deserve mention. And he was right!

     42 (2013) is a good biopic about the late, great Jackie Robinson. He was the first black player in the major leagues. Unknown Chadwick Boseman is fine as the lead, and equally obscure Nicole Beharie is good as his wife. Harrison Ford, who seems to get even crustier with each outing, nails the part of Branch Rickey. Rickey was the general manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers, and signed Robinson because he was a great player and because it was the right thing to do. The film is unstinting about the hatred and abuse heaped on Jackie and his Herculean efforts to control his temper and play the game. As a kid I loved the Brooklyn Dodgers and Jackie Robinson was my favorite. I still remember a game when he stole home.

     Oakland A's general manager Billy Beane is better known than lots of players and managers because he was the inventor of Moneyball (2011). Because Oakland is a very small market with a very small amount of money (relatively speaking, of course)Beane (Brad Pitt) hires a Harvard math prodigy (Jonah Hill) and studies statistics very carefully. They throw traditional scouting out the window and proceed to unbelievable success with bargain players. Pitt is quite good. When Beane has agreed on a deal on the phone, he just hangs up, saying "When you've made the deal, don't stick around." 
      The other side of the coin (personal observation over statistics) is well represented in Trouble With The Curve (2012). Clint Eastwood plays himself (as always) as an aged baseball scout on the lookout for new talent. The fact he is going blind doesn't help a lot. Amy Adams plays his daughter, who tries to help him with his scouting. A trip to North Carolina turns up an unknown pitcher who can really bring it.
     Finally, there is Jon Hamm as a sports agent down to his last athlete, who has a brilliant idea. Cricket is practically a religion in India, and he realizes from watching TV that those guys really throw hard. Maybe he could find a couple of prospects to bring to America? This is based on a true story. He starts a contest in India to select the best pitchers, and finds a couple with real velocity. Of course, they have absolutely no clue about baseball, but are willing learners. Million Dollar Arm (2014) is funny, charming and quite engaging.
     All of these movies are available on DVD and for streaming. All are fine for 12 and up. 

                 HOLLYWOOD HAS BEEN BERY BERY GOOD TO BASEBALL

     As I write this, Opening Day is upon us. Hollywood (and I) just love baseball. And for whatever reason, the very best sports movies are about the National Pastime. Herewith my personal baseball favorites.
     1. Field Of Dreams (1989). It's the best thing Kevin Costner has ever done. James Earl Jones is splendid as the kidnaped writer and Ray Liotta's debut as Shoeless Joe is top notch. The magic of baseball and something of what it has meant to America is here, as well as the ridicule true believers in any magic have to endure. When the players come out of the corn field, I always get goose bumps!
     2. The Natural (1984). Larger than life and meant to be, this is the fable of the Great American Hero. Robert Redford has it down pat. OK, guys, maybe he is a little too pretty, but live with it. Glenn Close is the hero's dream of The Lady. The argument that Roy Hobbs' home runs are impossible is completely beside the point. 
     3. Bull Durham (1988). The movie that made Durham Bulls memorabilia famous. As good as it gets in portraying the gritty, quirky world of minor league baseball. Susan Sarandon is just right (isn't she always?) as the ultimate "fan," Kevin Costner is fine as Crash Davis, and a pleasantly awkward Tim Robbins is good as The Kid. Funny, touching, and lots of fun.
     4. Pride Of The Yankees (1942). Gary Cooper is more like Lou Gehrig than Gehrig was. The complete team player with the terminal disease that was named for him won't leave a dry eye in the house when the credits roll. 
     5. Bang The Drum Slowly (1973). Another doomed player, here a none-too-bright but engaging Robert DeNiro. He gets the puzzlement of "why me" across really well. The camaraderie of the players, and even their occasional meanness, is right on the money.
     6. Major League (1989). Some of the action in this one is pretty realistic. The Cleveland Indians are the worst team in the majors and their owner tries to make them even worse. But hey, this is Hollywood and they just might win the pennant. I like the sappiness and the dialogue.
    7. The Stratton Story (1949). Not as well-known as some other baseball biographies, but better than many. Monty Stratton was a real person who really lost an arm and still played major league baseball. Jimmy Stewart and June Allyson are properly heroic. I like the way the other teams don't cut Monty any slack, and that he doesn't expect them to.
     8. A League Of Their Own (1992). Okay, so it's about women, it's still a good baseball movie. Geena Davis and Penny Marshall hit the right notes as ballplayers and Tom Hanks is good, as always, as their crusty manager. Good screenplay.
     And a special Honorable Mention to Ken Burns' Baseball, a nine-hour love story done as well as it could be.
     All of these movies are available on DVD and for streaming. All except Bull Durham are fine for all ages.