GOOD MOVIES YOU MAY NEVER HAVE HEARD OF
                                                                  Part 6

Herewith the sixth installment of really good movies that attracted little notice when they came out. I hope you will find one or more to rent, or stream,  and enjoy. 
The Straight Story (1999) is the late, great Richard Farnsworth’s swan song, and what a delight it is.  He plays an old man who journeys halfway across America on a riding lawnmower to see his dying brother, from whom he has been estranged for years. He meets lots of people on the way, and this is one wonderful film. Sissy Spacek as his mildly retarded daughter and Harry Dean Stanton as the brother are as good as they always are, but it is Mr. Farnsworth’s film. He lost out to Kevin Spacey for American Beauty for the Best Supporting Actor Oscar, but the nomination was high cotton for him. He died at 80 the next year.
Clare Danes is one of our best, and least appreciated, actresses. She did yeoman work in the TV serial Homeland for which she has won two Emmys. Temple Grandin (2010) is an HBO made for TV movie but is readily available to rent or stream. Temple Grandin is a real person, still living today. She is afflicted with autism, a complicated neurological condition that makes sufferers react oddly to social situations and often appear mentally disturbed. But Temple is also a genius at figuring out how to make the rounding up and slaughtering of cattle more humane and more lucrative. Ms. Danes is just stunning in this complex and difficult role. What a good movie!
A Very Long Engagement (2004) stars the winsome French actress Audrey Tatous (much loved for Amelie). Her fiancé has been given up for dead by the government and his family, but she refuses to give up hope. The ending will satisfy the hardest of hearts. 
Waking Ned Devine (1998) is one of the funniest, most charming films from the charming Irish. Ned Devine has won the lottery. The only problem is Ned is dead and the winner must claim the award in person. The townspeople conspire to make this happen, somehow. Their antics in doing this and fooling the lottery judges is just about as funny as anything you’ll ever see. 
The Wrong Box (1966) is Michael Caine’s first big movie break, but it also features a bunch of famous Brits. John Mills, Ralph Richardson, Dudley Moore, Peter Cook and Peter Sellers are also on board in a film about British inheritance and the highjinks employed by those who hope to get rich from it. The plot is simply too complicated to spell out here but is easy enough to follow when viewing it. It is really funny!
All of the films in this column are available on DVD and for streaming. And actually all are fine for any age, factoring in the boredom quotient for littlies. 

                                                   THE MARX BROTHERS
A lot of younger (than me!) film fans are not familiar with the Marx Brothers. After all, their last film wrapped in 1950. Their unique brand of comedic chaos, gratuitous insults, sight gags and general merriment is still lots of fun. They used a script  only as  a starting point, much preferring to make it up as they went along. Their films were so popular they were allowed to get away with this (and lots more!) They always seemed to be having a ball. 
Groucho is the one with the funny walk, ridiculous big moustache, outrageous puns and insults. In the 1950's Groucho had a half-hour TV show, You Bet Your Life. It had its funny moments and was nearly always pushing the censorship envelope.  
Harpo never speaks but blows his horn and carries around an entire junk shop in his coat. Chico translates for Harpo and mispronounces simple words to our delight. Zeppo is bland, boring and a prime example of sibling loyalty.
The problem with The Boys isn’t the funny parts of their films, it’s the rest of them. Most have the mandatory harp solo by Harpo, voice solo by the wretched Zeppo (who is absent after 1933), and piano solo by Chico. These set pieces do nothing at all for the movie except to grind it to a halt. So, a player with fast-forward is the perfect vehicle for a Marx Brothers movie. Zap the boring parts and you have about an hour of great comedy!
A good starting point for the uninitiated is The Marx Brothers in a Nuthshell (1990) which contains many of the great gags and little of the boring stuff. This film shows up on TV fairly often and many video sites usually have it. If you like it you’re ready for the hard stuff.
For my money, the Marxs’ crowning achievement is Duck Soup (1933) with Groucho as the ruler of a mythical country, poking fun at diplomacy, patriotism and lots of other sacred cows. It may also ring a few bells about our current situation! A very close second is A Night At The Opera (1935) in which the boys invade the world of Grand Opera and leave it in a shambles.  
If you like either of those, you should also enjoy Monkey Business (1931) [the boys on a luxury liner], A Day At The Races (1937) [Marxian havoc at a sanatorium], and Horse Feathers (1932) [Groucho as Dean of a college].  A step below these would be The Cocoanuts (1929), Animal Crackers (1930), Room Service (1938), and A Night In Casablanca (1946).  The remaining Marx Brothers films are for real Marx fanatics only. 
By the way, Monkey Business contains a famous scene in which about a hundred people are somehow wedged into a tiny stateroom. I have never figured out how they did that!  
All of the movies in this column are available on DVD and for streaming. All are suitable for children 10 and up.

                                                         ALICE DRUMMOND

Alice Drummond was the quintessential character actor. She was in over 50 movies and well over 100 TV shows. She was the woman the casting director sent for to fill an essential, but non-starring, role. You probably can’t remember her face, but if she turns up in a film you will immediately know you’ve seen her before. She worked well into her 80's and lived to be 88. Like most character actor careers, hers is chock full of mediocre to really bad films. But I was astonished by the number of really good films in her resume’.
Do you remember the frightened little librarian at the beginning of the original Ghostbusters (1983)? I didn’t either, but that was Ms. Drummond. Far superior to the 2016 remake, the original featured Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, Bill Murray and Sigourney Weaver. It gave us the memorable line “Who you gonna call?” as well as one of the friendliest looking monsters ever on the silver screen. 
Running On Empty (1988) features Christine Lahti and Judd Hirsch as peacenik parents on the run. Their bombing of a napalm factory went horribly wrong. A janitor who wasn’t supposed to be there was blinded and nearly killed by the blast and the police are after the perpetrators. The late River Phoenix has a major role as their son, a gifted pianist who gets tired of their clandestine lifestyle and wants out. Alice Drummond is just fine as Mrs. Powell, admittedly a very minor character. 
Awakenings (1990) is the heartbreaking story of the experimental treatment of catatonic patients with a new medication, L-Dopa. Robin Williams is the lead physician of the experiment and Robert De Niro is the first patient tested. At first he makes amazing progress and is practically back to normal. But then he gradually sinks back to his original catatonia. Alice Drummond is featured as one of the patients receiving the treatment. She and the other patients realize by watching De Niro regress that the same thing will happen to them. And it does. 
Pieces Of April (2003) stars Katie Holmes as a rather angry young woman living in a small New York apartment. She decides to make Thanksgiving dinner for her dysfunctional family in an effort at reunion. Patricia Clarkson plays her mother, terribly sick with breast cancer but who decides to attend the gathering anyway. Oliver Platt plays her father, a nice guy hoping for the best. And Alice Drummond plays Grandma Dottie, who is in fact quite dotty, sinking into dementia. The film has its funny moments as well as quite a few more serious ones. 
Doubt (2008) features blockbuster performances in the story of how a priest may or may not be a child molester (hence the title!) Meryl Streep plays the headmistress of the parochial school, Amy Adams plays a naive young nun teacher, Phillip Seymour Hoffman is the suspected priest and Viola Davis is the young boy’s mother. All give A+ performances and all four were nominated for Oscar but didn’t win. Alice Drummond has a nice turn as Sister Veronica. 
You can also catch Alice Drummond (but don’t blink) in Nobody’s Fool (1994), Joe Gould’s Secret (2000), and After Life (2009). 
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD and for streaming. All but Doubt are okay for all ages. 

                                                AT THE OFFICE
Lots of us spend many hours a week at the office, so it is a location with almost universal interest. But it isn’t all that easy to make good office movies- the setting is small with little opportunity to “open out.” These are my favorite “at the office” movies.
A Spencer Tracy-Katherine Hepburn film is almost always a good place to start any appropriate category, and Desk Set (1957) certainly fills the bill. Tracy is an efficiency expert brought in by Ms. Hepburn’s TV network boss to improve productivity. Of course, they meet, they clash, they fall in love, with lots of great one-liners on the way. Still very entertaining and right on the money. 
Sir Anthony Hopkins (of all people!) is the title character in The Efficiency Expert (1992) an edgy little Australian comedy that cuts both ways. If you thought maybe Mr. Hopkins couldn’t handle light comedy check this out. He is letter perfect as the outside expert from Hell.
And while we know Meryl Streep can play absolutely anything, she still stuns us as the worst boss ever in The Devil Wears Prada (2006), driving poor Ann Hathaway (and much of the audience) to distraction with her arbitrary devilish directions. But Hathaway soldiers on against seemingly impossible odds, and we’re pulling for her and hating Streep for much of the film. 
Before we leave comedies, one of my favorites from any category is the hysterical 9 To 5 (1980) with Lilly Tomlin, Jane Fonda and Dolly Parton plotting and exacting delicious revenge on their tyrannical boss, Dabney Coleman. So it’s a little over the top- hey, it’s a satire!
From a much darker palette, Rod Serling’s Patterns (1956) is about as good as it gets in portraying corporate politics, one-upmanship and boot-licking sycophancy. Ed Begley is the vaguely humanistic employee of Everett Sloan, almost but not quite a 
parody of corporate greed and sheer wrong-headedness. Every CEO everywhere should have to watch this movie.
Finally, a real sleeper from 1997, Clockwatchers. It did almost no business and quickly went to video, where you can still find it. Parker Posey and Lisa Kudrow head a fine ensemble cast in this stunning black comedy about the American workplace and the American soul. The film cleverly shows how little real work is done. It is also most revealing of how friendships (and reputations) are made and lost in today’s fast-moving society.
All of the films in this column are available on DVD and for streaming. All are for grown-ups.

                                         GOOD FILMS YOU NEVER HEARD OF
                                                              Part 5
People with supernatural powers are pretty much standard stuff in today’s movies. But what about those who actually have them? In Resurrection (1980) Ellen Burstyn is superb as Edna McCauley. She survives a horrible car crash in which her husband is killed. She gradually discovers that she now has the ability to heal people with her touch. And slowly, as knowledge of her ability spreads, more and more people want her to help them. She comes to wish her talent never happened. A cautionary tale about celebrity and its fallout.
There have been lots of good movies about chess, and also about child prodigies. The recent Queen Of Katwe (2016) is a good example. But one of the best films ever made in this niche is Searching For Bobby Fischer (1993). Max Pomeranc (8 years old at the time) is perfect as the super-talented boy, who really just wants to be an ordinary kid. Joe Mantegna and Joan Allen are really good as his bewildered parents, trying to navigate between his talent and his childhood. And Lawrence Fishburne has an excellent turn as a park speed player. 
David Niven made a good living as a dashingly handsome leading man. But- my goodness- he will break your heart in the splendid Separate Tables (1958). Mr. Niven is amid a cluster of heavy hitters in this film: Burt Lancaster, Deborah Kerr, Rita Hayworth, Wendy Hiller and Gladys Cooper. The group dynamic at a residential hotel ebbs and flows around Niven’s character, whose past is about to catch up with him. 
And speaking of broken hearts, the fine Italian movie The Son’s Room (2001) is about as good as it gets in films about the death of a child. Teen-ager Andrea is not on good terms with his doctor-father Giovanni. The boy dies in a scuba diving accident and his dad mourns all the missed chances there were. The father is played by Nanni Moretti with just the right touch. Mr. Moretti also wrote, directed and produced this movie. For him it was a work of love and necessity.
The Station Agent (2003) introduced American audiences to two very fine, but until then almost unknown, actors. Dwarf Peter Dinklage (as Fin McBride) is anything but small in this part. He has been befriended by an aged shop owner who dies and leaves his abandoned railroad station to Fin. Fin makes the station his home and only wants to be left alone, very unsociable and touchy about his size. But Joe Aramas (Bobby Cannavale), an exuberant Cuban-American food truck owner,  isn’t having it and refuses to give up on being friends with the small man. Just stunningly good is another neighbor, Olivia Harris (the wonderful Patricia Clarkson) trying to regain her footing after the death of her child. Somehow all of this works together in a marvelous way!
All of the films in this article are available on DVD and for streaming. Bobby Fischer is fine for all ages. The rest are for grown-ups. 

                                                 SHIRLEY TEMPLE
Even though Mary Pickford  was called America’s Sweetheart, really it was Shirley Temple. As a mature woman and mother, Shirley Temple Black was named American Ambassador to Ghana and later to Czechoslovakia, and was quite effective by all accounts. She died at the age of 85, having accomplished much.
In the 1930s, Shirley Temple absolutely ruled the movie scene. Compared to today’s child actors, she wasn’t really very good. But she was so darn charming and cute it really didn’t matter. As the little girl on the silver screen she was irresistible. Her handlers developed dolls, dishes, and other paraphernalia stamped with her name, a first time use of a star in this manner. And a Shirley Temple to this day is a drink for children, minus any alcohol. 
When I mentioned the little girl, I wasn’t kidding. She made her first movie appearance at the ripe old age of 3. After appearing in numerous short features, and capturing the attention of both the public and the movie studios, her breakthrough part came in Stand Up And Cheer (1934). The President creates a Department of Amusement to lift America’s depression over the Depression. The film consists of various vaudeville acts strung loosely together. Not much of a movie, but it launched Shirley as a genuine star. 
The same year she was Little Miss Marker. Her father uses her as a marker for his gambling debts, giving her to his thuggish creditors as security. Then he commits suicide and they’re stuck with her. In today’s films they would probably shoot her, but in this one they use her charm to rig horse races.
Bright Eyes (1934) was developed especially for Shirley, and she hit it out of the park. Her signature song, On The Good Ship Lollipop, was a huge hit and the sheet music sold over half a million copies. She is a homeless waif who can sing and dance and melt the hearts of gruff adults. In 1935 the Motion Picture Academy honored her with a juvenile (smaller version!) Oscar. 
From there Shirley Temple appeared in a string of movies developed to take advantage of her popularity. The movie-going public couldn’t get enough of her. 
The Little Colonel (1935), Curly Top (1935), and The Littlest Rebel (1935) followed quickly. In 1937 she was cast as the legendary Heidi, and handled the part with grown-up aplomb. Likewise as Rebecca Of Sunnybrook Farm (1938). By 1940, she was pretty much done as a juvenile star. In the late 50's she had a successful television show, Shirley Temple’s Storybook.
All of the movies in this column are available on DVD. All are fine for any age, with a caveat that these were made in the 1930's and would be offensive to many.

                                                     RENEE ZELLWEGER
The Bridget Jones Franchise recently popped its third entry, Bridget Jones’ Baby (2016). To say it is better than the last one, Bridget Jones: The Edge Of Reason (2004), may be damning with faint praise, but it is really pretty good. Colin Firth and Patrick Dempsey are just fine as the possible father. But like the others in this series, it is Renee Zellweger’s show. 
Bridget Jones’ Diary (2001) became almost a Bible for a whole generation of young women, trying to balance work and romance. If the film, with Renee Zellweger as Bridget, isn’t quite up to the book- well, what movie is? Hugh Grant puts in an appearance as the young man we thought was too snooty and turns out only to be shy. Bridget battles smoking, weight, make-up, jerks, and a host of other problems in a very
amusing manner.  Ms. Zellweger was nominated for an Oscar but lost to Jennifer Connelly for A Beautiful Mind.
The internet was abuzz a couple of years ago about how Ms. Zelwegger had ruined herself forever with plastic surgery, but she still looks fine to me.  She’s not exactly pretty, and she doesn’t exactly have a great figure. Passing her on the street you might not look back. But she has already been nominated twice for the Oscar. 
She was first noticed as the good-hearted, stick-with-you-to-the-end girlfriend of Jerry Maguire (1996). And though Tom Cruise and Cuba Gooding, Jr., got the most notice (Gooding won an Oscar), folks found themselves asking, “Who was that girl?”. And she got to say the memorable line “You had me at hello”.
Ms. Zellweger is outstanding as the dutiful daughter in Anna Quindlen’s One True Thing (1998), and holds her own with heavyweights William Hurt (unreasonable, academic Dad) and Meryl Streep (slowly dying Mom).
A very different film, and very enjoyable, is the little-known Nurse Betty (2000). Renee Zellweger plays the title character, a woman so besotted with a soap opera that it becomes real life to her. This may be Ms. Zellweger’s toughest role, and she convinces us of her sincerity when one metaphoric wink at the camera would bring the whole thing crashing down. At once funny and moving, Nurse Betty is worth a look.
So, who would you pick to play red-hot-mama Roxie Hart in the red-hot musical, Chicago (2002)? Well, Renee Zellweger wouldn’t have made my top ten, but what do I know? She is a wonderful Roxie, and she can sing and dance up a storm. This film won the Oscar for best movie (Ms. Zellweger lost to Nicole Kidman for The Hours), and Queen Latifah, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Richard Gere make if just loads of fun. It marked a return to the more traditional Hollywood musical, without all the lightning cuts and jumpiness of Moulin Rouge.
All of the films in this article, except the latest one, are available on DVD and for streaming. All are for grown-ups.

                                                      BAD BOSSES
Have you ever had a boss you absolutely hated? Seems like most folks have, and the movies have guilt-free revenge for you in several movies where very bad bosses get their comeuppance. 
One of the best in this genre is 9 To 5 (1980), with Jane Fonda, Lilly Tomlin and Dolly Parton having a grand time kidnaping their horrible boss, Dabney Coleman. Their actions may be a little over the top, but you’ll find yourself cheering for the downtrodden workers. 
In Click (2006), architect Adam Sandler not only gets even with his bad boss (David Hasselhoff), but everyone else when Bed, Bath and Beyond employee Christopher Walken provides him with a “universal remote” that is exactly that. It enables him to change almost anything in the universe. Hi-jinks ensue. Even if you’re not a big Sandler fan (I’m not), this one is pretty good. 
Maggie Gyllenhaal is the extremely put-upon employee of attorney James Spader in Secretary (2002). Recovering from being hospitalized for self-harm, she becomes her boss’s sexual slave. This goes to really great lengths, and you will not see the end coming. Okay, this one’s a little weird, but her revenge is of a different kind. 
Melanie Griffith is the heroine of the justly-praised Working Girl (1988). When her awful boss (Sigourney Weaver) steals her excellent idea, she exacts delicious revenge by pretending to be her boss when Weaver is injured in a ski accident. Helped by new boyfriend and powerful executive Harrison Ford, she pulls off the switch. There are several reversals of fortune, but Griffith’s revenge is sweet and final. 
Love Crime (2011) features Kristin Scott Thomas as the Boss From Hell of poor Isabelle Guerin, who she enjoys humiliating, especially in front of others. She will find this was a huge mistake, as Guerin exacts especially final revenge. This excellent French film has two delicious twists!
We knew that Meryl Streep could play absolutely anything, and she proves it once again as the awful boss in The Devil Wears Prada (2006). She is the editor of a swanky fashion magazine, who seems to delight in humiliating newly hired Anne Hathaway. Hathaway strives mightily to fit in, almost becoming the thing she hates. Streep’s outrageous demands are extremely funny to us, though not to Hathaway.
     In Swimming With Sharks (1994), Kevin Spacey is the horrible boss and Frank Whaley his poor assistant. This is definitely not a comedy, as we watch the employee gradually turn into a carbon copy of his employer. 



All of the films in this article are available on DVD and for streaming. All are for grown-ups.

                                                      ARTHUR HILLER

Director Arthur Hiller left this vale of tears recently at the good age of 92. He had a run of good films in the 70's. He kept working for many years but never got back to that high level. 
He is perhaps best known as the director of the classic three-handkerchief Love Story (1970). Okay, it’s really soapy by today’s jaded standards. But let’s see you watch the whole thing without tearing up! Good grief, Ali McGraw and Ryan O’Neal are just beyond beautiful. Remember “Love means never having to say you’re sorry”? Of course you don’t- you’re too young. Anyway, Mr. Hiller got his only Oscar nomination for this one but lost out to Franklin Schaffner for Patton. 
The Academy finally gave him one of those honorary deals in 2002. “Gee, we really ought to do something for this guy- he’s not going to be around forever”.
Plaza Suite (1971) may not be the very best Neil Simon adaptation, but it’s pretty good. The film, like the play, is divided into three parts. Walter Matthau appears in all three, changing characters as easily as changing hats. Lee Grant and Maureen Stapleton are on board and are just fine. The third act is the funniest, as Mimsey Hubley (Jenny Sullivan) locks herself in the bathroom rather than go through with her wedding. Her parents’ increasingly frantic efforts to get her to come out are hilarious.
Paddy Chayefsky won an Oscar for his screenplay, The Hospital (1971). George C. Scott stars as a doctor in a Manhattan hospital. His life is falling apart and so is his beloved hospital. There are curious unexplained deaths, and a fight over whether to just tear the thing down and build a rehab center. Mr. Hiller gets the most out of this powerful script. 
I would call the filming of Man Of La Mancha (1972) serviceable. The suits missed a chance to cast the Broadway stars, like Richard Kiley as Don Quixote and several other missteps. Peter O’Toole couldn’t sing a lick and a voice double is used for his songs. The film is okay but somehow doesn’t soar like the play did. 
The Man In The Glass Booth (1975) is about a German war criminal snatched from his comfy life by Israeli agents and whisked off to stand trial for his misdeeds. It is fictional, but based on the life and trial of Adolf Eichmann. Nowadays it would start off with something like “based on a true story”.  Maximilian Schell stars as the Nazi. The glass booth of the title is bullet-proof because this is one hated guy. The plot is a bit of a reach, but hey, this is Hollywood.
Silver Streak (1976) is a convoluted but funny film with Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor having frantic adventures on and off the title train. 
All of the films in this article are available on DVD and for streaming. All are for grown-ups.

                                GOOD MOVIES YOU’VE NEVER HEARD OF
                                                     Part 4

From a lifetime of watching movies, I have gleaned five more from the vault that I really liked. And I hope you’ll find at least one of them to your taste!
A Midnight Clear (1992) is one of the best war movies ever made. During World War II at Christmas time a small contingent of American soldiers encounter the enemy in an area of France far behind the lines. Gradually the two sides downsize tensions and begin to see the humanity in us all. Gary Sinise and Ethan Hawke lead an ensemble cast in a film the first half of which has a unique fairy tale quality. Unusual and worthwhile.
The Postman (1994) is an outstanding Italian flick. The 1997 American film of the same title with Kevin Costner is not even so-so. The Italian one features the story of Chilean poet Pablo Neruda’s exile to a small Italian island where his mail is delivered by the title character. Though poorly educated, Il Postino comes to love Neruda’s poetry and a life-long bond is formed, overcoming politics and xenophobia. 
Proof (1990) is an Australian film of extraordinary power. It is super-star Russell Crowe’s breakthrough part. Hugo Weaving plays a blind photographer (!) who depends on sighted people to describe his pictures. He is by nature skeptical and wary of others, mainly because he believes his mother lied to him about what was in his early pictures. He gradually forms a bond with Mr. Crowe’s character. The process of getting there includes a girl with a crush on the blind photographer and the photographer’s slow acceptance of the goodness of some others. 
I have probably watched The Red Balloon (1955) a dozen times. It is the poetic story of a little boy and his red balloon. As it circles around a very picturesque Paris and he chases it, the minimal story develops and we’re hooked. The ending just raises the goose bumps and gladdens the heart. Okay, I love The Red Balloon.
Jean De Florette and Manon Of The Spring (1986) comprise a rare recommendation by Mr. Movie of a double feature. These wonderful French films, shot in Provence over a period of seven months, are based on a Maurice Pagnol novel. They feature three French movie icons: Gerard Depardieu, Yves Montand and Daniel Auteuil. The story begins with a naive man being cheated out of his property. On that property is an incredible spring which feeds a local cottage industry, the growing of carnations. The plot twists are many but not hard to follow. And no, neither one really stands alone. But watch them in chronological order and I think you’ll be pleased. 
All of these films are available on DVD and for streaming. All are for grown-ups. 

                                                                  RADIO
From the 1920's until the 1950's, radio was the main means of electronic communication. Not only was there no Iphone or Twitter or Facebook or Internet, there wasn’t even any television! Somehow, we survived. There are lots of good movies featuring the radio and here are a few.
Handle With Care (1977) is an original, celebrating the short, eventful life of Citizens Band radio (remember CBs?) with a wacky cast that congregates around it. It is one of those handful of movies that goes in completely unexpected plot directions, all of them quite delightful. 
Play Misty For Me (1971) is a complex thriller with Clint Eastwood very good as a disc jockey whose endearing caller turns out to be the stalker from Hell. Jessica Walter is fine as the femme fatal. This is Mr. Eastwood’s first directorial effort and it is assured and polished, as well as extremely suspensful. 
Jeff Bridges is a self-absorbed smart-alecky radio personality blind sided by a tragedy in The Fisher King (1991). Amazingly, he is brought back to an even keel by street person Robin Williams. Mercedes Ruehl won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress as Mr. Bridges’ on and off girlfriend. 
Robin Williams surfaces again in Good Morning, Vietnam (1987). Mr. Williams is the GI disc jockey whose goofy radio persona is just right for the war nobody understands. Like M*A*S*H, this movie manages to combine side-splitting humor with heart-breaking tragedy. 
Radio Days (1987) is considered Woody Allen lite, but I really liked it. It bounces joyfully between 1940's good times around the family radio, and charming stories of the radio personalities America listens to. Woody and Mia Farrow head a fine cast also including Allen regulars Tony Roberts and Mercedes Ruehl. 
In Kaufmann and Hart’s The Man Who Came To Dinner (1941), Monty Wooley is the ego-heavy radio personality who breaks a leg in a middle class home and becomes the guest nobody would want. Various assorted friends and acquaintances wander in and out, to the chagrin of the “hosts” and to the hilarity of the audience. 
A film about a more modern radio show that is still very much around is Prairie Home Companion (2006), an excellent adaptation of Garrison Keillor’s famous broadcast. Though Mr. Keillor has moved on, the show is still very much alive. Mr. Keillor, Meryl Streep, Kevin Kline, Lilly Tomlin, among many others, bring the radio program to vibrant life on the silver screen. 
Other films you might enjoy that center around the radio include Comfort And Joy (1984) and Sleepless In Seattle (1993).
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD and for streaming. All except the first two are fine for all ages; those are for grown-ups only. 

                                               BEST DIRECTOR?
The Departed (2006) is a darn good movie. It was named Best Movie of that year by the Motion Picture Academy. Martin Scorcese won an Oscar for directing it (it was about time!). It’s not his best, or second, or third, or fourth. I don’t usually like “it’s his turn” Oscars, but on this one I totally agree. 
Scorcese was snubbed many times by the Academy. The worst gaffe was in 1990, when Kevin Costner’s self-indulgent and forgettable Dances With Wolves won him the director’s Oscar over Scorcese, for the classic Goodfellas. Scorcese is a National Treasure; Costner is, well, Costner (Is it unfair to mention Waterworld and The Postman here?)
1995 is another year when an actor-director beat out a more deserving pro. Mel Gibson won Best Director for Braveheart, not too bad until you consider the competition. How about Tim Robbins for Dead Man Walking, still and probably always the best film made about capital punishment. The performances he elicited from Sean Penn and Susan Sarandon are amazing. And the film has just the right balance about an extremely emotional and difficult subject. 
Ten years earlier, in 1985, the Best Director Oscar went to Sidney Pollack for the overrated and overlong Out Of Africa. There were at least two better directorial efforts that year: John Huston for Prizzi’s Honor and the grand Japanese master Akira Kurosawa for Ran. I have a sneaky feeling that this was a “it’s his turn” Oscar, as Pollack had been overlooked for Tootsie and They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?, both superior to Out Of Africa. 
The original Rocky (1965) is a pretty good movie, and it won the Director Oscar for studio hack John Avildsen. To get to him, they had to overlook both Sidney Lumet for Network and Allen Pakula for All The President’s Men. 
I think these awards are fair: 1994- Robert Zemakis for Forest Gump; 1996- Anthony Minghella for The English Patient .  But in those respective years, I would have voted for Quentin Tarantino for Pulp Fiction and Joel Coen for Fargo. 
Here’s the oddest thing: not that I’m opinionated or anything, but in the years before 1976 I think the Academy was absolutely on the money with every Best Director Award. And I feel the same for the years after 1996.  Oh, and I certainly have no prejudice regarding actor-directors. Look at Clint Eastwood and Robert Redford!
All of the movies in this article are probably best for adults, though there is more of a boredom than an offensiveness factor. All are available on DVD and for streaming.

     BACKLASHES (VERY BAD CASTING)
In fishing you get a backlash from very bad casting. This happens in movies, too. Lots of good movies are almost spoiled by the wrong actor (or sometimes just a bad actor) in the wrong part.  
West Side Story (1961) is going splendidly; dancers are dancing; singers are singing; Jets are Jetting. Enter the wretched Richard Beymer in the pivotal Romeo role and things nearly grind to a halt. Apart from being a bad singer, dancer and actor, and not particularly good looking, he is perfect for the part. What were they  thinking ?
In Steel Magnolias (1989) there is a wonderful ensemble cast of women ( Julia Roberts, Dolly Parton, Darryl Hannah, Sally Field and Shirley MacLaine) who hang out at the beauty shop in a small Southern town and share their hopes, dreams and heartaches.. Olympia Dukakis, with her posturing and utterly phony Southern accent, looks like an escapee from some other movie. 
The Hunt for Red October (1990) is splendidly suspenseful and faithful to the book about the possible defection of, or attack on America by, a Soviet submarine. The intrepid Sean Connery is fine as the Russian commander. So are Scott Glenn, James Earl Jones and Sam Neill in supporting roles. And Alec Baldwin is so bad as the American CIA agent he is like fingernails on a blackboard. I note Baldwin was quickly, and wisely, dumped for Harrison Ford in all subsequent Tom Clancy films.
Meg Ryan is a pretty good actress (When Harry Met Sally; Sleepless in Seattle) so what are we to make of her dreadful performance in Courage Under Fire (1996)? And she is the character the movie is about! She did what the director told her? They wanted another name? Denzel Washington and Matt Damon weren’t big enough? Anyway, she is so bad it sets your teeth on edge and almost wrecks a very good movie.
The Big Easy (1987) is a fine, layered thriller about corruption in New Orleans. Dennis Quaid is perfect as the laid back but sharp as nails detective. Ellen Barkin is so badly miscast as the assistant District Attorney and love interest it’s laughable. In the first place, her slightly trashy good looks are all wrong for this part. In the second place, her Southern accent reminds you more of Fran Drescher than Jessica Tandy. She was good in Diner and Desert Bloom. She is not in this one.
All of the movies in this column are available on DVD and for streaming ,so see for yourself! None are suitable for children under 12.

                                                       GENE WILDER

In the 1960s Mel Brooks found his ideal crazy-eyed crazy guy to perfectly fit into his crazy movies. His name was Gene Wilder, and it’s hard to imagine the great Brooks films without him. Mr. Wilder died recently at 83. 
His breakthrough role was as Eugene Grizzard, an undertaker of all things, and a hostage of the outlaws in Bonnie And Clyde (1967). It isn’t a big part, but he makes the most of it. Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway are just right as the trashy, murderous bank robbers. This is one of the first films to use the slow motion multi-gunshot scene that has become a standard take. The outlaws are on the receiving end of this.
In that same year, Gene Wilder joined the Brooks gang in the hilarious The Producers. Zero Mostel plays the nefarious producer Max Bialistock and Wilder is the easily swayed accountant Leopold Bloom. They combine to produce a musical that is a cinch to be a failure: Springtime For Hitler. They plan to skim the money raised for the production after their play tanks. But it doesn’t tank, it becomes a huge hit and their plan is doomed to fail (“Where did we go right?”). The Producers also became a smash hit as a Broadway musical. The movie was remade with music, and featured Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick.  All three productions (get it?) are hilarious.
Four years later, Gene Wilder became the magical, mysterious main character in Willie Wonka And The Chocolate Factory. He runs a candy factory visited by several obnoxious children and their obnoxious parents. Charlie is the only good kid and is duly rewarded. My favorite bad kid is the greedy Mike TV. While certainly not without its charm, I find this film slightly creepy. The remake with Johnny Depp is, like most remakes, a dud. 
Gene Wilder again teams up with Mel Brooks in the classic Blazing Saddles (1974). This film is in my all-time top five. From Alex Karras knocking out a horse with his fist to Harvey Korman as Hedley (not Heddy!) Lamarr, this movie is a laugh a minute. Mr. Wilder plays Jim, the Waco Kid, the sidekick of the newly appointed black sheriff played by Cleavon Little. The ripe-for-plucking small town is populated entirely by white people named Johnson. But the sheriff and his sidekick win them over and justice sort of prevails. Trivia bit: One of the writers was Richard Pryor!
In the same year (!) Brooks and Wilder teamed up for the marvelous Young Frankenstein, with Wilder as the title character, a grandson of the infamous Dr. Frankenstein. He of course also creates a monster (Peter Boyle) aided by his very weird assistant played by Marty Feldman. This film is high camp indeed and very funny!
Gene Wilder plays mild-mannered book editor George Caldwell in Silver Streak (1976). He is falsely accused of murder and steals a sheriff’s car containing arrested criminal Grover Muldoon (Richard Pryor). The plot is too complicated to replicate here. Let’s just say it is intermittently funny and is Gene Wilder’s last really good film.
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD and for streaming. Willy Wonka is fine for all ages; the others are okay for 12 and up.

                                                          GENE WILDER

In the 1960s Mel Brooks found his ideal crazy-eyed crazy guy to perfectly fit into his crazy movies. His name was Gene Wilder, and it’s hard to imagine the great Brooks films without him. Mr. Wilder died recently at 83. 
His breakthrough role was as Eugene Grizzard, an undertaker of all things, and a hostage of the outlaws in Bonnie And Clyde (1967). It isn’t a big part, but he makes the most of it. Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway are just right as the trashy, murderous bank robbers. This is one of the first films to use the slow motion multi-gunshot scene that has become a standard take. The outlaws are on the receiving end of this.
In that same year, Gene Wilder joined the Brooks gang in the hilarious The Producers. Zero Mostel plays the nefarious producer Max Bialistock and Wilder is the easily swayed accountant Leopold Bloom. They combine to produce a musical that is a cinch to be a failure: Springtime For Hitler. They plan to skim the money raised for the production after their play tanks. But it doesn’t tank, it becomes a huge hit and their plan is doomed to fail (“Where did we go right?”). The Producers also became a smash hit as a Broadway musical. The movie was remade with music, and featured Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick.  All three productions (get it?) are hilarious.
Four years later, Gene Wilder became the magical, mysterious main character in Willie Wonka And The Chocolate Factory. He runs a candy factory visited by several obnoxious children and their obnoxious parents. Charlie is the only good kid and is duly rewarded. My favorite bad kid is the greedy Mike TV. While certainly not without its charm, I find this film slightly creepy. The remake with Johnny Depp is, like most remakes, a dud. 
Gene Wilder again teams up with Mel Brooks in the classic Blazing Saddles (1974). This film is in my all-time top five. From Alex Karras knocking out a horse with his fist to Harvey Korman as Hedley (not Heddy!) Lamarr, this movie is a laugh a minute. Mr. Wilder plays Jim, the Waco Kid, the sidekick of the newly appointed black sheriff played by Cleavon Little. The ripe-for-plucking small town is populated entirely by white people named Johnson. But the sheriff and his sidekick win them over and justice sort of prevails. Trivia bit: One of the writers was Richard Pryor!
In the same year (!) Brooks and Wilder teamed up for the marvelous Young Frankenstein, with Wilder as the title character, a grandson of the infamous Dr. Frankenstein. He of course also creates a monster (Peter Boyle) aided by his very weird assistant played by Marty Feldman. This film is high camp indeed and very funny!
Gene Wilder plays mild-mannered book editor George Caldwell in Silver Streak (1976). He is falsely accused of murder and steals a sheriff’s car containing arrested criminal Grover Muldoon (Richard Pryor). The plot is too complicated to replicate here. Let’s just say it is intermittently funny and is Gene Wilder’s last really good film.
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD and for streaming. Willy Wonka is fine for all ages; the others are okay for 12 and up.

                                                           I DON’T GET IT
I recently saw Under The Skin, which features Scarlett Johansson as an alien wearing a real person skin, luring human males to a sort of weird place where they disappear forever. I liked it! And yet- I realized quite quickly I had no clue what the movie was getting at. 
Then it occurred to me that there are lots of movies I actually like but didn’t understand at all. So it’s confession time. Mr. Movie is here to admit that he’s a mainstream guy and that often I JUST DON’T GET IT!
The Life Of Pi (2012) features a young Indian boy marooned in a lifeboat with a tiger named Richard Parker. They drift awhile, then come to an island populated by a million meerkats. Then the tiger leaves and Japanese officials find and question Pi, who has an alternative story all ready. I didn’t get the book, either!
Blue Jasmine (2013) has Cate Blanchett as a clueless and homeless drug addict who lands at the home of her more traditional sister (Sally Hawkins) and her thuggish husband (Andrew Dice Clay). Things go from bad to worse and never really get resolved. Shoot, Blanchett won the Oscar and Hawkins was nominated. But- I just don’t get it!
Beasts Of The Southern Wild (2012) features the youngest ever Oscar nominee who also sports the weirdest name. Hushpuppy (Quvenzhane’ Wallis) was only seven years old when this was shot. She lives in a remote area of the Louisiana bayou called The Bathtub. She sees all sorts of strange creatures, some of which might be real. There’s something about ice caps melting and a big storm. Then the home area floods and they float away but come back. Then Hushpuppy might or might not find her mother, then leave again for the swamp. 
Natalie Portman won the Academy Award for her portrayal as a ballet dancer in Black Swan (2010). She is an accomplished ballerina who lacks the passion to dance the Black Swan. Through bad drugs, she not only fills the role but grows black feathers (don’t ask). Then she sees her double and kills her, but then it really isn’t her but her competitor.
The Tree Of Life (2011) at least openly admits it is an experimental drama. It has heavy hitters like Sean Penn, Jessica Chastain, and Brad Pitt. It is a breathtakingly beautiful film. It is also breathtakingly not understandable. Childhood scenes are interspersed with scenes of the beginnings of life on earth and that sort of thing. 
There’s a lot more of these that I didn’t get- watch this space! All of the films in this post are available on DVD and for streaming. All are for confused grown-ups.

                                              BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS?
Has the Motion Picture Academy ever tripped over its projector in the Best Supporting Actress category? Oh yeah. 
The most recent example, and one of the worst, was in 2005 when Rachel Weisz won for The Constant Gardener. Nothing wrong with her performance, but it isn’t even close to the bright naivete of Amy Adams in Junebug or Catherine Keener’s brilliant portrayal of author Harper Lee in Capote. The latter two are also far better movies, not that that should be an Award consideration. (Or should it?)
The year before (2004) saw Cate Blanchett win the Oscar for her admittedly excellent portrayal of Katherine Hepburn in Martin Scorcese’s Aviator. I don’t have a big problem with that, but my vote would go to the luminous Virginia Madsden, whose performance in the quirky comedy Sideways lifts the whole film to a higher level. Her monologue about wine makes even teetotalers consider giving it a try. 
In 2000, Marcia Gay Harden won the Award as the long-suffering wife of painter Jackson Pollock (well played by Ed Harris). But I think the voters overlooked a far superior piece of work by Judi Dench as a diabetic chocaholic in Chocolat. This is quite an interesting film in which newcomer candy store owner Juliette Binoche somehow seems to  be able to provide every person in town with the exact thing they need. 
Mira Sorvino is quite good in Woody Allen’s Mighty Aphrodite (1995). But the clear winner that year, to me at least, is Joan Allen in Nixon. Shoot, she is Pat Nixon in this difficult, biased and altogether wonderful fiction about a doomed administration.   Nobody ever accused director Oliver Stone of being fair and balanced!
I yield to no one in my admiration for the iconic Helen Hayes, one of the finest actresses ever. Ms. Hayes made over 100 films, won a truckload of awards, and deserved to. But in 1971, I don’t think she should have won for the dreadful Airport. She carries what little water there is here, but this is perhaps one of those make-up awards. She had won once before, but that was in 1932, and I think the Academy just decided to give her another one while she was still around to enjoy it. (Actually, she lived another 22 years). Overlooked was Sally Kellerman, whose character (Hot Lips Hoolihan) became a legend,  in Robert Altman’s classic M*A*S*H. And hot on her heels would be Karen Black, with a great performance in a very tough part in another classic, Five Easy Pieces. 
All of the films in this column are available on DVD and for streaming. All are for mature audiences. 

                          MORE GOOD FILMS YOU MAY NEVER HAVE HEARD OF
                                                      Part 3

Here’s another batch of films from the vault you may never have heard of but which were really enjoyed by Mr. Movie. (Hey, that’s me!)
In 84 Charing Cross Road (1987) Anne Bancroft is an American college professor who over the years corresponds with British bookstore owner Anthony Hopkins. It is, as they say, based on a true story. The sprightly discussion by mail between the two characters includes such diverse topics as John Donne, Yorkshire pudding, the Brooklyn Dodgers and the coronation of Elizabeth II.  I know it doesn’t sound like much, but catch this little sleeper and you won’t be sorry. 
Every Little Step (2009) is a documentary about the casting of the 2006 revival of the Broadway musical A Chorus Line. 3,000 dancers showed up for the audition! The film weaves the stories of many of the participants in both the original play and the revival, together with some five-star dancing. Even if you don’t like Broadway musicals (shame on you!) you will enjoy the stories of the lives of these talented people. 
In America (2007) is as timely as today’s headlines. A very complex Irish family lands in a Hell’s Kitchen tenement. Their struggles and their triumphs closely follow each other. Samantha Morton was nominated for an Oscar for her role as Christy, the chirpy never-give-up mother. Also nominated was Djimon Hounsou for his role as a somewhat menacing resident of the family’s building. Though neither won, they were really good and both went on to become very much in demand. 
Invictus (2009) is based on the true story of how Nelson Mandela (played here by Morgan Freeman) convinced the black South African people to support the white world-class soccer team, the Springboks. Their captain is played by Matt Damon. The team’s visit to the prison that housed Mr. Mandela for most of his 27 years of confinement is sobering but uplifting for them and us. I knew almost nothing about rugby, but really enjoyed the action and picked up the rules fairly quickly. 
The Magic Box (1951) stars British legend Robert Donat as William Friese-Greene, the inventor of the movie camera. This charming story follows his triumphs and tragedies in getting financing for his invention and in his development of the camera. There is a scene where he excitedly brings in a policeman off the street to show him a short movie he has made in Hyde Park that is just so much fun! There are cameos from lots of famous British stars including Peter Ustinov and Laurence Olivier. 
All of the films in this post are available on DVD and for streaming. And all are fine for all audiences, factoring in the boredom quotient for littlies. 

                                          MIYAZKI’S LAST (OR FIRST) HURRAH
                                              JAPANESE ANIME
Movie fan, this just might be your lucky day! Many people are not familiar with the Japanese form of animation called Anime. I knew nothing about it until Spirited Away won the Oscar as best animated feature in 2002. 
The finest practitioner of the art is Hayao Miyazaki. He is now 75 and has said he’s retiring. He personally writes, directs and produces each of his screenplays.  Every frame of every movie is hand drawn. The lush beauty and exacting detail is simply amazing!  There just isn’t anything remotely like it.  And to top it off, these are wonderful stories. 
Just recently, Studio Ghibli released for the first time in America the first of their features, Only Yesterday (1991). Taeko, a young woman with a good job in Tokyo, decides to spend the summer on her grandmother’s farm. The main crop is saffron, and the story of how it is grown and harvested is fascinating in itself. While working on the farm Taeko has memorable flashbacks to “my fifth grade child.” The ending is a real upper, and the drawing is just marvelous.
Castle In The Sky (1986) is a magical floating island called Laputa. It is sought by our heroine Sheeta and her intrepid sidekick Payu. Unfortunately, it is also the target of vicious (but extremely dull-witted) pirates, and of the military. The spaceships and gardens and the resolution of the story are all quite wonderful.
In My Neighbor Totoro (1988) sisters Satsuki and Mei have just moved with their father (their mother is ill and in the hospital) to their new house near an enchanted forest. The film features two amazing creatures: the Cat Bus, with eight legs for wheels and glowing eyes for headlights, and Totoro, a huge nondescript forest creature who is charmingly protective of all little people.  The girls cope with their new home, their new friends and their mom’s illness amid scenes of eye-popping beauty.
The title character in Kiki’s Delivery Service (1998) is a 13-year-old witch just 
starting out. In this world witches aren’t bad. Kiki blends her budding talents (including, of course, flying!) into the perfect business- a delivery service!
A young prince sets out to discover what’s wrong in the forest, why men and nature can no longer peacefully co-exist.  On his travels, he meets and befriends Princess Mononoke (1999) a spirited girl raised by wolves. He slays an incredible forest beast with fur of live snakes. They battle the evil foundry workers, who will stop at nothing less than totally destroying nature. 
Chichiro and her parents are on their way to their new home when they encounter a strange and quiet amusement park. The parents are turned into pigs and disappear. They have been Spirited Away (2002) to a magical city. Their brave little daughter has all sorts of adventures and meets all sorts of creatures in attempting to reunite with her folks. 
As a bonus, I’ll throw in When Marnie Was There (2014), a wonderful film that may be Studio Ghibli’s last. Mr. Miyasaki was not involved in this one, but it is nonetheless absolutely fine. 
Now, all of these films have plenty of dramatic tension, but none is really scary like a slasher movie. Any child who can handle fairy tales will be fine. All other ages will enjoy them tremendously. And all are available on DVD and for streaming.

                                                 BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR?
Some of the biggest clunkers ever at the Oscar awards have happened in the Best Supporting Actor category. Here are a few of the worst:
1965: Martin Balsam wins for his 5-minute shtick in A Thousand Clowns. Nothing against Mr. Balsam, who has done much better (and longer!) work. But this year the academy ignored Tom Courtenay’s terrific performance as the unremitting Strelnikov in the classic Dr. Zhivago. Courtenay’s intensity as he hunts down the hero perfectly mirrors that of the fervent revolutionaries newly running Russia. 
1954: Edmond O’Brien wins for The Barefoot Contessa, a studio potboiler that has been deservedly forgotten by most everyone.  And the Academy ignores not one but three better performances, all in the iconic On The Waterfront. Lee J. Cobb, Karl Malden and Rod Steiger all are miles ahead of the winner, as is their movie. 
1962: Ed Begley wins for Tennessee Williams’ Sweet Bird of Youth. It is a good performance. But check out a performance for the ages by young Terrence Stamp as the angelic, and doomed, Billy Budd. And Peter Ustinov as the conflicted captain, and Robert Ryan as the villainous sergeant-at-arms are very good, but Stamp carries the movie and never came close to this performance again. 
1966: Walter Matthau wins as a crooked lawyer paired with Jack Lemon in The Fortune Cookie. This may have been one of those “it’s his turn” things, but my vote would certainly go to Robert Shaw’s soaring performance as Thomas Beckett in the enduring A Man For All Seasons. His speech about the rule of law versus the rule of man resonates through the ages and is still one of the best in films.
1946: Harold Russell in his one and only performance in a movie, wins as the disabled veteran of World War II in The Best Years of Our Lives. Well, he is pretty good, but frankly I think he won because he really did lose both hands in the war. My vote would be for the old pro Claude Rains in Hitchcock’s Notorious. Rains always matched the role they put him in, and here he does a bang-up job as a sleazy Nazi. 
1961: George Chakiris wins for West Side Story. Not bad. But this year’s stunner was Jackie Gleason, up til then only known as a comedian, as Minnesota Fats in The Hustler. 
And finally, a nod toward getting one right: Last year Mark Rylance won this statue for his marvelous low-key performance in Bridge Of Spies. As Rudolf Abel, a Soviet spy who is exchanged for American Francis Gary Powers, Rylance is just perfect. Everyone predicted a win by Sylvester Stallone for Creed. He was good, but I think the Academy nailed this one.  (Trivia Note: This same guy, Mark Rylance, plays the giant in the current release BFG !)
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD and for streaming. All are suitable for 10 and up, keeping in mind the boredom factor.

                              GREAT MOVIES YOU PROBABLY NEVER HEARD OF
                                                                Part 2

Here’s another batch of wonderful films you may never have even heard of. (Yeah, ending with a preposition again...) Any you haven’t seen are sure worth a look.
The Company Of Strangers (1980) is a quirky but greatly satisfying Canadian film about a group of eight women on a bus tour. The bus breaks down in the middle of nowhere and they are stranded in a deserted cottage. While waiting for help, each tells some of her life story. These are not professional actors and they worked with a minimal script, then padded it out with improvisation. If you don’t like this movie, don’t tell me!
Day For Night (1973) is a movie about making a movie. It is directed by the French icon Francois Truffaut. The title is the movie term for shooting a night scene when it isn’t night. The film shows how this is done. But the fun part is all the alliances and problems that develop among the cast and crew. Jacqueline Bisset and Jean-Pierre Aumont head the cast. And Monsieur Truffaut himself has a big part in this, one of his best films.
Diabolique (1955) is simply one of the scariest movies I’ve ever seen. There is not one drop of blood. Michel runs a second-rate boarding school owned by his wife Christina. The main teacher is Nicole. Michel is hateful to both women and the children. Nicole and Christina decide to murder him and hide the body. But the body somehow disappears. Then a group picture of the school seems to reveal Michel standing in the back row. That’s all I’m telling, but I will say the 1996 remake is a pale imitation. Don’t watch this one if you have a weak heart!
Eat Drink Man Woman (1994) is a Taiwanese film directed by the great Ang Lee before he came to America to make such films as Live Of Pi (2012) and Brokeback Mountain (2005). The main characters are a very traditional Chinese father, who is a master chef, and his three very non-traditional daughters. Every Sunday he prepares a magnificent meal for his children, who then vent all of their problems and prospects. They annoy him but he loves them. The culture-clash is very entertaining. 
Educating Rita (1983) is, I think, the best film ever made about women’s liberation. Julie Walters is a clever working-class wife who wants to better herself through education. Michael Caine is her sodden professor. Her rosy personality and enthusiasm starts to pry him out of his funk. Ms. Walter is just luminous in this part and the film has a wonderful ending you will not see coming!
All of the films in this column are available on DVD and for streaming and all are for grown-ups. Do I have more of these? You bet!

                                                       BEST ACTRESS?
In several years the Motion Picture Academy has stubbed its toe selecting the Best Actress. 2006 was not one of those years; Helen Mirren was an absolute lock for her portrayal of the Queen. But, alas, it has not always been so.
Let’s start with the worst goof. In 1952, Julie Harris was just brilliant as gawky, coming-of-age Frankie, a reluctant Member of the Wedding. This wonderful film still fills us with emotion today. And yet, she was bypassed for the very pedestrian Shirley Booth for Come Back, Little Sheba.
I am not a huge Katherine Hepburn fan, and she did win a fistful of Oscars (four). Heck, Cate Blanchett won an Oscar just for portraying Hepburn in The Aviator (2004). And yet, I think Hepburn was obviously slighted at least twice. All the way back to 1935, Bette Davis won for Dangerous, not really her finest hour. Ms. Hepburn was just luminous as Alice Adams. She will absolutely break your heart. Then in 1955 the screeching Anna Mangnani won for Rose Tattoo, when Ms. Hepburn should have won for her role as the American schoolteacher on a romantic holiday in Italy in Summertime. 
One year when Ms. Hepburn did win, in 1967 for the stale and cliched Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner?, there were at least two better performances. I would go with either Anne Bancroft as the legendary Mrs. Robinson in The Graduate, or Faye Dunnaway as the trashy female killer in Bonnie and Clyde.
There was a very strange result in 1994, when Jessica Lange won for the very mediocre Blue Sky. This is a bad movie and not a good part for Ms. Lange. Perhaps this was one of those “it’s her turn” deals. Anyway, the Academy by-passed Jody Foster’s remarkable performance as Nell. And yes, I realize Ms. Foster had already won twice by then. 
The most recent Oscar gaffe in this category occurred in 1999, when Hillary Swank won for Boys Don’t Cry, a pretty good performance in a really hateful movie. I would go with Annette Benning as the feral real estate agent in American Beauty.
Last year Brie Larson won as the imprisoned mother in Room and I don’t really have a problem with that. But- Saoirse Ronan’s performance in Brooklyn is just a  miracle of acting. If you haven’t seen this great film, well, you should!
A couple more Oscar boners: 1943- Jennifer Jones for The Song of Bernadette instead of Greer Garson for Mrs. Miniver; 1941- Joan Fontaine for Suspicion over Bette Davis for The Little Foxes (check out the scene in which Ms. Davis just sits there while her dying husband cries for help!).
All of the movies in this column are available on  DVD and for streaming. All are for mature audiences. 

                                                    CELEBRATING AMERICA
While it’s true that some folks still see America as The Great Satan, the fact is that most of them like us individually and we are still the hope of the world. Let’s indulge in some movies that celebrate our country!
Never doubt that America has The Right Stuff (1983). This celebration of the early days of the space program and the heroism of the astronauts and the ground staff justifiably fill our souls with pride in our country. Ed Harris, Scott Glenn, Sam Sheppard and Dennis Quaid lead a stellar ensemble cast in the true story of one of mankind’s greatest adventures. 
It’s hard to pick just one war movie, but my choice is The Great Escape (1963) a prison camp film featuring Steve McQueen, Richard Attenborough, James Garner and James Coburn. The ingenious methods concocted to escape and the indomitable will to do so carry this excellent adventure. McQueen topped his career in this one. Also highly recommended is The Big Red One (1980), showing the unique qualities of the American soldier.
It would be hard to find a sunnier, happier, more American story than Oklahoma! (1955), Rogers and Hammersteins love song to our country, brought gloriously to the screen. Gordon McRae and Shirley Jones are in wonderful voice, leading the cast in one of the best scores ever written. What an upper! And in this category, Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942) with James Cagney as the legendary George M. Cohan, is another winner.
     Somewhat off the beaten track, but a stunning portrait of what’s right with America, is Grand Canyon (1991). Danny Glover, Steve Martin, and Kevin Cline headline a fine cast in Lawrence Kasdan’s entertaining study of some of the problems we have and how we help each other through them. This is a life-affirming love song to America without overt sentimentality.
One of the greatest things about America is our talent for innovation, our ability to break through patterns and find new ways. In Apollo 13 (1995) those abilities are sorely needed in this gut-wrenching, true account of a lunar mission that almost jumped the tracks. Both the engineers and the astronauts broke the mold and found a way to deal with unprecedented problems. The fact that you know how it turns out doesn’t detract one whit from the suspense; this is a real white-knuckler. Tom Hanks, Bill Paxton and Gary Sinise head a good cast.
All of the movies in this column are available on DVD. All are suitable for kids 10 and up.