ATLANTIC CITY
It’s called the Poor Man’s Las Vegas. It was right much of a dump before the casinos arrived, and is still right much of a dump after. Oh, and it’s the city that furnished the street names for Monopoly! But Atlantic City has the lure of easy riches, and is a natural setting for movies.
Let’s start with the namesake, Atlantic City (1980). Louis Malle’s excellent portrayal of a city transitioning from a dying beach resort into a glitzy gambling Mecca is as good a portrait of the city as there is. Burt Lancaster is very good as a two-bit hood with ridiculous pretensions. Susan Sarandon is also fine as a woman working where she can and hoping against hope for something better. This fine film garnered five Oscar nominations (Malle, Lancaster, Sarandon, screenplay, movie), but was shut out.
Owning Mahowny (2003) is the best portrayal of a compulsive gambler ever put on film. And Phillip Seymour Hoffman is just right as the man who just can’t quit. His trips to Atlantic City are gut-wrenching; you find yourself thinking, “No, don’t go there again.” In a rare rational moment he would agree with you, but somehow finds himself back in the casino again. His inevitable downfall is no surprise, nor is his reaction to it. Minnie Driver is quite good as his steadfast girlfriend, and there’s lots of good stuff about gamblers and the gaming industry.
The King Of Marvin Gardens (1972) features Jack Nicholson as the squared-away brother of hopelessly dreaming Bruce Dern, who does a little hard time as a Mafia front man. Dern’s outlandish schemes are both ridiculous and sad. Ellen Burstyn has a nice turn as a beauty just past the best age.
Whether you like Beaches (1988) will depend on how you like Bette Midler. If you’re a big Midler fan, you’ll love it. If you’re not, well, give it a miss. It is a Hollywood soap opera in which two girls meet on an Atlantic City beach and become friends for life. One is poor and driven to make it big in show biz and the other is from old money. Barbara Hershey is one of them- three guesses which is the show-biz wannabe.
In Sour Grapes (1998) brothers quarrel after one hits a slot machine jackpot on money borrowed from the other. From the same year, Snake Eyes features Gary Sinise and Nicholas Cage (he’s everywhere!) trying to catch the shooter at an Atlantic City boxing match.
Last but not least, there’s HBO’s Boardwalk Empire (2010-14), a not entirely fictional rendering of the rise of Atlantic City. There are characters galore, but Steve Buscemi as the extremely crooked mayor and Michael Shannon as an equally crooked Federal agent are the stars.
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. All are for grown-ups.
Sunday, March 26, 2017
ATLANTIC CITY
It’s called the Poor Man’s Los Vegas. It was right much of a dump before the casinos arrived, and is still right much of a dump after. Oh, and it’s the city that furnished the street names for Monopoly! But Atlantic City has the lure of easy riches, and is a natural as a setting for movies.
Let’s start with the namesake, Atlantic City (1980). Louis Malle’s excellent portrayal of a city transitioning from a dying beach resort into a glitzy gambling Mecca is as good a portrait of the city as there is. Burt Lancaster is very good as a two-bit hood with ridiculous pretensions. Susan Sarandon is also fine as a woman working where she can and hoping against hope for something better. This fine film garnered five Oscar nominations (Malle, Lancaster, Sarandon, screenplay, movie) but was shut out.
Owning Mahowny (2003) is the best portrayal of a compulsive gambler ever put on film. And Phillip Seymour Hoffman is just right as the man who just can’t quit. His trips to Atlantic City are gut-wrenching; you find yourself thinking “no, don’t go there again.” In a rare rational moment he would agree with you, but somehow finds himself back in the casino again. His inevitable downfall is no surprise, nor is his reaction to it. Minnie Driver is quite good as his steadfast girlfriend, and there’s lots of good stuff about gamblers and the gaming industry.
The King Of Marvin Gardens (1972) features Jack Nicholson as the squared-away brother of hopelessly dreaming Bruce Dern, who does a little hard time as a Mafia front man. Dern’s outlandish schemes are both ridiculous and sad. Ellen Burstyn has a nice turn as a beauty just past the best age.
Whether you like Beaches (1988) will depend on how you like Bette Midler. If you’re a big Midler fan, you’ll love it. If you’re not, well, give it a miss. It is a Hollywood soap opera in which two girls meet on an Atlantic City beach and become friends for life. One is poor and driven to make it big in show biz and the other is from old money. Barbara Hershey is one of them- three guesses which is the show-biz wannabe.
In Sour Grapes (1998) brothers quarrel after one hits a slot machine jackpot on money borrowed from the other. From the same year, Snake Eyes features Gary Sinise and Nicholas Cage (he’s everywhere!) trying to catch the shooter at an Atlantic City boxing match.
Last but not least, there’s HBO’s Boardwalk Empire (2010-14), a not entirely fictional rendering of the rise of Atlantic City. There are characters galore, but Steve Buscemi as the extremely crooked mayor and Michael Shannon as an equally crooked Federal agent are the stars.
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. All are for grown-ups.
It’s called the Poor Man’s Los Vegas. It was right much of a dump before the casinos arrived, and is still right much of a dump after. Oh, and it’s the city that furnished the street names for Monopoly! But Atlantic City has the lure of easy riches, and is a natural as a setting for movies.
Let’s start with the namesake, Atlantic City (1980). Louis Malle’s excellent portrayal of a city transitioning from a dying beach resort into a glitzy gambling Mecca is as good a portrait of the city as there is. Burt Lancaster is very good as a two-bit hood with ridiculous pretensions. Susan Sarandon is also fine as a woman working where she can and hoping against hope for something better. This fine film garnered five Oscar nominations (Malle, Lancaster, Sarandon, screenplay, movie) but was shut out.
Owning Mahowny (2003) is the best portrayal of a compulsive gambler ever put on film. And Phillip Seymour Hoffman is just right as the man who just can’t quit. His trips to Atlantic City are gut-wrenching; you find yourself thinking “no, don’t go there again.” In a rare rational moment he would agree with you, but somehow finds himself back in the casino again. His inevitable downfall is no surprise, nor is his reaction to it. Minnie Driver is quite good as his steadfast girlfriend, and there’s lots of good stuff about gamblers and the gaming industry.
The King Of Marvin Gardens (1972) features Jack Nicholson as the squared-away brother of hopelessly dreaming Bruce Dern, who does a little hard time as a Mafia front man. Dern’s outlandish schemes are both ridiculous and sad. Ellen Burstyn has a nice turn as a beauty just past the best age.
Whether you like Beaches (1988) will depend on how you like Bette Midler. If you’re a big Midler fan, you’ll love it. If you’re not, well, give it a miss. It is a Hollywood soap opera in which two girls meet on an Atlantic City beach and become friends for life. One is poor and driven to make it big in show biz and the other is from old money. Barbara Hershey is one of them- three guesses which is the show-biz wannabe.
In Sour Grapes (1998) brothers quarrel after one hits a slot machine jackpot on money borrowed from the other. From the same year, Snake Eyes features Gary Sinise and Nicholas Cage (he’s everywhere!) trying to catch the shooter at an Atlantic City boxing match.
Last but not least, there’s HBO’s Boardwalk Empire (2010-14), a not entirely fictional rendering of the rise of Atlantic City. There are characters galore, but Steve Buscemi as the extremely crooked mayor and Michael Shannon as an equally crooked Federal agent are the stars.
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. All are for grown-ups.
Sunday, March 19, 2017
2016 Sleepers
Part 2
Here is another group of little-known films from last year that I thought were pretty good. I hope you can find one or two you will like.
Florence Foster Jenkins starred the incomparable Meryl Streep as the world’s worst singer. She was nominated for yet another Oscar. This time she didn’t win. But I liked the earlier European version of the same story even better. Marguerite is one of those European collaboration deals- French, Belgian, Czech. But anyway it features a bunch of actors you never heard of in this charming, funny story. This poor lady couldn’t carry a tune in a bucket but nobody wants to tell her this. And she has plenty of money and contacts and so schedules a gala solo performance that is at once painful, touching and hilarious.
Should we be a little concerned about the use of drones to blow people up? The question is graphically addressed in Eye In The Sky. With Alan Rickman as the good guy and the redoubtable Helen Mirren as the bad guy, the suspense builds about a missile strike in Kenya. Will there be “collateral damage” if it goes forward?
Joseph Gordon-Leavitt (a Tar Heel, by the way!) is the star of Oliver Stone’s Snowden. It is the maybe- true story of how a lower level CIA employee copied files that showed the US hacking into the accounts of nearly everyone, including the leaders of allied foreign countries like Germany. Since you never know how closely to the truth the good ship Oliver Stone sails, I’d say take this one with a grain of salt. But it is nonetheless fascinating.
I admit to being a sucker for underdog movies like Rudy and Kangaroo Kid. Even better when the underdog is a child, like the little boy in Searching For Bobby Fischer. So I naturally really liked The Queen Of Katwe. It is based on the true story of a young Ungandan girl who somehow becomes a world class chess player. In the cast is David Oyelowo (Martin Luther King, Jr. in Selma) and a bunch of unknowns. He is the mentor for 10-year-old Phiona Mutesi who has a mind like a steel trap and quickly rises in international chess circles.
Even if you don’t like baseball (shame on you!) I think you would enjoy Fastball, a very good documentary from last year. It explores the science and the myths about baseballs being thrown at incredible speeds. Nolan Ryan, Hank Aaron and other notable baseballers join narrator Kevin Costner in this fascinating doc. Many players insist that a fastball rises as it crosses the plate, while scientists say this isn’t possible. The debate rages on- and it is lots of fun to watch it!
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. Only Eye In The Sky is not suitable for all audiences.
Part 2
Here is another group of little-known films from last year that I thought were pretty good. I hope you can find one or two you will like.
Florence Foster Jenkins starred the incomparable Meryl Streep as the world’s worst singer. She was nominated for yet another Oscar. This time she didn’t win. But I liked the earlier European version of the same story even better. Marguerite is one of those European collaboration deals- French, Belgian, Czech. But anyway it features a bunch of actors you never heard of in this charming, funny story. This poor lady couldn’t carry a tune in a bucket but nobody wants to tell her this. And she has plenty of money and contacts and so schedules a gala solo performance that is at once painful, touching and hilarious.
Should we be a little concerned about the use of drones to blow people up? The question is graphically addressed in Eye In The Sky. With Alan Rickman as the good guy and the redoubtable Helen Mirren as the bad guy, the suspense builds about a missile strike in Kenya. Will there be “collateral damage” if it goes forward?
Joseph Gordon-Leavitt (a Tar Heel, by the way!) is the star of Oliver Stone’s Snowden. It is the maybe- true story of how a lower level CIA employee copied files that showed the US hacking into the accounts of nearly everyone, including the leaders of allied foreign countries like Germany. Since you never know how closely to the truth the good ship Oliver Stone sails, I’d say take this one with a grain of salt. But it is nonetheless fascinating.
I admit to being a sucker for underdog movies like Rudy and Kangaroo Kid. Even better when the underdog is a child, like the little boy in Searching For Bobby Fischer. So I naturally really liked The Queen Of Katwe. It is based on the true story of a young Ungandan girl who somehow becomes a world class chess player. In the cast is David Oyelowo (Martin Luther King, Jr. in Selma) and a bunch of unknowns. He is the mentor for 10-year-old Phiona Mutesi who has a mind like a steel trap and quickly rises in international chess circles.
Even if you don’t like baseball (shame on you!) I think you would enjoy Fastball, a very good documentary from last year. It explores the science and the myths about baseballs being thrown at incredible speeds. Nolan Ryan, Hank Aaron and other notable baseballers join narrator Kevin Costner in this fascinating doc. Many players insist that a fastball rises as it crosses the plate, while scientists say this isn’t possible. The debate rages on- and it is lots of fun to watch it!
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. Only Eye In The Sky is not suitable for all audiences.
Sunday, March 12, 2017
2016 Sleepers
Part One
Now that the Oscars are over, screw-ups and all, it’s time to trot out Mr. Movie’s sleepers from last year. Almost all of these eluded the Academy and most viewers. I have a bunch; all good. Strangely enough, the first five are all foreign- just happened that way.
Love And Friendship was actually my number 4 film. It is a delicious comedy about trying to move upward in British society by marrying well. It’s based on Jane Austen’s little-known epistolary novel, Lady Susan. Kate Beckinsale shines as the wily, calculating Susan. She is almost penniless but is determined to get for her daughter, and herself, a good match. I thought Ms. Beckinsale should have had an Oscar nomination. I think this movie just came out too early in the year to get much notice. It is a hoot!
Only Yesterday will be a tough sell to some of you, because (1) it’s Japanese, and (2) it’s animated. But it is a true delight, beautifully drawn with a touching story and a magnetic leading lady. Taeko has a job in Tokyo and decides to spend the summer at her brother’s farm, where she had many pleasant times as a child. Working along with her relatives and others, she develops a strong kinship with the land, a nice young man, and with herself. Give this a try. I believe you will thank me.
Okay, I know some of you are thinking, “This guy seems hung up on Japanese movies,” and I guess that’s somewhat true. My next pick is another from the Land of the Rising Sun, Our Little Sister. The story is extremely simple. At the funeral of their father, three sisters discover a 14-year-old half-sister they didn’t know about. As there is no one to take care of her now, they invite her to live with them. I know that doesn’t sound like much- but it is.
Now back to England for the very fine and under appreciated Denial. American author Deborah Lipstadt (Rachel Weisz) has her lecture on the Holocaust loudly interrupted by a very combative David Irving (Timothy Spall). He then sues her in an English court for libel, as she has publicly called him a Holocaust denier. In England the burden of proof in a libel case is on the one who published the statement, not the other way around. Much of the film takes place in the courtroom, but there is plenty of outside footage, including a harrowing trip to Auschwitz. Tom Wilkinson has a fine role as Lipstadt’s British lawyer. Spall is hateful and splendid.
And finally a trip to Sweden for the altogether wonderful A Man Called Ove. Ove lives in a housing development and has made himself the arbiter of the local rules. He seems to hate just about everyone and everything and is completely unreasonable. An Iranian family moves in across the street and are clueless that he doesn’t like them. Their adorable children and pregnant mom just won’t give up. Ove lost his wife and in a very moving segment details her passing to his new neighbor. This lovely film is taken from a Swedish novel by Frederik Backman, which remains a best-seller in America.
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. Only Denial is too rough for littlies, though they might not care for most of the others.
Part One
Now that the Oscars are over, screw-ups and all, it’s time to trot out Mr. Movie’s sleepers from last year. Almost all of these eluded the Academy and most viewers. I have a bunch; all good. Strangely enough, the first five are all foreign- just happened that way.
Love And Friendship was actually my number 4 film. It is a delicious comedy about trying to move upward in British society by marrying well. It’s based on Jane Austen’s little-known epistolary novel, Lady Susan. Kate Beckinsale shines as the wily, calculating Susan. She is almost penniless but is determined to get for her daughter, and herself, a good match. I thought Ms. Beckinsale should have had an Oscar nomination. I think this movie just came out too early in the year to get much notice. It is a hoot!
Only Yesterday will be a tough sell to some of you, because (1) it’s Japanese, and (2) it’s animated. But it is a true delight, beautifully drawn with a touching story and a magnetic leading lady. Taeko has a job in Tokyo and decides to spend the summer at her brother’s farm, where she had many pleasant times as a child. Working along with her relatives and others, she develops a strong kinship with the land, a nice young man, and with herself. Give this a try. I believe you will thank me.
Okay, I know some of you are thinking, “This guy seems hung up on Japanese movies,” and I guess that’s somewhat true. My next pick is another from the Land of the Rising Sun, Our Little Sister. The story is extremely simple. At the funeral of their father, three sisters discover a 14-year-old half-sister they didn’t know about. As there is no one to take care of her now, they invite her to live with them. I know that doesn’t sound like much- but it is.
Now back to England for the very fine and under appreciated Denial. American author Deborah Lipstadt (Rachel Weisz) has her lecture on the Holocaust loudly interrupted by a very combative David Irving (Timothy Spall). He then sues her in an English court for libel, as she has publicly called him a Holocaust denier. In England the burden of proof in a libel case is on the one who published the statement, not the other way around. Much of the film takes place in the courtroom, but there is plenty of outside footage, including a harrowing trip to Auschwitz. Tom Wilkinson has a fine role as Lipstadt’s British lawyer. Spall is hateful and splendid.
And finally a trip to Sweden for the altogether wonderful A Man Called Ove. Ove lives in a housing development and has made himself the arbiter of the local rules. He seems to hate just about everyone and everything and is completely unreasonable. An Iranian family moves in across the street and are clueless that he doesn’t like them. Their adorable children and pregnant mom just won’t give up. Ove lost his wife and in a very moving segment details her passing to his new neighbor. This lovely film is taken from a Swedish novel by Frederik Backman, which remains a best-seller in America.
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. Only Denial is too rough for littlies, though they might not care for most of the others.
Sunday, March 5, 2017
AND THE WINNER ISN’T
On Academy Awards night there have been some real howlers, without a doubt. It’s going to be hard to top the 2017 gaffe when the wrong film was announced as Best Movie. To me, they got it right when they said La La Land won because I think it should have. I had Moonlight as my number 10. I also liked Manchester By The Sea and Hidden Figures more than Moonlight. But strangely enough in going through the Best Film awards, I think that most of the time the voters got it right- at least of those nominated. Deserving films that didn’t even make the list is the subject for another article. Herewith, in my opinion, the worst mistakes made by the Academy when picking the best film.
The greatest miscarriage of justice came in 1952 when the very mediocre and overlong Greatest Show on Earth was named instead of the classic High Noon. The former is largely forgotten now, while the Western icon is constantly viewed and is taught in film classes. It is Gary Cooper’s masterpiece and on everyone’s top 10 Westerns list.
In 1967 Arthur Penn teamed Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway in Bonnie and Clyde, a film that literally changed the way movies are made. The Barrow gang are violent creeps and shown as such. There’s not a wet eye in the house when the curtain comes down. But this classic lost to In The Heat Of The Night, which isn’t bad, but I think won because the subject matter (black Northern cop solves redneck murder) was more appealing.
A little of the same thing was going on in 1990 when the voters fell in love with Kevin Costner’s politically correct Indians and named Dances With Wolves over Martin Scorcese’s classic gangster flick, Goodfellas. Robert DeNiro, Joe Pesci and Ray Liotta make this Mafia story stand up.
The Last Emperor (1987) is a good enough bioflick about China, but pales in comparison to the ground-breaking and altogether wonderful Broadcast News. It is doubtful a better movie about TV and its inner workings will ever be made.Goodnight and Good Luck comes pretty close.
Some people really like Out Of Africa (1985). Not me. Instead, my vote would be for The Color Purple, with Stephen Spielberg wonderfully bringing to life the Alice Walker classic. Danny Glover, Oprah Winfrey, and Whoopi Goldberg lead a fine cast in one of the few films to show that black people are people.
Thirteen years ago the Academy picked Crash, which I really like. But to me it is a half-step or more behind Brokeback Mountain, a ground-breaker that will be around as long as people watch movies. The 2015 winner, Birdman, is pretty good. But as good as Richard Linklater’s monumental Boyhood? Not to me.
All of the films in this article are available on DVD. All are for mature audiences.
On Academy Awards night there have been some real howlers, without a doubt. It’s going to be hard to top the 2017 gaffe when the wrong film was announced as Best Movie. To me, they got it right when they said La La Land won because I think it should have. I had Moonlight as my number 10. I also liked Manchester By The Sea and Hidden Figures more than Moonlight. But strangely enough in going through the Best Film awards, I think that most of the time the voters got it right- at least of those nominated. Deserving films that didn’t even make the list is the subject for another article. Herewith, in my opinion, the worst mistakes made by the Academy when picking the best film.
The greatest miscarriage of justice came in 1952 when the very mediocre and overlong Greatest Show on Earth was named instead of the classic High Noon. The former is largely forgotten now, while the Western icon is constantly viewed and is taught in film classes. It is Gary Cooper’s masterpiece and on everyone’s top 10 Westerns list.
In 1967 Arthur Penn teamed Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway in Bonnie and Clyde, a film that literally changed the way movies are made. The Barrow gang are violent creeps and shown as such. There’s not a wet eye in the house when the curtain comes down. But this classic lost to In The Heat Of The Night, which isn’t bad, but I think won because the subject matter (black Northern cop solves redneck murder) was more appealing.
A little of the same thing was going on in 1990 when the voters fell in love with Kevin Costner’s politically correct Indians and named Dances With Wolves over Martin Scorcese’s classic gangster flick, Goodfellas. Robert DeNiro, Joe Pesci and Ray Liotta make this Mafia story stand up.
The Last Emperor (1987) is a good enough bioflick about China, but pales in comparison to the ground-breaking and altogether wonderful Broadcast News. It is doubtful a better movie about TV and its inner workings will ever be made.Goodnight and Good Luck comes pretty close.
Some people really like Out Of Africa (1985). Not me. Instead, my vote would be for The Color Purple, with Stephen Spielberg wonderfully bringing to life the Alice Walker classic. Danny Glover, Oprah Winfrey, and Whoopi Goldberg lead a fine cast in one of the few films to show that black people are people.
Thirteen years ago the Academy picked Crash, which I really like. But to me it is a half-step or more behind Brokeback Mountain, a ground-breaker that will be around as long as people watch movies. The 2015 winner, Birdman, is pretty good. But as good as Richard Linklater’s monumental Boyhood? Not to me.
All of the films in this article are available on DVD. All are for mature audiences.
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