COURTROOMS
Hollywood loves courtroom stories, (1) because the sets are cheap and (2) because Americans must love them too- after all there’s a whole cable channel devoted to nothing else. Picking the best courtroom movies is hard (but fun!)
Inherit The Wind (1960), with Spencer Tracy as the great Clarence Darrow and Frederic March as the great William Jennings Bryan, is a wonder. Schoolteacher John Scopes is on trial for teaching evolution. The dialogue is brilliantly sharp. This is an issue we’re still fighting about, and this great film sets the stage well.
Witness For The Prosecution (1957), directed by the legendary Billy Wilder from an Agatha Christie play, features Charles Laughton as a barrister defending Tyrone Power for murder. Marlene Dietrich, John Williams and Elsa Lanchester complete a stellar cast. This taut London courtroom thriller twists and turns deliciously, with a surprise that will knock your socks and shoes off!
My Cousin Vinny (1992) certainly is not a great movie, but certainly is a great deal of fun. Joe Pesci is one of the worst (and assuredly the worst-dressed!) lawyers in North America. He heads for the Deep South with girlfriend (and Oscar winner) Marisa Tomei in tow to defend his nephew and a friend in Judge Fred Gwynn’s court. The culture clash couldn’t be louder, or funnier.
One of Tom Hanks’ Oscar-winning roles is as a lawyer released from his top-notch job because he is HIV positive, in Philadelphia (1993). Denzel Washington is excellent as an ambulance chasing shyster, but the only lawyer who will take Mr. Hanks’ case when he decides to sue over his firing.
In 1959, Anatomy of a Murder was a huge financial and critical success, and it holds up well today. Long (160 minutes) but worth it, it stars James Stewart as the sly, folksy defense lawyer. An impossibly young Ben Gazzarra is the defendant, Lee Remick his wife, and Joseph Welch (yes, the real lawyer from the Army-McCarthy hearings) is the judge. Also on board are Arthur O’Connell, Eve Arden, Orson Bean, and George C. Scott. This film features a defense that was quite controversial at the time (no, I’m not going to tell you; you’ll have to see for yourself).
One of my best 2016 sleepers was the 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.
Other courtroom films worth a look include The Caine Mutiny (1954), To Kill A Mockingbird (1962), Compulsion (1959) and A Few Good Men (1992). All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. All are for grown-ups.
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Sunday, May 28, 2017
Sunday, May 21, 2017
BEST OF THE BARD
As best as I can tell, there are about 250 movies of Shakespeare’s plays. Here’s one man’s vote for the very best.
Much Ado About Nothing (1993) is about the most fun of any Shakespearian movie. It was produced and directed by Kenneth Branagh, who also stars along with his then-wife Emma Thompson. Also along for the ride are Denzel Washington, Keanu Reaves, Robert Sean Leonard and Kate Beckinsale (her first part!). The plot is a wonderful mish-mash of mistaken identities, mistaken partnering, and much hilarity. You could not do better for an introduction to the Bard than this film. And it so happens that 20 years later (2013) we had a new version, spiffed up and modern, but pretty good. But featuring actors even I never heard of!
There are at least a dozen adaptations of Hamlet. But my money is on the splendid 1948 version with the iconic Lawrence Olivier as the prince torn by indecision over revenge and love. This British film has a fine ensemble cast you’ve never heard of and cuts about two hours off the usual running time. But-well- there is Olivier and no one does Hamlet better. And, there is an Oscar for Best Movie to boot!
There are a double handful of movies featuring the star-struck and doomed teen-age lovers, Romeo And Juliet. It seems to me that many casting directors don’t pay attention to the fact that these were really young people (Juliet was 14), and so my vote goes to the 1968 Franco Zefferelli version staring unknowns Olivia Hussey and Leonard Whiting. (The film didn’t seem to be a launching pad for either of these kids.) It drips with romance as it should and there’s not a dry eye in the house at the end.
There are two great versions of the martial favorite Henry V. Kenneth Branagh’s 1989 version is very good. But I have to vote for the 1946 version with the redoubtable Lawrence Olivier. This play has great lines and when Henry urges on the British at Agincourt, you are ready to take up arms against the villainous French!
My final Shakespearian vote goes to the brilliant 1995 version of Richard III. Ian McKellan has the title role and is wonderfully villainous. This version is set at the time of World War II and if McKellan reminds you of another dictator with a funny moustache, that’s as it should be. A glorious supporting cast includes Annette Bening, Robert Downey Junior, Jim Broadbent, Maggie Smith and Kristin Scott Thomas.
Since Elizabethan-era English can be difficult to follow, may I suggest using the wonderful subtitle feature when viewing the Bard’s best. I don’t think I could understand the dialog very well without this.
All of the films in this article are available on DVD. Much Ado is suitable for all ages; the rest are for grown-ups.
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As best as I can tell, there are about 250 movies of Shakespeare’s plays. Here’s one man’s vote for the very best.
Much Ado About Nothing (1993) is about the most fun of any Shakespearian movie. It was produced and directed by Kenneth Branagh, who also stars along with his then-wife Emma Thompson. Also along for the ride are Denzel Washington, Keanu Reaves, Robert Sean Leonard and Kate Beckinsale (her first part!). The plot is a wonderful mish-mash of mistaken identities, mistaken partnering, and much hilarity. You could not do better for an introduction to the Bard than this film. And it so happens that 20 years later (2013) we had a new version, spiffed up and modern, but pretty good. But featuring actors even I never heard of!
There are at least a dozen adaptations of Hamlet. But my money is on the splendid 1948 version with the iconic Lawrence Olivier as the prince torn by indecision over revenge and love. This British film has a fine ensemble cast you’ve never heard of and cuts about two hours off the usual running time. But-well- there is Olivier and no one does Hamlet better. And, there is an Oscar for Best Movie to boot!
There are a double handful of movies featuring the star-struck and doomed teen-age lovers, Romeo And Juliet. It seems to me that many casting directors don’t pay attention to the fact that these were really young people (Juliet was 14), and so my vote goes to the 1968 Franco Zefferelli version staring unknowns Olivia Hussey and Leonard Whiting. (The film didn’t seem to be a launching pad for either of these kids.) It drips with romance as it should and there’s not a dry eye in the house at the end.
There are two great versions of the martial favorite Henry V. Kenneth Branagh’s 1989 version is very good. But I have to vote for the 1946 version with the redoubtable Lawrence Olivier. This play has great lines and when Henry urges on the British at Agincourt, you are ready to take up arms against the villainous French!
My final Shakespearian vote goes to the brilliant 1995 version of Richard III. Ian McKellan has the title role and is wonderfully villainous. This version is set at the time of World War II and if McKellan reminds you of another dictator with a funny moustache, that’s as it should be. A glorious supporting cast includes Annette Bening, Robert Downey Junior, Jim Broadbent, Maggie Smith and Kristin Scott Thomas.
Since Elizabethan-era English can be difficult to follow, may I suggest using the wonderful subtitle feature when viewing the Bard’s best. I don’t think I could understand the dialog very well without this.
All of the films in this article are available on DVD. Much Ado is suitable for all ages; the rest are for grown-ups.
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Sunday, May 14, 2017
2016 Sleepers
Part 5
Good grief, a friend muttered. Can you possibly have any more good 2016 sleepers? Well, yes, as a matter of fact I do.
I’m not usually a Jim Jarmusch fan. I have struggled through several of his films, awarding them anywhere from 3 to 6 (out of 10). But I just really liked Paterson. Adam Driver is a city bus driver in Paterson, New Jersey. Every day he walks to work, gets on his bus, does his route and goes home. Then he walks his wife’s bulldog and stops at the local bar for a beer. But he is always listening to conversations around him, and he takes notes and writes poems. They are pretty bad. Once in a while he hits a really nice line, but usually not. Something happens to his poetry and I won’t spoil that plot device, and the very cool finish. Certainly not for everyone, Paterson is a true sleeper.
Gleason is a documentary that is frankly hard to take. It reminded me of an old ad for a children’s hospital: “Don’t look if you can’t stand the sight of courage.” Steve Gleason was a celebrated defensive back for the New Orleans Saints. A few years after retirement, he developed ALS (Lou Gherig’s Disease), becoming one of many former football players afflicted with problems of the brain. This film takes us from the onset of the problem all the way through to the end. Gleason’s courage is heart-warming, but also gut-wrenching.
Hunt For The Wilder-People is billed as a New Zealand adventure comedy-drama. I could not have said it any better. Left an orphan, Ricky goes to live with foster mother Bella and her taciturn husband Hec. Bella dies, and the child welfare people want Ricky back. Neither he nor Hec are keen on this, so they take to the woods and for most of the movie hide out from the authorities and meet interesting people. Aussie Sam Neill is good as Hec and newcomer Julian Dennison is just fine as Ricky.
Japan’s Studio Ghibli, home of the marvelous anime films, produced the splendid The Red Turtle, a gentle fairy tale about people marooned on an island. The red turtle morphs into a beautiful girl. She and the guy conceive a son, who wants to set off and see the world. After a terrible storm destroys the island’s forest, the lad eventually sails away. The man and woman grow old together and there’s a heart-catching ending.
Julieta is Spanish Grand Master Pedro Almodovar’s 20th film and he is in fine fettle here. The film is based on three chapter’s of Alice Munro’s book, Runaway. The wonderful Ariana Ugarte shines as the title character. She may or may not have indirectly caused the death of her husband (you decide). In any event, this causes her daughter’s complete estrangement. Julieta spends the movie trying to re-establish contact with the daughter, only to be repulsed at every turn. There is a semi-happy Almodovar ending that sort of leaves you guessing.
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. All are for grown-ups.
Part 5
Good grief, a friend muttered. Can you possibly have any more good 2016 sleepers? Well, yes, as a matter of fact I do.
I’m not usually a Jim Jarmusch fan. I have struggled through several of his films, awarding them anywhere from 3 to 6 (out of 10). But I just really liked Paterson. Adam Driver is a city bus driver in Paterson, New Jersey. Every day he walks to work, gets on his bus, does his route and goes home. Then he walks his wife’s bulldog and stops at the local bar for a beer. But he is always listening to conversations around him, and he takes notes and writes poems. They are pretty bad. Once in a while he hits a really nice line, but usually not. Something happens to his poetry and I won’t spoil that plot device, and the very cool finish. Certainly not for everyone, Paterson is a true sleeper.
Gleason is a documentary that is frankly hard to take. It reminded me of an old ad for a children’s hospital: “Don’t look if you can’t stand the sight of courage.” Steve Gleason was a celebrated defensive back for the New Orleans Saints. A few years after retirement, he developed ALS (Lou Gherig’s Disease), becoming one of many former football players afflicted with problems of the brain. This film takes us from the onset of the problem all the way through to the end. Gleason’s courage is heart-warming, but also gut-wrenching.
Hunt For The Wilder-People is billed as a New Zealand adventure comedy-drama. I could not have said it any better. Left an orphan, Ricky goes to live with foster mother Bella and her taciturn husband Hec. Bella dies, and the child welfare people want Ricky back. Neither he nor Hec are keen on this, so they take to the woods and for most of the movie hide out from the authorities and meet interesting people. Aussie Sam Neill is good as Hec and newcomer Julian Dennison is just fine as Ricky.
Japan’s Studio Ghibli, home of the marvelous anime films, produced the splendid The Red Turtle, a gentle fairy tale about people marooned on an island. The red turtle morphs into a beautiful girl. She and the guy conceive a son, who wants to set off and see the world. After a terrible storm destroys the island’s forest, the lad eventually sails away. The man and woman grow old together and there’s a heart-catching ending.
Julieta is Spanish Grand Master Pedro Almodovar’s 20th film and he is in fine fettle here. The film is based on three chapter’s of Alice Munro’s book, Runaway. The wonderful Ariana Ugarte shines as the title character. She may or may not have indirectly caused the death of her husband (you decide). In any event, this causes her daughter’s complete estrangement. Julieta spends the movie trying to re-establish contact with the daughter, only to be repulsed at every turn. There is a semi-happy Almodovar ending that sort of leaves you guessing.
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. All are for grown-ups.
Sunday, May 7, 2017
JONATHAN DEMME
He directed one of the scariest, most tension-filled films of all time, and won an Oscar for his efforts. He turned sweet but competent Jodie Foster into a perfect vulnerable, albeit capable, FBI agent. And he turned beloved play-anything Anthony Hopkins into one of the scariest screen villains ever. Yep, Jonathan Demme was a consummate pro and showed it in The Silence Of The Lambs (1991). Disclaimer- Do Not Watch This Movie By Yourself! Never has the line, “I’m having him for lunch” had such a dreadful meaning.
Jonathan Demme died recently at 73. He had a lot of good films left in him, I’m sure. But his legacy is very good indeed.
Melvin And Howard (1980) displays Mr. Demme’s comedy chops in a most engaging way. Jason Robards plays the mysterious, irascible Howard Hughes. Hughes wrecks his motorcycle and is rescued by Melvin Dummar (Paul Le Mat), a good-old-boy from Texas. He has no idea who Hughes is until much later. After Hughes’ death, a will shows up at Melvin’s workplace in which he inherits a piece of the Hughes estate. A lawsuit follows (what a surprise!). Dabney Coleman is appropriately nasty as the trial judge. The film is based on a true story. The real life Melvin never got a dime from the Hughes estate.
There have been many movies involving the AIDS epidemic. But to my mind, Jonathan Demme’s Philadelphia (1993) is the polar star. Tom Hanks as Andrew Beckett is the afflicted attorney in a big Philadelphia law firm. On discovering his condition, he is let go by the bigoted partners, after drumming up a fake missed deadline. The only lawyer he can find who will take his case is Joe Miller (Denzel Washington) a street lawyer just shy of being an ambulance chaser. The partners testify at the trial that Beckett was incompetent and AIDs had nothing to do with his firing. I will reveal nothing further!
The 1962 version of The Manchurian Candidate is different, and very close to as good, as Jonathan Demme’s 1994 version. You won’t go wrong with either (what a great double feature they would be!). The earlier black and white version with Frank Sinatra and Laurence Harvey is really good. And so is the 1994 outing with Denzel Washington and Liev Schrieber. The story involves the brainwashing of an American POW by the evil Chinese so that he becomes a walking death machine. The ending of both films will leave you breathless.
Somewhat lesser, but still very enjoyable, works by Jonathan Demme include Rachel Getting Married (2008) with Oscar-nominated Anne Hathaway as the family black sheep, recently released from rehab for her sister’s wedding. And, finally, there is the whimsical Ricki And The Flash (2015) with Meryl Streep. She abandoned her family to become a rock star and wants to make amends. This was Mr. Demme’s last film.
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. All are for grown-ups.
He directed one of the scariest, most tension-filled films of all time, and won an Oscar for his efforts. He turned sweet but competent Jodie Foster into a perfect vulnerable, albeit capable, FBI agent. And he turned beloved play-anything Anthony Hopkins into one of the scariest screen villains ever. Yep, Jonathan Demme was a consummate pro and showed it in The Silence Of The Lambs (1991). Disclaimer- Do Not Watch This Movie By Yourself! Never has the line, “I’m having him for lunch” had such a dreadful meaning.
Jonathan Demme died recently at 73. He had a lot of good films left in him, I’m sure. But his legacy is very good indeed.
Melvin And Howard (1980) displays Mr. Demme’s comedy chops in a most engaging way. Jason Robards plays the mysterious, irascible Howard Hughes. Hughes wrecks his motorcycle and is rescued by Melvin Dummar (Paul Le Mat), a good-old-boy from Texas. He has no idea who Hughes is until much later. After Hughes’ death, a will shows up at Melvin’s workplace in which he inherits a piece of the Hughes estate. A lawsuit follows (what a surprise!). Dabney Coleman is appropriately nasty as the trial judge. The film is based on a true story. The real life Melvin never got a dime from the Hughes estate.
There have been many movies involving the AIDS epidemic. But to my mind, Jonathan Demme’s Philadelphia (1993) is the polar star. Tom Hanks as Andrew Beckett is the afflicted attorney in a big Philadelphia law firm. On discovering his condition, he is let go by the bigoted partners, after drumming up a fake missed deadline. The only lawyer he can find who will take his case is Joe Miller (Denzel Washington) a street lawyer just shy of being an ambulance chaser. The partners testify at the trial that Beckett was incompetent and AIDs had nothing to do with his firing. I will reveal nothing further!
The 1962 version of The Manchurian Candidate is different, and very close to as good, as Jonathan Demme’s 1994 version. You won’t go wrong with either (what a great double feature they would be!). The earlier black and white version with Frank Sinatra and Laurence Harvey is really good. And so is the 1994 outing with Denzel Washington and Liev Schrieber. The story involves the brainwashing of an American POW by the evil Chinese so that he becomes a walking death machine. The ending of both films will leave you breathless.
Somewhat lesser, but still very enjoyable, works by Jonathan Demme include Rachel Getting Married (2008) with Oscar-nominated Anne Hathaway as the family black sheep, recently released from rehab for her sister’s wedding. And, finally, there is the whimsical Ricki And The Flash (2015) with Meryl Streep. She abandoned her family to become a rock star and wants to make amends. This was Mr. Demme’s last film.
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. All are for grown-ups.
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