2017 SLEEPERS
Part 4
Herewith a fourth helping of 2017 movies most people (including critics) missed. I bet you can find a couple you would like.
Crown Heights is one of the best innocent-man-sent-to-prison films I’ve ever seen. It is based on a true, and unbelievable, story. There is no one in it you’ve ever heard of, but that’s to the good. Colin Warner was no Boy Scout. He had a long rap sheet and was up to no good the night Mario Hamilton was shot and killed. But he had nothing to do with the murder although an eye witness says that he did. His best friend loses his job and his family to gather proof of Colin’s innocence. It takes a while. Like 21 years. Spellbinding film!
When the Nazis came to power in Germany in the 30's, the titular leader of the country, Kaiser Wilhelm II, fled to Holland. The Exception is the (probably) fictional story of his exile. There he waits, hoping to be asked to resume the throne. Christopher Plummer is, as always, quite good in this part. There is a complicated subplot involving a Dutch spy (played by Lilly James) and a German soldier (played by Jai Courtney). And there is a surprise ending well worth watching for.
The Hero features Sam Elliott, he of the golden bass voice, as an aging Western star living out his days smoking dope and reminiscing about his glory days. When he is diagonosed with a terminal condition, he changes focus, hoping for one final great role before it’s too late. He also attempts to reconnect with his estranged daughter (played by Kristin Ritter). An on and off romance with a stand-up comic (played by Laura Prepon) is by turns funny and endearing.
All The Money In The World is based on the true story of the kidnaping of J. Paul Getty’s grandson by Italian thugs. It’s interesting to note that Kevin Spacey was to play Getty before Spacey’s fall from grace, and the movie had practically wrapped. But the clever director, Ridley Scott, reshot all of Spacey’s scenes with the iconic Christopher Plummer. It is a seamless job and I defy you to notice the switch! You may recall that the kidnapers mailed Getty one of the grandson’s ears (a nice touch). The kidnaping victim’s mother, played by Michelle Williams, spends much of the film trying to talk the old man into ransoming her son. No more about the plot here!
As a practicing Christian, I have to admit that most movies made with a religious motif are not very good. A notable exception is last year’s All Saints. There are no big names in the cast, but it is uniformly good. Michael Spurlock, ably portrayed by John Corbett, leaves his sales job to become a pastor. Unfortunately, the Episcopal power sends him to a small, failing rural church with instructions to shut it down and sell it. When the church begins to welcome Burmese refugees, the pastor decides to try something different. Heartwarming without being smarmy, this is a real upper of a film. All of the films in this article are available on DVD. Only the last one is okay for kids.
Sunday, April 29, 2018
Sunday, April 22, 2018
SUSAN ANSPACH
For a 10-year period in the 1970's Susan Anspach was the wonderful female wild child of movies. She sought and landed female roles that actresses would kill for nowadays. Susan died recently at 75. She left a legacy of over 50 movies and TV shows. In 1996 she was hired by Dreamworks to teach their animation artists how to make their animated films more life-like.
Susan Anspach burst into stardom in Five Easy Pieces (1970). Jack Nicholson was already famous when this film was made, but Susan was an unknown. Nicholson was Bobby, the failed concert pianist. She played Catherine Van Oost, the aspiring concert pianist and student of Bobby’s father. She and Bobby have a hasty fling and she is seen no more. Nicholson scores with the famous chicken salad scene in a diner culminating with a clean sweep of all the dishes on the table. Many of us have identified with Bobby’s frustration with the hide-bound waitress.
Woody Allen’s Play It Again, Sam (1972) derives its title from a misquote from Casablanca (1942). But it is the quote everyone thinks is right, instead of ‘Play it Sam; play As Time Goes By.” Anyway, Susan Anspach plays Nancy, Woody’s ex-wife who constantly torments him about his sexual inadequacy. The film starts where Casablanca ends and then gets tangled up with romantic similarities. Susan is quite unmanning as the vixenish Nancy.
George Segal is Stephen Blume In Blume In Love (1973). He has a quickie with his secretary but Nina (Susan Ansach) finds out about it and shows him the door. After the divorce, he wanders around Venice inconsolably trying to relive the romantic place where they met. Nina in the meantime has landed a much younger hunk (Kris Kristofferson) named Elmo. Stephen’s pathetic attempts at getting Nina back are hurt by his finding that Elmo is a really good guy.
The Big Fix (1978) features Richard Dreyfuss as Moses Wine, a private eye and former radical activist. He is contacted by ex-girlfriend Lila, played by Susan Anspach, who wants him to help a gubernatorial candidate. Someone is distributing phony posters showing the candidate in cahoots with a wanted criminal. (Obviously way before social media!). Moses sets out to find the culprit. The plot gets twistier and darker, but keeps your interest.
Michael Douglas is an Olympic wannabe marathoner in Running (1979), He overcomes many obstacles and finally gets to compete only to suffer a damaging fall. He struggles to finish after everyone else has gone home. Susan Anspach plays his ex-wife Janet, who is mainly around to feel sorry for him and then proud of him. Not a great part, but hey, not a great film either.
Susan Anspach’s last big one is the extremely strange Montenegro (1981). She plays Marilyn Jordan, who seems to have a perfect life but is restless. She eats her family’s entire meal, sets the bedclothes on fire and poisons the pet dog’s dish. Then she meets a group of wild Yugoslavians, sleeps with one of them, comes to her senses and returns home. There she cooks a gourmet meal for her family, with a light dessert which we are informed she has poisoned. I left out the weird parts...
All of the films in this article are available on DVD. All are for grown-ups.
For a 10-year period in the 1970's Susan Anspach was the wonderful female wild child of movies. She sought and landed female roles that actresses would kill for nowadays. Susan died recently at 75. She left a legacy of over 50 movies and TV shows. In 1996 she was hired by Dreamworks to teach their animation artists how to make their animated films more life-like.
Susan Anspach burst into stardom in Five Easy Pieces (1970). Jack Nicholson was already famous when this film was made, but Susan was an unknown. Nicholson was Bobby, the failed concert pianist. She played Catherine Van Oost, the aspiring concert pianist and student of Bobby’s father. She and Bobby have a hasty fling and she is seen no more. Nicholson scores with the famous chicken salad scene in a diner culminating with a clean sweep of all the dishes on the table. Many of us have identified with Bobby’s frustration with the hide-bound waitress.
Woody Allen’s Play It Again, Sam (1972) derives its title from a misquote from Casablanca (1942). But it is the quote everyone thinks is right, instead of ‘Play it Sam; play As Time Goes By.” Anyway, Susan Anspach plays Nancy, Woody’s ex-wife who constantly torments him about his sexual inadequacy. The film starts where Casablanca ends and then gets tangled up with romantic similarities. Susan is quite unmanning as the vixenish Nancy.
George Segal is Stephen Blume In Blume In Love (1973). He has a quickie with his secretary but Nina (Susan Ansach) finds out about it and shows him the door. After the divorce, he wanders around Venice inconsolably trying to relive the romantic place where they met. Nina in the meantime has landed a much younger hunk (Kris Kristofferson) named Elmo. Stephen’s pathetic attempts at getting Nina back are hurt by his finding that Elmo is a really good guy.
The Big Fix (1978) features Richard Dreyfuss as Moses Wine, a private eye and former radical activist. He is contacted by ex-girlfriend Lila, played by Susan Anspach, who wants him to help a gubernatorial candidate. Someone is distributing phony posters showing the candidate in cahoots with a wanted criminal. (Obviously way before social media!). Moses sets out to find the culprit. The plot gets twistier and darker, but keeps your interest.
Michael Douglas is an Olympic wannabe marathoner in Running (1979), He overcomes many obstacles and finally gets to compete only to suffer a damaging fall. He struggles to finish after everyone else has gone home. Susan Anspach plays his ex-wife Janet, who is mainly around to feel sorry for him and then proud of him. Not a great part, but hey, not a great film either.
Susan Anspach’s last big one is the extremely strange Montenegro (1981). She plays Marilyn Jordan, who seems to have a perfect life but is restless. She eats her family’s entire meal, sets the bedclothes on fire and poisons the pet dog’s dish. Then she meets a group of wild Yugoslavians, sleeps with one of them, comes to her senses and returns home. There she cooks a gourmet meal for her family, with a light dessert which we are informed she has poisoned. I left out the weird parts...
All of the films in this article are available on DVD. All are for grown-ups.
Sunday, April 15, 2018
2017 Sleepers
Part 3
Here’s a third batch of undersung 2017 films. Hope you will find one or two to try.
Although it won the Oscar as Best Documentary, I think many of you probably have not seen Icarus. It was a Netflix original and to my knowledge never appeared in theaters. It is a knockout! American amateur bicycle racer Bryan Fogel wrote, directed and is the main character in this incredible film. He wanted to find out how to cheat on the mandatory drug testing required of racers. He contacted Russian expert Grigory Rodchenkov who agreed to help him. Fogel then stumbled into the dark world of Russian athletes, almost all of whom have cheated on drug tests for years with the help of Rodchenkov and others. The film demonstrates how this is done and goes up to the point that most of the Russian Olympians were barred from competing. It also goes up to the point that there is the suspicious death of two of Rodchenkov’s colleagues and he, with good reason, fears for his life.
Right out of the gate, The Big Sick starts out with an absolutely terrible title. Don’t let that put you off. Kumail Nanjani plays himself. His very traditional Pakistani-born parents keep trying to interest him in an arranged marriage with women they introduce. He is not interested, but is interested in Emily (played by Zoe Kazan). He is a stand-up comedian and met Emily after she heckled him during a performance. Their ongoing relationship is rocky at best and she develops a serious illness (hence the quirky title). He is deeply moved by this and she becomes deeply moved by his faithfulness. Happy ending?
Miles Teller is the star of the troubling Thank You For Your Service, which deals with the problems soldiers have in returning home from a harrowing stint in the Middle East. He can’t seem to connect with his family or his old life and finds others who are in the same boat.
Thurgood Marshall was the first African-American to be named to the United States Supreme Court. He is a legend for many reasons, including being the plaintiff’s attorney in Brown vs. Board of Education. But Marshall dwells on his early professional life and most of the film is about his experiences as chief lawyer for the NAACP in the 1950's. He went wherever his organization sent him to defend black citizens accused of crime. His defense of Joseph Spell, a chauffeur accused of raping his white employer’s wife, is the featured trial. Chadwick Boseman, who soon became The Black Panther, is just right in the title role.
A Ghost Story is something of an acquired taste. What if those who die before us sort of hang around in our lives? This is the basic idea of this movie, which features the deceased Casey Affleck sticking around his departed life in a Halloweenish outfit nobody else can see. His widow, played by Rooney Mara, can’t see him either but she senses his presence. I can’t really explain why, but I found this offbeat little film quite appealing.
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. But Icarus for some reason is quite hard to find. All of the films are for grown-ups.
Part 3
Here’s a third batch of undersung 2017 films. Hope you will find one or two to try.
Although it won the Oscar as Best Documentary, I think many of you probably have not seen Icarus. It was a Netflix original and to my knowledge never appeared in theaters. It is a knockout! American amateur bicycle racer Bryan Fogel wrote, directed and is the main character in this incredible film. He wanted to find out how to cheat on the mandatory drug testing required of racers. He contacted Russian expert Grigory Rodchenkov who agreed to help him. Fogel then stumbled into the dark world of Russian athletes, almost all of whom have cheated on drug tests for years with the help of Rodchenkov and others. The film demonstrates how this is done and goes up to the point that most of the Russian Olympians were barred from competing. It also goes up to the point that there is the suspicious death of two of Rodchenkov’s colleagues and he, with good reason, fears for his life.
Right out of the gate, The Big Sick starts out with an absolutely terrible title. Don’t let that put you off. Kumail Nanjani plays himself. His very traditional Pakistani-born parents keep trying to interest him in an arranged marriage with women they introduce. He is not interested, but is interested in Emily (played by Zoe Kazan). He is a stand-up comedian and met Emily after she heckled him during a performance. Their ongoing relationship is rocky at best and she develops a serious illness (hence the quirky title). He is deeply moved by this and she becomes deeply moved by his faithfulness. Happy ending?
Miles Teller is the star of the troubling Thank You For Your Service, which deals with the problems soldiers have in returning home from a harrowing stint in the Middle East. He can’t seem to connect with his family or his old life and finds others who are in the same boat.
Thurgood Marshall was the first African-American to be named to the United States Supreme Court. He is a legend for many reasons, including being the plaintiff’s attorney in Brown vs. Board of Education. But Marshall dwells on his early professional life and most of the film is about his experiences as chief lawyer for the NAACP in the 1950's. He went wherever his organization sent him to defend black citizens accused of crime. His defense of Joseph Spell, a chauffeur accused of raping his white employer’s wife, is the featured trial. Chadwick Boseman, who soon became The Black Panther, is just right in the title role.
A Ghost Story is something of an acquired taste. What if those who die before us sort of hang around in our lives? This is the basic idea of this movie, which features the deceased Casey Affleck sticking around his departed life in a Halloweenish outfit nobody else can see. His widow, played by Rooney Mara, can’t see him either but she senses his presence. I can’t really explain why, but I found this offbeat little film quite appealing.
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. But Icarus for some reason is quite hard to find. All of the films are for grown-ups.
Sunday, April 8, 2018
JOHN GAVIN
He was one of the most handsome actors of his time. He was once president of the Screen Actors Guild, as was his mentor Ronald Reagan. He served as Reagan’s Ambassador to Mexico 1981-86. He was a successful business man. Though he appeared in dozens of poor to fair movies, he had a stretch of winners in the middle of his career. Pull up a picture of John Gavin on Internet Movie Data Base or Google and you’ll understand why he was once labeled “the next Rock Hudson.”
Imitation Of Life (1959) is one of director Douglas Sirk’s six-handkerchief Hollywood weepers. Lana Turner, as actress Lora Meredith, is the big name, and John Gavin is on hand as her main squeeze Steve. The plot involves a mixed race girl passing for white, her heart-broken mother, the off-again-on-again romance between
Steve and Lora and other hand-wringing.
A Breath Of Scandal (1960) stars Maurice Chevalier, Sophia Loren and John Gavin. Gavin has called the film a turkey and I concur. During the shoot, Gavin said to Ms. Loren that director Michael Curtiz was a famous director but didn’t know what he was doing anymore. That appears to be the case. Vittorio De Sica was hired to reshoot some of Loren’s scenes. It didn’t help much.
The actors you remember from Psycho (1960) are Janet Leigh and Anthony Perkins. But John Gavin is quite important as Leigh’s boyfriend. You of course know that Leigh is stabbed to death in the famous shower scene. Gavin and Vera Miles (as Leigh’s sister) go looking for her. They find Perkins and his mother. That’s all I’m telling.
But director Alfred Hitchcock and Vivian Leigh won Oscars. Beware tepid remakes of this classic. But if you haven’t seen the original, don’t watch it alone!
Spartacus (1960) is mostly famous for the scene in which Kirk Douglas says he is Spartacus, the leader of a slave rebellion. But then all the other slaves also say, “I am Spartacus.” John Gavin is on hand as tyrannical Julius Caesar. The film won four Oscars, including Peter Ustinov’s Best Supporting Actor. Pretty good but pretty long. Blacklisted Dalton Trumbo wrote the screenplay under an assumed name. When Douglas revealed this, there was lots of controversy, which no doubt helped ticket sales.
Midnight Lace (1960) completes Gavin’s incredible year. Doris Day is threatened by a mysterious stalker who says he is going to kill her. Rex Harrison plays her husband. John Gavin appears as a construction boss who saves her from a falling girder. The tension builds quite well in this thriller.
Romanoff And Juliet (1961) is a modern take on the Shakespeare tragedy. John Gavin plays Igor Romanoff, son of the Russian ambassador. Sandra Dee plays Juliet Moulsworth, daughter of the American ambassador. They meet at a party and, of course, fall madly in love. Their romance seems doomed because of their parentage (sound familiar?) but somehow love conquers all.
All of the films in this article are available on DVD. All are for grown-ups.
He was one of the most handsome actors of his time. He was once president of the Screen Actors Guild, as was his mentor Ronald Reagan. He served as Reagan’s Ambassador to Mexico 1981-86. He was a successful business man. Though he appeared in dozens of poor to fair movies, he had a stretch of winners in the middle of his career. Pull up a picture of John Gavin on Internet Movie Data Base or Google and you’ll understand why he was once labeled “the next Rock Hudson.”
Imitation Of Life (1959) is one of director Douglas Sirk’s six-handkerchief Hollywood weepers. Lana Turner, as actress Lora Meredith, is the big name, and John Gavin is on hand as her main squeeze Steve. The plot involves a mixed race girl passing for white, her heart-broken mother, the off-again-on-again romance between
Steve and Lora and other hand-wringing.
A Breath Of Scandal (1960) stars Maurice Chevalier, Sophia Loren and John Gavin. Gavin has called the film a turkey and I concur. During the shoot, Gavin said to Ms. Loren that director Michael Curtiz was a famous director but didn’t know what he was doing anymore. That appears to be the case. Vittorio De Sica was hired to reshoot some of Loren’s scenes. It didn’t help much.
The actors you remember from Psycho (1960) are Janet Leigh and Anthony Perkins. But John Gavin is quite important as Leigh’s boyfriend. You of course know that Leigh is stabbed to death in the famous shower scene. Gavin and Vera Miles (as Leigh’s sister) go looking for her. They find Perkins and his mother. That’s all I’m telling.
But director Alfred Hitchcock and Vivian Leigh won Oscars. Beware tepid remakes of this classic. But if you haven’t seen the original, don’t watch it alone!
Spartacus (1960) is mostly famous for the scene in which Kirk Douglas says he is Spartacus, the leader of a slave rebellion. But then all the other slaves also say, “I am Spartacus.” John Gavin is on hand as tyrannical Julius Caesar. The film won four Oscars, including Peter Ustinov’s Best Supporting Actor. Pretty good but pretty long. Blacklisted Dalton Trumbo wrote the screenplay under an assumed name. When Douglas revealed this, there was lots of controversy, which no doubt helped ticket sales.
Midnight Lace (1960) completes Gavin’s incredible year. Doris Day is threatened by a mysterious stalker who says he is going to kill her. Rex Harrison plays her husband. John Gavin appears as a construction boss who saves her from a falling girder. The tension builds quite well in this thriller.
Romanoff And Juliet (1961) is a modern take on the Shakespeare tragedy. John Gavin plays Igor Romanoff, son of the Russian ambassador. Sandra Dee plays Juliet Moulsworth, daughter of the American ambassador. They meet at a party and, of course, fall madly in love. Their romance seems doomed because of their parentage (sound familiar?) but somehow love conquers all.
All of the films in this article are available on DVD. All are for grown-ups.
Sunday, April 1, 2018
2017 SLEEPERS
Part 2
Herewith the second installment of underappreciated movies from last year. All of these rated 8 (out of 10).
Wonder is as predictable as the sunrise, but I dare you not to like it anyway. Young unknown Jacob Tremblay is terrific as Augie Pullman, unfortunately afflicted by Treacher Collins syndrome, a genetic condition rendering the face, well, a mess. He has had multiple surgeries but is still quite disfigured. His parents, nicely played by Julia Roberts and Owen Wilson, decide to stop home schooling him and send him to public middle school. He is of course scorned and picked on but, hey, this is a Hollywood movie so you know it will turn out okl!
Battle Of The Sexes is about the historic tennis match between women’s champion Billie Jean King and journeyman player Bobby Riggs. I am actually old enough to remember when this happened (1973). Underrated Steve Carrell is super as preening, boasting Bobby and Emma Stone is very good as Billie Jean. He starts the battle by publicly proclaiming that he (or most any man) could handily beat any woman. She accepts the challenge and the battle is on. The film does a good job of leading up to the match and the tennis is really fun!
We recently went to see Paddington 2 because we loved the first one. The bear from darkest Peru who lands in London and is adopted by a typical British family is just so much fun and so dear. Believe it or not (I was amazed) the second one is even better than the first. Sally Hawkins is back as the family’s Mom and Hugh Bonneville as Father. She was up for an Oscar for The Shape Of Water (2017) and he was fabulous as Robert Crawley, Lord of Grantham, in the PBS smash hit Downton Abbey. And Paddington 2 features the most unlikely of actors as the villain- Hugh Grant. Through a misunderstanding (of course) Paddington gets sent to prison,where he quickly wins over the hardened cons and guards (and us).
And there’s another bear movie in this group. Brigsby Bear is the very strange and very charming story of a boy who is raised in an underground dwelling by people who kidnaped him as an infant. They have produced a series of movies about Brigsby Bear, together with all the assorted paraphernalia that goes with it. The boy is rescued and restored to his true parents, but he misses the bear who has become such a big part of his life. He later produces a movie about the imaginary (?) bear which is a big hit. It’s a lot more complicated (and more fun) than my synopsis.
Remember that incredibly cute couple in Barefoot In The Park (1967)? Okay, maybe you don’t. Anyway, Jane Fonda and Robert Redford are back 50 years later in Our Souls At Night. Based on Kent Haruf’s wonderful book, it is the story of two aging people finding companionship and even romance. Both have survived the death of a spouse, and the story begins when she asks him to come over and sleep with her. Platonically, just for the warmth and comfort of another person. He reluctantly agrees.
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. Wonder and Paddington 2 are actually fine for all ages. The rest are for adults.
Part 2
Herewith the second installment of underappreciated movies from last year. All of these rated 8 (out of 10).
Wonder is as predictable as the sunrise, but I dare you not to like it anyway. Young unknown Jacob Tremblay is terrific as Augie Pullman, unfortunately afflicted by Treacher Collins syndrome, a genetic condition rendering the face, well, a mess. He has had multiple surgeries but is still quite disfigured. His parents, nicely played by Julia Roberts and Owen Wilson, decide to stop home schooling him and send him to public middle school. He is of course scorned and picked on but, hey, this is a Hollywood movie so you know it will turn out okl!
Battle Of The Sexes is about the historic tennis match between women’s champion Billie Jean King and journeyman player Bobby Riggs. I am actually old enough to remember when this happened (1973). Underrated Steve Carrell is super as preening, boasting Bobby and Emma Stone is very good as Billie Jean. He starts the battle by publicly proclaiming that he (or most any man) could handily beat any woman. She accepts the challenge and the battle is on. The film does a good job of leading up to the match and the tennis is really fun!
We recently went to see Paddington 2 because we loved the first one. The bear from darkest Peru who lands in London and is adopted by a typical British family is just so much fun and so dear. Believe it or not (I was amazed) the second one is even better than the first. Sally Hawkins is back as the family’s Mom and Hugh Bonneville as Father. She was up for an Oscar for The Shape Of Water (2017) and he was fabulous as Robert Crawley, Lord of Grantham, in the PBS smash hit Downton Abbey. And Paddington 2 features the most unlikely of actors as the villain- Hugh Grant. Through a misunderstanding (of course) Paddington gets sent to prison,where he quickly wins over the hardened cons and guards (and us).
And there’s another bear movie in this group. Brigsby Bear is the very strange and very charming story of a boy who is raised in an underground dwelling by people who kidnaped him as an infant. They have produced a series of movies about Brigsby Bear, together with all the assorted paraphernalia that goes with it. The boy is rescued and restored to his true parents, but he misses the bear who has become such a big part of his life. He later produces a movie about the imaginary (?) bear which is a big hit. It’s a lot more complicated (and more fun) than my synopsis.
Remember that incredibly cute couple in Barefoot In The Park (1967)? Okay, maybe you don’t. Anyway, Jane Fonda and Robert Redford are back 50 years later in Our Souls At Night. Based on Kent Haruf’s wonderful book, it is the story of two aging people finding companionship and even romance. Both have survived the death of a spouse, and the story begins when she asks him to come over and sleep with her. Platonically, just for the warmth and comfort of another person. He reluctantly agrees.
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. Wonder and Paddington 2 are actually fine for all ages. The rest are for adults.
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