Tom Stoppard

Tom Stoppard: Didn’t he write plays? And didn’t he win a record five Tonys for them? Oh, and didn’t one of them even win the Pulitzer Prize? Yes to all of the above. But- He also wrote several dazzling screenplays.

Yes, and one of them won an Oscar for him. Whenever I mention Shakespeare In Love (1998) to someone, their almost invariable reaction is, Oh, I love that movie! Indeed! So did the Academy,  favoring the film with 13 nominations and seven wins, including Stoppard’s screenplay. The film itself won Best Movie. The entirely made-up plot involves Shakespeare (Joseph Fiennes) trying to negotiate his plays to production while being barred from one theater and dealing with England’s ban on female actors.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead (1990) is loosely based on two minor Shakespearean characters in Hamlet. Stoppard’s screenplay is taken almost directly from his stage play of the same name. This film is also Stoppard’s only directorial effort. The named characters find themselves roaming the back roads of Denmark, trying to deliver a letter to Hamlet. The letter calls for Hamlet’s death, but he figures it out and escapes on a pirate ship.  The victim list somehow gets changed to R and G, who wind up hanged for their efforts. Roger Ebert said he had trouble following it. Join the club.

Anna Karenina (2012) finds Tom Stoppard adapting one of the most famous novels in literature for the silver screen, and doing a damn fine job of it. Keira Knightley is the doomed countess in love with the dashing cavalry officer Vronsky. Jude Law is the erstwhile husband Karenin. All are quite good and so is the screenplay. It is not easy to write an adaptation of a story virtually everyone already knows, but Stoppard was up for it. Most of the criticisms of this film involved the over use of stagecraft and costumery, not the acting or the script. To say it is better than earlier versions is damning with faint praise.

The 2020 made-for-TV version of A Separate Peace is far superior to the 1972 version, due in no small part to the faithful screenplay of Tom Stoppard. The story of young men at a prep school, and their camaraderie and conflicts, has been read by many since its publication in 1959. It is not an easy read, somewhat vague and not always linear. There’s no one in the cast you’ve ever heard of but in this case, that’s ok. Is it about homosexuality? Nobody is quite sure. 

Empire of the Sun (1997) is a fine screenplay adapted by Stoppard from JG Ballard’s autobiographical novel of the same name. It stars an incredibly young Christian Bale as Jamie, a kid living the dream in the Shanghai American settlement. Then the Japanese come and he is separated from his parents and on the run through occupied China. Helped by various Chinese people to dodge the bad guys, he is reunited with his parents but hardly recognizes them any more. 

All of the movies in this article are for grown-ups. 

                                                                 Diane Ladd

    She left this world at 89 and left behind a career spanning 70 years and hundreds of movies and TV appearances. She liked to work and producers and casting agents were happy to have her available. Highlighting the movie career of Diane Ladd is not an easy job, but of course Mr. Movie will take a crack at it.

    As far as Oscar nominations, she struck out: 0 for 3. I’m starting with the three for which she should have won. In Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore (1974) she played Flo. The main character, Alice, is portrayed by Ellen Burstyn. Due to bad luck, Alice winds up at a Mel’s diner in Arizona. Flo is her funny, outspoken colleague. Ms. Ladd was nominated for Supporting Actress for  her role, but lost to Ingrid Bergman for Murder on the Orient Express. Ms. Burstyn did win the Best Actress Oscar. Ms Ladd's turn as Flo still charms after 50 years.

Wild At Heart (1990) is quite a ride. Nicholas Cage and Laura Dern are unlikely lovers Sailor and Lula, who dodge in and out of the law throughout. Diane Ladd is Lula’s mother, not exactly Mother Of The Year. In fact, she is considered the Wicked Witch of the West. Ms Dern is also her daughter in real life. Ms Ladd plays it to the hilt and earned her second Oscar nomination. Alas, she lost again, this time to Whoopi Goldbert for Ghost. The frantic pace of the film is not to all tastes, but if you watch it, just stay with it. The strange ending is reward enough.

Rambling Rose (1991) from the William Price Fox novel features a sweet Southern family put to the test by Rose (Laura Dern), a homeless waif who comes to live with them and be a maid and caretaker for Buddy, their little boy. Robert Duvall portrays the father of the Hillyer clan. Diane Ladd is credited simply as “Mother”. Rose is, to put it mildly, a distraction and disturbance in the home. Father tries to get rid of her while Mother stanchly defends her. Rose rambles indeed. Ms. Ladd received her third Oscar nomination for this film, but lost to Mercedes Ruehel for The Fisher King. This time I have to say Ms Ladd was robbed- what were they thinking?

Chinatown (1974) got a whopping eleven Oscar nominations. But won only for the screenplay. Jack Nicholson is private eye Jake Gittes who tends to stick his nose into places better left alone. The plot is all about the Water Wars of the 1930's, which ended up allowing Los Angeles to grow into a megacity. Faye Dunaway is the slippery Evelyn and John Huston is the sleaziest old man in town. Ms. Ladd’s role as Ida Sessions is decidely a minor one. 

Something Wicked This Way Comes (1983) is the scary adaptation of a Ray Bradbury short story which Bradbury himself adapted. Two young boys, Jim and Will, who are best pals and live next door to each other, slip out and find Mr. Dark’s carnival. It is indeed dark. Diane Ladd plays Jim’s mother, Mrs. Nightshade, and is one of the few normal characters in the movie. 

    All of these films are for adults. 

                                                                 Diane Keaton

Diane Keaton left this old world at 79 after a stellar career on the silver screen. She first attracted notice in the Godfather movies, as Kay Adams, later the bride of the new godfather Michael Corelone (Al Pacino). These classic gangster films were released in 1972, 1974 and 1990. Ms. Keaton was the not-so-young-in -Hollywood age of 28. The first two were revered by critics and audiences alike. The last one- not so much.

In the first Godfather flick Kay is the good girl trying to puzzle her way through the denizens of crime and to steer Michael away from the desires of his family that he become the Don. She doesn’t have much luck as Michael assumes the throne and does not hesitate to do whatever is necessary to maintain his post. Toward the end of this one, the gang assures Kay that the demise of a competitor was not the action of her husband, but she leaves unconvinced.

In the second Godfather, she reprises the role of Kay Coreleone. The film traces the early years of the main characters, most of whom grew up in Italy. Gang warfare is the main ingredient of the film, with Michael’s gang somehow surviving on top. Meanwhile Kay, very unhappy with her role in the family, suffers a miscarriage and an abortion. Michael slugs her, then banishes her.  In the final Godfather, Kay and Michael are divorced and the children, now grown, live with Kay. Their son becomes a noted opera singer. Michael and Kay tour Italy together and declare they still love each other. The main thing about Ms. Keaton’s appearances in these blockbuster movies is that it got her noticed by lots of producers and directors. 

I’m skipping ahead to the role that put Ms. Keaton on the movie map forever. Well, she didn’t just play Annie Hall (1977), she was Annie Hall. She won the Oscar for her performance as Woody Allen’s on and off girl friend. And her clothing became a thing for women of most any age for quite a while. That look is still referred to as the Annie Hall look. Allen won Oscar for Best Director and the film itself took the big award as Best Picture. As Alvy, Allen is already two past wives deep into things and his neuroses are funny only to the audience. The scene with Alvy vs. the enormous spider is a classic. The film ends with both principals moving on to greener pastures (for Annie anyway). Oh, BTW the screenplay also won the Oscar!

Diane Keaton became a regular in seven other Woody Allen outings, including Play It Again, Sam (1972) and Manhattan (1979),always cheerfully pulling her weight. In 1981, she was in another film that captured almost every award. Reds is the biopic about American journalist John Reed, who cataloged the Russian revolution. The film won Best Picture, Warren Beatty won Best Actor and Best director. This time Ms. Keaton swung and missed. Her performance as activist Louise Bryant was also nominated for Oscar. But she lost to another Hollywood icon, Katherine Hepburn, who won the Oscar for On Golden Pond. 

                                                        James Earl Jones 

                                                                Part 3

Continuing (and ending) with the incredible career of James Earl Jones, who lived to be 93 and compiled a movie list the envy of many. 

Matewan (1987) is the somewhat true story of the bloody miner’s strike of the Stone Mountain Coal Company in Matewan, West Virginia. Chris Cooper, in his debut appearance, portrays Joe Kenehan who is a union organizer. James Earl Jones plays one of the miners with the wonderful name of “Few Clothes” Johnson. As mediation efforts flag, the violence grows incrementally. Who wins? Nobody.

Whether you like or hate Coming To America (1988) probably depends on your opinion of Eddie Murphy, the catalyst for this film. Murphy wrote the story for the film and has the lead role as crown prince Akeem of the fictional African country Zamunda. He grows tired of his entitled lifestyle and particularly of the fiancé picked by his parents. So he decides to travel to America to find a woman he can love and who can love him for himself. James Earl Jones plays the appropriately intense King Jaffe, Akeem’s father. There is a sequel that isn’t even as good as the original. 

Field of Dreams (1989) is a wonderful film about baseball and dreams coming true. Kevin Costner is Ray Kinsella, owner of a corn farm in Iowa. Inside his field he hears a disembodied voice say “If you build it, he will come”. And he has a vision of disgraced Black Sox scandal Shoeless Joe Jackson ( Ray Liotta) playing on a baseball field at the Kinsella farm. So Ray convinces his wife (Amy Madigan) he should build the field. And they come. James Earl Jones portrays Terrence Mann, whose books have been summarily banned in Iowa. Ray is a fan and gets Mann to come to the ball field. The rest is, well, magic!

Sommersby (1993) stars Richard Gere as Jack Sommersby (or not) who has been missing from home for six years after fighting in the Civil War. Laurel Sommersby (Jodie Foster) begins to suspect this guy isn’t her husband. But- she likes him a whole lot better than the original. Jack winds up charged with murder and desertion before Judge Isaacs (James Earl Jones). The judge gives him the choice of choosing the name that will hang him or the one that will just try him for desertion. This film is the American take on the look alike French classic The Return of Martin Guerre. 

Cry, The Beloved Country (1995) is a star turn for Jones, as he portrays Rev. Stephen Kumalo. He is called to Johannesburg by the church and discovers that his son is accused of murdering a white man. James Jarvis (Richard Harris) is the father of the murdered boy. The two meet and against all odds find they share certain aspects of humanity. The film is based on Alan Paton’s novel of the same name. It is also the second configuration of this story. The 1951 version with Sidney Poitier is just as good.

James Earl Jones has a hat trick as Admiral Greer in the thrilling Hunt For Red October (1990), and in Patriot Games (1982) and in Clear and Present Danger (1994). He’s good in all of them.  

    All of the movies in this article are for grown-ups. 

                                                          James Earl Jones

                                                             Part 2

Last week’s article dealt with the incredible, unmistakable voice of James Earl Jones. But that only scratched the surface of his film resume’. Today we begin his movie roles.

    The first Jones appearance of note is as Lt. Luther Zogg in the madcap classic Dr. Strangelove, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964). Jones was 33. This film is regarded as one of the greatest. A crazed general unleashes a B-52 nuclear attack on the Soviet Union. The mistake is discovered and the Russians are notified. They respond that they have a Doomsday Device that will effectively kill everyone on earth if Russia is bombed.  The attempts to stop the bombers works on all but one. Lt. Zogg is the bombardier and Slim Pickens (Major “King” Kong) is the pilot. They make it to the target. Best of many quotes “You can’t fight in here- this is the war room!” 

End Of The Road (1970) from the John Barth novel, is definitely not to all tastes. Stacy Keach carries the thing as Jake Horner, a returned Vietnam vet who has descended into catatonia. He winds up in the hospital of the demonstrably crazy Doctor D (JE Jones) and is “cured” and sent out to teach unsuspecting college kids. A summary really doesn’t tell you much about this strange film. While I can’t really recommend it, I will say that Jones is superb.

The Great White Hope (1970) brings Jones to the top. He plays Jack Jefferson, based on real life Jack Johnson. A black man struggling in the white world of championship boxing in the early 20th century, he defeats every white challenger put before him. White fans are looking for a “white hope”, a white boxer who can defeat Jefferson. Jones revealed he had never boxed before appearing in this film. He was nominated for Best Actor Oscar, but lost to George C. Scott for Patton. Jane Alexander was also nominated for her role as Jefferson’s white love affair, but also lost.

James Earl Jones is The Man (1972).This is a made-for-TV movie, but the screenplay is by Rod Serling and the cast is first-rate. As president pro tem of the Senate, he becomes president of the United States through a series of mishaps to the president and the rest of the succession. Douglas Dillman thus becomes the first black president. This is nearly forty years before Barack Obama. He encounters many problems, most of them racially motivated, but most people reluctantly agree he does a good job. He decides to run for election and strives to get his party’s nomination. 

The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars and Motor Kings (1976) is about an all black baseball team in the 1930's, most of whom are good enough to play in he Major Leagues, which are lily white. Billy Dee Williams is Bingo Long, owner of the team, and Jones is Leon Carter, star catcher and slugger. Their adventures as they barnstorm and play all comers is delightful and entertaining. 

All of the movies in this article are available for streaming somewhere. All are for grown-ups. Next time more James Earl Jones movies. 

                                                              James Earl Jones

    It took Hollywood a while, but once they caught on to his distinctive booming bass voice he was the go-to narrator guy. This famous voice first appeared in the first Star Wars movie, which is actually number IV in the Star Wars cycle. You never forgot the villainous Darth Vader and his rumbling, terrifying voice. Jones voiced Darth Vader in all the Star Wars films. He did so once again in number V. If you scroll through the credits in those two films, you will not see the name of James Earl Jones. It was him, ok, but he refused the credit, not wanting to over shine his friend David Prowse, the actor who played Vader. After that film, Jones was always credited. Strangely, the correct sequence of Star Wars movies in the order of their release is 4,5,6,1,2,3,7. That seems to bother absolutely no one. 

    The Star Wars galaxy of films is not based on a book, but on a series of screen outlines developed by George Lucas. So the very first release is titled Star Wars IV: A New Hope. The next two films follow in sequence. Then they return to number 1, which is actually a prequel. I will never forget watching the first Star Wars film in 1977. I was completely blown away, and so was most everyone else. The complete Star Wars movie package has made more than 10 billion dollars. Yoda, Princess Leah, Wookie, Luke, Hans Solo,  R2D2 and CP3O are all legends now. 

    Returning now to James Earl Jones and his unmistakable voice. Who will ever forget “Luke, I am your father” ? Jones probably made more money from his voice- overs and narrations than from his acting. And there’s another movie franchise that utilized Jones’ unique voice. The Lion King first appeared as an animated musical in 1994. Hugely popular, it went on to sire many film offspring, and a hit Broadway Musical.

    That first version contained a host of famous voices: Matthew Broderick, Nathan Lane, Jeremy Irons, Whoppi Goldberg et al. But the one everyone remembers is James Earl Jones, voicing Mufasa, the King of the title and the leader of the pride of lions. He is killed by the treacherous Scar, who replaces Mufasa and does an expectedly terrible job as leader.  Mufasa with the Jones voice is heard once again in the real life version in 2019. And there are lots of other Lion King opportunities for Jones. 

    He was born with a debilitating stutter. He hardly spoke at all until he was 8 years old and spoke very little until high school. A high school voice teacher taught him how to deal with his problem. Jones had written poetry and the teacher convinced him to read it aloud in front of the class. He did so and didn’t stutter at all. The rest, as they say, is history.  His overcoming this condition all the way to narrating films is an inspiring story. He can also be heard in The Sandlot, Our Friend Martin, Merlin  and several other films. He has recorded the entire New Testament.

    Next time: James Earl Jones the actor. 

                                                                          Robert Blake

What a long, and strange, career Robert Blake had. To find his movie beginning you have to go back to 1939! He was a member of the Our Gang, a beloved group of mischievous little kids. He then moved on to play Red Ryder’s Indian sidekick Little Beaver, in something like 30 westerns. 

In 2005 he was indicted for murdering his wife, Bonnie. And although he was acquitted, a civil jury later found him liable for her death to the tune of 30 million dollars. 

He lived to be 89. His film resume’ as an adult is astonishing. I’m cherry picking the best ones. Many people will remember him from his popular TV show Baretta (1975-78). He made cockatoos famous! Here are his best movies:

In Cold Blood (1967) is the movie version of Truman Capote’s true crime novel about the murder of an entire family in Kansas. Blake is convincingly creepy as Perry Smith, one of the two ex-cons who walked into the Clutter home looking for a non-existent safe. They find nothing of real value, but murder the entire Clutter family, the father, mother, daughter and son. The killers were later executed and the movie takes you right to the end. Folks, this is not an upper!

Lost Highway (1997) is an incredibly weird film, even for David Lynch. I’m not going to summarize the plot; actually I can’t ! I’m including it here because the film is about a man who is convicted of murdering his wife. Something that Blake was accused of some years later. He plays the Mystery Man and I’ll leave it to people smarter than I to figure this thing out!

Pork Chop Hill (1959) is one of the best movies about the Korean War. (There aren’t really very many). Robert Blake has a nice turn as Pvt. Velie. The American troops are assigned to assault heavily defended Pork Chop Hill as peace negotiations are dragging on. They are bogged down and getting slaughtered, but the brass refuses to send reinforcements or authorize a retreat. 

Electra Glide In Blue (1973) features Robert Blake as Arizona lawman John Wintergreen, a motorcycle cop with ambition to move up to the homicide unit. When he is busted back down to patrolling the highways, he solves a murder that has baffled the other police. Later while on patrol he stops a hippie but lets him off with a warning. When the man drops his license, Wintergreen tries to return it to him. The car’s passenger shoots the officer for no apparent reason. 

In Town Without Pity (1961) Robert Blake has to pull out all his acting chops as he portrays an American GI in Germany who participates in the rape of a German teenager. Blake somehow manages to make this character at least somewhat sympathetic. He is the only one of the four defendants with any regrets and he tries to defuse the situation. 

All of the films in this article are for grown-ups.