JFK

One of the momentous events in my life, and of most everyone over 50, was the assassination of John F. Kennedy. This November it will have been 58 years (unbelievably, for me) since that terrible event. Hollywood has done very well by JFK and his story. There aren’t many films, but the ones we have are good.

We start with the powerful documentary, John F. Kennedy: Years of Lightning, Day of Drums (1964), directed by Bruce Herschensohn. There are  extraordinary things about this film. First, it came out only one year after JFK’s death, and has never been improved upon. Second, it was commissioned by a governmental agency (the USIA) which obviously gave the director his head and he came through magnificently. Archival footage of JFK’s childhood and youth, his storybook marriage and meteoric rise to the top, and the crushing blow of his untimely death are all there, and unbelievably moving. I watched this great film again recently and was freshly reminded of just how much our country lost on that awful day in Dallas. The image of three-year-old John Jr. saluting as his father’s casket rolled by is one we will never forget. 

A horse of an entirely different color (and species) is Oliver Stone’s JFK (1991). The movie is hugely entertaining and you don’t have to buy into all his theories to enjoy it. Kevin Costner, Sissy Spacek, Tommy Lee Jones and Donald Sutherland are only a few of the outstanding actors featured. The photography and editing of JFK are marvelous.  

Much closer to actuality, and producing incredible tension, is Thirteen Days (2000), the film story of the Cuban missile crisis. There is exactly one actor herein you will ever have heard of (Kevin Costner as presidential adviser Kenny O’Donnell). President Kennedy is played by unknown Bruce Greenwood and Robert Kennedy by equally little-known Steven Culp. This is effective, and although we know World War III did not break out over the crisis, and that the Russians backed down, we’re still on the edge of our seats through the last half hour. 

Finally, there is PT 109 (1963), with Cliff Robertson doing a good job as Navy Commander John F. Kennedy, whose heroics in World War II helped catapult him to political glory. This movie is apparently pretty close to the truth ( in a Hollywood sort of way). JFK’s bravery and coolness under fire are amply demonstrated in a movie that is unashamed to admire a hero.

All of the films in this article are available on DVD. All are fine for 10 and up, though JFK will puzzle young viewers.

                                                                 IRANIAN FILMS

It is about the most unlikely place you can think of that would be cranking out excellent movies. And yet, Iran, that backwater of Muslim fundamentalism and nuclear power wannabe, is that place! How these movies got made in that hidebound country is a mystery to ponder. 

A Separation (2011) won the American Oscar as best foreign film. While the plot is quite complicated, it is an astonishingly good look at another culture. It shows how messy domestic squabbles are everywhere, and it kindles a realization that these people are very much like us!

A Time For Drunken Horses (1999) is about the Kurdish people of Iran (and several other countries). The family makes a meager living smuggling goods into Iran. The little boy Madi is afflicted with dwarfism and is constantly ill. His only hope is an operation, far beyond the family’s meager means. But they try. The older children embark on a perilous smuggling trip, fraught with terrible weather and bandits. This is a great film.

In Offside (2006) the Iranian national soccer team is playing for the world cup in Tehran. Girls are fans too, but, girls are not allowed to attend the game, even wearing a burnoose and accompanied by a chaperone. Iranian teen-age girls are just as feisty and inventive as any, and they’re determined to see the game. The various tricks they use to get in, what happens when some of them get caught, and the interaction with the police and soldiers are both humorous and touching. Not surprisingly, you can’t see this one in Iran!

Baran (2001) is a most unusual love story. A goofy Iranian construction worker constantly makes fun of an Afghani refugee. Then he discovers that she is a woman, and a very pretty one at that. The director’s nice light touch serves the actors well. 

Marjane Satrapi is an Iranian girl who just wants to be a real person in the unusual Persepolis (2007). Done in black and white animation, it is a cautionary tale about political changes which aren’t always for the better, and growing up female in a culture that demeans women. This film is very dark, but worth the effort to stick with it.

Iran nominated Children of Heaven (1997) for an Oscar as best foreign film, and while it didn’t make the final cut, it is certainly worthy. A little boy’s careless mistake  causes the loss of his sister’s precious pink tennis shoes. He undertakes a seemingly impossible search for them through the crowded city. This is a real crowd-pleaser for all ages.

All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. Persepolis and Drunken Horses are for big people. The rest are fine for all ages.

                                                      MEN TAKING CREDIT

The last two posts were about films recognizing bright women. And today’s post completes the category. And Happy Mother’s Day!

It’s no secret that in many cases, famous and otherwise, men have taken credit for the work done by women. Mostly they got away with it. But the movies have taken some of these guys to task, and given credit where it is due. 

A recent example is  Collette (2018). Keira Knightley plays the famous writer, whose popular work was claimed by her husband Willy for many years. While it is true that Willy pushed Collette to write novels about the life of Claudine, it is also true that he took credit for most of them, inserting his own byline. The books were wildly popular in France. They even inspired products, such as perfume, based on the stories. Befriended by Mathilde de Mornay (Denise Gough), a very modern woman of any time, Collette gradually escaped her husband’s dominance and became her own artist.  Dominic West is just right as the controlling husband and Miss Knightley lights up the screen.

Another fairly recent example is the aptly named Big Eyes (2014). Margaret Keane was an outstanding pop artist, the inventor of the paintings in the 60's featuring children with abnormally large eyes. Amy Adams plays the artist and the eternally creepy Christoph Waitz appears as her husband Walter. He convinces her to do the painting and let him do the selling (and taking the credit). But she eventually tires of being the doormat, escapes his dominance, sues to get proper credit and carries the day. 

Hidden Figures (2016) brings to light the untold contribution of a group of mathematicians who were principally responsible for NASA’s early space flights. These incredibly smart and dedicated workers were women and they were black! Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer and Janelle Monae portray these unsung heroes. Kevin Costner is quite effective as the project head whose epiphany releases the women from ridiculous restrictions. Kirsten Dunst has a nice turn as the highly prejudiced supervisor. The conditions they were originally required to work under, and the work they did, make for fine cinematic drama. The NASA bigwigs blithely took credit for everything that went right until a book by Margot Shetterly in 2010 told the story. A highlight of the film is the installation of a gigantic new computer which none of the men can even start up. The women figure it out!

Another recent entry is The Wife (2017) in which The Husband (Jonathan Pryce) receives the Nobel Prize for Literature. Glenn Close is superb in the title role. As the film unwinds it becomes increasingly clear that the wrong spouse got the Nobel. The wife is the actual writer of a slew of outstanding novels, though most people think of her as only the supporter of the genius. 

And guess what? I have not discovered a single film where a woman took credit for the work of a man!

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

                                                       UP WITH WOMEN (2)

Inspired by Hillary Clinton’s near-miss run for president and Kamala Harris’ election to vice-president, I recently wrote an article about films celebrating women. But I ran out of room- hang on- I’ve got more!

In My Brilliant Career (1979) Judy Davis is a headstrong young woman bound to make her way in Australia at the turn of the century. She is also determined to maintain her values of civility and her love of the arts. This is a very tough go in a very rough place, not noted for sophistication or equality for females. 

Michael Caine has seldom been better than as the somewhat shopworn professor in Educating Rita (1983). But Julie Walters, as his working class student trying to move up in the world, steals the movie outright. The film brilliantly shows us her life and why she wants a change. That none of her friends and relatives seem to sympathize or even understand her ambitions only makes her more determined. This is a very good film; a lovely secret no longer kept. 

Another fine film from the same director, Lewis Gilbert,  features the superb Pauline Collins as Shirley Valentine (1989). Shirley is somewhat discontented with her middle class existence and she takes off on a vacation on her own (without husband) and sort of discovers herself. You might remember Miss Collins as the saucy Sarah in the wonderful Masterpiece Theatre series, Upstairs, Downstairs. 

Annette Benning is the other side of wonderful as the title character in Being Julia (2004). She is a middle-aged actress married to producer Jeremy Irons. Both have flings, which doesn’t seem to bother either of them. An ingenue appearing in the same play as Julia does her best to hog the stage. Bad mistake! Find out for yourself the delicious revenge exacted on this whipper-snapper. 

Sally Field is a brand new widow left with a cotton farm and a bevy of variously disabled helpers in Places In The Heart (1984). She must get the cotton crop in to save the farm, and the odds are awfully long. But hey, this is Hollywood! Ms. Field is just wonderful in this part. She won the Oscar and made her famous “You really like me” acceptance speech. Ed Harris, John Malcovich and Danny Glover provide good support. 

And thanks to daughter Nancy, who pointed out one I missed: 9 to 5 (1980) with Dolly Parton, Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin turning the tables on boss-from-hell Dabney Coleman. 

All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. There’s  nothing to keep kids away except that the stories are really for grown-ups. 

                                                        UP WITH WOMEN

Whatever your political persuasion may be, Hillary Clinton’s near miss in a run for the presidency signaled another upsurge in the hopes of women everywhere. And on the heels of that, a woman vice-president!  I humbly offer some personal choices that look kindly on such hopes. 

Waitress (2007) is an absolute joy. Keri Russell is unhappily married to Earl, a dreadful jerk played to the hilt by Jeremy Sisto. She works as a waitress for sour Cal, survives with the help of her waitress pals and the advice of Old Joe, delightfully portrayed by our own Andy Griffith. She bakes heavenly pies and hopes to win a baking contest. A new doctor provides more than medical interest and I’ll not say more. See this!

Whale Rider (2002) garnered an Oscar nomination for Keisha Castle-Hughes as a brave Maori girl who dares to challenge hundreds of years of New Zealand tradition about the roles of the sexes. She wants to be, yearns to be, deserves to be more than just another female fringe character. She is smart, and brave, and an inspiration to us all, whatever our gender. 

A more poisonous tradition is challenged by women in Moolaade (2004). In many African countries, the practice of female genital mutilation is still practiced. In one village, a group of women decide enough is enough and stand up against the terrible custom. It is most interesting that not all the women agree with the rebels. The results are both dreadful and inspiring. 

Hairspray (2007) has lots of cool songs and is a little darker than you might think. Tracy Turnblad (newcomer Nikki Blonsky) doesn’t go along with the existing pattern of race relations in Baltimore and proceeds to make quite a dent in segregation. John Travolta (yes!) is her gravel-voiced Mom, Christopher Walken her clueless Dad, and Michelle Pfeiffer the bigot from Hell. 

The grandmommy of all up-with-women flicks is still Thelma And Louise (1991). Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon turn every road buddy movie convention on its ear and have some fun in the process. I like this film’s tagline: Someone said get a life, so they did. 

Marjane Satrapi is an Iranian girl who just wants to be a real person in the unusual Persepolis (2007). Done in black and white animation, it is a cautionary tale about political changes which aren’t always for the better, and growing up female in a culture that demeans women. This film is very dark, but worth the effort to stick with it. 

All of the films in this column are available on DVD. Only Whale Rider is suitable for children. 

                                      GOOD LITTLE-KNOWN MOVIES

                                                            Part 3

        Here’s another handful of pretty good movies that had their brief moment and then vanished. They are probably strangers to you, but maybe you’ll find one or two to try. 

Let’s begin with a really good, off-beat documentary: 20 Feet From Stardom (2013), which won that year’s Best Documentary Oscar. This one is about singers who do back-up work for big stars. Most of them never quite make the leap to stardom. They are uniformly good singers, much admired in the business, and we get to meet a number of them and listen to some of their music. There’s good stuff about how they get their jobs, and how they perform them.

Though it did get one Oscar nomination (for screenplay), Moonrise Kingdom (2012)  was pretty much under the radar. Twelve-year-olds Sam and Suzy met at summer camp, became pen pals and decided to run away together the next summer. Sam is in a summer camp; Suzy is at home nearby, and they hightail it through the woods to a cove they label Moonrise Kingdom. They’re discovered by the grown-ups, escape again, and both fun and danger ensue. This is a real charmer.

Robert Duvall is the county’s crustiest old hermit and he wants to have a bang-up funeral party BEFORE he dies. Bill Murray is the somewhat sleazy local funeral director, in a slump because people aren’t dying quickly enough. He is all for the big party and so are we in Down Low (2010). Sissy Spacek adds sparkle as Duvall’s old flame.

Goodbye Solo (2009) was shot in Winston-Salem and Hanging Rock State Park. It is the story of the somewhat shaky friendship between a Senegalese immigrant taxi driver and a mysterious passenger. When the passenger engages the driver for a long trip in two weeks, the driver realizes the passenger plans to end his life. His herculean efforts to change his mind will engage you to the very end. Director Rahman Bahrani was born and raised in North Carolina, and Roger Ebert called him the next great American director.  

A foreigner worth a look is South Korea’s Poetry (2011). An elderly woman belatedly enrolls in a poetry class at the local college. Her grandson is involved in a horrible crime with a worse ending, and she must decide what to do. She befriends the mother of the victim, and through her writing and thinking learns to look past the obvious and banal to what is truly beautiful and worthwhile. This film won the screenplay award at Cannes, and it’s easy to see why. 

All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. Mature kids might enjoy the first two. The rest are for grown-ups. 

                                                            GEORGE SEGAL

George Segal was a reliable singles hitter who muscled up in 1966 and hit one out of the park. He played Nick in Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf? And he had plenty of company at the Oscar ceremony that year. Elizabeth Taylor won for Best Actress and Sandy Dennis for Best Supporting Actress. Segal and Richard Burton were nominated but didn’t win. Haskel Wexler won one of his many statues for his cinematography of this black and white classic. 

A young couple are met at a university party and invited to the home of Martha and George (Burton and Taylor) for a drink. The hosts become more and more acrimonious toward each other, to the dismay of the guests. Things spin out of control several times and terrible secrets are revealed. This gritty film takes no prisoners. It is hard to watch and hard not to. 

The year before Virginia Woolf Segal had a nice turn as Corporal King in King Rat. In a German prisoner of war camp during WWII, King is indeed the monarch of all he surveys. He is a cunning, resourceful survivor who manages to keep himself in good health and the guards off his back by his maneuvers. The other prisoners put up with him because they have to though he is not exactly an endearing figure. Segal’s smarmy portrayal is right on. 

In The Owl and the Pussycat (1970) Segal plays dull clerk and aspiring novelist Felix against Barbra Streisand’s actress/prostitute. The film makes good use of the contrast between the two as they somehow navigate various hardships together. This is a comedy that isn’t all that funny, but it grows on you. 

Segal is the title character in Blume In Love (1973). The film begins with Blume alone in Venice, wondering how he managed to lose his true love (Nina, played by Susan Anspach) by his unfaithfulness. Their married lives are revealed in a series of flashbacks, and Blume steps up his efforts to win her back. Blume is right much of a worm but he keeps trying to repair the damage. 

George Segal is Steve and Glenda Jackson is Vickie as an extremely unlikely couple in A Touch Of Class (1973). Their differences make for some very funny scenes and though he was the producer’s third choice for the role ( Cary Grant and Roger Moore turned him down) he does a good job in a fairly difficult part. 

George Segal’s last movie role of note came in 1974 as Bill Denny in California Split . Bill is a sporadic lukewarm gambler who meets and befriends Charlie Waters (Eliot Gould) who gambles for a living. They have various gambling adventures until Bill goes on an incredible hot streak and wins nearly $100,000. The ending is at best equivocal, but Hollywood could not at that time glorify gambling too much.

Though Segal continued to work a lot in TV and movies until his death at the age of 87, there’s not much after this to talk about. 

All of the films in this article are available on DVD. All are for adults.