Still Dirty After All These Years

Dirty Harry

I was a little unsure of what I would think of Dirty Harry upon rewatching it. I mean it has been nearly 40 years since this hit the big screen and society has changed so much since then.

But I have to say in a day and age when police procedurals run on TV ad-nauseum, Inspector 71, Harry Callahan, SF Homicide division, holds up pretty well. The films are not nearly as over-the-top as I remember them, and are in fact quite believable, almost understated compared to today's cop movies.

That's not to say that Dirty Harry isn't also a window onto it's time. This first film has Harry going after 'Scorpio' a serial killer who writer John Milius no doubt based on the Zodiac Killer and the Tower Sniper (two then-recent killers who were in the media).

Overall Dirty Harry is an excellent, fast-moving, action piece with a strong protagonist. One of the best of its kind.

Magnum Force

For my money, Magnum Force is the best Dirty Harry film ever made. While the original Dirty Harry had a very direct plot, Magnum Force has a much more complex plot about a secret hit force within the SF Police Department that Harry has to uncover (while confronting his own views on the appropriate use of force). It's a little reminiscent of David Goodis' novel Night Squad.

Maybe it's the distinct lack of Dirty Harry one liners in this film that has made it the least well known of the series. If so, that's a shame, because it deserves to be remembered whenever cop films are discussed.

Ghosts of Christmas Past

Quick, what movie invented the slasher genre, with all the beats that later became clichés – right down to having the killer strike on a holiday? Halloween, right? Everybody knows that. Well… not quite. While John Carpenter’s film definitely took Psycho to the next level, it was Black Christmas that came first – by about 4 years!



Viewing Black Christmas today, one might be tempted to conclude that it really adds nothing to the genre – until one realizes that it is the genre. Some of the most memorable thing – including the infamous telephone harassment – started here. The sorority house as a setting – that started here too. Some might be tempted to say, wait, ‘didn’t Ted Bundy kill a bunch of girls in a sorority house one winter in real life?’, and the answer is yes, that’s true – but that didn’t happen until 1978 – four years after this film came out.

The cast all does a fine job, especially John Saxon as the sober police lieutenant, and Margot Kidder, though almost old enough to be the mother of some of her co-stars, manages a convincing enough performance as the sorority’s requisite bad girl.

What’s to say about The Exorcist (the version you’ve never seen), except that you have seen it – or at the very least, like Black Christmas, through cultural osmosis you’ve practically seen the whole film end-to-end, even if you’ve never sat down and watched it.



Released the day after Christmas the year before Black Christmas, the evil antagonist of The Exorcist shares a lot in common, vocally anyway, to the villain of that piece, even though here it’s a demon (possibly the Devil himself) and in the former it’s (presumably) and entirely terrestrial villain.

However, unlike Black Christmas whose ending still packs a decent punch, The Exorcist’s ending seems a bit pat nowadays. Still, the version you’ve never seen restores the hitherto missing ‘spider-walk’ scene, and that alone makes it worth checking out (again).

Socioeconomic Culture Clashes

Socioeconomic Culture Clashes: Tattoo, A Love Story and Lollilove



Tattoo, A Love Story is an independent romantic comedy about an upper middle class school teacher who is engaged to a doctor, but develops a crush on the burly tattooed biker that one of her kids brings to Show-and-Tell one day.

While it is technically well crafted, it’s a little to 'precious' for it's own good; not to mention dated, given that just about everyone has a tattoo nowadays.

With a title like that, you'd expect some edginess - especially in an indie film - but everything about this film is as tightly controlled as the type A personality of the lead character - from all-too-perfect lighting to it’s locked down tripod shots. In fact, the only bit that isn't overly prettified is the When Harry Met Sally/Jerry Maguire technique of punctuating the story with first person interviews where people talk about their tattoos.

The end result is something like a sitcom version of good-girl-meets-bad-boy, rather than the real thing, making it feel like the least independent-independent film we’ve seen in awhile.



Lollilove, on the other hand is a bit edgier. You know this from the get-go because it’s a Troma release. But it’s not your typical Troma film – no hacked off limbs, gross-out humor and the like here. Instead we get a mockumentary about an upper middle class couple (not unlike the one in Tattoo, A Love Story in many respects), who decide to form a charity – Lollilove – which seeks to solve the homeless problem one lollipop at a time.

The deadpan black humor of the piece is excellent, and the performances of the leads is outstanding - particularly Jenna Fisher who also directed this film before going on to stardom in another mockumentary - the U.S. version of 'The Office' TV series.

There’s also a lot of great bit players including Lloyd Kauffman (of course), and Judy Greer.

You can see Lollilove for free here: http://www.imdb.com/video/hulu/vi977967385/

Stephen King films you missed...

The Halloween season is upon us once again, and you know what that means – it’s time once again to resume my annual tradition of posting a bunch of bunch of reviews of movies in the spirit of the season.

If we accept that Edgar Allen Poe and H.P. Lovecraft were primarily known for their short stories, then the most successful American horror novelist would have to be Stephen King.

Following the smash success of Brian DePalma’s adaptation of Carrie in 1976, nearly every available King property was being snapped up for the big screen treatment. By the early 80s they were flooding into theaters. 1983 alone saw the release of no less than 3 feature films and a few shorts based on King stories.

While Carrie and The Shining are justifiably considered classics, let’s take a look at a couple of the lesser known & discussed King films from that time.

One problem in discussing ‘horror’ films of this era is that we don’t really think of these things as horror movies anymore. Boris Karloff thought that the name ‘terror film’ was more appropriate for the genre since the goal isn’t always to horrify (today’s ‘horror’ movies heavy reliance on shock value aside) but to terrify. The horror genre changes from decade to decade, and while gore and startling scares may be the norm now, there are other types of horror films…

Take, for example, The Dead Zone.

This is an understated, low budget, haunting film that catches King, director David Cronenberg, and actor Christopher Walken all at the top of their games. Walken plays a teacher who develops precognition. But, far from being a blessing, he finds the power is a curse as his life slowly disintegrates. By today's standards, this low budget film would probably be relegated to Movie of the Week status, but that doesn't diminish its power. Definitely worth checking out if you are interested in something that is more thought provoking than the average horror movie.

At the other end of the spectrum from the thoughtful and introspective The Dead Zone is John Carpenter’s Christine.

This is a deliberate non-thinking movie. But, with a tagline like, ‘Body by Plymouth, soul by Satan!’ you pretty much know what you’re in for. It’s a popcorn film, pure and simple. We’ll have no complaints from the peanut gallery about the hows or whys – look, it’s an evil car that kills people, that’s all you need to know. Expect incredible cheese. Expect that everyone’s attempt to escape the killer car involves running down streets and alleys, never into buildings, through the woods, or even just up a flight of stairs, and you’ll not be disappointed. Toss in a fun, loveable rock and roll soundtrack, and the always-awesome Harry Dean Stanton in a minor role, and you have a movie custom made for six packs and drive-ins.

Before you go see 'Let Me In'...

Let me just say I expect this will be like 'Quarantine' was to '[REC]' - like 'The Ring' was to 'Ringu', what 'The Grudge' was to 'Ju-On', etc. etc.



Which is basically to say that Hollywood doesn't get that what makes these movies great has a lot to do with the [i]culture[/i] they are set in.



Seriously, this remaking of foreign films because Americans are too lazy to read subtitles is even worse than the 'we must make everything 3D' trend.



SO... for those of you EVEN THINKING about seeing 'Let Me In' - you had better have already SEEN 'Let the Right One In', or you're going to be ruining a fantastic experience.



For those who missed it - my review of the original Låt den rätte komma:



A tender little coming of age story about first love ...and the vampire next door!



Since the beginning of film history, every decade has one or two really good vampire films that stand out. But the genre seemed to peak in the 1980s and has been on a steep downward slide ever since. The 90s produced only a few, and just when it looked like we were going to get all the way through the 2000s without any really standout candidates... along comes 'Let the Right One In'...



Oskar is an introverted school kid, bullied by his classmates, and misunderstood by adults. One night he meets Eli, his next door neighbor who is also a bit of a misfit. Slowly they begin to understand each other on a level that no one else ever has. Alternately through scenes both gentle and horrific, the film lets us know that putting trust in just anyone can be fatal, but when trust is earned... when you let the right one in... your life can change forever.



Despite all the media hoopla about last year's blockbuster 'Twilight', the creators of that film could learn a truckload about love, adolescent angst, and vampires from this film. 'Let the Right One In' eschews all the slick polish and prettiness of Hollywood films like 'Twilight' and 'Underworld' in favor of an honest real looking world full of human frailty. In some ways it does for the vampire story what 'Ginger Snaps' did for the werewolf tale.



'Let the Right One In' is a great reminder that it's what's on the inside that counts. Especially if what's inside contains the RDA of hemoglobin!



Highly recommended.

The Trials of Henry Kissinger

The Trials of Henry Kissinger

Henry Kissinger is by far one of the most interesting political figures of the 20th Century. Much like former President Richard Nixon, under whom he served, Kissinger is both a brilliant political strategist, but in addition to that – or perhaps because of it – inhabited throughout his career many morally grey areas.

The Trials of Henry Kissinger is a documentary that examines recent charges that the former Secretary of State engaged in activities that would be considered war crimes under international law.

Eugene Jarecki’s documentary was inspired by, and takes its name from the book ‘The Trial of Henry Kissinger’ by Christopher Hitchins. Not having read that book, I cannot comment on it. I will however say the film itself both includes interviews with Hitchins as well has his detractors, so bias is no greater than any other documentary. The film lets the viewer make up their own mind about the situation, including interviews with those who support Kissinger’s policies. It’s pretty clear that while the majority of the film speaks toward the premise of Kissinger as war criminal, that is mostly because Kissinger himself has had the minutes of the majority of his meetings concerning the primary incidents either destroyed or sealed until 5 years after his death.

Regardless of the outcome of his policies (and totally leaving aside for a moment their legality), one can see that they were clearly shaped by a profoundly logical mind; and herein lies the challenge in analyzing and passing judgment on him. There is no question that Henry Kissinger was Machiavellian in his approach to international relations, but isn’t that what’s called for in a National Security Advisor? Is it also what’s called for in a Secretary of State? Is it even extricable from politics itself?

see the trailer

The problem with Machiavellian types is that they tend to apply the same techniques toward consolidating their own power for themselves as they do in their work as Civil Servants for the people. An idea which at it’s very core is un-American, and which for one such as Nixon proved more disastrous as his own personal paranoia grew. But for Kissinger, who managed to keep his wits about him through his work for multiple administrations (and perhaps in his post political lobbying career) it has allowed him to keep doing the work – some would say damage – he has been doing for most of his life. Or maybe he was just better at not getting caught. There is no question that Kissinger was a corrupting influence within the Nixon Administration, but as with all presidents, we expect them to weigh the advice of their advisors and act responsibly regardless of the advice of their advisors.

To this day there has never been a successful prosecution of a head of state anywhere in the world for war crimes. Nuremburg succeeded merely in providing relatively minor sentences to minor players in the Holocaust, but none of the major architects of the genocide ever saw their day in court. Likewise, from Pol Pot to Idi Amin, from Bosnia to Rwanda – the leaders of these massacres have never been brought to justice, despite the best attempts of the International community. It has been 65 years since the end of WWII and not a single head of state has ever been executed for war crimes by an international court (why do you think Saddam Hussein was tried in Iraq and not the Haig?).

Why is that? The Trials of Henry Kissinger may provide some answers.

Echoing Nixon himself, who said in the famous Frost interview regarding the Huston Plan, ‘but when the President does it, it is not illegal’, Kissinger has come out against the very idea of war crimes trials saying that ‘heads of state often have to choose between two evils’.

The Trials of Henry Kissinger is a thought-provoking documentary, which while focused on the career of one individual raises questions about power and responsibility in general. A must see for anyone interested in global politics.

Keep posting?

I was out of the country for awhile, but I'm back now and wondering if I should pick up where I left off.

Movie reviews in a blog was a bit of an experiment.
I got lots of readers in various other places - Amazon, imdb, Netflix, Facebook, etc.

This seems to get the least traffic, but I like that it's just devoted to the reviews.

But do you guys care?
Are you still interested?

I have many more obscure and mainstream titles that I've reviewed, I'd be happy to post them, if there's anyone out there who actually cares.

So let me know - if even 1 person is still reading

Alice in Wonderland - the Versions You've Never Seen

Alice



Czech animator Jan Svankmajer’s trippy Alice, may only claim to be “inspired” by Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, but it’s actually closer to the text than you might think if all you’ve ever seen are stills photos of this obscure gem. While this stuff is nightmare fuel to be sure, when you get down to the brass tacks and marmalade, it’s actually more faithful to the absurdity and dark wit of the original than the sugary-sweet Disney version and it’s imitators.
Highly recommended.

Phoebe in Wonderland




Here’s a great Alice in Wonderland inspired tale that was nominated for a few minor festival awards, but never won any. Which is a shame, because Elle Fanning gives an Oscar-worthy performance as the title character a little girl who has difficulty following the rules - but why? That’s the mystery at the heart of the story. But it’s not just Phoebe’s story, it’s also the story of her parents (Felicity Huffman and Bill Pullman), who are embattled by Phoebe’s problems, and the baffled school administrators and counselors who try to deal with this problem child. But one misfit drama teacher (Patricia Clarkson) may hold the key, in the form of a school play – Alice in Wonderland.

Probing the line between creativity and mental illness, with seamless blurring of fantasy and reality ala The Fisher King, this movie is a masterpiece. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

Religion on Film

Religion on Film

Someone once said, atheists make the best religious films, and there may be some truth to that. The problem with most religious films made by the faithful is that they are either church-lady style “fast track” to heaven films where the filmmaker lionizes some religious figure, totally whitewashing any possible misdeeds and creates a boring, one dimensional, 3 hour sermon on celluloid. Or, they create a film made to appeal to a religious market with all the edicts of that market – anything controversial avoided (safe for the kiddies) – and/or based on religious tenets that make no sense to outsiders.

Here are a couple religious films that I think do a good job.




The Jesus of Montreal

A group of actors put on a Passion Play in Montreal. But not being religious himself, the director relies on historical sources and archaeological data for his script. The play grows enormously in popularity, but also angers church and city officials. Ultimately, through his play and through his life, he does a better job of representing Christ’s teachings that the hypocritical powers-that-be.





The Message

This film about the birth of Islam is a grand epic in the vein of The Ten Commandments. It was made in accordance with Islamic law, so Mohammad is never shown – but the filmmakers do a very good job of telling the story without showing the prophet.

Anthony Quinn does a great job as Hamza, one of the leaders of the new sect. It also features some of the best large-scale desert battle scenes since Lawrence of Arabia.

Old Fashioned Serial Killer Films

We tend to think of serial killers as a fairly modern thing. I tend to think of the 1970s, the time when Robert Ressler coined the term “serial killer”, and the period during which many of the most famous (Bundy, Gacy, Son of Sam, Zodiac, etc.) were most active.

But of course serial killers probably predate civilization itself. Someone asked me to recommend some classic films (movies from the pre color era) that involved serial killers.

So, here are a few choices:

Sweeney Todd




No, I’m not talking about the recent film with Johnny Depp, nor am I referring to the Stephen Sondheim musical. This is the original 1936 version of the film made in the UK; it has an authentic cockney flavour to it – and best of all, no cheesy songs.

Bluebeard




This atmospheric thriller from 1944 features the talents of the great John Carradine as an artist who kills his subjects.

The Lodger



Also made in 1944, this film is about a Lodger (of course) who may just be Jack the Ripper; very moody and atmospheric. There was also a very good silent version of this made in 1927 that is also free to watch online: http://www.archive.org/details/AHtheLodger

Bloodlust!



This is a “B” movie from 1961. Essentially a version of The Most Dangerous Game, despite it’s limited budget it’s actually pretty good. Best of all, you can watch this one for free online too: http://www.archive.org/details/Bloodlust.mpeg

Claymation!

Wallace & Gromit



Some of the best claymation ever put to film was coming out of Nick Park’s studio in the 1990s. For those who missed them, they can be found in a collection called Wallace and Gromit in 3 Amazing Adventures.

‘A Grand Day Out with Wallace and Gromit’, released in 1989, is probably the weakest of the three – and that’s only a relative term, since it pretty much blew away 90% of all animated shorts that year out of the water. In this adventure, W&G go to the moon in search of cheese. Good, but gets caught up in slapstick at the expense of storytelling. But, like I said before, that’s only relative to other W&G films, when compared to the competition, it is light years ahead.

The series really hits it’s stride in 1993 with ‘Wallace & Gromit in The Wrong Trousers’, a story in which an evil penguin uses Wallace as a pawn in a heist. This should make the list of best animated shorts of the 1990s.

And then, just when you thought it couldn’t get any better, in 1995, Park released ‘Wallace and Gromit in A Close Shave’. Gromit is framed for sheep rustling, by the best villain since the evil penguin. Nominated for an Academy Award, and justifiably so. Should make the list of best animated shorts of all time!

Success, and a partnership with Dreamworks brought digital animated techniques into the world of Wallace and Gromit for their feature film debut, Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were Rabbit. The film is excellent, and very entertaining – and the use of newly found digital tools does not take away from the charm of the series. However, this feature length film, at times feels more like ‘A Grand Day Out’ than the latter two shorts, particularly at the climax where the slapstick gags come rapidfire for a bit too long. Still, it’s great fun, worth checking out!

Japan's Edo Period - on film!

Kwaidan



Kwaidan (sometimes Kaidan) literally means “ghost story”. Given the generic term, there have been several movies that have had this title, but the one we are referring to is Masaki Kobayashi's Kaidan from 1964.

Basically this film is something like a Japanese Tales From the Crypt, containing four horror stories in vibrant color Tohoscope, all set in Japan’s Edo Period.

The first story, ‘The Black Hair’, is reminiscent of Ugetsu, wherein a man leaves his wife to attain social status, only to encounter supernatural ruin. The second story, ‘The Woman in the Snow’ is a haunting ghost story of the kind that is universally familiar. The third story, ‘Hoichi the Earless’, is the longest, but perhaps the best, including a historical recreation of a Japanese naval battle. The final story, ‘In a Bowl of Tea’, is probably the weakest, but it does have some of the best martial arts.

Overall, Kwaidan is full of beautiful set pieces and costumes. The sparse, haunting Japanese music is a stark contrast to American film scores, and really works to give these stories an eerie feel. Winner of a Special Jury prize at Cannes, it’s a cultural experience recommended to everyone, but particularly to American audiences who’ve been turned on to Japanese horror in the last decade thanks to imports like The Ring and The Grudge.




Kagemusha

When talking about Japanese cinema, one sooner or later, inevitably runs into Akira Kurosawa. While Kurosawa needs no introduction, I am constantly astounded at how many people never went to see Ran in its initial release. To read the reviews on the web, it seems like the majority of Americans never saw this film until the re-release in the 2000s! What did they think the rest of us had been gushing over for the past 25 years?

Well, if there are any new converts to that epic Kurosawa masterpiece, I encourage them to seek out Kagemusha (literally ‘Shadow Warrior’), the film Kurosawa made just prior to Ran.

The story concerns petty thief who is hired to masquerade as a deceased Clan Lord, and who turns out to be more true to the spirit of the Clan's Lord than the actual generals who are his handlers.

There is no doubt that this is a flawed gem. The subtitles are verbose, and having to read them takes away from appreciating the cinematography – which is gorgeous. There is also an overabundance of long takes that contributes to the film’s extensive 2 hour and 40 minute run time. But by far the biggest flaw is the music score, which is annoying and repetitious, with a reliance on brass instrumentation, giving it a distinctly un-Japanese (or at least un-Edo Period) flavor.

Still, with all it’s flaws, it’s still excellent, and comes across like a rough draft for Ran.

Miracle Plant or Devil's Weed?

The Union: The Business Behind Getting High



The Union is a documentary about perhaps the most maligned plant in history, hemp, and specifically about the illegal marijuana trade in Canada. "The Union" of the title is the nickname for an entire economy (including many legitimate businesses) that is directly or indirectly related to the illegal marijuana trade.
British Columbian filmmaker Brett Harvey was inspired to make the film after witnessing first hand the boom in marijuana business in his home province.

The film delivers a lot of the back-story on cannabis in North America, but its done in a very accessible way, and never feels like a dry history lesson. The film’s primary focus though is on the current state of marijuana as an illegal cash crop. This is not an unbiased film – it’s pretty clear the filmmaker opinions are – but it is well sourced and logical in its arguments, and would likely be fascinating viewing regardless of what your opinions are on marijuana – even those who have no opinion one way or another are likely to get sucked in.

Assassin of Youth



Unless you’ve been living under a rock your whole life, you’re doubtless familiar with the infamous anti-marijuana propaganda film Reefer Madness, a film many find endlessly entertaining for it’s bad acting and heavy-handed moralizing. But Reefer Madness is hardly the only drug education film ever made, and for the camp connoisseur, Assassin of Youth (also known as The Marijuana Menace), is perhaps even better.

Like Reefer Madness, Assassin of Youth is a cautionary tale. Small town girl Joan is set to inherit her grandmother’s fortune, provided she can live up to the will’s morals clause. Linda, Joan’s cousin is next in line to inherit the dough, so she and her husband conspire to besmirch Joan’s character. Meanwhile, undercover reporter Art Brighton has come to town to expose Linda as a dope pusher. What follows is all the standard bad acting and kids-getting-high-and-doing-the-jitterbug scenes you've come to expect from a quality anti-drug film.

Adding to the hilarity is the fact that the surviving print of this film is full of breaks and splices which both helps pick up the pace, and lends some absurdity to the viewing experience, as scenes occasionally begin or end in the middle.

It almost seems like they were trying to make a pro-drug film. The only likeable characters other than the reporter and Joan are the dope smokers. While they are of course drug-addled buffoons, the adults are so self righteous that at times they give Dana Carvey’s infamous ‘Church Lady’ character a run for her money. The town gossip, for example, actually looks and sounds like the Wicked Witch of the West from the Wizard of Oz, and is shown cackling and flying by on her scooter so exactly like Hamilton in Oz, that it can't be a coincidence.

Why I'm Not Watching the Olympics

Bigger Stronger Faster



I used to love the Olympics, the Olympic ideal of the best of every nation on earth coming to one place and competing. The Olympics back in the 1980s were really something to see – new records were being broken all the time.

But first the rumors started, then everything came out in the open. Performance enhancing drugs – the East Germans were using them. Then it got so bad that we had to test everyone and some people got in and some people got rejected. And some of the ones that were rejected admitted to using drugs, and some denied it. Moreover, some of the ones that got in, and even won, later admitted to ‘doping’.

So whenever I’m asked about whether or not I’m going to watch the Olympics, or just about any other major sporting event, I’m reminded of the Saturday Night Live sketch about the 'All Drug Olympics’. I still remember the laundry list of drugs one athlete was said to have taken followed by the line, “This is not only not against the rules, it's actually encouraged in the all drug Olympics.” While it was made as a satire, this idea bears serious merit- there's always going to be new drugs, new ways of hiding them, people who play by the rules, people who bend the rules, people who cheat, etc. The only way to make it fair is make it ALL legal. Anyone can take anything, voila, once again it's a level playing field. No one can claim they were cheated because they too had the option of taking or not taking performance enhancing drugs. No one can have their record stricken from the record books or whatnot.

Bigger Stronger Faster actually includes a clip from that Saturday Night Live sketch. This film gives the straight dope on dope. Written and directed by a former anabolic steroid user who no longer uses steroids on “moral grounds”, this documentary covers the issue from all sides. Mark Bell (who can't compete with his own brothers without steroids) has made a thoroughly entertaining, and comprehensive examination of the issue. From interviewing Stan Lee of Marvel comics who created Captain America (for those not in the know, Cap basically took drugs to achieve physical perfection) to opening his own legal supplement business in the living room; from talking to a man whose child died from alleged steroid use to talking to his Congressman, to fighter pilots who still use performance enhancers, and with his own family at the center of the whole steroid controversy, there is no better insider to tell this story.

And it is a story we like to sweep under the rug. Even the title of this movie has been expunged, the full title is Bigger Stronger Faster* The Side Effects of Being American. But on the DVD it has the more palatable, Bigger Stronger Faster* Is It Still Cheating If Everyone’s Doing It?

Werewolves

Werewolf of London



Released in 1935, Werewolf of London was the first werewolf “talkie” werewolf film ever made. It was one of the first films in the Universal monster series, and while not as good as The Wolf Man, it still holds up pretty well today.

Like a lot of the thrillers of the day, it relies heavily on dialogue and mood. And it has some great dialogue, such as, “You are foolish, but without fools there would be no wisdom". But it’s technical aspects were very good for it’s time too. Particularly the way the transformation sequences were handled, and a very clever telephone montage.

Ginger Snaps and Ginger Snaps: Unleashed




Ginger Snaps: Unleashed another werewolf movie, is the sequel to Ginger Snaps, part of the recent trend of what I call "alternative horror", horror flicks featuring the alternative aesthetic, made outside the Hollywood system and often involving twisted takes on traditional horror material; a subgenre that was kicked off by the success of The Blair Witch Project. These films, part Hammer Horror, part Heathers play equally well in the arthouse and the drive-in.

Without spoiling too much, the original, Ginger Snaps, was kind of like a modern take on the camp classic I Was A Teenage Werewolf, but instead of serving up a cheesy Teen Wolf comedy romp, Ginger Snaps went straight for the jugular (pardon the pun), dealing head on with the concept of lycanthropy as a metaphor for the changes of puberty. But, here the Michael Landon role is a teenaged girl named Ginger, which reinforces the metaphor as she and her younger sister struggle to deal with the changes wrought on their relationship by the onset of Ginger's "curse". And the thrills just pile up as teen angst gives way to adult horror.

Ginger Snaps: Unleashed picks up where the first movie left off. Ginger's sister Brigitte, now infected, struggles daily to keep from being overwhelmed by the curse. Eventually her strange peccadilloes land her in a rehab clinic where she is forced to deal with a host of unseemly characters, including Tyler, a perverted intern and a hostile ward of the hospital called Ghost. To make matters worse, Brigitte is being pursued by another werewolf, which makes her and everyone in the hospital a sitting duck. With the help of Ghost, Brigitte plans to escape to the wilderness, and an inevitable showdown with the beast out there, as well as the beast inside herself.

Sequels, almost by definition, can't be as groundbreaking as their predecessors, but Ginger Snaps: Unleashed covers enough new territory to make it a worthy successor, and a solid standalone feature. The increased production values may in fact put it in the rare category of sequels that outdo their originals. Despite Hollywood's slick silver bullets like Underworld, Canada's Ginger Snaps series alongside the recent UK film Dog Soldiers proves that the werewolf mythos are alive and well in the 21st Century.

The Man Behind the Camera

The Last Horror Movie



In past reviews I’ve mentioned the attempt to bring Cinema Verité style camera work to dramatic features. This technique seems particularly well suited for the horror genre, as mentioned in the review for [REC] (q.v.)

If you were raised on very steady, tripod shot films, you may be in the group that finds extensive handheld camerawork, tedious and nausea inducing; if on the other hand you like the style for the sense of immediacy it brings, The Last Horror Movie may be worth searching out.

Its several years old, so it deserves scads of credit for prefiguring the recent trend of documentary style horror films, but the last seven years have brought many changes, so it’s a tad dated already – videotape still predominates, and the local video stores were still a dominant force.

As you can probably guess from the title, The Last Horror Movie like 8mm, is metafiction. But it’s no slick lifeless 35mm Hollywood thriller about 8mm snuff films. This UK shot-on-video piece puts you in the action as you accompany a serial killer making the rounds. The killer is a wedding videographer who, with his assistant, travels around killing people and videotaping it.

Comparisons to Man Bites Dog are inevitable, but this film forgoes the black humor in favor of a more “real” and menacing feel. The killer, probably not accidentally, bears more than a passing resemblance to Ted Bundy. Good looking, charming, and able to go from zero to psychopath almost instantly. In that respect, it reminded me a little of American Psycho, but again, less slick.

Certainly not everyone’s cup of tea, but then no movie featuring a serial killer is.

Peeping Tom




If you like The Last Horror Movie, you might want to go back even further to seek out another rare treasure. Peeping Tom might actually have been the inspiration for The Last Horror Movie. This movie deals with a disturbed young photographer/filmmaker who kills models and actresses in London and captures it on film in a sort of 1960s update of Jack the Ripper.

This film was clearly ahead of it’s time. Made in the late 1950s and released in 1960, it resembles the 70s films of a decade and a half later more than anything else from the time. In fact at the time, its dispassionate, unflinching look at the psyche of a serial killer was so scandalous that it nearly ended director Michael Powell’s career. Powell was relegated to working on TV jobs and foreign films until cinema caught up with him 15 years later, when he was venerated and vindicated by the likes of Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola.

Two Deaths in November

Two Deaths in November

Image of an Assassination



What is the most watched film in history? That distinction probably goes to 22 seconds of 8mm footage shot by a Dallas dress maker named Abraham Zapruder.

On the morning of November 22, 1963, Abraham Zapruder almost forgot his 8mm home movie camera, but returned home to retrieve it when reminded by one of his employees. Less than a block from his office, at Dealey Plaza, he shot a clear film of the assassination of the leader of the First World. Perhaps the only assassination ever to be caught on film to that time.

Image of an Assassination: A New Look at the Zapruder Film

The DVD release of this film includes special features includes various versions of the film in various states of restoration and at various speeds, pages of events chronology from 1963 to 1998, other important news film and video clips from the time, and biographical and contact information of the film’s custodians making it an essential document for historians of the period.

Dear Zachary

Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father is a poignant film about the life and death of a small town doctor made by his childhood friend.




Kurt Kuenne always wanted to be a filmmaker and cast his childhood friend Andrew Bagby in all his movies. When Bagby was murdered shortly after graduating from medical school, Kuenne decided to make one last film with him, gathered from all the footage of Bagby he had, and interviews with family and friends, as a gift to Bagby’s infant son.

Right from the start, the film lands like the blow of a sledgehammer, as it swings back and forth between the wonder that was Andrew – a guy you really want to meet – and rapid fire cuts about the horrifying details of his death on November 7, 2001.

Bagby was so beloved by so many people that there were memorial services for him in at least 5 different cities in 3 different countries. Although the film is a tearjerker at times, it’s the kind of film that makes you want to live your own life to the fullest. But that’s not all - every time you think the story is over, a new twist comes to light, making it an engaging mystery, a poignant tribute, and a scathing indictment all in one.

Kids Picks

I often get recommendations for good kids movies. For very young children, you’re on your own, but for kids above about age 6 these should do fine…

Holes



The problem with most kids movies is they feel they have to talk down to kids. Everyone thinks their child is smart and exceptional. But everyone tolerates kids movies that insult the intelligence of even preschoolers.

This is not the case with Holes. Holes is an intelligent, complex story for kids that has a nice easy flow. Yes, the characters are slight caricatures, but they are believable ones. Yes, like so many kids films, there is a “message” here, but it doesn’t beat you over the head with it, it’s deftly interwoven into the story.

Based on an award winning children’s book, the story deals with Stanley, a city boy who is wrongly convicted of a crime and sent to a juvenile labor camp where he and the other boys are forced to dig holes in the desert “to build character”. But is there really another reason behind this seemingly mindless exercise?

Highly recommended for kids and adults alike.

Bernard and the Genie



Bernard and the Genie isn’t really the most original film ever made. Average guy, Bernard, has the worst day of his life – loses his job, loses his girlfriend, etc. – but happens to rub a magic lamp producing a genie who grants him anything he wishes for. What follows is the standard wishes for money, revenge against the ex-boss, etc. We’ve seen this storyline a million times before – mostly on sitcoms. Still, the film is handled well; its a lightweight romp with an unpretentious charm.

Lenny Henry steals the show in his over-the-top performance as the genie (possibly the inspiration for Robin Williams’ genie in Aladin). Also watch for cameos by Bob Geldof and one of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

2000s in review: superheroes

Continuing our look back at the first decade of the 2000s on screen, probably the biggest development for action movies was superheroes. After decades of trying to get their superheroes to the big screen the comic book giants Marvel Comics and D.C. Comics finally succeeded in sustainable box office franchises.

In 2006, director Bryan Singer left the X-Men franchise to do a big budget Superman reboot, while Brett Ratner, the director who had been tapped for Superman took his place and for X-Men 3. How did they fare?

X-Men: The Last Stand



I must admit I approached this one with some trepidation. After all, I think a lot of what makes a good film is a good director, and Bryan Singer has proven himself time and again, a great helmsman, while Singer's replacement this time out, Brett Ratner, has proven himself time and time again as... well, an adequate one.

I won't bother summarizing the plot, as you can find enough about that in the trailers and other published material inundating the web.

Though there are more characters than ever, there is less characterization this time out - which is not necessarily a bad thing - we already know about Rogue's angst over not being able to touch anyone, and Magneto's belief that humanity can never be trusted. We need little more than gentle reminders. While this leads to occasional ambiguities in the characters' behaviors, this is after all a climax for the series, so it's time for action. And action plays to Ratner's strengths.

While it is disappointing that some things had to fall by the wayside (Wolverine's search for his past for one) and other things are a little glossed over (I've always thought Storm should easily be able to go toe-to-toe with any of the mutants in the Marvel Universe - at least on Earth) for the most part what we have is a worthy sequel.

I do think that it is disappointing that in the interest of trying to keep the number of characters down to a few score, they plain omitted some (Nightcrawler is nowhere to be seen) and merged others; Callisto of the Morlocks becomes a combined version of Callisto, Quicksilver & Caliban(?!?) which allows the movie to bring her rivalry with Storm to the screen without having to engineer a way for them to fight sans powers, but also makes Callisto a far cry from her comic roots - especially since she is portrayed by bombshell Dania Ramirez instead of a wiry one-eyed street fighter (think Chrissie Hynde with an eye patch) like she should have been. I mean, come on, don't you think at least one adult female mutant would fail to be blessed with superpowers *and* supermodel looks?

But aside from that casting disappointment, overall the movie is well cast. Particularly Kelsey Grammer as new-old-X-Man "Beast".

So, with great writing, a good cast, and an adequate director, we have a pretty good movie. Maybe not one that soars to the heights of the first two, but certainly worth seeing, and indeed a satisfying final chapter.

I'm glad the X series is being put aside for awhile instead of being flogged to death as was done in the comics, but there is talk of spin-offs, so who knows we might still get the silver screen versions of a million other "X" books.

Superman Returns (spoilers)



I had high hopes for this one. The director, Bryan Singer has had a great track record up till now making great films full of excitement and depth. Since the Batman franchise, began with two good movies, was followed by two terrible ones, and was ultimately redeemed in the new millennium by a visionary young director, I hoped the same would be true of the Superman franchise.

Unfortunately this was not the case.

The movie was a mixed bag, and there's no way I can explain myself without going into the details - so spoiler alert - I am breaking my tradition of spoiler free reviews in order to make a post for those who have already seen the film.

As I mentioned, Bryan Singer has shown himself to be a great director, and my opinion of him has remained unchanged especially given that he stepped into a project which had a revolving door of directors attached to it, and was definitely suffering from "too many cooks" syndrome.

(Brainiac was going to be the villain who went to the Fortress of Solitude and learned Superman's secrets. If you haven't heard that story, rent An Evening With Kevin Smith, Smith was an early writer on the project - it is a hilarious look at how Hollywood still doesn't get the comics.)

No, it is not the direction that I found faulty here - it is the writing (which has also suffered at the hands of at least a half dozen writers). To begin with, there are several instances where the behavior of the principals is out of character. Lex Luthor, the evil super-genius attains his vast wealth by bilking a little old lady. Luthor is many things, evil certainly and cunning too, but one thing he has never been is a common con artist. Lex Luthor would find a grand scheme to make money, not some simple grift. Soon thereafter, we have Superman, the most moral and upright of all superheroes, spying on ex beau Lois Lane. With super hearing, it is inevitable that the big guy is going to accidentally catch a snippet of conversation here or there - and that I wouldn't mind - but here, in a creepy-voyeur stalker type scene, he plain listens in (and watches with X-Ray vision) for several minutes!

Then there’s the annoying characters: Luthor's girlfriend, Kitty though not as annoying as her predecessor, Ms. Teschmacher, is still sufficiently bimboish, and worse, Lois Lane's kid, who thankfully doesn't say much, but still takes the movie into more of an Annakin Skywalker direction than I'm comfortable with.

But my biggest problem with the movie is the plot itself. Once upon a time, Superman built the fortress of solitude, with the help of Supergirl. He built a giant door with an immense key that you had to be, well, Superman to lift and use. Then came 1978's Superman: The Movie - a pretty good film, all things considered, except one thing - the introduction of the Kryptonian crystal of Jor-El, which Superman takes to the NORTH pole, and throws, whereupon it grows a large doorless crystal cavern, complete with a super crystal TV set which allowed Superman to talk to his dead father. This opened the door (pun intended) for Lex Luthor to walk in, and learn how the Kryptonian technology works (more than the audience is told - we just have to be satisfied with an old Arthur C. Clark quote) and use it to create a vast new crystal continent where the Atlantic ocean and most of North America is. In the past, I was able to overlook the Kryptonian crystals/Fortress of Solitude stuff, as it played a relatively minor role in the films (except in II where it stripped him of his powers, a fairly major plot device, also annoying, but nevertheless, able to be mostly overlooked), however, here this pseudoscience is so integral to the storyline, that it just cannot be ignored.

This is not to say the movie is all bad. Far from it. The casting is mostly pretty good. Brandon Routh does an excellent job filling the enormous red boots of both Superman and Christoper Reeve. Kevin Spacey is also an excellent successor to Gene Hackman as Luthor. And, Frank Langella and Sam Huntington are great as Perry White and Jimmy Olsen, respectively. Luthor's thugs are all pretty forgettable, but that's O.K. they are in the comics too. Perhaps the only disappointment is Kate Bosworth who is too passive as Lois Lane - even the Lois Lane of the Max Fleischer cartoons in the 1940's was more proactive!

All in all, the movie is essentially a remake of Superman: The Movie with Luthor's plan to destroy even more of the U.S. to create his utopia. And as a remake, it ended up being O.K., even stunning at times, but ultimately, "nothing new here", much like Peter Jackson's King Kong. A fresh story would have gone a long way. If there is a bright side to all this, its that they now have the celluloid broth of all those cooks out of the kitchen, and the counter can be cleaned for a true reboot ala Batman Begins in the sequel to this. I'll be watching the skies, I'm looking forward to it.

Science Fiction Double Feature

Avatar (Real D 3-D)



The plot is ridiculously simple, almost to the point of campiness. There are some wonderful aliens that live in peace and harmony with nature on their home world. We want their natural resources. We send in crippled ex-soldier undercover in one of their alien bodies to try to convince them to leave peacefully or we will destroy them. Crippled ex-soldier likes new body, new alien girlfriend and goes over to the other side. There is a big Ewok style battle of primitives vs. army. The End.

Let’s face it, this whole thing is just a big special effects showcase. But, that said, wow are the special effects good. The alien forest looks kind of like it was ripped off of the night elves forest from World of Warcraft, complete with giant trees and bioluminescent flora.

But the real kick here is the 3-D technology. With the ‘Real D’ process, they’ve finally gotten this technology working really good. Because it (for the moment) can’t be replicated in the home (unless you’re Bill Gates), this could be the Great White Hope the ailing movie industry has been looking for. Only time will tell.

So, if you want mindless science fiction, check out Avatar. If you are willing to live with less revolutionary special effects, but want a better science fiction film, let’s turn the clock back a few years…

Serenity




One of the biggest coups Joss Whedon has ever pulled off, was getting FOX to put up the money for him to make a big budget film of his aborted TV series Firefly before the sets were scrapped and the cast scattered to the winds.

The film was mostly made as a sort of series finale, but it was written in such a way that it could stand alone, even for those who had never seen the TV show. The story concerns a telepath named River who was a secret government weapon who, along with her surgeon brother, is hiding out with a bunch of outlaws aboard a spaceship. River knows many things the government wants to keep quiet, so they send their most ruthless killer to eliminate River and anyone who stands in his way.

Unlike Avatar (which has grossed more money than we can keep track of), Serenity didn't even make its money back. I guess that’s the price of making a movie that appeals to the brain more than the senses. Multi-award winning science fiction writer Orson Scott Card called it “the best science fiction movie ever made”. While that may be a bit of a stretch, it’s certainly a very good one, and very worth your time.

Military Science Fiction

Terminator: Salvation



The Terminator movies follow a basic formula – robot from the future is sent back to the past (our present) to murder a human to ensure robots will be victorious in the coming robot vs. human war.

This premise was fresh and exciting with the original film, The Terminator. It was as good or even better when it was done with a twist as the big budget sequel, Terminator 2: Judgement Day. But it became completely a retread by the third film, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines.

Fortunately Terminator: Salvation does away with the formula. No longer are we in the present, being visited by robots from the future, but we are actually transported to the future, where the war has already begun.

The story concerns Marcus, a man on death row who agrees to donate his body to Skynet’s medical research as a final act of contrition for his crimes. He wakes up years later, after the war with the machines has started, as the sole survivor of a human attack on the Skynet facility where he has been stored.

Marcus eventually meets up with John Connor and the resistance movement, but who is Marcus really working for, does he even know himself?

The film has a great cast, including Christian Bale as the adult John Connor, and Sam Worthington as Marcus, but it also some good supporting cast members like Helena Bonham Carter and Michael Ironside who thrives in these kinds of roles.

Terminator: Salvation is not a thriller like the first Terminator, not an action film like the second two; it’s a war film, plain and simple. A science fiction war film to be precise, but a war film nonetheless, and whether or not you like that genre, will probably determine whether or not you like this film.

But, it’s also more than that. The ‘Salvation’ in the title not only refers to Marcus’ efforts to save humanity, but also his own redemption. The heart (literally and figuratively) at the center of this story is what makes it a cut above the forgettable Terminator 3, and may just be the Salvation of this series.

Soldier




Military SF isn’t done very often. In fact it’s hard to think of many films that have made it to the big screen that can truly be said to fit in this subgenre – Aliens, and the much maligned Starship Troopers are the first (and perhaps only) examples that readily spring to mind. There are probably just as many reasons a serious film fan might want to avoid this genre as there are reasons to seek it out. But, if military SF is your bag, I’d like to draw your attention to a film you might have missed (or like me, deliberately avoided) in the past.

Soldier got very mixed reviews in its initial release, but like so many other Kurt Russell sci-fi films (Escape From New York, The Thing, Stargate, etc.) it slowly grew in popularity on DVD as word of mouth spread that it was a vastly underrated film.

The story concerns Todd 3465, a man trained since birth to be the ultimate soldier, who is eventually discarded when Caine 607 and a new crop of genetically engineered super soldiers are deployed.

Roaming the junkyard planet Arcadia, he befriends some lost colonists, and is thrust into the role as their protector when Arcadia becomes the testing ground of Caine 607’s unit. It’s admittedly a simple, campy plot, but it’s significantly more complex than say, James Cameron’s Avatar.

One of the big complaints critics had with this film was the lack of dialog, especially on the part of the hero (Russell speaks less than 80 lines in the whole film). But, this is actually one of the movie’s strengths. Todd 3465 was supposed to be a tool, not a man, and was raised apart from normal human interaction – the awkward lack of dialog actually reflects this well. Furthermore, laconic dialog is often an advantage with action stars who are rarely known for their acting (e.g. Mad Max, The Terminator, etc.)

Most people may find it typical, or mindless, but genre hounds who actually seek it out will be rewarded with the sci-fi equivalent of Shane.

Two Great Animated Films from Japan

We’ve talked about Hayao Miyazaki, and Studio Ghibli a few times. It’s no secret that I think Spirited Away is one of the greatest fantasy films of all time. But that was released in 2001 – just what have Miyazaki and the Ghibli crew been up to in the past decade?

Today we’ll look at the first two films they released following Spirited Away.

Cat Returns
(Neko no Ogaeshi)



Miyazaki came up with the concept (allegedly on request from a theme park) and produced this Studio Ghibli production, but turned the directing reigns over to Hiroyuki Morita. The Cat Returns is definitely skewed toward a younger audience than Spirited Away, more like the films Studio Ghibli produced in the pre- Princess Mononoke days, which is not surprising since it’s essentially a sequel of sorts to Miyazaki’s earlier film Whisper of the Heart.

The story involves a young girl who rescues a cat from being run over in traffic. It turns out that he is the Prince of Cats, and she soon finds herself the object of all sorts of unwanted attention from felines, including becoming engaged to be married to a cat.

While it’s far from the best Studio Ghibli has done so far, the story is fun and charming in a Wizard of Oz kind of way, and this is one anime that was so carefully handled in the English dubbing that I can definitely recommend the English language version.


Howl's Moving Castle




Miyazaki’s feature length directorial follow up to Spirited Away, is Howl’s Moving Castle, based on the book of the same name. This is another fantasy film with complex plots along the lines of Princess Mononoke, and Spirited Away, and while not as good as Spirited Away, it’s still among Miyazaki’s best.

The story concerns a young girl afflicted by a curse, whose sole salvation lies in the hands of a self-absorbed wizard named Howl, but just finding howl is a challenge as his castle doesn’t stay in one place for long.

In addition to a pretty strong storyline, Howl’s Moving Castle features some of the best cell animation ever filmed – the artwork and landscapes are breathtaking. With this one I recommend the subtitled version (although you will miss out on Billy Crystal as the fire elemental ‘Calcifer’ – one of the few really good comic relief characters in English dubbed anime) which is a much better translation.

Two Classic Musicals

The Sound of Music



Recently I went back and re-watched this Rodgers and Hammerstein musical. It’s been a perennial classic, and it seems likely to stay that way. Everything about it was calculated to appeal to the widest audience possible. While I can’t say I’ll ever be a fan, it does have it’s own corny charm, and yes, it’s still corny after all these years.

China Town



Another classic musical made just a few years earlier is China Town. Not to be confused with the Roman Polanski neo-noir film Chinatown, China Town is a musical that has been near and dear to the hearts of many Indians the way The Sound of Music has been to many Americans.

This Hindi film is a black and white film worth seeing for the music if nothing else. It contains a wonderfully diverse mix of Jazz, traditional Chinese and traditional Indian music as well as early Rock and Roll, and even classical music in the score - 'Night on Bald Mountain' appears during a chase sequence.

Shammi Kapoor stars as Shekhar, a hotel lounge singer who agrees to impersonate a gangster named Mike for a police sting as a way to prove himself to his sweethearts father and get his approval to marry her. Shekhar is a dead-ringer for Mike, one of the key members of an opium ring in Calcutta’s China Town.

Yes, there are racist overtones, but no moreso than in Hollywood films of the time - despite a long common border, it's clear that the Chinese were perceived just as mysterious and inscrutable to the Indians as they were in the west.

It's proto-Bollywood, so you have to be able to accept that people break into song at random times with full instrumentation springing forth from nowhere. There is a fair amount of buffoonery here, but it’s worth putting up with to see stuff like Pompadoured Shekar's Indian Elvis moves – the film seems to be India’s answer to King Creole.

Unfortunately, like most Indian films of that vintage, the preservation isn’t great – the print is very rough in some parts - there are some breaks and gaps where footage has been lost, but very few, not enough to really detract from the story.
The fact that it has survived at all is cause for celebration because at the time of it’s release, it was never more than a minor hit, peaking at #9 in the Indian the box office.

Hearts, Minds and Votes

Hearts and Minds



A lot has been written about this film. It won both the Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Documentary in 1975. Entertainment Weekly named it one of the Top 50 Documentaries of all time. And while it is distinctly not unbiased, it is very thorough, including footage and interviews with heads of state, military leaders, Vietnamese peasants, current and former soldiers, draft dodgers and even random people off the street.

Made in more than a year before the fall of Saigon, the Vietnam War was still ongoing at the time, Hearts and Minds is a document of the times, but given many of the events of the 2000s, it’s one that’s still relevant today.

The final 15 minutes of the film contains the still shocking images of child napalm victims running down the road, which unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last 35 years you’ve probably seen dozens of times, but which still packs an emotional wallop.

Which brings me to a documentary of an entirely different sort…

Please Vote For Me



Please Vote For Me documents the class election of a “class monitor” in a 3rd grade class in Wuhan, China, supposedly the first such election anywhere in China for this position. The position is a bit of a cross between class president, and the kind of “informant” that the Chinese Communist Party has relied on since the very early days of the Communist Revolution there. The students did not demand a class election, they were just told they were going to have one, and were given no background in democracy or the democratic process by seemingly equally oblivious teachers, and all sorts of bribery and corruption work it’s way into the system, aided and abetted by the children’s own parents.

Democracy is something that must be embraced by those who want it, and whether it was the filmmakers’ intention to or not, Please Vote For Me accurately illustrates why democracy can never be imposed on people and efforts to do so are ultimately doomed to failure.

How to go from pretty good to hilariously awful in one sequel...

Disaster films.

The very name conjures up big budget films with 2-3 big budget effects shots and an all star cast generally running around hamming it up. Formulaic to the extreme. And, since the heydey of the disaster film was the late 60s and early 70s (read, before Star Wars), special effects technology wasn’t very advanced, and by today’s standards, often not too special.

Given all that, it’s easy to forget that there were actually a few really good ones made. Case in point, Airport.



Airport may not have been the first, but it was one of the most important of the disaster films, spawning a whole lot of sequels. The problem is it’s easy to dismiss this film given how thoroughly it was skewered in the spoof Airplane! (a film which Entertainment Weekly ranked as the #1 comedy film of all time).

But Airport, actually is a pretty good little film when judged on it’s own merits. It isn’t a horribly improbably incident (like most disaster films), and is often likened to a version of Grand Hotel on a plane. Yes, it’s a soap opera, but an engaging one.

The stand out here is George Kennedy as ground crew chief mechanic. He’s the kind of blue collar hero today’s movies are sorely lacking – a guy who knows his job and can save the day from all the other people who don’t know theirs.

Probably the most amazing thing about Airport, is that it was made over 30 years before 9/11 (which now is most of a decade behind us), but the issues it deals with – terrorists, over crowded airways, overworked air traffic controllers, airports not expanding to meet demand – all these things are still just as problematic, indeed more problematic, today as they were in 1970.

Let’s get one thing straight, Airport may not be art, but it is a fun ride.

Airport 1975



The sequel to Airport is a different matter. Here we have a bigger budget film connected to the first only by Kennedy who is back as Petroni.

This movie is bad.

Really bad.

But it too is fun to watch in the ‘so bad it’s good’ sort of ways. Enjoyed with a six pack, this film might even be funnier than Airplane! the film that spoofs it. I mean just look at this cast: Charlton Heston, Karen Black, Gloria Swanson, Helen Reddy, Erik Estrada, Dana Anrews, Sid Caesar, Linda Blair – it’s like a best of Hollywood Squares crossed with a B-movie marathon! And (as a stretch), there’s Conrad Janis, Norman Fell and Jerry Stiller as 3 drunken old farts (in 1975! – were these guys ever young?). Definitely a good movie to have friends over and see who can hurl the best Rocky Horror style one liners at the screen.

Feel my pain.

Today's movie review comes by request of Joseph Kirschbaum of Cincinnati who writes, "I would love to hear your take on Casshern."



Casshern

Casshern was a 2004 adaptation of a 1993 direct-to-video anime, Casshan: Robot Hunter. It takes place in the future. But this future is a retro future where many things actually resemble past eras like in Brazil. Unlike Brazil, however, there’s no obvious reason for it, apart from perhaps choosing things that looked cool, and maybe because Steampunk is trendy. O.K., I could live with that… if it was the only thing there was no reason for, but…

In 2004, due to breakthroughs in technology, there were a few films that were long on effects and short on everything else - Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow and The Chronicles of Riddick both immediately spring to mind – and Casshern shares a lot of things in common with those films. In fact, the robot army scene is almost an exact replica of the robot army sequence in Sky Captain – although since both films came out the same year, it’s hard to say who ripped off whom.

The plot of Casshern is so convoluted as to defy synopsizing. It’s like the Matrix movies that way (see previous post about The Matrix). Also like the Matrix films, we have an unstoppable superhero protagonist – he’s even made up of “Neo” cells (perhaps a direct Matrix reference), and a villain who is a “Neo-Sapien” who vows to eliminate homo sapiens (ala Magneto in X-Men). The majority of the film involves these two super powered guys with hazy, unspecified godlike powers beating on each other Mighty Morphin Power Ranger style for most of the film, breaking off and resuming their battle at random times (oh yeah, another thing the film is guilty of – in the middle of a fight the fight will just end – no one wins loses or gets knocked out, they just start doing other stuff and forget about the fight).

Worse, again like the Matrix films, it thinks it’s philosophical, and much “deeper” than it really is, with characters spouting cheesy platitudes rather than engaging in any kind of meaningful dialogue. I generally give the dialogue of a foreign film a pass because I never know how much of it can be blamed on the translators, but there’s just too much of it in Casshern to let it slip by without mention. Don't believe me? See for yourself.

I’ve mentioned a lot of other films in this review, and I’m not done yet because Casshern also borrows heavily from Akira, and just about every other SF anime of the past 25 years.

But, cinematically speaking, perhaps the most apt comparison here is to The Crow: City of Angels – a film that is incredibly beautiful to look at, but makes no damn sense. It’s painfully obvious when watching that even if it were a perfect translation of the Japanese (which it probably isn’t) it still wouldn’t make any sense. Like a cut scene from a videogame taken out of context - a two hour long cut scene.

In fact, on that count it’s down there with some of the worst offenders of the genre, and deserves to share a cell with the likes The Crow: City of Angels and Highlander 2: The Quickening.

On the bright side, it is visually a treat (I was not surprised to learn that the first time director who is also the writer & cinematographer, much like with the aforementioned Highlander was primarily a music video director). But, as gorgeous as it is, I had a hard time sitting through the whole thing.

My recommendation - turn the volume down and the METAL up, and enjoy it for the 2 hour music video it is!

The 2000s in Review

Continuing our look back at the movies of the past decade.

Reboots - we'll be talking a lot about this trend.
Let's begin with a look at how to do reboots right - the most successful reboot of a series in the 2000s:



Batman Begins

I grew up on Detective Comics.

It's where DC gets its name.

The company invented the superhero - and has been making quality stories almost twice as long as their biggest competitor (Marvel Comics Group). Today they are owned by one of the world's largest conglomarates - Time Warner AOL - which also owns one of the oldest movie studios (Warner Bros.). Unfortunately, they have had a terrible track record of getting their superheroes faithfully adapted to the large and small screen.

Until now.

I love the work of Tim Burton - he was an interesting choice to helm the Batman project. He certainly put the Goth in Gotham. But his penchant for cartoony weirdness grew thin the second the master criminal was no longer The Joker.

Joel Schumacher grew up loving the 60s TV adaptation of the comic. Which, though campy fun perhaps, was not Batman, the dark knight detective. Using that as the basis for his run on the Batman franchise yielded... well, let's just paraphrase my physics teacher, "garbage in equals garbage out".

I don't mean that to be harsh - Mr. Schumacher is quite a film craftsman, it's just that his point of reference - like that of much of America's is skewed. When I was a kid, comics were dismissed as trivial children's fare, yet they were tackling things far more mature than the downright juvenile prime time TV hits that were adapted from them (Wonder Woman and The Hulk immediately spring to mind).

Mass audiences were totally ignorant of the very cornerstones of the Batman, grim avenger of the night, mythos. They could never imagine a Batman that picked up a gun, They had no idea who Joe Chill or Ras Al Ghul were. They couldn't tell you a thing about Arkham Asylum. But all of those things are cornerstones of the Batman background, and essential to understanding the character.

The creators of Batman Begins remember though. All of those elements come into play in this film. Is it perfect ? No. Does it take liberties with the source material? Yes, but not to the extent of any of the past efforts. Does it defy the laws of physics? At times, yes, but no moreso than comics generally do. You'll find no Batmobiles driving straight up the sides of buildings for example. Comic book physics are at lest preserved.

And that all adds up to the best Batman movie yet. One that is actually true to the spirit of the comics for the first time. And that, is something to be praised. And seen.

Two Forgotten Classics from 1972

Today we're taking a look at two forgotten gems from 1972. One with Robert Redford, and the other by Director John Huston.

The Hot Rock



I have to admit this film surprised me a little. Based on the title, and the fact that it stars Robert Redford (an actor not known for comedy roles), I was expecting a serious heist thriller. It was a heist film alright, but it was more of a comedic caper, albeit a deadpan one, than an edge-of your seat thriller. Redford, just out of prison, is recruited by a friend to put together a team (Ocean’s 11 style) to steal a diamond for a foreign government. To avoid spoilers, let’s just say things don’t go as planned. While this is by no means must-see stuff, it’s fun to watch. If you like the offbeat crime films of say the Coen Brothers, which rely as much on quirky characters and farcical situations more than outright jokes, The Hot Rock might be worth digging up.



Fat City

At the other pole we have the late era John Huston film Fat City. Fat City is a boxing film that takes place mostly in Stockton, California, and centers on aging boxer Tully (Stacey Keach) and up-and-comer Eddie (Jeff Bridges). The story is a down-and-out look at the American dream that plays like California's equivalent of Midnight Cowboy with fresh faced Bridges in place of Jon Voight, and Keach in place of Dustin Hoffman. Even the soundtrack sounds like Midnight Cowboy. Relentlessly downbeat, but rewarding.

New Orleans past is never past.

In the Electric Mist

In the Electric Mist is an adaptation of James Lee Burke’s 1993 novel In the Electric Mist with Confederate Dead. The story deals with Cajun detective, Dave Robicheaux’s investigation of a murder when a body is discovered in a Louisiana swamp following a Gulf Coast storm. But the murder is only one mystery Robicheaux must solve, the other is why he keeps seeing and hearing from the apparitions of Confederate soldiers.

The film starts Tommy Lee Jones as Robicheaux, and is not an action oriented P.I. film but the kind of slowly unraveling mystery typical of other recent Jones films such as his previous effort, In the Valley of Elah.

The last time Robicheaux made it to the big screen was more than a dozen years ago, played by Alec Baldwin in the box office disaster Heaven’s Prisoners, which lost 4 times as much money as it made.

So, why revive this series now? I believe the film itself holds the key to that mystery. The film changes the tropical storm which is responsible for uncovering the long submerged body to Hurricane Katrina – which is logical given the location. But I suspect there is more to it than that. The film itself is kind of like metafiction, because there is a film taking place within this movie, a Civil War film (which supplies a possible explanation for the Confederate soldiers Robicheaux keeps seeing) but is also mentioned as bringing much needed income to the area - “we’re dropping close to 40 million dollars into Iberia Parish”, says one of the characters. This, I believe, is the smoking gun behind reviving this 16 year old novel.

The film stars the usual New Orleans boosters like Ned Beatty and John Goodman, even bluesman Buddy Guy in a small role. It has a lot of heart but lacks punch, coming across as a slapdash Big Easy for Katrina relief. Which isn’t such a bad thing; if you like the genre, it just might be worth your time.

An Early Herzog Work That Not Enough People Have Seen

Every Man for Himself & God Against All
AKA The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser
AKA The Mystery of Kaspar Hauser

Many people in the U.S. only know him for his more recent work like Grizzly Man, but
Werner Herzog has pretty much been doing character studies on odd, interesting and provocative people for over 25 years.

Herzog cast Bruno S., (a real life mystery man whose own life parallels the story) as foundling Kaspar Hauser, the young man without a past who showed up in a Nuremberg one day in the late 19th Century.

The film is stark in it’s portrayal of alienation, but with a life and humanity all it’s own. The look of the film is one distinctive to films of the 1970s a time when beautiful technical advancements in color film had been made over just a few years earlier – and Herzog takes full advantage of this to show the quaint, picturesque German landscape.

While I think it fall short of achieving the heights the best Herzog film have, many critics disagree with me, ranking it as his best, and on many top 10 lists. The film has been remarkably influential, influencing movies as diverse as Julien Donkey Boy, and Castle Freak.