Ed's Movie Reviews

The Best Psychological Thriller Since "Wait Until Dark" Is "Dressed to Kill"

2008-02-14T22:07:00.003-08:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2008 Ed Bagley

Dressed to Kill – 4 Stars (Excellent)

"Dressed to Kill" is the most horrific psychological thriller I have seen since "Wait Until Dark" with Audrey Hepburn as a recently blinded woman who is terrorized by a trio of thugs while they search for a heroin-stuffed doll they believe is in her apartment.

Dressed to Kill is just as tense and scary and adds the taut elements of a steamy shower scene as the female lead Kate Miller (played by none other than Angie Dickinson) pleasures herself, a sex scene in a taxi cab that is so hot and so ahead of its time that it almost explodes the vehicle, and a razor-slitting murder scene in an elevator that is beyond graphic.

This is one disturbing film involving an unhappy, undersexed wife, an anonymous lover, a psychiatrist, a psychopath, a stalker and a serial killer, not to mention female nudity, erotica, vulgarity and transsexualism.

The DVD version that I rented had the traditional version and the uncut version; I opted for the uncut version. Despite all of its horrific elements, Dressed to Kill is an excellent production (as least the uncut version) as a psychological thriller because all of the aforementioned horror scenes actually add to the story line and as such are not sensational enough to grab attention away from the unfolding drama.

We can thank Brian De Palma for that. De Palma both wrote and directed this film with stunning results, his murder mystery is right up there with the best of the best. So many writer/director efforts result in terrible films. The film was released in 1980, 27 years ago.

In the movie, Kate Miller (Angie Dickinson), a middle-aged, sexually frustrated housewife, has a fantasy taking a shower and later that day complains to her psychiatrist Dr. Robert Elliott (Michael Caine) about her husband's pathetic performance in bed.

Kate goes to a museum and encounters a strange man (Ken Baker) who she ends up with in a taxicab on the way to his apartment for more sex. While there she discovers the man has a sexually transmitted disease and she bolts, only to return when she realizes she has taken off and forgotten her wedding ring.

After returning to the elevator she is brutally slashed to death by a tall blond woman wearing dark glasses. A high-priced call girl (Nancy Allen) is the only witness to the murder and becomes the slasher's next target. She is rescued by Kate's son Peter (Keith Gordon) who enlists her help in the scary business of solving his mother's murder.

Dressed to Kill is loaded with clever writing and clues that go right by you on first viewing. I seldom watch dramas anymore because I have seen enough in my lifetime and so many action adventure, natural disaster and drama films today are absolutely ridiculous in premise and presentation.

Fans of Angie Dickinson will be heartened to know that a body double was used in the shower scene in the film. It could just as easily have been Angie. Two years after making Dressed to Kill, when she was 50 and yet to undergo any surgery, a panel of Hollywood designers and make-up artists in 1982 ranked her first in a list of Best Female Star Bodies.

Angie said that the taxicab scene was filmed on location in New York, where several gawkers observed the scene and shouted, "Right on, Police Woman" (referring to her previous TV role as Sgt. "Pepper" Anderson in the crime drama "Police Woman").

The sex and violence in this film make it a terrible choice for viewing by anyone except adults, and then only adults who can handle these topics without being terribly impacted. This limits the film's popularity and resulted in virtually no awards for the film-making effort.

As a murder mystery I would rate Dressed to Kill as excellent and a very, very scary film.

Read my movie reviews on Captain Jack Sparrow in "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl", "Pirates of the Caribbean: "Dead Man's Chest" and "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End". Johnny Depp is the perfect pirate.

My articles can be published with no charge by newsletters, newspapers and magazines through EzineArticles.com, the largest articles directory on the Internet with 80,000+ authors and 985,000+ articles.

Editor's Note: Explore my main blog at:
http://www.edbagleyblog.com
Discover 145 Movie Reviews, 112 Sports Articles, 61 Articles on Lessons in Life, 18 Jobs and Careers Articles, 26 Internet Marketing Articles, 44 News and Comment Articles (406 total articles) plus 685 Famous Quotes.

For Romance Without Any Stress, "Sleepless in Seattle" Is the Cure

2008-02-13T22:05:00.003-08:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2008 Ed Bagley

Sleepless in Seattle - 4 Stars (Excellent)

If you were celebrating Valentines Day with a candlelight dinner for two at home and settled in to watch a movie, "Sleepless in Seattle" would be a great choice because it provides a pleasant experience and is already becoming a romantic comedy classic.

Your parents or grandparents experienced a similar story line in the now classic "An Affair to Remember" that was released in 1957 and paired Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr. Their characters fall in love and agree to meet in 6 months at the Empire State Building in New York.

Sleepless in Seattle, released 36 years later in 1993, pairs Tom Hanks as Sam Baldwin and Meg Ryan as Annie Reed. Sam is the recently-widowed father of 8-year-old Jonah Baldwin (Ross Malinger), who calls a nationally-broadcast radio talk show in an attempt to find his lonely father a partner.

A somewhat reluctant Sam talks to host Marcia Fieldstone and thousands of single women across America are suddenly drawn in to Sam's sense of love for his former wife, each wishing she could be as cherished as Sam's next special person. To wit:

Doctor Marcia Fieldstone: Tell me what was so special about your wife?

Sam Baldwin: Well, how long is your program? Well, it was a million tiny little things that, when you added them all up, they meant we were supposed to be together . . .and I knew it. I knew it the very first time I touched her. It was like coming home . . . only to no home I'd ever known . . .I was just taking her hand to help her out of a car and I knew. It was like . . . magic.

If that dialog does not melt every woman's heart she would need to go straight to "The Wizard of Oz" and receive a new transplant. Soon Sam is getting thousands of letters from wannabe partners, all of which are read by his son Jonah, who decides that "Annie" is the best choice.

Annie is engaged to marry Walter (Bill Pullman). Should she do so she would be making the first great mistake of her life. Walter is a decent enough chap, but Annie is missing any sparks in their relationship because Walter has the personality of an ashtray.

Annie goes to great lengths to meet Sam, flying from New York to Seattle only to discover Sam with another woman, whom she mistakes for a love interest. She never mails a letter she has written to Sam, but her friend does. In it she proposes to meet Sam on top of the Empire State Building.

Sam is not interested in going, but his son Jonah is, so, with the help of his new friend whose parents own a travel agency, he is able to book a flight to the Big Apple and ends up on the observation deck of the Empire State Building looking for Annie. Sam, in a panic, to find his son, follows him to New York. The rest you will have to see.

Hanks is very convincing as a forlorn widower and Ryan was at her peak of being cute and innocent. The chemistry between the two, who only share approximately 2 minutes of screen time together, is great.

The role of Annie was originally offered to Julia Roberts but she turned it town. Kim Basinger, who was also offered the part, turned it down because she thought the premise was ridiculous. Just recently in the news, a youngster in Jonah's peer group did exactly what Jonah did, managed to book flight on a major airline and fly undetected. Life is indeed stranger than fiction.

The screenplay for Sleepless in Seattle was written in part by Nora Ephron, who also wrote "When Harry Met Sally" (another great romantic comedy with Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal). Ephron directed the film.

Ephron, David S. Ward and Jeff Arch (who did write the story) were nominated for an Oscar for Best Screenplay, and the film received another nomination for Best Original Song ("A Wink and a Smile"). Sleepless in Seattle also got Golden Globe nominations for Best Picture, Best Actor (Tom Hanks) and Best Actress (Meg Ryan).

Sleepless in Seattle cost $21 million to film and grossed $227 million worldwide at the box office, adding another $65+ million in rentals.

Tom Hanks is the gold standard in acting. He has been nominated for 5 Best Actor Oscars (Big, Philadelphia, Forrest Gump, Saving Private Ryan and Cast Away) and won twice for "Philadelphia" and "Forrest Gump". Hanks also has won 4 Best Actor Golden Globes for Big, Philadelphia, Forrest Gump and Cast Away.

His films have grossed more than $3.3 billion. He remains only 1 of 3 actors to have 7 consecutive $100 million domestic blockbusters; the other two are Tom Cruise and Will Smith.

Sleepless in Seattle is viewed by many guys as a "chick flick" but not by me. I consider it an outstanding relationship film with a great story line that proves to be a pleasant viewing experience every time I see it again. If a guy has ever been in love and felt the magic, he will appreciate this film a lot more.

Read more of my other reviews on romantic comedies, including "Four Romantic Comedies That Will Not Stress Your Emotions", "Mystic Pizza", "Something's Gotta Give", "The Holiday", "What Women Want", "Failure to Launch" and "For Love or Money".

My articles can be published with no charge by newsletters, newspapers and magazines through EzineArticles.com, the largest articles directory on the Internet with 80,000+ authors and 972,000+ articles.

Editor's Note: Explore my main blog at:
http://www.edbagleyblog.com
Discover 145 Movie Reviews, 112 Sports Articles, 61 Articles on Lessons in Life, 18 Jobs and Careers Articles, 26 Internet Marketing Articles, 44 News and Comment Articles (406 total articles) plus 685 Famous Quotes.

Movie History - Pardon Me, I Am Gushing Again About Movie's Incomparable Audrey Hepburn

2008-02-08T15:10:00.001-08:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2008 Ed Bagley

Like a lot of shoppers at supermarkets, I look at the magazine displays while waiting in line to check out. Recently I was thrilled to see a recent edition to LIFE's Great Photographers Series: Remembering Audrey 15 Years Later with photographs by Bob Willoughby.

In my review of "Breakfast at Tiffany's" I posed this question: Was there ever an actress who combined these four timeless qualities—beauty, fashion, grace and humility—better than Audrey Hepburn? My answer was simply, I think not.

You better believe I bought a copy of Remembering Audrey faster than a single heartbeat, and remain a better person for having done so.

Willoughby was born in Los Angeles—the city of the stars—and began taking pictures when he was 12. He was good, very good, and best described as a prodigy. In 1953, when he was 26, he would be assigned to photograph an upcoming soon to be actress, Audrey Hepburn. The result of their meeting would produce one of his most positive relationships, both as a photographer and a friend.

Willoughby pioneered the role of the "special" photographer to take formal publicity shots and candids of the stars Hollywood's publicity departments wanted to promote. He was credited by Popular Photography magazine as the man "who virtually invented the photojournalistic motion-picture still."

The images that you remember of James Dean, Frank Sinatra, Richard Burton, Peter O'Toole and Audrey Hepburn among dozens of others were mostly the work of Bob Willoughby. All of the major magazines of the day—LIFE, Look, Saturday Evening Post and Harper's Bazaar—published his work.

Willoughby's creations grace the exhibits in more than 500 museums in more than 50 countries around the world.

When first meeting Audrey, Willoughby said, "She took my hand and dazzled me with a smile that God designed to melt mortal men's hearts.

"The amazing instant contact she always made was a remarkable gift, and I know from talking to others that it was felt by all who met her."

Audrey had made a big impression with the studio brass in the 1953 William Wyler film "Roman Holiday". She won an Oscar for Best Actress as Princess Ann in her film debut playing opposite Gregory Peck.

In the next 15 years, she would be nominated for 4 Best Actress Oscars for her work as Sabrina Fairchild in "Sabrina" (1954), Sister Luke in "The Nun's Story" (1959), Holly Golightly in "Breakfast at Tiffany's" (1961), and Susy Hendrix in "Wait Until Dark" (1967).

She also won a Golden Globe for Best Drama Actress in Roman Holiday and had an additional 6 Golden Globe nominations as Best Actress. Lesser known is the fact that Audrey was one of the few entertainers to have won an Emmy, a Grammy and a Tony Award as well as an Oscar.

Bob Willoughby's formal and candid photographs of Audrey Hepburn will stand the test of time as some of the greatest ever taken of a woman and an actress. He said that Audrey never took a bad photograph, or even a mediocre one.

"She could sit next to an old ladder on the set and look terrific," said Willoughby. With designs by Hubert de Givenchy, the world's most smashing woman wore the world's most smashing fashions.

She became the most charming, disarming, altogether friendly and charismatic superstar ever to grace a Hollywood production. According to Willoughby, everyone liked Audrey and remained loyal to her. The best directors and the world's greatest designers sought to work with her.

It was said that all of her leading men fell in love with her, including Gregory Peck, William Holden, Anthony Perkins, Rex Harrison and Albert Finney.

When making "My Fair Lady" Audrey would not be recognized for her role as Eliza Doolittle. She had been promised that she could sing her songs in the film, but Marni Nixon was ultimately contracted to perform Eliza's vocals.

Julie Andrews had played the role of Eliza in the stage production of the Lerner and Loewe musical, but she lost the role to Audrey in the film. It was perhaps no accident that the Best Actress Oscar that year went to Julie Andrews for her role as Mary Poppins.

My Fair Lady cost $17 million to make in 1964, an astounding investment in its day. It became Warner Brothers highest-grossing film at the time, and would go on to earn 12 Oscar nominations and win 8 Oscars. Many film historians consider My Fair Lady to be the last great musical of Hollywood's studio era.

Audrey would marry twice and have a son by both Mel Ferrer, the actor/director, and Andrea Dotti, an Italian psychiatrist. She suffered 4 miscarriages during her 13-year marriage to Mel Ferrer.

In her early life, Audrey's parents would divorce and her mother took her and her two stepbrothers to London and then to the Netherlands, where her mother was a bona fide Dutch baroness. In 1940, Germany invaded the Netherlands and the horror of war would surround her.

She danced in clandestine locations to raise money for the Dutch Resistance. One of her stepbrothers was sent to a German labor camp, and her uncle and one of her mother's cousins were shot and killed for participating in the Resistance.

The Germans seized food and fuel when the Netherlands was already suffering a winter famine. Audrey would suffer malnutrition, anemia and frequent bouts of depression. She was 10 years old when World War II started and remained fragile her entire life as a result of her wartime experience.

Some believe her final act in life was her best when she was named UNICEF's International Goodwill Ambassador in 1988. Audrey would travel around the world on 50+ missions to bring attention to the world's suffering children. The sight of children dying from hunger in distant lands was devastating; she had once been one of those children and survived.

"I want people to know that the largest part of humanity is suffering," said Audrey. Despite being terribly ill herself, she continued to go on missions. She would die of colon cancer in 1993, four months before her 64th birthday. When she died, the world lost a great human being.

Bob Willoughby said it best: "She left those who came into contact with her better for having known her. I miss her to this day." Amen, Bob, amen.

Editor's Note: Read my reviews on romantic dramas, including "An Affair to Remember", "Breakfast at Tiffany's", "Roman Holiday", "Ryan's Daughter" and "The Quiet Man".

My articles can be published with no charge by newsletters, newspapers and magazines through EzineArticles.com, the largest articles directory on the Internet with 73,000+ authors and 900,000+ articles.

Editor's Note: Explore my main blog at:
http://www.edbagleyblog.com
Discover 140 Movie Reviews, 105 Sports Articles, 61 Articles on Lessons in Life, 18 Jobs and Careers Articles, 26 Internet Marketing Articles, 44 News and Comment Articles (394 total articles) plus 656 Famous Quotes.

Three Average Movies That Have Some Memorable Moments for Moviegoers

2008-01-22T20:18:00.000-08:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2008 Ed Bagley

Whale Rider – 2 Stars (Average)

"Whale Rider" is the story of an 11-year-old Maori girl who must overcome the prejudice of her grandfather and tribal tradition to fulfill her destiny and become the leader of her ancient aboriginal tribe in New Zealand's North Island.

Only the eldest son becomes the designated heir to carry forward the timeless knowledge from one generation to the next, but "Pai" (Paikea played by Keisha Castle-Hughes) is determined to do so in spite of the odds.

Pai's twin brother, who was supposed to fulfill the role as the next tribal leader, dies at birth with their mother. Her father is so distraught that he leaves the island and tradition, and it is left to her grandfather Koro (Rawiri Paratene) and grandmother (Vicky Houghton) to raise Pai. Her grandfather Koro's belief system will not allow him to compromise centuries of tradition.

On the east coast of New Zealand, the Whangara people believe their presence there dates back a thousand years or more to a single ancestor, Paikea, who escaped death when his canoe capsized by riding to shore on the back of a whale.

This was not just about a film, but actual tradition. Because Pai was doing traditional Maori things that women are not supposed to do, the film cast and crew performed special Maori chants to ward off any bad luck that might arise.

Whale Rider will test your composure, melt your heart and make you want to scream. Child actress Keisha Castle-Hughes was nominated for a Best Actress Oscar for her incredible performance (won by Charlize Theron in "Monster"). Whale Rider had 29 other winning awards and 28 other nominations.

The whales in the movie were depicted using a combination of footage of real whales, life-size models with humans creating movement and some computer-aided help. Castle-Hughes said the key whale riding scene took place 15-20 miles offshore and was terrifying.

This film should get a good rather than an average rating (the story line is THAT good), but it suffers from terrible sound management making it sometimes difficult to follow. I would see this movie again, which is saying something when I rate a film as average.

Glory – 2 Stars (Average)

"Glory" shows the bravery of the American Civil War's first all-black volunteer company of soldiers as they fight the prejudices of both their own Union army and their enemy the Confederates.

The 54th Massachusetts is trained and led into battle by Colonel Robert Gould Shaw (Matthew Broderick), a young idealist and abolitionist from a wealthy family. Gould, like the 54th, is pretty much hung out to dry by all concerned. He is supported by Sergeant Major John Rawlins (Morgan Freeman), the highest ranking African American soldier, and Private Trip (Denzel Washington), a runaway slave.

Washington won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar and a Golden Globe for his performance. Glory also won Oscars for Best Cinematography and Best Sound, Oscar nominations for Best Art Direction and Film Editing, and Golden Globe nominations for Best Director (Edward Zwick), Best Score (James Horner) and Best Screenplay (Kevin Jarre).

Glory is long overdue. America is full of people wanting to take credit for things they did not do; it is good to see credit and recognition being given to Americans who did do something honorable with bravery.

Chris Rock: Bigger & Blacker – 2 Stars (Average)

This is a classic, stand-up comedy routine at the famous Apollo Theater in New York City by the very best comedian in America in 1999, Chris Rock. Rock, who is billed as a comedian only, actually delivers social insight and relationship truths wrapped up in the "f—k" word in what seemed like a 1,000 repetitions in 65 minutes onstage.

Chris Rock delivers his sharp opinions and truth-of-his-time in the cultural vulgarity that is common ghetto talk in metro area African American communities. Cut through the language (ignore the method of delivery) and Chris Rock is very impressive as a comedian and social observer in 1999.

Read my other reviews about youth, including "Akeelah and the Bee", "Saint Ralph", "High School Musical" and "2 Movies About Young Adults That Prove Their Integrity and Substance".

My movie reviews and articles can be published with no charge by newsletters, newspapers and magazines through EzineArticles.com, the largest articles directory on the Internet with 80,000+ authors and 900,000+ articles.

Editor's Note: Explore my main blog at:
http://www.edbagleyblog.com
Discover 140 Movie Reviews, 105 Sports Articles, 61 Articles on Lessons in Life, 18 Jobs and Careers Articles, 26 Internet Marketing Articles, 44 News and Comment Articles (394 total articles) plus 656 Famous Quotes.

Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon Make "Walk the Line" Better Than the Film

2008-01-20T18:13:00.000-08:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2008 Ed Bagley

Walk the Line – 2 Stars (Average)

"Walk the Line" is the story of Johnny Cash (Joaquin Phoenix) and June Carter Cash (Reese Witherspoon). Born poor in Arkansas, Cash rises to fame in the country music world and destroys a lot of relationships along the way with drinking, drugs and pandering. Eventually, June Carter wins his heart.

Cash became who he was because the songs he wrote and sang were from his heart about his own life; they were not phony, and music lovers related to them in their own world.

Walk the Line was a struggle to produce as it took 4 years to secure the rights to the film and another 4 years to get the film made. Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon did their own singing, both of them had 6 months of vocal training and also learned to play their instruments (guitar and auto-harp) from scratch.

Both Phoenix and Witherspoon showcase their talents in this film that had a great story line but not a great presentation. Based in part on Cash's own book Man in Black and Cash: The Autobiography, the adaptation also is credited to Gill Dennis and James Mangold, who also directed the film. It is seldom a good idea for a director to also be a writer in the same film, and Mangold showed why.

Rather than be a good finder, it seemed that Mangold was determined to send his portrayal of Johnny Cash buck naked into the woods and drag Cash through the muck and mire far too long. It was unnecessary and added nothing to the film in my judgment. Mangold simply did not tell a good story well, he told a story.

Whatever sins Cash committed on his way to becoming a legend and country music icon could have been handled without trying to raise it to an art form. Let the writers and director who are without any sins cast the first stone. It seemed as if they wanted to drag Cash down in order to build themselves up.

Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon saved this film. Witherspoon won both an Oscar and a Golden Globe for Best Actress. Phoenix was nominated for an Oscar and won the Golden Globe for Best Actor. Walk the Line won the Golden Globe for Best Picture, but not on my ballot. Walk the Line won additional Oscar nominations for Best Costume Design, Editing and Sound Mixing. Besides Witherspoon's Oscar, the film had another 27 wins as well as 26 more nominations.

Walk the Line, released in 2005, has a special place in history as Johnny Cash recorded with Sun Records in Memphis, along with Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins among others.

It was reported that Johnny Cash chose Joaquin Phoenix to play him in the film on the basis or his performance in "Gladiator", and that June Carter Cash chose Reese Witherspoon for her role in the film. June Carter Cash died in May 2003 before production began on the film, and Johnny Cash died 4 months later in September 2003.

Cash was blessed with a deep, distinctive voice and known as "The Man in Black". He wrote more than 1,000 songs and sold more than 90 million albums in a career that lasted nearly 5 decades. A diverse group of artists have paid tribune to Cash, among them Bob Dylan, Chris Isaak, Wyclef Jean, Norah Jones, Kris Kristofferson, Willie Nelson and U2.

Johnny Cash has a number of signature songs that will not be going away anytime soon, including "I Walk the Line", "Folsom Prison Blues", "Ring of Fire", "Man in Black" and "A Boy Named Sue".

Walk the Line is worth seeing just for Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon. I would not watch it again, and was not a better person for having seen it, thus it gets my average rating which would have been higher with better writing and better direction.

Read my movie reviews on families, including "My Big Fat Greek Wedding", "Secondhand Lions", "The Chorus (Les Choristes in French)" and "Waking Ned Devine". You will smile, laugh, cry and feel better for the experience. Don't just experience life, live life!

My articles can be published with no charge by newsletters, newspapers and magazines through EzineArticles.com, the largest articles directory on the Internet with 80,000+ authors and 900,000+ articles.

Editor's Note: Explore my main blog at:
http://www.edbagleyblog.com
Discover 140 Movie Reviews, 105 Sports Articles, 61 Articles on Lessons in Life, 18 Jobs and Careers Articles, 26 Internet Marketing Articles, 44 News and Comment Articles (394 total articles) plus 656 Famous Quotes.

Old Lodge Skins Makes "Little Big Man" a Perfect Blend of Comedy and Drama

2008-01-15T18:13:00.000-08:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2008 Ed Bagley

Little Big Man – 3 Stars (Good)

You know that "Little Big Man" has the makings of a good film when an historian visits Jack Crabb (Dustin Hoffman), a forgotten, 100-plus-year-old centenarian in an assisted living facility, to ask about how Native Americans lived in the Old West. It is said that Crabb lived among the Cheyenne, and indeed he did.

Both young Crabb and his sister Caroline were the sole survivors among their family during an Indian attack while heading West and are rescued by a Cheyenne and taken to their leader, Old Lodge Skins (Chief Dan George), who raises young Jack as a son after Caroline escapes back to civilization.

Jack finds life as a Cheyenne to be good, and becomes important by saving the life of Younger Bear. He is named "Little Big Man" by Old Lodge Skins because while small in size, he has a big heart.

From this improbable start, Jack recounts his walk through life with some amazing characters, including a preacher's wife with an appetite for illicit sex, a snake-oil salesman, a Swedish woman who becomes his wife, a Cheyenne woman who becomes his wife and mother to his son, General George Armstrong Custer and Wild Bill Hickok.

He becomes a huckster of phony products, a gunslinger named the Soda Pop Kid, a friend of Will Bill Hickok, a general store owner, a drunk, a "mule skinner" and scout for General Custer, a trapper and a hermit.

It is General Custer who orders his troops to attack Jack's Cheyenne family without cause and Jack's Cheyenne wife and son are killed in the slaughter. Ultimately, it is Jack who leads Custer into the trap at Little Big Horn and becomes the "sole white survivor of the battle of Little Big Horn."

Little Big Man, based on the 1964 novel by Thomas Berger, was directed by Arthur Penn and released in 1970. The film is not historically accurate, and does treat the Native Americans favorably and the U. S. Cavalry less favorably.

The screen adaptation with the help of Calder Willingham makes Little Big Man a balanced blend between humor and drama. The narration by the character Jack Crabb makes this film likeable and then some. Little Big Man is really the story of Jack's relationship with his adopted grandfather, Old Lodge Skins.

Chief Dan George received Oscar and Golden Globe nominations as the Best Supporting Actor in this film. He was outstanding in his role as Old Lodge Skins. When his people are attacked and killed for no good reason, he will not run, saying "today is a good day to die."

Old Lodge Skins calls his Cheyenne people "human beings", noting that there is "an endless supply of white men" and "a limited supply of human beings." He sees and feels the injustice being done to Native Americans who are given their own land and then attacked and killed without cause.

There are too many funny, poignant and dramatic moments in this film to recount them here. One of my favorites is when, after escaping with Jack's help from the last of the brutal attacks on his people, Old Lodge Skins goes to the top of the mountain to die. He prays, and then lays down to die but wakes up when it begins to rain, asking Jack if he is still in this world.

Jack answers yes, to which he replies, "I was afraid of that. Well, sometimes the magic works, sometimes it does not," and proceeds back down the mountain with Jack to eat dinner.

Dustin Hoffman set a record for portraying the greatest span of a single character in Little Big Man, playing Jack Crabb from age 17 to 121.

The narration by Jack Crabb, his walk through life, his contact with important people and his poignant story remind me of Tom Hanks and his role in "Forest Gump". Both of these films are well done, have a story to tell worth hearing, and leave us a better person for the experience.

It has been 37 years since Little Big Man hit the big screen. Not much has been made of it, but there is a certain group of moviegoers like myself who will not let this film die a slow death. It is too good to not be seen and enjoyed by others. I feel the same way about "A Christmas Story" and a lot of others do too.

If you have not seen Little Big Man do yourself a favor while you still can.

Read my movie reviews on Captain Jack Sparrow in "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl", "Pirates of the Caribbean: "Dead Man's Chest" and "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End". Johnny Depp is the perfect pirate.

Ed Bagley's articles can be published with no charge by newsletters, newspapers and magazines through EzineArticles.com, the largest articles directory on the Internet with 73,000+ authors and 900,000+ articles.

"Nanny McPhee" - An Excellent Movie with Magic and a Message for Children

2007-12-18T21:53:00.000-08:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Nanny McPhee – 4 Stars (Excellent)

Bless yourself by renting "Nanny McPhee" and sharing it with your children at home, not in the movie theater. Do this because this film is all about home and your children might relate better in the comfort of their own home. Nanny McPhee is an excellent film with a wonderful message for all children to recognize and understand.

In an entertainment world full of trashy and violent video games with movies to match that dwell on murder, rape, sex, drugs, alcohol, filthy language, broken relationships and crummy morals, Nanny McPhee is everything good about movies for children. You and your children can watch this film without fear of unpleasant and unwanted garbage rooted in sensationalism for ratings and greed.

When finished watching, you can thank the uncompromising excellence of British actress Emma Thompson and British director Kirk Jones for the incredible excellence of Nanny McPhee. I watched this film and went to bed wondering if it was as good as I thought it was. I watched it again the next night and did not wonder again.

Thompson—who has won 2 Academy Awards for Best Actress (Howards End in 1992) and Best Adapted Screenplay (Sense and Sensibility in 1995), and 2 BAFTAs for Best Actress (Howards End and Sense and Sensibility)—wrote the screenplay for Nanny McPhee. BAFTA is the equivalent of the American Oscars, the British Academy of Film and Television Arts.

Kirk Jones (not to be confused with the American rapper and actor Kirk Jones) is a gifted writer and director with great work that has not been properly recognized. Combine Emma Thompson with Kirk Jones and you have the formula for a winning production.

In 1998 Jones wrote and directed his first feature film "Waking Ned Devine" with a budget of $3 million that grossed $90 million worldwide. I believe Jones should have two Oscars and probably would if it were not for the fact that Hollywood's voters are too busy pawing each other and posing for pictures to correct their near-sightedness.

Until a comedy is made that is better than Waking Ned Devine it shall remain my favorite comedy of all time.

If it sounds like I am gushing over Nanny McPhee, I am. There are so many good lines in this script I would not dare to recount them here. Watch the movie and enjoy the experience of listening carefully.

Nanny McPhee the movie is named for a governess (Emma Thompson) who uses magic to rein in the behavior of 7 out-of-control children of recently widowed Mr. Brown (Colin Firth).

Mr. Brown must answer to his Aunt Adelaide (Angela Lansbury) who has been financing his family's livelihood and now commands him to marry within the month or she will cut off his sustenance. His bratty children have a genuine fear of losing their father should he marry the widowed Mrs. Quickly (Celia Imrie).

The children, who collectively have driven away 17 consecutive nannies, are led by their older brother Simon (Thomas Sangster). All 6 of the younger children—Tora (Eliza Bennett), Lily (Jennifer Rae Daykin), Eric (Raphael Coleman), Sebastian (Samuel Honywood), Christianna (Holly Gibbs) and Baby Agatha (Hebe Barnes and Zinnia Barnes)—face the same fate as Simon.

Enter Nanny McPhee with her magic and old-fashioned discipline that makes the children aware of their behavior, and soon the children become models of what to do and when to do it.

Beyond the obvious endearments, what makes this film excellent is two huge but subtle elements.

One is the guts of the writer and actress Emma Thompson who creates a character for herself that is repugnant upon first sight. She has two huge warts on her face and an enormous tooth cascading down over her lower lip. Nanny McPhee will repel you upon first look. Thompson's acting skills allow her to be perfectly relaxed and confident despite her appearance. Her make-up was done by designer Peter King.

The other element is the discovery by the children that when they learn a major lesson, one of the warts disappears, and eventually through model behavior by the children, Nanny McPhee becomes better and better looking.

In many such films as this—the "Sound of Music" with Julie Andrews comes to mind—the nanny only influences the children. In Nanny McPhee, the children also become powerful agents for positive change, empowering them in the process. Never underestimate the insight and brilliance of Emma Thompson, the writer or actress.

A tip of the hat to Angela Lansbury in her role as well. Lansbury is a living legend who never goes out of character as Aunt Adelaide. From Broadway to Hollywood to television and back, Angela Lansbury is a British national treasure.

Nanny McPhee is based on the "Nurse Matilda" books by Christianna Brand. Emma Thompson said it took her 9 years to write the screenplay; it took her 5 years to write her Oscar-winning Sense and Sensibility.

Trust me when I say that Nanny McPhee was worth the wait and then some. Watch Nanny McPhee and learn with your children some important lessons in human nature.

Editor's Notes: Read my other reviews on kids and youth who are inspirational, including "Akeelah and the Bee", "Saint Ralph", "High School Musical" and "2 Movies About Young Adults That Prove Their Integrity and Substance".

Editor's Note: Explore my main blog at:
http://www.edbagleyblog.com
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Movie Review: "A Lot Like Love" Is Light Enough to Fly Away and Never Be Missed

2007-12-16T17:20:00.000-08:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

A Lot Like Love – 2 Stars (Average)

"A Lot Like Love" chronicles the indecision of two young adults who are misguided and muddled in both their careers and love life. They haul off and do nothing with themselves and then wonder why they are not happy. No wonder they are confused about love.

Perhaps they represent too many young adults today, bouncing around like a small metal ball in a pinball contest. Small in thought, small in words and small in deeds. Drifting, detached, uncommitted, meaningless and terribly out of touch with themselves and everyone around them.

This is Hollywood, of course, and so they do have unplanned sex that is more like buying a bologna sandwich, taking the wrapper off, eating it, throwing the wrapper away, and wondering what's for dinner.

The politically correct expression for this might be casual sex, but no one is laughing, least of all the participants. They have no substance, little depth, and cannot possibly calculate the emotional damage they are doing to themselves. After drifting into and out of liaisons, it is a wonder they ever figure it out.

Life is a pretty good deal for anyone who is paying attention; the two love boobs in this romantic comedy deserve each other. Of course they end up together in the end, that is the point of a romantic comedy, otherwise it would be romantic tragedy.

A Lot Like Love moves along at the same pace as its leading characters, Emily (Amanda Peet) and Oliver (Ashton Kutcher), slow to very slow.

It reminds me oddly enough of Max McGee's comment to his Green Bay Packer coach Vince Lombardi. Lombardi liked to start every season with the fundamentals, so he would hold up a football on the first day of practice, look serious, and say, "Gentlemen, this is a football," to which McGee—the chief clown among the players, replied, "Uh, Coach, could you slow down a little. You're going too fast for us."

The script is the creation of award-winning writer Colin Patrick Lynch who has apparently done some good work, but this wasn't it.

At best, Lynch understands the teenybopper set as the only award for this film was the Teen Choice Award for Choice Movie Rockstar Moment when Ashton Kutcher sang "I'll Be There for You". As tennyboppers are slaves to the latest fashion trends and pop music it comes as no great surprise.

The premise of A Lot Like Love, directed by Nigel Cole in apparently a somber moment, has two people meeting on a flight, toying with the idea of liking each other, and then dismissing the relationship only to keep bumping into each other over the next 7 years.

The movie has its comedic seconds, twists and turns, and a decent ending. What it lacks in substance among the characters it makes up for in slow development, which is why it was not a stunner at awards time and came off as an average effort.

Both Amanda Peet and Ashton Kutcher deserved a better script and character development. Peet must play a pothead with a fried brain, and Kutcher plays a dipstick that lives at home with his mother and sister.

Eventually Peet's character ends up in a halter-top party dress and looks like a million bucks as long as she doesn't open her mouth. Kutcher's character is hopeless, it's a wonder he can find his way home. This was supposed to be a comedy, but it was not THAT funny.

See this film once, and if someone invites you back a second time, tell them you have already seen it five times and are sick of it.

Editor's Notes: Read my reviews on kids and youth who are inspirational, including "Akeelah and the Bee", "Saint Ralph", "High School Musical" and "2 Movies About Young Adults That Prove Their Integrity and Substance".

Editor's Note: Explore my main blog at:
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Movie History: If You Thought "Titanic" Was the Largest Grossing Film in the U. S., Think Again

2007-12-01T00:07:00.000-08:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

A lot of moviegoers think that "Titanic" is the largest grossing domestic film of all time, primarily because of its huge popularity as well as topping $600+ million in revenue following its release in 1997.

In fact, Titanic was the largest grossing domestic film in actual dollars, with Star Wars a distant second at $460+ million in 1977.

Because money not only talks but sings and dances as well in our society, we remain impressed by large amounts of money.

Not satisfied with this approach, I looked for a more accurate measure to compare and found it in adjusting for inflation. When adjusted for inflation, the actual moneymaking value of films takes on a new look.

Titanic, while No. 1 in actual dollars generated, is only No. 6 when adjusted for inflation.

The real No. 1 largest grossing domestic film in moviemaking history is none other than "Gone with the Wind", which grossed $198+ million in 1939 but its inflation-adjusted value in today's money is $1.329 billion (1,329,000,000+).

Here are the Top 25 moneymaking movies when inflation adjusted:

1) Gone with the Wind - $1.329+ billion (actual gross of $198+ million in 1939).

2) Star Wars - $1.172+ billion ($460+ million in 1977).

3) The Sound of Music - $937+ million ($158+ million 1965).

4) E. T.: The Extra-Terrestrial - $933+ million ($435+million in 1982).

5) The Ten Commandments - $861+ million ($65+ million in 1956).

6) Titanic - $844+ million ($600+ million in 1997).

7) Jaws - $842+ million ($260+ million in 1975).

8) Doctor Zhivago - $816+ million ($111+ million in 1965).

9) The Exorcist - $727+ million ($232+ million 1973).

10) Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs - $717+ million ($184+ million in 1937).

11) 101 Dalmatians - $657+ million ($144+ million in 1961).

12) The Empire Strikes Back - $646+ million ($290+ million in 1980).

13) Ben-Hur - $644+ million ($74 million in 1959).

14) Return of the Jedi - $618+ million ($309 million in 1983).

15) The Sting - $586+ million ($156 million in 1973).

16) Raiders of the Lost Ark - $579+ million ($242+ million in 1981).

17) Jurassic Park - $567+ million ($357+ million in 1993).

18) The Graduate - $563+ million ($104+ million in 1967).

19) Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace - $558+ million ($431 million in 1999).

20) Fantasia - $546+ million ($76+ million in 1941).

21) The Godfather - $519+ million ($134+ million in 1972).

22) Forrest Gump - $516+ million ($329+ million in 1994).

23) Mary Poppins - $514+ million ($102+ million in 1964).

24) The Lion King - $508+ million ($328+ million in 1994).

25) Grease - $506+ million ($188+ million in 1978).

Here are 10 more eye-poppers among the Top 100 grossing films when inflation adjusted:

44) Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest - $423+ million ($423+ million in 2006).

46) Blazing Saddles - $416 million ($119+ million in 1974).

55) The Passion of the Christ - $392 million ($370 million in 2004).

62) Smokey and the Bandit - $373+ million ($126+ million in 1977).

69) The Rocky Horror Picture Show - $362+ million ($112+ million in 1975).

70) Rocky - $362+ million ($117 million in 1976).

80) M.A.S.H. - $353+ million ($81+ million in 1970).

81) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom - $352+ million ($179+ million in 1984).

88) Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl - $333+ million ($305+ million in 2003).

96) Sergeant York - $316+ million ($16+ million in 1941).

All figures are adjusted to the estimated 2007 average ticket price of $6.58. Some of these films had multiple releases; the release date used reflects the year of initial release.

Editor's Note: Read my movie reviews on families, including "A Christmas Story", "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" and "Secondhand Lions". You will smile, laugh, cry and feel better for the experience. Don't just experience life, live life!

Editor's Note: Explore my main blog at:
http://www.edbagleyblog.com
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"Chariots of Fire" Is Very Simply the Greatest Running Movie Ever Made

2007-11-28T20:33:00.000-08:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Chariots of Fire – 4 Stars (Excellent)

As a former record-setting championship runner, it is normal and natural for me to proclaim "Chariots of Fire" as simply the greatest running movie every made. What is strange is famed movie critic Roger Ebert's reaction to this film classic.

"I have no interest in running and am not a partisan in the British class system," says Ebert. "Then why should I have been so deeply moved by 'Chariots of Fire', a British film that has running and class as its subjects? Like many great films, Chariots of Fire takes its nominal subjects as occasions for much larger statements about human nature."

Ebert is drawn to Chariots of Fire like a bee to honey. He cannot resist the powerful presentation of this true story about two men of principles and integrity that use running as a magnet to attract followers to their cause.

One is Harold Abrahams (Ben Cross), a British man to the core and a Jew whose father is an immigrant and financier from Lithuania. The other is Eric Liddell (Ian Charleson), a Scot who is the son of missionaries in China. Both have the God-given gift of speed and seek to bring home medals from the 1924 Paris Olympics.

Abrahams feels the sting of discrimination because of his Jewish heritage and runs for the glory of Britain and the acceptance that he believes will make him whole; there is no question he is worthy. Aubrey Montague (Nicholas Farrell) is his close friend and confidant.

"You, Aubrey, are my most complete man," says Abrahams. "You're brave, compassionate, kind: a content man. That is your secret, contentment. I am 24 and I've never known it. I'm forever in pursuit and I don't even know what I am chasing."

Abrahams is driven by his quest for a gold medal in the 100-meter dash. He will let nothing come between him and his goal, even the love of his life Sybil Gordon (Alice Krige). He enters Cambridge University and quickly becomes a campus standout by becoming the first person to successfully run around the Trinity Great Court from the first toll until the clock strikes 12. His competition is Lord Andrew Lindsay (Nigel Havers) who pushes him to glory.

Abrahams tells his friend Aubrey Montague that he has never been beaten in competition. When he faces Eric Liddell for the first time he loses, and his immaturity surfaces when he declares to Sybil Gordon that "If I can't win, I won't run!" Sybil replies, "If you don't run, you can't win."

Fortunately, the famous trainer Sam Mussabini (Ian Holm) is at the race and tells Abrahams he is over striding and points out that over striding is the kiss of death for a sprinter. He reluctantly agrees to coach Abrahams so he can beat Liddell in the 100 meters.

Sam Mussabini tells Abrahams that Liddell is a fast gut runner who digs deep, but reminds him that a short sprint is run on nerves, and then adds that it's tailor-made for neurotics.

Eric Liddell is more than fast, he is one of the fastest runners anywhere, a fact that is about to be demonstrated to the world in the Olympic games. Liddell is self-assured and confident and unlike, Abrahams, runs for the greater glory of God.

When his missionary sister Jennie Liddell (Cheryl Campbell) fears his focus will be lost on running, Eric replies that "I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast. And when I run I feel his pleasure."

In the Olympic games, both Abrahams and Liddell will clash with two very fast Americans, Charles Paddock—the world record holder in the 100 meters—and Jackson Scholz—a 200-meter sprinter.

When Eric Liddell learns that the preliminaries for the 100-meter dash will be run on Sunday, he refuses to compete. When confronted by the British Olympic Committee and Lord Cadogan reprimands him for his impertinence, Liddell replies that "The impertinence lies, sir, with those who seek to influence a man to deny his beliefs!"

At the 11th hour and 59th minute, Lord Andrew Lindsey intervenes with a solution: Since he has already won a bronze medal in the 200-meter race, let Liddell replace him in the 400-meter dash.

Liddell is then seen at church delivering a guest sermon and quotes the Bible prophetically from Isaiah, Chapter 40, Verse 31: "But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint" (King James Version).

Chariots of Fire has an unknown cast with spectacular photography and music as well as many running scenes.

Roger Ebert keys in on the musical score, calling it "one of the most remarkable sound tracks of any film" with music by the Greek composer Vangelis. "His compositions . . . are as evocative, and as suited to the material, as the different but also perfectly matched scores (as) 'Zorba the Greek'."

Vangelis' use of an electronic score may have been ill-suited to a period piece like Chariots of Fire, but it worked beyond anyone's expectations, creating a new style in film scoring. He played all of the instruments, including synthesizers, acoustic piano, battery and percussion.

Against this nostalgic backdrop the movie opens with Lord Andrew Lindsey delivering the eulogy for Harold Abahams funeral:

"Let us praise famous men and our fathers that begat us. All these men were honored in their generations and were a glory in their days. We are here today to give thanks for the life of Harold Abrahams. To honor the legend. Now there are just two of us—young Aubrey Montague and myself—who can close our eyes and remember those few young men with hope in our hearts and wings on our heels."

From this incredible opening follows the flashback and the narration that recounts the challenges and glory of Great Britain's athletes at the 1924 Olympic Games. The next scene is the athletes running along the beach to what has become known as the Chariots of Fire theme that would later be released as a single in 1982 and top the charts in the United States.

In the end, Harold Abrahams would win the 100-meter dash, and would also win a silver medal as the opening leg (runner) on the 4x100 relay team. Eric Liddell—the Flying Scotsman—would win the 400-meter dash in an Olympic record 47.6 seconds, and also picked up a bronze medal in the 200-meter dash, won by Jackson Scholz with Charles Paddock second.

Among many poignant moments in Chariots of Fire is Eric Liddell at the starting line of the 400-meter dash and Jackson Scholz, who was not competing in the race, hands him a written note of text from the Bible. The quotation was from 1st Samuel, 2nd Chapter. Verse 30, "Those who honor me I will honor." Liddell ran the 400 meters with the note in his hand and set an Olympic record.

Abrahams would marry his sweetheart and become the elder statesman of track and field in Britain. Liddell would return to China as a missionary with his physician brother Rob and ultimately be imprisoned during the Chinese-Japanese War in 1942.

Winston Churchill arranged for a prisoner exchange to get Liddell out of the camp (his family had left China before the hostilities started) but Liddell—ever faithful to the end in serving others—gave up his place to a pregnant mother. He died of a brain tumor in 1945, 5 months before the camp was liberated. Even today, 64 years later, he is honored as Scotland's greatest athlete.

If you have a shred of integrity, principles, ethics, morals, honor, sensitivity or patriotism, you will love Chariots of Fire and be moved by its message.

If you do not, I cannot do anything for you but let you know that Chariots of Fire is more than the greatest running movie ever made, it is also one of the greatest films ever made.

Chariots of Fire, released in 1981, was a British film written by Colin Welland and directed by Hugh Hudson. It would draw moviegoers everywhere by winning 4 Oscars at the Academy Awards for Best Picture (Producer David Puttman), Best Original Screenplay (Colin Welland), Best Original Music Score (Vangelis) and Best Costume Design (Milena Canonero).

Chariots of Fire was also nominated for Oscars for Best Supporting Actor (Ian Holm as Sam Mussabini), Best Director (Hugh Hudson) and Best Film Editing (Terry Rawlings). It also had 12 other wins and 15 more nominations, including Best Foreign Film at the Golden Globe Awards.

Chariots of Fire remains among my list of the Top 10 films ever made. It passes my most stringent test of asking myself after seeing a film: Am I a better person for having seen this film? The answer is yes, a thousand times yes!

Even today, 26 years after seeing Chariots of Fire for the first time, I get goose bumps whenever I see it again.

Every time I see it I pull down my Cambridge Factfinder from my library shelf and stare at the 1924 Paris Olympic results. There I see three gold medal winners—Harold Abrahams of Great Britain in the 100-Meter Dash (10.6), Eric Liddell of Great Britain in the 400-Meter Dash (an Olympic record 47.6) and Douglas Lowe of Great Britain in the 800-Meter Run (1:52.4). Lowe was not in Colin Welland's script.

I think of that glorious time when some few ran with hope in their hearts and wings on their heels.

Editor's Note for Runners – Read my sports articles on "What Makes a Person Want to Run, and Why Few Will Ever Know the Joy of Running", "A St. Patrick's Day Toast to Irish Runners Marcus O'Sullivan and Eamonn Coghlan" and "Millrose Games Celebrates 100th Birthday as Track's Most Prestigious Indoor Event".

Editor's Note for Movie Buffs - Read my movie reviews on families: "A Christmas Story", "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" and "Secondhand Lions". You will smile, laugh, cry and feel better for the experience.

Editor's Note: Explore my main blog at:
http://www.edbagleyblog.com
Discover 136 Movie Reviews, 68 Sports Articles, 88 Articles on Lessons in Life, 18 Articles on Jobs and Careers, 30 Articles on Internet Marketing and 591 Famous Quotes.

Movie Review - Nancy Meyers Comes Up With a Winner: A Romantic Comedy that Really Works

2007-11-23T22:51:00.000-08:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

The Holiday – 3 Stars (Good)

Christmas is coming soon and everybody is busy getting ready for another holiday season. A movie can be great comic relief. We want to be entertained and interested by a story that keeps us attentive and has a happy ending.

Nancy Meyers delivers what we need as the writer/director of "The Holiday", a romantic comedy with Cameron Diaz, Kate Winslet, Jude Law, Jack Black and Eli Wallach. Described by one viewer as the "Swiss Chocolate of Romantic Comedies", it certainly qualifies as its only winning award was the Teen Choice Award for Best Chick Flick.

Actually, I found The Holiday to be a tad more than just a chick flick. As a student of relationships it provided a happy ending to the dilemma of women who get involved in a relationship with men who almost appear interested but invariably cheat.

The premise of The Holiday is pretty simple. Stuck in impossible relationships with two-timing men, Los Angeles resident Amanda (Cameron Diaz) and Londoner Iris (Kate Winslet) decide to swap homes over the Christmas holiday in an effort to forget their troubles.

Both Amanda and Iris find themselves in unusual circumstances and are forced to come to grips with who they are and what they want in a relationship. Amanda must look inward to find the emotion that escaped her in her youth, and Iris must look outward to get over being self-absorbed in her perfect relationship that does not exist.

Amanda, the owner and creative force of a movie-trailers editing firm in face-paced Tinseltown, dumps her cheat Ethan (Edward Burns) and finds herself even lonelier in a cottage in Surrey (near London) when she meets Iris' brother Graham (Jude Law), a widower with two daughters. She has not cried tears since the breakup of her parents when she was a teen.

Iris is a writer of some note with The Telegraph newspaper in London. She pines for Jasper Bloom (Rufus Sewell), who uses her for three years but then gets engaged to a co-worker at The Telegraph. Jasper is a self-centered, self-absorbed cad with no heart and no mind who satisfies his most needy body part. Iris is too in love to see straight.

Iris meets Arthur Abbott (Eli Wallach), an accomplished movie writer in Beverly Hills who you would love to have as your great grandfather. Arthur tells Iris that "in the movies we have leading ladies and we have best friends. You, I can tell, are a leading lady, but for some reason you are behaving like the best friend."

Eventually Iris meets Miles (Jack Black), a film composer who suffers from the same ill-fated relationship troubles as Iris, and the two form a gentle bond of assured happiness.

The chemistry between Amanda and Graham is excellent, and The Holiday benefits from some great Christmas music and good direction by Nancy Meyers.

Guys are not going to go mushy over this film but would do well to pay attention to what girls really want. The Holiday is a great film for the Christmas season, it will not stress your emotions but will fill you up with good feelings.

Editor's Note: Read my other reviews on romantic comedies, including "Something's Gotta Give" (written and directed by Nancy Meyers) and "What Women Want" (directed by Nancy Meyers).

Editor's Note: Explore my main blog at:
http://www.edbagleyblog.com
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"Lost in Translation" Makes the Meaning of Life Sound Elusive

2007-10-31T20:00:00.000-08:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Lost in Translation – 2 Stars (Average)

"Lost in Translation" was written and directed by Sofia Coppola and won enough awards to fill a grocery cart.

The independent film earned Sofia Coppola an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay and also had 2003 Oscar nominations for Best Picture (won by "The Lord of the Rings, the Return of the King", bad timing for Sofia), Best Director (won by Peter Jackson for Lord of the Rings) and Bill Murray as Best Actor (won by Sean Penn in "Mystic River").

Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow in "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" lost the same nomination as Murray. I would have voted for Johnny Depp as Best Actor rather than Sean Penn.

Sofia Coppola's creation also won Golden Globe awards for Best Picture, Best Screenplay and Best Actor (Bill Murray), and earned nominations for Best Director and Best Actress (Scarlett Johansson).

The Oscar win was among 70 wins and 58 more nominations. To say Sofia Coppola's creation was lauded by the critics would be a huge understatement.

Seeing this film, I would not have guessed it would have won so many awards.

Sofia Coppola wrote the lead role specifically for Bill Murray, and later said that if Murray turned it down, she would have scrapped the project.

She was nothing if not persistent in recruiting Murray for the role. In 1999, Murray apparently replaced his talent agency with a voice mailbox and an 800 number he gives out sparingly.

Coppola reportedly left hundreds of messages before Murray finally called back to discuss her offer to cast him as the star. Coppola apparently knows something about selecting actors who win awards.

Lost in Translation follows Bob Harris (Bill Murray), a fading American film actor with a humdrum marriage, who is in Tokyo to do a Japanese whiskey commercial. He meets Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson), a recently college graduate in philosophy and the bored wife of a photographer doing a shoot in Tokyo.

They develop an unlikely friendship when the language barrier, Japanese culture and their own discontent surfaces. When it is time for them to resume their normal lives, leaving becomes difficult.

I give Sofia Coppola a lot of credit for not writing into the script a sexual relationship between the two. In Hollywood this would be like taking the financier's money and not worshipping at his or her feet.

Coppola had it her way because this independent film cost only $4 million to make, was filmed in 27 days and grossed $44.5 million at last count.

The opening of the film has a lingering shot of Scarlett Johansson (as Charlotte) lying in bed sideways in her panties. Johansson was apparently reluctant to film the shot until Sofia Coppola modeled the panties herself.

Thankfully, this opening was not a precursor to the film, which sought to explore a more important issue: the meaning of life. As two unhappy individuals in their roles, both Murray and Johansson struggle to find real meaning in their current circumstances.

What happens in their exploration is really nothing special. As a viewer I was waiting to see where their relationship was going because they came to no conclusions together, or on their own.

Therein is why I gave this film an average rating rather than a good or excellent rating. I wanted real substance in this film that I could relate to in my everyday life, and I was left wanting.

How odd is it that Bob and Charlotte never introduce themselves to each other despite spending days together contemplating their mutual miserable situations? This makes no sense to me whatsoever, and does not ring true in real life.

Despite winning an Oscar for her original screenplay, Sofia Coppola does not give the substance I expect. Hollywood pours out awards for her effort, and to me it only reflects why Hollywood is called Tinseltown, all show, confusion and stress without real substance.

Ultimately, both characters are seeking meaning in their lives.

One viewer wrote this about the film, "Overall the film is just perfect. The acting, the direction, the soundtrack, plot, themes, humor, visuals . . . what's not to like?"

What's not to like is this: People who seek true love seldom find it. People who seek the perfect mate never find the perfect mate. People who seek to find the true meaning of life seldom find it.

The reason is simple: you do not bring meaning to your life by seeking meaning in your life, you bring meaning to your life by giving meaning to your life. Life does not come to you, you come to life, or you become an unhappy, dissatisfied person.

When we blame others we give up our ability to change.

Lost in Translation has some great scenes of Tokyo, but like pictures in a photo album, they only reflect the meaning you bring to them.

Note: Read my movie reviews on "Waking Ned Devine" (arguably the greatest Irish comedy ever, and my favorite comedy film ever), and "Million Dollar Baby" (an Irish cast and flavor wherein we find Clint Eastwood playing a boxing trainer/manager who studies Irish Gaelic and promotes his woman fighter Maggie Fitzgerald—played by Best Actress Oscar winner Hillary Swank). These two films are excellent.

Editor's Note: Explore my main blog at::
http://www.edbagleyblog.com
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"Tipping the Velvet" Is First Alternative Lifestyle Film with Educational Message - Part 2

2007-08-24T20:51:00.001-07:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Tipping the Velvet – 4 Stars (Excellent)

What makes Tipping the Velvet an excellent film is its talented cast with a great presentation, and it has a life-changing, meaningful message by a lesbian about innocence, desire, passion, betrayal, empathy, change, independence, resourcefulness, vision, love and happiness while retaining a sense of self-worth and self-esteem.

It is incredibly unusual to see an alternative lifestyle film with a happy ending.

I review controversial films because they are ultimately about relationships and relationships are the foundation of our lives.

As I grow older I understand that the most important things in my life have nothing to do with money or material things, and everything to do with my relationships involving my wife, my children, my grandchildren, extended family and friends.

What matters over the long haul is the well-being of people, not whether we agree or disagree with their lifestyle choices.

The BBC has done a tremendous service in bringing this movie to television with the quality of a BBC broadcast that includes great writing, great sound, great cinematography, great direction and a great cast.

Based on Sarah Waters' acclaimed debut novel, Tipping the Velvet was adapted by Andrew Davies, an Emmy award-winning British screenwriter who has also written "Doctor Zhivago", "Bridget Jone's Diary", "Sense and Sensibility", "Vanity Fair" and "Pride and Prejudice". Davies is a very talented heavyweight.

Tipping the Velvet tells the story of Nan Ashley (Rachael Starling, the real life daughter of Diana Rigg) who shucks oysters and serves customers at her father's seaside restaurant in Victorian England during the 1890's.

Nan's mundane life turns upside down when she sees an extraordinary performance by an attractive traveling male impersonator named Kitty Butler (Keeley Haws). Nan's innocent interest is fueled when she is asked by Kitty to become her dresser while she is performing in Whitstable.

When Kitty is recruited by Walter Bliss (John Bowe), and heads to London to become a big time entertainer, she invites Nan to accompany her as her dresser. Nan falls in love with Kitty, joins her act as a performer and ultimately the two become secret lovers.

For Nan the relationship is euphoric and her happiness real until she returns from a vacation trip home and discovers that Kitty and her manager Walter have become lovers and are to marry.

Nan's initial innocence and desire are now confronted by betrayal and rejection. Despite being devastated, Nan awakes from her stupor and asserts her independence by walking the streets of London disguised as a young man for hire, performing oral sex so she can survive.

When she is assaulted, Nan is rescued by a rich widow who gives her every comfort in exchange for lesbian sex. Nan becomes a prisoner and slave to her passions for pleasing and being pleased.

Eventually there is a tiff and the widow, Diana Leathaby (Anna Chancellor), throws Nan out, where she is left penniless and alone to fend for herself with nothing but the clothes on her back. Despite her misfortune, Nan vows to survive.

Nan now learns the plight of those in need and turns for help to the only person she can remember, Florence Banner (Jodhi May), who she had met earlier in better days.

Florence and the brother Ralph Banner (Hugh Bonneville) reluctantly take in the battered and exhausted Nan for a night, but Nan is determined to change her ways.

She becomes resourceful in convincing Florence and Ralph that she can clean, cook, and watch the baby that the Banners are raising.

Nan's vision is to make herself so indispensable that she will remain welcome in the Banner home despite her 7-year journey from innocence to unbridled passion to debauchery, recovery and finally well-being and acceptance.

Ultimately Nan and Florence fall in love. Then Kitty returns to Nan's life once again when Kitty, wishing to resume her torrid relationship with Nan, learns that Nan is back performing on stage.

Nan is then forced to decide between the attractive, passionate Kitty and the more loyal, loving Florence. For once, Nan makes a wise choice in staying with Florence, finding the love and happiness she wanted but had never possessed.

The ending is what makes Tipping the Velvet an excellent movie. When all is said and done, Nan and Florence survive in their relationship as well-adjusted adults who find each other and continue living with their self-esteem and self-worth intact.

Other than a few awards from lesbian theater groups, Tipping the Velvet was ignored by the critics, and especially Hollywood. This is why I write reviews, to separate the wheat from the chaff and recognize substance in filmmaking wherever it exists.

The more knowledge and understanding we have of people, races, cultures, mores and lifestyles, the sooner we come to understand that we are all connected.

We tend to value acceptance and tolerance only when it is taken from us.

"Too often we enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought." John F. Kennedy said it, and I believe it.

And what does "tipping the velvet" mean? See the movie, not to find out what tipping the velvet means but because it is an excellent film on alternative lifestyles. Support films that increase understanding and acceptance.

(Editor's Note: This is Part 2 of a 2-Part Review.)

Note: Read my movie reviews on the two sequels to "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl": "Dead Man's Chest" and "At World's End".

Editor's Note: Get a Free Analysis of PIP, Empowerism and SFI for Affiliate Marketers. Email me at: edbagley@comcast.net and put "Subscribe List 2" in the Subject Line.

"Tipping the Velvet" Is First Alternative Lifestyle Film with an Educational Message - Part 1

2007-08-23T21:27:00.000-07:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Tipping the Velvet – 4 Stars (Excellent)

"Tipping the Velvet" is what some viewers would consider a terrible film about a sinful, raunchy lifestyle, and what I would consider an excellent film despite any apparent raunchiness.

After writing 135 reviews, including what I would consider 8 alternative lifestyle films, Tipping the Velvet is the absolute best film and only the second film among the 8 in this genre that I would recommend seeing.

Here are the films I considered terrible and the reasons why. I gave a "1 Star - Terrible Rating" to these 6 films:

"Boys Don't Cry" which won Hilary Swank a Best Actress Oscar for her performance as Brandon Teena, a transgendered teen who was born a woman named Teena Brandon who preferred life as a male and lived as a male until it was discovered that "he" was born female. This film had a very tragic ending.

"Ed Wood" which was the real life story of Ed Wood, known as the worst film director in Hollywood history. He liked to dress in women's clothes while directing low-budget, absolutely terrible films.

"Imagine Me & You" shows a bride at the altar simply looking at another woman and starting an awakening that leads to the destruction of her marriage and living happily ever after with her new lesbian partner.

"Myra Breckenridge" is Gore Vidal’s controversial film about Myron Breckenridge, a man who goes to Europe for a sex change operation and comes back as Myra Breckenridge, a man-hating woman.

"The Rocky Horror Picture Show" finds a newly engaged couple whose car breaks down and they seek help from a Transylvanian transvestite involved in a bizarre lifestyle.

This was one of Susan Sarandon's early films; she would later earn 4 Academy Award nominations for Best Actress, and an Oscar for her role in "Dead Man Walking".

"Transamerica" which won Felicity Huffman a Best Actress Oscar nomination and a Best Actress Golden Globe Award for her performance as Bree, a pre-operative male-to-female transsexual who takes an unexpected journey from Los Angeles to New York when she learns that she fathered a son earlier in life.

Receiving my "2 Star – Average Rating" were:

"The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert" which has two drag queens and a transsexual driving a lavender bus named Priscilla across the Australian desert to a gig at an isolated resort.

"Breakfast on Pluto" is a gender preference movie about a boy who really wants to be a girl, and settles for being a transvestite trying to find a place in a world that curses his very existence.

The best of these 8 films is Breakfast on Pluto, which has Irish actor Cillian Murphy in the role of Patrick "Kitten" Braden. I recommend seeing Breakfast on Pluto as it is far better than the other 7 films, and Cillian Murphy proves passable as a woman and gives a great performance.

All of these films are controversial due to their subject matter.

It is very difficult to make a great film.
It is difficult to make a good film.
It is almost impossible to make a good film when the subject matter is not even on the radar acceptance screen of the average viewer.

Alternative lifestyle films do not win awards even if the actors involved get an Oscar (as Hilary Swank did in Boys Don't Cry), get nominated for an Oscar (as Felicity Huffman did in Transamerica) or get nominated for a Golden Globe (as Cillian Murphy did in Breakfast on Pluto).

The typical moviegoer does not want to talk about alternative lifestyles much less see them. We are uncomfortable with what we do not know or understand.

There will be no great acceptance for alternative films now or in the distant future. Hollywood is OK with accepting alternative lifestyles, but Hollywood is generally far more liberal, permissive and self-absorbed than mainstream America.

A big part of the acceptance problem is the Hollywood filmmakers. Producers of alternative lifestyle films have millions of moviegoers glued to their presentation, but they continually fail to deliver an important message involving understanding and knowledge.

With a laser beam on sensationalism and the cash register, Hollywood filmmakers would have us believe that it is impossible to tell a good alternative lifestyle story with significant meaning without using intensely brutal rape scenes, sexuality, filthy language, drug usage and murder.

All of these aforementioned events only reinforce all of the stereotypes, prejudices, bigotry, stupidity and transphobia already present in our society and culture.

I am not sure what the phobia is for transgendered people so I simply created transphobia because homophobia means an extreme and irrational aversion to homosexuality and homosexual people, which is not what we are talking about here.

And then there is Tipping the Velvet which does exactly that: tell a good alternative lifestyle story with significant meaning.

Just as Breakfast on Pluto is a good film made in Ireland, Tipping the Velvet is an excellent film produced in England for the BBC (British Broadcasting Company) by Sally Head Production.

The BBC brought this controversial movie to a 5-millon strong mainstream television audience. An American filmmaker has not yet been able to produce a quality alternative lifestyle film for television. Tipping the Velvet is really three stories in one as it was originally aired in three parts and runs 2 hours and 57 minutes.

(Editor's Note: This is Part 1 of a 2-Part Review.)

Note: Read my movie reviews on the two sequels to "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl": "Dead Man's Chest" and "At World's End".

"Ryan's Daughter" Is a Love Triangle with Passion, Adultery, Rebellion, a Village Idiot and Irish Whiskey

2007-08-22T22:47:00.000-07:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Ryan's Daughter – 4 Stars (Excellent)

"Ryan's Daughter" is a love story that evolves into a love triangle set in the epic splendor of an isolated village on Ireland's scenic Dingle Peninsula. Like all love triangles, it ends in a disaster that becomes a tragedy.

Rosy Ryan (Sarah Miles) seeks to find that certain something that is missing in her life and thinks she finds it when she announces her love for her former schoolteacher, Charles Shaughnessy (Robert Mitchum), who is old enough to be her father.

Unfortunately for Rosy, her marriage brings her love but not passion. It is passion she finds when she meets and instantly falls into the arms of Major Randolph Doryan (Christopher Jones), a young British officer assigned to the village.

Major Doryan is a World War I hero who ends up in the village as part of the British occupation while the war continues on in Europe. The villagers resent the British presence and will jump at a chance to fight for their freedom.

Tim O'Leary (Barry Foster) leads a resistance force that awaits the arrival of German weapons so they can finally arm and defend themselves against the British takeover.

The villagers become aware of Rosy's infidelity through the village idiot Michael (John Mills) who is mute and considered a half-wit, but Michael is clever enough to steal away the major's uniform and medal while he is busy making love to Rosy in a secluded island cave.

Michael adores Rosy but instinctively knows he has no chance. He feels a kinship with Major Doryan as they both suffer from profound limps. Both the limp and shell shock are from Doryan's war injuries.

Tom Ryan (Leo McKern) is Rosy's father and owner of the local pub. He is a big freedom talker who is taken at his word to be a freedom fighter by the rebel leader O'Leary, who leans on him for support in gathering up the German weapons that are dropped off at sea and floating to shore.

You just have to see the storm scene, huge waves are crashing against the rocky shore while villagers are scrambling to recover broken boxes of rifles, bullets and dynamite.

When the rebels seek to haul off the weapons stash, they are met by British soldiers who have been tipped off by Tom Ryan. O'Leary is shot by Major Doryan and captured while trying to escape. It is assumed he will be hung for leading the rebellion.

Once exposed, the villagers consider the unfaithful Rosy to be the "British officer's whore" as well as a disloyal and dishonorable informant when in fact it is her father. Ryan, whose wife has died, has spoiled his daughter growing up, and it is he who is the silent informer for the British that is never exposed, even when he has an opportunity to save his daughter from harm.

The villagers become a mob and eventually beat up Rosy's husband Charles, strip Rosy naked and cut off her lovely long hair. This is apparently the ultimate disgrace in an Irish village, being ostracized and then humiliated.

Major Doryan ends up on the beach with Michael who has recovered some dynamite. When Doryan realizes his affair with Rosy is over, he uses the dynamite to commit suicide.

Rosy's husband is aware of her adultery but hopes it will run its course, and he will be there when it is over. When he finds he is unable to handle it, he decides to leave Rosy. They both know that they must leave the village and are led out of town by Father Collins (Trevor Howard), the Catholic priest.

Director David Lean had to wait a year before a storm dramatic enough appeared on the Atlantic Ocean to film the weapons recovery scene. This turned into a masterpiece of filming by Freddie Young who won an Oscar for his effort.

Cinematographer Freddie Young captures the raw beauty of Ireland with its ocean cliffs, green countryside, lazy pastures and hidden forest love nest. Young shot the film entirely in a 65mm widescreen format and in Super Panavision. It was the last such film shot until 22 years later when Ron Howard filmed "Far and Away" in 1992.

The storm scene is nothing short of spectacular as well as real. Leo McKern (as Rosy's father Tom) was injured and badly shaken up while filming the storm sequence and nearly drowned. McKern was so upset he vowed never to act again and did not for several years.

The film includes a passionate love scene between Major Doryan and Rosy who was partially exposed (pretty hot for a film released in 1970).

In addition to Young's Oscar, John Mills won an Oscar as Best Supporting Actor for his role as the mute half-wit. Mills bowed at the Academy Awards ceremony when receiving his Oscar and said nothing in the shortest acceptance speech in Oscar history.

Sarah Miles received an Oscar nomination for Best Actress and the film earned another nomination for Best Sound.

Mills also won the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor. Sarah Miles (Best Actress) and Trevor Howard (Best Supporting Actor) won Golden Globe nominations.

A lot of critics at the time were not kind to David Lean as director of Ryan's Daughter. Lean was no slouch. He earned two Best Director Oscars for "The Bridge on the River Kwai" and "Lawrence of Arabia".

Lean was also nominated for a Best Director Oscar for "Doctor Zhivago" which won 5 Oscars and had 4 other nominations. Robert Bolt wrote Doctor Zhivago as well as Ryan's Daughter and "A Man for All Seasons". Bolt was twice married to Sarah Miles.

Lean would outperform his critics. He was voted the 9th greatest film director of all time in the BFI (British Film Institute) "Directors Top Directors" poll in 2002.

Ryan's Daughter is a slow developing romance. The film runs for 3 hours and 16 minutes. Like almost all of Lean's films, Ryan's Daughter was hugely popular with moviegoers and movie lovers alike.

Ryan's Daughter is a story about relationships and an epic film worth watching.

Editor's Note: Read my movie reviews on Broadway musicals: "Camelot", "Chicago", "Fiddler on the Roof" and "The Phantom of the Opera". These are all excellent films.

Johnny Depp Has Made "The Curse of the Black Pearl" the Best Pirate Picture Ever

2007-08-10T22:33:00.000-07:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

The Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl – 4 Stars (Excellent)

The Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl is hands down the best pirate movie ever made, earning 5 Oscar nominations, and Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow delivered the best pirate performance ever.

Johnny Depp looks and acts like a very likeable pirate, and his wearing of the costume and persona is second to none.

Most pirate films rely heavily on the story line and action to carry the film, but Johnny Depp trumps the story line and action in creating a centerpiece character around which only good things happen.

Every cast member and the story itself become better beside Depp who appears as if this role was waiting for him to arrive and become a superstar entertainer and box office smash.

Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl captured and held my imagination from beginning to end. Even the supernatural in the film seems believable and real; the film under the direction of Gore Verbinski is that well done.

The story is really about Captain Jack Sparrow losing his ship (The Black Pearl), and embarking on a quest to find and win The Black Pearl back from his rival, Captain Hector Barbossa (played by Geoffrey Rush) who has pirated the ship away and left Captain Jack marooned on an island.

Along the way Captain Jack survives his banishment and helps save Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightly), Governor Weatherby Swann's (Jonathan Pryce) daughter, who is kidnapped by Captain Barbossa.

Also chasing Elizabeth is the dashing Will Turner (Orlando Bloom), a blacksmith who enlists the aid of Captain Jack Sparrow to find his lifelong love. Bloom is chasing Elizabeth, but Captain Jack is really chasing the treasure that Barbossa found first.

Barbossa and his crew spent the treasure—882 Aztec coins—only to find it cursed, rendering them immortal skeletal beings whose true forms are only revealed in the moonlight.

The curse can only be lifted by returning every coin taken from the chest with a droplet of each pirate's blood. None of those chasing Captain Barbossa and his crew know that they are under a curse.

Elizabeth has 1 of the 882 coins, which she took from Will when he was rescued at sea. Before the chase is over, Will also gains back his coin and tries to use it to bargain for Elizabeth's freedom.

Barbossa takes Will to Isla de Muerta (Spanish for Island of the Dead) to break the curse. In an ensuing fight, Captain Jack and Will manage to break the curse. Barbossa returns to being mortal and Captain Jack shoots and kills him.

And the end? Will reunites with Elizabeth and Captain Jack returns to his Black Pearl and freedom. What could be better?

Under the direction of Verbinski, the movie is filled with interesting characters who collectively help make this film great entertainment.

Among the characters are Joshamee Gibbs (Kevin McNally), Jack Sparrow's friend and first mate; Pintel (Lee Arenberg), a seedy looking pirate aboard the Black Pearl; Ragetti (Mackenzie Crook), Pintel's buddy with a wooden eye that never seems to stay in place; and Murtogg (Giles New) and Mullroy (Angus Barnett), a couple of Royal Navy inept goofballs.

The Curse of the Black Pearl has great writing, directing, acting, photography, suspense, action, surprise and a musical score to match.

It was Depp who improvised Jack Sparrow's catch phrase, "Savvy?", which has already become legend in the movie world.

Depp earned a Best Actor Oscar nomination following release of the film in 2003, but did not win, mainly because he chooses not to live in Hollywood and practice the art of kissing up, sucking up, and putting on a public display of importance.

The Curse of the Black Pearl also received Oscar nominations for Best Makeup, Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing and Best Visual Effects. Despite its 5 nominations, it did not win a single Oscar.

Credit Verbinski with hanging tough. He was attracted to the idea of using modern technology to resurrect a genre that had disappeared after the Golden Age of Hollywood.

Depp was attracted to the story because it was quirky: rather than trying to find treasure the crew of the Black Pearl was trying to return it in order to break its curse.

After researching 18th Century pirates, Depp compared them to modern rock stars and decided to base his performance on his friend Keith Richards, playing Captain Jack in an off-kilter manner.

Disney executives were apparently confused, asking Depp whether his character was drunk or gay, and Michael Eisner even proclaimed "He's ruining the film" when watching rushes.

Depp shot back, saying "Look, these are the choices I made. You know my work. So either trust me or give me the boot." Eisner wised up and took his head out of his backside.

The Curse of the Black Pearl grossed approximately $47 million opening weekend before doing $305 million in the United States and $654 million worldwide, becoming the 4th highest grossing film of 2003.

The Curse of the Black Pearl became the 22nd highest grossing film in USA film history at the time, pretty improbable for a pirate flick, but then there is Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow.

I have seen this film three times and would see it a fourth, which is really saying something for me.

Note: Read my movie reviews on the two sequels to "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl": "Dead Man's Chest" and "At World's End".

"A Man for All Seasons" Demonstrates What Integrity Should Be in the Middle Ages and Now

2007-08-09T00:05:00.000-07:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

A Man for All Seasons – 4 Stars (Excellent)

A Man for All Seasons poses the question: What would a man sacrifice for his principles?

When King Henry VIII (Robert Shaw) seeks approval to divorce his aging wife Catherine of Aragon who could not bear him a son, and marry his mistress Anne Boleyn, the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church stand in his way.

Henry VIII's new Chancellor of England and Cardinal--Sir Thomas More (Paul Scofield)—stands in his way as well. Henry VIII wants Sir Thomas More's blessing in his action but does not get it as Sir Thomas More, a good Catholic and Cardinal, will not go along with such heresy.

More resigns as chancellor, seeking to live out his life as a private citizen, but Henry VIII will settle for nothing less than More's public approval of his headstrong course. Sir Thomas refuses to either endorse or denounce the King's action, and remains a man of principle.

Great effort is made to convince More to change his stance on Henry VIII's action. One of More's rivals, Thomas Cromwell (Leo McKern); another religious, Cardinal Wolsey (Orson Welles); and The Duke of Norfolk (Nigel Davenport) all take their turns at More.

One example is when More testifies before an inquiry committee and Norfolk attempts to persuade him to sign an oath of allegiance:

Norfolk: "Look, I'm not a scholar, and frankly I don't know whether the marriage was lawful or not—but Thomas, look at these names! You know these men! Can't you do as I did and come along with us for fellowship?"

More: "And when we stand before God, and you are sent to Heaven for doing according to your conscience, and I am sent to hell for not doing according to mine, will you come along with me—for fellowship?"

There are several lines by More that merit mention but there is not enough space to do so. Here is one of the best: "I think that when statesmen forsake their own private conscience for the sake of their public duties, they lead their country by a short route to chaos."

Sir Thomas More was a very smart and savvy—as well as principled—man.

Henry VIII gets every person of any consequence in England to sign his oath (the Act of Supremacy), endorsing his action, except Sir Thomas who will not sign, and remains silent as to the reason why he will not sign.

Cromwell is an English statesman and the chief minister to King Henry VIII. It is Cromwell who presides over King Henry's divorce from Catherine of Aragon in 1533 and Henry's subsequent break with the Roman Catholic Church.

When More proves himself to be loyal to King Henry VIII by not speaking out against him and also shows himself to be a loyal subject by not inciting rebellion, Cromwell appears to prosecute Sir Thomas out of personal spite.

In the end, Sir Thomas is the only person in England who will die for his principles, and commit himself to God for judgment. He is betrayed by an ambitious, lower level appointed attorney general, Richard (John Hurt), whose outright lie condemns Sir Thomas to be beheaded.

Sir Thomas More loses his head (no pun intended) but most importantly, not his soul. Sir Thomas is later canonized as Saint Thomas More by the Roman Catholic Church.

Henry VIII subsequently dies of syphilis, and the evil Thomas Cromwell who orchestrates Sir Thomas More's tragic demise is himself judged a traitor to England 5 years later and is also beheaded.

The riff subsequently leads to England's split from the Roman Catholic Church and the creation of the Anglican Church, the Church of England.

A Man for All Seasons does not deviate from the truth of Sir Thomas More's stance, and as such provides a role model for acting with right thinking and right motives, even at the cost of one's life.

What makes A Man for All Seasons even more impressive is that the plot for the movie is based on the true story of Sir Thomas More. Sir Thomas More was a scholar and statesman who became the leading humanist of the Renaissance Era.

A Man for All Seasons is a story about everything that is right in England and life (Sir Thomas More's integrity to his principles) and everything that is wrong in England and life (greed, avarice, lust, lying, cheating, stealing, the corruption of power, and the corruption of religious leaders).

A Man for All Seasons was writer Robert Bolt's greatest success, first as a play and then as the screenplay for its 1966 movie release following a successful Broadway run. Bolt's 16th Century period piece has exacting details of the era.

A Man for All Seasons would win 6 Oscars at the 1967 Academy Awards: Best Picture (Fred Zinnemann), Best Director (Fred Zinnemann), Best Writing (Robert Bolt), Best Actor (Paul Scofield), Best Cinematography (Ted Moore) and Best Costume Design (Elizabeth Haffenden and Joan Bridge).

The film also received Oscar nominations for Best Supporting Actor (Robert Shaw) and Best Supporting Actress (Wendy Hiller as Sir Thomas More's wife Alice).

In addition the movie garnered another 27 wins and 5 nominations, including Golden Globe wins for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay and Best Actor and a nomination for Best Supporting Actor.

Interestingly, Charlton Heston lobbied heavily for the role of Sir Thomas More, but was not seriously considered. Richard Burton was offered the part and turned it down.

The producers originally wanted Laurence Olivier as Thomas More and Alec Guinness as Wosley, but Director Fred Zinnemann insisted on Paul Scofield and Orson Welles in the roles. The rest is history. Zinnemann obviously knew how to direct a great film and a huge box office success.

Note: Read my movie reviews on these Broadway musicals: "Camelot", "Chicago", "Fiddler on the Roof" and "The Phantom of the Opera". They are all excellent films.

"The Quiet Man" Is a Love Story Set in the Emerald Isle of Ireland

2007-08-07T23:09:00.000-07:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

The Quiet Man – 4 Stars (Excellent)

No one ever said that filmmaking was easy, only that it could be very good and sometimes enduring, as in "The Quiet Man", starring John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara with legendary Director John Ford.

Like a lot of great films, The Quiet Man is a story of the conflict and conquest in the courtship of a man and a woman. A women determined to get her way, a brother determined to keep his sister from the man she loves, and a man determined to win the heart of the woman he marries.

Irish-born Sean Thornton (John "Duke" Wayne) is an American who swears off being a professional fighter after accidentally killing an opponent in the ring.

Returning to the Irish town of his birth, he starts a new life and finds happiness when he falls in love with the fiery Mary Kate Danaher (Maureen O'Hara).

Mary Kate's brother, Will "Red" Danaher (Victor McLaglen) stands in their way. Without her brother's permission, she cannot marry Sean. The male dominance in Irish culture during this period is evident. Women were to obey, period.

Red Danaher resents the fact that Sean was able to purchase his birth home adjacent to the Danaher's property. Danaher had continually bid for the property next door but lost out to the American "newcomer" and outsider.

Eventually Danaher is duped into letting Sean marry Mary Kate, but initially he refuses to let Mary Kate take her inheritance (furniture and a dowry). The villagers persuade Red to give Mary Kate her furniture, but he stands fast on the dowry.

For Mary Kate the 350 pounds sterling she is owed represents a lot of money, but the breaking of tradition and doing the right thing becomes an issue she cannot and will not ignore, even for the sake of her marriage.

Mary Kate is a woman who, if nothing else, makes it clear she will be dealt with despite her ill temper and stubbornness. She believes that Sean is a coward for not confronting her brother Red. Sean simply does not want to accidentally kill another man in a fight over money.

When Mary Kate decides to leave her marriage and take the train out-of-town, Sean goes into action. After dragging Mary Kate off the train and through the pasture, the longest fistfight in screen history erupts.

Once Mary Kate realizes that Sean will fight for her, she is quite happy to return to their cottage and makes it clear that dinner will be ready when Sean returns home. The Duke (Sean) slugs it out with Kate's brother, eventually wins, and wins back Kate's heart as well.

The story of The Quiet Man reminds me of William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew and its movie version in 1967 starring Elizabeth Taylor as Katharina and Richard Burton as Petruchio.

Katharina is cast as an ill-tempered, strong-willed, opinionated, vocal, recalcitrant, unmanageable woman. Petruchio manages to bring her around and when he does, Katharina is content to do his bidding. I see a lot of Mary Kate Danaher in Katharina.

The supporting cast of The Quiet Man is a collection of Irishmen worthy of the name: Michaleen Oge Flynn (Barry Fitzgerald), Father Peter Lonergan (Ward Bond), Father Paul (James O'Hara) and The Window Sarah Tillane (Mildred Natwick) among others. And, yes, there are a lot of relatives in this cast.

The Quiet Man was based on a 1933 Saturday Evening Post short story by Maurice Walsh. Ford read the story in 1933 and purchased the rights to it for $10.

In 1944, John Ford, John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara made a handshake agreement to do the film version, but it would take another 8 years for Ford to raise the money necessary to produce the film.

The Quiet Man was the first American feature to be filmed in Ireland's picturesque countryside. The film almost never happened as Ford was told by producers that a "silly Irish story would not make a penny."

Finally Republic Pictures was approached and studio chief Herbert Yates relented under the condition that Ford, Wayne and O'Hara would also do a western for Republic, a sure money-maker that would offset losses anticipated from The Quiet Man. The result was the 1950 production of "Rio Grande".

John Ford was more than interested in doing the film. His real name was John Martin Feeney, his parents immigrated from County Galway, Ireland and settled in Maine.Ford also went by the name Sean O'Feeney.

Maureen O'Hara (real name Maureen Fitzsimons) was born in County Dublin, Ireland, spoke Irish and used her Gaelic language in the film. Her father was part owner of Ireland's leading football team, the Shamrock Rovers.

John Wayne was half Irish. He appeared in more than 20 of Ford's films, many of them low budget westerns and war movies. The Duke said that of all the films he made, The Quiet Man was his favorite.

Ford earned his 4th and last Best Director Oscar for The Quiet Man in 1952. His other 3 Best Director Oscars were for "The Informer" in 1935, "The Grapes of Wrath" in 1940 and "How Green Was My Valley" in 1941. Only How Green Was My Valley won an Oscar for Best Picture.

Ford remains the only director in history to win 4 Best Director Oscars. Two others—William Wyler and Frank Capra—have won 3 times.

Ford received the American Film Institute's first Life Achievement Award in 1973. He has been recognized as one of the greatest directors of all time. His work had an influence on directors Martin Scorsese, Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Sam Peckinpah, Peter Bogdanovich, Sergio Leone, Jean-Luc-Godard and Akira Kurosawa.

The Quiet Man won a second Oscar for Best Cinematography and was nominated for 5 other Oscars: Best Picture, Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Victor McLaglen), Best Art Direction, Best Sound and Best Writing (screenplay by Frank Nugent). The Best Picture Oscar in 1952 went to "The Greatest Show on Earth".

Action adventure freaks and lovers of unredeeming modern-day films such as "Mr. And Mrs. Smith" will not be able to stand The Quiet Man, which is very slow developing yet offers a perfectly picturesque Irish setting for a real love story.

The Quiet Man is an Irish movie filmed in Ireland for the glory of Ireland, its people and its culture. I am only 15% Irish and a third generation American, but always claim that my 15% Irish heritage is the best part of me.

Note: Read my movie reviews on "Waking Ned Devine" (arguably the greatest Irish comedy ever, and my favorite comedy film ever), and "Million Dollar Baby" (an Irish cast and flavor wherein we find Clint Eastwood playing a boxing trainer/manager who studies Irish Gaelic and promotes his woman fighter Maggie Fitzgerald—played by Best Actress Oscar winner Hilary Swank). These two films are also excellent.

Only a Dog Lover Could Really Love "Best in Show" - A Mockumentary

2007-08-04T18:00:00.000-07:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Best in Show – 2 Stars (Average)

Director Christopher Guest teamed with Eugene Levy as writers for "Best in Show" that looks at the funnier side of the legendary Westminster Kennel Club's annual competition, otherwise known as a prestigious dog show.

Premiere voted the result as one of "The 50 Greatest Comedies of All Time" in 2006. Premiere, an American and New York City-based film magazine, was published from 1987 to 2007 before becoming an online-only publication.

Best in Show uses a camera crew to follow the foibles and fortunes of the owners (and handlers) of five show dogs headed for the annual Mayflower Kennel Club Dog Show in Philadelphia.

Traveling from Florida is Cookie Fleck (Catherine O'Hara) and Gerry Fleck (played by film writer Eugene Levy). Gerry literally has two left feet and Cookie apparently bedded hundreds of men on her way to marrying Gerry.

She meets many of her former lovers in the film, aggravating her bumpkin husband to no end. Cookie was "hot" and apparently very available.

Coming from North Carolina is Harlan Pepper (played by director and writer Christopher Guest, the husband of Jamie Lee Curtis, a marriage that has lasted since 1984). Pepper owns a fly-fishing shop and is enamored with his Bloodhound "Hubert".

Shari Cabot (Jennifer Coolidge) is a voluptuous, wealthy blond bimbo and gold-digger married to Leslie Cabot (Patrick Cranshaw). Shari owns Rhapsody in White, a perfectly manicured poodle who is the two-time defending Best in Show champion.

Her husband Leslie says not a word in the film, appears dead, embalmed and strapped to a wheelchair. Shari is not only enamored with her poodle but also with her handler Christy Cummings (Jane Lynch). Christy and Shari are in more heat than any masculine, healthy dog could muster.

Coming from who knows where with their entry are Stefan Vanderhoof (Michael McKean) and Scott Donlan (John Michael Higgins), an outgoing, outrageous, stereotypical gay couple.

These four entrants are joined by Meg Swan (Parker Posey) and Hamilton Swan (Michael Hitchcock). The Swans are anything but graceful, quiet and beautiful to be around.

They are DINKs (double income, no kids) who constantly scream at each other throughout the film, raising their invective to an art form. Meg and Hamilton are so up tight it is a wonder they can even relieve themselves at appropriate times.

Despite being a comedy, the behavior of the Swans in Best of Show is so well done and lifelike that their tirade ceases to be funny and becomes disturbing. Neither Posey or Hitchcock received an acting award for their performances, but I could not fault them for their effort.

Two more notable performances in this film come from Buck Laughlin (Fred Willard) as the "color commentator" at the prestigious competition, and from Mark Schaefer (Ed Begley, Jr., almost my namesake) as manager of the Taft Hotel that put up with the dog show owners in Philly.

Fred Willard's commentary in this film lives on; it is used occasionally by sports talk radio hosts Groz and Gas as a humor segment on the most popular sports talk station in the country, KJR 950 in Seattle.

Despite its rating as one of The 50 Greatest Comedies of All Time by Premiere magazine, Best in Show comes up short on the awards end. It earned a Golden Globe nomination as Best Comedy and a few lesser awards.

Best in Show earned only $16 million at the box office, perhaps because of its slow start. It opened the 1st week at only 13 theaters nationally, moved to 53 theaters its 2nd week, 291 its 3rd week and finally broke though with 497 theaters its 4th week, topping $2 million before dying off after 12 weeks.

Best in Show is referred to as a "mockumentary", a word that does not appear in The New Oxford American Dictionary (my personal word bible). One might call Best in Show a parody of a documentary with humor as the centerpiece. It is good for some laughs.

Note: Read my movie reviews on the three "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl", "Dead Man's Chest" and "At World's End".

2 Weird Films That Have Stood the Test of Time: "Drag Queens in the Desert" and "Rocky Horror"

2007-07-28T11:13:00.000-07:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert – 2 Stars (Average)

What would Hollywood be without its share of bitchy, catty, gaudy, outrageous and crazy films?

That is perhaps why Stephen Elliott wrote and directed "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert". It is rare when the writer/director of a film can pull it off without the film becoming average to a disaster.

Elliott now officially joins a list that is very long and includes Kimberly Peirce, Vanessa Parise, Peter Weir, Nancy Myers, Thomas Bezucha, Michael McGowan, Jared Hess, Robert Rodriguez and Paul Thomas Anderson.

The worst of the lot? Paul Thomas Anderson for "Punch-Drunk Love".

Elliott's film has two drag-queens—Mitzi (Hugo Weaving) and Felicia (Guy Pearce)—and a transsexual—Bernadette (Terence Stamp)—contract to perform a drag show at a resort town in the remote Australian desert.

They head west from Sydney aboard a lavender bus called Priscilla (do not ask, just be patient and accepting). En route we get a snapshot of drag queens being bitchy, catty, gaudy and outrageous.

This movie is certifiably crazy with a couple of poignant moments, but is saved from being a terrible movie by Terence Stamp, who earned a Golden Globe Best Actor nomination. Stamp is actually passable as a transsexual.

The "famous" thong dress was part of the wardrobe that won an Oscar at the Academy Awards for Best Costume Design by Lizzy Gardiner and Tim Chappel. The dress cost only $7. I did not even remember seeing this apparently famous dress in the movie.

ABBA fans will love this movie as the drag queens spent a lot of time lip-synching to ABBA's music. ABBA was a Swedish pop music group active from 1972 to 1982.

People who live alternative lifestyles probably loved Elliott's movie.

I came away from this film feeling that the drag queens and transsexual were really unhappy people desperate for acceptance they could not find.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show – 1 Star (Terrible)

Imagine a newly engaged normal couple whose car breaks down in an isolated area. They must call for help and end up at the residence of Dr. Frank-N-Furter, a Transylvanian transvestite involved in a bizarre lifestyle.

Welcome to "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" with Tim Curry (as Dr. Frank-N-Furter), Susan Sarandon (Janet Weiss) and Barry Bostwick (Brad Majors) joined by a cast of characters who are strange, dysfunctional misfits.

Directed by Jim Sharman and written by Sharman and Richard O'Brien, The Rocky Horror Picture Show is a horror parody using camp, sci-fi and rock 'n roll to produce a really terrible film with no redeeming qualities worth mentioning.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show bombed in its initial release in 1975 but later gained a cult following at midnight showings, which is probably all you really need to know about this film, other than it is saturated with sex.

The character of Susan Sarandon (Janet) runs around in her bra and slip; both she and her hubby-to-be Brad get initiated into sex by Dr. Furter; and she degenerates into a common slut with some pretty racy scenes for a flick 32 years old.

Sarandon was 25 when she did the part and would get better roles later, earning 4 Academy Award nominations for Best Actress, and an Oscar for her role in "Dead Man Walking" in 1995, 20 years after her role as Janet.

The Rocky Horror Picture show is not only a terrible film, it is also a horrific movie not worth seeing.

"Ed Wood" Is a Very Strange Movie About a Very Strange Real Life Director

2007-07-24T00:50:00.000-07:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Ed Wood – 1 Star – Terrible

"Ed Wood" is a biographical movie about Edward D. Wood, Jr. who has been dubbed the worst director in the history of filmmaking.

There is no close second and not even a distant second to Wood's "worst director" label.

The movie depicts the life of Ed Wood in the 1950s and shows Wood as a very determined director with virtually no financial backing and no real talent. Wood liked to direct really bad films and enjoyed dressing as a woman on the set.

He was apparently surrounded by equally inept and untalented wannabes who were broke or down on their luck.

Wood made such films as "Glen or Glenda", "Bride of the Monster" and "Plan 9 From Outer Space". He was into sci-fi flicks and cross-dressing as a transvestite.

He was an advocate for understanding the phenomenon of transvestism before the general public was even aware of the practice and could not spell the word.

In today's world, alternative lifestyles and behavior, while still not generally accepted, are at least recognized and tolerated by some segments of the population and embraced by Hollywood.

His film Glen or Glenda is apparently about a transvestite who finds little acceptance and eventually commits suicide.

Despite his lack of success, Ed Wood is depicted in this biography as having an optimistic, sunny disposition.

Perhaps the best part of this film is his friendship with once great but now aging and unemployed horror star Bela Lugosi (Martin Landau).

Landau steals the show as Lugosi. As Best Supporting Actor, he won both the Oscar and the Golden Globe, and won 9 additional lesser awards as Best Supporting Actor.

Landau's winning of the Oscar marked the first time in Academy Awards history that a performer in any category won for playing an actual movie performer. Martin Landau was that good.

Director Tim Burton said that he was drawn to the story because of the similarities between Wood's relationship with Bela Lugosi and his own friendship with Vincent Price late in the actor's life.

This 1994 film cost more to produce than all of Edward D. Wood's films put together, and it has been estimated that the opening title/credit sequence cost more (in unadjusted dollars) than the entire budget of any of Ed Wood's films. The film was made in black and white.

Despite the accolades for this film that also picked up an Oscar for Best Makeup, I found the movie to be strange indeed.

In real life Ed Wood, the director, was beyond terrible and it made the character of Ed Wood in the movie more difficult for me to accept; I just do not naturally like people who are terrible at their profession.

So if I knew going in that this film would probably not be THAT likeable, why even bother?

Well, try this on for size: Johnny Depp played Ed Wood, Sarah Jessica Parker played Dolores Fuller (Ed Wood's girlfriend), Patricia Arquette played Kathy O'Hara (Ed Wood's wife), Bill Murray played Bunny Breckinridge (a wannabe transsexual whose character sounds like Gore Vidal's 1970 movie "Myra Breckinridge" starring Raquel Welch), and George "The Animal" Steele played Tor Johnson.

I love the work of Johnny Depp and Sarah Jessica Parker, and I remember George "The Animal" Steele as a pro wrestler on television. Depp was nominated for a Best Actor Golden Globe for his portrayal of Ed Wood.

Note: Read my reviews on "Ghost", "Million Dollar Baby" and "National Treasure". Find these reviews in my Blog Archive.

"The Departed" Is Best Mob Film Since Mario Puzo's "The Godfather" in 1972

2007-07-20T22:55:00.000-07:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

The Departed – 4 Stars (Excellent)

Let me get to the most important thing first: Director Martin Scorsese won an Oscar for "The Departed".

Scorsese, one of the most accomplished directors of our era, has been nominated for 7 Oscars—5 for Best Director and 2 for Best Screenplay—before winning with The Departed.

He had also received 7 Golden Globe nominations—6 for Best Director and 1 for Best Screenplay—and won for Gangs of New York before winning again for The Departed this year (2007).

The Departed is simply the best mob film since Mario Puzo's original Godfather in 1972.

Besides Scorsese, The Departed won for Best Picture, Best Screenplay (William Monahan) and Best Editing (Thelma Schoonmaker), giving The Departed 4 Oscar wins to The Godfather's 3 (Marlon Brando for Best Actor, Best Picture and Best Screenplay by Mario Puzo and Francis Ford Coppola).

Mark Wahlberg was also nominated for Best Supporting Actor as Sgt. Sean Dignam.

The Departed also picked up 45 more wins and another 45 nominations, including another win for Scorsese (Best Director) and nominations for Best Picture, Best Screenplay, Best Actor (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Best Supporting Actor (Jack Nicholson and Mark Wahlberg) at the Golden Globes.

In short, The Departed brought home more hardware than a Home Depot shopping spree.

The icing on the cake for Scorsese was his best box-office opening ever ($26 million), his highest grossing film ever with $132 million nationally and $288 million worldwide through March 2007, and $48 million more in VHS rentals. The film's budget was $90 million.

The all-star cast of DiCaprio (Billy Costigan), Matt Damon (Sgt. Colin Sullivan), Jack Nicholson (Frank Costello), Wahlberg (Sgt. Sean Dignam), Martin Sheen (Capt. Oliver Queenan) and Alec Baldwin (Capt. George Ellerby) did not hurt a lick.

The story takes place in Boston where Irish Mob boss Frank Costello (Nicholson) embeds Colin Sullivan (Damon) as an informant with the Massachusetts State Police. Simultaneously, the State Police assign Billy Costigan (DiCaprio) to infiltrate Costello's crew.

When both sides figure out the situation, it is left to Sullivan and Costigan to discover each other's identity.

Along the way, 22 people get whacked (this is a Mob flick), the "f" word is used 237 times (about 235 times too many), and we get a study in relationship psychology as the only real love interest—Madolyn Madden—is a criminal psychiatrist who is wooed by both rivals.

The Departed kept my attention riveted for 151 minutes. The three main characters (Costello, Sullivan and Costigan) all show their anguish in balancing survival, winning and conquering the moment.

There are apparently two versions of this film. I saw the longer version that is rated R for strong brutal violence, pervasive language, and some strong sexual content and drug material.

This film is not for children or young adults, not that young adults do not hear the same "f" word dozens a time a day at high schools all over the country, but who needs the "f" word 237 times in 2.5 hours? Nobody.

I managed to tune out the cussing and concentrate on the story, acting and presentation that were excellent for an action flick with Mob presence.

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Note: Read my reviews on "Ghost", "Million Dollar Baby", "Passion of the Christ and "National Treasure". Find these reviews in my Blog Archive.

Mel Gibson's "Apocalypto" Brings the Past Violent Mayan Life into Our Consciousness

2007-07-06T02:30:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Apocalypto – 4 Stars (Excellent)

Mel Gibson's "Apocalypto" shows the raw, violent face of the advanced Mayan civilization in its decline, with its rulers insisting that the key to continued prosperity is to build more temples and offer more human sacrifices to their Gods.

The result is the story of innocent Mayans being viciously attacked and their communal way of life being destroyed to meet an insane desire. Killing your own has never been a good idea historically and is perhaps a lesson we need to take more seriously today.

The focal point of this film is Jaguar Paw (Rudy Youngblood) and his family. He is one of many sons of Flint Sky (Morris Birdyellowhead), the leader of a small, isolated Mayan community in the tropical jungle of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula just before the arrival of the Spanish in the New World. Flint Sky and his progeny wish only to be left alone to pursue their destiny in a peaceful environment.

Enter Zero Wolf (Raoul Trujillo) and his raiding party looking for victims to sacrifice to the Gods. Jaguar Paw and pregnant wife Seven (Dalia Hernandez) and their son Turtles Run (Carlos Emilio Baez) escape the attack. Jaguar Paw quickly finds a hiding place to keep his family safe, and then he returns to help fight off the attackers.

Many in his village are killed and many more are captured. This story is about how the captured Jaguar Paw can possibly survive the enforced march to an untimely death and then return to save his family. In the end, he must choose to greet the oncoming Spanish as their ships roll into the harbor, or retreat to the jungle and continue to live a hidden life.

I promise you that when you see this film you will be glued to the edge of your seat. Apocalypto will hold your interest like very few films can.

Some historians were falling all over themselves to criticize inaccuracies in the film, I suspect mainly to get some badly needed publicity which they obviously could not do on their own. Gibson is a film producer in Apocalypto, not an historian.

Good grief, if I want exact history, I will read history books. Gibson brings history to life and does what no one else in Hollywood dares or cares to do.

Gibson's film is an excellent presentation of how we would like life not to be, and also a reminder that no matter how smart we think we are we can sow the seeds of our own destruction right here in the greatest nation Earth has ever hosted.

Apocalypto is produced by Mel Gibson, Farhad Safinia and Bruce Davey, and written by Gibson and Safinia. It is worth the price of two tickets to see. I highly recommend it for adults. It is a not-so-subtle reminder of what civilization was and could be again.

The fate of the Mayan civilization remains a mystery even today. We know that around 300 BC the Mayan calendar was invented in the Yucatan and was more exact than older calendars. We know the oldest Mayan temples in Central America were built around AD 200.

We know that the Classic period of Mayan civilization occurred between AD 250 to 900 with the development of hieroglyphic writing and advances in art, architecture and science. We know the Post-Classical period of Mayan civilization began in AD 900 and extended to 1519.

The Mayan civilization was at its apex in the early 8th Century before eventually falling into decline and ultimately suffering abandonment. We do not know why the civilization collapsed but can only speculate that its fall was from within, sowing the seeds of its own destruction.

Apocalypto picked up nominations for Academy Awards in Makeup, Sound Editing and Sound Mixing.

I thought the cinematography was spectacular, the close up shots of Jaguar Paw running for his very life, the look of fear in the faces of those innocents who were violently executed by their attackers, and the jungle with its teeming flora and fauna.

Cinematographer Dean Semler used a Spydercam to shoot from atop the 170-foot waterfall when Jaguar Paw jumps to escape Zero Wolf and his killer squad. Semler filmed Apocalypto digitally, using the high-definition Panavision Genesis camera. Semler is an artist disguised as a cinematographer.

The Central Ohio and Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Associations saw what I did in giving Apocalypto their Best Cinematography Awards.

Apocalypto should have garnered more awards, but Mel Gibson's unfortunate drinking habit and run-in with a law enforcement officer did not endear him to the Hollywood community.

Gibson insisted on making the main sets based on actual buildings rather than computer-generated images. Three cheers for Gibson as I believe authenticity counts. I am so sick and tried of seeing stupid kung fu films showing actors jumping 150 feet straight up into the air and then fighting on a twig. I would like to see these wannabe clowns fighting Bruce Lee on his best day.

Was Apocalypto an epic? Absolutely. There was a main cast of 39 along with 700 extras.

Ever wonder what a support cast is to a film? For Apocalypto there were 179 people in the Makeup Department, 67 in the Art Department, 50 in Sound, 36 in Special Effects, 153 in Visual Effects, 33 in Stunts, 80 in Camera and Electrical, 8 in Casting, 22 in Costume and Wardrobe, 18 in Editorial, 62 in Transportation and 100 more additional crew. Total support: 800+. Cost of the film: $40 million. Total box office and rental revenue figures: $72 million and counting.

Many of the speaking roles were by Mayan people who had never acted. The sick child who curses the hunting party as they lead the captives on a forced march to their death was played by a 7-year-old girl who lived in a dirt-floored hut in a village not unlike Jaguar Paw's.

This was a haunting scene as the girl who was affected with the plague and untouchable upbraids the hunting party by saying "You fear me? So you should. All you who are vile. Would you like to know how you will die? The scared time is near. Beware the blackness of the day. Beware the man who brings the jaguar.

"Behold him reborn from mud and earth. For the one he takes you to will cancel the sky, and scratch out the earth. Scratch you out. And end your world. He's with us now. Day will be like night. And the man jaguar will lead you to your end."

Herein we learn how Jaguar Paw avoids being beheaded only to run the gauntlet of spears and arrows in his escape back into the jungle. This is a brutal and graphic film with beheadings like sound bites.

There are too many gems in this film to list here. Suffice to say a village elder uses animals to tell a story about how man will never be satisfied despite using the Earth and everything in it for his own gain. You will cringe when Jaguar Paw's wife and young son face downing as she falls and must deliver her newborn facing certain death. In the end Jaguar Paw uses his wit and wisdom to claim the forest as his own.

Get out and see Apocalypto. This is a film nearly everyone could benefit from seeing before they pass from this Earth. It will remind you of how fragile and perilous our life is.

Note: Read my reviews on "Ghost", "Million Dollar Baby", "Passion of the Christ" and "National Treasure". Find these reviews in my Blog Archive.

"Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" Continues the Saga in Excellent Fashion, Savvy Mate?

2007-06-09T01:12:00.000-07:00

Ed's Movie Reviews:

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End – 4 Stars (Excellent)

What a relief! Like many of my fellow reviewers, I held my breath after "Dead Man's Chest" hoping installment three "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" would not be left in the chest with Davy Jones' disgusting, slimy beating heart.

Three could have gone in the dumper with the average performance of Priates two, but thankfully "At World's End" gets an excellent rating like the first Pirates' presentation "The Curse of the Black Pearl".

Dead Man's Chest got mixed reviews nationally as many reviewers could not tolerate a plot that was too convoluted to follow. Trust me when I say that At World's End was no better in that regard, but was far and away better as important story lines returned. Here are some:

1) The romance between Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightly) and Will Turner (Orlando Bloom) resumed. Just looking at Keira Knightly in her finest can take your mind off of the troublesome story line. The relationship between the two was all but destroyed in "Dead Man's Chest".

2) Jack is back! The Curse of the Black Pearl had Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) front and center with all action revolving around him. Dead Man's Chest dimmed the spotlight on Captain Jack and eventually had him "killed" off at the end. At World's End brings Captain Jack Sparrow back front and center, where he should be as the focal point of this saga.

Pirates of the Caribbean begins and ends with Jack Sparrow, and if he is given a lesser role the story suffers.

3) The over-the-top sight gags in Dead Man's Chest (the sword fight in the giant wheel which went on far too long and the hanging baskets between the cliffs) put too much focus on production gimmicks rather than the characters. People make the story of Pirates, not gimmicks.

At World's End has swordfights aboard ship and cannons blowing ships apart, right on, this is a pirate story for cripes sake, not some ballet production on a ferris wheel.

Give someone credit for letting writers Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio tell the story without marching orders. I believe these two writers were pushed into throwing anything together to satisfy the immediate demand for a sequel that would dovetail into another sequel. Gore Verbinski directed all three movies.

Given how convoluted the story line is, here is the best synopsis of At World's End by J. Curcio (it certainly helps if you have seen the first two Pirate films):

"After Elizabeth Swann, Will Turner and Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) rescue Captain Jack Sparrow from the land of the dead (Davy Jones' locker), they must face their foes, Davy Jones (Bill Nighy) and Lord Cutler Beckett (Tom Hollander). Beckett, with control of Jones' heart, forms a dark alliance with Davy Jones in order to rule the seas and wipe out the last of the Pirates.

"Now, Jack, Barbossa, Will, Elizabeth, Tia Delma and crew must call the Pirate Lords from the four corners of the globe to a gathering to figure out how to release the goddess Calypso, Davy Jones' former lover, so she can come to their aid. Once Calypso is free, all of the Pirate Lords will stand together in their fight for freedom against Beckett, Jones, Norrington, the Flying Dutchman, and the entire East India Trading Company."

During the battle, Will proposes to Elizabeth who insists that Barbossa marry them immediately. When Davy Jones mortally wounds Will aboard the Dutchman, Jack places the sabre in Will's hand and helps him stab Davy Jones' heart in the Dead Man's Chest, thus killing Jones and making Will the Flying Dutchman's captain.

The crew cuts out Will's heart and places it in the Dead Man's Chest. Jack and Elizabeth escape before the ship is pulled into the whirlpool, but it quickly resurfaces with Will at the helm. Will captains the Flying Dutchman and Jack Sparrow captains the Black Pearl as they destroy Lord Cutler Beckett's ship, killing Beckett and causing his armada to retreat.

Although Will has been saved and the Dutchman crew has regained its humanity, Will must spend the next 10 years at sea ferrying souls to the next world. Will and Elizabeth spend one day together on an island to consummate their marriage, and Will entrusts Elizabeth with the Dead Man's Chest containing his heart.

The rest is simply too good to give away here. Do not make the mistake of leaving when the credits begin to roll as there is a bonus scene at the end of the credits that is critical to understanding where the movie is headed next.

There are too many secret alliances, turncoats, double-crosses and self-centered activities going on to detail them in this review. Suffice to saw that the action happens so quickly that the plot does become convoluted.

There was in fact an actual council of pirates at one time in history.

The 9 Pirate Lords portrayed in the film are:

Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow: Pirate Lord of the Caribbean Sea.

Geoffrey Rush as Hector Barbossa: Pirate Lord of the Caspian Sea.

Chow Yun-Fat as Captain Sao Feng: Pirate Lord of the South China Sea.

Takayo Fischer as Mistress Ching: Pirate Lady of the Pacific Ocean.

Hakim-Kae Kazim as Gentleman Jocard: Pirate Lord of the Atlantic Ocean.

Marcel Iures as Capitaine Chevalle: Pirate Lord of the Mediterranean Sea.

Ghassan Massoud as Ammand the Corsair: Pirate Lord of the Black Sea.

Marshall Manesh as Sri Sumbhajee: Pirate Lord of the Indian Ocean.

Sergio Calderon as Captain Villanueva: Pirate Lord of the Adriatic Sea.

The scenery is really outstanding in At World's End; some of the scenes were filmed during the filming of Dead Man's Chest so locations would not have to be revisited.

Keith Richards, who had been courted to appear in earlier Pirate films, agreed to appear as Jack Sparrow's father and keeper of the Pirate Code in At World's End.

When the Pirate's Code is brought out to settle a dispute, Barbossa refers to the code created by "Morgan and Bartholomew".

This is a reference to famous pirates Henry Morgan and Bartholomew "Black Bart" Roberts. Morgan was famous for sacking several impenetrable treasure towns, including Portobello, the Fort Knox of its day.

Black Bart was simply brutal without any conscience whatsoever, he killed and pillaged at will and was one of the pirates to develop a code of honor which his crew followed upon pain of death.

These are my favorite lines in the movie:

Will Turner: No cause is lost if but one fool is left to fight for it.

Barbossa: Dying is the day worth living for.

Barbossa: All men are drawn to the sea perilous though it may be.

Will Turner (when he gives Elizabeth the Dead Man's Chest with his beating heart in it): It was always yours . . . Will you keep it safe? (How is that for a romantic line, ladies?)

Cabin Boy: Yo ho, haul together, hoist the colors high. Heave ho, thieves and beggars, never shall we die!

Among the locations in At World's End were the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, the dunes in Guadalupe (CA), Niagara Falls in New York, ocean battle scenes were located near Palmdale (CA) and sea sequences in Rancho Palos Verdes (CA).

At World's End runs 2 hours 47 minutes, 15 minutes longer than Dead Man's Chest and 30 minutes longer than Spider Man 3.

Despite its length, At World's End had the best Memorial Day Weekend opening ever, hauling in $142 million, and was second only to Spider Man 3's best opening weekend ever at $151 million. When you add in the international numbers, At World's End hauled in $332 million for the weekend.

At World's End rang up the most valuable haul among any pirate booty ever.

Director Bob Clark of "A Christmas Story" and His Son Die in a Senseless Accident

2007-06-01T00:54:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

I was so sorry to go online today (4-4-07) and learn of the death of Bob Clark and his son in a senseless auto accident in Los Angeles.

Clark, 67, and his son Ariel Hanrath-Clark, 22, were driving in Pacific Palisades when their Infiniti collided head-on with a vehicle that a drunken driver steered into the wrong lane, according to police and the filmmaker's assistant.

The accident happened at approximately 2:30 a.m. Wednesday, about a half-hour after the bars closed. To add insult to a tragic, senseless act that took two lives, the driver of the out-of-control vehicle was not only under the influence of alcohol but was also driving without a license.

The 24-year-old driver of the vehicle remained hospitalized and will be booked for investigation of gross vehicular manslaughter after being treated.

My heartfelt condolences go out to Bob Clark's family and friends.

Bob Clark is best known for the holiday classic "A Christmas Story" which happens to be my all-time favorite movie. The film captures the Christmas wish of a 9-year-old boy who wants an official Red Ryder carbine-action model air rifle.

A Christmas story is told from the view of the Ralphie Parker, the boy in the story.

It is a sad day when anyone is killed by a drunken driver, but even more so when someone as creative as Bob Clark is taken from us. I can write no more on this.

Following is my original movie review of A Christmas Story. I publish it as a tribute to Bob Clark, his family, and those who knew him and loved his work.

A Christmas Story – 4 Stars (Excellent)

A Christmas Story is arguably the best Christmas movie ever.

There is no doubt that the 1984 version of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol starring George C. Scott as Ebenezer Scrooge is a worthy contender for the honor. Since I have not seen Fanny & Alexander (1983), I remain a huge fan of A Christmas Story.

Can there be anything greater than Santa coming to your house on Christmas Eve with the perfect gift of your choice? I think not, especially if it is a genuine Red Ryder 200-Shot, Carbine-Action BB Gun for a 9-year-old named Ralphie living in Northern Indiana in the 1940s.

Imagine Ralphie's dismay when his mother, his teacher at Warren G. Harding Elementary School and ultimately even Santa Claus at Higby's Department Store tell him "you'll shoot your eye out."

A Christmas Story is about much more than whether Ralphie gets the Red Ryder BB Gun he covets. It is about a Midwest family with two boys, Ralphie (Peter Billingsley) and Randy (Ian Petrella), who encounter the normal struggles of growing up.

Ralphie and his friend Schwartz (R. D. Robb) badger their friend Flick (Scott Schwartz, not to be confused with R. D. Robb who plays the role of Schwartz) into pressing his tongue against a steel post to see if it will stick.

Flick, who realizes that he might be wrong in saying his tongue will not stick, is left with no alternative when Schwartz whips a "triple dog dare" on him. To save face, Flick learns a very hard lesson and this film gets some great footage in the process.

Both the boys and the girls watching this drama unfold are horrified at the result and the boys have no problem abandoning Flick when the school bell rings. Flick is left frozen to the post.

When their teacher Mrs. Shields (Tedde Moore) confronts them about who is responsible for Flick's condition, they clam up, realizing "it's always better not to get caught."

All of the boys also must deal with the terrifying Scut Farcas (Zack Ward) and Grover Dill (Yano Anaya), the schoolyard bullies. They get pummeled on a daily basis and act like cowards until Ralphie sees Santa at Higby's and gets another dose of "You'll shoot your eye out, kid."

Ralphie is so agitated with rejection over his Christmas wish that when he is next confronted by the bullies he flies into a fit of genuine rage, charging the much larger Scut knocking him down and pounding him repeatedly in the face. Scut ends up with a bloody face and 100 times the embarrassment of being beat up. This event would forever after be known as the Scut Farcas Affair.

I love A Christmas Story because the exact same thing happened to me growing up in the Midwest. I was small for my age and was constantly picked on by bullies until I learned how to fight back no matter what the odds.

When the Parker family goes out to buy their Christmas tree they encounter a flat tire on the way home. Mrs. Parker (Melinda Dillon) encourages Ralphie to help his father (Darren McGavin) fix the flat.

Ralphie manages to lose the lug nuts during the tire change, and, in fit of fright, utters the dreaded F-word to the shock of his parents. Mrs. Parker demands to know where he learned the word and Ralphie, desperate to come up with an acceptable choice shoots out a name of a friend.

Ralphie, of course, has heard his father cuss time and again, quoting that his father could "weave a tapestry of obscenities that is still hanging in space over Lake Michigan." When their furnace in the basement acts up, Ralphie says "my father dabbled in profanities like an artist dabbles in oils."

This cussing incident so resonates with me because I grew up in the same kind of environment. I often believed my stepfather had a 200-word vocabulary and at least 50 of those words were cuss words. I probably heard the F-word 10,000 times before I graduated from high school. I used to tell my friends I could speak 5 foreign languages if I got mad enough.

A Christmas Story is loaded with other real life events, including Ralphie's day-dream about being blind from having to suck on soap for cussing, his father winning a prize lamp shaped like a woman's leg that he displays in their living room window for all to see, and the secret decoder Ralphie gets by eating Ovaltine for breakfast.

There is also Aunt Clara's gift of a pink bunny costume that Ralphie is forced to model on Christmas morning, the neighbor's dogs getting into the house and eating their Christmas turkey, and the surprise on Christmas morning after all of the gifts are opened.

A Christmas Story is based on Jean Shepherd's book In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash.

Shepherd does a superb job of narrating this film about his childhood. The film is so well done, so authentic to its 1940s time period, so believable and likeable that it gets my excellent rating without qualification.

Director Bob Clark is uncanny in his ability to orchestrate this timeless story. Peter Billingsley is a 13-year-old actor playing the role of 9-year-old Ralphie and does so with incredible facial expressions. Young Billingsley is in the moment and totally professional.

A Christmas Story, a low budget film that was not expected to do well, was released just before Thanksgiving in 1983. By Christmas the film had been pulled from theaters because it was thought to have been "played out." It was only because of complaints from moviegoers that it was brought back to life.

The film celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2003 with release of a two-disc special edition. There are fans all over the world that treasure A Christmas Story and will not let it die, and I am one of them. I have lived so many parts of A Christmas Story that I feel it could also have been the story of thousands of other young boys growing up in the Midwest.

A Christmas Story is on my personal Top 10 all-time list of favorite movies because it exemplifies family values and the joy of living those few precious moments that define us for the rest of our lives.

A Christmas Story is an amazing film that teaches some of life’s great lessons, including determination, courage, patience, struggle, victory, self-esteem, love, acceptance and belonging. This is truly a classic movie that only those who have lived these experiences will appreciate the most. I am blessed to be one of those people.

"The Producers" Sets Out to Prove That You Can Make More Money Failing Than Succeeding

2007-05-30T23:29:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

The Producers – 2 Stars (Average)

The Producers is a Broadway musical featuring a washed up producer and creative accountant who set out to prove that you can make more money by failing than succeeding.

Max Bialystock (Nathan Lane) was once on top of Broadway's world and now cannot get a show past opening night. When neurotic accountant Leo Bloom (Matthew Broderick) arrives on the scene he proposes a nifty scheme to put Max back in the chips: raise more money than he needs and make sure his show flops so he can pocket the difference.

Max comes to love the idea since he has been reduced to romancing rich old ladies to get seed money to operate.

Max and Leo proceed to produce a musical called "Springtime for Hilter", written by escaped Nazi Franz Liebkind (Will Farrell). They get the insanely flamboyant and gay Roger DeBris (Gary Beach) to direct the play. To fill in the missing piece they hire the loopy Swedish bombshell Ulla (Uma Thurman).

This combination creates a pure entertainment film that is zany, funny and ridiculous. If you guessed that the screenplay was written by Mel Brooks you are right. If it sounds familiar you are right again.

The Producers is a remake of the original Producers written and directed by the same Mel Brooks 37 years earlier. Brooks won an Oscar for Best Writing in 1968, and Gene Wilder was nominated for an Oscar for Best Supporting Role as Leo Bloom.

The original cast featured Zero Mostel as Max Bialystock, Kenneth Mars as Franz Liebkind and Lee Meredith as Ulla.

The name Bialystock was taken from the Polish city that was home to Mel Brooks' ancestors.

Because of the "Springtime for Hilter" musical number in 1968, the film was banned in Germany, and was not shown in Germany until it was included in a film festival featuring the works of Jewish filmmakers.

It has also been suggested that the term "creative accounting" may have originated in the 1968 production of The Producers.

If you cannot read music, you have something in common with Mel Brooks. "Springtime for Hilter" and "Prisoners in Love" (as were all the songs Brooks wrote for his films) were hummed into a tape recorder and transcribed by an expert.

Brooks is an incredible talent. He adapted The Producers as a stage musical in 2001 featuring (who else?) Nathan Lane as Max and Matthew Broderick as Leo, and it proceeded to win a record-breaking 12 Tony Awards.

Mel Brooks is not your usual talent. He may well be more of a stranger to sanity than comedy.

Trust me when I say that the 2005 version of The Producers is meant to be enjoyed without looking for a comfortable story line or serious message. It is nothing more or less than pure entertainment.

It seems as if this film has a cast of thousands, and everyone has bought into Mel Brooks idea of a good time. Every movie needs a director and Susan Stroman must have had her moments in keeping this production on task.

The 2005 version of The Producers was nominated for 4 Golden Globes: Best Picture, Best Original Song ("There's Nothing Like a Show on Broadway" by Mel Brooks), Nathan Lane as Best Actor and Will Farrell as Best Supporting Actor.

You may remember Thurman from Dangerous Liaisons (1988), Pulp Fiction (1994), Gattaca (1997) and two Kill Bill movies (2003 and 2004). She earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress as Mia Wallace in Pulp Fiction.

Despite the nonsensical good fun, I enjoyed watching Uma Thurman as Ulla, proving that the right blond with the right sex appeal never gets old.

"A River Runs Through It" Is a Good Film With a Bad Message That Develops Slowly

2007-05-28T23:25:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

A River Runs Through It – 3 Stars (Good)

A River Runs Through It is based on a true story about the relationships in a family of two brothers with a Presbyterian minister for a father, a love for fly fishing they all enjoy, and a stay-at-home mom.

One brother—Norman Maclean (Craig Sheffer)—is good and grounded, and the other brother—Paul Maclean (Brad Pitt)—makes a lot of bad choices and pays for it in the end. They grow up in the beautiful wilderness of Montana after World War 1 and before the Great Depression.

Norman and Paul are pretty much the same before Norman goes to Dartmouth for six years and returns to become a teacher. Paul is a rebel at heart, a college graduate, a newspaper reporter, and a lover of liquor, gambling and women.

Paul plays a lot of poker, plays on borrowed money, bets with losing hands and does not pay his debts to his card-playing creditors. His creditors have a limited tolerance for his indiscretions.

The film opens with Norman as an old man fly fishing by the river, cogitating on the life he has lived, recounting what happened, how it happened, why it happened, and why he felt helpless to change his brother's ultimate destiny.

In the end, Norman says "It is those we live with and love and should know who elude us."

This movie is a guy's film if for no other reason than it is without doubt the greatest movie on fly fishing ever filmed. The scenes of the river are spectacular, and the scenery even more spectacular.

A River Runs Through It won an Oscar for Philippe Rousselot's cinematography. You will not see better cinematography about fly fishing anywhere. The movie says they are fly fishing on the Blackfoot River near Missoula, but the filming was done on the Boulder River about 270 miles east of Missoula.

Mark Isham's original musical score and Richard Friedenberg's screenplay were both nominated for Oscars.

Even director Robert Redford picked up a Golden Globe nomination as Best Director.

The real Norman Maclean wrote the story about his family that became the film. Redford spent years trying to gain the rights to Maclean's autobiographical novella.

There is much to recommend A River Runs Through It and at least two drawbacks to enjoying the story and the scenery.

First is the depressing helplessness of Paul's family to reach him emotionally and turn his life around. This forces us to watch a depressing story with a terrible ending.

Second is that you may go to sleep waiting for something to happen as the story develops slower than molasses sliding off of a stick.

Ultimately we are presented with Paul's warped values as he slowly and willfully self-destructs. All of the truly wonderful fly-fishing adventures do not offset the destructiveness of the script's end result.

This is a good movie but who wants to be part of its depressing message? I ask myself, am I a better person for having seen A River Runs Through It? No, I am not.

This film is a story that focuses on warped values and teaches us little about what is really important in life (hint: it is not fly fishing).

There Really Is a Mystic Pizza, and the Film Mystic Pizza Sneaks Its Way into Your Heart

2007-05-27T17:40:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Mystic Pizza – 3 Stars (Good)

What do the movies A Christmas Story, My Big Fat Greek Wedding and Mystic Pizza have in common?

They sneak their way into your heart.

All three movies were not supposed to be any big deal, and many would-be investors agreed, however, moviegoers will not let these films slide into obscurity, and My Big Fat Greek Wedding became the highest grossing independent film ever.

So why do they work when others do not?

They simply tug at your heartstrings, playing an irresistible tune of making dreams come true. Most of us dream big dreams. When we become part of another person's big dream we wish that their dream will come true even if ours does not.

We enjoy life vicariously by living the dreams of others.

Mystic Pizza is about three recent high school graduates who are waitresses in a pizza parlor that experience some personal growth during a short period of time. They learn valuable life lessons in how to overcome disappointment and adversity, and in some cases discover romance.

One wants to marry her way into money, another dreams of going to Yale but needs more money to go with her partial academic scholarship, and the dippiest of the three has a problem making a commitment to marry a guy crazy in love with her.

This is a drama of relationships which is well done, and with some comedy becomes a fun movie to watch.

Sisters Daisy (Julia Roberts) who is chasing money, and Kat (Annabeth Gish) who is headed to Yale, join their friend Jojo (Lili Taylor) who likes sex but not commitment. Two of the three recent high school graduates are a little ahead of their time (I think) as Daisy is promiscuous.

The pizza parlor is not doing well until a food critic stops by and gives it a rave review, then Mystic Pizza becomes very popular, and the story lines of the three girls become more complicated and funny.

Mystic Pizza is a real pizza parlor in Mystic, Connecticut. Writer Amy Jones was vacationing in Mystic, saw the pizza parlor, was inspired to write the story and later co-wrote the screenplay with Perry and Randy Howze and Alfred Uhry.

The film, released in 1988, benefited from the rise of Julia Roberts with her successes in Pretty Woman (a Golden Globe Best Actress Award), Steel Magnolias (a Golden Globe Best Supporting Actress Award) and Erin Brockovich (an Oscar and a Golden Globe Best Actress Awards).

Her films have generated more than $2 billion in revenue, and she has become the highest-paid actress in the world. Roberts' net worth has been estimated at $140 million, and she still has the same great look and smile.

Mystic Pizza also marked the film debut for Matt Damon. Ben Affleck also auditioned for Damon's role.

Mystic Pizza won virtually no recognition upon release, but viewers will simply not let certain films die, and Mystic Pizza is one of those films.

Mystic Pizza is fun to watch and becomes an affair of the heart in spite of its high jinks.

4 Not So Great Films With a Mixed Reaction: 2 Are Funny and 2 Are Not

2007-05-26T23:04:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Moviegoers choice of movies they like or do not like can be a very personal thing. Who knows what causes someone to think an Oscar-winning film is terrible, and another to think that a film that garnered no awards is an incredibly good movie.

Having said that, here are four movies, one of which I would rate average and three of which I would rate terrible, yet two of these are funny and two are not.

Saturday Night Live: The Best of Adam Sandler – 2 Stars (Average)

This is one of the best Saturday Night Live series performances I have seen.

I love Adam Sandler as Opera Man and Canteen Boy. Sandler was one of the best performers on SNL in recent years.

His song about "Hanukkah" and about the Hollywood actors and showbiz types who are Jewish is great entertainment. Sandler has that boyish look that many times says "I am lost and can use some help."

It is not my sense that Sandler has an outgoing personality, I believe he tends to be a shy person and I suspect he is always looking for some approval in real life as many comedians do.

I am so happy he has moved on to the film world, and only wish he would get better scripts to do because I think his potential goes well beyond comedic routines.

I find Sandler likeable and remember him fondly as a stand-up and standout comic during his SNL stint. I would see this SNL compilation of Sandler again.

Three Amigos – 1 Star (Terrible)

The Three Amigos is a classic period comedy (1986) piece like Animal House in the 1960s wherein we see not a good movie, but comedy routines and a few great lines.

The film brings together three real comedians—Steve Martin, Chevy Chase and Martin Short—as out-of-work silent movie Western stars (the film is set in 1916) who believe they are going to Mexico to put on a show involving a run-in with El Guapo, played by Alfonso Arau.

What they do not know is that El Guapo is for real, with real bullets and real intentions to kill them as well as the villagers they are unsuspectingly hired to protect.

This is a comedy but it does have a story line if not great acting, and some parts of it are stupid and funny at the same time. Occasionally I like stupid and funny at the same time, and this is one of those times.

Meet The Parents – 1 Star (Terrible)

Meet the Parents involves Ben Stiller as a hapless fiancé who is grilled by his future father-in-law, a retired CIA agent and overzealous, protective father. This movie is almost funny in parts, but simply left me unimpressed as a comedy in the making.

I did not like Meet the Parents as much as I thought I might. On the other hand I consider its sequel—Meet the Fockers—one of the best comedies in recent years.

The difference I attribute to a greatly improved cast with the addition of Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand, and limiting the role of Ben Stiller, who is not nearly as good an actor as Robert De Niro, Hoffman or Streisand.

Shall We Dance? – 1 Star (Terrible)

This is a comedy without merit that does not psychologically associate appropriately. Richard Gere just looks old and does a poor job of acting. JLo (Jennifer Lopez) is the only bright light in this poorly written movie with terrible dialogue.

Shall We Dance? is beyond forgettable and borders on unmentionable. Go dancing rather than see this movie, you will enjoy yourself more.

"Little Manhattan" Is Not Cute or Well Done, It Misses the Mark with Really Corny Dialogue

2007-05-25T23:32:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Little Manhattan – 1 Star (Terrible)

Little Manhattan is a comedy about a couple of fifth graders in New York who explore their budding emotions in a personal relationship at the attraction stage.

Gabe (Josh Hutcherson), the young boy, finds his parents going through a rough time in their marriage as his dad and mom are still together, but his mother is dating other men. His parents are all but separated in the truest sense of the word, and on the verge of divorce, when Gabe, who thinks girls are gross, suddenly falls in love with Rosemary (Charlie Ray).

Therein lies the undoing of this movie that you want to like more than it is likeable.

Gabe's parents, Leslie (Cynthia Nixon) and Adam (Bradley Whitford) add little to this movie. They make parents seem pretty silly, immature and unable to express themselves in any meaningful way.

Little Manhattan is written by Jennifer Flackett, who has not a clue how kids this age really talk and what they really say. Here are some "memorable quotes" from the film:

Gabe: "See, life is about so much more than Rosemary. I had my family, my health, my kicking career. I really had no room for a woman in my life."

Gabe: "I couldn't escape them, all the little things I left unsaid, I was drowning in them."

Gabe: "See, this is just like I told you. Same thing I knew getting into this whole mess – love ends."

Gabe: "Love is an ugly, terrible business practiced by fools. It'll trample your heart and leave you bleeding on the floor. And what does it really get you in the end? Nothing but a few incredible memories that you can't ever shake. The truth is there's gonna be other girls out there. I mean, I hope, but I'm never gonna get another first love. That one's always gonna be her."

Gabe: "Is there anything worse than dress shopping? I would rather have my toenails peeled off one by one with pliers than spend five minutes in the dress store."

This is supposed to be an 11-year-old boy talking about falling in love the first time.

In the end, Gabe’s relationship with Rosemary ends, and his parents get back together.

It sounds as if Jennifer Flackett has had a lot of bad encounters in her romantic life.

Little Manhattan is the only film I have ever reviewed that did not get a single sniff at an award nomination for anything, and it is clear why.

On the trivia side, Charlie Ray's aunt saw a casting call for the role of Rosemary in a newspaper. She took her niece who had never auditioned before, and Charlie Ray got the part and her film debut.

Gabe and Rosemary's on-screen "first kiss" was actually the first kiss for actors Josh Hutcherson and Charlie Ray in real life.

Little Manhattan is worth seeing once to remind yourself that, despite our children growing up "too quickly" in today’s sex-saturated, youth-driven society of false values, thankfully, fifth graders still do not think the way these fifth graders think, and they do not do the things these fifth graders do.

The premise of the movie is good, but there is a huge difference in what Flackett thinks fifth graders say and do, and what they actually say and do.

When you want to see a movie about how children really think and act, go directly to "A Christmas Story", in which a Red Ryder BB gun gets a young boy’s attention, rather than a girl.

Only an Emperor Penguin Could Survive in 100 mph Winds and Minus 80 Degree Weather

2007-05-24T13:33:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

March of the Penguins – 2 Stars (Average)

March of the Penguins is an Academy Award-winning documentary film of the Emperor Penguin, the only living species that still remains in the Antarctic (South Pole) with its temperatures of minus 80 degrees and 100-mile-per-hour winds, not to mention the unbelievably frigid Antarctic waters.

This is a wonderful film about birds in nature that we would never see were it not for Luc Jacquet, the award-winning French director/photographer who spent a year filming this epic creation in near inhuman conditions.

Emperor Penguins get our attention because of their look and walk. These large, flightless seabirds with black upper parts and white under parts have wings developed into flippers for swimming under water.

These Emperor Penguins follow a brutal and yet loving life of destiny.

1) Penguins are monogamous within each breeding season, during the summer their breeding grounds are close to the open water where they can feed. When winter sets in, the ice cap pushes the open sea out 70 miles.

2) After breeding, the female lays a single egg and transfers the embryo to the feet of the male to protect it from exposure to the elements.

3) The male tends to the egg while the female begins a 70-mile trek back to the open sea to feed and store up extra food for the chick for her return trip.

4) When the female leaves she has not eaten in two months and has lost a third of her body weight.

5) The chick's future fight for its life begins as the males huddle together for warmth and incubate the single egg. They endure minus 80-degree temperatures and 100-mile-per-hour winds and their only source of water is snow that falls on the breeding grounds.

6) By the time the female makes the march to the sea and back, the male has not eaten in four months and has lost half his body weight.

7) When and if the female returns the males set out on their 70-mile march back to the sea. The female takes over care of the new chick.

8) Amazingly, either parent can identify their chick among hundreds of others by its unique call.

9) Many parents die on the trip to the sea and back as they must endure predators such as the Leopard Seal as well as the brutal weather.

10) Those Emperor Penguin parents who can survive until spring return to the sea and the chicks are left to fend for themselves.

If a cat has 9 lives then an Emperor Penguin must have 10.

There are some very touching scenes in this film where the love of a parent for a child is heartwarming. We humans are sometimes more intent on trying to conquer nature than appreciate its lessons in life.

We would do well to treat our young with the same love, courage and discipline that the Emperor Penguins show for their young.

Morgan Freeman narrates this incredible saga which was written by Luc Jacquet and Michel Fessler and co-produced by Bonne Pioche and the National Geographic Society.

The spectacular success of March of the Penguins in 2005 benefited "Happy Feet", the 2006 animated film about penguins which was in production when March of the Penguins was released.

March of the Penguins is a great film for adults and mature children to watch. The film appears to be slow in developing because of its subject matter and many children may not be able to set through its 85-minute run time.

In addition to its Oscar, March of the Penguins picked up another 10 wins and 10 nominations for its excellent and heroic filmmaking.

Has "Saturday Night Live" Finally Become Saturday Night Dead?

2007-05-23T00:15:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

When I was younger I used to watch "Saturday Night Live" faithfully because it always seemed to have enough "funny" to keep me positive and laughing.

The list of comedians who have passed through Saturday Night Live on their way to more fame and fortune reads like a list of who's who in comedy and is too long to repeat here. A much shorter list would be who has never been a cast member or guest on Saturday Night Live.

I do not think it is much of a revelation to say that Saturday Night Live has lost some of its "funny" as well as a lot of audience. People just talk less about it on Monday morning.

All of this came back to me when watching Peyton Manning in his debut as a guest host on Saturday night.

Manning, the Super Bowl MVP for the world champion Indianapolis Colts, has a reputation of being very intense, demanding and uptight to the point of constipation when it comes to game preparation and execution. It makes sense that he might be just as intense on Saturday Night Live.

Certainly Peyton Manning saw the program as an opportunity to give viewers an impression of his "other side". He can afford media consultants to suggest how he could freshen up his image.

This is why I found it disturbing when, in one skit, he was knocking down children by throwing footballs at them and then berating them for being stupid and incompetent. After watching this attempt at humor, I thought the National Football League and its United Way partner would come unglued.

I was dead wrong. I heard very little about Manning's skits. I doubt that Manning was laying awake nights before his appearance dreaming up the skits he did. The football bit with the kids did not impress me at all, and I did not find it funny in the least.

When you drop by to watch Little League Baseball games these days, there is always one or two coaches who are screaming, cussing and berating the kids because they struck out or threw the ball to the wrong base. Fathers who are losers become coaches that are legion for "beating" up on kids.

Successful athletes do not do this under any circumstances. They understand how difficult it is to become good, and how making mistakes is how you learn to correct them. Successful athletes are positive and encouraging almost without exception.

I took issue with this particular skit because kids today have too many heroes that are not worthy of adulation or emulation. Some heroes today have a rap sheet longer than their list of worthy credits.

Media pundits might insist that the program is for "young urban adults" or some such special population category, and that kids should not even be watching comedy at that hour. The pundits say that is why what I have to say is moot. I say nonsense, these routines are funny because they touch a chord with the vast majority of viewers or they do not, regardless of age or when the program is telecast.

Being young, sophisticated and from New York does not mean that you recognize and appreciate comedy any more than a grandfather from Lacey, Washington that is 62 years old like me.

The current state of Saturday Night Live probably has more to do with the lack of originality than the lack of presentation.

If you went to any downtown metro area looking for a hooker, the pimp would tell you that "pimping ain't easy", and so it is with writing comedy under a deadline.

All of us have probably had a comedic moment in our lives, but how many of us can come up with a comedy routine on cue? This is why we watch comedy rather than try to create comedy. God Bless Seth Myers, Saturday Night's new chief writer. He clearly understands that what isn't live is dead.

Having said that Seth Meyers needs some help. Tina Fey, the chief writer who preceded Meyers, needs some help too. Even Loren Michaels should be under the microscope; he provides the leadership and hires the talent or non-talent, as the case may be.

Saturday Night Live is just not as funny as it used to be. Everything is tired. I believe it is not so much the cast as the cast simply needs better material.

If there is one thing I dislike more than comedy that is not funny it is politicians who have nothing better to do than occupy space and run their mouth without providing any solutions.

So if I am carping here let me offer Loren Michaels a modest proposal: publicly ask viewers to submit comedy skit ideas and dialogue. Give the viewers an opportunity to email suggestions with no compensation involved.

This is an inexpensive idea and who knows, maybe some new ideas will surface and if someone clearly keeps contributing new ideas that work, then maybe they should be joining the show for the opportunity and compensation.

Think about it, Loren. Recognize this fact: It does not take a lot of talent to come up with bathroom humor, but does bathroom humor really work that well? I think not.

The best humor is when we make fun of ourselves rather than others. Everyone can relate to that kind of humor without taking sides.

Comedy is not about divide and conquer, comedy is about giving everyone a good laugh. And, as the Readers Digest's says, laughter is the best medicine.

"Breakfast on Pluto" Is Really Not About an Alien from Outer Space

2007-05-21T23:05:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Breakfast on Pluto – 2 Stars (Average)

Breakfast on Pluto is a gender preference movie about a boy who really wants to be a girl, and settles for being a transvestite trying to find a place in a world that curses his very existence.

Irish actor Cillian Murphy plays Patrick "Kitten" Braden in a controversial film due to the subject matter.

It is very difficult to make a great film. It is difficult to make a good film. It is almost impossible to make a good film when the subject matter is not even on the radar screen of the average viewer.

Alternative lifestyle films do not win awards even if the actors involved get an Oscar (as Hilary Swank did in Boys Don't Cry), get nominated for an Oscar (as Felicity Huffman did in Transamerica) or get nominated for a Golden Globe (as Cillian Murphy did in Breakfast on Pluto).

The typical moviegoer does not want to talk about alternative lifestyles much less see them. We are uncomfortable with what we do not know or understand, and even if we did, men would have a fondness for the distaff side only if they are genetic girls.

There will be no great acceptance for alternative films now or in the distant future.

Hollywood is OK with accepting alternative lifestyles, but Hollywood is generally far more liberal, permissive and self-absorbed than mainstream America.

Some of us in mainstream America are interested in relationship films and put no restrictions on the individuals and lifestyles involved. I endured Boys Don't Cry and Transamerica and am pleased to say I did not have to endure Breakfast on Pluto.

I think that Neil Jordan is the reason why. Jordan not only directed the film but wrote the script based on Pat McCabe's novel. McCabe plays the role of the schoolmaster. Jordan's script does not follow McCabe's novel, and the film is made better by his decision.

Jordan achieves something that few of his counterparts have been able to do and that is direct and write and produce a good product. I have a laundry list of wannabe writer/directors who have tried to do both and failed miserably.

The only other effort that immediately comes to mind besides Neil Jordan is Tim McCanlies' Secondhand Lions. McCanlies is a master storyteller in Secondhand Lions.

Unlike Boys Don't Cry and Transamerica which missed a great opportunity to inform and educate people about alternative lifestyles, Breakfast on Pluto delivers big time. Instead of a tragic ending filled with stereotypes and dialog riddled with hatred and bigotry, Breakfast on Pluto has a happy ending.

Cillian Murphy's great performance honors a character who stays true to "her" life, and remains in character to win in the end. While the production in the film suffers from sound problems that border on annoying, Murphy does not miss a beat despite narrowly escaping death on three occasions.

The film could not have been comfortable for the Catholic church as the priest Father Liam (Liam Neeson) impregnates his very attractive housekeeper, becoming the father (literally and figuratively) of Patrick Braden. He is raised as a foster child by an alcoholic mother who earns her living as a tavern owner.

Young Patrick gets into his gender role early on and eventually leaves his small Irish town for Piccadilly Circus in London, becoming an entertainer and streetwalker.

Jordan as the Director concentrates on the character of "Kitten" and wisely avoids taking the low road by using any tawdry displays for ratings. He makes Kitten into a real person that has a lack of direction and real problems fitting into regular society.

Cillian Murphy does an excellent job of keeping his character Kitten on task with the famous line "to thine ownself be true." Kitten does not waver or compromise who she is despite danger or lack of acceptance. In the end, Father Liam comes to terms with breaking his vow of celibacy, reconciles with Kitten, and experiences some personal growth in the process.

Do not be concerned about too many of these alternative films making it to the screen. Breakfast on Pluto had to be a financial disaster, pulling in only $751,000 at the box office.

I think anyone involved in an alternative lifestyle would appreciate Breakfast on Pluto, not because it makes a statement about endorsing an alternative lifestyle, but because it makes a statement about acceptance of oneself without recrimination.

Kitten shows it is not necessary to flaunt who you are to gain acceptance, she eventually finds acceptance by being herself, nothing more and nothing less.

"Transamerica" Transsexual Tale Misses Opportunity to Inform and Educate Viewers

2007-05-21T01:36:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Transamerica - 1 Star (Terrible)

There are easier films to review than productions involving alternative life styles, and Transamerica is an example. I purposely saw this film and reviewed it because I am interested in relationship films much more than I am into action flicks, heavy drama, disaster films and science fiction.

Having just reviewed "Boys Don't Cry" I approached Transamerica with some trepidation as Boys Don't Cry involves a runaway transgendered teen with R-rated violence, including sexuality, language, drug usage, an intensely brutal rape scene and murder (kind of the "complete family package" for Hollywood filmmakers).

With a laser beam on sensationalism and the cash register, Hollywood filmmakers would like us to believe that it is impossible to tell a good story with significant meaning without using intensely brutal rape scenes, sexuality, language, drug usage and murder (and sometimes making it seem like cool behavior by some very screwed up people).

Unlike Boys Don't Cry, Transamerica does involve an extended family in the throes of survival and change. Transamerica chronicles a typical American family.

Transamerica is about a pre-operative male-to-female transsexual named Bree who takes an unexpected journey from Los Angeles to New York when she learns that she fathered a son earlier in life. He is now a teenage runaway who is in jail after hustling on the streets of the Big Apple. Did I say that this is a typical American family? Well, not quite.

Bree wants sex change surgery but her psychiatrist will not approve the action until Bree comes to terms with the unknown son Toby. Bree gets custody of Toby but does not disclose her relationship to him. Toby wants to ditch her and hitchhike to Los Angeles; Bree, of course, will drive him there, hence the title Transamerica.

In the course of their cross-country trip, Bree's identity becomes known and both Bree and Toby end up at Bree's parents' home in Los Angeles. Bree's mother is delighted to learn she has a grandson and still angry about Bree's becoming a transsexual.

All of this too-close-to-family comfort is pretty nasty and, of course, this film could not be made without the usual R-rated sexual content, nudity, language and drug use. At least there is no intensely brutal rape scene and murder.

Felicity Huffman is cast in the role of Bree and Kevin Zegers is Toby; the rest are bit players in a difficult presentation. Toby apparently ends up living with his grandparents in their upscale environment, and Bree gets on with her sex change.

Felicity Huffman is an accomplished, award-winning actress who carries this film along despite a somewhat dubious script by Duncan Tucker who also doubles as Transamerica's director. Tucker won two lesser screenplay awards for his writing; apparently this was his first screenplay that made it to the big screen.

I feel Tucker does not use his forum to give a meaningful message about the subject. I ask myself, "Am I a better person for having seen this film?" The short answer is no.

Tucker missed an opportunity to give his viewers more knowledge and understanding about people struggling with transsexualism. Becoming a transsexual strikes me as a mighty tough road to hoe, realizing that you will alienate more people along the way than you could possibly know.

It is one thing to make a comedy or romantic comedy with no other purpose than to entertain viewers, it is quite another to tackle a difficult, controversial subject without assuming some responsibility for making its presentation a positive, productive impact upon viewers. To do less is to consider Hollywood entertaining but useless.

At least Huffman does her part. Huffman, a much more attractive woman than she thinks she is, turns the role of Bree into a Best Actress Oscar nomination, wins the Golden Globe as Best Actress and picks up another 11 lesser Best Actress awards.

Huffman plays Lynette Scavo on ABC's hit drama Desperate Housewives. Huffman also has 4 Golden Globe nominations as Best Actress in a TV Series and an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in Desperate Housewives.

She had a really difficult role in Transamerica as a woman playing a man who is seeking a sex change. Perhaps she was clever enough to realize this was her chance at an Oscar, but I doubt it.

Transamerica earned a lot more acclaim than many filmgoers thought it would considering the subject matter and middle America's disdain for any deviation from the norm.

The film generated only $8.7 million at the box office but has since generated another $20 million in video rentals. At its height in week 14, Transamerica was on 656 screens and earned $1.4 million during its best week. The first week of its video rentals Transamerica generated $4.3 million in revenue. Perhaps folks just did not want to be seen publicly at this flick.

Pulling in $28.7 million at this point in time, someone has to be watching Transamerica besides the transgendered and transsexual communities. It is too bad that they will walk away seeing a good performance by Felicity Huffman and be no more informed and educated about transsexualism.

With a better script, I believe Huffman would have walked away with an Oscar for her role.
I gave Transamerica a "terrible" rating because I left the theater no smarter or better informed than when I walked in. Duncan Tucker gets added to my personal list of writer/directors who fall short by taking on too much in moviemaking.

Tucker joins my not-so-exclusive club of fellow writer/directors who have fallen short, including Kimberly Peirce (terrible rating) for Boys Don't Cry, Vanessa Parise (average rating) for Kiss the Bride, Peter Weir (average rating) for Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, Nancy Myers (average rating) for Something's Gotta Give, Thomas Bezucha (average rating) for The Family Stone, Michael McGowan (average rating) for Saint Ralph, Jared Hess (terrible rating) for Napoleon Dynamite, Robert Rodriguez (terrible rating) for Once Upon a Time in Mexico, and Paul Thomas Anderson (terrible rating) for Punch-Drunk Love.

Is there someone who can actually make a movie more than an entertainment piece without so much of the R factor that will actually enlighten us on transgender and transsexual issues?

"Boys Don't Cry" Stirs Our Baser Emotions But Fails Miserably to Increase Our Understanding

2007-05-19T08:27:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Boys Don't Cry – 1 Star (Terrible)

How can a film produce an Oscar winning Best Actress performance and a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination and still be a terrible movie?

Easy, just fail to deliver an important message involving understanding and knowledge when you have millions of moviegoers who are glued to your presentation.

Give Kimberly Peirce credit for tackling an extremely controversial subject in Boys Don't Cry, the true life story of Brandon Teena, a transgendered teen who was born a woman named Teena Brandon that preferred life as a male until it was discovered that "he" was born female.

To say that this is a disturbing and powerful film is much more than an understatement when Brandon's biological identity becomes known, the script gives us an all too familiar scenario of events: betrayal, humiliation, rape and murder.

Please, Kimberly Peirce, if there is to be a subsequent controversial movie in the offing, do not repeat this scenario as it only reinforces all of the stereotypes, prejudices, bigotry, stupidity and transphobia already present in our society and culture.

(I am not sure what the phobia is for transgendered people so I simply created transphobia because homophobia means an extreme and irrational aversion to homosexuality and homosexual people, which is not what we are talking about here.)

In fairness to Peirce, Boys Don't Cry was her first film as a director, and she shared the screenwriting credits with Andy Bienen. Peirce drew some minor praise for her direction and script with the Stockholm Film Festival's Best Screenplay Award and even a Best Film nod from the International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival.

However, artistically this is not even an average film and certainly not a pleasant viewing experience because of the R-rated violence, including an intensely brutal rape scene, sexuality, language, drug usage and murder. Good grief, Lucy would have been aghast!

The point is that none of this graphic violence would have been needed to make this a great and moving film that engenders more understanding and compassion rather than being a disturbing drama with romance gone wrong.

Kimberly Peirce is not the first director/writer whose effort in a dual role breeds more failure than success. Any trophy she won for her directing and writing effort in Boys Don't Cry is metal without real meaning because it does little to help viewers better know and understand the transgendered community.

Peirce (terrible rating) joins the non-so-exclusive club of fellow writer/directors who have fallen short, including Vanessa Parise (average rating) for Kiss the Bride, Peter Weir (average rating) for Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, Nancy Myers (average rating) for Something's Gotta Give, Thomas Bezucha (average rating) for The Family Stone, Michael McGowan (average rating) for Saint Ralph, Jared Hess (terrible rating) for Napoleon Dynamite, Robert Rodriguez (terrible rating) for Once Upon a Time in Mexico, and Paul Thomas Anderson (terrible rating) for Punch-Drunk Love.

The absolute worst of this lot is Punch-Drunk Love.

Boys Don't Cry must have been a low-budget movie because the star of the film Hilary Swank reportedly earned $75 a day for the filming and walked away with a paltry $3,000. Let aspiring actors know that Hollywood is not all glamour and wealth.

Hilary Swank delivered even though the movie did not. She earned both Oscar and Golden Globe Best Actress Awards as Brandon Teena. Swank also won another 18 lesser Best Actress Awards.

Chloë Sevigny played Lana Tisdel, Brandon Teena's love interest in the film. Sevigny earned both Best Supporting Actress Oscar and Golden Globe nominations and won another 7 lesser Best Supporting Actress Awards.

Every female in the film auditioned for part that Hilary Swank won over hundreds of other actresses. Katherine Moennig who plays the part of the lesbian playgirl Shane on ShowTime's The L Word, a lesbian drama, also auditioned for the part.

Swank is no longer a name but a force in the acting community. She earned a second Best Actress Oscar and Golden Globe for her part as the struggling waitress-turned-boxer Maggie Fitzgerald in Million Dollar Baby, which also earned Clint Eastwood another Oscar as the Director.

Hilary Swank is only the fifth actress to win two Oscars in her first two nominations as Best Actress. She joins Vivien Leigh, Helen Hayes, Sally Field and Luise Rainer.

Swank brings to her roles the legendary, tenacious preparation of Dustin Hoffman. Swank dropped her body fat to 7% for the role as Brandon Teena and then went into serious training and put on 19 pounds of muscle for her role as Maggie Fitzgerald. She is athletic, having been a swimmer and gymnast of note growing up in a trailer park near Bellingham, Washington.

Boys Don't Cry is a sad, disturbing movie to watch, not just because of the subject matter but because the way it was presented nixed any opportunity to increase knowledge and understanding about the transgendered community.

Because of the violent explosiveness of the film, viewers are left to choose up sides and launch multiple topics of debate which regrettably settle or advance nothing.

It is like getting a group of overreactionary people together to settle the right way to think about pro choice-pro life issues, all of which is like civilization running in neutral gear when it could be moving forward to better knowledge and understanding of the critical issues people face in their ordinary lives.

This is not a job for a talented Hollywood scriptwriter; it is a job for someone more enlightened than a Hollywood scriptwriter.

One of the Best Movies Ever Tells of a Boy's Perfect Christmas Gift

2007-05-18T12:14:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

A Christmas Story – 4 Stars (Excellent)

A Christmas Story is arguably the best Christmas movie ever.

There is no doubt that the 1984 version of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol starring George C. Scott as Ebenezer Scrooge is a worthy contender for the honor. Since I have not seen Fanny & Alexander (1983), I remain a huge fan of A Christmas Story.

Can there be anything greater than Santa coming to your house on Christmas Eve with the perfect gift of your choice? I think not, especially if it is a genuine Red Ryder 200-Shot, Carbine-Action BB Gun for a 9-year-old named Ralphie living in Northern Indiana in the 1940s.

Imagine Ralphie's dismay when his mother, his teacher at Warren G. Harding Elementary School and ultimately even Santa Claus at Higby's Department Store tell him "you'll shoot your eye out."

A Christmas Story is about much more than whether Ralphie gets the Red Ryder BB Gun he covets. It is about a Midwest family with two boys, Ralphie (Peter Billingsley) and Randy (Ian Petrella), who encounter the normal struggles of growing up.

Ralphie and his friend Schwartz (R. D. Robb) badger their friend Flick (Scott Schwartz, not to be confused with R. D. Robb who plays the role of Schwartz) into pressing his tongue against a steel post to see if it will stick.

Flick, who realizes that he might be wrong in saying his tongue will not stick, is left with no alternative when Schwartz whips a "triple dog dare" on him. To save face, Flick learns a very hard lesson and this film gets some great footage in the process.

Both the boys and the girls watching this drama unfold are horrified at the result and the boys have no problem abandoning Flick when the school bell rings. Flick is left frozen to the post. When their teacher Mrs. Shields (Tedde Moore) confronts them about who is responsible for Flick's condition, they clam up, realizing "it's always better not to get caught."

All of the boys also must deal with the terrifying Scut Farcas (Zack Ward) and Grover Dill (Yano Anaya), the schoolyard bullies. They get pummeled on a daily basis and act like cowards until Ralphie sees Santa at Higby's and gets another dose of "You'll shoot your eye out, kid."

Ralphie is so agitated with rejection over his Christmas wish that when he is next confronted by the bullies he flies into a fit of genuine rage, charging the much larger Scut knocking him down and pounding him repeatedly in the face. Scut ends up with a bloody face and 100 times the embarrassment of being beat up. This event would forever after be known as the Scut Farcas Affair.

I love A Christmas Story because the exact same thing happened to me growing up in the Midwest. I was small for my age and was constantly picked on by bullies until I learned how to fight back no matter what the odds.

When the Parker family goes out to buy their Christmas tree they encounter a flat tire on the way home. Mrs. Parker (Melinda Dillon) encourages Ralphie to help his father (Darren McGavin) fix the flat.

Ralphie manages to lose the lug nuts during the tire change, and, in fit of fright, utters the dreaded F-word to the shock of his parents. Mrs. Parker demands to know where he learned the word and Ralphie, desperate to come up with an acceptable choice shoots out a name of a friend.

Ralphie, of course, has heard his father cuss time and again, quoting that his father could "weave a tapestry of obscenities that is still hanging in space over Lake Michigan." When their furnace in the basement acts up, Ralphie says "my father dabbled in profanities like an artist dabbles in oils."

This cussing incident so resonates with me because I grew up in the same kind of environment. I often believed my stepfather had a 200-word vocabulary and at least 50 of those words were cuss words. I probably heard the F-word 10,000 times before I graduated from high school. I used to tell my friends I could speak 5 foreign languages if I got mad enough.

A Christmas Story is loaded with other real life events, including Ralphie's day-dream about being blind from having to suck on soap for cussing, his father winning a prize lamp shaped like a woman's leg that he displays in their living room window for all to see, and the secret decoder Ralphie gets by eating Ovaltine for breakfast.

There is also Aunt Clara's gift of a pink bunny costume that Ralphie is forced to model on Christmas morning, the neighbor's dogs getting into the house and eating their Christmas turkey, and the surprise on Christmas morning after all of the gifts are opened.

A Christmas Story is based on Jean Shepherd's book In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash. Shepherd does a superb job of narrating this film about his childhood. The film is so well done, so authentic to its 1940s time period, so believable and likeable that it gets my excellent rating without qualification.

Director Bob Clark is uncanny in his ability to orchestrate this timeless story. Peter Billingsley is a 13-year-old actor playing the role of 9-year-old Ralphie and does so with incredible facial expressions. Young Billingsley is in the moment and totally professional.

A Christmas Story, a low budget film that was not expected to do well, was released just before Thanksgiving in 1983. By Christmas the film had been pulled from theaters because it was thought to have been "played out." It was only because of complaints from moviegoers that it was brought back to life.

The film celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2003 with release of a two-disc special edition. There are fans all over the world that treasure A Christmas Story and will not let it die, and I am one of them. I have lived so many parts of A Christmas Story that I feel it could also have been the story of thousands of other young boys growing up in the Midwest.

A Christmas Story is on my personal Top 10 all-time list of favorite movies because it exemplifies family values and the joy of living those few precious moments that define us for the rest of our lives.

A Christmas Story is an amazing film that teaches some of life’s great lessons, including determination, courage, patience, struggle, victory, self-esteem, love, acceptance and belonging. This is truly a classic movie that only those who have lived these experiences will appreciate the most. I am blessed to be one of those people.

"Sad Cypress" Is a Woman Scorned Who Becomes a Suspect in 2 Murders

2007-05-17T23:24:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Hercule Poirot: Sad Cypress – 3 Stars (Good)

Sad Cypress presents a suspected "murderer" with so much incriminating evidence that it seems unlikely that she did not do it. Even Hercule Poirot (David Suchet) has cause to question the innocence of Elinor Carlisle (Elisabeth Dermot Walsh).

This clever whodunit begins with the engagement of Elinor to Roddy Winter (Rupert Penry-Jones), an unsettling jerk who Elinor actually loves, proving that not only does love many times lack judgment but that it can also be blind.

Elinor receives an anonymous letter alerting her that someone is trying to curry favor with her wealthy aunt, Laura Welman, from whom both Elinor and Roddy expect to inherit a sizable fortune. They visit their sick aunt to see if the claim has any merit and find Mary Gerrard (Kelly Reilly), the lodge keeper's daughter has in fact become a major interest of their aunt.

Laura Welman suffers a second stroke and seeks to change her will, presumably to give some of her money to the attractive young Mary, but dies intestate during the night. Elinor ends up with her entire estate as the only surviving blood relative and becomes a clear suspect in what is really a murder.

Roddy's wandering eye focuses on Mary, and he decides to break off his engagement to Elinor who is understandably crushed. Then Mary ends up murdered as Elinor is making her sandwiches for lunch, and Elinor becomes a suspect again as a woman scorned.

It turns out that both of the victims were administered morphine, apparently by Elinor, who could have easily taken the bottle of morphine that was missing from the nurse's bag. Elinor had the means, the motive and the opportunity to do them both in.

A trial finds Elinor guilty and facing death as punishment.

Enter Dr. Peter Lord (Paul McGann) who is in love with Elinor and certain of her innocence. He has asked Hercule Poirot to consider the seriousness of the original letter that points to young Mary as a possible victim before the wealthy Mrs. Welman is killed.

Poirot is as intelligent as he is studious. He wonders why Elinor would go to the gallows if she were innocent, yet Elinor is a woman who has lost the love of her life, is filled with hatred for Mary who had stolen her fiancée, and has little will to live.

In examining a torn pharmaceutical label that was supposed to have held the poison morphine hydrochloride Poirot discovers that it actually held apomorphine hydrochloride, an emetic that causes vomiting.

It is then that Poirot turns his attention to Nurse Hopkins (Phyllis Logan), who served tea when Mary ate her sandwich. Hopkins laced the tea with morphine and then she and Mary drank it.
Hopkins then excused herself to administer a shot of the emetic to induce vomiting.

In the end, Poirot discovers—through Nurse Hopkins—that Mary is not the daughter of the lodge keeper, but rather Mrs. Welman's daughter which would have made Mary heiress to Mrs. Welman's estate since she was a closer relative than Elinor. Mary was the love child of a tryst with Sir Lewis Rycroft.

Nurse Hopkins had encouraged Mary to write a will before her death, and had Mary name her aunt Mary Riley from New Zealand as the beneficiary.

When Nurse Hopkins learns that Poirot is on to her case, she attempts to share her morphine-laced tea with him, but Poirot fakes being ill and thankfully the authorities stop her short of attacking Poirot with a needle as well.

When you learn that Mary Riley married (and then later killed) a man called Draper, and that Mary Draper is none other than Nurse Hopkins then you understand why Nurse Hopkins killed both Mrs. Welman and Mary.

The story ends with Dr. Peter Lord and Elinor likely headed toward marriage, so the sad cypress Elinor who was a symbol of mourning is about to blossom where she is planted with Dr. Peter Lord on her arm and in her heart.

There Are Only 2 Unsolved Murders? Never to Fear - Hercule Poirot Is Here

2007-05-16T15:56:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Hercule Poirot: The Mystery of The Blue Train – 3 Stars (Good)

The Mystery of The Blue train finds Hercule Poirot (David Suchet) boarding the train for the Riviera, the Mediterranean coastal region from Marseilles in France to La Spezia in Italy, noted for its beauty and climate, and the site of many resorts.

Katherine Grey (Georgina Rylance), a young English woman who has recently inherited a fortune, is also on board the trip to Nice.

She meets Ruth Kettering (Jamie Murray), an American heiress with marital problems and the owner of a world-famous ruby. Kettering is accompanied by her husband, her lover and her maid.

Rufus Van Aldin (Elliott Gould of MASH fame) is Kettering's father. He thinks both his daughter's husband and her lover are scoundrels. Added to the cast are some of the young woman's money-grubbing distant relatives.

What happens is hardly surprising. Ruth Kettering is brutally murdered in her compartment and her ruby is stolen. Poirot, of course, sorts this mess out and finds the killer.

There are reports that Agatha Christie felt this book, which became a made-for-television movie, was not her best work. I felt The Mystery of The Blue Train was no better or worse than many of her other works, the majority of which I consider good.

Hercule Poirot: Death in the Clouds – 2 Stars (Average)

Death in the Clouds is the first film adaptation of Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot series that I consider an average effort.

This movie gives us a murder in the sky as a ruthless blackmailer is killed by a poison-tipped dart during a flight full of likely suspects. The victim is Madame Giselle (Jenny Downham) who has a troop of people ready to kill her.

Madame Giselle is privy to too much insider information that could embarrass or destroy the careers of her money targets.

I found this script to be over the top with simply too many suspects and too much meaningless detail. It is the only Hercule Poirot mystery that made me annoyed with the story line. The method of the killing is really hard to believe, and therefore I give this film an average rating.

"Cards on the Table" Murder Mystery Stumps Even the Clever Little Belgian

2007-05-15T23:18:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Cards on the Table – 3 Stars (Good)

English mystery writer Agatha Christie must have had her gray cells working overtime in 1936 when she created Cards on the Table, another crime novel featuring her clever little Belgian detective Hercule Poirot.

This made-for-TV movie is notable in that Hercule Poirot (David Suchet) says at one point, "The question is, can Hercule Poirot possibly be wrong?"

"No one can always be right," Mrs. Lorrimer replies.

"But I am! Always I am right. It is so invariable it startles me. And now it looks very much as though I may be wrong," laments Poirot, "and that upsets me. But I should not upset, because I am right. I must be right because I am never wrong."

In this case, it is not the what, but the who, that causes Poirot's confusion.

Poirot is at an exhibition when he meets Mr. Shaitana (Alexander Siddig), a wealthy collector of the finest "specimens" in the world of crime: the people who do not get caught because they commit the perfect murder.

Siddig does an excellent job of playing Shaitana, who comes off in the movie as sleazy and uneasy to be around.

Shaitana invites Poirot to dinner to meet his "collection" which turns out to be four sleuths and four people who he believes have gotten away with murder.

The sleuths include Poirot, Scotland Yard's Superintendent (David Westhead), a colonel from His Majesty's Secret Service (Robert Pugh) and a popular mystery novelist (Zoe Wanamaker).

The guests begin to play bridge when Shaitana is murdered with a small stiletto. It is the job of the sleuths to identify the murderer, all of whom are murder suspects. All four had the opportunity, and all four had something to hide. The sleuths learn little from their interrogation.

Shaitana is in the room where the four suspects are playing bridge when he is murdered, and it is known that no one entered the room before Shaitana was killed. It turns out that none of the suspects actually killed Shaitana, and he did not stab himself.

It is unusual to see Poirot be flummoxed over a murder investigation. He tends to be very thorough, detailed and workmanlike in his approach, and exudes patience and confidence in his eventual ability to explain all of the details that the others miss.

In Cards on the Table, Poirot almost meets his match in the mysterious Mr. Shaitana, who apparently will go to any lengths to prove his fascination with the perfect murder.

To learn what really happened, you will have to see the movie, it is too good to give away here.

Agatha Christie wrote 41 murder mystery novels over a 55-year period. She remains one the greatest novelists of all time.

Agatha Christie, a Master Writer, Invents Inspector Hercule Poirot, a Master Detective

2007-05-14T22:40:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Hercule Poirot: After the Funeral - 3 Stars (Good)

Soon after attending her brother's funeral, Cora Gallaccio turns up dead, leaving Hercule Poirot to unravel the clues behind the murder, and the motive. After the Funeral is a very complicated mystery that underscores Agatha Christie's ability to hold your attention as Poirot unravels two murders.

This made-for-TV movie is based on one of the 41 murder mystery novels involving the proper, obsessive little Belgian inspector Hercule Poirot.

The character of Poirot (played to perfection by David Suchet) was created by the famous British author Agatha Christie, whose books only have been outsold by Shakespeare and the Bible.

Agatha Christie wrote her first Poirot novel in 1920 at the age of 30 and her last Poirot novel in 1975, 55 years later and a year before her death in 1976.

In After the Funeral, Cora Gallaccio turns up dead the day after attending her brother’s funeral. As the plot unfolds, it turns out that her brother was also murdered, and all 6 primary relatives appear as excellent suspects.

I love the Hercule Poirot series of movies and have seldom been disappointed in the works of Agatha Christie and David Suchet who brings her work to perfection in his characterization of Poirot.

In watching these murder mysteries involving Hercule Poirot, Agatha Christie makes sure that nearly everyone is seen as a logical suspect and spreads clues around like chocolates in a candy shop.

The game for me is to try and figure out who the killer is before it is all explained by Poirot at the end of each murder mystery.

I am never able to figure it out, much less all of the actual details of how, when and why, which is exactly why Hercule Poirot generally gets at least 3 stars in my review.

The other reason is David Suchet who polishes the role of Hercule Poirot without ever going out of character or missing a cue. Suchet was born to play this role and makes Hercule character unforgettable to viewers around the world.

Any Hercule Poirot presentation by David Suchet is a good look and a good movie. Perhaps the only greater mystery than why Hercule Poirot is as he is, is how Agatha Christie managed to be so creative that no one ever figures out who did it before Poirot, and, in the process, keeps us attracted to the action like a bee to pollen.

Here are two more mysteries in the series:

Hercule Poirot: Dumb Witness – 4 Stars (Excellent)

Poirot (David Suchet) receives a letter from Emily Arundell (Ann Morrish), a wealthy woman who believes someone is trying to kill her, and before Poirot can consult with her, she dies. Two of her nieces and one nephew would stand to inherit a fortune, but a late change in her will gives all of her wealth to her companion and friend, Miss Lawson.

The Dumb Witness turns out to be Arundell's clever terrier dog, and Hercule Poirot could not solve this murder without the help of the terrier, who cannot talk but does act out in a way that leads Poirot to the killer. "This dog is very clever," says Poirot, "he must be Belgian."

Hercule Poirot: Peril at End House – 3 Stars (Good)

Poirot's vacation trip to Cornwall becomes a business trip when the charming Nick Buckley casually mentions that she has narrowly escaped death three times in three days. Poirot (David Suchet) is not so sure about the presumed accidents and, sure enough, Nick's cousin Maggie is shot dead while getting a coat. Poirot, of course, sorts it all out in the end.

This mystery is a classic for me as it includes the regulars from the A&E series: Poirot's sidekick Captain Arthur Hastings (Hugh Fraser), Chief Inspector Japp from Scotland Yard (Philip Jackson) and Poirot's secretary Miss Lemon (Pauline Moran).

The hapless Miss Lemon absolutely adores Hercule, but he who misses nothing that is going on, never gives a hint that he even recognizes her unspoken romantic interest. Hercule usually puts stamps into a collector's book or counsels himself on the art of exercising his gray cells.

"Camelot" Is a Magical Movie, and a Primer in Civilized Human Relationships and Growth

2007-05-12T22:59:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Camelot – 4 Stars (Excellent)

"Camelot" is a wonderful Broadway musical that garnered Oscars for Best Art Direction, Best Costume Design and Best Music, and Oscar nominations for Best Cinematography and Best Sound. In other words, Camelot was a superb technical triumph in its day.

Camelot also won Golden Globes for Richard Harris for Best Actor (as King Arthur), Frederick Loewe for Best Original Score, and both Frederick Loewe (music) and Alan Jay Lerner (lyrics) for Best Original Song "If Ever I Should Leave You".

Golden Globe nominations also went to Camelot for Best Picture, to Vanessa Redgrave for Best Actress (as Guenevere) and to Franco Nero for the Most Promising Newcomer (as Lancelot Du Lac).

The cast was superb and included David Hemmings (as Mordred, who looked as slimy and cunning as possible), Lionel Jeffries (as King Pellinore) and Laurence Naismith (as Merlyn, the Magician).

Joshua Logan directed this film like a beautiful flower coming into blossom where it is planted only to be destroyed by fire.

Camelot, released in 1967, celebrates its 40th anniversary this October, and was based on the 1960 musical play Camelot written by Alan Jay Lerner with music by Frederic Loewe.

The play was based on the King Arthur legend as adapted from the T. H. White novel "The Once and Future King" and ran on Broadway for 873 performances. To say the least, it was well received.

The original cast for the play included Richard Burton as King Arthur, Julie Andrews as Queen Guenevere, Robert Goulet as Sir Lancelot, Roddy McDowell as Mordred, Robert Coote as King Pellinore and David Hurst as Merlyn with Moss Hart as the Director.

Camelot became a modern day legend when it was immortalized—after President John F. Kennedy's assassination on November 22, 1963—by revealing that the show's original cast recording had been the favorite bedtime listening in the White House. Kennedy's favorite lines were in the final number (when King Arthur knights a young boy and tells him to pass on the story of Camelot to future generations):

Don't let it be forgot,

That once there was a spot,

For one brief, shining moment

That was known as Camelot.

Since then, Camelot has been associated with the Kennedy administration, and the glory and the tragedy of the Kennedy family. Kennedy was the youngest elected President, the first Roman Catholic President, and the youngest President to die.

The following synopsis of Camelot from wikipedia.com is important in setting the stage for what I am about to reveal to you (the songs to accompany the scene are in parentheses):

"Guenevere arrives in Camelot on a wintry morning to marry King Arthur (of England) and is greeted festively by the Court. Arthur, shy and nervous, hides in the nearby woods ("I Wonder What the King is Doing Tonight?").

"Guenevere comes to the woods, uncertain about herself and her future ("The Simple Joys of Maidenhood"). She stumbles into Arthur, who tells her about life in Camelot ("Camelot"), and then discloses his identity. They are each happily charmed by the other.

"Arthur learns from Merlyn the wisdom of peace and brotherhood, and is inspired to establish the Round Table. The news of this reaches young Lancelot in France, who is determined to come to Camelot and join Arthur's knights ("C'est Moi").

"A May Day celebration takes place on the castle grounds ("The Lusty Month of May"), where Arthur introduces his wife to Lancelot. Guenevere takes an instant dislike to the cocky young man and (challenges) him to engage three knights of the Round Table in a jousting match ("Then You May Take Me to the Fair"). Arthur is dismayed by this and (is) at a loss to understand a woman's way ("How to Handle a Woman").

"In the jousting match Lancelot easily defeats all three knights, drawing the admiration of them all, including Guenevere. Lancelot falls in love with (Queen) Guenevere and is torn by the conflict between this love and his devotion to Arthur. He asks permission to leave Camelot for foreign conquests.

"Returning two years later, Arthur makes him a Knight of the Round Table. Arthur is painfully aware of the feelings between Lancelot and Guenevere but remains silent to preserve the tranquility of Camelot.

"Lancelot reveals his feelings to Guenevere ("If Every I Would Leave You"). Nevertheless, she remains faithful to Arthur, and helps him in carrying out the affairs of State ("What Do Simple Folks Do?").

"Mordred, Arthur's illegitimate son, comes to Camelot to dishonor the King and try to gain the throne for himself. He schemes . . . to trap Arthur in a forest one night. During the night, Lancelot visits Guenevere in her chambers, where she reveals her love for him ("I Loved You Once in Silence").

"Mordred and some of the Knights of the Round Table interrupt, accuse Lancelot of treachery, and imprison him. Lancelot escapes, but Guenevere is sentenced to burn ("Guenevere"). At the last moment, Lancelot rescues her and takes her off with him to France.

"For the sake of his own honor and that of Camelot, Arthur must now wage war on France. Just before the final battle, he meets Lancelot and Guenevere, and forgives them both.

"In camp, Arthur meets a young stowaway who wants to join the Round Table. Arthur knights him on the field of battle and sends him back to England to grow up there and pass on to future generations the ideals of Camelot."

Two side notes and then my revelation.

First, the song "If Ever I Would Leave You" (erroneously called "If Ever I Should Leave You" in the Golden Globe citation) was nominated and won in the category Best Original Song Written for a Motion Picture, even though it was not written especially for the film.

It was written for the original stage production of Camelot, and all the other nominees were songs especially written for films. This is the only instance in the history of the Golden Globe Awards that this has happened.

Second, even though Richard Burton won a Tony for Best Actor in the stage play and was offered the same part as King Arthur in the film, he turned it down. Richard Harris was magnificent in his performance as King Arthur in the film.

And the revelation? Camelot the play and Camelot the film were both truly inspirational musical productions, but I submit that the story Camelot was much more.

I felt in my heart that Camelot was also a primer in civilized human relationships and personal growth as well as a step forward for humanity. Let me explain.

When King Arthur realizes the relationship between his Queen and his chief knight, he says this, reacting like a man:

"I love them and they answer me with pain and torment. Be it sin or not sin, they betray me in their hearts and that's far sin enough. I can feel it in their eyes. I can feel it when they speak, and they must pay for it and be punished. I shall not be wounded and not return it in kind! I'm through with feeble hoping! I demand a man's vengeance!

When he calms down and says this, reacting like a king:

"Proposition: I'm a king, not a man. And a very civilized king. Could it possibly be civilized to destroy the (ones) I love? Did they ask for this calamity? Can passion be selected?"

In the end, King Arthur takes the high road. He would not punish either of them given his druthers, he realizes he still loves Guenevere and loves his best friend and knight, Lancelot, as a brother.

He cannot, however, stop Guenevere from burning at the stake for her indiscretion. He enlists his confidant King Pellinore to watch and see if Lancelot will attempt to rescue her in time. Thankfully, Lancelot does.

King Arthur sees the wisdom of the Round Table, bringing the knights of the kingdom together to protect the weak rather than fight among themselves at the expense of the weak.

King Arthur sees the wisdom of a legal system that gives the accused his day in court rather than fighting for his life in a duel whether the accused is guilty or innocent. Poor King Pellinore does not understand or accept this precursor to rule by law rather than rule by might.

King Arthur uses his love to overcome his pain and suffering and ultimately loses not only the love of his life but his best friend.

And, most important, despite going into a battle he may well lose and perhaps even die, he has the presence of mind to knight a young man to carry his hope into the future, so his vision will continue.

Is Alan Jay Lerner a great writer of screenplays? Perhaps the best, ever. You decide.

Camelot has been on my Top 10 Favorite Movie List for 40 years. Now you know why.

"Finding Nemo" Earns an Oscar and Wins the Hearts of Children Everywhere

2007-05-12T14:15:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Finding Nemo – 3 Stars (Good)

In the never ending battle to find good family films without filth and nasty surprises, Walt Disney Pictures comes to the rescue with "Finding Nemo", an animated film about a fish rescue.

Finding Nemo is everything that your average Hollywood film is not, a good, clean, entertaining story with likeable characters. Finding Nemo is anything but all wet, it will give you a good feeling in the dry comfort of your home. Add popcorn and low-sugar drinks, and it makes for a good family night together.

Just as important as finding a good film for your children is finding a film that also teaches valuable life lessons in an entertaining venue. Finding Nemo delivers.

Marlin, a clown fish, lives in the Great Barrier Reef with his only son Nemo. Marlin lost the rest of his family to a predator attack and now fears that Nemo will venture too far away into the open sea.

His worst fears are realized when Nemo is captured by a scuba driver, and eventually Nemo ends up in an aquarium in a dentist's office in Sidney, Australia. With no family left Marlin embarks on the dangerous journey to find and return Nemo home.

Along the way Marlin meets a new friend Dory, a blue tang (surgeonfish) suffering from short-term memory loss. Together their attempt to find Nemo is like trying to find a needle in a haystack as almost 75% of planet Earth is covered with water.

After escaping the sharp teeth of sharks, the stinging tentacles of jellyfish, the huge mouth of anglerfish and other predators, Marlin finally locates Nemo. Marlin is unaware that all this time Nemo and his tank mates have been plotting an escape from the dentist who is about to give Nemo to his niece.

Thankfully, Finding Nemo has a happy ending.

A number of life lessons are taught during this film, including the dangers of carelessness, seeing a difficult adventure through to the end, learning to trust others, recognizing the good in others, being resourceful and thoughtful, refusing to give up, fighting for those we love, helping those in need, and being appreciative of the life we have.

I really liked Finding Nemo because it is total animation without mixing animation with real people. It gives more clarity to the story and allows us to escape into another world.

The voices for the fish included Albert Brooks as Marlin, Ellen DeGeneres as Dory and Alexander Gould as Nemo.

The film was written by Andrew Stanton and co-directed by Stanton and Lee Unkrich.

Finding Nemo won an Oscar for Best Animated Feature and was also nominated by the Academy for Best Music, Best Sound Editing and Best Writing for an Original Screenplay. It also was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Picture and picked up 30 more wins and another 29 nominations.

"Chicago" Shows Two Murderesses Who Beat the Rap in a Fight for Fame

2007-05-11T22:35:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Chicago – 4 Stars (Excellent)

Let me get right to it: The musical "Chicago" is absolutely everything it was cracked up to be.

Imagine a chanteuse named Velma Kelly (Catherine Zeta-Jones) who kills both her husband and her sister when she finds them in bed together.

Imagine a bored wife named Roxie Hart (Renee Zellweger) who has an affair with a man she thinks can make her a star only to find out she has been had and is so mad she kills him.

Imagine them both in jail awaiting trial for murder with the eventual prospect of death row. Their only out is to create enough of a stir in the press to become famous and desired by an insatiable public in Chicago during the Roaring Twenties with its booze, nightclubs and all that jazz.

Now you have a musical prescription for Chicago.

Add in Matron Mama Morton (Queen Latifah) who rules the jail with an iron hand that can only be greased with money, and Billy Flynn (Richard Gere), an attractive, slick attorney who always gets his client acquitted while making them into even bigger stars in jail than on the stage, and you have the ingredients for a fantastic story.

A superb cast of singers and dancers under the direction of Rob Marshall brought Chicago together in a super professional, entertaining romp that generated 13 Oscar nominations and won 6 in addition to 30 wins and 52 nominations from other award groups.

Winning Oscars at the Academy Awards were Catherine Zeta-Jones for Best Supporting Actress, Chicago for Best Picture, Best Sound, Best Editing, Best Costume Design and Best Art Direction.

Oscar nominations went to Renee Zellweger for Best Actress, John C. Reilly (as Roxie's husband Amos) for Best Supporting Actor, Queen Latifah as Best Supporting Actress, Rob Marshall as Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Original Song "I Move On" and Best Writing.

Watching Chicago made me realize how good Catherine Zeta-Jones is as a signer and dancer. Zeta-Jones is such a classic beauty that it is easy to get stuck just looking at her.

While I have never been a big fan of Renee Zellweger, perhaps because of her prior roles, I am now.

While Zeta-Jones had prior experience Zellweger apparently had no singing and dancing training prior to this film.

Even Richard Gere surprised me. I have never thought of Gere as much of an actor, never mind a singer or dancer. He took tap dance lessons for three months to prepare for the part, and apparently won the role almost by default after John Travolta was offered the part several times.

After Chicago became Miramax's highest grossing film generating $171 million at the domestic box office, Travolta apparently deeply regretted declining the part.

I still asked myself how Chicago could have been so good. A little research revealed that Chicago could have been famous for the people who did not get key parts as those who did.

In addition to Travolta, Kevin Spacey, John Cusack and Hugh Jackman were considered for the part.

Auditioning for Catherine Zeta-Jones' part as Velma Kelly were none other than Angelina Jolie and Madonna.

Auditioning for Renee Zellweger's role as Roxie Hart and some other parts in the film were Goldie Hawn, Kathy Bates, Rosie O'Donnell, Nicole Kidman, Gwyneth Paltrow, Kristin Chenoweth, Cameron Diaz, Whoopi Goldberg and Britney Spears.

Director Rob Marshall wanted Catherine Zeta-Jones to wear her natural long hair in the movie, but she insisted on the short bob, explaining that she did not want her hair to fall over her face and give people a reason to doubt that she did all of the dancing herself.

Apparently Zeta-Jones was originally approached to play the role of Roxie Hart but would not as she knew the character of Velma Kelly sang "All That Jazz" and she wanted to play that role so she could sing that song.

Charlize Theron was initially selected to play the role of Roxie Hart when another director was involved but lost out when Rob Marshall took over as director. The casting of Renee Zellweger proved to be a very wise choice.

Chicago is based on the book by Bob Fosse, the play by Maurine Dallas Watkins and the screenplay by Bill Condon.

Much of the dialog in the film is good, and funny. Here are some exhibits from the courtroom, and when the women on death row are retelling their misfortune:

Velma Kelly: Yes, it is.

Assistant District Attorney Martin Harrison: I submit this as Exhibit X – Roxie Hart's diary!

Billy Flynn: I object! My client has never held a diary! And even if she did, this would be . . . invasion of privacy, and violation of the fourth amendment, and . . . and illegal search without a warrant!

Roxie Hart: Yeah, AND she broke the lock!

Billy Flynn: Miss Kelly, did you make a deal with Assistant D. A. Harrison to drop all charges against you in exchange for your testimony?

Velma Kelly: Why, sure. I'm not a complete idiot.

Liz: You know how some people have those habits that get you down? Like Bernie. Bernie liked to chew gum. No, not chew. POP. So I come home from work one night and I'm real irritated, and I'm looking for a little sympathy. And there's Bernie, lying on the couch, drinking a beer and chewin'. No, not chewin', POPPIN'. So I said "If you pop that gum one more time . . ." And he did. So I took the shotgun off the wall and fired two warning shots . . . into his head.

June: I'm standin' in the kitchen, carving up a chicken for dinner, minding my own business, when in storms my husband, Wilbur, in a jealous rage. "You've been screwing the milkman," he said. He was crazy, and he kept on screaming, "You've been screwing the milkman." And then he ran into my knife . . . he ran into my knife ten times.

There is nothing not to like about Chicago. If you love musicals, you will love Chicago.

The Living Sea - A Look That We Generally Are Never Able to See

2007-05-10T23:00:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

The Living Sea: Imax – 2 Stars (Average)

The Living Sea may not be as impressive watching it at home on your television as it would be in an IMAX theater, but it is plenty good enough to merit attention.

This 40-minute film was nominated for an Oscar as the Best Documentary for a short subject, and is the creation of Greg MacGillivray and Alec Lorimore. MacGillivray is the director of the film and the writing credits go to Roger Holzberg and Tim Cahill.

The Living Sea is a good family film for children because it is colorful, interesting and informative.

The Living Sea is really a survey of the world's oceans, illuminating the teeming life beneath the surface and emphasizing the fact that all of the bodies of water covering the Earth are interconnected.

We may not realize it, but we are dependent upon the oceans for survival as 70% of the Earth's oxygen comes from ocean plants.

The film highlights all of the colorful, vibrant life beneath the surface, including humpback whales, golden jellyfish and giant clams. All of the sea life reminds us of the ocean's deep mysteries, and is captured by stunning cinematography.

We come into contact with surfers, researchers cataloging and tracking whales, a Coast Guard rough weather rescue squad, and a deep-ocean research team at work. A study of jellyfish in a saltwater lake takes us to the Palau Islands.

Legendary actress Meryl Streep provides the narration for The Living Sea.

While there has been a lot of focus on exploring outer space since the early 1960s, a lot less attention has been paid to what happens under the Earth's oceans and especially on the ocean floor, where nothing can be seen in the darkness without artificial lighting.

The Living Sea is an interesting and incredibly beautiful look at an environment that we generally are never able to see.

"Meet the Fockers" Gets a Real Boost From De Niro and Hoffman

2007-05-10T08:35:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Meet the Fockers – 3 Stars (Good)

Meet the Fockers is the best comedy I have seen in a long time. It was not overdone and not underdone.

This movie could have been easily over-the-top with its descriptive title, but there is no hint of it in the presentation. The Motion Picture Association of America was not going to allow the title to be used unless the producers could find an actual family with the surname "Focker" in North America.

Focker is not exactly the best choice of a name to be called the rest of your life. Meet the Fockers was a sequel to Meet the Parents, which raised the question "what sort of people name their son Gaylord M. Focker (Greg Focker's full name)?

Despite the easy shots this film could fetch in name alone, Director Jay Roach and Writers Grey Glienna and Mary Ruth Clarke (characters), Jim Herzfeld and Marc Hyman (story) and Herzfeld and John Hamburg (screenplay) kept the name calling in check. I think they did an incredible job and the PG-13 rating speaks volumes.

A believable story line and an all-star cast with former Oscar-winners Robert De Niro, Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand (yes, Streisand won as Best Actress in Funny Girl) gave this comedy a real boost of professionalism.

By reducing Ben Stiller to a lesser role and playing up the acting and timing talents of Hoffman and De Niro, this movie is so much better than the first that there can be no comparison between the two.

Meet the Fockers may well be the first sequel to a movie that is better than the original, and that is saying something in Hollywood.

The reason is De Niro (as Jack Byrnes, father of the bride), Hoffman (as Bernie Focker, father of the groom) and Streisand (as Rozalin Focker, mother of the groom) are believable. I have known people very similar to the roles they are playing.

I have yet to see a movie with Ben Stiller (as Greg Focker) in which I thought he was believable. I have never known anyone like Stiller's character. Adding De Niro, Hoffman and Streisand makes this movie talent rich.

I highly recommend this movie for its straight comedy in a very human situation, parents of the bride and groom who are polar opposites meeting for the first time. Having said that, I do not think this is a good movie for youngsters.

This film does not revel in the filth, sex and drug culture as some comedies do, but who wants to answer pertinent questions from youngsters when trying to be entertained? Finding Nemo is a more appropriate film for youngsters.

Everyone seemed to enjoy making this movie and I enjoyed watching it.

Meet the Fockers was short on awards but not short on humor. As is often the case, it generated $279 million at the U. S. box office and a staggering $515 million (as in half billion) worldwide. Not a bad payday by any measure.

Most critics gave Meet the Fockers an average pass while noting that Meet the Parents was much better. I saw it as just the opposite.

"Waking Ned Devine" by Kirk Jones Is the Best Comedy I Have Ever Seen

2007-05-09T09:14:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Waking Ned Devine – 4 Stars (Excellent)

Sooner or later one has to come clean. When pigeonholed about what is my favorite comedy, I said some time ago that "Meet the Fockers" was the best comedy I had seen in a long time. What I did not say was what is the best comedy I have ever seen.

So let me say it here and now: as of Sunday, March 11, 2007 the best comedy I have ever seen is "Waking Ned Devine" and it is not even a close call.

It would be easy to throw around a bunch of adjectives like outstanding, fantastic, remarkable, extraordinary, superb or phenomenal but why bother when you can say this: there are not another five writer/directors in America that are better than Kirk Jones and his creation.

In crafting Waking Ned Devine Kirk Jones has done what dozens of his peers have not done on their best day, and that is both write and direct a film worthy of being called the best.

Let me not be shy or just throw out words to fill up space. Let me name some writer/directors whose effort in a dual role bred more failure than success:

They include Kimberly Peirce (terrible rating) for Boys Don't Cry, Vanessa Parise (average rating) for Kiss the Bride, Peter Weir (average rating) for Master and Commander: the Far Side of the World, Nancy Myers (average rating) for Something's Gotta Give, Thomas Bezucha (average rating) for The Family Stone, Michael McGowan (average rating) for Saint Ralph, Jared Hess (terrible rating) for Napoleon Dynamite, Robert Rodriguez (terrible rating) for Once Upon a Time in Mexico, and Paul Thomas Anderson (terrible rating) for Punch-Drunk Love.

The worst of these efforts was Paul Thomas Anderson's Punch-Drunk Love.

There is no question that all of these wannabe writer/directors probably worked their butt off trying to win an Academy Award for their effort, and I do not mean to discredit their time and effort, just their result. Hopefully, they will learn from experience and get better.

Kirk Jones is almost unique because this was his first effort at being a writer/director. He was in very dangerous territory but talent, judgment and sensibility can overcome a lot of mistakes.

I would put Kirk Jones in the same incredible class of writer/directors as Tim McCanlies in Secondhand Lions. Both Jones and McCanlies are great writers-not-yet-discovered who become artists painting a masterpiece when directing.

Waking Ned Devine is set in Ireland but filmed on the Isle of Man, an island in the Irish Sea that is a British crown possession with home rule.

The Narrator for the film (Paul Vaughan) sets the stage for the film with this great observation:

"Saturday evening, and the world is much the same as at any other point in the history of the world. The planets and stars orbit and spin, and do everything that is expected of them. On Earth, as the sun sets, millions prepare for an event that is much less predictable.

"In 63 countries around the world, dozens of lottery machines spin hundreds of lottery balls. It takes seconds for the winning numbers to be selected . . .seconds for the losers to realize that they have lost. But for the winners, it is an event that will undoubtedly change their lives forever . . . lucky sods!"

In the tiny Irish village of Tullymore two best friends—Jackie O'Shea (Ian Bannen) and Michael O'Sullivan (David Kelly)—discover that someone among them has won the Irish lottery, and they go to great lengths to find the winner.

After concocting an elaborate chicken-dinner ploy that fails to rat out the winner, they plough through a horrific rainstorm to call on the only person to not attend the dinner. When they find the elderly Ned Devine with the winning ticket is in his hand he is dead.

Imagine Ned Devine at his moment of triumph. He survived endless storms upon the sea as a fisherman but ends up dying of shock in his lazy boy upon discovering his good fortune.

Jackie O'Shea, being the good Irishman he is, does not want the money to go to waste and convinces his reluctant friend Michael O'Sullivan to go along with his plan. You simply must see what happens when these two pikers get about the business of dealing with Ned Devine's body.

Jackie's wife Annie (Fionnula Flanagan) is beside herself when she learns of Jackie's plan, upbraiding Jackie for his dishonesty and fearing that both of them will end up in jail.

Jackie, being the creative Irishman he is, lets Annie know that he has had a dream that the deceased Ned would want to share his winnings with him.

When Jackie and Michael were skinny-dipping in the sea, they bump into the claims inspector as he is coming to interview Ned Devine to settle the claim ticket. Jackie takes the claims inspector on a wild goose chase while trying to find "Ned's" house, and Michael is left to jump on a moped naked and make a mad dash back to the house before the inspector arrives.

Earlier, when Jackie's wife Annie learns he has put Michael up for the part of Ned Devine, she reminds him that "he's never told a lie in his life." "Well," replies Jackie, "he's making up for it now."

Michael, nervous as a cat, does pull it off, and the inspector lets Michael know that his payout will be almost $6.9 million Irish pounds.

If you can only see one other comedy bit ever, see Michael O'Sullivan, buck naked, riding that moped like a man possessed. It is beyond comedy, it will be legend for those in the know.

Only when Jackie discovers that the winning ticket is worth $6.9 million Irish pounds does he realize how out of the control the situation has become, and that the entire village will have to become involved to pull off a deception of this magnitude.

Every villager to a person agrees with the plan except for Lizzy Quinn (Eileen Dromey), a cantankerous, wheelchair-bound, b-class whiner who holds out for a hefty 10% take with a threat that she will spill the beans.

When pushed Lizzy (I hope my memory serves me right in thinking this is the right character) makes good on her promise, and wheels herself up the road to the pay phone by the cliff.

Fortunately for the villagers, Lizzy dies when the lottery claim inspector's car spins out of control and forces an oncoming van to crash into the phone booth, sending Lizzy over the cliff before she can report the fraud.

The claims inspector shows up in the middle of the funeral with the $6.9 million pound check for Ned Devine, sending all of the attending villagers into a state of emotional and mental panic. Jackie O'Shea who is delivering the eulogy slides into some instant Irish resourcefulness with this brilliant piece of oratory:

"Michael O'Sullivan was my great friend. But I don't ever remembering telling him that. The words that are spoken at a funeral are spoken too late for the man who is dead. What a wonderful thing it would be to visit your own funeral. To sit at the front and hear what was said, maybe say a few things yourself.

"Michael and I grew old together. But at times, when we laughed, we grew young. If he was here now, if he could hear what I say, I'd congratulate him on being a great man, and thank him for being a friend."

Waking Ned Devine is both one of the best comedies ever made and a classic study in relationships, not just among friends and families but among a small community as well.

Kirk Jones has given this story heart, risk, honor, integrity, unity, romance, love, tolerance, chicanery and Irish whiskey all rolled into a masterpiece of storytelling. Waking Ned Devine is the funniest film I have ever seen.

Because Ned Devine is a comedy and also a story about relationships among common people, this, as much as anything, gives it such solid goodness despite the deception. I mean really, who wants to give $6.9 million Irish pounds back to the government when it really belongs to the people?

There are other subplots in Waking Ned Devine too good to detail here. We learn of the romance between Maggie O'Toole (Susan Lynch) and Pig Finn (James Nesbitt), a pig farmer Maggie would like to marry if she did not have to smell him.

We learn that Maggie has a son, and Pig Finn wonders if he is the father. We learn that the real father is none other than Ned Devine, and that the son is rightfully due the entire $6.9 million pounds as the legal heir. Maggie, thankfully, realizes that a rising tide lifts all ships to a better place.

Waking Ned Devine ends with Jackie O'Shea, Michael O'Sullivan, Maggie's boy and Pig Finn all raising a toast to Ned Devine while standing on a cliff overlooking the sea. A better comedy I may not see in my lifetime.

Sadly, recognition for Kirk Jones, the cast, outstanding casting by John and Ros Hubbard, and cinematography by Henry Braham all go without their proper due.

To prove there is some small measure of justice in the world, the budget for Waking Ned Devine was estimated at $3 million and this independent film has generated at least $43 million worldwide and the video is still raking in more bucks.

There are 6.9 million reasons to see Waking Ned Devine, but here is the best one: Kirk Jones. I raise a second toast of Jameson's to Kirk Jones' effort. I may only be 15% Irish, but it is the best 15% of me. I am a better person for having seen Waking Ned Devine.

"High School Musical" Gives an Outstanding Message About Acceptance by Teenagers

2007-05-08T13:09:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

High School Musical – 3 Stars (Good)

The Disney Channel had to be beside itself with the premiere broadcast in January 2006 of "High School Musical" which was its most successful made-for-television movie up to that time with 7.7 million viewers.

In addition to its commercial success High School Musical is an even bigger artistic success with an outstanding message about acceptance by teenagers in today's world.

This movie represents everything that is right about today's teenagers. We see quality athletes, quality academic students, quality relationships and personal growth which leads to right thinking, right motives and right actions at the appropriate time.

All of this happens in a movie that is rated G, not PG, PG-13, R or NC-17. Can you appreciate how rare it is to see a G-rated movie that is not an animated film?

Millions of parents and adults are so sick and tired of seeing teenagers involved with filthy language, sexual gymnastics, drug use, murder, rape, mayhem and evil doing.

Hollywood says they only make these films because it is what moviegoers want to see; it really gives you an insight into just how permissive, warped and out of touch they are with mainstream America.

Having said that let me gush about High School Musical and the quality direction by Kenny Ortega and quality writing by Peter Barsocchini, who sends an excellent message about acceptance that every teen struggles with growing up.

A New Year's Eve party brings Troy Bolton (Zac Efron) and Gabriella Montez (Vanessa Anne Hudgens) together. While they are singing karaoke together they discover their love for music and interest in each other.

Gabriella, a very bright student, comes to a new school and rediscovers Troy, a jock and star of the basketball team. When Troy and Gabriella become fast friends they win a callback during the school musical auditions. Teen drama queen Sharpay Evans (Ashley Tisdale) and her brother Ryan (Lucas Grabeel) are upset as they have been the lead in the past 17 school plays.

When Troy's basketball teammates realize he has auditioned for the musical and is neglecting his duties as team captain, and Gabriella's teammates on the academic team realize she has become friends with Troy, members of both teams conspire to break up their friendship.

When both Troy and Gabriella's performances slip dramatically and are obviously distraught because they are only trying to break out of their expected roles, their teammates confess to the conspiracy to break-up their friendship.

The conspiracy is led by Chad Danforth (Corbin Bleu), Troy's best friend and basketball teammate, and Taylor McKessie (Monique Coleman), Gabriella's friend and leader of the school's Science Club that competes in the scholastic decathlon. Monique Coleman went on to compete in the popular series Dancing With the Stars.

Sharpay and brother Ryan know that Troy and Gabriella are real competition for their usual position on stage and set about to disrupt the callback by getting their drama teacher Alyson Reed, an even bigger drama queen, to change the time of the callback to interfere with Troy's championship basketball game and Gabriella's scholastic decathlon.

Troy helps his team win the championship, and Gabriella helps her team win the scholastic decathlon. Both of them make the callback and get the lead role in the play even though all three events occur at the same time. You will have to see the film to understand how their basketball and scholastic teammates devise a plan to make it happen.

By being themselves and having the courage to try something new, both Troy and Gabriella motivate their classmates to try new interests.

High School Musical is about a diverse school population that takes diversity to a better place. Instead of focusing solely on the issue of diversity writer Peter Barsocchini ignores the trite, obvious issues of color of skin, size of bodies and good looks and builds around an even more important point: acceptance when being different.

Perhaps we can now move on to not being so concerned that two African American coaches were opponents in the most recent Super Bowl, and just concentrate on the game and players. Maybe we can move on beyond everything being viewed from a racial perspective.

Maybe we can truly examine the issue of acceptance and other important issues in the lives of our teenage children rather than focusing on the fact that where acceptance does not exist that it must be race related.

High School Musical shows teenagers being devious, screwing up, fessing up to messing up, feeling remorse, doing something constructive to make it right, and everyone one being a better person in the end, even our drama queen Sharpay and brother Ryan.

More than 600 auditioned for the movie and Vanessa Anne Hudgens had to compete with 12 others for the role of Gabriella; she and the other girls danced and sang all day to win the role.

High School Musical was the working title for the film and was used when post-production came because a better name had not surfaced. Andrew Seeley's voice was dubbed in for Zac Efron.

Seeley composed and sang "Get'cha Head in the Game" which was nominated for an Emmy. Composer Jamie Houston's "Breaking Free" was nominated for an Emmy. Ortega was also nominated for an Emmy as was Jason La Padura for Outstanding Casting.

High School Musical did win one Emmy for Outstanding Children's Program and another for Outstanding Choreography. In all, the film had 9 wins and 10 nominations for various awards.

I highly recommend this film for parents, teenagers and children of all ages who would have the patience to sit through this movie. High School Musical sends a great message about children today and needs continued strong support to spread its positive message.

"The Five People You Meet in Heaven" Is Difficult to Understand But Rewarding

2007-05-07T10:04:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

The Five People You Meet in Heaven – 2 Stars (Average)

For anyone who has read Mitch Albom's book Tuesdays With Morrie, it was axiomatic to read The Five People You Meet in Heaven and then see the movie.

Albom was asked why it took him so long between his first two books, he said "To be honest, I was a bit overwhelmed by Tuesdays' success. At first, nobody wanted to publish that book or talk much about it.

"Then, suddenly, all anyone wanted me to do was write a sequel. I knew I didn't want to do that. I said everything in that book that I had to say about the last class between Morrie and me. So I waited until something inspired me the way that book did. It just happened to take six years."

When asked if anything Morrie had said led to the story line of "Five People" he revealed the fact that "Morrie often told a story about waves, and how when they hit the shore they ceased to exist—unless you realized that, in truth, they weren't really waves at all, they were part of the ocean.

"Morrie saw himself that way, as part of something connected to a bigger humanity. In the Five People, I sort of explore that idea, that we are all connected to each other in ways we don't even realize, and that perhaps, when your life is over, you may find out all the other 'waves' in this big ocean that you affected without even knowing it."

These insights show the integrity and sensitivity of Mitch Albom, who also penned the movie script for his book. Albom works for the Detroit Free Press and is arguably one of best sportswriters in the United States. His work in "Five People" shows flashes of his pure writing talent.

The Five People You Meet in Heaven is the story of Eddie (Jon Voight), a simple man living a simple life as a maintenance man who has a regret and an ache in his heart.

He spends his entire life berating himself because he never left the amusement park to pursue his dream of becoming an engineer. He blames everyone but himself for not getting on in the world. This is his regret, and he feels that his life has been wasted.

Eddie dies on his 83rd birthday while trying to save a little girl from a falling cart in a roller coaster ride gone bad, and develops an ache in his heart. With his final breath, he feels two small hands in his as he tries to pull the girl away—and then nothing.

He dies not knowing if he saved the girl’s life or not.

He awakens in Heaven and is destined to meet five people, loved ones and distant strangers who form a thread in his life that when woven into a fabric explain the meaning of his life.

Each person shares with Eddie a lesson in life that he failed to learn on Earth.

Albom's writing skills shine through in these memorable quotes from the five characters:

Ruby: "Holding anger is a poison. It eats you from inside. We think that by hating someone we hurt them. But hatred is a curved blade. And the harm we do to others, we also do to ourselves."

Blue Man: "There are no random acts. We are all connected. You can no more separate one life from another than you can separate a breeze from the wind."

Blue Man: "In heaven, there is no judgment, but rather an opportunity to examine our lives—who we touched, the choices we made, and the consequences of those choices."

Blue Man: "Strangers are family you have yet to come to know."

Marguerite (Eddie's wife who precedes him in death): "Lost love is still love, Eddie. It just takes a different form, that's all. You can't hold their hand, you can't tousle their hair. But when those senses weaken another one comes to life. Memory. Memory becomes your partner. You hold it. You dance with it. Life has to end, Eddie. Love doesn't."

Be forewarned that The Five People You Meet in Heaven can and probably will bring tears to your eyes, and make your throat retract and become sore with tension. This is no movie for children of any age, adults can hardly deal with it and attempt to understand the subject matter and significance of its message.

This movie has an incredible ending that allows Eddie to finally understand the meaning of his life. I will not reveal the ending here, you must see the ending to earn its blessing.

This is an extremely complicated story, and the movie does not make the story any easier to understand and follow. It forces us to examine our existence here on earth; however, the story and the movie are worth the effort if you have any spiritual development.

The only other movie I have seen more complicated to understand is The Hours, which was far more miserable, depressing and dramatically overdone despite some serious Oscar attention (Best Actress Oscar for Nicole Kidman and 8 other nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director Stephen Daldry, Best Supporting Actor Ed Harris and Best Supporting Actress Julianne Moore).

Because of its complexity The Five People You Meet in Heaven earned little, if any, critical acclaim or accolades. This is why I write reviews. With no one to sing its praises, the voice of understanding goes silent. Silence is a void that is unbearable.

Perhaps Albom's effort falls short of reaching more people because he is a writer and not a philosopher. A writer like Albom can craft a beautiful sentence that a reader like me can appreciate. A philosopher can craft another sentence that immediately strikes a chord with nearly everyone.

Great poets often achieve this heartfelt effect, perhaps they are philosophers too.

I would have given The Five People You Meet in Heaven a 3 rating in a heartbeat (very high in my system) if it were not so difficult for viewers to digest and appreciate. I would see this movie again, and was a better person for having seen it the first time.

4 Average Movies That Do Not Get Any Better the Second Time Around

2007-05-06T16:47:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Here are four average movies that do not get any better the second time around:

Anger Management – 2 Stars (Average)

Anger Management brings young Adam Sandler together with old Jack Nicholson in a dippy comedy that borders on a romantic comedy without the dramatic bent.

Dave Buznik (Adam Sandler) is a businessman who is wrongly sentenced to an anger-management program following an incident on airline flight, but insult is added to injury when Dr. Buddy Rydell (Jack Nicholson), an aggressive, unorthodox therapist, becomes his live in roommate during rehabilitation.

This film is dominated by Nicholson, has a script that begs for better lines, and becomes annoying after awhile, which is very similar to Nicholson's character in the movie. I am not altogether sure this movie would not have been better if the roles of Nicholson and Sandler were reversed.

Imagine Nicholson as a problematic, anger-management reprobate (not hard to do) and Sandler as a recent psychiatrist grad about to deal with his first real patient (easy to do). I propose this because I felt very little chemistry between Nicholson and Sandler as they were cast.

Anger Management is not a film I would see twice under any circumstances. Apparently a lot of judges felt the same way as awards were really absent for this effort.

The Emperor’s Club – 2 Stars (Average)

The Emperor's Club reminds me of the aspirations of people starting out in life and the disappointment that inevitably comes when forcing one's ideas upon another.

William Hundert (Kevin Kline) is a passionate and principled classics professor who finds his world challenged when a new student, Sedgewick Bell (Emile Hirsch), comes into his class. A battle of wills ensues.

The Emperor's Club needed a better script and suffered from the lack of a female presence. Who wants to watch a bunch of guys being smart asses? This gets to be about as interesting as watching flour turn brown.

The Emperor's Club was not unlike the Dead Poet's Society with Robin Williams as English professor John Keating, except Williams does a better acting job than Kline.

The message of The Emperor's Club is negative and undermining; the message of Dead Poet's Society is uplifting and encouraging.

Dead Poet's Society earned an Oscar for Best Writing by Tom Schulman, and garnered three other Academy nominations: Robin Williams for Best Actor, Peter Weir for Best Director and Best Picture.

The Emperor's Club was not even noticed at awards time.

The Fast and the Furious – 2 Stars (Average)

The Fast and the Furious is an action flick for guys featuring street car racing, macho wannabe men and mindless activity that sends a terrible message to every mixed up teenager who is out of control and looking for trouble.

Yes, the cars are great, yes, the race scenes are terrific for a fantasy world, and no, this film has no redeeming quality worth talking about. It is, in a word, stupid, and glorifies a stupid activity.

The Fast and the Furious picked up some minor awards for cinematography and music, but lacks substance and gets low marks for bad behavior. Save your money on the sequel.

Five Easy Pieces – 2 Stars (Average)

Five Easy Pieces was made in 1970 and 36 years later has become a cult film in the sense that it engenders a misplaced or excessive admiration because of an actor named Jack Nicholson and a restaurant scene that suggests humor but exhibits rage.

Robert Dupea (Jack Nicholson) is a successful classical pianist from a well-to-do family who becomes a worthless piece of nothing on his way to nowhere about 1,000 miles an hour. Dupea becomes one troubled and sad person who ends up as a trashy oil rigger.

Dupea surrounds himself with enough dysfunctional people to field a basketball team. One of Dupea's lines in the movie says a lot: "I move around a lot, not because I'm looking for anything really, but 'cause I'm getting away from things that get bad if I stay." Dupea just needs to grow up and stop feeling sorry for himself; he simply cannot come to terms with life and what it has to offer.

Nicholson does a great job with his role in the film (he gets his second Oscar nomination for Best Actor), but the script, story, ending and everything else about Five Easy Pieces is negative and worthless. The message of the film is just a sad, sorry excuse for living.

Nicholson becomes a major force in acting during Five Easy Pieces. He goes on to earn no less than 2 Best Actor Oscars (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and As Good As It Gets), 1 Best Supporting Actor Oscar (Terms of Endearment) and no less than 9 other Best Actor nominations.

Jack Nicholson is the most nominated actor in Academy Awards history. I was about to say he could win an Oscar nomination in any film, and then I remembered Anger Management with Adam Sandler.

Five Easy Pieces also won Oscar nominations for Best Supporting Actress (Karen Black), Best Picture and Best Writing by Bob Rafelson and Carole Eastman. Great scripts do help, but I find the message of this script disturbing.

Coach Was Color-Blind, He Only Wanted to Know If You Could Play Basketball

2007-05-05T11:11:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Glory Road – 2 Stars (Average)

Basketball Coach Don Haskins does not have to wait for his legend to happen. He is a member of the Texas Sports Hall of Fame and the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Few today would remember Don Haskins. He was the coach at Texas Western in 1966 when his 27-1 team played Adolph Rupp's 27-1 University of Kentucky Wildcats for the NCAA title.

Nothing too unusual about that, except that Haskins would become the first coach in NCAA history to start an all-African American lineup when the Miners squared off against Rupp's all-white Kentucky team that featured two players who would become well-known in the NBA pro league: Pat Riley and Louie Dampier.

Remember these names: Bobby Joe Hill, David Lattin, Orsten Artis, Willie Worsley and Harry Flournoy during February, Black History Month. They were the starting lineup for Texas Western when the Miners won the NCAA championship against an all-white Kentucky team, 72-65.

I would graduate from Michigan State University two months after Texas Western won the title, and would not be aware of just how historic this event was. My high school and college cross-country and track teams were integrated. Kentucky would not even offer African Americans basketball scholarships, and there were many other colleges and universities which excluded African American players in 1966.

There was a lot of hatred in the South at that time. Heck, there was a lot hatred everywhere, but not in Don Haskins' will to win for Texas Western, known today as UTEP, the University of Texas at El Paso. Haskins was color-blind and simply put the best players on the floor to compete.

Haskins recruited the best players, nothing else mattered. Not even the lousy treatment and death threats both Haskins and his players received from die-hard, ignorant, bigoted Texas Western boosters and donors. They sing a different tune in Texas today, especially at the University of Texas.

Glory Road in 2006 retold the story of Don Haskins and Texas Western. Josh Lucas played the role of Don Haskins, Derek Luke played Bobby Joe Hill and John Voight played Adolph Rupp.

Glory Road is not one of the best movies ever made, but the story of Texas Western is on par with other great victories in sports history, including the 1980 U. S. Hockey team winning the Gold Medal in the Olympics.

Contrary to the movie version, the title game was not as big an upset as was depicted. Texas Western had an excellent team, as evidenced by its No. 3 ranking the final polls that year. Haskins was not the first coach to play African Americans, Texas Western had African American players on its roster before Haskins arrived.

Haskins was the first to start an all-African American lineup in the NCAA title game, and it is also true that Texas Western was the first college in a Southern state to integrate its athletic teams. Good for Texas Western.

Glory Road had a good message of hope for African Americans. At least one coach had the backbone to play the best. Do not think for a moment that this was Don Haskins' one moment of glory, and that he was courageous but not an excellent basketball coach.

Since Glory Road was not as much about Don Haskins as some very talented, very tolerant and very brave Texas Western players, let it be known that Don Haskins:

1) Played three years at Oklahoma A&M under Hall of Fame coach Hank Iba and was Team Captain.

2) Was tied for 4th place among the NCAA's most winning active coaches when he retired with 719 wins and 353 losses.

3) Had 33 winning seasons at UTEP in 38 years of coaching.

4) Led UTEP to no less than 17 20-win-seasons, an NCAA title in 1966, 7 Western Athletic Conference (WAC) championships, 4 WAC tournament titles, and 21 postseason trips (14 to the NCAA playoffs and 7 NIT—National Invitational Tournament—appearances).

5) Changed college basketball forever by starting an all-African American team against an all-white Kentucky team in the NCAA tournament and winning the title.

6) Coached Hall of Famer Nate "Tiny" Archibald, NBA All-Star Tim Hardaway, and Antonio Davis, and mentored future coaches Nolan Richardson and Tim Floyd.

Glory Road is a film for every basketball enthusiast. It has a great message and represents a great moment in the evolution of basketball as we know and enjoy it today.

"Coach Carter" Sends an Outstanding Message About a Coach with Integrity, Honor and Goodness

2007-05-04T22:06:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Coach Carter - 3 Stars (Good)

Samuel L. Jackson plays Coach Ken Carter in a good sports drama with an outstanding message for today's high school basketball players who see playing with the pros as their only objective in life.

Coach Carter, a successful sporting goods store owner and an outstanding athlete in his day, returns to his alma mater which is located in a poor area of Richmond (CA). He inherits a team with players that have a poor attitude, poor performance and virtually no expectations for their future should they fail to advance their basketball careers.

The team at Richmond High School is designed to have its student athletes fail by not requiring greater expectations, discipline and accountability. Coach Carter is the centerpiece of this movie about values based on a true story of a California team.

He immediately lays down the law, Carter style, demanding discipline, hard work and accountability. Carter and his players sign a written contract that demands standards for behavior, a dress code and good grades to stay eligible to play.

Carter believes that scholarship and ethics should go hand in hand with outstanding basketball play.

Given some standards to meet, his players take a 180 degree turn and start winning from the outset of the season, going undefeated through several games. Then the community starts showering them with attention and praise and the players become overconfident and ignore their class attendance and studies.

Carter finds out that several of his players are nearly failing and takes immediate action, benching his team and shutting down the basketball program until the players toe the mark in their studies. You can imagine the reaction of the parents and community in general.

Coach Carter finds himself under immense pressure to give his players a pass. He becomes probably the only basketball coach in America to stand fast with an undefeated team. He flatly refuses to cave in, forcing his players to be accountable for their performance both on and off the court.

This is an incredible story of a coach who will not compromise his values by not compromising his integrity. Coach Carter has the guts and audacity to stand fast and right wills out in the end.

Listen to what Coach Carter has to say at his board hearing: "You really need to consider the message you're sending these boys by ending the lockout. It's the same message that we as a culture send to our professional athletes, and that is that they are above the law.

"If these boys cannot honor the simple rules of a basketball contract, how long do you think it will be before they're out there breaking the law?

"I played ball here at Richmond High 30 years ago. It was the same thing then; some of my teammates went to prison, some of them even ended up dead. If you vote to end the lockout, you won't have to terminate me, I'll quit."

Powerful? You better believe it. Ignore the violence, sexual content, poor language, teen partying and drug material in this film, it is just Hollywood's clumsy way of stereotyping high school basketball players.

There is too little recognition in films for prep basketball players who are not only outstanding collegiate and professional prospects but also outstanding students with great character and values.

Nonetheless, there are players like Coach Carter inherited, and this movie illustrates an important and needed statement about what really matters. Coach Carter is not interested in winning games to advance his career; he is totally focused on making young men into confident, productive, well adjusted adults.

Thankfully, the movie Coach Carter enjoyed some success, generating the highest opening weekend ($24 million) of any release by an MTV film. There was little recognition for this film among the most prestigious award givers. No matter. It was an Academy Award message in its own right.

See this movie for its excellent message. And yes, take your children with you, they need the message even more than you do, they are now in the spotlight and you are behind it.

To Kill a Mockingbird Exposes the Destructiveness of Bigotry

2007-05-03T08:55:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

To Kill A Mockingbird – 3 Stars (Good)

Gregory Peck won a Best Actor Oscar in this adaptation of Harper Lee’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel about white lawyer Atticus Finch defending an innocent African American man accused of raping a white woman.

This is a story that illuminates everything that is wrong about hate, prejudice, bigotry, ignorance, stupidity, lack of backbone and lack of a heart. It is a story about an all-white male jury who makes important life decisions without right thinking and right motives.

Finch (Gregory Peck) suffers retributionTo Kill a Mockingbird Exposes the Destructiveness of Bigotry because of his defense of Tom Robinson (Brock Peters) who is accused of raping Mayella Violet Ewell (Collin Wilcox). The real villain is her father Bob Ewell (James Anderson) who beats her and tries to kill Finch's daughter Scout (Mary Badham) and son Jem (Phillip Alford).

Scout narrates this story about her childhood memories. She and Jem team up with friend Dill Harris (John Megna) in a subplot involving "Boo" Radley (Robert Duvall) who ultimately saves Scout and Jem from Bob Ewell by killing Ewell with his own knife.

Sheriff Heck Tate (Frank Overton) would later claim that Ewell fell on his own knife. Tate knew that Ewell was two legs and bad news coming in the form of one bigoted human being; there would be no charges filed against Boo.

In the end, the innocent Tom Robinson is found guilty and shot to death when he tries to flee the injustice.

It is no irony that this 1932 story takes place in Macon County, Georgia, a cesspool of racially motivated hate even in 1962 when this film was released.

To Kill a Mockingbird shows that some people will never have any discernable personal growth in their entire life; thank God that others do.

Boo, a scary recluse who only came out at night, was Duvall's first movie role. Duvall apparently stayed out of the sun for six weeks and dyed his hair blond in preparation for the role.

Dill was modeled after author Harper Lee's childhood friend Truman Capote. Finch was the middle name of Harper Lee's father.

Horton Foote, who wrote the screenplay for To Kill a Mockingbird, won an Oscar and the film also won for Best Art Direction for a black and white film. The film earned 5 other Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, won by Lawrence of Arabia with Peter O'Toole and Omar Sharif.

Gregory Peck picked up the Golden Globe for Best Actor, and the film also won another for Promoting International Understanding. Peck has said that this film was his favorite work.

His character Atticus Finch was voted the top screen hero of the last 100 years by the American Film Institute. This is truly a no-spin honor. To Kill a Mockingbird is also ranked No. 2 on AFI's 100 Most Inspiring Movies of All Time (It's a Wonderful Life with James Stewart is No. 1).

The evidence of just how emotional To Kill a Mockingbird is comes from Brock Peters (the accused) who started to naturally cry while shooting the testifying scene. Gregory Peck said he had to look past him to keep from choking up himself.

Racial bigotry is an extremely emotional and hateful occurrence that continues to linger with us today. Were it not for a loving God who is color blind, the hurt would be even deeper and more destructive.

To Kill a Mockingbird is as appropriate today as it was when it was released. Each generation must work to progress past the sins of past generations. Tom Robinson may rest in peace knowing his descendants will then have a better system of justice.

"Prada" Boss Drives Away Everyone and Everything But Blind Ambition

2007-05-02T18:29:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

The Devil Wears Prada – 2 Stars (Average)

Meryl Streep, one of Hollywood's best and most honored actresses, carries The Devil Wears Prada like the namesake handbag we see early in this movie, which is about a powerful New York fashion magazine editor and her wannabe gofer.

Streep, a graduate of Vassar and the Yale School of Drama, has 13 nominations for an Academy Award, more than any other actor. Streep has 10 nominations for Best Actress and 3 for Best Supporting Actress.

She won Oscars for Kramer vs. Kramer (Best Supporting Actress) and for Sophie's Choice (Best Actress).

In The Devil Wears Prada, Miranda Priestly (Streep) is the editor of Runway fashion magazine (modeled after Vogue). She hires Andy Sachs (Anne Hathaway), a recent journalism grad, to be her new gofer. Andy supposedly wants this opportunity to grovel for an iron-willed, focused Miranda who would intimidate her favorite pet if she had one.

In her new job Andy does not write a memo much less a news story. She picks up Miranda's cleaning and coffee and fulfills other outrageous requests of the spoiled editor who believes she is the cat's meow.

The plot line involving Andy is specious in that no serious journalist would ever work for a Miranda Priestly in the role of a gofer. She would rather work for a weekly newspaper than the New York Times if she had to put with the crap that Andy had to put up with. This is especially true of anyone with talent who has integrity.

It is possible to get ahead on talent alone without integrity but doing so over a period of time molds you into a lower life form.

I know as I spent 20 years in the news business as a reporter, investigative reporter, sports editor and managing editor for a daily newspaper, and owner of a community publishing company.

Miranda Priestly had such demands as "Find me that piece of paper I had in my hand yesterday morning." Steep played her role very well.

Andy supposedly has a metamorphosis from a naïve, plain, simple girl into a trendy, elegant gofer, and manages to do so with the help of Nigel (Stanley Tucci), the magazine's art director.

In the end, she ditches the job when she realizes that life without her boyfriend, her friends and family are not worth the price of being exclusive. Her career move into the fashion world pushes people out of her life as her career demands suck time away from all her other relationships.

She ends up getting a job offer as a journalist with the New York Mirror, a real newspaper that ceased publishing in 1898.

I want to believe this film has a more serious message about commitments by young adults, but Andy slinks back to her live-in boyfriend, who has secured a new position as a sous-chef in another city. The film does not make it clear whether Andy goes with her boyfriend, stays in New York with her new job, or visits him in his new digs when she wants companionship.

The ending of this movie is as lame as Andy's choice of a new job as a gofer.

A successful person of substance does not lead the kind of life Andy leads, hence The Devil Wears Prada becomes an average movie because it ignores a chance to make an even more important point about what is important in life, love and romance.

There Is Only One Inspector Clouseau, and His Name Will Never Be Steve Martin

2007-05-01T23:09:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

The Pink Panther – 2 Stars (Average)

This 2006 version of The Pink Panther with Steve Martin as Inspector Jacques Clouseau is not a remake of the original 1963 version with Peter Sellers as Inspector Clouseau, only a theft of the Peter Sellers' character that cannot be stolen.

I like almost every film Steve Martin has done but not this one.

Martin and his partner Ponton (Jean Reno) must unmask the murder of a world-famous soccer coach and the theft of his priceless, legendary ring set with the "Pink Panther" diamond. A pop star, a soccer player and a Chinese assassin stand in their way, not to mention their boss Chief Dreyfus (Kevin Kline).

The movie has Martin doing a lot of sight gags, not one of which was as good as the original Peter Sellers' role. Sellers was a master of the sight gag. Martin was a stand-up comedian before becoming a movie star but is a poor second to Sellers.

In fairness, Martin did not direct the film (Shawn Levy did), but he did get involved in the screenplay rewrite. No matter, the film is average at best.

The original Pink Panther benefited from the direction of Blake Edwards and the music of Henry Mancini, whose musical score was nominated for an Oscar.

The original cast included David Niven as Sir Charles Lytton, Robert Wagner as George Lytton and Capucine as Simone Clouseau.

The original plot had Inspector Clouseau hot on the trail of The Phantom, a renowned jewel thief who left his glove at the scene of the crime.

Sir Charles Lytton is The Phantom, but his nephew George Lytton seeks to steal the Pink Panther diamond and blame it on The Phantom, not realizing The Phantom is his uncle.

Peter Sellers still owns the role of The Pink Panther. Moviemakers should leave certain films alone and The Pink Panther is one of them.

If the screenplay writers, directors and associated Hollywood types want a challenge, how about coming up with an original idea?

When Hollywood's creativity dries up and goes away Hollywood does remakes of successful films. How many remakes are as good as the original? Very, very few. You could count them on one hand and have fingers left over. The message is this: Do not try to live on someone else's success, create your own, or just watch movies rather than make them.

Mel Gibson's "Passion of the Christ" Details an Excruciating Death

2007-04-30T08:06:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

The Passion of the Christ – 2 Stars (Average)

This very controversial film by Mel Gibson details the final hours and crucifixion of Jesus Christ on the cross by the Romans.

The King James Version of the Holy Bible records the events leading up to the death and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth.

If Christ did not rise from the dead then Christianity is arguably the greatest fraud ever perpetrated upon the human race. If Christ did rise from the dead then Christianity is arguably going to reward those who believe in Christ and punish those who do not.

The Passion of the Christ is controversial because more than 5 billion people on planet Earth do not claim Christianity as their religion of choice. With more than a billion members Christianity is the most widespread religion in the world.

Belief in Christ and Christianity requires a leap of faith, not logic. Arguing about whether Christianity is real or not belies the value of its benefits to the believer.

Most Christians believe in one God in three Persons (the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit) and that Jesus is the Son of God who rose from the dead after being crucified; a Christian hopes to attain eternal life after death through faith in Jesus Christ and tries to live by his teachings as recorded in the New Testament.

Mel Gibson is among the one billion plus believers in Christ. As a Roman Catholic Gibson joins fellow Christians who are Protestant and Eastern Orthodox in practicing their faith. Mel Gibson is also among the one billion plus believers in Christ who are sinners.

I believe The Passion of the Christ is a film that all Christians should see. James Caviezel presents a credible portrayal of Christ in the film, not an easy task. Because this film is about a lot more than the actors and supporting cast involved, reactions are bound to be mixed.

Millions of Christians saw this film and rated it highly because Gibson chose to honor the written word about Christ in directing the film; he literally left any Hollywood influence behind and focused on showing the excruciating way in which Christ was crucified.

By doing so Gibson alienated many believers of other religions who might have felt the detailed emphasis on the method of crucifixion was overdone.

This certainly was a film for people of understanding and maturity to see. The death scenes are stark, brutal and almost unending. No real Christian underestimates the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for his believers.

Gibson co-wrote, produced and directed the film. Hollywood and its minions were not kind in recognizing Gibson for his moviemaking effort. The Passion of the Christ received three Oscar nominations and no major awards.

He is not without accolades as his 1995 effort in Braveheart garnered Oscar awards for Best Director and Best Picture.

Gibson probably got over the rejection of critics in The Passion of the Christ by looking at his bank account. The movie grossed $611 million worldwide and became the 8th highest-grossing film in history, and the highest-grossing R rated film of all time (the R rating was for violence, not sex or language).

My best guess is that Mel Gibson would prefer to be judged by a higher source than Hollywood.

An Independent Film Production That Became an Excellent, Big Fat Paycheck

2007-04-29T18:46:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

My Big Fat Greek Wedding – 4 Stars (Excellent)

My Big Fat Greek Wedding is simply one of the best movies ever made about close families and their traditions.

This film is on par with Fiddler on the Roof (winner of 3 Oscars among 8 nominations) and A Christmas Story (winner of no major awards and no Oscar nominations), proving that the biggest award-winners are not the only great movies.

A Christmas Story and My Big Fat Greek Wedding were matched bookends in that both films were not thought to be worthy of financing by typical Hollywood backers and ended up as independent films with limited distribution before becoming huge successes.

A Christmas Story, a low budget film that was not expected to do well, was released just before Thanksgiving in 1983. By Christmas the film had been pulled from theaters because it was thought to have been "played out." It was only because of complaints from moviegoers that it was brought back to life and has since developed a loyal following of fans that will not let it die.

My Big Fat Greek Wedding was filmed because a gutsy Greek girl named Nia Vardalos believed in herself and in her one-woman stage show to keep performing until Rita Wilson saw the play. She persuaded her husband Tom Hanks to produce a movie version.

Wilson, like Vardalos, is Greek. Wilson's reward as one of the producers with her husband and Gary Goetzman was to see the project completed. The PGA Golden Laurel Awards remembered Rita Wilson by giving her the Visionary Award in 2003. The three producers also won the Golden Laurel Award for Producer of the Year.

So we have in My Big Fat Greek Wedding a low budget, independent film that was about to make Hollywood history.

To show you how dumb the Hollywood financial backers were and how smart Tom Hanks was the estimated $5 million budget for My Big Fat Greek Wedding generated worldwide revenue of $368 million.

The Hollywood backers thought America filmgoers would not accept an ethnic film. I wonder how many of the same backers recognized that Fiddler on the Roof, produced 31 years earlier in 1971, was an ethnic film about a Jewish family which broke with the tradition of arranged marriages.

My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002) became the highest-grossing independent film of all time, surpassing The Blair Witch Project (1999). It also became the highest grossing movie never to have hit number one at the box office, surpassing Dances with Wolves (1990).

Incredibly , the film was still running in several theaters even after its initial video release.

This film is essentially the story of Toula (Nia Vardalos), a 30-year-old Greek woman who falls in love with John (Ian Miller), a non-Greek man, and struggles to get her family to accept him while both of them come to terms with their heritage, cultural identity and mutual compatibility.

As Toula says, "Nice Greek girls are supposed to do three things in life: marry Greek boys, make Greek babies, and feed everyone . . . until the day we die."

Her father, Gus Portokalos (Michael Constantine) says: "You better get married soon. You're starting to look old!" Gus also says, "There are only two kinds of people, Greeks and people who wish they were Greek." He believes any ailment can be cured with Windex.

My Big Fat Greek Wedding is the Greek community at its most accurate and best, all of the suffocating love, demanded tradition, motivation by guilt, male ego, female influence, pride of race, sibling ties, extended family, romance and sacrifice for those we love.

This film is not heavy and dripping with drama, this is a romantic comedy mixed with strong family traditions that proves Shakespeare's sage observation that "all's well that ends well."

The cast is not star-studded and proves that you do not need to be a headliner to deliver a headliner's performance and then some. Joining Nia Vardalos, Michael Constantine and Ian Miller with significant and meaningful contributions were Lainie Kazan as Toula's mother Maria, Louis Mandylor as Toula's brother Nick, Andrea Martin as Aunt Voula, and Gia Carides as Cousin Nikki.

Vardalos, Constantine, Mandylor and Carides were the only true Greeks in the cast.

There is a point in the film when Toula feels she is losing the battle and laments that "the man is the head of the house." Her mother Maria tells her that "the man is the head, but the woman is the neck, and she can turn the head any way she wants." Maria does so in a confrontation with her husband that should make women proud.

This film will warm you heart, entertain your soul and cause you to walk away a better person for having seen this superb effort in moviemaking. Toula's personal growth as a young woman freeing herself from forced expectations against insufferable odds is so precious that you want to take her home and adopt her.

I once went to a Polish funeral and was amazed that when the funeral was over and the reception began, the whiskey flowed and all of the immediate family and friends had a heck of great party drinking, dancing and singing.

I learned more about family traditions in different cultures at that Polish funeral. Some cultures celebrate the life of a loved one after the funeral.

Despite the complications presented in My Big Fat Greek Wedding you come away wanting to be Greek because you see the love and the fun that they have much more than any disagreements or disappointments.

The interaction between Toula and her brother Nick is really sweet, touching and funny.
At one point, Nick is impressed with Toula's ability to break with tradition (he secretly wants to study art) and says, "Don't let your past dictate who you are, but let it be part of who you will become." "Nick, that's beautiful," replies Toula, to which Nick adds, "Yeah that dear Abby really knows what she's talking about."

Nia Vardalos wrote the script and earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Screenplay, was nominated for 6 other lesser screenwriting awards and won 2. My Big Fat Greek Wedding is directed by Joel Zwick who won two minor awards for his effort. I feel he deserved more recognition.

The film garnered little attention among the big award givers but did appropriately win the People's Choice Award for Favorite Comedy. Almost as an afterthought, My Big Fat Greek Wedding won the Best Independent Comedy Film Award from the U. S. Comedy Arts Festival. It would be my pleasure if some of the Comedy Film Award judges were Greek.

There is Greek love throughout this film, from Rita Wilson's vision to the thousands of Greek Americans who said, hey, this is Greek, this is good. The Greek community really made the film become a box office record-setter while we non-Greeks came on board later and enjoyed the film just as much.

When I left the theater, I went looking for ouzo, the Greek anise-flavored liqueur so celebrated in the film at Greek gatherings. They would down a shot of ouzo and shout "oumpa."

I married a girl from a very traditional Italian Catholic family. Every Christmas my wife makes Italian cookies with anise-flavored frosting, no wonder I loved My Big Fat Greek Wedding.

Anyone who wants a job watching My Big Fat Greek Wedding should be Greek, love ouzo and love having fun. Others need not apply unless, of course, they might want to be Greek, want to try ouzo and have fun!

Two Films Offer Great Examples of What Not to Do With Your Life

2007-04-28T17:53:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Kiss the Bride – 2 Stars (Average)

Kiss the Bride centers around four sisters from an Italian Catholic family in Rhode Island trying to work out their childhood hang-ups as three of them—all self-centered, self-absorbed and out of touch with reality—return to help their little sister get married.

This flick has drugs, alcohol, bad language, some brief nudity and really heavy, dramatic fights that illustrate the frustration and stupidity of the sisters who, thankfully, finally get it together by the end of the film.

Kiss the Bride is almost nonstop bickering, fighting and unpleasantness. You wonder if these people are ever going to get their act together. I ask myself, who needs it?

Am I a better person for seeing this film? Are you kidding? You would have to be on crack and standing in the middle of a train track waiting for an approaching locomotive to send you flying to think that time spend watching this film had any redeeming value.

Once again we have a writer/director with the same name: Vanessa Parise. She offers proof again that being both the director and writer of a screenplay generally breeds more failure than success.

As if to outdo other writer/directors who have bombed in these dual roles, Parise takes the role of Chrissy as one of the sisters who is self-centered and self-absorbed. Maybe she should try a one-woman show so her wonderfulness could really shine through?

Parise (average rating) joins a not-so-exclusive club of fellow writer/directors who have fallen short, including Peter Weir (average rating) for Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, Nancy Myers (average rating) for Something's Gotta Give, Thomas Bezucha (average rating) for The Family Stone, Michael McGowan (average rating) for Saint Ralph, Jared Hess (terrible rating) for Napoleon Dynamite, Robert Rodriguez (terrible rating) for Once Upon a Time in Mexico, and Paul Thomas Anderson (terrible rating) for Punch-Drunk Love.

See Kiss the Bride only once or, better yet, not at all.

Sideways – 2 Stars (Average)

Sideways focuses on two men in midlife crises taking a one-week excursion through California wine country.

One is a broken down actor named Jack (Thomas Haden Church) who wants to get laid one more time before he gets married while the other is a wannabe writer and English teacher named Miles (Paul Giamatti) who masquerades as a brooding loser.

They were college roommates and now Miles is slated to be Jack's best man.

Both of these poor excuses for role models get into enough trouble in a week to last a lifetime, and leave lasting scars as neither one has a single shred of personal growth during their experience.

This movie has some humor, but it is really a drama about two men going nowhere fast, hence the name Sideways. I know the term sideways means the bottles of wine are placed sideways, the wine bottles are not going anywhere either.

The ending is really weak and offers no redeeming hope that either character will develop a life purpose or a perspective on living other than continuing to occupy space on the planet with their miserable existence.

I was anxious to see this movie because it was recommended by Charles Krauthammer, the Pulitzer Prize winning syndicated columnist for The Washington Post. Krauthammer felt that Sideways was a really good comedy that smart people could appreciate.

There are only a couple of commentators in print and broadcast media that I believe are extremely bright, have tremendous presentation skills and are worth valuable time to watch and read. Charles Krauthammer is one commentator I look forward to seeing on the Fox network and reading his column in the local daily newspaper.

Krauthammer was right about his observation. Smart, savvy people loved Sideways. I was just not one of them.

Alexander Payne won the Oscar for his screenplay and directed the film as well. Sideways was nominated for 4 other Oscars, including Best Director, Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor (Thomas Haden Church) and Best Supporting Actress (Virginia Madsen).

The film also picked up another incredible 91 wins and an additional 31 more nominations. So what exactly is my beef to have the temerity to give Sideways an average rating?

Just this: Both of these birds are going nowhere 1,000 miles an hour, and I would not choose to live their life or make their choices on the worst day of my life. Neither Jack or Miles are even likeable characters. To say that you like these guys and look up to them is ludicrous.

There are so many better examples of people who resolve their problems and get over themselves. Why watch and emulate a couple of jerks traveling through wine country?

Am I a better person for having seen Sideways? Hardly.

The Academy members can give Alexander Payne all of the Oscars they want. I think he needs to tell a better story with some redeeming value. I doubt Sideways will go down as a classic film anytime soon.

In the meantime, a simple film like A Christmas Story will be a classic long after the dust gathers on the can that holds Sideways.

These Two Films Create Confusion or Unbelievably Overblown Drama

2007-04-27T15:54:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Ocean’s Eleven – 2 Stars (Average)

Ocean's Eleven is a confusing film about a $160 million heist of three Las Vegas casinos from an impenetrable safe 200 feet underground. I say confusing because it is not really evident whether Ocean's Eleven is supposed to be an action flick, a comedy, a crime story or a drama.

Director Steven Soderbergh tries to make this film slick and clever, and at times it is, but he is unable to pull it off and after awhile it becomes annoying.

This 2001 version of Ocean's Eleven features George Clooney as Danny Ocean who recruits 10 accomplices to pull off the heist. The cast includes Brad Pitt as Rusty Ryan, Elliott Gould as Reuben Tishkoff, Bernie Mac as Frank Catton, Casey Affleck as Virgil Malloy and Scott Caan as Turk Malloy and some other lesser lights.

The 1960 original version of this remake featured Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Peter Lawford, Joey Bishop (otherwise known as the Rat Pack) and Angie Dickinson.

The brain trust for the writing of this screenplay shall remain nameless because what they wrote is inane. These luminaries penned such memorable lines as:

Danny (just released from prison): Now, they tell me I paid my debt to society.

Tess (his ex-wife played by Julia Roberts): Funny, I never got a check.

If that does not leave you rolling over in laughter, try:

Turk Malloy: Watch it, bud.

Virgil Malloy: Who you calling bud, pal?

Turk Malloy: Who you calling pal, friend?

Virgil Malloy: Who you calling friend, jackass?

Turk Malloy: Don't call me a jackass.

Virgil Malloy: I just did call you a jackass.

Not to be outdone, we also get this brilliant exchange:

Virgil Malloy: Are you a man?

Turk Malloy: Yes, nineteen.

Virgil Malloy: Are you alive?

Turk Malloy: Yes, eighteen.

Virgil Malloy: Evel Knievel.

Turk Malloy: (the "s" word).

This accurately depicts the lack of quality in the script, and any script too difficult to understand is not that good, and neither is this movie. Ocean's Eleven earned nothing in awards, even with Brad Pitt and George Clooney doing the honors.

Ocean's Eleven is also one of those films that uses indiscriminate cussing, typical Hollywood dialogue when the script, acting and direction cannot carry the film anywhere.

The Hours – 2 Stars (Average)

The Hours features three depressed women from three different generations trying to cope with life, some Academy Award-winning performances and a story line that is even more depressing and repugnant.

Virginia Woolf (Nicole Kidman) is married and writing her book Mrs. Dalloway in England in 1923.

Laura Brown (Julianne Moore), who is pregnant and questioning her ability as a mother even though she already has a son, is reading Mrs. Dalloway in Los Angeles in 1951.

Clarissa Vaughan (Meryl Streep) is a career publisher in New York in 2001 who is about to throw a party for her friend Richard who is being honored as a poet and dying of AIDS.

All three of these depressed women are interconnected by Virginia Woolf's novel while all of the action takes place in one day in each of the time periods. Woolf is writing her book, Brown is reading the book, and Vaughan is a book publisher nicknamed Mrs. Dalloway by her dying friend and former boyfriend Richard (Ed Harris).

As if this is not confusing enough, Director Stephen Daldy and Screenplay Writer David Hare chose to start this film in a totally disjointed fashion that takes the moviegoer too long to figure out what is happening unless they are familiar with Michael Cunningham's Pulitzer Prize winning novel The Hours.

As if things are not heavy enough, all three women kiss another woman in the film, and all are involved in suicide. Virginia Wolf is mentally ill, a very unhappy lesbian at heart and ultimately commits suicide.

Laura Brown either attempts suicide or commits suicide (this movie is such a downer I do not remember which).

Vaughan, a lesbian in a relationship, sees Richard commit suicide by falling out of a window.
Overblown drama does not begin to describe how depressing and repugnant this film is, that is the bad news.

The upside, if there could possibly be one, is an Academy Award winning performance by Nicole Kidman as Virginia Woolf and the film earned 8 other Oscar nominations. The Hours knocked down 29 other wins and another 57 nominations. The make up on Kidman was so good I did not even recognize her.

In essence, The Hours is a much honored film you can barely strand to watch once because of its content and presentation. There will be no second viewing for me. I am glad that Kidman won a Best Actress Oscar, she deserved it.

Whatever Happened to Helen Hunt After Making What Women Want?

2007-04-26T01:10:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

What Women Want – 2 Stars (Average)

What Women Want is a romantic comedy light enough to float away.

See What Women Want for entertainment only and do not be fooled by its story line, which has Mel Gibson (Nick) as a chauvinistic advertising executive who after an accident can suddenly hear what women are really thinking.

Gibson is paired with Helen Hunt (Darcy) who gets the promotion that Nick (Mel Gibson) covets. Darcy is more talented and Nick fancies himself as a ladies man, not a good combination for Nick, who plans to use his newfound talent to sabotage Darcy by stealing her ideas and claiming them as his own. Nick, of course, does not succeed as love gets in his way.

The director of this film is Nancy Meyers who was also the writer/director for Something's Gotta Give. The writing in What Women Want by Josh Goldsmith and Cathy Yuspa is no better than what Nancy Meyers penned in Something's Gotta Give, so the film effort remains average at best despite its entertainment value.

Hunt is a real talent with real hardware and seemed so on top of her game after the release of What Women Want in 2000.

When she left the Mad About You sitcom opposite screen partner Paul Reiser she had earned 4 consecutive Emmy Awards (1996 through 1999) and became the highest paid TV actress in history, earning $1 million per episode.

Hunt is the only actress to win a Golden Globe Award (she has 4), an Academy Award (Best Actress in As Good as It Gets) and an Emmy Award in the same year (1998). Hunt is also the only actress to win 4 Blockbuster Entertainment Awards.

Heck, I figured, move over Julia Roberts and hello Helen Hunt as America's newest sweetheart, but Hunt did Cast Away with Tom Hanks and then returned to Broadway. Big screen's loss became Broadway's gain.

I believe that the two rising stars today are Reese Witherspoon and Hilary Swank.

Witherspoon won a Best Actress Oscar for her performance as June Carter Cash in Walk the Line opposite Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny Cash. She won 10 other Best Actress awards for the same performance. I knew Reese Witherspoon was the real deal and on the rise when I saw her in Sweet Home Alabama three years earlier.

Swank's presence on the star scene has become enormous. She took a huge chance in Boys Don't Cry (a great performance in a crummy movie) in 1999 and won a Best Actress Oscar, and then picked up another Best Actress Oscar in 2004 for Million Dollar Baby (another difficult role, this time as a female boxer) in Director Clint Eastwood's Oscar winning film.

Both of these young actresses (Witherspoon at 30 and Swank at 32) have become bankable with a capital B. If you ignore their relationship problems, life is good when you are the center of attention and making it big time.

After all, this is the acting profession, where the stars can switch partners faster than cell phone numbers and e-mail addresses.

Four Average Movies: Two Messy and Two Unpretentious

2007-04-25T09:53:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Here are four average movies, two of which (The Family Stone and Mona Lisa Smile) are pretty screwed up, and two of which (Indian Summer and Unlikely Angel) are unpretentious and easy on the eye. Despite being pure fluff, I would rate the last two better than the first two.

The Family Stone – 2 Stars (Average)

A Manhattan couple comes home for Christmas to the groom-to-be’s (Luke Wilson as Ben Stone) free-spirited parents and finds their proposed marriage in serious trouble as Meredith, the bride-to-be (Sarah Jessica Parker), cannot find acceptance.

The problem is The Family Stone does in fact not like Meredith, an uptight, conservative businesswoman who calls in her sister (Claire Danes) for moral support.

What happens next in this convoluted story considerably lowers the impact of The Family Stone. There are some comedic routines, but writer/director Thomas Bezucha really lowers his creation by mixing in enough language, drugs and illicit activity to cancel out any chance of this being a good film.

Adding all of the angst to the film mixes drama with comedy and this goes together about as well as oil and water. No wonder this film struggles to find acceptance.

Thomas Bezucha is not the only writer/director to bomb out. He joins an infamous cast of writer/directors in at least these three terrible films: Jared Hess for Napoleon Dynamite, Robert Rodriguez for Once Upon a Time in Mexico and Paul Thomas Anderson for Punch-Drunk Love. At least I gave Buzucha an average rating.

This going nowhere fast presentation of The Family Stone leaves you doubting if it will ever come together and work. It thankfully does work as the end draws near. You must hang in there with this movie; it does get somewhat better as it moves along.

Having said that, I would not watch it again on a bet. It is hardly worth a second view despite the fact that it picked up nominations for 4 Golden Globe awards: Sarah Jessica Parker for Best Actress in a Comedy, Craig T. Nelson as Best Supporting Actor, Diane Keaton as Best Supporting Actress and Rachel McAdams as Best Supporting Actress. None of them won.

The Family Stone mirrors the Golden Globe nominations, close but not able to get it done.

Mona Lisa Smile – 2 Stars (Average)

Mona Lisa Smile is the story of Katherine Ann Watson, an art history teacher at Wellesley College outside Boston during the 1950s. Watson (Julia Roberts) supposedly has more brains than breeding and manages to turn the conservative liberal arts college students upside down by teaching methods in thought power that inspires personal growth.

As a man watching this film, trust me when I say that not many guys would be watching this film a second time. I think there may have been only one guy in this film.

The cast includes Kirsten Dunst, Julia Stiles and Maggie Gyllenhaal among others who were put through a finishing school for two weeks prior to filming.

Some of the outdoor scenes in Mona Lisa Smile were on the picturesque 500-acre campus at Wellesley. Wellesley is ranked by many as one of the top five liberal arts colleges in the country, and is the highest ranking women's college in this category.

Mona Lisa Smile (and Julia Roberts) could not sniff an award much less win one in this film, and that is what you call average.

Indian Summer – 2 Stars (Average)

Indian Summer is an easy-going, very slowly developing comedy about friends who reunite at a week-long summer camp that they used to attend as children. The camp is now threatened with closing down. Guess what happens.

The characters of Matt (Vincent Spano) and Brad (Kevin Pollak) are based on the two Michigan-born founders of the Canadian clothing company Roots. Matt and Brad attended Tamakwa, a camp in Ontario's Algonquin Park, as youngsters.

Indian Summer also has Alan Arkin, Matt Craven, Bill Paxton, Elizabeth Perkins and Diane Lane in the cast. Lane turns out to be a real 40+ hottie in some other films down the road, notably Unfaithful (really hot) and Under the Tuscan Sun (hot enough).

Unlikely Angel – 2 Stars (Average)

Unlikely Angel is a made for TV movie starring (hang on) Dolly Parton, a country music performer who meets an untimely death and cannot enter heaven until she performs a good deed back on Earth. Heavy this is not.

This is an overworked story idea with not much to recommend it, but I did not find any pretense in Dolly Parton's effort. I thought Dolly Parton was being Dolly Parton and found her to be the best thing in this film.

I have seen a lot worse movies with bigger acting names than Dolly Parton. If you want a list, go to the top of this page and identify every movie to which I have given a 1 Star (Terrible) rating.

A Romantic Comedy That Works With a Couple of 60+ Senior Citizens

2007-04-24T17:02:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Something's Gotta Give - 2 Stars (Average)

Something's Gotta Give is a romantic comedy without substance that works because of Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton.

The story line involves Harry (Nicholson) as a senior citizen that never dates any woman over 30 until he meets and falls in love with Erica (Keaton). Erica, another senior citizen, meets Harry at her Hamptons beach house and discovers that Harry is dating her daughter Marin (Amanda Peet) and about to bed her.

Harry's romantic weekend with Marin is marred by some chest pains and Erica reluctantly agrees to help nurse him back to health. Once Harry and Erica are alone together, Harry develops an interest in Erica. When Harry's young doctor starts to pursue Erica, Harry must make a commitment or lose his chance at happiness.

Something's Gotta Give is almost a piece of cake for Nicholson and Keaton. Nicholson has 12 Oscar nominations and 3 Best Actor awards for One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Terms of Endearment and As Good As It Gets while Keaton has 4 Oscar nominations and a Best Actress award for Annie Hall.

Who else do you know besides Jack Nicholson that has been nominated for an Oscar in five different decades? Nicholson has also won 7 Best Actor Golden Globe awards and has been a John F. Kennedy Center Honors recipient.

Jack Nicholson does make the people around him perform better. The evidence comes when you realize that every time Nicholson has won a Best Actor Oscar his film partner has won a Best Actress Oscar.

Louise Fletcher won the Oscar for Best Actress in One Flew Over the Cuckoo' s Nest, Shirley MacLaine won for Terms of Endearment and Helen Hunt won for As Good As It Gets.

Keaton was nominated for an Oscar as Best Actress in Something's Gotta Give, won a Golden Globe, added two other lesser Best Actress awards, and picked up another two nominations. Nicholson earned a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor.

Keaton is one the few actresses at age 60 who has been able to partner with bankable leading men. She pulls it off because she has her own sense of style and grace, not an Audrey Hepburn or Jackie Kennedy, but certainly someone to notice.

I found myself wanting to bond with Keaton. She seems to have found the secret to staying young, alive and attractive while Nicholson at 69 and counting appears his age and has not benefited from the passage of time. Keaton is one fine looking 60-year-old woman.

Also in the cast are Keanu Reeves, Paul Michael Glaser, Amanda Peet and Frances McDormand and some lesser lights.

Something's Gotta Give could have been better if writer/director Nancy Meyers was not so involved. It was not her directing but her writing that did her in.

How a young Marin (Amanda Peet) could be attracted to a man old enough to be her grandfather is beyond my comprehension and the comprehension of many young women in America, especially when the man of choice is Nicholson in this role.

It is very difficult to be both the writer and director of a film and many that have tried have not benefited from the effort.

Meyers (average rating) joins a not-so-exclusive club of fellow writer/directors who have fallen short, including Thomas Bezucha (average rating) for The Family Stone, Michael McGowan (average rating) for Saint Ralph, Jared Hess (terrible rating) for Napoleon Dynamite, Robert Rodriguez (terrible rating) for Once Upon a Time in Mexico, and Paul Thomas Anderson (terrible rating) for Punch-Drunk Love. The worst of the worst was Punch-Drunk Love.

Meyers would do well to study carefully the effort of Tim McCanlies (excellent rating) in Secondhand Lions. McCanlies does pull off the dual responsibility of being a writer/director and tells a fabulous story. Another notable performance was by James L. Brooks (good rating) for Spanglish.

Jack Nicholson does have a rep for a quickie. He is on Maxim's "Top 10 Living Legends of Sex" list with an alleged 2,000 women that he has apparently slept with; if true, the vast majority of these must have come when he was younger and on top of his game.

Some of these sex partner numbers seem ridiculous. If Nicholson slept with a different woman every night, it would take him roughly five-and-half-years to get the job done.

Somehow, I doubt he was quite that active, especially since he enjoyed a 17-year relationship with Anjelica Huston who left him when Rebecca Broussard had become pregnant with Nicholson's child. He had two children with Broussard.

Some still claim that Nicholson really did bed that many women and managed to do so by being very discreet. One thing is for sure, he certainly would not need to do a tell-all book to generate income as he is already a millionaire many times over.

Pride and Prejudice Among 5 Films That Are Just Terrible

2007-04-22T18:16:00.000-07:00

Copyright © 2007 Ed Bagley

Pride and Prejudice – 1 Star (Terrible)

Pride and Prejudice is another retelling of Jane Austin’s novel set in 19th Century England about a mother trying to marry off her 5 daughters to prosperous gentlemen callers.

Unfortunately for Jane Austin and this viewer, the movie was an English presentation, which means the sound is so bad you could hardly hear lines at critical times, the script adaptation was fractured (the British love to do this as it makes the movie seem cryptic, they so love cryptic, no one else does, but they revel in it), and about 80% of the movie appeared artificial (many crowd scenes without a purpose and speaking lines while walking down the road with noise all around).

What is it with the British? They too often make films you cannot hear, and the technical flaws and lack of attention take center stage in what should be a showpiece in a classic like Pride and Prejudice.

This 2005 version of Pride and Prejudice is forgettable to me, except for two scenes, saved by Keira Knightly, who was nominated for a Best Actress Oscar but did not win; she may have won if the director of this technical undoing was worth a snap.

Pride and Prejudice did win its share of honors, with 4 Oscar nominations (no wins) and 35 other nominations from 18 different award groups. These award givers were apparently watching a great movie, it just was not the same movie I was watching.

Punch-Drunk Love – 1 Star (Terrible)

I felt this comedy with Adam Sandler might be disappointing just based on the title, and, true to form, it was disappointing. Punch-Drunk Love is a terrible film with terrible dialogue, terrible sequence and terrible throughout; the film never gets better, it is lousy to the end and stupid beyond belief.

It is not worth watching even though Adam Sandler is the lead, and that is saying something. Sandler needs a better script and a better story line to showcase his talent. Did I mention that the director of this mess, Paul Thomas Anderson, is also the writer? ('nuff said).

Any awards for Punch-Drunk Love? Are you serious, mate? I forgot the title to this film before I left the theater, and I was sober.

The Royal Tenenbaums – 1 Star (Terrible)

A sorry, sorry comedy starring one of Hollywood's great actors, Gene Hackman. This has to the worst film of Hackman's illustrious career. I thought Punch-Drunk Love was bad, The Royal Tenebaums made Punch-Drunk look better. It is such a tragedy to see Gene Hackman in a film like this.

Rumor Has It – 1 Star (Terrible)

Jennifer Aniston (as journalist Sarah Huttinger) is going nowhere a thousand miles an hour in Rumor Has It. This movie is disjointed, not psychologically sound, and comes together like mixing four different kinds of food on your plate, eating it, and saying it tastes good.

You almost want to like the film, but it underwhelms you at every turn. Director Rob Reiner was out to lunch on this one.

Saturday Night Live: The Best of Chris Farley – 1 Star (Terrible)

This is the only film of Chris Farley's actual performances on Saturday Night Live. It tells nothing about Chris Farley’s funny, successful career and tragic death from alcohol and drug abuse. Like too many real life comedians, Chris Farley was a troubled and unhappy person beneath the comedic veneer.

It is hard to forget "da Bears" (NFL Chicago Bears) routine at its apex, and hard to forget Chris. I gave this only one star because I think it should have been a 2-hour presentation with his total performance, not just pulling snippets out of context. Farley's martial arts routine was completely left out of this compilation.

The bottom line for me is that this production does a great disservice to Chris Farley and what he brought to Saturday Night Live; perhaps it was strictly a commercial effort without any thought of telling the real story behind what made Farley the comedian he was. Where is a narrator when you need one?

Saturday Night Live is a shadow of what it used to be, and Chris Farley is one of the reasons why.