Bridge of Spies

Bridge of Spies ~ The Bride and I got to see this one on one of our Disney Cruises a year or so back, a sneak preview the night we saw it, but I've been busy, haven't had time to post it, and quite frankly after a while forgot I had written it. Bridge of Spies is the story, based on true events, of the spy exchange of Rudolf Abel and Francis Gary Powers in 1960, as told from the point of view of James B. Donovan, the attorney who brokered the deal. At the height of the Cold War and during the building of the Berlin Wall, this was no easy trick.

There are good solid performances here, and there should definitely have been more Oscar wins for this one than just Supporting Actor for Mark Rylance's Abel. He was stunning, and Tom Hanks has matured some and gives us his best whimsical and serious at once.

I was surprised to see the Coen brothers as screenwriters, while most of the writing and dialogue is brilliant, there's a fair amount that is equally weak and sloppy. And that 'inspired by true events' tag, that always gets me. I am always suspect of that phrase. If you know your history, this may be boring and monotonous like Titanic or Apollo 13, because let's face it, you already know how it ends. There's no suspense, nevertheless Bridge of Spies a good movie.

An amusing side note, I could not sit through the first showing, so finished watching the flick at an early morning viewing. There were a handful of patrons, along with a grandfather and several grade school age boys. He was overheard saying to them before the film started that there might be some bad words in it and they shouldn't tell their parents.

Bridge of Spies had some bad language, mostly B words, and every time one popped up the boys would all chime "oooo" and count them. Soon everyone in the audience was counting and oooo-ing as well. It was a hoot. I wonder if they told their parents…

La La Land

La La Land ~ Already garnering awards and attention from critics since its soft release over the holidays, this is not only one of the best films of the year, quite possibly one of the best in quite a while. When I saw this recently with The Bride, we were literally smiling as we watched. When was the last time any of us saw a film that legitimately brought us joy? This is that movie. We laugh when they want us to laugh, and we cry when they want us to cry, and yet, we don't feel manipulated. The feeling is sincere.

First of all, this is not a traditional movie as we know it. La La Land is a throwback to the Hollywood musicals of old, yet taking place today, with now characters and now sensibilities. Emma Stone (who I usually do not like) and Ryan Gosling play an aspiring actress and musician couple in a love story with ups and downs, song and dance, and charmed me almost immediately. John Legend also impresses with an economy of screen time.

The film has a jazz vibe that will make fans and non-fans of the art form love jazz again or for the first time, and you will never hear "I Ran" by A Flock of Seagulls the same way ever again. The music is so important and so wonderful here. Draped in vibrant color and unassuming three dimensions, should you choose to see it like that, this is a mesmerizing spectacle of sight and sound and emotion. Funny, sad, bittersweet, and uplifting, La La Land is the movie of the year. See it, just see it, highly recommended.

Pete's Dragon 1977

Pete's Dragon ~ Even with my interest in Disney, I doubt I would have seen this one any time soon if it wasn't for the remake in theaters recently. Even when I was a kid, it seemed kinda juvenile and just a bit silly. And that is just based on the images of Elliott the dragon and the television commercials I had seen. As I watch it today it's definitely meant for younger kids.

Based on an unpublished short story, a boy comes to town with his invisible dragon protector while pursued by his evil hillbilly parents. A live action film with only Elliot the dragon animated, presumedly his shadow being state of the art animation for the time, it's no Mary Poppins, despite its trying desperately to be. Elliott is cartoonish, pink and green, and voiced by Charlie Callas, an unfunny comedian best known to me for his silly noises and ruining Sinestro.

The musical antics feel like they might be better set on a stage than a movie, notably the score as well as one song were nominated for Oscars. Helen Reddy, Mickey Rooney, and especially Shelley Winters are all fun, but seem out of place here. The whole time the movie feels like it's just trying too hard. And I really wanted to like it, I tried, but couldn't get there.

Good for the kids maybe, but not for me.

Gene Wilder 1933-2016

I have a couple friends who say they learn of celebrity deaths from my blog, that I write about these things first. I don't want to, you know, and I especially don't like doing it when it's about someone I really liked and admired. Today we lost award-winning actor, writer, director, and author Gene Wilder, star of screen and stage. Yeah, one of the big ones.

I knew Gene Wilder at a very young age, from commercials for Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory to multiple viewings of Bonnie and Clyde when it came to television, a family favorite which later became one of my favorites. As a kid and later as an adult, two different levels of humor, I loved him in Young Frankenstein and Blazing Saddles. As I grew older, I dug him in The Producers and when he got together with Gilda Radner, I even liked the charming but corny stuff they did together.

Wilder was a genius, a master of expressiveness and pantomime, a fantastic actor and a legend in his own time. He has been away for some time, but never forgotten. Gene Wilder will be missed.

Straight Outta Compton

Straight Outta Compton ~ I find it hard to believe that this film was so ignored by the Oscars. The #OscarsSoWhite controversy becomes crystal clear for anyone who has seen Straight Outta Compton as it should have garnered multiple nominations for Best Actor and Supporting Actor, as well as Best Film, Best Director, and that's not even mentioning the various music and sound categories. What the hell happened here?

Besides that incomprehensible omission, Straight Outta Compton is obviously the biography of N.W.A., and specifically Easy-E, Ice Cube, and Dr. Dre. Yeah, I know, there are more members of the group, including the one the film completely ignores, but let's face it, if you make a movie about the Beatles, you're really only focusing on John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Big guns only, ya know?

The film is amazing. I can't say enough about the performances by Jason Mitchell, Corey Hawkins, O'Shea Jackson Jr., Ice Cube's son, playing the young Ice Cube, and Paul Giamatti as evil promoter Jerry Heller. The music is fantastic, a time capsule of the 1990s and how N.W.A. changed hip hop and rap into something harder and more real, a sound of the street, and specifically Los Angeles in a time of violence.

Again however, omission seems to be a theme when it comes to Straight Outta Compton. With the real Ice Cube and Dr, Dre, as well as Easy-E's widow as producers on the flick, one might assume they want to sweep any dirty laundry under the rug. There are very few women in the movie, save Carra Patterson, who aren't just there for the party or the sex. And no mention is made of Dre's numerous domestic violence charges against women.

All that aside, this is a brilliant film, must-see for folks into N.W.A. and the music of the time, a true time capsule, and a terrific movie.

After the Thin Man

After the Thin Man ~ The second of the Thin Man movies, and the sequel to The Thin Man, a terrific Dashiell Hammett novel (which I recommend heartily as I do all of his books). Hammett also wrote the story of this film as well, not based on any previous work, and was nominated for an Oscar.

After the Thin Man is also the second of six Thin Man movies starring William Powell and Myrna Loy (and just one of fourteen total the pair appeared in together) as married freelance detectives Nick and Nora Charles. He a retired detective and she an heiress with a frisky doggie named Asta, they drank, smartassed, and sassed their way through six of these, with this entry, in my opinion, being the best. Their chemistry, even when it became a bit rough and self-deprecating later on, was still some of the best ever on film.

Powell and Loy as Nick and Nora were so popular that in this film series they often got lead billing over much bigger stars like Maureen O'Sullivan, or in this case, James Stewart. Directed by W.S. Van Dyke as were all the Thin Man movies, and he was also known for the Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy films as well, one of the classic Hollywood directors.

This is a fun and suspenseful entry in the series, and as I mentioned, in my opinion, the best. After the Thin Man is definitely worthwhile viewing. Thanks again to the TCM Classic Cruise for the opportunity to see this as it was meant to be seen, on the big screen.

The Wind Rises

The Wind Rises ~ Also known as Kaze Tachinu, written and directed by the great Hayao Miyazaki, is a masterpiece of phenomenal artisanship and brilliance, but it's also a pretty hard film to like.

While I recall hearing of Miyazaki's love of aircraft and flight, it had never occurred to me that he'd make not just a film about it, but also a fairly historical film about it - and specifically about the creation of the Japanese Zero, a plane that destroyed Pearl Harbor and plunged the United States into World War II with only the skeleton of a functional navy. As an American whose father served in the Pacific theater in WWII, I found it both hard and frightening to sit still during this movie, beautifully animated, and wonderfully presented - or not.

Released by Toho in Japan, and Disney in the United States, The Wind Rises is a fictionalized biography of Jiro Horikoshi, an aviation and engineering genius, who eventually designed what would become the dreaded Japanese Zero. This award winning film was based on Miyazaki's manga, which in turn was based on the 1937 short story by Tatsuo Hori.

While slow in places, it is a compelling tale of love, passion, dedication, and dreams, all wrapped up in a love of aviation and engineering. It's really quite brilliant and well done. I cannot decry the quality and achievement of this piece, but I am still left of two minds on it. This is a wonderfully realized film, definitely worth seeing.

RIP Richard Attenborough

Award winning actor, director, and producer Richard Attenborough died yesterday. He was only a few days short of his 91st birthday.

Most people may know him from his acting roles, as in Jurassic Park, The Great Escape, Doctor Doolittle, the most recent version of Miracle on 34th Street, The Sand Pebbles, and one of my personal favorites, the original Flight of the Phoenix. But the truth, and his real talent was as the man behind such great films as Gandhi, A Chorus Line, Chaplin, and Cry Freedom.

We have lost one of the shining lights of both the British cinema and Hollywood. Lord Richard Attenborough will be missed.

Remembering Robin Williams

Robin Williams is no longer with us as of this afternoon. Authorities are suggesting it was apparently suicide, perhaps brought on by years of fighting depression and addiction. Williams was 63.

The multiple award-winning actor, comedian, voice actor, and writer was a star of film, television, and the stage, and his work influenced generations who followed him. I first became aware of him as most of America did as the star of "Mork and Mindy." First appearing on the megahit "Happy Days" to study Richie and duel the Fonz, Robin's character Mork was quickly spun off into his on series. Fondly remembered, it still holds up somewhat today. One of my favorite things about the show was Robin bringing his idol Jonathan Winters onto the series to play his son.

His road to superstardom was almost supersonic. There was a moment during "Mork and Mindy" in the late 1970s when the man was just everywhere. His comedy album Reality… What A Concept cemented him as a stand-up comedian in the world's eyes, and eventually led to his charity work with such organizations like Comic Relief. He continued to work with many charities until his death.

Williams initially jumped into film as a lead actor in the live-action musical comedy Popeye in 1980, followed two years later by his wonderful turn in The World According to Garp. His role and film choices have gone up and down in quality since then. I have not always been a fan of him or his work, but there is no denying the man's talent, and when he gave a truly brilliant performance. I loved him in The Fisher King, Insomnia, Death to Smoochy, and Dead Poet Society, and he was also good in Good Morning Vietnam, Awakenings, Hook, Aladdin, and Good Will Hunting. He won an Oscar for that last one, but I think his best acting role was in the extremely creepy One Hour Photo. Robin was funny as hell, but man, could he ever play subtle menace.

There are things he did that are amazing in hindsight, such as his appearances on "The Richard Pryor Show" and the failed revival of "Laugh-In." He was quite busy voice acting in many videogames as well, and a big role-playing game enthusiast. Of course he was. And this past television season he was making a serious comeback in "The Crazy Ones." I still remember however the Friday in school after "Mork and Mindy" debuted the night before, everyone was quoting Robin Williams lines the next day. He just had that effect.

I know we'll see him one more time on the screen this Christmas with the third Night at the Museum film, but we won't ever see him as the Riddler, or in the Mrs. Doubtfire sequel. Perhaps his passing will bring attention to the all too common threat of depression. I would hope so. Robin Williams was a great talent, and he will be missed. To you, Robin, I say, in my ninth grade imitation of you, "Fly, be free!"

RIP James Garner

Actor James Garner passed away last night, he was 86. Whether you knew him as Bret Maverick or Jim Rockford, from The Notebook, or dozens of other roles, he will be missed.

The award-winning actor was one of the few who had successful careers in both film and television. He was in The Great Escape, The Americanization of Emily, Tank, The Children's Hour, Support Your Local Sheriff, and Murphy's Romance for which he was nominated for an Oscar, just to name a few.

My favorite roles of Garner's were both geeky and intellectual. I really dug that he played the wizard Shazam in a recent DC Comics animated feature, but my favorite flick of his, a great movie, and in my opinion, his best performance was in 36 Hours. Seek it out, it's worth it.

James Garner will be missed. We've lost another Hollywood legend, one of the good guys.

Gravity

This is an Oscar nominated and winning film. Let me be clear, Gravity is a B-grade scifi thriller that got very lucky. It breaks tradition. It has stars, it has special effects, a high caliber for cinematography and direction, so it gets a pass. I truly wonder if the names George Clooney, Sandra Bullock, and Ed Harris were not involved, would the art film snob crowd that usually haunt the Oscar movies even be interested?

Astronauts are on a Space Shuttle mission to repair the Hubble Telescope when debris from a destroyed Russian satellite scrag the mission and the shuttle. Untethered and lost, two of them, Kowalski (Clooney) and Stone (Bullock), try to get to the International Space Station after the debris hit. Only a preliminary knowledge of gravity and physics is needed to know how truly and totally screwed they are.

Kowalski is the voice of reason and experience in contrast to Stone's inexperience and panic. Their audio interaction when we really can't see facial expression is testament to these two actors' superior ability. These are two professionals, two artists in the field. Once separated, with only Clooney's voice, he proves what real acting is. Bullock substantially carries the film solo after that. No Oscars, Academy? Really?

Those awards went to director Alfonzo Cuaron, and to the cinematography and visual effects folks. It won the most Oscars that year and similarly swept the BAFTAs, the Critics Choice Awards, and the Golden Globes, while still being basically a 1970s scifi thriller with a good pedrigree. The visuals are stunning, and I can imagine it might have been dizzying in 3-D, or simply on the big screen.

I dug Gravity a lot. Despite its space trappings and apparent scientific inaccuracies, it explores the truly horrific themes of loneliness and helplessness in a very real way. Highly recommended.

Ruby Dee 1922-2014

The Lego Movie

The Lego Movie ~ Some have derided this flick as one long commercial for Lego, but I would strongly disagree. Lego is merely the medium through which the story is told and the animation is done. I don't think anyone is going to be running out and buying Legos after seeing this unless they are already into Lego. Maybe it worked on me, but I dig Lego, and I also dig this movie a lot too.

In a well organized world, Lord Business runs things with a well sorted attitude. Everything has its place, everyone has their job, and of course, Everything Is Awesome. Then an average guy finds the "Piece of Resistance," meets the girl of his dreams, Wyldstyle, and is swept up in an underground revolution against Business, where his fellow freedom fighters think he is "The Special," a legendary savior.

The voice cast is terrific. There's Morgan Freeman, Elizabeth Banks, Will Farrell, Chris Pratt, Alison Brie, and even Biff Bam Pop!'s own Leiki Veskimets (check out her terrific wrap-up on the Oscars from earlier today). Liam Neeson is great as Bad Cop, and Will Arnett steals the whole movie as Batman. I also loved the bits with Superman and Green Lantern, and the Millennium Falcon.

This movie was a lot of fun, and I can't wait for the sequel coming in 2017. Now, if you excuse me, I'm going to go play with my Legos, especially my Batman...

Thank God It's Friday

Thank God It's Friday ~ This movie is a long forgotten entry from the disco age, barely a footnote today, but when I was a teenager and it premiered, it was huge. For a week or so, before vanishing into the vortex of 'the next big thing.'

Thank God It's Friday was being touted as the next Saturday Night Fever, and it featured Donna Summer singing "Last Dance." The ads made it out to be funny, cool, and it had so much great new music. In other words, the flick had the same hype machine as other masterpieces like Corvette Summer and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.

I was at an age where I couldn't see movies. My friends didn't drive yet, I didn't have my own money, and there was no way my parents would take me. All of the above mentioned films I never saw until they made their way, edited for content, to network television. As badly as I wanted to see this, I had to live vicariously through the music, and the friends whose parents did let them see it. Notably, those friends weren't impressed.

What might have been risqué then with a PG rating is a bit lame now, and rewatching this seems more like an extended episode of "The Love Boat" on land. The movie chronicles several vignettes at a night at an exclusive Los Angeles disco, then called Zoo. It is very reminiscent of Cannonball Run meets It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World, set to disco music with less laughs, and stars.

While not really the stars at the time, look for Jeff Goldblum, Debra Winger, as well as Paul Jabara, and of course, Donna Summer, Lionel Ritchie and the Commodores. Valerie Landsburg, Doris from "Fame," figures prominently, and don't miss Otis Day, and the pre-Berlin Terri Nunn. The cast, both major and minor is filled out by character actors and others who have faded into obscurity.


The movie is pretty predictable, and has been called the worst movie to ever win an Academy Award, for best original song (for Summer's "Last Dance"). Worth watching, but don't expect much, even if you have nostalgia for this one.

Saving Mr. Banks

Saving Mr. Banks ~ The twenty year quest of Walt Disney to gain the rights to P.L. Travers' "Mary Poppins" is the stuff of movie-making legend. Here finally, let's say, dramatized for the screen is that journey, or at least the final steps of it. With Tom Hanks as Disney and Emma Thompson as Travers, both in the running for Oscars this year along with the film, and rightly so, Saving Mr. Banks is a terrific film, maybe not as true as it contends, but still a great film.

While I have heard Hanks and Thompson's names bandied about for various awards, Also in the running should be Paul Giamatti and Colin Farrell first and foremost, as their performances trump both of the leads in my opinion. I was also fascinated to see Jason Schwartzman and BJ Novak as the Sherman brothers, seemingly getting along in this flick. An all-star cast in and all-star movie that may or may not be 100% true.

For a more extensive review of Saving Mr. Banks, you should check out this special episode of The Make Mine Magic Podcast where The Bride and I go into great detail about the film. Check it out. Highly recommended.

Wild Hogs

Wild Hogs ~ Sometimes it's surprising what you'll watch when there's nothing else to watch or you have nothing better to do. I had the unfortunate circumstance of having already seen most of what was available to view in the theater and OnDemand while on our recent Disney Cruise. And that's what brought me to Wild Hogs.

This movie, from start to finish, is like a cry for help, no, not help, a serious cry of desperation. Four actors, ahem, I mean, men, having their mid-life crises and turning to their motorcycle hobby for comfort and excitement. Tim Allen, John Travolta, Martin Lawrence, and William H. Macy star in this badly written, painfully performed, ultimately unsatisfying flick.

Its script and premise might've worked for a sixties Jack Lemmon or Jerry Lewis farce, but audiences and acting is more sophisticated now. I really had to wonder who this movie was for. Ten year-olds? I know ten year-olds this might be too simple for, even some of the gags don't make sense.

Well, hopefully those who phoned it in (I'm looking at you, William and Martin, you should be ashamed of yourselves) got paid well enough to pay their rent, and Tim and John had time to trade hairpiece care secrets. It's almost as if they are acting at each other the lack of chemistry is so bad. Ray Liotta and Marisa Tomei are similarly wasted here.

If you're ever itching to forget that Macy and Travolta have been nominated for Oscars, this is the flick for you. Wow, what a bad movie.

Miley Gone Mad?

With an impending birthday coming this week, after watching the opening number of this year's MTV VMAs, I had to ask myself two questions. Or rather one question with a choice. Am I old, or has Miley Cyrus lost her mind?

I am concerned for her well being honestly. The woman is clearly out of control, if not under the influence of drugs or alcohol, or just plain stupidity. If she was a close friend, or a member of our families - you know damned straight she'd be long overdue for an intervention.



Yeah, and there it is. It's not like the VMAs don't have a reputation for controversy. I remember quite clearly as a young man seeing Madonna hump the floor in a bridal gown while singing "Like a Virgin." I will never forget that as long as I live. Later shows have tried to recreate or top that moment, but rarely succeeding. It may be time for MTV to stop trying to do that, and just do an awards show. The Oscars and the Tonys have both shown in recent years that 'just an awards show' can actually be quite good.

What bothers me most about the Miley Cyrus performance at the VMAs is that no one stopped it, no one pulled her aside and said No. Even Robin Thicke, especially co-conspirator Robin Thicke should have known better. Lady GaGa is outrageous. Madonna is outrageous. But poor Miley just made us feel embarrassed and worried for her.

Outrageous, unique, and controversial are something to aspire to in the entertainment industry, but this was just a freak show, and pitiful and shocking for most of us to watch. And I'm sure Will Smith and his family agrees with me.

Ben Affleck Is Batman!

So Ben Affleck will play Batman in the upcoming sequel to Man of Steel, likely to be called Batman Vs. Superman.

The announcement came late last night while my friend Ray and I were recording this week's GAR! Podcast. Had we known, we surely would have been discussing it. Instead you get the usual Prince, Dave Sim, Avengers, and French fries mix of goodness, lucky you. You can hear it here, shameless plug.

After the recording I got on Facebook and Twitter to watch the internet explode. Seemed like no one was happy with the casting.

Well, he's no Michael Keaton. I mean, it could be worse. He could be Michael Keaton.

What's that you say? Michael Keaton was one of the best Batmen, he was Batman. Yeah, right. Y'all got selective memories. I remember it quite differently.

I remember people screaming and whining that Mr. Mom/Beetlejuice was the worst choice for a serious version of Batman. The balding no-chinned comedian was no Batman. In the pre-internet world of 1988, this was a horrible mistake, and the angry fanboy letters burning the pages of the Comics Buyer's Guide were proof of it.

And now, over two decades and two movies later, Keaton is considered one of the best Batmen. So why are people so riled up about Ben Affleck? Because Daredevil was a dud in the theaters? Hell, I liked Daredevil, and liked the director's cut even more. I even liked Elektra.

And even if I'm wrong about that, what about Affleck's Oscar and other awards and nominations for acting, writing, and directing? He even has comic book cred beyond Daredevil as an actor in the Kevin Smith films and playing George (Superman) Reeves in Hollywoodland. Talk Gigli and Pearl Harbor all you want, you can't take Argo or The Town away from him. Everyone has hits and misses.

I think Ben Affleck can pull off Batman and Bruce Wayne like a pro. I dare say he might be a better Batman than anyone else we've seen. And yeah, I'm saying that based on his Daredevil performance. I stand behind Ben as Batman. If Michael Keaton could do it...

My Oscar Picks 2013

My opinion really doesn't count for all that much this year as some personal issues have kept me from seeing many of the films this year, but folks expect to see my picks, so this year, I will choose by instinct and odds rather than any educated guesses. I still might get lucky. Here you go...

Best animated feature - Brave

Best animated short film - Paperman

Best visual effects - Marvel's The Avengers

Best original screenplay - Django Unchained

Best original score, and song - Skyfall

Best costume design - Snow White and the Huntsman

Best direction - Steven Spielberg for Lincoln

Best supporting actress - Sally Field for Lincoln

Best supporting actor - Christoph Waltz for Django Unchained

Best actress - Jennifer Lawrence for Silver Linings Playbook

Best actor - Denzel Washington for Flight

Best picture - Silver Linings Playbook

Yep, that's right. I'm predicting a complete shut out for Le Miz. Nothing against the flick, but that's just how it played out as I picked category by category.

What do you folks think?

Silver Linings Playbook

Silver Linings Playbook ~ You might have noticed its been quite a while since I posted about any movies currently in theaters. Well, it's been a while since I've been out to a movie. Tonight, after dinner with good friends we haven't seen in a while, we decided to hit a flick last minute. I wanted Die Hard or The Hobbit, but the ladies settled on multiple Oscar nom rom com drama Silver Linings Playbook.

What a pleasant surprise. I didn't know all that much about it beyond the noms for best picture, best actor Bradley Cooper, best actress Jennifer Lawrence, best supportings Robert DeNiro and Jacki Weaver, and best director David O. Russell. Surprisingly all of the noms are well deserved, some might not win, but all well deserved.

Based on the book "The Silver Linings Playbook" by local teacher turned novelist Matthew Quick. That alone lends credibility to the locale of the flick - Philadelphia, as well as the passion for Eagles football so important to the story. That story has bi-polar Patrick (Cooper) trying to repair his life and get his wife back, even though she's moved on while he was in a mental hospital. Enter Tiffany (Lawrence) widowed and equally flawed, trying to get him back on his feet.

Cooper and Lawrence are no strangers to Oscar, and recently she has gained serious genre cred as Catniss and young Mystique. I think Jennifer Lawrence's best years are ahead of her, and right now she's better than most other actresses her age. I loved her here. DeNiro and Weaver are just as good as Cooper's parents. The whole film is full of terrific performances, including Julia Stiles, Shea Whigham of "Boardwalk Empire," Anupam Kher, and believe it or not, a completely non-annoying Chris Tucker.

This was a great flick, I definitely see a couple (at least) Oscars coming its way this weekend, but let's face it. It's no Die Hard. ;-)