VC Pick: Tombstone (1993)

Tags

Action, Drama, VC Pick, Western

Since this town was sprung up from the ground
And the pioneers came
And the money came round
And it earned its fame
Being anything but tame,
Many drinks and fears were both poured and downed
At the unembellished name
Of Tombstone.

Curing wanderlust with its drinks and dust,
It soon started to draw
Folk you could not trust,
For there was no law
When the West was raw
Till a man moved in to defend what’s just
When he reached his last straw
In Tombstone.
___________________________

MPAA rating: R

Once again, I fear I’ve been neglecting my dear VC, who hasn’t gotten one of her movies reviewed in well over a month. This time, she picked Tombstone, an all-star western that I’m honestly surprised I hadn’t seen before. As a sweeping retelling of the events surrounding the gunfight at the OK Corral, it provides a fictionalized but surprisingly comprehensive look at the law enforcement career of Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday.

I knew only the most general background information about the shootout at the OK Corral involving Wyatt Earp and the Clantons, but Tombstone offered quite a bit of context with its large ensemble cast. Not only do we see Wyatt Earp’s arrival in Tombstone and the increasing tension between his family and the violent gang called the Cowboys, but we get to find out the aftermath of the OK Corral incident, which could have ended the film as its climax.

Earp himself, played by a tough-as-nails Kurt Russell, is a well-known badass trying to retire from his days as a peace officer, yet an early confrontation with an unrecognizable Billy Bob Thornton confirms he can still put the fear of God in bad guys. Once we’re introduced to his family and sick friend Doc Holliday (Val Kilmer), it’s only a matter of time before his attempted retirement yields to bloodshed and vengeance as the Cowboys threaten the peace.

Like Silverado, another favorite western of mine, Tombstone boasts a staggering number of famous faces, some of them before they became famous. Russell is a fantastic Wyatt Earp, while Kilmer brings an unflinching swagger to an all-around pip of a role, which is considered one of his very best with good reason. Since my VC is a huge fan of Sam Elliott, his appearance as Wyatt’s older brother explains in part why she likes this movie so much, but there’s also Bill Paxton as the other Earp brother, Powers Boothe as wicked “Curly Bill” Brocius, Michael Biehn as fearsome Johnny Ringo, Stephen Lang and Thomas Haden Church as two Clantons, Dana Delany as Wyatt’s love interest, and Billy Zane as a visiting actor. That’s not even mentioning the smaller roles for the likes of Charlton Heston, Dana Wheeler-Nicholson, John Corbett, Michael Rooker, Harry Carey, Jr., Gunsmoke’s Buck Taylor, Jason Priestley, and (Lost alert!) Terry O’Quinn as Tombstone’s mayor. It’s hard at first for me to keep up with the less familiar faces, but the biggest stars stand out with strong support from the ensemble around them.

I suppose I ought to see Kevin Costner’s Wyatt Earp from the following year for comparison’s sake, but it would be hard-pressed to top this western epic. While liberties are taken, there were many events and details that I was surprised to learn were true upon researching afterward, such as the fate of Johnny Ringo, which is a point of historical mystery yet was worked plausibly into Tombstone’s plot. Russell and Kilmer are in top form here, and Boothe and Biehn make for genuinely despicable villains from their very first scene. I wouldn’t hesitate to put Tombstone high among the top ten westerns I’ve seen, and it would likely make my Top 365 List if only I was more partial to the western genre. (True Grit is still my favorite.) As it is, I enjoyed Tombstone for its strong performances, excellent script, and historical interest; it’s the kind of movie that makes me want to like westerns more.

Best line (simple but great characterization): (Turkey Creek Jack Johnson) “Doc, you oughta be in bed. What the hell you doin’ this for anyway?”
(Doc Holliday) “Wyatt Earp is my friend.”
(Johnson) “Hell, I got lots of friends.”
(Doc) “I don’t.”

 

Rank: List Runner-Up

 

© 2018 S.G. Liput
568 Followers and Counting

 

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VC Pick: Saturday Night Fever (1977) / Staying Alive (1983)

Tags

Drama, Musical, Romance, VC Pick

Though we may think our minds are broad,
Aware of worlds beyond our own,
We all are uniformly flawed
In being tunnel vision-prone.

We often only grasp this fact
When dreams we barely comprehend
Provoke our minds. How we react
Determines where our path will end.
_________________________

MPAA rating for Saturday Night Fever: R (but there’s a PG version too)
MPAA rating for Staying Alive: PG

I wasn’t looking forward to watching Saturday Night Fever because I had a feeling it would be a lot like my VC’s last pick Dirty Dancing, a movie where I’ve seen all the best parts with little interest in the connective tissue. Yet she really wanted me to see its critically ravaged sequel Staying Alive (yes, SNF had a sequel), which I knew nothing about and of course had to watch the first movie to fully understand.  Now that I’ve seen both, conventional wisdom would say I should love Saturday Night Fever and deride its cheap sequel, but apparently I missed that convention. My feelings aren’t that strong on either one, but my sympathies are definitely flipped from the critical consensus I’ve seen.

As far as Saturday Night Fever, it fit my expectations to some extent. I had seen all the best parts already, but they’re still iconic for a good reason, especially the dancing prowess of Tony Manero (John Travolta in his star-making role). The soundtrack is one of the catchiest ever, full of high-pitched Bee Gees and even disco-fied classical music, all of which adds to the overwhelming ‘70s-ness of the whole production. Few movies capture their contemporary time and place so completely as Saturday Night Fever does, from the wide-collared shirts and weirdly high-heeled shoes to the background details like the posters of Rocky and Farrah Fawcett on Tony’s bedroom wall. Its status as a snapshot of a decade makes it significant, in a way that comes off as transportive rather than dated.

Knowing already the basic plot, I was mainly concerned that Saturday Night Fever would be too much like a certain movie I love to hate, John Travolta’s other lifestyle-snapshot film Urban Cowboy (worst movie ever, by the way). It has a lot in common, with its young Travolta protagonist being a self-absorbed punk who prefers to spend his nights drinking and playing his money away. Yet while Urban Cowboy seemed perfectly content with its white-trash carousing, Saturday Night Fever is at least self-aware about it. It rings bitingly true when Tony’s dance partner Stephanie (Karen Gorney) calls him “a cliché. You’re nowhere, on your way to no place.”

I could appreciate how Tony wakes up to how narrow and directionless his existence is, but the film gets bumpy on its way there. For one thing, I watched the R-rated original (I didn’t know there was a PG edited version until afterward) and was shocked at the amount of profanity, proving that the ‘70s were hardly better on that front than nowadays, perhaps worse. Tony’s friends are consistently scuzzy throughout as well, and by the time they were taking turns raping his wannabe girlfriend in the backseat of a car, I realized how much I wasn’t liking this movie. As I said, I recognized Tony’s experiences as a gritty and all-too-realistic journey to rock-bottom, which is often the only way to start improving, but outside of the music, it was hardly a journey I’d want to take again.

And then there’s Staying Alive, the 1983 sequel that has a 0% on Rotten Tomatoes. I don’t think it deserves such scorn because it was a far more enjoyable film to watch; you just have to embrace the way the original’s ‘70s drama has been largely replaced with ‘80s cheesiness. It all depends on how you approach it; I loved looking at the iMDB reviews, which swing wildly from 1/10 terrible reviews and 10/10 glowing ones. Travolta’s performance is also pretty comparable to the first movie, so I don’t know why he’d get an Oscar nomination for one and a Razzie nomination for the other.

Directed by Sylvester Stallone, Staying Alive features Travolta’s return as Tony Manero; the only other returning cast member is Tony’s very Italian mother (Julie Bovasso), though I understand a few other cameos were cut. Instead of dancing for fun in Brooklyn, Tony has instead moved to Manhattan to become a modern dancer on Broadway. The Bee Gees are still on hand for the soundtrack, but there’s a decidedly more ‘80s vibe to the music, rounded out by several great additions by the director’s brother Frank Stallone, who also has a small role. The glitzy strobe-lit dance floor has been replaced by synchronized on-stage athleticism that sees Tony leaping through lens flares and showing off a lot more muscle than in Saturday Night Fever.

Some may miss the grittiness of the original, but when Tony points out that he’s quit swearing, smoking, and drinking, I see it as a genuine personal improvement, not just a way to segue from R to PG. Of course, he’s still got a long way to go, particularly in his treatment of women. He’s still the same ladies’ man who can’t recognize the good thing he’s got with his fellow dancer and girlfriend Jackie (Cynthia Rhodes), choosing instead to continually pursue proven diva Laura (Finola Hughes). It’s frustrating how oblivious he is at times, getting jealous when Laura cheats on him and never considering what he’s doing to Jackie, but at least he comes around eventually. It’s true that Staying Alive hardly feels like a sequel to Saturday Night Fever, but I don’t think it’s that bad a film. The music and choreography aren’t as memorable as its predecessor, but they’re still impressive, even if the big number at the end grows dull with how long and overproduced it is.

I’d gladly watch Staying Alive again, while Saturday Night Fever I think I’d only watch the PG version and only if I was in the mood for something depressing. The main reason I like Staying Alive more is how it does build on the first film. Saturday Night Fever was all about waking Tony up to his directionless lifestyle but didn’t get to show much after he comes to his senses. Staying Alive shows how he struggles to improve, put his talent to good use, and make something of himself, which is a more laudable purpose, despite the decline in nuance. When Tony struts along in his very first scene of SNF, he’s showing off mere bravado; when the same scene is echoed in Staying Alive, he actually has a reason to strut.

Best line from Saturday Night Fever: (Tony) “There’s ways of killing yourself without killing yourself.”
Best line from Staying Alive: (Tony, jealous of Jackie’s friend Carl) “Don’t worry. She’s in good hands.”   (Carl) “And what are you, Allstate, pal?”   (Tony) “Yeah, you want disability?”

 

Rank for Saturday Night Fever: Honorable Mention (barely)
Rank for Staying Alive: Honorable Mention (but higher)

 

© 2018 S.G. Liput
539 Followers and Counting

 

VC Pick: Dirty Dancing (1987)

Tags

Drama, Musical, Romance, VC Pick

Innocence, it might be said,
Lasts only till our first romance.
When youthful hearts begin to dance
And steal more than a passing glance
And seize (they think) their only chance
Without a thought to circumstance,
Naiveté is shed,
Adulthood in its stead.

For whether it concludes in shame
Or love that lasts a lifetime still,
A heart that’s met another’s will
And tried a second heart to fill
And felt the pain and seized the thrill
Of deeper love, for good or ill,
Will never be the same
As when their first love came.
___________________

MPAA rating: PG-13

Sometimes a movie is so iconic that you feel like you’ve seen it even when you’ve only seen the highlights. Dirty Dancing fits that mold because, although I’ve seen every dance scene and the entire ending before, I hadn’t watched it all the way through, despite my VC’s persistence. Now that I finally have… well, I was just fine with the highlights.

Before I anger any of its many ardent fans, it’s not that I disliked Dirty Dancing; it’s just that I’d already seen all the best parts. Maybe if I’d seen those classic moments as part of the whole for the first time, I’d appreciate the whole more. As it was, my viewing was essentially to fill in the gaps. I got to see how exactly “Baby” (lovely Jennifer Grey) arrived on vacation at the distinguished Kellerman’s mountain resort in 1963. I got to find out how she first met the ruggedly handsome dance instructor Johnny Castle (Patrick Swayze). And of course, I got to enjoy the cheesy but romantic quotes and the dance numbers so classic they’re still being parodied to death (like in this recent Super Bowl ad—priceless!).

But there were also things that detracted along the way, like the fact that the whole reason Baby and Johnny perform together is so she can cover for his other partner Penny (Cynthia Rhodes) who gets an abortion. The distress of her botched abortion is done tastefully enough, but what really bugged me is how Baby starts her sexual relationship with Johnny right afterward. She doesn’t know him that well at this point, and Penny literally just told her that the one who got her pregnant seemed different and true before he abandoned her. I know infatuation can be both strong and stupid, but the way Baby dives in without considering that the same thing could happen to her felt downright foolish.

Of course, lucky for her, Johnny is a good guy, or at least trying to be better, and Grey and Swayze have such chemistry together that I can see why a lot of female viewers wouldn’t give it a second thought. Sort of like how the final dance number, set to the Oscar-winning “(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life” is so timelessly satisfying that no one minds how hastily and conveniently everything wraps up with a little bow. With its dance-fueled passion and exceptional soundtrack of ‘60s hits and two original songs, it’s easy to see why Dirty Dancing is popular. For me, though, the highlights are better than the whole.

Best line: (Baby) “Me? I’m scared of everything. I’m scared of what I saw, I’m scared of what I did, of who I am, and most of all I’m scared of walking out of this room and never feeling the rest of my whole life the way I feel when I’m with you.”

 

Rank:  Honorable Mention

 

© 2018 S.G. Liput
538 Followers and Counting

 

VC Pick: The Mountain Between Us (2017)

Tags

Drama, Romance, VC Pick

Higher than most men would dare,
The mountains stand in sparser air
To touch the blue abyss above
And tempt mankind’s desire to share
In their ambitious love.

Yet those who underestimate
The mountain’s ever lofty state
Will find what awed from lower heights
Can rapidly retaliate,
To prove how beauty bites.
_________________

MPAA rating: PG-13

Since I’m the bigger movie fan, it’s unusual for my VC to watch a movie in the theater before me, but The Mountain Between Us was so clearly her kind of movie that she did and I just now caught up. Kate Winslet and Idris Elba in a gradual romance? Stunning mountain scenery? Survival story based on a book she had to read beforehand? Yep, definitely her kind of movie.

That doesn’t necessarily mean it’s not my kind of movie too. The survival story and romance work hand in hand as Ben (Elba) and Alex (Winslet) go from sharing a chartered plane to braving the elements together after their pilot (Beau Bridges) has a stroke midflight, crashing them in the gorgeous but treacherous Rockies. While it could be said that they help each other survive, the bulk of the helping comes from Ben, who’s a doctor luckily enough, but as the two disagree on how to respond to their predicament, it quickly becomes clear that they need someone else to rely on (aside from the dog).

Maybe you’ve had this experience where you watch a movie with someone who’s read the book and mentions throughout all the differences between them, how so-and-so was actually married or she was injured much worse or there’s a whole subplot and twist they left out. It’s hard to say whether that helps or hurts the viewing experience, but thanks to my VC, I at least feel like I read Charles Martin’s novel vicariously. I do wonder, though, why they let Elba keep his British accent while Winslet hid it. One thing the book didn’t have is the actual scenery on display, and the Canadian Rockies where filming took place are among our favorite places to behold in awe, at least in pictures (hopefully in person one day, though maybe not by charter plane).

The Mountain Between Us isn’t an objectively great movie nor an awards contender, but it gets three things very right: the casting, the setting, and the end. When you’re watching high-caliber actors go a little schmaltzy in such breathtaking environs, it’s easy to appreciate the tale for what it is, especially when it sticks the landing.

Best line: (Ben, who later questions this) “The heart’s nothing but a muscle.”

 

Rank: List Runner-Up

 

© 2018 S.G. Liput
533 Followers and Counting

 

VC Pick: Fletch (1985)

Tags

Comedy, Mystery, Thriller, VC Pick

Hello, sir, I’m Roland Dough,
I work for someone you don’t know,
And last I checked,
I must inspect
The volume of your stereo.

While I’m here, I thought I’d ask
If you’ve seen any shady stuff,
Like backroom deals
Or big reveals
Or guys like me who just can’t bluff.

Of course, you’ve not seen me before;
I think I’d know if I was seen.
I just stopped by
To satisfy
My need to be in every scene.

No, no, don’t bother getting up.
Your stereo broke; what a shame!
I’m finished, so
I’d better go.
It’s time to pick another name.
__________________

MPAA rating: PG (perhaps PG-13 nowadays)

My VC has a habit of having me rewatch films I saw only once years ago, just to see if my vague memories are reliable. In this case, I recalled Fletch favorably, even if every detail of the plot had long ago been jettisoned from my mind. But now that I’ve seen it again, that’s a crying shame, because I enjoyed Fletch a lot more than I expected. Chevy Chase’s comedy can be hit-and-miss for me, but when he’s good, he’s good.

Chase plays investigative reporter Irwin Fletcher (one guess what his nickname is), who is in the middle of an undercover drug bust when he is picked up by dying millionaire Alan Stanwyck (Tim Matheson), who promises to pay Fletch to kill him. Since not asking questions isn’t in his DNA, Fletch then sets out doing what he does best, following leads, dressing up, and lying through his teeth in pursuit of the truth.

While it’s based on a book series I didn’t know existed, I felt Fletch might have been intended to mirror the success of Beverly Hills Cop. Both of them cast an SNL alum as an improvisational investigator, backed by similar-sounding Harold Faltermeyer scores. Whereas Axel Foley had a gun to do off-hours police work, Fletch is entirely dependent on his wit and sharp tongue, and it’s great fun watching him scramble to plug the holes in his stories. Throughout the film, he impersonates a doctor, a beach bum, a country club guest, an insurance investigator, and probably some I’m forgetting, all with hilarious fake names, and Chevy Chase sells the verbal gymnastics with aplomb.

It was also fun recognizing some of the secondary cast, from Geena Davis as his news office buddy, Joe Don Baker as a corrupt police chief, and even The Waltons’ Jim-Bob (David W. Harper) as a young car thief, not to mention small roles for George Wyner, Kenneth Mars, George Wendt, and M. Emmet Walsh. (The “Moon River” scene with Walsh as a doctor was literally the only thing I remembered from last time.) It’s a talented cast and an intriguing, weaving plot, but Chase is the anchor, whose wry narration and slick spontaneity make Fletch possibly his best role, though I still prefer Foul Play overall. Now to remind myself of the sequel I also saw only once called Fletch Lives, though I hear Fletch Dies never got off the ground. Just kidding, though there’s still talk of a re-cast prequel called Fletch Won. This franchise may not be dead yet.

Best line: (Dr. Dolan, speaking of someone Fletch doesn’t know) “You know, it’s a shame about Ed.”
(Fletch) “Oh, it was. Yeah, it was really a shame. To go so suddenly like that.”
(Dr. Dolan) “He was dying for years.”
(Fletch) “Sure, but… the end was very… very sudden.”
(Dr. Dolan) “He was in intensive care for eight weeks.”
(Fletch) “Yeah, but I mean the very end, when he actually died. That was extremely sudden.”

 

Rank: List Runner-Up (a very close one)

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
517 Followers and Counting

 

VC Pick: White Nights (1985)

Tags

Drama, Musical, Thriller, VC Pick

There are desperate folk where the sun wears no cloak
And the nights are as light as the day.
People come with a grudge and they rarely will budge
Since they’ve no other choice but to stay.

There are pasts black as pitch, a few poor and some rich,
But they’re all the same on that plateau,
Where they’ve all lost their rights to the land where the nights
Are as bright and as white as the snow.

There are desperate men in their self-assigned pen,
And they do what they must to escape,
As they muse in disgrace how they came to this place,
Where the sun never leaves the landscape.
___________________

MPAA rating: PG-13

It seems I’ve been neglecting my dear VC, not having reviewed one of her picks for well over a month. To fix that, she had me revisit a film I saw years ago and only remembered certain scenes. I thought my memories were more vague, but watching the movie brought them all back so I guess it was more memorable than I thought. With a title referring to Siberia’s lack of sunset, White Nights is unique as both a Cold War thriller and a musical combining two dancers-turned-actors with different specialties, tap dancer Gregory Hines and ballet dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov.

When I say it’s a musical, that doesn’t mean people break into song at random moments, but since both of its main characters are performers, they each get to strut their stuff on stage throughout the film. Baryshnikov’s character of Nikolai Rodchenko is practically autobiographical, a famed ballet dancer who defects from the Soviet Union. When his plane crash-lands in Siberia, he is taken into custody by the Soviets, who task disillusioned American defector Raymond Greenwood (Hines) with convincing Nikolai to voluntarily serve Soviet interests, whether he likes it or not.

This is a case where it feels that the movie was made just to team up two talented dancers, employing a Cold War plot meant to keep it timely. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but let’s just say the dance scenes are far more memorable than the Soviet intrigue. Hines gets to show off his talents as dancer, singer, and actor, with some personal theatrics that make his conflicted character sympathetic, though they don’t quite convince us why the heck he would pick the U.S.S.R. over the U.S. He has surprising chemistry with Isabella Rossillini as his wife, as does Baryshnikov with Helen Mirren as his ex-lover, so there’s little negative I can say about the acting.

Likewise, the musical numbers are marvelous, from Baryshnikov’s modern dance opener (Le Jeune Homme et la Mort) to Hines’ tap rendition of “There’s a Boat Dat’s Leavin’ Soon for New York” from Porgy and Bess. The real kickers are when the two let loose freestyle in the ballet studio, though I do wish those scenes were longer. Yet, despite the great dancing and decent tension toward the end, I feel that I could just as well have watched the musical highlights and skipped the occasionally boring scenes in between, just as I can enjoy Lionel Richie’s Oscar-winning song “Say You, Say Me” or the also-nominated “Separate Lives” sung by Phil Collins with or without the movie to which they’re attached.

While my VC probably won’t be pleased with my ranking, White Nights is simply not one of my favorites, despite the pleasure of seeing two very different dancers collaborating with some athletic and complementary choreography. It’s a decent film all around, and I’m struggling to find much negative to say about it, but it’s one I’d probably only watch when she insists.

Best line:   (Nikolai) “I see. You and your wife, you work in the theater. And you live here… in Siberia.”   (Raymond) “It’s just temporary.”   (Nikolai, dryly) “Of course. Nobody is here permanently.”

VC’s best line: (Nikolai) “You’re an important person, with power. I hear you drive a Mercedes now.”  (Ivanova, played by Mirren) “And what do you ride, Kolya? A donkey? Yes, I rebuilt my life! I was supposed to throw everything away so that you could live in Disneyland?”

 

Rank: Honorable Mention

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
517 Followers and Counting

 

VC Pick: Runaway (1984)

Tags

Action, Sci-fi, Thriller, VC Pick

How will you know when the future has come?
When robots reside in your workplace or home.

How will you know where technology goes?
When robots start rising right under your nose.

How will you know when sci-fi meets real life?
When robots can handle the kids…or a knife.

How will you know if man’s made a mistake?
When robots and darker intentions awake.
___________________

MPAA rating: PG-13

Runaway isn’t that great a sci-fi film but it is an enjoyably watchable one, only occasionally owing that appeal to its cheesy ‘80s-ness, which seems to appeal to my VC more than to me sometimes. Written and directed by Michael Crichton, this Tom Selleck vehicle features yet another potential future where robots have become common appliances at home and work, and wouldn’t you know it, they start killing people! It’s not about vengeful A.I.’s fighting back; it’s a bit more ordinary than that, since they’ve instead been reprogrammed by a leering baddie played by Gene Simmons (yes, from KISS!), and it’s up to Selleck’s policeman Jack Ramsay and his new partner Karen (Cynthia Rhodes) to stop him.

As a robot movie, Runaway has futuristic innovations both odd and pretty cool. You might question why it takes police intervention to pick up a malfunctioning pest control bot that doesn’t seem very dangerous, but then we get to marvel at the innovation of a heat-seeking missile bullet, with some first-person shots from the bullet’s point of view. To be honest, the robots are lame in design and execution, and while I’m sure they were impressive for 1984, seeing wobbly robotic spiders “sneak up” on hapless police has a distinctive B-movie quality. Even so, the machines can still be dangerous, like one murderous runaway modified to shoot a gun, the threat of a thrilling early scene slightly spoiled by the stupidity of one of its victims. One caring nanny robot also happened to remind me of the similar THX droid in the anime series/film Time of Eve.

My VC has introduced me to a lot of ‘80s movies, and thanks to her, I know Crichton could direct science fiction both innovative (Westworld) and memorably tense (Coma, which was one of Selleck’s first brief film roles). Though Runaway falls a little short of his earlier work in terms of originality, it was still a fun ‘80s popcorn movie. I can’t say I was ever bored since the police investigation moves along at a brisk pace between moments of well-wrought tension. It helps too that all the actors acquit themselves fairly well, from Selleck’s likeable, afraid-of-heights lead to Simmons’ malicious villain, though Simmons didn’t help his potential acting career with a gratuitous scene literally thrown in just for a jump scare. There may not be much depth to the characters or themes, but as a diverting little thrill ride into the future, Runaway ran far enough to entertain.

Best line: (Ramsay, after a wild goose chase) “Congratulations, guys, you just staked out a roll of toilet paper.”

 

Rank: List Runner-Up

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
507 Followers and Counting

 

VC Pick: Over the Top (1987)

Tags

Drama, Family, Sports, VC Pick

If I had rippling muscles
And a huge right arm to lend,
I’d enter contests proving
What a beast I am at moving
Other people’s arms at angles
That they were not meant to bend.

I suppose my strength would let me
Find more meaningful success,
But when limbs become this hefty,
Whether right-handed or lefty,
There are few things quite as tempting
As to prove one’s manliness.
__________________

MPAA rating: PG

Many of Sylvester Stallone’s films are designed to reinforce his manliness, the kind of machismo that automatically raises the ambient testosterone level. If there’s any doubt about who the toughest guy in the room is, just wait, and he’ll prove his muscular superiority.

That’s the kind of movie I assumed Over the Top would be based on the fact that it’s about an armwrestling competition, and that’s what it is, but not all it is. It’s also, surprisingly, a family film, in contrast to Stallone’s many R-rated actioners. He plays Lincoln Hawk (now that’s a cool ‘80s name if I ever heard one), a trucker who attempts to bond with his estranged son Michael (David Mendenhall) via a road trip, much to the chagrin of the boy’s rich, Hawk-hating grandfather Jason Cutler (Robert Loggia). As Michael’s chilly treatment of his absentee father melts in the wake of cross-country bonding, we get to see Stallone show off his armwrestling expertise. Can he use that underdog prowess to earn back his son from the intrusive grandfather? Can he defeat all the trash-talking he-men at the World Armwrestling Championship? Can he? Can he?!

You probably know the answer so, yes, Over the Top is entirely predictable, but it still manages to be enjoyably so. The first half especially engenders the same tough-guy sympathy that Stallone had in Rocky, as he tries to break down Michael’s walls and prove he’s more than the irresponsible Neanderthal Cutler considers him, with some stunning western scenery to back their father-son journey. The latter half is more typical sports stuff, with Hawk’s future, fatherhood, and everything else depending on his strong right arm. As he trains hard and progresses through the championship with accompanying encouragement and theme music, it’s hard not to feel like you’re watching an obvious variant of Rocky and The Karate Kid, but it’s still aggressively macho fun. I just didn’t understand how winning the championship would legally get Hawk’s son back or why Cutler was intent on stopping him, when I thought Hawk had already signed over his parental rights.

Even if the details are left vague, Over the Top is decent fun backed by rousing rock songs, and it’s not nearly as bad as its reputation as a bomb would indicate. By the way, the title refers to conquering the middle arm position during an armwrestling match, though I suppose it also applies to the bravado of the championship itself. Over the Top may not stand out next to most of its ‘80s brethren, but it’s worth a watch if you’re in the mood for macho.

Best line: (Hawk) “The world meets nobody halfway. When you want something, you gotta take it.”

 

Rank: List Runner-Up

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
497 Followers and Counting

 

VC Pick: The Big Chill (1983)

Tags

Comedy, Drama, VC Pick

Death follows life follows death once again,
In a cycle we all must confront now and then.

The drama of death, though it separates souls,
Can bond those remaining, for closeness consoles.

And close are the mourning, their lives put on pause
To sing the dead’s praise and forget all his flaws.

To gather in grief, though a hard gift to give,
Reminds us that death can impel us to live.
____________________

MPAA rating: R

This review has been a long time coming, yet another of my VC’s favorites that I’ve been in no rush to revisit simply because my enthusiasm for it doesn’t come close to hers. According to her, The Big Chill ranks among her top 50 movies, and while it never approaches that kind of preference for me, I understand why she and many others consider it one of the best ensemble films ever made.

The Big Chill has two undeniable strengths that any movie would be proud to get right: a brilliant cast and a fantastic soundtrack. The story of seven former high school friends reuniting over the suicide of one of their own seems like a heavy setup, but there’s an abundance of humor and charm to accompany the mortality worries and mid-life crises. Everyone’s bound to have a favorite character, most likely the always appealing Kevin Kline or mustached Tom Berenger or even Jeff Goldblum as the kind of neurotic bloviator he plays so well. Glenn Close, JoBeth Williams, and William Hurt all have their endearing moments as well, some more low-key than others, as does Mary Kay Place, whose character sees the occasion as a chance to beat her biological clock and get pregnant by one of her old buddies. A younger Meg Tilly joins them too as the girlfriend of their dead friend Alex, played by Kevin Costner, even though any scenes with Costner recognizable were cut.

While I had trouble keeping up with everyone’s names (like the fact that there was a character named Meg but not played by Meg Tilly), the chemistry shared by everyone on screen was distinctly felt. Staying in the same house over the weekend and sharing each other’s grief only served to reawaken the natural connections they shared back in the good old days, and it’s no small feat that the actors themselves seemed to exemplify the same kind of relationships. Whether they’re goofing around in front of a video camera or engaging in surprisingly bitter arguments, they’re friends to the end, with an easy-going rapport that never feels contrived, buoyed by writer-director Lawrence Kasdan’s perceptive script and adlibbed moments from the talented cast. I especially liked a time lapse scene of the various characters waking up at different times and drifting into the kitchen throughout the early morning quiet, punctuated by a great punchline.

And then there’s the soundtrack, again ranking among the best out there. Serving as reminiscences of their glory days and sometimes oddly fitting complements to particular scenes, the likes of Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson, Three Dog Night, and The Temptations periodically liven the mood. The early funeral procession is especially memorable, accompanied by the Rolling Stones’ “You Can’t Always Get What You Want,” as is the classic kitchen scene with everyone dancing to “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg.”With all that in its favor, I can honestly say that I enjoyed most of The Big Chill, but the film’s resolutions started to lose me. By the end, the characters start pairing off in ways that try to skirt the issue of marital fidelity, and the solution to Mary Kay Place’s sperm hunt is both affectionately sweet and downright uncomfortable. It’s the kind of cinematic choice that easily engenders differing opinions on whether it’s right or wrong, but I can’t condone it personally. This conclusion and the intermittent profanity may cause The Big Chill to lose some of my esteem, but its talented ensemble of stars that were still rising at the time still make it worthwhile. Ensembles of this caliber are rare these days, and despite a few moral qualms with the plot, I see why my VC is so fond of this character-focused blend of nostalgic fun and drama.

Best line: (Michael, at Alex’s wake) “Amazing tradition. They throw a great party for you on the one day they know you can’t come.”

Rank: List Runner-Up

© 2017 S.G. Liput
490 Followers and Counting

 

 

 

Version Variations / VC Pick: A Star Is Born (1937, 1954, 1976)

Tags

Drama, Musical, Romance, VC Pick, Version Variations

 

For every star to glory born
And lifted from obscurity,
Another sinks to dark and scorn,
An endless cycle now well-worn
But no less pitifully.

Some seek, some flee the weight of fame,
For which so many mourn.
They love the players, hate the game,
Who lose the lights around their name
That more stars may be born.
_________________

MPAA rating for 1937 version: Not Rated (should be PG)
MPAA rating for 1954 version: PG
MPAA rating for 1976 version: R (mainly for language)

My VC has been urging me to review the 1976 version of A Star Is Born, one of her favorites with Barbra Streisand, and I saw it as an opportunity to compare all three movies of the same name in a long overdue Version Variation review. It’s a Hollywood story that has become well-known through repetition, earning a remake every twenty years or so. The original was in 1937 with Janet Gaynor and Fredric March; the second retooled the tale as an epic musical with Judy Garland and James Mason; and the third is my VC’s favorite, another musical with Streisand and Kris Kristofferson. Ironically, I believe I was exposed to each of them in backwards order and enjoyed the story more the further back I went. And to anyone who thinks this story is too old to be relevant over forty years after the last version, there is yet another remake in the works for next year, starring Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga. Time will tell how that compares with the others, but let’s take a look at the similarities and differences between the past versions.

What every incarnation of A Star Is Born has in common is the central story of an ambitious female newcomer who catches the eye and support of a celebrity with a reputation for being difficult, and as her star rises, his fades with heartbreaking results. While the necessity for the existence of a remake is always questioned, A Star Is Born is one case where every new version updated it for the times in completely understandable ways. The 1937 film had Hollywood as its setting, with Janet Gaynor’s Esther Blodgett dreaming of rising from a country girl to a starlet of its Golden Age. Judy Garland’s version is also about Hollywood but at the height of its musical phase; Garland’s Blodgett is already an established singer, and it’s her voice that prompts Mason’s Norman Maine to help her to shoot for something bigger through the studio system. By 1976, Streisand’s version ignores Hollywood in favor of the rock-and-roll scene of the ‘70s; the voice of her renamed Esther Hoffman catches the ear of not a movie star but rock star John Norman Howard (Kristofferson). All three films see Esther and her self-destructive benefactor share wedded bliss that is sadly short-lived, and the final scenes, while handled in different ways, are essentially the same.

Let’s start with the original 1937 film. It was the last one I saw, and knowing how unimpressed I usually am with dated movies of its era, I watched it more for the sake of comparison than for personal interest. Yet, surprisingly, I found it to be the best version of them all, which I suppose should be expected of the original work. The first A Star Is Born has no music like the other two, and thus the story is more boiled down to the basics of its plot, without the often unnecessary window-dressing of a musical number. In doing so, it also includes important details left out in the 1954 version, such as the origin of Esther’s screen name Vicki Lester.

Above all, the original’s greatest asset that the other two can’t match is its script, pointed and eloquent in just the right measure. While it received seven Oscar nominations, including the honor of being the first color film to be nominated for Best Picture, it’s no surprise that its one win was for Best Writing (plus an honorary award for its color photography). One important character that is totally absent from later versions is Esther’s Grandmother Lettie, played with witty spunk by May Robson. It’s her grandmother that gives Esther the initial encouragement to become a star, and her shrewd counsel at both the movie’s beginning and end may be my favorite bit of grandmotherly wisdom on film. All of the other performances are outstanding, with not one devolving into overacting, and Gaynor and March deserved their acting nominations, even if they didn’t win. (On a side note, I thought it interesting that Lionel Stander, who plays the studio’s unsympathetic publicity manager, sounded exactly like Harvey Fierstein’s raspy voice. I doubt there’s any relation, but it would be funny if Fierstein played the same role in the next remake.) Dated or not, the original A Star Is Born is the best, as its 100% Rotten Tomatoes score attests, and it has somewhat changed my views on prejudging a film based on its age.

As for the 1954 version with Judy Garland, Esther is presented not as an aspiring nobody but as the lead singer of a musical ensemble, whose performance at a gala is interrupted by Norman Maine’s drunken antics. (Danny McGuire, her friend from the original, becomes her bandmate in this version.) Won over by her voice, Norman invites her to stay in Hollywood for a screen test, and after some bumps in the road, she becomes a star of musical cinema. Many scenes, especially in the second half, are recreated from the first film, often word for word, such as the studio head’s visit to Maine in a sanitarium or Esther’s intervention when her husband is about to be sent to jail. What the remake adds is a surfeit of musical numbers, ranging from small personal songs to lavish song-and-dance routines. One sketch detailing Esther’s supposed rise to stardom plays out like Judy Garland’s version of Gene Kelly’s “Broadway Melody” number in Singin’ in the Rain.

All the additional music helps the remake stand apart from its predecessor, but with essentially the same story, it’s hard not to feel that the extended scenes of choreography are merely padding to warrant its somewhat tiresome three-hour runtime. Like Janet Gaynor before her, Judy Garland was nominated for Best Actress but lost to Grace Kelly that year, a snub that was widely criticized, but I can understand. As marvelous as she was as a singer, Garland never struck me as a great actress, and I found her most emotional scenes rather forced, the kind of dated acting that Gaynor actually avoided in the earlier version. Another odd discrepancy is that the original film is still intact, but portions of the 1954 film have been lost and recreated with still photographs. Even if Garland’s incarnation has some drawbacks, it’s still entertaining in the musical department, and, nailing the suave but broken sides of the character, James Mason plays probably the best Norman Maine role of all three films.

And now the moment my VC has been waiting for, Barbra Streisand and the oh so handsome Kris Kristofferson in the 1976 retelling of A Star Is Born! Since this is the greatest departure from the original film, I’ll start with what my VC loves about it, particularly the music. She’s always loved Streisand’s voice, if not her personally, and like Judy Garland before her, Streisand was the premier singer/actress of the time. (Whether Lady Gaga is for our generation has yet to be seen.) The whole soundtrack is updated to excellent classic rock standards, and unlike the previous version, Streisand’s film won an Oscar for Best Song, the theme “Evergreen,” which rather pales in comparison with the more dynamic showstoppers, like “The Woman in the Moon.” Both she and Kristofferson are also quite good in their acting roles, though not in any award-worthy way, an opinion on which my VC vehemently disagrees with me.

I do wish I could like this version as much as she does, but it has even more problems than the ’54 film. For one, the great script of the original is nowhere to be found, despite clear echoes of the earlier films’ events, like Norman interrupting Esther’s award ceremony (here the Grammys rather than the Oscars). Perhaps the most frustrating aspect for me is Kristofferson’s character of John Norman Howard. Like the previous Norman Maines, he’s a drunken, self-destructive jerk at times, whose behavior is harder to understand here. He frequently makes terrible decisions, even when not drunk; for instance, this is the only version where he cheats on Esther, and while my VC insists there’s a deep motive behind it of self-resentment on his part, I’m afraid I just don’t see it. His final act of the film is also perplexing; in the other versions, it is because Norman fears Esther will throw everything away on him, while here, he has a chance at a comeback but refuses to take it for supposedly the same reason.

All three versions of A Star Is Born have their strengths: the shrewd dialogue of the original, the sprawling musical numbers of Garland’s incarnation, the bittersweet and passionate ending of Streisand’s (the only one to actually end with a performance). While my VC’s favorite is not mine, it did give me a reason to check out the others, the first of which is now among my favorite films from the 1930s. This story of Hollywood success, love, and loss has proven its staying power, and although I’m always dubious about remakes, this is one tale that can support further retellings.

Best serious line (from the 1937 version): (Grandmother Lettie) “Tragedy is a test of courage. If you can meet it bravely, it will leave you bigger than it found you. If not, then you will have to live all your life as a coward, because no matter where you may run, you can never run away from yourself.”

Best funny line (from the 1937 version): (Esther’s aunt) “Of course, no one ever listens to me!”   (Grandmother Lettie) “They do if they’re within ten miles of ya.”

 

Rank for the 1937 version: List-Worthy
Rank for the 1954 version: List Runner-Up
Rank for the 1976 version: Honorable Mention

 

© 2017 S.G. Liput
451 Followers and Counting