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Fast Times at Ridgemont High or: The Less Desirables Movie of the Week

24 Saturday Jun 2017

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a/perture cinema, the Official Movie Sponsor of The Less Desirables, presents The Less Desirables Movie of the Week, Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982), starring Sean Penn, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Judge Reinhold and Phoebe Cates.

Fast_Times_at_Ridgemont_High_film_poster

©Universal Pictures

Per IMDb: : “A group of Southern California high school students are enjoying their most important subjects: sex, drugs and rock n’ roll.”

Brad Hamilton (Reinhold) is looking to get out of high school on top. He’s popular and a senior. But, he’s not really enjoying his time with his girlfriend and a dipstick customer costs him his job at the local All-American Burger. He gets another job at Captain Hook Fish & Chips but, after realizing it was humiliating as all get out to deliver food in that costume, he quits that. So, why not go home and relax instead? He’s on top of the world right?

Brad’s sister, Stacy (Leigh) is also popular and works at the mall in a pizza parlor. She gets dates with older guys by lying about her age. She’s pushed by her seemingly promiscuous friend Linda (Phoebe Cates) to be more bold. Stacy tries and isn’t really thrilled about it. There’s a nerdy dude named Mark Ratner (Brian Backer) who is interested in Stacy but is too shy to ask her out. His buddy, the concert-ticket-scalping-pseudo-suave-dilettante , Mike Damone (Robert Romanus) talks him into taking Stacy out to a local German restaurant. While there, Mark realizes he has forgotten his wallet and calls Damone to bring it to him. Stacy tries to seduce Mark but his shyness gets the best of him and he leaves, rendering Stacy a bit frustrated. Eventually, Damone moves in gets a little time with Stacy.

Jeff Spicoli (Penn in a role unlike anything else he ever did) is a stoner slacker who dreams of nothing but surfing the gnarly waves. He is also the prime nemesis of the dry and no-nonsense history teacher, Mr. Hand (Ray Walston). Spicoli breaks rules and is just a nuisance, but, I don’t think he means to be. I think he’s just a free spirit. This film is a culmination of their lives and more. What happens with them? You’ll have to watch to find out.

I defy any male aged 40-55 to hear the first few bars of “Moving in Stereo” by The Cars and not have fond memories. When I see The BCPF get into our bed, it reminds me of that and I hear that song. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, then you have to watch the film. The cameos in this film of folk that either were just on their way into acting or perhaps not necessarily known to the general public in 1982, were all fantastic. Names like Forest Whitaker, Eric Stoltz, Anthony Edwards, Nick Cage were all up-and-comers. Actors Taylor Negron and Vincent Schiavelli have both passed on but you’d recognize them in the film from other things. Another quick cameo is from Nancy Wilson of he band Heart. She’s the blonde in the car that flirts then laughs at Brad in his pirate costume. She’s in the film because her husband, Cameron Crowe wrote the book and the screenplay. She’s made a lot of cameos in his films over the years.

The acting in this film was typical early 80s. Good, but you could tell the folks were just getting going. It’s cheesy early 80s cinema at its best. The soundtrack is chock full of greatness, as well. Then again, it is a Cameron Crowe film. This one was directed by Amy Heckerling (European Vacation, Clueless, Look Who’s Talking, Johnny Dangerously and so on).

Rotten Tomatoes has it at 78% Fresh with an Audience Score of 80%. IMDb has it at 7.2 stars out of 10. It is only available via Netflix‘s DVD.com or renting or buying on DVD or digital on Amazon. I have it on DVD and we watched it with 3B. The swimming pool scene, he really enjoyed. I rate the film 4.25 out of 5. Have you seen it? What did you think? What would you like to read/hear me review?

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“All I need are some tasty waves, a cool buzz, and I’m fine.” – Jeff Spicoli

 

Stand By Me or: The Less Desirables Movie of the Week

27 Saturday May 2017

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a/perture cinema, the Official Movie Sponsor of The Less Desirables, presents The Less Desirables Movies of the Week, Stand By Me (1986), starring Wil Wheaton, River Phoenix, Corey Feldman and Jerry O’Connell.

Stand_By_Me_1986_American_Theatrical_Release_Poster

©Columbia Pictures

 

Per IMDb: “After the death of a friend, a writer recounts a boyhood journey to find the body of a missing boy.”

The film starts with a writer (Richard Dreyfus) sitting in his car in the middle of a field with a confused, not-able-to-believe-it look on his face. He rereads a newspaper article about an attorney who was stabbed to death while trying to break up a fight in a fast food restaurant. This leads him to start telling a story of his childhood, his best friend, who was the attorney and two of their pals, who were a bit challenged in their own way.

The story is about Gordie (Wheaton), Chris (Phoenix), Teddy (Feldman) and Vern (O’Connell) and their trek to find the dead body of a boy their age that had been hit by a train and a county-wide search was going on to locate him. Turns out that Vern overheard his brother Billy (Casey Siemesko) and his fellow hoodlum Charlie Hogan (Gary Riley) say they found the body while ditching a stolen car. Vern knew the vicinity where the body was from the description his brother told. Billy and Charlie were part of a bigger gang involving Chris’ brother Eyeball (Bradley Gregg) and Ace Merrill played by a very young Keifer Sutherland. It was a race to find the body if anyone did.

Gordie’s brother Dennis had been killed in a car accident earlier that year and his parents had pretty much written him off. Chris’ whole family were pretty less desirable, except Chris, who tried his best to do the right thing and set the peace. Teddy’s dad was a former veteran who probably suffered from PTSD (although that wasn’t mentioned) and had a bit of a drinking problem. He held Teddy’s ear to a stove and burned it half off. His dad was in a mental institution. Vern was an overweight kid who was a bit of a screwup, but he was a lovable screwup. Any more and I’d be giving away all the good parts. Watch it for yourself.

I have stated before and I’ll state it again, I love films where adults are recounting their childhood with VO (voice overs) as the narrator. The Sandlot was another of those and Now and Then was another. This happened to be narrated by one of my favorite voices, Richard Dreyfus.  He didn’t step on the story too much. He actually allowed the younger actors to take charge and tell their story and each of them were fantastic in their roles. Wil Wheaton went on to play on Star Trek: The Next Generation, Corey Feldman was a staple in many late 80s films, especially alongside Cory Haim. Jerry O’Connell grew up to be a non-fat kid that is a pretty good actor and is now married to Rebecca Romijn. The tragedy, however, is River Phoenix who passed away from a drug overdose at the age of 23 just outside of Johnny Depp’s Rainbow Room Lounge in LA. Such talent that was snuffed out by fate and bad decisions.

This happens to be my second favorite film of all time, right behind another adaptation of a Stephen King work; you’ll have to wait for that one. The pie eating scene from one of Gordie’s stories is both gross and hilarious all at the same time. Rob Reiner did a fantastic job of directing this and the screenplay adaption was spot on with little divergence of the original work. Again, watch it.

Rotten Tomatoes has it at 91% Fresh with an Audience Score of 94%. Wow. IMDb has it at 8.1 stars out of 10. It’s only available via Netflix‘s DVD.com I have it on DVD and it was one that was watched with my son, 3B. I rate this film 5 stars out of 5. One, I think it’s worth that rating and two, it holds such a nostalgic place in my heart. The soundtrack is fantastic as well and I wore out a copy of it on cassette and now own it on CD. Have you seen it? What did you think? Do you agree or disagree with me? What would you like to read/hear me review?

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was twelve. Jesus, does anyone?” – The Writer

Good Morning Vietnam or: The Less Desirables Movie of the Week

20 Saturday May 2017

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a/perture cinema, the Official Movie Sponsor for The Less Desirables, presents The Less Desirables Movie of the Week, Good Morning Vietnam (1987), starring Robin Williams, Forest Whitaker.

Good_Morning,_Vietnam

©Touchstone Pictures

Per IMDb: “In 1965, an unorthodox and irreverent DJ named Adrian Cronauer begins to shake up things when he is assigned to the U.S. Armed Services radio station in Vietnam.”

The late, great Robin Williams stars as a wacky,  on-the-fly and humorous DJ, who’s also an airman, sent from Crete to Saigon to host two shows daily on the USAF radio station on an army base. Immediately, he meets resistance as his immediate supervisor, Lt. Hauk (Bruno Kirby) has control issues and lacks any kind of real humor or musical tastes, but thinks he’s abundant in each and his supervisor’s superior is Sgt. Major Dickerson (late J.T. Walsh) who just has a stick up his rear end wants to make life heck for Adrian.

Adrian’s liaison around town is Eddie Garlic (Whitaker) who is truly a lovable but awkward fellow. Eddie shows him where the G.I. bar is, some sights around town and is even his driver on assignments. While Eddie is driving, Adrian notices a pretty Vietnamese girl and wants to talk to her. She tells him to buzz off but Adrian is persistent. He follows her to a school that teaches English and bribes the instructor to let him teach the class. That allows him to get closer to the girl (Chintara Sukapatana). Her brother, Tuan (Tung Thanh Tran) tells him to keep his distance, but becomes Adrian’s friend after a while. 

Every piece of news that comes across the news wire must be censored by a pair of twins in order to be read on the air and that rubs Adrian the wrong way. It is also a point of contention between him and his superiors. I can tell you more, but I’d be giving away all the highlights. Does he get the girl? Does he make it out of Vietnam alive? You need to see it for yourself.

Robin Williams was phenomenal in this film. Almost all of his radio broadcasts were improvised and minimally scripted. The rest of the acting in the film was great, too. The locals who got the English right enough to speak, really had it down like it was real and not a movie. The scenery was vivid and beautiful, even the destruction and blowing up of stuff in the film was perfectly shot.

I had the soundtrack on cassette. In fact, I wore out the first copy and got a second. I now have it on CD and the film on DVD. It’s currently only available through Netflix‘s DVD.com or you can rent it from Amazon Prime for $3.99. If you subscribe to Cinemax though Amazon Channels, you can watch this for free. Rotten Tomatoes has it at 89% Fresh with an Audience Score of 82%. IMDb has it at 7.3 stars out of 10. We watched this with 3B, on DVD and I will rate it 4.25 stars out of 5. Have you seen it? What did you think? What would you like to read or hear me review?

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“The Mississippi River broke through a protective dike today. What is a protective dike? Is it a large woman that says ‘Don’t go near there! But Betty- Don’t go near there! Don’t go down by the river!’… No, we can’t say ‘dyke’ on the air, we can’t even say ‘lesbian’ anymore, it’s ‘women in comfortable shoes. Thank You.'” – Adrian Cronauer

History of the World Part I or: The Less Desirables Movie of the Week

06 Saturday May 2017

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a/perture cinema, the Official Movie Sponsor of The Less Desirables, presents The Less Desirables Movie of the Week, History of the World, Part I (1981), starring Mel Brooks, Harvey Korman, Gregory Hines and Dom DeLuise. History_of_the_World_poster

Per IMDb: “Mel Brooks brings his one-of-a-kind comic touch to the history of mankind covering events from the Old Testament to the French Revolution in a series of episodic comedy vignettes.”

That IMDb description is mostly correct. It actually starts in the prehistoric times, predating even the Old Testament’s canonical timeline. It covers art, music, performance, Moses’ presentation of the Ten Commandments, the Roman Empire, the Spanish Inquisition and the French Revolution. Its comedic and decidedly Mel Brooks-take on “history” is exactly that. Comedic and decidedly Mel Brooks. Does that equate to hilarious like Blazing Saddles or Young Frankenstein? Not necessarily, although there are very funny parts. It’s not accurate, but it’s not meant to be. There are sprinklings of historical fact and comedic license throughout.

Mel Brooks, once again plays the roles of several characters: Moses, Comicus: the Stand-up Philospher, Tomas de Torquemada – the friar that was principal in the Inquisition, Louis XVI of France and Jacques “le Garçon de Pisse” or “piss boy.” He plays a part or three in most of his films but in this he was the “lead” in several of the sketches.

This was Gregory Hines’ first film role and he plays Josephus, a slave-boy entertainer who is positioned by Empress Nympho (Madeline Kahn) to be the wine servant after he was saved from death by Miriam, a Vestal Virgin played by Mary-Margaret Humes. He and Comicus get into some trouble in Emperor Nero’s (DeLuise) court.

Harvey Korman, a mainstay in Brooks’ films, plays Count de Monet (which everyone mispronounces de money – mispronouncing Korman’s characters is also a staple in Brooks’ films). De Monet is a aristocratic leach who convinces King Louis to let “Piss Boy” stand in for him as king as the revolution is starting to unfold.

Like many Mel Brooks films, this is chock-full of cameos. Bea Arthur, Shecky Greene, Sid Caesar, Dena Dietrich, Hugh Hefner and Howard Morris (Otis on The Andy Griffith Show). Also, like many of his films, there’s a good bit of fourth-wall breaking. And, really, Orson Welles as the narrator, that’s pretty good.

Not Brooks’ funniest film, at all, but he does take a funnier look at what could have been history. The previews of History of the World, Part II (which never happened, nor was it meant to) are some of the funniest parts. The take on the Busby Burkley musical, the chariot races, what I feel was a nod to Blazin’ Saddles and so on. The film tries really hard to make you laugh. I feel it tries too hard at times and the comedy is forced. But, it’s still worth watching. We introduced 3B to it as it was on my list of “films from my childhood.” He didn’t like it as much as Blazin’ Saddles, but he laughed a few times.

Rotten Tomatoes has it at 62% Fresh with and Audience score of 81%. IMDb has it rated at 6.8 stars out of 10. I own this in a Mel Brooks DVD collection and that’s where I saw it and you can, too, through Netflix‘s DVD.com. I will rate this film, mostly on nostalgic memories, 3.75 stars out of 5. Have you seen the film? What did you think? What would you like to read/hear me review? Let me know.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“I’m sorry, I’m on my wine break.” – Dole Office Clerk

Thunderball or: The Less Desirables Movie of the Week

25 Saturday Feb 2017

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Salutations™!!

a/perture cinema, the Official Movie Sponsor of The Less Desirables, presents The Less Desirables Movie of the Week, Thunderball (1965), starring: Sean Connery, Claudine Auger and Adolpho Celi.thunderball-movie-poster-1965-1010189595

Per IMDb: “James Bond heads to The Bahamas to recover two nuclear warheads stolen by SPECTRE agent Emilio Largo in an international extortion scheme.”

Emilio Largo (Celi), #2 in the nefarious organization called SPECTRE (SPecial Executive for Counter-intelligence, Terrorism, Revenge and Extortion), creates an elaborate plan to have a flight-trained double agent have plastic surgery to imitate a French pilot named François Derval (whom they kill), who hijacks a test flight, killing the rest of the crew and delivering two atomic bombs. SPECTRE then uses the bombs as ransom for $100M (and yes, I typed it like Dr. Evil and you know you just said it like him, pinky to the corner of your mouth and everything) from the world governments or else the organization will destroy a major US city.

Secret Agent, James Bond (Connery) just so happens to be at the same health spa as the plotters of this elaborate scheme and gets in a tangle with one of them; a little back and forth between between snarky superspy and lackey villain. He stumbles through the plot and when all the “00” agents are brought in for a meeting, Bond recognizes someone from the spa. He asks to be redirected to the Bahamas to investigate. He goes and meets Domino (Auger), the sister of the pilot who was killed, Derval. Domino’s guardian, whom she calls her “uncle,” is none other than Largo.

Bond tries to keep Domino in the dark about what he knows, but at the same time becoming involved with her and investigating Largo at the same time. Largo even invites Bond to his house to entertain him and show him around, for lunch. Bond of course accepts the invitation and visits, but, not before he is caught trying to investigate the Disco Valante which is the large yacht owned by Largo. What did he find? What did he uncover? Did he get the girl? Of course, you’ll have to watch the film to see.

This is the fourth of the James Bond series. I have the entire series at least up until Skyfall on the 50th anniversary Blu-Ray Disc set that came out in 2012. I have had the pleasure of introducing my boy, 3B, to the world of James Bond. We watched the entire “Austin Powers” series and he liked that, so I wanted to show him where the inspiration came from. Frau Verbissener is a direct parody of Klebb from From Russia with Love and #2 from “Powers” (eye patch and all) is a direct parody of Largo. Of course, Dr. Evil is Ernst Stavro Blofeld.

In this film we are starting to get a real glimpse of the gadgetry that the Bond series became known for. There were hints in the first film, we are introduced to Q in the second and third, but this is where they ramped it up. A jetpack, Geiger counter watch and the now-famous Aston Martin DB5 which first arrived in Goldfinger, equipped with gadgets of its own, are just the beginning. The plots were very “Cold War” back then. And, the cinematography, as cheesy as it is now, was quite apt at the time. Green screen work, or just forefront work, in general was very noticeable. 3B is used to really good special effects, which these effects were great, they’re just dated.  Those kinds of effects were in their infancy at that time and while it was continuously growing, it wasn’t until the mid 80s that it really took off. It all looked over-the-top fake, to me.

I think with the exception of Klebb in Russia there’s a rule that Bond has to have a pretty woman (good or bad) and the whole film is full of them. As is always the case when they’re using Italian and other foreign actors the have to use voice artists for the screen actors to lose a good bit of their native accents. This had a lot of out-of-sync spots of that. But, overall it was one of the best of the early Bond films, to be sure. I like it a good bit, I’m just a Bond fan. The scenery, the lavish sets, the locations. The sharks (minus the frickin’ laser beams). It’s all part of the Bond charm. And, the fact that I get to introduce to, watch with and experience with The Boy, then that’s just bonus. Oh, and let’s not forget the awesome theme song sung by the great Tom Jones. Listen closely to the end of the title song and you’ll hear Mr. Jones warble and fade out. In reality, he passed out in the studio from holding that note so long at that pitch. He did it right on the take, but passed out. They left that in there. I think that’s cool trivia.

Rotten Tomatoes rates it at 86% Fresh with an Audience Score of 73%. IMDb has it at 7 out of 10 stars. You can only watch it on disc right now, so you can order it from DVD.com, Netflix‘s disc service, if you’d like to see it. Again, I have the whole collection on Blu-Ray so that’s how I saw it. I rate it 4.25 stars out of 5. Have you seen it? What would you like to read/hear me review?

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Do you mind if my friend sits this one out? She’s just dead.” – Bond

Porgy & Bess or: The Less Desirables Movie of the Week

12 Saturday Nov 2016

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Salutations™!!

a/perture cinema, the Official Movie Sponsor of The Less Desirables, presents The Less Desirables Movie of the Week, Porgy & Bess (1959), starring Sidney Poitier, Dorothy Dandridge and Sammy Davis, Jr.

Per Rotten Tomatoes: “This film version of George Gershwin’s classic American operetta tells the story of Porgy, a crippled young man who falls in love with the beautiful, free-spirited and heroin-addicted Bess who is not only loved by her drug dealer, but also by Crown, a ruthless longshoreman.”

porgy_and_bess_1959_poster

©Samuel Goldwyn/Columbia Pictures

I hadn’t seen the film version of this, only the touring Broadway version. I didn’t care for that version and I don’t care for this one. Now, let me clarify. The actual story and the libretto are fine. I’d even say very good. I’m a fan of George and Ira Gerswin. I love musicals. But, I really do not like this as a musical. If it weren’t a musical, perhaps I’d have been all about it. As I said, the subject, the story, the acting, the idea, all good (albeit controversial). The musical aspect itself, primarily the singing, is just atrocious to me. Particularly the lead character’s portrayal.

As I said, I saw the live theatrical version of this and I didn’t like the overly-vibratoed soprano and I didn’t like it here. It’s not Dandridge doing the singing, it’s someone named Adele Addison. It’s just over the top and sounds like noise at times. Now, that may be an artform because my knowledge of music allows me to understand she actually can sing, but this just sounds like wailing. Other characters’ singing parts are just as bad.

The acting parts, not the singing, are on point. I mean, Sidney Poitier? Sammy Davis Jr.? Pearl Bailey? Diahann Carroll? Even Scatman Crothers, Claude Akins and Brock Peters (who played Tom Robinson in To Kill a Mockingbird)? All fantastic actors and all did a great job of acting in this film.

With the exception of Sammy Davis, Jr. I can’t find any evidence that any of the lead actors actually wanted to be in the film and did so basically because they were asked by the right people or convinced that not doing it would cause reputable harm to their chances in other films. That, goes to show, though that they’re good actors. None of them wanted to be there but their performances were top notch.

I’ve not gone into my normal explanation of the plot here as I feel I can’t do it without going down a rabbit hole and following the plot to the end. The description from Rotten Tomatoes above describes the plot well enough. Speaking of Rotten Tomatoes, they have it rated 83% Fresh and an Audience Score of 79%. IMDb has it at 7.4 stars out of 10.

I watched it, even knowing I probably wasn’t going to like it, because it was one of the 400 nominees for the AFI‘s 100 Years… 100 Movies list for the 2007 version of the list. As of this writing, I have ONE more film to go to finish the entire 400 nominations list. I will have finished it by the time you read this and I talk about it on TLD.

The film was nominated for four Academy Awards: Best Cinematography, Color; Best Costume Design, Color; Best Sound; Best Music, Scoring of a Musical Picture. It won the latter. The soundtrack won a Grammy for Best Soundtrack Album, Original Cast – Motion Picture or Television. I can’t find anywhere that has this film available for streaming. Not Netflix, DVD.com, Hulu or Amazon Prime. You can purchase it from Amazon, which I did, around 8 years ago, but be warned it’s a DVD copy of a very bad VHS or other type of tape because there are lines and there’s tape drag. If I were going on acting alone this film would be rated around 3.5 stars, but because I didn’t care for the musical aspect, I’m rating it 2.5 stars out of 5.  Have you seen it? Do you agree or disagree? What would you like to hear/read me review?

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Summertime and the livin’ is easy.” – “Summertime” (Gershwin, Heyward, Gershwin)

Three Kings or: The Less Desirables Movie of the Week

22 Saturday Oct 2016

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a/perture cinema, the Official Movie Sponsor of The Less Desirables, presents The Less Desirables Movie of the Week, Three Kings (1999) starring George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, Spike Jonze and Ice Cube.

Per IMDb: “In the aftermath of the Persian Gulf War, 4 soldiers set out to steal gold that was stolen from Kuwait, but they discover people who desperately need their help.”

When SFC Barlow (Wahlberg) and PFC Vig (Jonze) find a map in an Iraqi soldier’s buttocks, they, along with Chief Elgin (Ice Cube) and Major Gates (Clooney) embark on an unsanctioned, illegal and dangerous mission to steal from Saddam Hussein’s stash of gold, that he stole from Kuwait. After a bit of work, they find the gold but also find more than they bargained for in a group of Iraqi rebels that are being pushed around, tortured and

Three_Kings_(film)_poster_art.jpg

©Warner Bros.

killed by Saddam’s army. An errant exchange of gunfire leads to a mini war between the Americans and the factions of Saddam’s army. There’s a hunt, chase, destruction and apprehension. One of the main four is captured and the others, after paying the Iraqi rebels to help locate him, must attempt to rescue him. Do they find him? Do they die trying? You’ll have to watch to find out.

The first thing that stands out to me is, yes, it was 1999, but I believe that the US Army has a better tracking system than to just lose four soldiers, weapons and a humvee. Yes, it was supposed to be early, they grab what they are after and then back to camp. How were they going to get the gold out of the country? What would they have done with the gold? Who would buy it? There was a lot of weird ‘what ifs’ going on in this film. Now, all that being said and if I can put my suspension of disbelief to work, it was actually a good film.

It wasn’t what I expected. I thought it was just a war film. That’s okay but I don’t care anything about any wars that formulate, start and happen in my lifetime. The latest war I want to watch a film about is Vietnam, and even then, war films aren’t my thing. This, however, is more of a black comedy than a war film. Let’s call it a action-packed black dramedy. Yes, let’s. The acting was good. I know that George Clooney gets a bad rap sometimes, as does Mark Walhberg, but these guys can act, it’s just usually in some crap roles. Ice Cube is actually a good dramatic actor, too. His comedies are usually good if they’re not pointed at families; Friday anyone? Otherwise you’re stuck with Barbershop and Are We There Yet? This was my first experience with Spike Jonze that I know of. He’s not bad. A tad hick-ish, but not bad.

This was one of the 400 nominees for AFI‘s 100 Years… 100 Movies, the 2007 edition. As of this writing, I now have two more to go to complete the list of 400. It may be finished by the time this airs on the podcast. Rotten Tomatoes has it rated at 94% Fresh with an Audience Score of 77%, which is actually a large gap. IMDb has it at 7.1 stars out of 10. It’s not available on Hulu, Netflix or even DVD.com but it is available for rent on Amazon Prime, which is where I watched it. It used to be on Netflix streaming but it was removed some time ago. As I said, I thought it was a pretty good film and I’ll rate it 4 out of 5 stars. Have you seen it? Do you agree with me? What would you like to see/hear me review?

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Kaboom! Y’all see that cow’s head shoot up? It’s like a cartoon! It’s f*ckin’ crazy!” – Conrad Vig

 

Little Caesar or: The Less Desirables Movie of the Week

24 Saturday Sep 2016

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Salutations™!!

a/perture cinema, the Official Movie Sponsor of The Less Desirables, presents The Less Desirables Movie of the Week, Little Caesar (1931), starring Edward G. Robinson, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. and Glenda Farrell.

Per Wikipedia: “The story of a hoodlum who ascends the ranks of organized crime until he reaches its upper echelons.”

Caesar Enrico Bandello (Robinson) and his buddy Joe Massara (Fairbanks) are two small town hoods that want more out of life than this. Joe wants to be a dancer; to get the girls and fame so he gets a job at a local nightclub. Rico wants to be a famous gangster. Rico goes to mob boss, Sam Vettori to further his goal. Joe works with the gang, basically against his will. Joe gets pegged to help rob the nightclub he works for and that creates tension between the pals and between Joe and his gal Olga Stassoff (Farrell).

LittleCaesarP

©Warner Bros. Pictures

The gig goes down and Rico guns down a prominent crime commissioner. He then takes over Vettori’s gang after Vettori becomes soft. He gains prominence among other parts of the mob scene as well. How high does he rise? Is there a crash in the end? Does his ego do him in? You’ll have to watch to find that out.

This is considered one of the first ever gangster films and stars one of the genre’s most prized stars, Edward G. Robinson. The film set the groundwork for gangster films. And, it’s where Robinson’s famous and patented “yeah… look here, see? you’re through, see?” whiny, tinny voice comes through, probably most famously. I thought the film was decent, and I totally get it’s place and reverence in the film world, but I don’t think it was “all that.” There were iconic moments, I suppose. It just wasn’t captivating to me. I’m sure that would have been different in 1931, when the film came out. But in 2016, 85 years later, I guess we’ve become desensitized to all the hubbub? These films, as I’ve seen, have plenty of “overacting” and much suspension of disbelief moments. And, I looked everywhere and saw no pizza pizza in the film anywhere… I kid.

Rotten Tomatoes has it rated at 91% Fresh with an Audience Score of 76%. A fairly large gap, really. IMDb has it at 7.3 stars out of 10. It was one of the 400 nominees of both the 1998 and 2007 versions of AFI‘s 100 Years… 100 Movies lists. That’s why I watched it. You can rent it from Amazon Prime for about $3 but it’s not available on Netflix streaming, or even DVD.com at this time. I give it 3.5 stars out of 5 because of its standing and importance. Have you seen it? Do you agree with my assessment? What would you like to read/hear me review? I have a viewing/reviewing schedule through January but that doesn’t mean I can’t move stuff around.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“We gotta stick together. There’s a rope around my neck now and they only hang you once. If anyone gets yellow and squeals, my gun is gonna speak its peace. ” – Caesar Enrico Bandello

 

Blazing Saddles or: The Less Desirables Movie of the Week

03 Saturday Sep 2016

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Salutations™!!

a/perture cinema, the Official Movie Sponsor of The Less Desirables, presents The Less Desirables Movie of the Week, Blazing Saddles (1974), starring Clevon Little, Gene Wilder, Harvey Korman.

Per IMDb: “To ruin a western town, a corrupt political boss appoints a black sheriff, who promptly becomes his most formidable adversary.”

I rearranged my viewing schedule to get this one in since it is one of my three favorite Gene Wilder films and I had just been saying I wanted to watch it again. Rest well, Waco Kid, rest well.

Quicksand threatens the construction path of the new railroad in the wild west. Oppressive rail bosses toward the black workers gets worse as time goes on. One, Bart (Little), goes so far as to whack the foreman, Taggart (Slim Pickens), in the head with a shovel. He talks the corrupt State Attorney

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©Warner Bros. Pictures

General, Hedley Lamarr (Korman) into hanging Bart, but a scheduling conflict keeps that from happening until a few days later. Because the railroad will have to reroute to avoid the quicksand, they have to convince the citizens of the small town of Rock Ridge to leave, as to gain that land for the rerouting.

Lamarr sends Taggart and other thugs into town to shoot the Sheriff and scare the townspeople away. That doesn’t work, as the townsfolk petition Governor William J. Le Petomane (Mel Brooks) send a new sheriff. Lamarr talks the governor into appointing Bart, thinking that a black sheriff will send the town into a tizzy and open the door for him to take over. He was right about one thing, the townspeople didn’t like that Bart was black.

With the assistance of washed-up and recovering alcoholic gunslinger Jim, the Waco Kid (Wilder), Bart works his arse off to overcome the townspeople’s hostile reception, most of which are named Johnson. Taggart and compay send Mongo (Alex Karras), a brutish, dim, but philosophical henchman, to kill Bart but he outsmarts the big oaf. Bart then out seduces German seductress-for-hire Lili von Shtupp (Madeline Kahn). At wits end, Lamarr schemes a larger plan involving a recruited army of ruffians, including run-of-the-mill criminals, the Klan, and Nazi soldiers, which I’m mostly sure the latter two didn’t really exist at the time. Did Lamarr get the town to move? Did Bart and Jim outsmart the gangs? You’ll have to watch to find out.

In what could, at first glance, be one of the most blatantly racist films ever made, Mel Brooks, who is Jewish, holds back nothing to make fun of everyone: black folks, Jewish folks and especially white folks. You realize that’s what’s actually happening later in the film. In the beginning, the first time I saw it, anyway, I just couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Once you understand they’re making fun, it’s a lot easier to enjoy.

I’m starting to wonder if we’re not seeing some of this seemingly outlandish behavior from people today reappear with the advent of social media and the erasing of boundaries and couth? It’s one thing to feel a certain way and it’s also another certain way to have the First Amendment to express that certain way, but there seems to be an unleashing of bigotry and hate where every day idiots who used to be hidden in their own circle of friends are coming out of the woodwork with no repercussions in sight. Spout your hate, you’ve that right, but know that you’ll be made fun of. At least that part is fun. Okay, soapbox back under the proverbial bed. but, the film, I think gives great social commentary.

It’s one visual, fart and corny joke after another and it shows Brooks’ genius and how good  actors Little, Wilder and Korman, as well as the all-star supporting cast, really was. You may ask why I picked this one over Young Frankenstein or Willy Wonka, especially since Gene Wilder was more a supporting actor and not the lead role? Well, there’s only one answer: I wanted to watch this one. That’s not to say that the other two I mentioned won’t make it in the next few weeks. Doesn’t mean they will, just where the notion hits me. It’s not available for streaming on Netflix but is available via DVD.com. Also, it is available for rent on Amazon Prime.

Rotten Tomatoes has it at 90% Fresh with an Audience Score of 91%. IMDb rates it 7.8 stars out of 10. It was nominated for both the 1998 and 2007 versions of the AFI‘s 100 Years… 100 Movies lists. It was nominated for three Academy Awards: Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Madeline Kahn, Best Film Editing, and Best Music, Original Song; winning none. The film has a special place in my heart because it was the very first DVD I ever owned. I bought the DVD player and that film at the same time. I was amazed by the fact you could watch the film and hear the commentary. That was revolutionary stuff. I highly recommend this film and rate it 5 stars out of 5. Have you seen it? Do you agree? What would you like to see or hear me rate in the future?

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“Excuse me while I whip this out. “ – Bart

A Clockwork Orange or: The Less Desirables Movie of the Week

27 Saturday Aug 2016

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Salutations™!!

a/perture cinema, the Official Movie Sponsor of The Less Desirables, presents The Less Desirables Movie of the Week, A Clockwork Orange (1971), starring Malcolm McDowell, Patrick Magee and Michael Bates.

Per IMDb: “In future Britain, charismatic delinquent Alex DeLarge is jailed and volunteers for an experimental aversion therapy developed by the government in an effort to solve society’s crime problem – but not all goes according to plan.”

The fancy-speaking, bowler-wearing and Beethoven-loving Alex DeLarge (McDowell) leads a small gang of miscreants into debauchery, chaos and destruction. From bums to rich elitists, even to rival gangs, Alex and his droogs make no exceptions when it comes to beating or raping or pillaging. Alex is a ruthless leader and really is no friend of the gang he commands. He skips school, womanizes and has a power trip. When his “friends” try to perform a coup, he sets them straight. They get revenge, however, by setting him up to be captured, in the act of a crime, by the police.

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©Warner Bros.

The government has developed a new therapy to rehabilitate young Alex including torture and brainwashing. Of course, religion plays a part of this. They even manage to use his beloved “Ludwig van” against him. They showed him videos of violence and rape while clamping his eyes while a lab assistant constantly put drops in them. Serums, shots, Beethoven, films and torment. Does this aversion therapy work? Of course, you’ll have to watch to find out.

Stanley Kubrick was a master of his art. This art may be somewhat abstract and difficult to follow at times, and A Clockwork Orange is certainly that, at least upon first viewing. Luckily, this was about the fourth time I’ve seen it and it made more sense. I think the previous viewings were hard for me to understand because I focused on the abstract and not the actual story. The ambience of the film isn’t so much random as it is bizarre. The visuals are vivid and brilliant but doesn’t make much sense without the story line. I know that can be said of most films but Kubrick, and I suppose author of the book, Anthony Burgess, took this to extremes and one can get lost in it. It’s almost cartoonish and comedic in some very serious parts. It also was anti-establishment and dystopian in nature.

I love the language in the film called “Nadsat,” which according to Wikipedia is “a fractured adolescent slang composed of Slavic (especially Russian), English, and Cockney rhyming slang.” Some of the language is very hard to follow but in the fourth watch, it makes more sense; well somewhat more. I first saw the film (not counted in the watch count) back in the early 80s on HBO and I really had no clue what was going on but there was nudity and that included full-frontal so I didn’t have to know what was going on. I’m still like that with some films. I didn’t know what they were saying and as a 12-13 year old, I didn’t care. There was nudity and that was what mattered.

A cue for Star Wars fans, Julian, the body building assistant of the writer later in the film is David Prowse who was the body actor that played Darth Vader. He is a huge figure and actually carries Patrick Magee in a wheelchair like it’s nothing. This was the role that George Lucas saw that made him want Prowse for the part of Vader.

It was nominated for four Academy Awards: Best Director (Kubrick), Film Editing, Picture, Adapted Screenplay. Unfortunately, it won none of them. This film isn’t available on Netflix streaming right now, it’s on DVD.com. But, if you’re an Amazon Prime customer, it’s available for free, streaming there, which is how I watched it. Rotten Tomatoes has the film as 90% Fresh with an Audience Score of 93%. IMDb has it 8.4 stars out of 10. It was #46 on the 1998 version of AFI‘s 100 Years… 100 Movies list and #70 on the 2007 version. I don’t know exactly where it would rank but I’d say A Clockwork Orange is in my Top 20 of all time. I rate the film 4.75 stars. Have you seen it? Do you agree? What would you like to see or hear me review?

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“There was me, that is Alex, and my three droogs, that is Pete, Georgie, and Dim, and we sat in the Korova Milkbar trying to make up our rassoodocks what to do with the evening. The Korova milkbar sold milk-plus, milk plus vellocet or synthemesc or drencrom, which is what we were drinking. This would sharpen you up and make you ready for a bit of the old ultra-violence.” – Alex DeLarge