My Week In Film - Week 4

Well I made it through "hell week" and thanks to post dating a few posts, you got some original content on the blog this week, something you wouldn't have gotten otherwise. It was quite the uneventful week in my movie life, so today's column shouldn't take up too much of your time. I worked a total of forty five hours this week at my job, which won't seem like much to some, but was a whole lot to me. Therefore, only four movies got viewed this past week. Shall we...

MY WEEK IN FILM: NOVEMBER 21 - NOVEMBER 27

PICK OF THE WEEK

PAULINE AT THE BEACH (1983 - Eric Rohmer)  8/10

I'm really coming to love Eric Rohmer. His films are ones that I want to ration out throughout the rest of my life, so that I always have a fresh one ready to see for the first time. There's something about the atmosphere that he creates and the characters that he exposes us to that really appeals to me and it's almost unexplainable.

In Pauline at the Beach, Rohmer's 1983 offering, Marion and her younger cousin Pauline, head to the beach for holiday. Once there, Marion runs into her old friend Pierre, who in turn, introduces the two girls to his acquaintance Henri. Marion and Henri share a lust for one another, which makes Pierre jealous, as he's always had a crush on Marion. Meanwhile, Pauline transforms from a child into an adult before our very eyes, as she observes the grown-ups, their actions, their motivations and their sexual tendencies and develops some of her own. The whole thing turns into a love hexangle (or maybe even heptangle) with many of the characters having an interest in more than one of their fellow vacationers.

This breezed by! I watched the majority of this before going to work on Thursday, save for twenty minutes which I just didn't have time for. It was one of those movies that I was really disappointed that I couldn't finish and when I got home that night the first thing I did, once I got settled in, was to finish it and it was a movie that was very easy to settle back into. Rohmer is quickly becoming a favorite of mine, right up there with the likes of Woody Allen and Hitchcock.

THE REST

REGARDING HENRY (1991 - Mike Nichols)  6/10

Just squeaked this one into '6' territory, as I didn't mind watching this one that much. But seriously, some bits of that score were just cringe worthy - like the most generic, basic score you've ever heard in your life. Plus, I don't really know why, I just do NOT like Harrison Ford. The man gets on my nerves something terrible. That being said, as I was watching this, I was, for some reason, reminded of the movie Frantic (Roman Polanski) and now I really want to see that again. On the other hand, Annette Bening was great here and looked fabulous. Fans of Lost may want to give this a go, as it was penned by series co-creator J.J. Abrams. It's nothing like Lost, but still...

And before I wrap it up about this one, is it really possible for someone to get shot in the ARM and suffer amnesia?! Isn't it sort of a ridiculous concept that you're asking me to believe here? I mean, if the medical stuff really does hold up and makes sense, then fine, I stand corrected - but why not just say that the gunshot wound to the head is what caused his memory loss? Wouldn't that have been an easier pill to force feed your audience? Also, why would you send a man whose basically a forty year old child back to work at a big time law firm and more importantly, why would they want him onboard. And while I'm picking at plot holes, how could a forty something year old man, who can't remember what side of the bed he sleeps on or what a fork is used for, manage to do the paperwork and crack the case on how he cheated to win the case right before his accident? Ugh. Did I really give this movie a '6'?

BARELY

DEAD RINGERS (1988 - David Cronenberg)  3.5/10

See review, here

NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1990 - Tom Savini)  7/10

When I was a lot younger, my brother had this movie on videotape and would rave about it. I'm sure there came a day when he showed it to me, as I remember seeing this one long before I saw anything from George Romero. The film was directed by Tom Savini (who you may remember as "Sex Machine" in From Dusk 'Till Dawn), a Pennsylvania native and actually a native of my neck of the woods. The film itself was actually filmed VERY near where I live, with the farmhouse that the group holes up in being located in Washington, PA, a town we often frequented when I was young when any shopping was to be done. I'm also pretty sure I spotted "Chilly" Billy Cardille there at the end of the movie, another area of Pittsburgh native and a guy who worked for the Channel 11 news for many years, before retirement. I remember him being a pretty integral part of the local drive to raise money for the Jerry Lewis Muscular Dystrophy Telethon - the ones who would cut in, in between Lewis' part, to announce what they were doing in your area. The nickname "Chilly" was due to the fact that he hosted "Chiller Theater" - a late Saturday night broadcast that played horror and sci-fi films. Enough of the "Chilly Billy" history lesson though...

The film is your typical, survivor story, so if you're into those - which with the popularity of The Walking Dead, who isn't - then there's no reason not to like this. I will say too that the lead actress Patricia Tallman does a particularly good job of showing genuine fear and all of her reactions are very believable. A quick check of her IMDB page shows she's still active, showing up on TV series' from time to time, most recently Criminal Minds.

AT HOME FROM NETFLIX
Madigan (1968 - Don Siegel)
Sunshine (2007 - Danny Boyle)
Millions (2004 - Danny Boyle)
Slumdog Millionaire (2008 - Danny Boyle)

POLL OF THE WEEK

Last week, I asked you guys what the BEST BOXING MOVIE OF THE 21st CENTURY was, and your answer was...

Million Dollar Baby

...but only by one vote. Other vote getters were The Fighter (3), Cinderella Man (1) and Ali (1). This week, based on the watching of many John Hughes films recently, I ask you what is the best Hughes' film, that he DID NOT DIRECT. Have fun!



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Hello Andrew’s followers!

I have been struggling to come up with ideas for this post. James Marsters kept popping into my head. But what else is new? I finally settled on writing about a non List movie that I liked, since I never get to do that. The thought nearly broke my brain. I will not do well after I finish the Book and have no direction. I will be like the guy in The Shawshank Redemption who hangs himself because he can’t adjust to life on the outside. Metaphorically speaking.

Let’s start with a comedy. Spy was a damn good movie. Despite the fact that this film has received quite positive reviews, I still feel a little ashamed saying that, hence the inappropriate swearing. Perhaps I am still embarrassed for Melissa McCarthy for some of her recent, more horrendous roles. But if, as a nation, we can all forget about Tammy, we can really start to appreciate this talented actress.

McCarthy stars as Susan Cooper, a talented CIA agent who lacks the confidence to attempt fieldwork but is spurned into action after the death of a colleague. The film constantly pokes fun at the gender stereotypes and double standards inherent in the spy genre, and frankly, society. It is quite hilarious, especially if you are familiar with the traditional Bond-esque motifs.

So I suppose this does not count as a true guilty pleasure movie, because it is so smartly written. Maybe next week I’ll come up with some hidden pleasure of mine that will really horrify you film buffs. Something with Jennifer Aniston perhaps?

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Thank you Amanda, that was great!

Check Amanda out at the following places:

1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die
1001 Albums You Must Listen to Before You Die
1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die

FILMDEBATE

So I've started writing for the film site FilmDebate. It's something I wanted to do to kind of drive in a little more traffic and maybe play with writing some other types of film pieces. The thing is, is that FilmDebate doesn't post reviews of anything not currently playing in theaters. Therefore, I'll be forced to write special interest articles. My first one actually posted this week and is something I hope to turn into a monthly feature. I call it NETFLIX MONTHLY and....well, just click the link below and check it out for yourself. I'd like to think that it's well written, as it's something I took my time with.

GUY 'N' GAL OF THE WEEK

Arielle Dombasle (who starred alongside Amanda Langlet in Pauline at the Beach) was born in 1958 and was just as famous as a singer, as she was as an actress. Pauline at the Beach could just as easily have been called Marion at the Beach, as she nearly stole the show from the film's intended star.

Tony Todd starred in this week's film Night of the Living Dead and played the cool head to Patricia Tallman's screaming nut case. A quick check to IMDB shows that Todd has nearly 200 film & television credits on his resume, with a handful in various stages of development. Glad to see this great actor staying active!

BLOG POST OF THE WEEK

"Where I tell you to GET THE HELL OUT and spread some love to some other, worthy blogs!"

Seriously, check out Amanda's movie blog this week, as she's just updated it a few days ago with another informative, entertaining batch of reviews. She's been doing such hard work here, that it's a testament to her that she manages to organize three of her own blogs. Her most recent batch of movie reviews includes Dawn of the Dead, The Deer Hunter, Grease and Days of Heaven - all succinct, funny reviews that deserve your eyes and your comments. 

Click here to be, once again, redirected to Amanda's 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die page.

Throughout the rest of the blog world, you may want to turn your eyes to A FILM A DAY, where author Sonia is taking on a personal goal to watch one movie for every day of the year. This morning, she caught my eye when she posted a review of Take the Money and Run, probably my favorite Woody Allen movie, pre-Interiors. After spending a few minutes perusing her blog, I'm loving the versatility. In the past week, she's reviewed the following films; Take the Money and Run, Jason Goes to Hell, Unexpected (2015), Rebel Without a Cause, Animal Kingdom, Annie (1982) and Madagascar 3. Tell me that's not a wild bunch of flicks. Click the banner below for more from Sonia and A FILM A DAY

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Expect a full fledged review of Slumdog Millionaire this week and maybe something else, as the goal is to TRY to post two full review per week. I'll see what I can come up with....

Thanks for reading!

November 28, 2015  9:30am