#98: Days of Wine and Roses (Edwards, 1962)

So, Jack Lemmon makes his first appearance and definitely not his last on my list. What is it about this guy that I find so appealing? For starters, he’s one hell of an actor with incredible dramatic range and comedic talent with a knack for effortlessly switching gears between the two without missing a beat. Lemmon has the nice guy persona down-pat and took on many roles during his career where he personified the “every man” which makes him instantly relatable. In Blake Edward’s Day of Wine and Roses, Lemmon plays Joe Clay, a successful public relations man whose downward spiral is caused by alcoholism. Many comparisons have been made to Wilder’s Lost Weekend which deals with similar subject matter except this one is a much more realistic portrayal of alcohol addiction and doesn’t succumb to painting a perfect picture of full recovery at the end. Instead, it opts to show the horrors of alcohol abuse and the challenging ordeal of maintaining sobriety with all the pratfalls in between.

Clay’s profession involves being an avid socialite with clients so naturally, drinking is part of the equation when he takes them out to restaurants or fancy clubs. He starts a relationship with a beautiful secretary in his office building played by the voluptuous Lee Remick whose radical transformation from a puritan to a raging alcoholic is devastatingly portrayed. My only gripe with the film is her sudden change of heart towards Lemmon who strongly resents him when they first meet and then erratically has a change of heart almost instantaneously. It would have been a lot more convincing if she actually had a reason to give him another chance after he insults her. Still, I am able to overlook this minor formality in regards to everything that the film does get right which is plenty – two tour-de force performances from Lemmon and Remick who were robbed of acting Oscars that year, solid direction and a wonderful script with nary a falsity that is unflinching in presenting the harsh reality of how alcoholism can destroy lives. The films closing moments are heartbreaking and ambiguous in nature which works to emphasize Edward’s position that beating alcoholism takes more than commitment where difficult decisions need to be made no matter how unpleasant the results.

#99: Me and You and Everyone We Know

I'm feeling a bit lazy so here's the link to a previous review I wrote on this film.

#100: Robin Hood (Rietherman)

As a kid growing up, Robin Hood was hero of mine because he defied authority and played by his own rules. An expert at sword fighting, archery and quick thinking made him a threat to his enemies. Above all else, he always managed to win the girl in the end. It should be pointed out that he wasn’t without his flaws such as being incredibly brash in his abilities and conceited at times which almost leads to tragic consequences. His bravery and devotion to being a crusader for the people was something to aspire to.

The compilation of any type of “favorite movie list” especially one of this magnitude is a daunting task that involves constant shuffling and re-examination in order to get it just right. The relentless scrutiny over placement can be very stressful albeit rewarding because for those of us who take cinema seriously, these lists are often a direct reflection what cinema personally means to the individual and the impact said film(s) has on them. A strategy that I used to help make this list a little easier for myself to complete was to use nostalgia as a key to narrowing down films that have a direct correlation to my childhood. After all, certain films that I watched constantly as a youngster were highly influential in shaping my interest in cinema today and Disney’s Robin Hood happens to fall into that category. While there have been plenty of depictions of the famous rogue of Sherwood Forest over the years, none surpass this version in terms of sheer entertainment value, laughs or charm although Michael Curtiz’s version starring Errol Flynn comes close. It may be animated with animals playing the key roles but the rebellious spirit and sense of adventure inhabited by this classic tale remains untarnished.

This underrated Disney classic is a breezily entertaining affair for both kids and adults. Imbedded with a bluesy style emphasized by the narrator played by a rooster (that even becomes a character in the story) who sings and strums away on his banjo as he tells the story of Robin Hood sets the tone of the film. Roger Miller does great voice-work for him and is responsible for the majority of the fantastic songs on the soundtrack too with “Not In Nottingham” remaining the standout track and one of most moving scenes in the Disney canon because of it. Of course, not enough can be said of the iconic villain Prince John (Peter Ustinov) the lion and his slithering side-kick Sir Hiss (Terry-Thomas). This dynamic duo offer more laughs than any of the other Disney flicks and their relationship is actually a lot more interesting to watch unfold than say Robin Hood and Little John. The Prince’s infantile behavior (he clearly has mommy issues) and absent-mindedness offers plenty of laughs. He is also prone to sudden bursts of rage towards Sir Hiss which is cruelly comical. Nostalgia aside, this film still holds up surprisingly well even today which is often not the case when returning to childhood favorites. No matter what my mood, I can throw on my worn out VHS copy and for those brief 83 minutes, feel giddy like a kid again as if watching this film for the first time.

February Viewing Log

Feb. 1st: Husbands and Wives (Allen, 1992): [****] 3rd
Feb. 1st: Coffy (Hill, 1973): [*]
Feb. 1st: Funky Forest: The First Contact (Ishii, 2005): ??????????????????????
Feb. 2nd: Darjeeling Limited (Anderson, 2007): [***1/2]
Feb. 4th: Spirit of the Beehive (Enrice, 1973): [****]
Feb. 4th: Shoot the Piano Player (Truffaut, 1962): [***]
Feb. 6th: Johnny Guitar (Ray, 1954): [****]
Feb 6th: Interiors (Allen, 1978): [***1/2]
Feb 6th: Election (To, 2005): [**]
Feb 6th: Superfly (Parks Jr., 1972): [Muther-fuckin' cool]
Feb 8th: Sunrise (Murnau, 1927): [***1/2]
Feb 8th: The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (Powell, 1943): [****]
Feb 8th: Heathers (Lehman, 1988): [***1/2]
Feb. 9th: Michael Clayton (Gilroy, 2007): [**]
Feb 12th: Lars and the Real Girl (Gillespie 2007): [***1/2]
Feb 12th: Cluny Brown (Lubitsch, 1946): [**]
Feb 13th: Talk to Her (Almodavar, 2002): [***1/2]

January Viewing Log

01/08: Carnal Knowledge (Nichols, 1971): [***]
01/08: The Awful Truth (McCarey, 1934): [***1/2]
02/08: No Country for Old Men (Coen, 2008): [***1/2]
02/08: Killer of Sheep (Burnett, 1977): [****]
02/08: Sherlock Jr. (Keaton, 1924): [****]
03/08: Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (Nichols, 1966): [****]
03/08: Memories of Murder (Bong, 2003): [***]
03/08: To Be Or Not to Be (Lubitsch, 1942): [****]
06/08: Charlie Wilson's War (Nichols, 2007): [***]
07/08: Rosetta (Dardennes, 1999): [*]
08/08: Ordet (Dreyer, 1955): [****]
08/08: The Vanishing (1988): [***]
09/08: Henry Fool (Hartley, 1997): [**]
10/08: Best of Youth (Giordani, 2003): [***1/2]
10/08: Juno (Reitman, 2007): [****]
10/08: The Shape of Things (LaBute, 20003): [***1/2]
14/08: Through a Glass Darkly (Bergman, 1961): [**]
14/08: Elevator to the Gallows (Malle, 1958): [***1/2]
15/08: Persepolis (Paronnaud/Satrapi, 2007): [***]
15/08: Rififi (Dassin, 1955): [****]
15/08: La Haine (Kassovitz, 1995): [****]
17/08: Juno (Reitman, 2007): [****] 2nd
17/08: Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (Black, 2005): [****]
19/08: Juno (Reitman, 2007): [****] 3rd
20/08: Beowulf (Zemeckis, 2007): [**]
22/08: There Will Be Blood (Anderson, 2007): [***1/2]
23/08: Robocop (Verhoeven, 1985): [***1/2]
23/08: I'm Not There (Haynes, 2007): [***]
23/08: Raise the Red Lantern (Yimou, 1991): [****]
25/08: Lady Snowblood (Fujita, 1973): [***1/2]
25/08: Sweeny Todd (Burton, 2007): [***]
28/08: The Taking of Pelham 123 (Sargent, 1974): [***]
28/08: Ikiru (Kurosawa, 1952): [****]
28/08: The Blade (Hark, 1995): [****]
29/08: The Big Red One (Fuller, 1982): [***/12]
29/08: Playtime (Tati, 1967): ?????
30/08: The Conformist (Bertolucci, 1970): [***1/2]
30/08: Heroes of the East (Liang, 1979): [***1/2]
31/08: The Conversation (Coppolla, 1974): [****]
31/08: Death Trance (Shimomura, 2005): [***1/2]
31/08: Django (Corbucci, 1966): [***]

Talk to Me (Lemmons, 2007)

"Wake up, goddammit! "

Curse you procrastination! I've been slacking on my reviews and it's about time I started to add a little bit more content to this blog of mine. Thanks for your continued support!

Please, someone give Don Cheadle an Oscar already. This blatant attempt at false modesty needs to come to an end before someone gets hurt. His ability to transform himself for every role (no matter how minimal) is astonishing but he continually gets snubbed. Why is that? We know that the academy isn't racist despite their inconsistent reputation at making bone-headed decisions and several actors of color have won in the past (even though they were questionable at best: Halle Berry for Monster's Ball anyone?). 2004 was Cheadle's year when he gave a tour-de-force performance in the political thriller Hotel Rwanda as Paul Rusesabagina and even though he was nominated, losing to Jaime Foxx was a travesty. Don't get me wrong, I think Foxx proved himself to be taken seriously as an actor and while he was able to convincing portray Ray Charles down to a tee including his speech along with the various mannerisms, it lacked the control of Cheadle's performance which felt more natural and less of a gimmick.

Don Cheadle returns this year in another biopic, this time as Ralph Waldo "Petey" Greene, African-American convict who decides to pursue a job as a radioman during the 60's that influenced the medium by walking on a thin line between radio code of conduct and pragmatism without straying too far into blind-sided chauvinism. As an outspoken individual who gave no precedence to say the truth regardless of the crackdown on the freedom of speech for minority groups especially Blacks, Greene becomes a voice for the people, not only to the frustrated lower class African Americans (despite them being his largest fanbase) but to an entire nation that was at war with itself during the Civil Rights movement. His friendship with Dewey Hughes (Chiwetel Ejiofor), the man who puts his career on the line to get Petey the job at the radio station is the heart of the film; two men who are fond of one another but have different visions of what they want to achieve with their newfound success. The wonderful chemistry between Ejiofor and Cheadle is palpatable and they both light up the screen as their brotherly love begins to disintegrate as ardent decisions are made and circumstances split them apart. The script is chalk-full of great dialogue and the two leads take full advantage of it. The clash of disparate personalities allows for plenty of humorous exchanges of dialogue that flow naturally. Don Cheadle loses himself completely in this role that is so authentic that it becomes difficult to distinguish the actor from the chracter he is playing. I'm thinking about starting a campaign on his behalf in order for the Acadmedy to recongize this performance because it is clearly one of standouts of this year.

Biopics seem to be a dime a dozen these days. While Talk to Me follows the formulaic rise and fall of the central protagonist, newcomer female director Kasi Lemmons infuses a refreshing amount of charm and sophistication to elevate her film above the typical run-of the mill genre tropes. It becomes a powerful statement on the freedom of speech that doesn't succumb to ramming the message down the viewer's throats. As provocative as it is heartfelt, this is a groovy film told with honesty and not only is it an invigorating true story but also happens to be one of the best films of 2007.

[***1/2]

Atonement (Wright, 2007)

Robbie Turner (McAvoy) and Cecilia Tallis (Knightly) share a passionate embrace by the seaside.

Reminscent of a stuffy ivory chamber drama except with a much bigger budget, Ian McEwan's breathtaking novel of forbidden love, deceit, the growing pains of childhood and the power of art all set to the backdrop of WWII is brought to life by Joe Wright (of 2005's Pride and Prejudice fame) and his group of talented young actors in Keira Knightly, James McAvoy and Saoirse Ronan. What made the novel such a rapturous read was McEwan's exceptional story-telling ability, the rich detail and his firm grasp of the English language that took on a classic poeticsm so rare in contemporary literature. Wright's film is an earnest adaptation that is faithful to the text only it feels slightly hollow containing only the main plot points of the book abandoning McEwan's elegant literary craftsmanship. While the film posesses moments of cinematic beauty and impressive direction including a sweeping long-take lasting several minutes during the evacuation of soliders stationed at Dunkirk, much of the stylistic flourishes become redundant and come across as filler due to the lack of a strong narrative.

It would be too easy to label this film as "Oscar bait" and even though it is bound to be clumped into that infamous category, part of me believes that there are enough positive aspects that prevent such placement. The acting all around remains the saving grace here with Knightly giving the peformance of her career and James McAvoy stealing every scene whom is bound to be nominated this year. Even newcomer Saoirse Ronan does excellent work as the precocious young Briony who is the integral figure of the story who sets the traumatic events in motion. Her chracter's wide-eyed innocence and curiousity in which she doesn't fully comprehend the adult world is portrayed with great maturity for an actor so young. The low-ley transient score by Dario Marianelli compliments the tone of the film perfectly and creatively implementing the sound of the type-writer keys was a nice touch. Finally, there's Joe Wright who has clearly established himself as a director in control of his vision and actors. Atonement being his sophmore effort, Wright shows tremendous talent as a budding director and he's one to keep an eye on in the future. The tackling of such a complex piece of literarture would be a daunting task for anyone and even though he is only marginally successful, one must applaud his efforts.

[***]

December Viewing Log

05/12: Sansho the Bailiff (Mizoguchi, 1954): [****]
05/12: Broadway Danny Rose (Allen, 1984): [****]
05/12: Mission: Impossible III (Abrams, 2006): [**]
05/12: Say Anything (Crowe, 1989): [***1/2]
06/12: Scoop (Allen, 2006): [***]
06/12: The Ice Harvest (Ramis, 2005): [***1/2]
09/12: Melinda and Melinda (Allen, 2005): [***1/2]
13/12: Better Off Dead (Holland, 1985): [**]
15/12: Talk to Me (Lemmons, 2007): [***1/2]
18/12: Atonement (Wright, 2007): [***]
20/12: Rosemary's Baby (Polanski, 1968): [***1/2]
20/12: Fresh (Yakin, 1994): [****]
20/12: Radio Days (Allen, 1985): [***]
20/12: Ginger Snaps (Fawcett, 2000): [***1/2]
24/12: Three Colours: White (Kieslowski, 1994): [***1/2]
25/12: Les Diaboliques (Clouzout, 1955): [***1/2]
25/12: It's a Wonderful Life (Capra, 1946): [****]
26/12: The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser (Herzog, 1974): [***]
26/12: A Zed and Two Noughts (Greenaway, 1985): ????????
26/12: Brief Encounter (Lean, 1945): [***]
26/12: I am Legend (Lawrence, 2007): [**]
29/12: Block Party (Gondry, 2005): [***1/2]
30/12: Before the Devil Knows Your Dead (Lumet, 2007): [***]