Recently in Classic Movie Project Category
Ok, so I still need to watch Princess Bride, but I think I can do so tomorrow. So I wanna see if I can watch a war movie over the holiday. (If not, I'll try to watch it next week). Above are 7 of the many war movies I have never seen, and want you guys to vote for which one I should watch for the first time.
Digg It!
Great film. Highly recommended. Reminded me of my jury experience last year, though our discussion was much more civil and our jury was a bit more diverse. But the movie did a great job of pointing out what an amazing process the whole thing is. I loved that we learned so much about each man, and I didn't realize until the end what we didn't learn about them. Made the movie even better. It was astounding how many conclusions we could draw about 12 different characters in just 96 minutes. Fonda was terrific, even though his character at times was almost a little too idealistic to believe at times. I loved how the camera got tighter and tighter as the film progressed, increasing the tension and sense of claustrophobia that one feels after a full day in the jury room. Lee J. Cobb's performance as the angry and tortured Juror #3 was terrific, making him a source of both enmity and pity. Interesting fact: Jack Klugman is the only juror who is still alive. The director of the film, Sidney Lumet, is still alive as well (And it's pronounced Luh-met, not Lue-may.) I give this one a B+. See this movie if you haven't already. Barring a last minute comeback, looks like Princess Bride will be next.
Ok kids, there are a ton of great films I have never seen. 5 of them are listed below. Vote for which one I should watch this weekend. I'll watch it and post a review next weekend.
Ok, it's back. After a long hiatus, I am back to watching movies that everybody else on earth has seen but I haven't. I decided to start with one of the ultimate classics-Casablanca, starring Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman. Yes, that's right folks, before Saturday night I was that guy who hadn't seen Casablanca. Ok, first things first: This was a fun film, but certainly overrated. I mean, people act like this is the greatest thing to ever happen to film, and in reality it's a neat little story told well...but it doesn't threaten to crack my Top 10 movies I've Ever Seen. Humphrey Bogart's character was funny, smart, and a heck of a lot of fun. Ingrid Bergman was ok but not incredible. I really enjoyed the Captain Renault character played by Claude Rains, and it was fun to hear so many lines that have since become iconic in the American lexicon. I enjoyed the characters, but didn't feel any particular attachment to them, and even my friend that I watched it with was surprised she didn't cry at the end. Because, really, the end was rather exciting but not very emotional. It was a movie, but felt like a play, with not much action going on outside of the characters. Now remember, the grade I give these movies is based on thier comparison with other classic movies, not against just regular movies. Keeping that in mind, I give Casablanca a C+. My next classic to watch, which I am going to try to do tonight, is 12 Angry Men. After that, it's up to you guys. I'll post a poll in a little while. Let me know what you thought of Casablanca in the comments below.
PREVIOUSLY REVIEWED:
Alright, I've been catching up lately on some of the great movies I never saw the first time around, so that I can be kool. Here are three reviews for movies I recently saw for the first time.
Blue Velvet. I loved Twin Peaks, so it should come as no surprise that I thoroughly enjoyed Blue Velvet. Sexy, scary, and surreal (often in the same scene), the movie was a pure buzz from start to finish. I enjoyed the characters, the dialogue, the plot, everything. Dennis Hopper is downright amazing, as is Isabella Rossellini. And though I didn't like Maclachlan's character as much as I did in Twin Peaks (possibly my favorite tv character of all time.), he was still very solid. This one gets an A-
The Magnificent Seven. A fun movie, really good Western soundtrack, some really great actors. Still, certainly not my favorite Western of all time. A little too cheesy (if that's at all possible for a 60s Western) and all of the deaths were as melodramatic as possible, with essentially every character getting off some famous last words. I did, however, thoroughly enjoy Eli Wallach as the head of the bandits, and I liked the fact that they had their reasons for ransacking the village (they were starving, and hey, a bandit's gotta eat.) All in all, an enjoyable movie (and one that will make my next viewing of Three Amigos much more enjoyable), but not an epic one. (Keep in mind I am grading in comparison to other great movies, not to regular movies). C+
Blow Out. This 1981 Brian de Palma film is a joyride for most of the flick, though it gets a little silly at the end. Great storyline. A presidential candidate has his car tire blown out, car plunges into creek, and he dies but the hooker with him lives. A sound guy for a lowgrade slasher films (John Travolta) happens to be recording nearby and picks up the gunshot on his microphone. The government is trying to cover this up, and a maniacal John Lithgow (the shooter) is trying to kill the hooker to make sure she stays quiet. Travolta develops a crush on the hooker, played by de Palma's wife at the time, Nancy Allen. Convoluted, but de Palma makes it tie together nicely, and it is gripping until the closing chase, which is melodramatic and ridiculous to the point of being laugh out loud funny (super-slow motion, giant American flag, fireworks, etc.) . But the little tie in to slasher films at the end is a nice touch. The reason to watch this film in the first place, though, is that the whole thing takes place in 1980 Philadelphia, with a special cameo by the Forum Theatre. Lots of good city scenes, and the car driving through City Hall is fun. It is worth checking out for the Philly stuff, the plot is fast and fun, and Travolta is actually pretty damn good in this. B
I feel like American Beauty is one of the most hated on Best Picture award winners, and I really liked it. I thought it had a unique plot, and really, how many movies are made about midlife crisis that aren't just predictably crappy (Wild Hogs, anyone?). I thought their were several hilarious sequences, and "The King" was a great character. I thought the movie kind of made light of it's own pretentions, and I liked it's creepy overtones. Anyways, feel free to rake me over the coals below. Tonight I plan on watching the Magnificent Seven, which was on late last night so I taped it. Will let you know what I think. I watched Born Into Brothels over the weekend and thought it was really good.
Yes, now that I have seen Godfather 2, I can admit to you that I had never seen it before. Pretty shameful. In fact, I haven't seen the first Godfather since high school, so I may have to follow up with another viewing of that soon. Anyways, Godfather 2 is considered by IMDB voters to be the 3rd best movie ever. I don't know if I'd go that far, though I did think it was a stunningly wonderful movie. Pacino brought a shrouded mood to every seen he was in, and John Cazale was terrific as Fredo. It was obvious that he was going to get whacked in the end, but it was still upsetting. The beauty of the film was that you hated just about every major character in the film at one time or another, and you sympathized with every major character at one time or another. I thought the only weakness of the film was the somewhat farfetched return to Italy to take out Don Ciccio. And I'm not sure I understood why Michael decision to go into the Marines at the end was so significant. Did I miss something? All in all, though, a wonderful film, and perhaps even my second favorite mob movie of all time. Goodfellas is still, in my mind, the best. A-
PREVIOUSLY IN THE CLASSIC MOVIE PROJECT: North by Northwest.
You guys really blew it on this one. Terrible choice. I'm sorry, but I saw every single joke in this movie coming from a mile away. I may have laughed three or four times, but there was never a part of the movie that I can say I thoroughly enjoyed. Darth Helmet was the only moderately funny character. I love John Candy, and my disappointment in what a terrible character he played cannot be overstated. I'm sure I would have liked this movie when I was 12, and I have a feeling that that's why you guys like it so much, but trust me, this one doesn't hold up. Or perhaps if I had done some deadly marijuana and then watched it at the deadliest time of the day it would have been funnier. However, that would have also led down a road to death and despair. I suspect this is the worst movie I will see in the Classic Movie Experiment. D-
PREVIOUSLY: JGT reviews North By Northwest.
PREVIOUSLY: JGT reviews Dr. Strangelove.
Heading down to Virginia on Thursday, and my dad and sister are both big Western fans. So I'm hoping to spend a little QT with the fam watching a Western I haven't seen yet. Vote for which one you think I should see. I saw Spaceballs this past weekend and will have my review manana.
Ok, ok, so Blue Velvet actually beat North by Northwest by a single vote. But my video store didn't have a DVD copy of Blue Velvet somehow, so I went with North by Northwest. If anyone has a copy of Blue Velvet I could borrow, I'll watch it this weekend.
This film was an absolute blast. The scenery was almost as much fun as the film, from the colorful hotel rooms to the obviously staged woods to house at the end, the sets were amazing. Cary Grant was the definition of cool. As a friend of mine said the other night, "George Clooney has built an entire career out of being Cary Grant." And Eva Marie Saint is stunningly beautiful, with that certain edge that makes women ten times sexier. Smart, powerful, and sexy, I have a hard time thinking of an actress in Hollywood today that could have pulled that character off. The other character I really liked was the super creepy villain played by Martin Landau. What was up with that dude? What a psycho.
I loved the classic scene on the prairie. "That's funny, that plane's dustin' crops where there ain't no crops." And of course Cary Grant runs from a plane without ever breaking a sweat or running out of breath. I also enjoyed the scene at the art gallery, where he made an ass of himself to avoid being killed, though I wasn't sure why he didn't try to get away from the cops as well.
No real negatives to talk about. Thought the movie coulda been about 15 minutes shorter, but I still enjoyed all of it. I thought the Mount Rushmore scene was a little hokey. Apparently, they were really gonna shoot at Rushmore, but got found out and the Park Service wouldn't let them, so they had to build a fake Rushmore and promise to not walk on the faces. In any event, that scene was a bit silly, though I'm really just nitpicking here.
All in all, a great film. I even watched the 30 minute extra about the filming of it, which I rarely do, because I wanted to learn more about the film. I'm sure I missed some vague nuances, and will at some point treat myself to watching it again to try to pick them up. Great film. B+.
Alright, gang, time to pick a movie for this weekend. I have never seen any of the following. Yes, I know I'm the only person alive who never saw A Few Good Men. For those of you who keep telling me to watch 12 Angry Men, I'll put it back in a poll soon and see if it fares any better. Whichever movie has the most votes by Friday at 5 pm is the one I'll be watching.
