The 3 Best Mission: Impossible Movies

Until the series' latest entry, Fallout, each installment of the Mission: Impossible movie franchise has been overseen by a different director, which has given each mission its own look and feel, distinct from the others. But every single one centers on a veritable suicide mission undertaken by Agent Ethan Hunt (portrayed by star and producer Tom Cruise) and his IMF (fictitious U.S. intelligence agency the Impossible Mission Force) comrades. Let's take a look at the best that the series has to offer: 





3. Mission: Impossible

In November of 1995, Goldeneye was released, featuring Pierce Brosnan in his long-awaited first portrayal of James Bond (Bronsnan wanted the role as far back as 1986). Six months later, Tom Cruise's decision to become an action star culminated in the debut of Mission: Impossible and the end of 007's iron-clad monopoly on movie spydom. 

Mission infused the genre with brains and acrobatics and completely eliminated the freakshow villains and henchmen common in the what's-his-face-movies. Hunts acrobatic and silent CIA computer vault break-in became a classic movie scene the instant that the film was released. But who knew Ethan Hunt would still be around 22 years later?









2. Ghost Protocol

The best thing about Ghost Protocol is the fact that Ethan Hunt really doesn't wanna perform the death-defying stunts crucial to completing the mission. He's so reluctant to put his body on the line, yet again, that he looks around the rooom for other candidates when the team decides that someone is going to have to climb the tallest skyscraper on the planet, Dubai's 2,722 foot-high Burj Khalifa -- and within a narrow time frame. The second-best thing about Protocol is the fact that the gadgets, staples of the series, don't work -- which makes the idea of climbing that tower, using unreliable company equipment, that much less appealing.

Although the idiotic face-masks no longer work (thankfully), some things never change: Luther is as dependable as ever and Ethan continues one of his personal traditions established in the first Mission: Impossible movie -- sprinting at top speed.

Just eight months after Ghost Protocol's release, Jeremy Renner, who portrays intelligence analyst William Brandt, starred as superspy Aaron Cross in The Bourne Legacy and assassin Sabine Moreau, portrayed by French actress Lea Seydoux, turned up as a Bond girl in Spectre. How's that for keeping it in the spy movie family?









1. Mission: Impossible III

At the outset, the producers of the Mission: Impossible film series, a group which includes Tom Cruise, mandated that each entry be helmed by a different director. As a consequence of that decision, each movie has a distinct look and feel. The few constants include: Ethan Hunt; Luther Stickell; the immortal M:I theme song; and of course, an elaborate heist. The wisdom of that initial multi-auteur policy proved to be tactical genius as first time feature film director J.J. Abrams one-ups John  Woo and redeems Hunt and co. from the template-for-shitty-straight-cable-action-movies that is M:I 2. Let's be real, if that movie were released for the first time nowadays, it would star Ian Ziering of Sharknado fame -- at best. Not Tom never-less-than-A-list Cruise. Not since Allen Iverson crossed-up Michael Jordan has a rookie humbled a legendary veteran so badly.

The change in director brought changes in direction as well. The first alteration is immediately apparent. A good way to ensure moviegoers don't fall asleep or walk out of the theater due to boredom is to begin the story with a very intense moment a la Goodfellas and Menace II Society. In this instance, the very first time that we see Hunt he's handcuffed to a chair, teary-eyed and desperately attempting to negotiate with a terrorist who's threatening to shoot a bound and gagged woman in the head unless Ethan tells him what he wants to know. What we don't see is Hunt escape. There's a gunshot and then the theme song begins. It almost makes you wonder if you're really watching an M:I film.

M:I-3's release marked the series' 10th year in existence and that passage of time is reflected in the personal growth and maturity of Ethan Hunt. No longer the cocky, reckless, adrenaline-junkie who once thrived on potentially-fatal challenges, Hunt made good on his promise to Luther at the end of the first M:I to leave the action behind and is now a retired field operative who trains others to undertake unreasonable missions. Having had his fill of she-daredevils, he's also settled down and living in suburban bliss with a likable nurse who thinks he works for the Department of Transportation. This new state of affairs is remarkable for an action franchise. Han Solo, for instance, was still running around the galaxy engaged in various schemes into his 70s. Hunt only agrees to go back into the field in order to rescue a former trainee. What hasn't changed for Hunt, unfortunately for him, is the adversarial dynamic he has with his boss -- even though a new man has filled the position. Maybe the missions are so impossible because the agents don't have any support from management. This time around, the department is headed by Theodore Brassel, portrayed by Laurence Fishburne, who remains the most convincing and formidable IMF director to date. As much as you may hate your manager, at least he can't have you bound and muzzled. 

M:I's inclusiveness continued unabated with Brassel's addition as well. In fact, Mission: Impossible III became the only spy movie franchise in cinematic history to boast two African-American men in major non-villainous roles in the same film. Half-Vietnamese actress Maggie Q also joins the proceedings as IMF team member Zhen Lei. 

There are no more absurd motorcycle duels, no unnecessary slow-motion and no grinning like an idiot during a deadly crisis. Two Jason Bourne films were released since M:I 2 mercifully left the theaters. The folks at M:I were undoubtedly as shamed by the comparison as the shot-callers for James Bond and similarly took inspiration.

This retooled M:I preceded a rebooted and unquestionably improved James Bond film by six months and the third Jason Bourne film by 15. Here's to competition. And the best Mission ever.

"New Orleans" Review

 

by Daniel White

and I am sweating a lot by now and thinking of

leaning on the john door in the 5 SPOT

while she whispered a song along the keyboard

to Mal Waldron and everyone and I stopped breathing

Those are the last lines in Frank O'Hara's plaintive poem, "The Day Lady Died". It's a beautifully written piece about the day Billie Holiday gave up the ghost, a striking tribute to a great artist.

United Artist's, New Orleans (1947) is not striking and it's certainly not great, but it's the only feature-length film Miss Holiday made, and for that it is worth seeing. In it she plays Endie, maid to Mrs. Rutledge Smith (the very chic Irene Rich), and girlfriend to Mr. Louis Armstrong. Thankfully, she spends most of the movie out of a maid's outfit, and in street clothes - not that there's anything wrong with being a maid, both my grandmothers were domestic workers. But Billie is a singer, and a diva, and it is fitting that her screen time is devoted to kickin' it with the band and not scrubbing floors.

The highest compliment that can be paid to this flick, which was ably directed by Arthur Lubin, is that it doesn't let its uninspired story line get in the way of some terrific music. Besides Holiday and Armstrong, Woody Herman shows up near the end and cuts loose with some boffo big band sounds. And the cats that accompany Satchmo are dynamite. Arturo de Cordova plays the male lead, Nick Duquesne, a New Orleans night club owner who is determined to legitimize the blues and introduce the music to a resistant public. Mr. de Cordova may have been a big star in Mexican cinema, but he barely registers here. And his love interest, Dorothy Patrick as Miralee Smith, daughter of the stylish Mrs. Smith (Rich), doesn't fare much better. Though she does get to lip sync a few pleasing operatic arias, Patrick fails to ignite, compared to the authentic Holiday.

Billie Holiday isn't much of an actress (unlike the charismatic Armstrong, who steals every scene he's in), but is assuredly in command when singing. Supposedly deep into her heroin addiction while filming, signs of the disease go largely unnoticed, except for in her final number, "The Blues Are Brewin'", where she looks a tad twisted. But it hardly matters; I'm just so grateful she managed to make this flick. It may be an unexceptionable B programmer, but Billie Holiday and Louis Armstrong are anything but, and musical/movie history is made when the two perform together.

With a very effective Marjorie Lord as a dissipated society dame, who gets the best line in the movie: "You ruffled my feathers, you ruffian, but I liked it," and Richard Hageman as a classical pianist with a penchant for ragtime, New Orleans is available on YouTube.

The 19 Best Bad Mom Movies of All Time

Every great mom should be celebrated for the nurturing and comfort that they've provided this Mothers' Day. But Hollywood has a long history of movies featuring characters who'd never make the Mommy Hall of Fame. Not every mother is Claire Huxtable or June Cleaver, of course, but the momsters below elevate bad parenting to an art form. And we're not talking about those Mila Kunis movies where they claim the moms are "bad" for comedic purposes but they're really just learning to let their hair down; we're talking apron-clad psychos. Take a look at these maternal demons and thank your lucky stars that none of them gave birth to you.





19. Precious

Mary Lee Johnston is so toxic that after years of verbally, physically, and sexually abusing her daughter, Precious, she attempts to drop a television on her head.









18. Run

Run slowly pulls back the curtain on what initially appears to be a fun, loving relationship between single mom, Diane Sherman, and her wheelchair-bound daughter, Chloe. All appears well until some clues start coming in that make the daughter question a few things. Like: Why are the labels covered on her prescription bottles? Why are there pictures (hidden in the basement) of her standing on her own as a little girl, when she was always told that she's been a paraplegic since birth?

17. Split

After Penelope Crumb abuses her son, Kevin, he develops dissociative identity disorder, complete with 23 separate personalities and grows up to be a cannibalistic serial killer.









16. Carrie

Telekinetically-endowed Carrie White finally snapped after one too many pranks by the bullies who frequently targeted her at school. But Carrie's first -- and most constant -- taste of emotional and physical abuse came at the hands of her fanatically religious mother, Margaret. 









15. White Heat

Most parents try to steer their children away from engaging in illegal activity but Ma Jarrett actively encourages her son Cody's criminality. She even plans a murder in order to safeguard Cody's hold over his gang. Did he ever have a chance at a legit life?









14. Kramer vs. Kramer

When Joanna Kramer walks out on her husband and their five-year-old son, Billy, he's devastated -- and Ted is completely unprepared to be an instant single father. He has no idea how to do laundry, can't cook and is utterly unfamiliar with Billy's school. Through much trial and much more error, Ted learns how to be a single parent and he and Billy forge an unshakable bond. He even sabotages his career (which results in his firing) so that he can devote more time to his little man.

Then, after having abandoned him for 15 months without making contact, Joanna shows up seeking full custody. The court does indeed grant her custody. Initially planning to appeal the decision, Ted learns that Billy will probably be questioned on the stand and he decides that his son has been through enough.

13. Run the Tide

College dropout Rey Hightower's mother, Lola, has never concealed her favoritism of his little brother, Oliver. But her drug addiction has prevented her from properly caring for either of them. When Lola is released from prison following a six-year stint, Rey heads for San Francisco with Oliver in an effort to protect him from their mom.









12. The Pursuit of Happyness

Based on a true story, The Pursuit of Happyness explores single father Christopher Gardner's pursuit of the American Dream in order to provide a better life for his son. After his attempts to sell Osteo National portable bone-density scanners (into which he sunk all of the family's savings) fail, Chris can't come up with the money to pay off his parking fine, which culminates in the Parking Authority placing a boot on his car. Consequently, his wife Linda leaves him and their son, Christopher, and moves to New York. Then, unable to make rent, father and son are evicted. Betting on himself and his long-term plan, Chris accepts a position as an unpaid intern with financial firm Dean Witter. During the six-month program, Chris and his son must sleep in homeless shelters and struggle to get by. But Chris never gives up -- which would mean giving up on his son's future.









11. August: Osage County

August: Osage County mostly centers on a gathering of the estranged members of the Weston family in Oklahoma's Osage County. The clan is brought together by the sudden disappearance of patriarch Beverly, a renowned former poet. A few days after the various daughters, boyfriends, sisters, sons-in-law and grandkids arrive, Beverly's wife, Violet, is informed by the sheriff that her missing husband has been found dead (by drowning) in a local lake. 

The reunion allows the pill-addicted Violet to subject the tribe (and her newly hired housekeeper, Johnna) to her well-practiced emotional abuse and it becomes clear why the family and its members are dysfunctional. The new widow is in rare form exposing secrets and playing on insecurities at the post-funeral dinner. Eldest daughter Barbara is pushed so far that she physically attacks her.

10. Shazam

Fourteen-year-old Billy Batson has searched for his mom since he was separated from her at a local carnival at just four-years-old and placed into the foster care system. Unfortunately for Billy, when he finally tracks his mother down she reveals that she intentionally abandoned him all those years ago and still wants nothing to do with him.









9. Let Him Go

After Margaret Blackledge manipulates her husband, George, into accompanying her on a dummy mission to retrieve their only grandson from his mother and her abusive new other half, the couple finds themselves in the crosshairs of the dangerous Weboy family. Weboy matriarch, Blanche, who owns the law in their 1963 Montana town, has no intention of giving the Blackledges the family reunion that they're hoping for. In order to prove that she means business, Blanche directs her sons to chop off George's hand -- for starters.







8. Manchester by the Sea

Elise Chandler is a full-blown alcoholic. Her addiction is so destructive that she once blacked-out on the living room couch bottomless, which is how her husband, son and brother-in-law discovered her after returning from a fishing trip. As a result, her husband Joe leaves her, gains custody of their son Patrick and names his clinically-depressed brother, Lee, Patrick's legal guardian in the event of his own untimely death.









7. Gone Girl

First, Amy Elliott Dunne frames her husband, Nick, for her murder. Then, after turning the nation against him and making him the only suspect -- she shows back up at their home covered in blood (she killed her ex-boyfriend in cold blood while she was away). Ordinarily, this would be a great time to file for divorce and never look back. Except the missus used Nick's sperm from a fertility clinic to get pregnant. So she essentially uses her unborn child as leverage to pressure him into agreeing to stay with her so that he can protect his son or daughter from the sociopath that he married.









6. Joker

Not only did Penny Fleck help to abuse her son, Arthur, as a child, she crushes his dream of becoming a stand-up comic as an adult. And considering the fact that they seem to share a bed and he bathes her (at the very least, he washes her hair while she's in the buff), Penny's fostered a creepy relationship with Arthur that's only gotten more disturbing with time.









5. Gone Baby Gone

Not only is Helene McCready an ignorant racist and a junkie, she's also a horrible parent. When Helene's three-year-old daughter, Amanda, is abducted from right under her coked-out nose, the police aren't sure if the culprit is the drug dealer from whom Helene stole $130,000, her drug-mule boyfriend or any of the other unsavory characters in her life.









4. The Others

Grace Stewart spends most of The Others being haunted by the ghosts that refuse to leave her home. But a twist ending reveals that Grace and her two children, Nicholas and Anne, are the real poltergeists because she murdered them -- and then committed suicide --  while her husband, Charles, was on the front lines during WWII.









3. The Northman

Prince Amleth's mother, Gudrun, was a queen for most of her life. First, she married his father, King Aurvandill. Then, after conspiring to have him and Amleth murdered, she married the king's brother, Fjolnir, who took Aurvandill's throne. When Amleth reunites with her years later, under the misperception that his mother had been kidnapped and held prisoner, Gudrun confesses her role in the coup, and offers to be her eldest son's bride if he kills her current husband and her youngest son. 









2. The Suicide Squad

Abner "Polka Dot" Krill's mother conducted unethical experiments on her children, which directly led to his being infected with an incurable and potentially lethal interdimensional virus, and later, becoming a career criminal (the experiments killed off some of his siblings). While on a black ops mission with his fellow Task Force X members, the suicidal Krill reveals that he doesn't like to hurt people but imagining that someone is his mom makes killing them easy. 

1. The Accountant

Not long after Christian Wolff's childhood diagnosis of autism, his mother abandoned the family. Raising an autistic child is undoubtedly challenging but it takes a pretty cold heart to just up and leave.

Chris' father, a psychological warfare officer in the U.S. Army, arranged for he and his brother, Braxton, to be trained in various forms of combat so that neither would become victims in life. As adults, Chris is a wealthy money-launderer and marksman and Braxton is a world-class assassin -- but nobody messes with either of them.

Originally Posted 5/1/20

"The Mysterious Lady" is Overwrought, Hackneyed and Very Much a Product of Its Time

 

by Daniel White

Recently on FB, a fellow film aficionado posted that Greta Garbo was a "hammy" actress. Oddly enough, at that very moment I was watching a Garbo film, The Mysterious Lady (1928). I am here to set the record straight: Miss Garbo was decidedly NOT hammy. Sensitive, intuitive, subtle, and sensual, but definitely not hammy. Ah, out of the mouths (fingers?) of the misinformed, the misguided, and the mistaken...

An MGM silent, directed by Fred Niblo, the film is of its time, and therefore could easily be dismissed by anyone with a modern sensibility. Overwrought, hackneyed, a romantic melodrama that is as ludicrous as it is exquisite, I enjoyed every minute of it.

Set during WWl, Garbo plays Tania Fedorova, a Russian spy who inadvertently falls in love with an Austrian officer, Karl von Raden (Conrad Nagel), she has been targeted to seduce. Informed by his uncle (who just happens to be the head of the Austrian secret service, natch) that Tania is a spy, Karl spurns her advances when they meet on a train bound for Berlin ("You are a very clever actress, Tania Fedorova!"). She disappears, along with the military plans in Karl's possession ("I came to you as the woman who loved you - - I leave - - your enemy" Ouch). Disgraced and imprisoned (the scene where Nagel is publicly humiliated is a humdinger), the vengeful Karl is released from the hoosegow and goes to Warsaw disguised as a Serbian pianist (you can't make this stuff up). Determined to exonerate himself, and possibly give the wicked Tania a good pinch in the rear, the two ill-fated lovers soon meet again.

Inane, insane, and unbelievable, the movie is so far-fetched it should be classified as sci-fi or fantasy but here's the kicker... It doesn't matter! It's entertaining and Garbo is bewitching. Possessing one of the most photogenic faces ever to appear in film, she also manages to make this trifle watchable (director Niblo helps immensely with some artful camera work). She certainly looks fabulous in outfits attributed to Gilbert Clark, but I'm sure Miss Adrian was lurking around somewhere and must have offered up an idea or two.

Just when you think this movie couldn't get any more outlandish... It does! (Thank you, Cinema Gods!). Caught by the Russians, Karl is commanded to be brought before General Boris Alexandroff (a sinister Gustav von Seyffertitz), whose mistress is... yes, our very own Tantalizing Tania! Determined to save the man she loves, Tania shoots Boris (the gunshot goes undetected by a mirthful, madcap Mazurka being performed outside the general's room). Desperate to conceal his death, she props the body up and pretends to be flirting outrageously when his aides bring the hapless Karl into the room. A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do.

Listen, not everything from the Golden Age of Hollywood was golden (June Allyson, anyone?), and I know silent film can be treacherous for the uninitiated, but give The Mysterious Lady a try, it is most assuredly worth it. Certainly Greta Garbo is worth it. Some of her movies may not have withstood the test of time, but the luminous, unhammy Garbo has.

Available on YouTube in a scratchy print that has been bolstered immeasurably by a wonderful, timeless contemporary score by Vivek Maddala.

"Joker" is an Interesting Movie

by Matt Gaskin

It made me think of Camus' opening paragraphs in The Myth of Sisyphus, "There is but one truly serious philosophical problem, and that is suicide. Judging whether life is or is not worth living amounts to answering the fundamental question of philosophy. All the rest—whether or not the world has three dimensions, whether the mind has nine or twelve categories—comes afterwards. These are games; one must first answer."

The contract theorists took this question as granted when arguing that order and government, any sort, was better than the state of nature without laws. That state of being, they reasoned, where each individual is a law unto themselves, amounts to a state of constant war and anxiety. It's such a terrible state to be in, that people in masses would be willing to sacrifice their freedom to a sovereign just to obtain a modicum of peace. Well, maybe not Rousseau, but Rousseau was a well known jerk.

But what happens when life within the state becomes so intolerable that the question of suicide, whether it is better to live or to die, is no longer so clear cut? Locke held open the possibility of revolution in the face of tyranny. Marx held that this was the natural result of class oppression within capitalist societies. Rousseau envisioned a purging of society's impurities, starting at the top (some took that literally), but again...that guy. Maybe it's not about any of those things. Maybe it isn't the result of class struggle wherein the workers finally assert control over capital, enlightened thinkers overthrowing tyranny, or the highly moral ridding their society of filth. Maybe it's the case that any society which produces a sufficient amount of suffering and hopelessness, regardless of it's philosophical tradition, will tip the scale where enough might reasonably ask whether it wouldn't be better to die. And when death no longer holds sway, neither do any other consequence. Society, then, is no longer one group revolting and toppling another, but the rising up of the impossibly aggrieved who suffer so much that it would be better to burn everything down and risk death than to spend another moment under the burden of its weight. Because if they die, then they are free, but if they do not die, then at least they are not suffering as they were.

Maybe this is how the insane gain power, and find themselves at the head of mass movements.

Normal, sane people, operate on the premise that certain lines can never be crossed because the consequences are too great to bear. Things may not be great right now, they reason, but there are certain lines that once crossed would make things much worse. A rational person knows not to transgress the law, or satisfy every desire at the expense of the future, because they know that will cause them to be worse off in the long run. I could, for example, empty my bank account in the morning and fly one-way to Europe. I've wanted to travel there for quite some time, and doing this would satisfy that want, but I won't, and neither would most, because the consequences would be too much to handle. You would lose your job, jeopardize your relationships, and wreak chaos in your life. The same goes for following and obeying the law. Normal, rational, sane people will uphold even an oppressive and tyrannical system out of fear things might get worse. But the irrational, the people who have already lost everything, are missing those scruples. They are the ones who first cross the lines. They are the ones who set the example. They are the ones who give the mob permission to abandon their fears and damn all consequences.

"Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven." - Lucifer, Milton.

These are not people who are fixed on tearing down a building with the intent of putting up a new structure in its place. These are people fixed on tearing down. It is the hallmark of a failed state, and the person who gave them permission, the insane individual who took from everyone the responsibility and consequences of their actions, is lifted up as a god. And at that point, aren't they? They are the deity which took away sin, lifted oppression, and allowed them to feel the euphoria of single minded, united action. They are a savior. They are an unhinged Jesus, a law unto nobody.

For the Joker, the world was not about rich and poor, not about class or morality, it was about pain and violence. "No, I'm not political. I don't believe in anything". If he had beliefs, then he wouldn't have become what he was. Everyone else had beliefs, the Joker was simply the one who gave them all permission to act. That was his role in the riots. He was the one responsible, so no one else had to be. "It's not funny. You started all of this", the policeman said, "I know I did", Joker responded with a smile. He was a willing scapegoat, a volunteer. When the riots would be over, everyone could point to him as the responsible party, and the rest would be relieved of their guilt.

This is the hidden truth behind the leaders of mass movements, the heads of their personality cult. The people love him because they can blame him. They love him because they can give themselves wholly over to them and stop being burdened with choice. They relieve themselves from being complicit in their own suffering.

What evidence is there for this? Joker only killed two types of people, those he idolized, and those who hurt him. Ultimately those ended up being one in the same. He killed his mother because she enabled his horrific abuse and lied to him about his identity. He killed his former co-worker for lying and losing him his job. He killed the men in the subway because they robbed him of his dignity and began to beat him. He killed the talk show host for posting a video of his stand-up in order to make fun of him. But each of those in turn were also his gods. Taking care of his mother formed the core of his fantasy life that he was a good boy. His co-worker was his fantasy of being assertive and aggressive. The subway was about his fantasy of being a protector and not a victim. Finally the talk show host was his fantasy of success and being loved. When he killed those people, he killed those fantasies. He killed every pretension he had of becoming those things.

Once he killed these "gods", he became a god unto himself, enabling him to become a Prometheus, the god who gave fire to man who then turned the world to chaos. Accountable to no one, maintaining no hopes or dreams, or political aspirations, just pure, raw, emotional torment.

Every society has its natural limits, and those limits are not governed by high minded rationalism. They are unbound and unconcerned with consequence.

Joker was an interesting movie.

"The Damned Don't Cry" Review

 

by Daniel White

"(She) popped up one day wearing a mink coat stuffed full of dough." This is one of two colorful taglines used to describe Joan Crawford in Warner Brothers' 1950 drama, The Damned Don't Cry. The other? "Anybody who can make a peplum move like you, don't need anything else!"

Directed by Vincent Sherman, this glossy, noirish/women's picture/crime drama is an entertaining, if preposterous, potboiler. Crawford plays Ethel Whitehead, who goes from being an oil rig worker's tired wife to cafe society gun moll in just under two hours. It's not an easy climb from a dirty Texas oil field to high society hostess with a hankering for hoodlums, but Joanie does it, one man at a time. From Richard Egan to dreary Kent Smith, to David Brian, and finally, Steve Cochran, Miss Crawford ascends.

The 40-something-year-old actress, while still attractive and physically fit, is no bombshell, yet every single man she comes in contact with finds her irresistible. It's a ridiculous ploy the film uses that gives the story a welcome campiness.

I have come to appreciate Crawford and the work she did from 1945's Mildred Pierce to Autumn Leaves (1956). Neurotic, driven, often playing a middle-aged woman struggling to survive in a man's world, she is a fascinating blend of hardness and self-doubt. Walking a fine line between camp and conviction, Joan Crawford is just as iconic a figure in slingback heels as John Wayne is on horseback.

Miss LeSueur chalked up another hit in The Damned Don't Cry, her presence in the movie resulting in a nice profit for Warner Brothers. However the critics were not too kind, Bosley Crowther of The New York Times calling her "artificial."

Yes, I suppose there is a plastic artifice to her performance but that is part of its charm as well. Her switch from doe-eyed innocent to hard-hearted Hannah is laughable, and as is often the case with Crawford at this time in her film work, she is so god-damned EARNEST in everything she does. But still, somehow it works, and beneath the absurdity there lies a compelling tale about what a woman must endure in an environment where the odds are stacked against her. We applaud Douglas Sirk for tackling such issues. Why not throw a little of that praise Joan Crawford's way.

With Selena Royle, Jacqueline deWitt, Edith Evanson, and Kathryn Card offering up some excellent secondary lady support for our Queen Bee, The Damned Don't Cry is available on YouTube.

"Father Stu" Review

 

by John Zenoni

I went to the movies last night not really knowing anything about this particular film and, honestly, didn't expect much. But needless to say, I left a big fan of ‘Father Stu.’ What a touching and moving film this is, with a great message for everyone.

I was very impressed with Mark Wahlberg’s performance as Stuart ‘Stu’ Long, a man who struggles through the loss of a younger brother, having bitter, divorced parents with no real relationship with his father - he calls his dad by his first name - and no real clue of what he wants to do with his life. When we're introduced to Stu, he's a boxer but one that has taken too many hits to the head, as his doctor tells him another round could kill him. He then decides to move to the West Coast to try and make it as an actor. As he tries to get his break, he encounters a young woman who catches his eye and tries to develop a relationship with her. In order to do so, he has to join the Catholic Church, per her request. This is a far stretch for Stu, as his family is not religious at all.

During his journey of going to church, getting baptized and building his relationship with Carmen, he goes to a bar one evening, has too many drinks, and wrecks his motorcycle. His injuries are life-threatening and upon recovery, Stu recalls seeing Mary over him, weeping and telling him it's not his time. This convinces Stu his calling is to join the church. It's very interesting watching him go down this path, only for him to encounter another life-altering moment, which I will not give away or spoil. But it changes him immensely, and impacts not just him but his parents, friends and fellow priests.

All the acting is top-notch, including that of Jacki Weaver, who plays Stu’s mom, Kathleen, and Mel Gibson, who plays the dad, Bill. The soundtrack and score for this film are also amazing and fit each scene perfectly. Very good film and one I highly recommend.

#cinemafiends

#fullycinematic

#fatherstu

#markwahlbergpriestfilm

#fatherstumovie

"House of Bamboo" Review

 

by Daniel White

Film being a collaborative art form, rarely does one person exert complete control over the entire project. However, there are a handful of directors who are master-craftsmen, and you can be assured when their name is attached to a movie, their influence will be considerable, and the end result inevitably worth watching.

Samuel Fuller is one of those directors and House of Bamboo (1955) another first-rate film by an artist of rare talent. This guy never disappoints!

Set in Tokyo, a decade after the war ended, it's a hard-bitten story about an American gang leader (Robert Ryan) and the G.I. (Robert Stack) who goes undercover to bring him to justice. Produced by Twentieth Century Fox in CinemaScope, the movie looks gorgeous, courtesy of cinematographer Joseph MacDonald. A heady combination of beauty and brutality, the flick is bathed in cool, impersonal (Pacific?) blues. The calming color dominates and misleads, complementing the violence perfectly. As Chinatown would demonstrate two decades later, color, when handled correctly, can be just as effective in film-noir as B&W.

Does anyone embody the smooth-talking sociopath better than Robert Ryan? Here as Sandy Dawson, the calculating gangster, he has one of his best roles. Measured and menacing, he is perfectly cast. Ryan brings to mind another gifted actor, Dan Duryea, who was also adept at playing homicidal whack-jobs. Conversely, both were devoted family men in their personal lives.

The other Robert Stack, does a serviceable job as the infiltrating army sergeant determined to expose Ryan, and he certainly fills out his battered trenchcoat nicely. But for me, House of Bamboo is all about Sam Fuller, Joseph MacDonald and Robert Ryan.

Filmed on location in Tokyo, the film offers a fascinating glimpse into what the city looked like, ten years in since the end of the war. With Shirley Yamaguchi as Stack's "kimono", and Cameron Mitchell as Ryan's disgruntled second-in-command, an ichiban with a chip on his shoulder, House of Bamboo is available on YouTube in glorious Deluxe Color.

"The Northman" is Stunning

 

by John Zenoni

Well, one of the biggest films that I have heard about in the past six months or so came out this weekend and I had to see it, no ifs, ands, or buts! I did make it, but barely, due to some obnoxious traffic. Anyway, I really don't even know where to begin with ‘The Northman’, the much anticipated and talked about Viking film from director Robert Eggers, who also directed the critically-acclaimed films, ‘The Lighthouse’ and ‘The Witch’, which in my opinion is one of the creepiest films I have seen since ‘The Exorcist’ (needless to say, I can never look at a goat the same way again).

Let me start with the most obvious thing I think there is about this film and that is that it is visually stunning. I mean it has absolutely beautiful visuals as far the scenery, costumes, set pieces, and even the (much) blood and gore. Not that I would know what the old world would have looked like, by any means, but I can only imagine Eggers must be close in capturing the era as it seems realistic. One character in particular who's getting a lot of attention is the Seeress, played by indie singer Bjork. And based on some of her album covers and how she has dressed on stage, this film was right up her alley. Although she doesn't appear long in the film, she was captivating for sure.

The other obvious thing about the movie is that, if you have seen Eggers’ other films, you can tell that this was a vision directed by him. The film work itself and the use of the lighting and scenes and close up all work the same as in his other movies. Not to mention the fact that even this film had a sense of creepiness about it. I don’t know, the themes and things he has come up with and introduced into his films is just odd and, sorry to repeat, creepy. If you want action, blood-and-gore, revenge and more then you definitely need to see this one. It's sometimes hard to follow - in my opinion - from a plot perspective, but it's based on an ancient tale that Shakespeare himself wrote about in ‘Hamlet’, which he supposedly used to write his famous work.

As far as the actors go, everyone goes all out in this one and they do a great job, especially Alexander Skarsgård. He definitely steals the show and is a commanding presence, no doubt.

While I am excited I finally got to see this one, I can’t say that I loved it as much I had hoped I would. But it is definitely one worth seeing and talking about.

#cinemafiends

#fullycinematic

#roberteggers

#thenorthman

#alexanderskarsgard

"Fast Workers" Review

 

by Daniel White

I'm pretty sure John Gilbert realized when he signed on to do MGM's Fast Workers (1933), that despite above-the-title billing, his time as a leading man in Hollywood was ending. In completing his contractual agreement to the studio with this film, he may have suspected his days as an actor were coming to a close as well. Sadly, both proved to be true, with only two movies and three years left before his career and life were finished. Who knows why he agreed to tackle the role of Gunner Smith, a callous, womanizing skunk with little appeal to the ticket-buying public? Was he trying to push himself as an artist, or had he just stopped giving a damn? Whatever the reason, he offers up, along with his co-stars, Robert Armstrong and Mae Clarke a very good performance. All three actors are excellent in this brutal Pre-Code eye-opener.

Smith and his pal, Bucker Reilly (Armstrong), play itinerant construction workers building a skyscraper. Both are adept at guzzling beer and chasing broads, with the hardened Lothario, Smith, keeping a watchful eye out for his sappy, marriage-prone pal. Things get sticky when Bucker falls for a gold digger (Clarke), who unknown to him, has an ongoing sexual relationship with his best friend.

Produced by Tod Browning, who directed without giving himself credit (?), the movie is uncompromising, free of sentiment, and harsh, especially in regard to Mary (Clarke). She is a duplicitous dame who "romances" Bucker while screwing Gunner.

Sporting a Norma Shearer bob, Mae Clarke is outstanding, sharp and brittle as an unrepentant skirt whose only hint of vulnerability is her unrequited love for the selfish Gunner (the film has a low opinion of women, but its take on men isn't much better). A principal player for most of the thirties, her career gradually petered out, though never entirely ending. She is a superb leading lady, on par with other Depression era stars.

The flick bombed at the box office, most of the blame targeted at Gilbert. Labeled a "liability", the American public turned on the fading matinee idol, feeling duped by his transformation from Hollywood heartthrob to Pre-Code Cad. With his fans and employer (Louis B Mayer) determined to destroy him, the self-destructive actor didn't stand a chance.

Fast Workers is a smart, tangy movie, with astonishingly good special effects (for its time), a decent screenplay, and a supporting cast that crackles (Sterling Holloway is a stand-out as a screwy co-worker). But it's not very likeable. Anyone looking for a coy, boy-meets-girl romance is advised to stay away. But all those in dire need of a Pre-Code sex romp, check out Fast Workers, it's a satisfying sizzler.

Of special interest to hardcore film buffs, is a surprise appearance by Joan Crawford, who is featured in the moving picture Bucker and Mary go to on their first date (Dance, Fool, Dance or Laughing Sinners?). Fast Workers is available on YouTube.

"Hostiles" is Best Understood As an Existentialist Drama

by Matt Gaskin

My recent encounter with the movie "Hostiles" was deeply moving and challenging. As I'm still working out my feelings about this complex film, my first impressions have formed more around its symbolism than the basic outline of the story. You can read a plot summary here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hostiles_(film) , but these comments will focus mostly on this film's thematic elements and their meaning.

I think the movie itself is best understood as an existentialist drama, meaning that it focuses on questions of what it is to exist, and how we go beyond mere existence to become conscious beings living in the world. It's a story set in the past, but the subject matter itself is both salient and modern.

Life on the frontier, and participating in the war against the native peoples of the west, is a symbol for the ever present but hidden truth of the situation all humanity is born to. We are in fact surrounded by death, the impermanence of peace, and are ourselves both perpetrator and victim of a chaotic and violent world, obscured by our technology and culture. The seeming order of the world is at once replete and incredibly delicate in the face of real crisis, a tension between the calming influence of tradition and the terror of survival in the face of death. An apt analogy for this is the difference between sitting down for an evening meal purchased at a store, and roaming starved through the wilderness with only your wits and a sharp stick to help you survive 'til morning. The former is disconnected from a state of pure being, while the latter is entirely composed of it. We could also describe this as the animal within, the part of humanity which doesn't think but acts instinctually. This state of being lays beneath the tradition and culture stacked on top of it, a reality hidden beneath a reality.

The contrast between this connected world of pure being with Captain Blocker (suffering from PTSD and in denial about the guilt he feels from perpetrating atrocities) and Rosalie Quaid (a Job-like figure who had her family murdered in front of her and was later found in ashes) and the disconnected world of the Harper's journalist and the wife of Lt. McCowan bring this presence of this "hiddeness" to light. The journalist blithely mocks Blocker's apparent bigotry and pain, openly laughing at his suffering from behind a camera. That's a bit on the nose, but I mentally hung a sign on that character which read "this guy is us looking back and glibly judging the past". 

In a similar vein, Minnie McCowan discussed the treatment of Native Americans over food as idle dinner conversation, or to elevate herself as a person who cares about the downtrodden without actually doing anything other than talk. I hung a sign on her that reads "Facebook". In these scenes, the audience is able to see what the characters cannot, that their remoteness from the actual violence and reality of the world has made them detached and stupid, or using an existentialist word, inauthentic. This is why Quaid's decision to continue on the journey to Montana, through a wilderness filled with killers and rapists, instead of remaining in the safety of civilization was significant. It is better to accept difficult and deadly truths in order to face them directly, than to remain safe under the protected care of denial.

So this is the essential problem: How to awaken from a life of pure instinct without lulling oneself to sleep through self-deception, and taking responsibility for one's actions in the world? How does one find meaning in meaninglessness? In a scene by the camp fire Blocker is reading what appears to be "The Gallic Wars" by Julius Caesar, and Quaid asks him a question: "Do you believe in the Lord, Captain Blocker?" He responded, "Yes ma'am I do, but from my experience I don't believe he sees what's happening out here." Regardless of belief in God, the question remains, how do we act when it appears that we are the only actors either capable or willing to interact with the world? If there is a God, then it doesn't appear that's he's doing anything, so what now? Quaid's response is the turning point, the pivot of the entire film. She says, "I don't know how I would go on if not for my faith." 

There are at least three scenes that I remember which demonstrate living as a "leap into faith". Both Blocker and Quaid go through a similar process, they first deny that a horror has been visited on their lives, they scream at the sky, they claw at the ground, and then they contemplate suicide. It's at that point where they are presented with a choice, either to choose life, or choose to end it. In their cases, they both chose life, but why? Blocker and Quaid, each in their own way, ultimately chose to live for the purpose of relieving the suffering of others. They took the immense depth of their grief, a darkness so deep and a feeling of such abject powerlessness in the universe that they had no other recourse left than instinctual acts of futility (screaming, repeatedly shooting the dead), and turned it into an equally deep well of empathy. As they turned to "the other", they found both meaning and purpose, and a reason to continue. The "leap into faith" meant dropping the gun to their head for an unseen and unprovable future that held a yet unknown worth. Compare their journey to that of Sgt. Metz, who essentially faced the same crisis, but when he recognized his situation in the world, was unable to make the same leap. The choice of these characters are the same belonging to all humanity. Every new day is a leap into faith.

It's this turning toward "the other" as an act of faith which ultimately rescues Blocker and Quaid from the apparent hell of existence, symbolized by their moving from the dead and empty desert to the lush and living wilderness of Montana. The famous phrase by Sartre, "hell is other people", is not a pithy reference to describe our general annoyance with others, but meant to describe the process by which we see ourselves mirrored in the minds of others and we are tormented by how "other people" see us as we are seeing them. Before Blocker was able to see anyone else as an authentic human being like himself, he had to face the fact that both the image of himself and others was an obscuring of reality on par with that of the journalist and the McCowan's from the beginning of the movie.

Throughout his journey, Blocker had lied to himself for the purpose of avoiding responsibility for his actions. His atrocities were "just doing my job" (shades of Hannah Arendt's "Banality of Evil"), and his suffering was blamed on the actions of "the other", specifically Yellow Hawk. He couldn't accept what he had done, and who he was, because the truth was more painful than he could possibly live with. But then they picked up Sgt. Charles Wills in order to escort him back to a prison camp where he would be hanged for murder. Wills was a mirror for Blocker. When Blocker saw Wills, he saw himself, and when confronted with the reality that they "were the same" and that no one in the camp had the right to judge because they were all guilty of equal crimes, he was faced with the existential choice for a second time, another leap, another opportunity to uncover what he consciously did not want to accept. Unlike his previous crisis, where he went out alone in the desert with a gun in his hand, he turned toward Quaid and embraced her. She accepted him as himself, knowing his crimes, and knowing the truth. He did not retreat into denial, but accepted the truth of Will's statement for what it was. At that moment he was able to accept his own inner darkness, and then became capable of seeing and forgiving that darkness in others. He saw himself in the mirror, and instead of turning away, he made peace.

Wills was also a mirror for Metz, but instead of accepting those hard truths as Blocker had done, he rushed out to destroy them, killing Wills and then killing himself. Killing Wills was itself a symbolic suicide, turning the gun to his forehead was nothing more than finalizing the act. Instead of internalizing and transforming the truth, he lashed out and collapsed into a pessimistic nihilism. There was a pointlessness to the pursuit and no end or purpose to his suffering, so Metz killed himself. In a similar manner, Elk Woman was a mirror for Quaid. They were both mothers, both suffered through the loss of their children, were literally raped and figuratively so by the happenstance of their lives, but were able to break through that darkness by seeing themselves in the other. Elk Woman shared her dress, they protected one another, and Quaid ultimately adopted Elk Woman's son. The truth behind the suffering is that we are all human, all responsible to a degree, and we can find purpose through embracing the lie and denial which comes from killing the scapegoat, "the other" which acts as a receptacle for our guilt.

Blocker and Quaid suffered immensely, chose to live through a leap into faith, saw the truth about themselves through the mirror of the other, and took these experiences to extend their own humanity to encompass Yellow Hawk and his family. They were all the same, no longer "other", and at the point they were able to adopt this feeling of oneness, they finally became authentic human beings. They had been through the valley of the shadow of death, avoided the temptations of lies and denial, had struggled through the wilderness, ultimately returning to peace from a place of abject destruction. This is the human experience.