A rocket arrives to rescue the survivors of the doomed first mission to Mars. No one believes the sole survivor, Carruthers (Marshall Thompson,) that his 9 crew mates were killed by a monster. He is to be shipped back to Earth to stand trial for their murder. One crew member after another disappears and they are forced to believe the monster is real and aboard their ship!
MY THOUGHTS
A very entertaining and (at times) tense thriller
'It' plays disturbingly similar to Ridley Scott's Alien, just without the overwhelming claustrophobic atmosphere (or positive female roles.) The film does have some genuine tension which is rare for a 50's monster film.
The film is also reminiscent of the 1951 version of The Thing, just set in space. The human characters are all scientists battling an alien creature. The actors portraying them are uniformly wooden in both movies. The bland acting didn't hurt The Thing and it doesn't hurt It. Also coincidentally, the monsters were both played by cowboys. James Arness played The Thing and here Ray "Crash" Corrigan is It.
The monster suit could pass for a less cool-looking relative of the Creature From The Black Lagoon. Thankfully, the director wisely kept the creature in the shadows for most of the film. 'It' is certainly more menacing and creepy that way.
The script was able to keep create an intelligent film that is not hindered by its low budget. The action essentially takes place on only two sets. (Each level of the ship is merely the same set redressed.)
Despite the smart screenplay, there are a few glaring science errors that probably went over the heads of a 1950's audience that really stick out today.
It's noted the monster breathes oxygen... so what was it doing on oxygen-free Mars?
You're in a fragile space ship, so why are you firing guns and setting off grenades? The ship must have a good ventilation system to soak up all the explosive and cigarette smoke to keep the crew from dying of smoke inhalation. These are only the tip of the iceberg...
So if you just kick up your feet and turn off your brain you will certainly enjoy this classic monster flick.
An alcoholic drifter and former country singer (Robert Duvall) is unable to pay his bill at a small motel in Texas, he volunteers to work it off. Soon he falls in love with the motel's owner Rosa Lee (Tess Harper) and marries her. He begins to pull his troubled life together and maybe plot a comeback as he is able to reconnect with his estranged daughter (Ellen Barkin) while bonding with Rosa Lee's young son (Allan Hubbard.)
MY THOUGHTS
Many of the best indie dramas since the 90's have been low-budget 'small films' that were well-written and showcases for great actors portraying interesting, if troubled, characters. Those countless films clearly used Tender Mercies as a template. 2009's Crazy Heart is a great example and it borrows more than a little from this film and is probably one of the better examples of the influence of this film.
Robert Duvall has always been one of the best actors out there and this is one of his best roles. Often a supporting performer elsewhere, he shines in the lead as Mac Sledge. Sledge is a difficult role especially with balancing the darker elements with the lighter, dry comedic aspects of the character. Mac Sledge and his world seems very real. It's a very subtle and subdued performance that fits the character like a glove (or guitar.) The subtle way he is able to make that transformation from a dark soul to a warm and centered one because of a the love of a woman is the highlight of the film. He definitely deserved the Oscar for Best Actor that he won here.
The supporting performances augment the fine performance by Robert Duvall, as do the direction and screenplay,. They help make Mac Sledge one of the main highlights of his long successful career.
You do not need to be a fan of country music to find the film to be great. The film speaks at a far deeper level. You will be able to reflect on your own problems as Mac tries to conquer his.
When aging CIA agent Miles Kendig (Walter Matthau) is put out to pasture, he quits. In order to get back at his boss (Ned Beatty,) he vows to write his memoirs which will reveal critical secrets of all the major world powers. Kendig sends his book out one chapter at a time to all the involved parties and tries to stay one step ahead of them... who will stop at nothing to keep him from publishing the book.
MY THOUGHTS
A very entertaining and fun cat and mouse spy tale.
The script of Hopscotch moves with the intelligence and suspense of the best of James Bond films, though it is a very different animal.
It's that different animal because of Walter Matthau. The film offers him a great opportunity to display his unique skills to their fullest. Matthau was equally adept with comedy and drama. His wholly original mix of charisma, charm and gruffness is used to perfect effect here. He handles the mix of high comedy and high drama far better than, and with far more sophistication and subtlety, than Roger Moore's James Bond.
Hopscotch also benefits from Matthau's genuine chemistry with Glenda Jackson, playing an old flame. The two make for a quirky but realistic couple.
The film is also filled with many other great actors in supporting roles which flesh out the world and Kendig's character like Herbert Lom as Kendig's Russian counterpart and a young Sam Waterston as Kendig's protege who's forced to go after him, yet admiring and rooting for him the whole way.
Matthau is great with comedy and drama and Hopscotch is perfectly able to balance them. The comedy never lets you forget that Kendig is in serious and life-threatening trouble... or destroys the realism the film is able to maintain. Yet at the same time, the drama never gets too heavy handed and is often broken up at just the right time by a one-liner or crazy situation. It never gets too silly or overly dramatic to be believable and that is a very difficult balance to maintain.
A perfect film for lovers of Walter Matthau or fans of spy films looking to laugh.
1946 - 20th Century Fox
Directed By Alfred L. Werker
SYNOPSIS
Janet Stewart (Anabel Shaw) goes to San Fransisco to meet her returning POW husband (Frank Latimore.) She gazes out her window at witnesses a man murdering his wife. She goes into a severe shock. Her psychologist (Vincent Price) just so happens to be the murderer... and he will stop at nothing to make sure she is unable to tell.
MY THOUGHTS
Vincent Price shines in an average b-movie.
The film is a part of the Fox Film Noir series and like many of those entries, calling it 'noir' is a little iffy. The extreme shadowing and unique camera angles are barely evident here. Perhaps it's due to the film's b-movie status and quick shooting schedule. It was shot in just 19 days.
Thematically it does fit the noir category. Murder and deceitful characters are essential noir elements. The film seems more than a little influenced by Hitchcock's Spellbound.
Shock is also able to create and maintain a decent level of suspense throughout... though calling the film 'Shock' is a bit misleading. Janet Stewart may be in shock, but the film is not shocking at all. It's rather routine instead.
The characters spout all sorts of psychological jargon and theories. Some of it seems real, while the rest seems as phony as the technobabble in 50's sci-fi B-movies.
Vincent Price is able to spout the occasionally silly babble without seeming ridiculous. Whether in horror films or otherwise, Price always shined playing dark shady roles. The roles seemed to always be written to be 'all bad' yet Price is always able to make them seem more human and real. This is one of them, and he's a delight to watch.
All in all, it's an entertaining film, if a bit predictable.
Country singer Bad Blake (Jeff Bridges) has led a rough life on the road... too much booze, smokes and ex-wives. He meets a young journalist (Maggie Gyllenhaal) and falls for her and her 4 year old boy (Jack Nation.) After a car accident, Bad finds out his destructive lifestyle is killing him and stops touring. His relationship inspires him to write songs for the first time in years... but his alcoholism stands to doom their coupling.
MY THOUGHTS
A ho-hum movie containing an amazing performance.
You cannot begin to discuss this film without singling out the amazing job by Jeff Bridges. Bad Blake is created wholly in the flesh and seems to be a real person like Waylon Jennings who just happens to have an invisible camera on him as he goes about his life. Bridges' bushy beard ages him perfectly to give him that look of a man that lived a rough life.
It may not be his single best performance, but it's up there. Bad Blake is the sort of flawed, troubled character that Oscar likes to single out come awards time, so Bridges finally won his first statue for this film.
Who knew he could sing so well? If he wasn't such a great actor, I would definitely say he missed his calling.
The music is outstanding. It's sad what passes for country music these days doesn't hold a candle to these songs. Music producer T-Bone Burnett was also responsible for the soundtracks to O Brother Where Art Thou? and Cold Mountain (among others) and this collection of songs is just as strong.
Storywise, the film offers little new. It's your typical troubled musician story that plays like a dramatized version of VH-1's Behind The Music. The script feels like it's puzzled, unsure whether to tell a plot-driven story or deliver a character study... so it does a bit of both and moves at an unsteady and unsure pace.
The Bridges/Gyllenhall relationship is a bit awkward, as is their chemistry.The whole 'lonely single mother looking for any man's attention' cliche is in full effect. But that doesn't bring the film down... and in fact helps flesh out the Bad Blake character.
Crazy Heart is not a very original tale, but it's one that is made great by Jeff Bridges amazing portrayal.
Two decades after an alien mothership breaks down over Johannesburg, government agent Wikus (Sharlto Copley) is put in charge of moving the alien refugees to a new camp. Wikus is exposed to biotechnology and is slowly turning into one of the aliens. In order to be cured, he must team up with an alien and get some missing fuel to return the alien drop-ship to the mothership.
MY THOUGHTS
At it's best, science fiction is able to tackle contemporary social issues and address them in an abstract way, and bring the viewer (or reader) new insight.
The original Star Trek TV series is one great example. Because the writing was so strong, it was enough to make you forget how bad many of the sets looked, hammy performances, bad special effects. The show was able to make subtle, yet powerful, statements about racism, the Cold War, Vietnam and dozens more issues. With it's sci-fi bent and subtle storytelling, the show was able to slip this commentary right under the nose of the TV censors, who would have completely rejected the episodes and keep them off the airwaves.
District 9 boldly attempts to be relevant and meaningful in the same way... but fails. The film flaunts it's views on racism and xenophobia within the first few moments, completely without any subtlety and never lets up.
It's like being repeatedly bashed in the head by a croquet mallet. Once is enough, but it keeps hammering away until you've bled out.
The camera never passes up a chance to linger on the 'no non-human loitering' signs - clearly a take on the old 'white's only' signs in 20th century America. The film is set in South Africa, no stranger to racial problems in recent times. The alien's camp resembles any refugee camp you'd see on the news or even a WW2 concentration camp. This message would have been as easily tackled in a 5 minute short.
Especially with it's setting, no doubt the screenwriters got help from this book:
The social commentary is grafted onto a basic action plot that's as unrealistic as any Steven Seagal movie. The wimpy, nerdy (not to mention sick and injured) Wikus is able to escape from an underground quarantine lab in "the most guarded building in the world." Unlikely.
With the entire world alerted to his escape, he is able to go into hiding. Wikus (now add malnourishment to his list of woes) and an alien return to the same heavily guarded building, break in, and take the vital fuel for the alien's ship and are able to escape again with relative ease. The authorities know exactly where they are headed yet cannot stop them. Preposterous.
This fuel that they go get is also somehow responsible for turning Wikus into an alien. How?
When things begin to look very grim, some sort of alien mechanical suit magically shows up for Wikus to wear which looks like the lovechild of Ripley's mechanical suit from Aliens and a Michael BayTransformer. Ugh.
A 'clever' way to write yourself out of a script jam.
We're introduced to the characters and situations in a documentary style*, which ultimately feels just like the reality garbage people are force-fed every night on television. I, for one, avoid television for this reason and despise the fact its creeping into cinema. The film forgets this as the plot gets going but reverts to the documentary style whenever it slows down. (*I hate to use the term 'cinema verite' here because style and subtlety are so crucial, which are completely lacking in District 9)
District 9 never fails to cut to 'live news footage' to make a statement about the overeager news media. Somehow their news tickers are able to report things like 'massive casualties' mere seconds after an incident happens. Any reputable news source would wait to confirm information like that before putting it out there (even Fox News!) So.... is it commentary on the media... or poor writing/filmmaking? You decide.
None of the human or alien characters are remotely interesting. Sharlto Copley (as Wikus) does a decent job, but Wikus is pretty much an asshole and an idiot at the beginning of the film, so when he's infected, we don't give a crap. Every other character is one dimensional. Even Wikus' close alien ally, Christopher, isn't given much personality. It's hard to feel bad for the aliens because we never really get to know any.
The bloody action and special effects are nicely done, especially considering the film's small budget. District 9 is well paced and picks up steam, moving like a roller-coaster. But it's not enough to save the film.
It is absolutely ridiculous District 9 was nominated for a Best Picture Oscar, but then again so was Crash, which also tackled racism with the subtlety of a nuclear bomb blast.
District 9 is the type of film that morons would claim as being meaningful and important.
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