Piper Laurie – People Talking

Classic Twofer – ‘The Wizard of Oz’ & ‘Return to Oz’ – Double Rainbow?

Oh, you thought we were done with kindertrauma after Willy Wonka?

We are in no way done with kindertrauma here.

Now, for clarity’s sake, the two films I’m talking about in this post did both play at the Mahoning Drive-In early this season, but not together (they were actually in separate double bills). I just thought it more fitting (and fun) to review them side-by-side.

Directed by Victor Fleming
Written by Noel Langley & Florence Ryerson, and Edgar Allan Woolf, based on the novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
Cast: Judy Garland, Frank Morgan, Ray Bolger, Jack Haley, Bert Lahr, Billie Burke, Margaret Hamilton, Charley Grapewin, Pat Walshe, Clara Blandick
Soundtrack: Harold Arlen (music), E.Y. Harburg (lyrics)

Honestly, I didn’t much care for this movie.

Now, listen, much like Willy Wonka, The Wizard of Oz is so ingrained into pop culture that it doesn’t matter if I think it’s a classic or not; it simply is at this point. In fact, I’d say you should watch it once just because it’ll unlock a whole world of jokes and references for you, but that doesn’t mean you should feel obligated to thoroughly enjoy it.

Which is not to say I hated it. I really liked Frank Morgan as Professor Marvel/The Wizard; I actually wish he had more legitimate screen time (I know he pops up in a few other parts; don’t e-mail me), but I understand that would hold up the story.

I think my biggest issue is that the film seems to rely so much on the turn from “real world” sepia to “Land of Oz” technicolor to wow audiences that the filmmakers just didn’t think of entertaining people in the same way as other strictly black and white movies of the time. To put it more simply, The Wizard of Oz just doesn’t hold up for me; and I’ve seen enough other films from the Thirties that do hold up and that I would recommend (It Happened One Night comes to mind).

Beyond that, to draw another comparison to Willy Wonka, I don’t mind the musical numbers in that one, but I can largely do without them in Oz; which, I know, that’s the whole point of casting Judy Garland, but she’s also 16 or 17 trying to play younger, and that takes me out of it as well (I do feel bad for the awful things she went through in her career though, including this film, so don’t think me heartless there).

Much respect to Toto though.

Rating: ★★½ (out of five)

Directed by Walter Murch
Written by Walter Murch & Gill Dennis, based on the novels The Marvelous Land of Oz and Ozma of Oz by L. Frank Baum
Cast: Fairuza Balk, Nicol Williamson, Jean Marsh, Sophie Ward, Fiona Victory, Piper Laurie, Matt Clark, Emma Ridley, Justin Case, Pons Maar, Bruce Boa, Denise Bryer, Sean Barrett, Brian Henson, Lyle Conway, Beatrice Murch, Mak Wilson, Timothy D. Rose, Michael Sundin, Stewart Larange, Stephen Norrington, Deep Roy, John Alexander
Soundtrack: David Shire

Now, THIS is a beat I can dance to!
(Ironically, there are no musical numbers in Return to Oz, which is a positive.)

One last criticism I have of 1939’s The Wizard of Oz is that I just struggle to feel the stakes of it, but that’s not a problem with Return, because within the first ten minutes a ten-year-old girl is threatened with shock therapy if she doesn’t shut up about that gott-dang Land of Oz.

BOOM! I’m in!

And she’s an actual ten-year-old girl. She doesn’t have to play vulnerable; she simply is. That helps. Much respect to young Fairuza Balk, who carries so much of the film on her shoulders. As stated, Wizard of Oz is so iconic, it couldn’t have been easy to slip into the shoes of a character like Dorothy Gale after more than forty years of history, but I really appreciate the switch to a younger actress in the role.

Another difference between the “original” and Return is that while the ’39 movie was, to my knowledge, shot entirely on sound stages, large swaths of Return are actually filmed outside, which also helps give credence to the stakes, despite some quite fantastical moments.

I know one aspect of Return to Oz that many people find disappointing (or at least did when they saw it as children) is that Dorothy has a new traveling crew, while Scarecrow, Tin Man, and the Cowardly Lion are pretty much relegated to the sidelines, but I have to say that I love the new characters (especially Tik-Tok, the mechanical one man Army of Oz); not to mention that it probably would have been a less interesting sequel if it was just the same foursome again.

Also, the rest of the human cast is really solid, particularly Nicol Williamson and Jean Marsh as the heavies.

I’d be remiss though if I didn’t mention the visual effects, which were rightfully Oscar-nominated. Some are obviously quaint now after so many years, but many are still breathtaking (not a total surprise give that one of the supervisors was Zoran Perisic, who made Christopher Reeve fly in Superman I, II, and III). Even the stop-motion effects, which often don’t age fantastically, hold up fairly well.

One last shout-out I’ll give is to David Shire for the musical score. It may not be culturally iconic like “Over the Rainbow” but it serves the movie perfectly.

Rating: ★★★½ (out of five)

So, look, as I said, The Wizard of Oz is a classic no matter what I say. It doesn’t need me.

Return to Oz, on the other hand, has been a “cult film” all my life, and I think it deserves a bit more than that, so if you want to say I’m caping up for it, I’m proud to wear that.

I mean, I’ve defended Superman IV. You think I’m ashamed of Return to Oz?

Please.

Twofer Movie Review – ‘The Predator’ and ‘White Boy Rick’ – On the Hunt

Full disclosure, it’s been such a down year for movies (especially compared to last year) that I may be overrating both of these, but what are you going to do?

Directed by Shane Black
Written by Fred Dekker & Shane Black, based on characters created by Jim & John Thomas
Cast: Boyd Holbrook, Trevante Rhodes, Jacob Tremblay, Olivia Munn, Sterling K. Brown, Keegan-Michael Key, Thomas Jane, Alfie Allen, Augusto Aguilera, Yvonne Strahovski, Jake Busey, Niall Matter, Brian A. Prince
Soundtrack: Henry Jackman

Shane Black films are notoriously difficult to market because he has such a specific tone (and often suffers from studio interference), The Predator being no exception, but I think his fans get largely what they expect from him with this one, as the movie feels like a mix of John McTiernan’s 1987 original with another film from that same year, The Monster Squad, which seems appropriate given that Black and [Fred] Dekker wrote that one as well.

It’s a shame that the title is such soft reboot nonsense, because this is a legitimate sequel, keeping at least Predator and Predator 2 in canon (I’ve still not seen Predators even though everybody tells me it’s alright; I’ll get to it eventually). Certain fan service moments feel a bit cringy, but overall I can’t fault Black and Dekker for wanting to make a movie for existing fans, while also putting their own stamp on it (and I really appreciated Henry Jackman’s adaptation of many pieces from Alan Silvestri’s scores from the first two, giving the film a nice throwback feel at least in the music).

Now, I’ve seen at least one person call the movie “a mess”, and I can understand why they would say that, because there are a number of elements that shouldn’t necessarily be in the same film together, but, nevertheless, I had fun, which is all I really wanted (and if nothing else it’s a more satisfying experience than Predator 2).

And I’m so glad it’s R-rated.

Rating: ★★★★☆

Directed by Yann Demange
Written by Andy Weiss and Logan & Noah Miller
Cast: Richie Merritt, Matthew McConaughey, Bel Powley, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Brian Tyree Henry, Rory Cochrane, RJ Cyler, Jonathan Majors, Eddie Marsan, Bruce Dern, Piper Laurie, YG, Taylour Paige, Danny Brown, IshDARR, Kyanna Simone Simpson, Kwon Haynes
Soundtrack: Max Richter

The synopsis for this movie is in big, bold letters right on the poster, so there’s no need to waste too much time on it, but suffice it to say it’s a story worth bringing to the silver screen.

White Boy Rick effectively rests on the shoulders of two actors, newcomer Richie Merritt and old hand Matthew McConaughey, and they carry it with aplomb.

Sure, the true life story is actually interesting, and I can’t think of a supporting actor who truly sticks out like a sore thumb, but without these two guys executing at the level that they do, the film would be much worse off.

Of course I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention director Yann Demange (if he wasn’t already he’s definitely a director to keep an eye on now), who manages to bring together an entertaining yet poignant movie out of some pretty dark and dour material. I’m sure some people will try to argue that the movie glorifies crime (like always), but I think it’s akin to Goodfellas in terms of a frank look at the lifestyle, the reasoning, and the consequences.

Lastly, composer Max Richter continues to do outstanding minimalist work, and his score for White Boy Rick is pitch perfect, appropriately apportioning synth-wave and traditional sounds with the right touch of melody and dissonance when needed.

And, again, I’m glad the movie’s R-rated.

Rating: ★★★★☆

Quick Thoughts – Summer Round-Up, Part 3

Continued from Part 2…

‘Over the Top’ (1987)

Schlock producer extraordinaire Menahem Golan didn’t direct too many movies in the Eighties, but he did direct this one, and it may be responsible for changing the structure of Hollywood, for better or worse. You see, Golan really, REALLY wanted Stallone for this, but Stallone wasn’t interested, so Golan just kept offering him more and more money until Stallone finally said yes. You can bet the eyes of many movie stars and agents went wide after that coup.

Anyway, what do we have here? Quite simply, it’s Sylvester Stallone having to arm wrestle his way to getting custody of his annoying son. Oh, and he’s a truck driver; and you’ll definitely want to go buy some Brut afterwards.

It’s not my favorite film of Sly’s by a long shot, but it’s entertaining enough to get your Stallone (or Kenny Loggins) fix, if that’s what you’re looking for.

Rating: ★★★☆☆

‘Creature from the Black Lagoon’ (1954)

I never expected my first thought after leaving the theater to be, “I can’t believe how smart that movie was.”

Yes, sure, the science probably doesn’t hold up well by 2015 standards, but I think they earnestly tried to be serious about it, which is the mark of good science fiction; and there’s some interesting subtext in the ideological conflict between two of the scientists (One of them’s like, “I just want to science,” and the the other one’s like, “We can science a whole lot more if we can get more money.”).

The creature still looks great, the underwater photography is still captivating, and the story is much more than dumb B-movie monster trash.

Perfectly entertaining Halloween fare.

Rating: ★★★★☆

‘Back to the Future’ (1985)

When I was a kid, I always thought I liked ‘Part II’ better, because of all the future stuff, but now that I’m older (and have seen it theatrically), I realize just how incredible this movie is.

Like so many ideas “The Two Bobs” (Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale) came up with, this is one that really should have never worked, or gotten off the ground in the first place.

Thank God they had an advocate in Steven Spielberg to help bring it to fruition, and the rest is history: two sequels and an untold amount of cultural influence (“You like ‘Huey Lewis and the News‘?).

Much like ‘Ghostbusters’ (another 5-star movie), ‘Back to the Future’ is a blend of two genres, in this case comedy and sci-fi, that works well in both areas. You could say it’s as if somebody wrote a really lighthearted and funny episode of “The Twilight Zone”. Also, like Ghostbusters, the casting is pitch perfect from top to bottom, and everybody gets a chance to put a stamp on their performance.

If you’ve somehow never seen it, get on that. October 21st is right around the corner…

Rating: ★★★★★

‘Mako: The Jaws of Death’ (1976)

Believe it or not, this is not a ‘Jaws’ ripoff.

Other than the presence of sharks, and the word ‘Jaws’ in the title, there’s pretty much nothing to link this film to Steven Spielberg’s epic.

‘Mako’, rather, is another one in the line of “Man with psychic connection to animals exacts revenge and/or murder on people” movies, that I guess started with ‘Willard’ (1971) and ended with ‘Willard’ (2003).

This is not what I’d call a legitimately good movie, but it at least manages to keep your interest for ninety minutes with some entertaining sequences (like Harold “Odd Job” Sakata getting towed into port by a runaway boat), and some general funny-bad moments; and, like ‘Creature from the Black Lagoon’ and ‘Thunderball’, the underwater shots still look great.

For a mid-70s Cannon release, this is perfectly acceptable.

Rating: ★★★☆☆

‘The Hustler’ (1961)

I went into this thinking it would just be a cool movie about a pool shark hustling people, but it turned out to be so much more than that. I realize how pretentious this will sound, but ‘The Hustler’ is among the most existential films I’ve ever seen. because while it is a story about “Fast Eddie” the pool hall hustler, it’s really about Eddie Felson learning to be truly human, experience love and loss and all that comes with it; and also there are amazing scenes of pool playing.

My main criticism is that it’s a bit long, and certain things are dragged out more than necessary, but it’s not enough to quench all of the great performances.

Paul Newman is as you’d expect, Piper Laurie is amazingly vulnerable, George C. Scott is deliciously nefarious, and Jackie Gleason is cooler than you could have ever imagined him to be (and, I believe, does all of his pool shots himself); and Murray Hamilton shows up to do Murray Hamilton things.

It’ll unfortunately probably bore much of today’s audience, but, for me, it’s easy to see why this one is considered such a classic.

Rating: ★★★★☆