Review: "The Illusionist" Casts a Spell (Happy B'day, Jessica Biel)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 36 (of 2007) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Illusionist (2006)
Running time: 110 minutes (1 hour, 50 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for some sexual and violent content
DIRECTOR: Neil Burger
WRITER: Neil Burger (based upon the short story “Eisenheim the Illusionist” by Steven Millhauser)
PRODUCERS: Michael London, Brian Koppelman, David Levien, and Bob Yari & Cathy Schulman
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Dick Pope, BSC
EDITOR: Naomi Geraghty
2007 Academy Award nominee

DRAMA/FANTASY/MYSTERY/ROMANCE

Starring: Edward Norton, Paul Giamatti, Jessica Biel, Rufus Sewell, Eddie Marson, Jake Wood, Tom Fisher, Karl Johnson, Eleanor Tomlinson, and Aaron Johnson

The subject of this movie review is The Illusionist, a 2006 period drama written and directed by Neil Burger. Burger loosely bases his screenplay on “Eisenheim the Illusionist,” a 1989 short story by Pulitzer Prize-winner, Steven Millhauser.

When he was a boy, Eduard Abramovicz (Aaron Johnson) fell in love with the Duchess Sophie von Teschen (Eleanor Tomlinson) an aristocrat well above his social standing. Her parents kept them apart, so Eduard left his home and traveled the world. Early 1900’s, Eduard returns to Vienna as Eisenheim the Illusionist (Edward Norton), an extraordinary conjurer and master magician. During one of his performances, Eisenheim fatefully encounters the Duchess (Jessica Biel), now a beautiful young woman engaged to marry Crown Prince Leopold (Rufus Sewell). Eisenheim employs his powers to win back her love, which is not necessary, as she never stopped loving him.

While Sophie is smitten with Eisenheim, Leopold feels threatened by the stage magician’s strange tricks, and attempts to apply cold logic to expose what he sees as Eisenheim’s scams. Leopold, however, has a history of abusing his female companions, and his apparent assault of Sophie during a jealous rage pits him against the illusionist extraordinaire in a duel of authority and stage magic. Caught in the middle of Eisenheim and Leopold’s feud is Chief Inspector Walter Uhl (Paul Giamatti), who deeply admires Eisenheim’s skills, but must serve Leopold if he wishes to advance socially and politically.

In his film, The Illusionist, director Neil Burger uses a mesmerizing performance by two-time Oscar nominee Edward Norton (Primal Fear, American History X) to deliver an enchanting supernatural mystery tale full of forbidden romance, imperial politics, and dazzling magic. Burger and cinematographer Dick Pope use autochrome photography to take the recognizable world and transfer it to the realm of mystery where everything is beautiful, but also has a disturbing undertone. Director and cinematographer saturate the world of The Illusionist in gold and green and then, allow the shadows to play ever so slightly on the edges of the picture’s frame. It’s a unique look that heightens the sense of magic, mystery, dreams, and that feeling of an otherness – the paranormal.

Not only did Burger build an enthralling world with his creative staff, but he also allowed his actors to play, guiding their considerable talents into selling this narrative. Paul Giamatti is excellent as the Chief Inspector Uhl, who admires Eisenheim, but is trapped between a rock and a hard place as Leopold’s strong-arm man. Giamatti wears his emotions on his face quite well – obvious, but with subtlety and grace, so he lets us see the struggle. Uhl admires Eisenheim even as he must control him. Sewell is super intense as Leopold, and he also allows to the audience to see the brilliant mind behind the face of a man with control issues. Jessica Biel is tolerable, but even her best moments seem weak compared to everyone else.

Still, this movie’s star is Edward Norton. Intelligent and intense, Norton always brings an air of elegance to his performances. Truthfully, he’s just too damn talented, and the fire of his abilities can burn through a weekly structured film. Here, there is no such problem. Norton’s Eisenheim is dark and mysterious, and we are drawn to this handsome creature who seems to have dark forces at play behind his placid face and his genial smile. Norton never lets us truly know Eisenheim, but he draws us to the character like moths to the magician’s exquisite flame. In the end, The Illusionist leaves so many questions unanswered, and it is indeed a great film that makes the viewer love the magic, mystery, and the great unknown of that which is supernatural. Neither The Illusionist nor its star character will let us know how a magician does “it,” but that won’t stop the audience from being spellbound and loving both.

8 of 10
A

NOTES:
2007 Academy Awards: 1 nomination: “Best Achievement in Cinematography” (Dick Pope)

Friday, February 16, 2007

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Review: "The Thing" 2011 Suffers Next to "The Thing" 1982

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 17 (of 2012) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Thing (2011)
Running time: 103 minutes; MPAA – R for strong creature violence and gore, disturbing images, and language
DIRECTOR: Matthijs van Heijningen Jr.
WRITER: Eric Heisserer (based upon the story “Who Goes There” by John W. Campbell, Jr.)
PRODUCERS: Marc Abraham and Eric Newman
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Michel Abramowicz
EDITORS: Peter Boyle, Julian Clarke, and Jono Griffith
COMPOSER: Marco Beltrami

SCI-FI/HORROR/THRILLER/MYSTERY

Starring: Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Joel Edgerton, Ulrich Thomsen, Eric Christian Olsen, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Paul Braumstein, Trond Espen Seim, Kim Bubbs, Jørgen Langhelle, Jan Gunnar Røise, and Stig Henrik Hoff

One thing that becomes clearer to a budding writer as he or she develops writing skills is the importance of conflict. Sometimes horror movies are less about conflict than they are about cheap scares.

Who Goes There? is a novella written by John W. Campbell, Jr. under the pen name Don A. Stuart. It was first published in the August 1938 issue of Astounding Science Fiction. The story is about group of scientific researchers in Antarctica and their encounter with an alien that assumes the shape, memories, and personality of any living thing it devours. The Howard Hawks/Christian Nyby film, The Thing from Another World (1951), is a loose adaptation of the Who Goes There? The 1982 John Carpenter movie, The Thing, was a remake of the 1951 film, but Carpenter’s version (written by Bill Lancaster) was more faithful to Campbell’s novella. There is a third film adaptation of Who Goes There?

The Thing is a 2011 science fiction horror film that acts as a prequel to the events depicted in Carpenter’s 1982 film. Not only are the Hawks and Carpenter films among my favorite movies, but I also consider them two of the great science fiction and horror movies of all time. The Thing 2011 pits scientists against a sneaky alien menace, but much of the movie lacks conflict or struggle.

The Thing 2011 is set in and around Thule Station, a Norwegian research station in Antarctica. The scientists and researchers at the station have just discovered a spacecraft buried deep beneath the ice. One of the scientists recruits American paleontologist, Kate Lloyd (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), to come to Thule, where Kate learns that the scientists have also discovered a survivor from the spacecraft buried in the ice. The scientists return the alien to the station in a block of ice, but they soon learn that the alien is still alive. Now, it is consuming and replicating people in the station, and Kate seems to be the only one who truly understands the situation. But will she be able to tell the difference between the real humans and the copies?

The Thing 2011, directed by Matthijs van Heijningen Jr., is loving and respectful of John Carpenter’s 1982 film. In some ways, Heijningen’s film is as much a remake of Carpenter’s film as it is a prequel, but I think that’s why the new film comes out being a fairly average science fiction horror film. The first hour of this movie seems like nothing more than procedure, as if the director and screenwriter were more determined to set up a scenario rather than tell a story. I could feel the weight of Carpenter’s classic film weighing down the narrative of this new movie. Perhaps, Universal Pictures would have been better off remaking Carpenter’s movie or making (dare I say) the more daring choice and producing a sequel to the 1982 movie.

It doesn’t help that the characters are not interesting. They seem like a bunch of dull people standing around a boring party hoping that something will happen to liven up things. That “something” is the alien, and when it finally starts attacking like a mad-monster big dog, Kate and a few other characters suddenly seem interesting. That’s because the story finally embraces conflict and struggle. The human/alien conflict creates a struggle to live, and when human characters struggle to live in fiction, we pretty much always pull for them. The alien’s struggle to survive (which means killing humans) certainly makes the story more interesting.

When there is no conflict, the movie is a bust, but for about 20 minutes during this movie’s second half, it is actually first-rate science fiction-horror. Then, it starts to misfire again, alternating ridiculous and cool. The Thing has such cheap scares as what’s-around-the-corner, the monster attacks, and the ambiguous shadows, etc. There is potential here, but most of it is wasted. The Thing 2011 is mostly just an awkward love letter to a better movie, so please watch John Carpenter’s The Thing, if you haven’t seen it already. Or if you have, see it again; it’s always a pleasure to watch.

5 of 10
C+

Thursday, March 01, 2012

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Disney's "Lady and the Tramp" Remains Romance Movie Classic

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 62 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux


Lady and the Tramp (1955) – animation
Running time: 76 minutes (1 hour, 16 minutes)
DIRECTORS: Clyde Geronomi, Wilfred Jackson, and Hamilton Luske
WRITERS: Erdman Penner, Joe Rinaldi, Ralph Wright, and Don DaGradi (based upon the story Happy Dan, the Whistling Dog by Ward Greene)
PRODUCER: Walt Disney
EDITOR: Don Halliday
BAFTA Award nominee

ANIMATION/COMEDY/MUSICAL/ROMANCE with elements of drama

Starring: (voices) Peggy Lee, Barbara Luddy, Larry Roberts, Bill Thompson, Bill Baucom, Stan Freberg, Verna Felton, and Lee Millar

Lady and the Tramp is a 1955 animated romantic film from Walt Disney Pictures. It was the 15th full-length animated feature film from Disney and is based in part on a short story originally published in Cosmopolitan Magazine. The film centers on the growing romantic relationship between two dogs, a female American Cocker Spaniel, who is from an upper middle-class family, and a male mutt who is a stray.

Because of drama and turmoil in her owners’ home, Lady (Barbara Luddy), a pampered and sheltered cocker spaniel, wanders away from the safety of her neighborhood and meets Tramp (Larry Roberts), a jolly, freedom-loving, and streetwise mutt with a heart of gold. They share romantic adventures that occasionally imperil their safety while they move towards an inevitable union. Memorable songs (written by Sonny Burke and Peggy Lee) and memorable characters including the twin Pekingese cats, Si and Am (Peggy Lee), highlight this classic, Disney’s fifteenth animated feature.

Lady and the Tramp remains Walt Disney’s signature romantic animated film; although romance often plays a part in their full-length animated films; this is the Disney animated love story. It exemplifies two particular elements that really stand out in a Disney animated features – the art of beauty and technical skills. The character animation is beautifully drawn making even characters meant to be ugly or villainous quite gorgeous and handsome eye candy. The background art, backdrops, and sets are also elegant, even stunning. The technical virtuosity on display is simply dazzling; this is text book work on animating animals. Characters move with such grace and precision that the film looks, on one hand, like museum quality high art, and, on the other hand, has such striking realism in terms of movement and rhythm.

Lady and the Tramp is probably best known for its romantic heart. A melodic score, charming and adorable songs, and the star-crossed pair of Lady and the Tramp make this an animated film that captures the romantic in the hearts of young and old viewers. That’s why this film is so memorable and also well-remembered by adults who first saw it as a child – a true Disney classic.

9 of 10
A+

Sunday, April 2, 2006

NOTES:
1956 BAFTA Awards: 1 nomination: “Best Animated Film” (USA)

"Real Steel" Has Real Heart

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 8 (of 2012) by Leroy Douresseaux


Real Steel (2011)
Running time: 127 minutes (2 hours, 7 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for some violence, intense action and brief language
DIRECTOR: Shawn Levy
WRITERS: John Gatins; from a story by Dan Gilroy and Jeremy Leven (based upon Richard Matheson’s short story "Steel")
PRODUCERS: Shawn Levy, Susan Montford, and Don Murphy
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Mauro Fiore
EDITOR: Dean Zimmerman
COMPOSER: Danny Elfman

SCI-FI/DRAMA/FAMILY with elements of action and sports

Starring: Hugh Jackman, Dakota Goyo, Evangeline Lilly, Anthony Mackie, Kevin Durand, Hope Davis, James Rebhorn, Karl Yune, and Olga Fonda

Real Steel is a 2011 science fiction boxing drama from director Shawn Levy (Night at the Museum), and Steven Spielberg and Robert Zemeckis are among this film’s executive producers. Real Steel’s screenplay is based upon Richard Matheson’s short story, “Steel,” which was also adapted into a 1963 episode of The Twilight Zone. Although the film’s boxing sequences offer plenty of action, Real Steel’s heart is a gripping father/son story that will jerk a few tears from some viewers (as it did with me).

The film is set in the near future, the year 2020. By then, robot boxing has replaced human boxing as a top sport. Charles “Charlie” Kenton (Hugh Jackman) is a former boxer turned robot boxing promoter. Charlie’s most recent robot boxer, a robot named “Ambush,” is destroyed in a fight, and his erstwhile partner/girlfriend, Bailey Tallet (Evangeline Lilly), thinks that it is time for Charlie to make a change. Then, Charlie’s life takes a stunning turn. He learns that his ex-girlfriend has died, and that means he must show up in court to decide the custody of his 11-year-old son, Max (Dakota Goyo), whom Charlie has not seen in a decade.

Max’s Aunt Debra (Hope Davis) and her wealthy husband, Marvin (James Rebhorn), want custody of Max, which Charlie is more than happy to give. Charlie makes a $100,000 deal with Marvin that would have Charlie keep Max over the summer. Charlie and his estranged son are at odds; then, Max discovers a second generation robot, called Atom. Suddenly, Max has dreams of the Real Steel Championship, but can an old boxer and an old robot climb up from the bottom of the heap?

I would not describe Real Steel as a robot version of the Oscar-winning film, Rocky, although Atom the robot is also a little guy/underdog in a world of elite boxers. Real Steel is about a father-son conflict, and before there can be hope of reconciliation, the screenplay makes father and son fight their way back to each other. I honestly bought this film’s conceit that Charlie and Max might not ultimately make it. Yes, the loser father reunited with his chip-on-shoulder son has been done to death in Hollywood films, but when done right, as it is here, it seems so fresh and new. Real Steel is exceptionally well-written because it makes the characters really work for that happy ending, while also offering science fiction/action set pieces that had me jumping out of my seat and cheering on the heroes.

Director Shawn Levy gets everything right. The character drama has excellent character and drama, and the sci-fi is fantastic. As the father, Charlie, and as the son, Max, Hugh Jackman and Dakota Goyo, respectively, carry this film in way that seems effortless. They may not be Oscar-worthy, but they’re close. Although I’m a big fan of Hugh Jackman, I ignored Real Steel when it was first released to theatres. I was so wrong, but now I can do right with my Real Steel movie review by recommending it.

8 of 10
A

NOTES:
2012 Academy Awards: 1 nomination: “Best Achievement in Visual Effects” (Erik Nash, John Rosengrant, Danny Gordon Taylor, and Swen Gillberg)

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Review: John Carpenter's "The Thing" Still a Great Thing

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 35 (of 2005) by Leroy Douresseaux

John Carpenter’s The Thing (1982)
Running time: 109 minutes (1 hour, 49 minutes)
MPAA – R
DIRECTOR: John Carpenter
WRITER: Bill Lancaster (based upon the story “Who Goes There” by John W. Campbell, Jr. writing as Don A. Stuart)
PRODUCER: David Foster and Lawrence Turman
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Dean Cundey
EDITOR: Todd Ramsay

SCI-FI/HORROR/THRILLER/MYSTERY

Starring: Kurt Russell, A. Wilford Brimley, T.K. Carter, David Clennon, Keith David, Richard A. Dysart, Charles Hallahan, Peter Maloney, Richard Masur, Donald Moffat, Joel Polis, and Thomas G. Waites

Considered a remake of Howard Hawk’s Cold War-era classic, The Thing from Another World, John Carpenter’s The Thing is actually an adaptation of a one of the early classic science fiction short stories by acclaimed science fiction editor and writer, John W. Campbell, Jr., (also the basis of Hawk’s film). Carpenter does pay homage to the Hawk’s film in a few scenes.

The film takes place in 1982 at an American research camp in Antarctica. After a violent encounter with two Norwegians from a nearby base camp, the Americans, led by MacReady (Kurt Russell), learn that the Norwegians had discovered an alien space craft buried in the Antarctic ice and an alien passenger lying frozen near the craft. When the Norwegians thawed the creature, they discovered that the thing was still alive. The creature can absorb and take on the identities of living creatures. Now, the creature is loose in the American base, and MacReady leads the human survivors in discovering who among them is still human and who is not. They must also destroy “the thing” before it reaches the mainland and the rest of humanity.

The Thing is a study in paranoia, and director John Carpenter helmed one of the truly great sci-fi horror films by getting the most of his collaborators, such as Rob Bottin, a then 22-year old special effects man, who created special makeup effects that are considered a benchmark in film history. Ennio Morricone’s score is an understated masterpiece that quietly increases in intensity as the film progresses and raises the tense mood tenfold.

Carpenter, of course, didn’t rely solely on Bottin’s incredible effects work. He used his talented cast of character actors to create three-dimensional players who make this horrible but exceedingly fantastic situation seem possible. Kurt Russell once again proved why he is a leading man with charisma and machismo in the mode of classic Hollywood leading men like John Wayne and Kirk Douglas. And no matter how many times I see this film, The Thing always proves itself to be great.

9 of 10
A+

"The Thing from Another World" Still Out of This World

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 67 (of 2003) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Thing from Another World (1951) – B&W
Running time: 87 minutes (1 hour, 27 minutes)
DIRECTOR: Christian Nyby with Howard Hawks (no screen credit)
WRITER: Charles Lederer with Howard Hawks and Ben Hecht (neither received screen credit); (based upon a story by John W. Campbell, Jr.)
PRODUCER: Howard Hawks
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Russell Harlan (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Roland Gross
COMPOSER: Dimitri Tiomkin

HORROR/SCI-FI

Starring: Margaret Sheridan, Kenneth Tobey, Robert Cornthwaite, Douglas Spencer, James R. Young, Dewey Martin, and James Arness

There’s no doubt. As corny as The Thing from Another World can be, it is one of the great sci-fi/horror films of all time, a true classic. I’ve it seen several times, and it remains a favorite of mine. I find it as creepy today as I did the first time I saw it almost two decades ago.

A group of scientists and military personnel at an Arctic research station discover a spacecraft buried in the ice. After accidentally destroying the ship, they manage to recover the body of an alien frozen in a block of ice, which they take back to the research station. During the first night, they accidentally thaw the creature from the ice, and it begins to hunt them.

The Thing from Another World is a film definitely of its time, hinting at the Cold War paranoia in America that was an element of some many sci-fi films, but it is still a creepy thrill, dated as it might seem. I always have a good time watching the research station’s occupants fight for the lives with the most serene attitudes. Everybody is so relaxed and chilled, talking about ordinary things like dating and having a good time with the friends, all the while they’re fighting for their lives. I think it makes us identify with the characters, especially the military guys, as if they were regular folks.

Christian Nyby, a protégé of famed film director/producer Howard Hawks, who produced this film, is credited as this movie’s director. However, many film historians and fans have said that this film bears Hawk’s imprint, so he either directed it in total or in part; at that time, a director of Hawk’s stature would not have directed a sci-fi film because doing so was deemed unworthy of an A-list talent.

Attitudes aside, this is a good movie. It certainly lacks the spectacular intensity of today’s hi-octane action-oriented sci-fi/horror movies, but those who can look beyond that will enjoy this gem.

7 of 10
A-

NOTES:
2001 National Film Preservation Board, USA: National Film Registry

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"5 Against the House" a Romantic, Comic Crime Drama

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 75 (of 2011) by Leroy Douresseaux

5 Against the House (1955) – B&W
Running time: 84 minutes (1 hour, 24 minutes)
DIRECTOR: Phil Karlson
WRITERS: Stirling Silliphant, William Bowers, and John Barnwell (based upon the Good Housekeeping magazine short story by Jack Finney)
PRODUCERS: John Barnwell and Stirling Silliphant
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Lester White (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Jerome Thoms
COMPOSER: George Duning

CRIME/DRAMA with elements of romance

Starring: Guy Madison, Kim Novak, Brian Keith, Alvy Moore, Kerwin Mathews, William Conrad, Jack Dimond, and Jean Wills

Released in 1955, 5 Against the House is one of the first filmed heists and one of the first movies to depict a casino robbery. The film follows four college buddies who decide to rob a casino as a hoax. I am primarily interested in this film for two reasons. 5 Against the House is considered to be “film noir,” of which I am a fan. I am also a fan of the late actor, Alvy Moore, and this movie is one of his first big film roles.

Film noir is the term primarily used to describe a category of Hollywood crime dramas generally (but not exclusively) released in the 1940s and 1950s. I have been interested in film noir (or Film-Noir) for a long time, but it is only in the last decade or so that I have specifically sought out these films. 5 Against the House was released in 2009 as part of a five-DVD box set entitled, Columbia Pictures Film Noir Classics 1.

Jack Alvin “Alvy” Moore was born in December 1921 and died in May 1997. Primarily a light comic actor, Moore made numerous guest appearances on television shows, but he is best known for playing the incompetent county agent, “Hank Kimball,” on the CBS television series, Green Acres (1965-71). Moore served in the United States Marine Corps and saw combat in the Battle of Iwo Jima. He broke into film in the early 1950s and had a small speaking role as one of Marlon Brando’s motorcycle gang in the 1953 film, The Wild Ones. As a supporting actor, 5 Against the House was one his early major roles. At one time, Moore had a small production company and produced the cult science fiction film, A Boy and His Dog (1975), based upon the Harlan Ellison short story.

5 Against the House begins with college pals: Al Mercer (Guy Madison), Brick (Brian Keith), Ronnie (Kerwin Matthews), and Roy Cruikshank (Alvy Moore). The young men are on their way back to college from summer jobs when they take a quick side-trip to Reno, Nevada, where they visit the famous casino, Harold’s Club. While there, Ronnie and Roy get caught up in a robbery attempt. After the culprit is apprehended, the boys overhear someone lament that there is no way a casino robbery can be done.

After they return to their college, Midwestern University, Ronnie, a brainy rich kid, begins to formulate a way to successfully rob Harold’s Club. Al reconnects with his gorgeous girlfriend, Kaye Greylek (Kim Novak), who is now a singer at a local nightclub. Meanwhile, Brick, who served during the Korean War, has a psychotic episode after a fellow student goads him into a fight. Al, who served in Korea with Brick, stops the fight and begs Brick to return to a veteran’s hospital for treatment of his head injury and for post-war mental trauma, which Brick refuses.

Ronnie convinces Brick and Roy to join his plan to rob Harold’s Club after he tells them that it is a hoax and that they will return the money afterwards. They plot to find a way to get Al to participate (with Kaye tagging along), but one of them secretly wants the robbery to be real and has no intention of returning a single dime to Harold’s Club.

I wouldn’t call 5 Against the House a great film, but it is certainly a darn good one. The script, by writers Stirling Silliphant (also a producer), William Bowers, and John Barnwell), efficiently covers a lot of ground in terms of characterization, impressive for a film that barely has over 80 minutes of actual narrative. Viewers will get to know the characters, from Brick’s desperation and psychosis to talkative Roy’s ability to diffuse a situation with one quick quip. Ronnie’s rich boy machinations add nice touches to several scenes.

The combined efforts of director Phil Karlson and director of photography Lester White yield a stylish film that can be tension-filled (casino scenes) and laid back (when the boys are on campus). The opening and closing shots of the gateway to Reno and the romantic scenes featuring Al and Kaye epitomize film noir’s alluring contrast of light and dark.

Some film noir movies have beautiful musical scores, and 5 Against the House has an excellent score from George Duning, which is by turns romantic and suspenseful. Kim Novak shimmers while giving superb singing performances of two songs, "The Life of the Party" (written by Hal Hackady and Billy Mure) and "I Went Out of My Way" (written by Helen Bliss).

I watched 5 Against the House mainly to see Alvy Moore, but I was introduced to a film I can add to my “favorite movies” list.

7 of 10
A-

Friday, August 26, 2011

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Review: First "Conan the Barbarian" is Still a Beast of a Movie

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 137 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

Conan the Barbarian (1982)

Running time: 131 minutes (2 hours, 11 minutes)

MPAA – R

DIRECTOR: John Milius

WRITERS: Oliver Stone and John Milius; from a story by Edward Summer (based upon the stories by Robert E. Howard)
PRODUCERS: Buzz Feitshans and Raffaella de Laurentiis
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Duke Callaghan
EDITOR: C. Timothy O’Meara
Golden Globe Award winner

FANTASY/ACTION/ADVENTURE

Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, James Earl Jones, Sandahl Bergman, Ben Davidson, Cassandra Gaviola, Gerry Lopez, Mako, Valérie Quennessen, William Smith, and Max Von Sydow

Young Conan (Jorge Sanz) saw his father (William Smith) murdered by a band of marauders who attacked their village. Conan’s mother (Nadiuska) took on the marauder’s warlord, Thulsa Doom (James Earl Jones), in a sword duel before Doom beheaded her. Doom’s soldiers subsequently sold Young Conan into slavery. The intense labor he endures as a slave (pushing a giant grinding wheel) transforms the adult Conan (Arnold Schwarzenegger) into a sinewy, muscular giant. Before long, opportunistic men further transform him into a skilled gladiator, who can outfight any man and probably kill at will.

Conan however becomes a thief. His companions are two mercenaries – the comely warrior woman, Valeria (Sandahl Bergman, who won a Golden Globe in 1983 for “Most Promising Newcomer of the Year in a Motion Picture – Female, an award the Globes stopped giving over two decades ago), and the sword fighter, Subotai (Gerry Lopez). The trio is captured by a grieving monarch, King Osric (Max Von Sydow), whose daughter joined a powerful snake-worshipping cult. His offer of riches to rescue her puts Conan on the path to avenging the murder of his Cimmerian tribesman and family. Osric’s daughter, The Princess (Valérie Quennessen), plans to marry the leader of this cult, which rules the land far and wide, his name – Thulsa Doom, the villain who murdered Conan’s mother. Revenge won’t come easy, Doom wields powerful magic, and his army is many and strong.

Before the age of computer generated effects, filmmakers of fantasy films relied on in-camera effects, hand drawn animation, makeup effects wizards, and mechanical puppets and creature effects to transport viewers to worlds that looked like ours, but were filled with warriors, kings, princess, monsters, and powerful wizards. There were no computer-generated combatants to fill imaginary epic battlefields (as in The Lord of the Rings). Stuntmen and fight coordinators who specialized in martial arts and hand-to-hand combat, animal wranglers to handle horses, prop masters and weapons makers, etc. had to use their wits and skills to create believable battle scenes. Often, the actors and actresses had to get down and dirty and perform their own stunts – do their own fighting.

To direct this kind of film, a producer would have to find a director who is a man’s man, one who made movies for guys – guys who love movies (as the TNT slogan goes). Filmmaker John Milius has spent his career writing or directing (and sometimes both) tough guy adventure epics. His resume includes script writing for Apocalypse Now and Clear and Present Danger. He also wrote and directed the semi-cult classic, Red Dawn.

Milius took on the ultimate action hero actor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, early in the actor’s movie career in the film, Conan the Barbarian. The two work magic. Schwarzenegger isn’t a great actor in the classic tradition of playing a diverse body of characters and burying oneself in those roles. He is, however, a movie star – an actor who really looks like nothing else but an actor when the camera starts filming. Arnold as Conan has more than a ring of truth to it because Arnold has The Presence.

Milius puts it all together. Conan the Barbarian is a fine epic flick filled with burning villages, screaming peasants, murderous marauders, and devious women wielding sex and offering their supremely well-built bodies to men all-too-ready to get laid at the drop of a loin cloth or at the peek of boob flesh. Milius (who co-wrote the script with Academy Award winning director Oliver Stone of Platoon and JFK) gives up little fights, man on man tussles, and superbly staged battles of testosterone-fueled men stabbing, slicing, cutting, and gutting one another; of horses racing, falling, and dying on top of their riders; and of death on the battlefield.

In addition to Schwarzenegger, the rest of the cast also performs well. James Earl Jones is madness personified as the murderous, egomaniacal, and insane Thulsa Doom. Sandahl Bergman as Valeria and Gerry Lopez as Subotai hit the right notes as Conan’s thieves-in-arms. Milius’ crew of technicians, craftsman, and stuntmen also give him a superior effort. Basil Poledouris’ score is picture perfect; very few movies about men with swords fighting each other ever had music so good. Milius takes the Poledouris’ music and mixes it with the rest of his ingredients to create a truly entertaining guy’s fantasy flick. Conan the Barbarian isn’t perfect, but as a sword and sorcery epic, it’s perfect enough.

7 of 10
A-

Wednesday, June 28, 2006

NOTES:
1983 Golden Globes: 1 win: “New Star of the Year in a Motion Picture – Female” (Sandahl Bergman)

1983 Razzie Awards: 1 nomination: “Worst Actor” (Arnold Schwarzenegger)

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Review: "Conan the Destroyer" Goes on an Adventure

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 138 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

Conan the Destroyer (1984)
Running time: 102 minutes (1 hour, 42 minutes)
MPAA – PG
DIRECTOR: Richard Fleischer
WRITERS: Stanley Mann; from a story by Roy Thomas and Gerry Conway (based upon the characters and stories created by Robert E. Howard)
PRODUCER: Raffaella De Laurentiis
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Jack Cardiff
EDITOR: Frank J. Urioste

FANTASY/ADVENTURE/ACTION

Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Wilt Chamberlain, Grace Jones, Mako, Tracey Walter, Olivia d’Abo, and Sarah Douglas, Pat Roach, Sven Ole Thorsen, Bruce Fleischer, and Ferdinand Mayne

Queen Taramis (Sarah Douglas) makes a deal with Conan (Arnold Schwarzenegger), the Cimmerian who is barbarian, warrior, and thief: accompany her niece, Princess Jehnna (Olivia d’Abo) and her bodyguard Bombatta (the late Wilt Chamberlain, in his first and only film role) to find a precious jewel and key, which they will bring back to Taramis’ kingdom. For that, Taramis says she will revive Conan’s lover, Valeria (who was killed in the film Conan the Barbarian).

Grieving and still madly in love with Valeria, Conan agrees and leads a ragtag group of adventures that includes his fellow thief, Malak (Tracey Walter), Akiro “The Wizard” (played by the actor, Mako, Akiro also appeared in the first film), and a wild warrior woman, Zula (Grace Jones), who escort Jehnna and Bombatta on a quest of find the princess’ treasure. Meanwhile, Queen Taramis secretly plots against Conan and Jehnna, as part of a larger plan to awaken Dagoth the Sleeping God, who currently resides in Taramis’ palace as a reclining marble statue.

Conan the Destroyer, is a lot lighter fare than its predecessor, Conan the Barbarian. Gone are macho men filmmakers, co-writer/director John Milius and co-writer, Oliver Stone. They are replaced for the second film by director Richard Fleischer and two comic book writers, Roy Thomas and Gerry Conway, who wrote the treatment for this film, which screenwriter Stanley Mann apparently changed quite a bit. Fleischer, well known for directing such family-friend fantasy films as Walt Disney’s 20000 Leagues Under the Sea, Fantastic Voyage, and Doctor Doolittle, gives Conan the Destroyer a lighter tone than the first film. It’s silly, but fun – almost cartoonish.

Even in a flick with a lighter tone, Arnold Schwarzenegger is still imposing and fun as Conan. Grace Jones and Tracey Walter’s characters are excellent comic relief (and have some decent screen chemistry between the two of them). The villains are straight out of fantasy pulp fiction and B-movies. Basil Poledouris returns to score the second film, but much of Destroyer’s score sounds like music from Conan the Barbarian. Although the first film is technically a better film (and more of a guy’s flick), I prefer the fun, adventure fantasy that Conan the Destroyer offers.

6 of 10
B

Wednesday, June 28, 2006

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Review: "Rear Window" Always Looks Great (Happy B'day, Jimmy Stewart)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 212 (of 2004) by Leroy Douresseaux

Rear Window (1954)
Running time: 113 minutes (1 hour, 53 minutes)
PRODUCER/DIRECTOR: Alfred Hitchcock
WRITER: John Michael Hayes (from the story, “It Had to be Murder,” by Cornell Woolrich)
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Robert Burks
EDITOR: George Tomasini
COMPOSER: Franz Waxman
Academy Award nominee

MYSTERY/THRILLER

Starring: James Stewart, Grace Kelly, Wendell Corey, Thelma Ritter, Raymond Burr, Judith Evelyn, Ross Bagdasarian, and Georgine Darcy

Director Alfred Hitchcock received one of his six Oscar® nominations in the category of “Best Director” (he never won) for the classic mystery/thriller, Rear Window. Although many recognize the film as a masterful technical exercise, it is the film’s technical aspects that make it so special. Without Hitchcock’s bravura display of framing, shooting, and movement within the film, Rear Window would be a nice mystery flick; Hitchcock’s expert choices and subtle use of strong visual language makes it a quietly intense thriller and mystery picture.

The plot is simple. L.B. “Jeff” Jeffries (James Stewart) is a globe trotting photographer laid up with a severely broken leg. Jeff’s stuck in his apartment during a blistering summer heat wave, so he takes to spying out of his rear window on his Greenwich Village neighbors, using his powerful camera and photographic equipment. That’s fine, but things turn hotter when he suspects that his neighbor directly across the way, Lars Thorwald (Raymond Burr), has murdered his invalid wife. He convinces his girlfriend, Lisa Carol Fremont (Grace Kelley), of his theory, and though she’s busy trying to convince Jeff to marry her, Lisa stops to involve herself in Jeff’s investigation. Jeff also convinces his nurse, Stella (Thelma Ritter), that Thorwald murdered his wife, but he can’t sell it to his World War II buddy, police detective Lt. Thomas J. Doyle (Wendell Corey). Still, Jeff, Lisa, and Stella advance their own private investigation, but it moves them towards danger once Thorwald realizes that someone is watching him.

Although the film is ostensibly about voyeurism, Rear Window shows a fascination that people have with other people’s life. Hitchcock had a huge self-contained world created in the form of a film sound stage so that he could fashion the other lives of which his main character Jeff would be curious. As much as I wanted to follow the plot of the murder mystery (which Hitchcock slowly reveals with delicious anticipation), I was equally curious about the lives of Jeff’s other neighbors.

Hitchcock shoots practically the entire film (except for a few shots) from Jeff’s apartment, using the camera to spy out of Jeff’s rear window on the neighbors. This is one of the greatest examples of how the camera cannot so much manipulate as it can mesmerize an audience. With hypnotic intensity, I followed the camera’s every move, vainly trying to absorb as much as I could.

Rear Window is a film that stands the test of time not so much because of its subject matter, but because it is a technical masterpiece, a virtuoso display of cinematic technique. What keeps this film from being perfect are the performances and story. James Stewart and Grace Kelly are working purely on star power and relying on the fact that Hitchcock’s direction will do much of their work for them; for much of the film’s first three-quarters, Ms. Kelly merely just moves around looking like the goddess she was.

The murder at the center of the story lacks drama, mainly because we never get to know the Thorwalds and their private drama. Thus, Mrs. Anna Thorwald (Irene Winston) doesn’t garner much sympathy; it’s as if she’s just another murder statistic. It’s Hitchcock’s specific execution of the plot and his unique vision of filming the script that take this to another level, so it’s not to be missed by people who really like watching movies, not just as a pastimes, but as the work of artists and craftsmen.

9 of 10
A+

NOTES:
1955 Academy Awards: 4 nominations: “Best Director” (Alfred Hitchcock), “Best Cinematography, Color” (Robert Burks), “Best Sound, Recording” (Loren L. Ryder-Paramount), and “Best Writing, Screenplay” (John Michael Hayes)

1955 BAFTA Awards: 1 nomination: “Best Film from any Source” (USA)

1997 National Film Preservation Board, USA - National Film Registry


Rear Window (Collector's Edition) (See all Mystery Movies & TV)

Review: Frank Darabont's Take on "Stephen King's The Mist" Has a Sh*tty Ending

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 138 (of 2007) by Leroy Douresseaux

Stephen King’s The Mist (2007)
Running time: 127 minutes (2 hours, 7 minutes)
MPAA – R for violence, terror, gore, and language
DIRECTOR: Frank Darabont
WRITER: Frank Darabont (based upon the novella by Stephen King)
PRODUCER: Frank Darabont and Liz Glotzer
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Ronn Schmidt
EDITOR: Hunter M. Via

HORROR/DRAMA with elements of sci-fi

Starring: Thomas Jane, Marcia Gay Harden, Laurie Holden, Andre Braugher, Toby Jones, William Sadler, Jeffrey DeMunn, Frances Sternhagen, Alexa Davalos, Chris Owen, Sam Witwer, Robert C. Treveiler, David Jensen, and Nathan Gamble

Writer/director Frank Darabont has previously adapted two Stephen King works of fiction into movies: the multiple Oscar-nominated films, The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile. His latest King-to-film work is the horror flick, Stephen King’s The Mist, and it’s the kind of horror film that will still be on your mind quite a while after you leave the theatre, if not for a good long time afterwards.

The setting of The Mist is a pretty, Maine village populated by simple, rustic folks, but it is also the home of wealthy New Yorkers seeking a pastoral refuge from the hustle and bustle of the city life that has done well by them. Following a violent thunderstorm, a peculiar white mist creeps towards the small town community. Artist David Drayton (Thomas Jane) and his son, Billy (Nathan Gamble), are getting emergency supplies at a grocery store in the local shopping center when this unnatural mist moves in to cover the entire area.

Unusual as the mist is, the store’s occupants soon discover that there may be something monstrous prowling inside the thick, white mess. The customers barricade themselves inside the grocery story, and Drayton and a small band of customers plot survival and eventually escape after creatures in the mist start attacking the store. However, Drayton and company soon find themselves in a test of wills and a small war with Mrs. Carmody (Marcia Gay Harden), a local self-proclaimed psychic, who insists that only a blood sacrifice to the “God of Israel” will save them all. Her congregation of fear, formed out of the customers who have fallen under her sway, is all too willing to kill for her. Then, there’s the enemy outside that they can’t even see and that is attacking with increasing frequency.

The Mist, the film, is like “The Mist, the novella upon which is based (and which first appeared in the 1980 horror fiction anthology, Dark Forces), is about more about the conflicts among the occupants of the grocery store than it is about the supernatural boogeymen waiting in the mist outside. The monsters certainly are terrifying, even when their CGI creators make them look somewhat comical, perhaps, because Darabont maintained an element about which King was clear in the original story – these beasts hiding in that thick, mean mist are so very lethal. Their constant attacks on the grocery store’s structural integrity make this slightly two-hour-plus film actually seem lean, mean, and spry.

However, Darabont captures the most delicious aspect of King’s story and transforms his film from yet-another-King-adaptation into something memorable – a brutish and shockingly pessimistic human drama. Darabont suggests that the humans are just as capable of being killers as the creatures outside are. What can bring about the change? It’s fear, because as the movie’s tagline says – “Fear changes everything.”

All the mist does is quickly peel back the thin veneer of civility and civilization to reveal the ugly side of people just waiting to show itself the first time the comforts of modern life – utilities and machines – stop working. Whether it is the hellfire, hellfire, and more hellfire with a side of brimstone Mrs. Carmody and her demands for expiation (making amends to God via blood sacrifice) or Andre Braugher’s loud-mouthed NYC attorney, many of the characters take their fears and insecurities and use that to separate the customers into two groups, “them” and “us.”

The only thing really disappointing about the movie (well, besides the really downer of an ending) is not the execution of the movie. It is the fact that when a disaster, natural or supernatural, starts to break down institutions like the family, local authority, community bonds, etc., then, many of us will act pretty much the way the characters in this gem of a horror flick do  And that's not the movie's fault, is it?

7 of 10
B+

Sunday, November 25, 2007

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Review: "Sleepy Hollow" Remains a Tim Burton-Johnny Depp Masterpiece

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 111 (of 2004) by Leroy Douresseaux

Sleepy Hollow (1999)
Running time: 105 minutes (1 hour, 45 minutes)
MPAA – R for graphic horror violence and gore, and for a scene of sexuality
DIRECTOR: Tim Burton
WRITERS: Andrew Kevin Walker, from a screen story by Andrew Kevin Walker and Kevin Yagher (based upon the “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” by Washington Irving)
PRODUCERS: Scott Rudin and Adam Schroeder
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Emmanuel Lubezki
EDITORS: Chris Lebenzon and Joel Negron
Academy Award winner

HORROR/MYSTERY

Starring: Johnny Depp, Christina Ricci, Miranda Richardson, Michael Gambon, Casper Van Dien, Jeffrey Jones, Christopher Lee, Richard Griffiths, Ian McDiarmid, Michael Gough, Marc Pickering, Lisa Marie, Steven Waddington, and Christopher Walken

An Academy Award winner (Best Art Direction-Set Decoration) and recipient of two additional nominations (Best Costume Design and Cinematography), Tim Burton’s film Sleepy Hollow is perhaps the quintessential Tim Burton movie, the film that is the visually summation of the promise he showed in such films as Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, and Tim Burton’s Nightmare Before Christmas. Dark, gothic, and moody, it is a bold fairytale told with modern materials but steeped in early Americana.

The tale is a quirky, modern retelling, or (to use a new term) “reimagination” of Washington Irving’s classic tale “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.” In this version, Irving’s famous cowardly hero Ichabod Crane is Constable Ichabod Crane (Johnny Deep) whose superiors send him from New York City to Sleepy Hollow, an isolated village in the upper Hudson valley, to investigate a series of murders in which the victims were beheaded. Crane arrives in the village to find the residents mostly hiding behind locked doors and closed shutters. Everyone knows that the Hessian Horseman (this story’s version of the Headless Horseman and played by Christopher Walken), the spirit of dead mercenary, has returned to earth to kill the hapless citizens of the Hollow.

Of course, Crane is a man of reason and refuses to believe in the horseman. During the course of his investigation, he takes on a ward, Young Masbath (Marc Pickering), the son of the one Horseman’s victims, and falls for Katrina Anne Van Tassel (Christina Ricci), the daughter of a village elder. But soon, Crane witnesses the evil power of the horseman, and his mind spirals into paranoia. He begins to suspect many former allies of conspiring with the Horseman, but will Crane be able to tell friend from foe in time to stop the Horseman and his co-conspirator in time to save his friends?

The film is fun to watch, and the actors are great. They mix serious thespian chops with just the perfect amount of tongue-in-cheek. I loved the cast, and Johnny Depp, a frequent collaborator of Burton, straddles the comic with the mad. Christina Ricci looks as if she were born with her face to be a Burton film icon, but her performance here is a bit uneven. Miranda Richardson also makes the most of her small part; she is wicked with an air of menace about her that helps her steal every scene in which she appears.

The film is absolutely gorgeous, at that time, probably the finest looking film of the fantasy/horror genre since Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Burton mixes everything together so well; he is truly a visionary and one of the consummate visualists of the last two decades. Hell, he made Sleepy Hollow a much better film than 1999’s Oscar winner for Best Picture, American Beauty.

9 of 10
A+

NOTES:
2000 Academy Awards: 1 win: “Best Art Direction-Set Decoration” (Rick Heinrichs-art director and Peter Young-set decorator), and 2 nominations: “Best Cinematography” (Emmanuel Lubezki) and “Best Costume Design” (Colleen Atwood)


2000 BAFTA Awards: 2 wins: “Best Costume Design” (Colleen Atwood), “Best Production Design” (Rick Heinrichs), and 1 nomination: “Best Achievement in Special Visual Effects” (Jim Mitchell, Kevin Yagher, Joss Williams, and Paddy Eason)

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Review: "Black Sunday" Remains a Chilling Mario Bava Masterpiece

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 126 (of 2007) by Leroy Douresseaux

La Demonio del Maschera (1960) – B&W
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Italy
Running time: 87 minutes
CINEMATOGRAPHER/DIRECTOR: Mario Bava
WRITERS: Ennio De Concini and Mario Serandrei, with English dialogue by George Higgins (based upon the short story “The Viy” by Nikolai Gogol)
PRODUCERS: Massimo De Rita and Lou Rusoff (U.S. version)
EDITOR: Mario Serandrei

HORROR/THRILLER

Starring: Barbara Steele, John Richardson, Andrea Checci, Ivo Garrani, Arturo Dominici, Enrico Olivieri, Antonio Pierfederici, and Tino Bianchi

Acclaimed Italian horror director Mario Bava made his directorial debut with the film, La Demonio del Maschera, which first received a U.S. release in 1961 under the title, Black Sunday. Previously, Bava had finished other directors’ films, but did not receive a screen credit as a director until Black Sunday. The story is based upon a Russian folktale, and Bava also co-wrote the film, but did not receive a screen credit as a writer.

Condemned to die as a witch in the 17th century, Princess Asa Vajda (Barbara Steele) returns two centuries after her execution to wreak vengeance on her executioners’ descendents. Those descendents are Prince Vadja (Ivo Garrani), his son, Prince Constantine Vajda (Enrico Olivieri), and Katia Vadja (Barbara Steele), who looks just like Princess Asa. Two men, Dr. Thomas Kruvajan (Andrea Checci) and his young companion, Dr. Andre Gorobec (John Richardson), traveling through the countryside, stumble upon Asa’s grave and unwittingly reawaken her. Soon, Dr. Gorobec and a local priest are in a race against time to save Katia from becoming the sacrifice that will allow Asa to walk the Earth again and unleash Hell’s undead demons.

Simply put, this is a masterpiece of black and white gothic horror filmmaking. Steeped in rich atmosphere and lush shadows, Black Sunday is truly frightening. (It had me with my back pressed against the sofa.) Filled with a hellish sexual yearning and sadism, Black Sunday’s production values are worthy of a Hollywood historical epic. Black Sunday is pure visual dark poetry – a horror film that refuses to be forgotten.

8 of 10
A

Thursday, September 13, 2007

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