21 GRAMS (2003)

21 GRAMS
Directed by Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu
Starring Sean Penn, Naomi Watts, and Benicio Del Toro

In the early 1900's Dr Duncan MacDougall began a series of experiments to prove that the soul had a mass and was, therefore, measurable and tangible. He would weigh patients as they were dying and measure the difference between their living weight and dead weight. The difference in weight would be the weight of the soul. Though his results varied greatly, the weight most commonly associated with the experiments was 21 grams.

Watching the film “21 Grams” is like putting together a puzzle. It's very similar to movies like “Memento” in which the narrative jumps around through the past, present, and future. It's an incredible story of love, forgiveness, and revenge involving three people from different backgrounds whose lives intertwine in. Sean Penn plays Paul Rivers, a professor who is desperate need of a heart transplant. Naomi Watts is Christina Peck, a former junkie who has turned her life around and now has a loving husband and two beautiful daughters. Benicio Del Toro plays Jack Jordan, a recovered addict who has found religion and is now trying to get his life back together. The tragic event which brings their lives together is when Jack accidentally runs over Christina's husband and children with his car and then flees the scene. All three die, and Christina decides to donate her husband's organs. His heart goes to Paul.

This is just the set-up of a plot that is so intense and dramatic that it's hard to turn away. There's so much more to the movie, but because of the fragmented way that the story is presented to us, to tell any more in this review would be giving away too much. What I will tell you is that what you think is happening may or may not be the actual case.

Penn, Watts, and Del Toro all give performances that are nothing less than stellar. For Watts and Del Toro, this is easily the performances of their careers. The same would be true for Penn, except that his body of work is so good that it's hard to single out one performance as a peak. Without a doubt, however, this certainly lives up to the rest of his work.

“21 Grams” was nominated for two Oscars. Benicio Del Toro was nominated for Best Supporting Actor, but he lost to Tim Robbins in “Mystic River”. The other nominees were Alec Baldwin in “The Cooler”, Djimon Hounsou in “In America”, and Ken Watanabe in “The Last Samurai”.

Naomi Watts earned a nomination of Best Actress. She lost to Charlize Theron in “Monster”. The other nominees were Samantha Morton in “In America”, Diane Keaton in “Something's Gotta Give”, and Keisha Castle-Hughes in “Whale Rider”.

This review was written on July 12, 2008

BEN AND ME (1953)

BEN AND ME
Directed by Hamilton Luske
Starring the voices of Sterling Holloway and Charles Ruggles

Leave your history books at home. They've been lying to you. At least that's what the Walt Disney Short “Ben and Me” would have you believe. According to this film, Benjamin Franklin was not the inventor of things like bifocals and the Franklin stove. The real inspiration was a small mouse named Amos. Amos also wrote the opening of the Declaration of Independence. In short, Amos created this country.

Of course, this isn't true. And I seriously doubt that any child watching will take this Douglas Adams-inspired version of history as gospel truth. It's a very fun short film—Very tongue in cheek. I kind of wish that a mouse HAD done all that! It would certainly have made history class more interesting.

If it sounds like I'm stretching to make this review longer, it's because I am. There's really not much to say about this short. Sure, it's fun, and I like “twisted history” stories, but it's standard Disney. While it's certainly good, it's not the best that they've ever released. Kids will enjoy it, and there are worse ways to get your children interested in history. I saw it when I was in elementary school on one of those Disney Afternoon Specials on TV, and I liked it a lot then, but it's not the same now. It doesn't hold up like other Disney shorts have for me.

“Ben and Me” lost the Academy Award for Best Short Subject Two-Reel to another Disney release, “Bear Country”. Also nominated were “Return to Glennascaul”, “Vesuvius Express”, and “Winter Paradise”.

This review was written on June 10, 2008

7:35 IN THE MORNING (2004)

7:35 IN THE MORNING
Directed by Nacho Vigalondo
Starring Nacho Vigalondo and Marta Belenguer

It's 7:35 in the morning and Mujer (Marta Belenguer) goes into a restaurant and gets a coffee and a pastry, like she does every morning. Today, she notices that something is different. There are two men standing there with a guitar and a small keyboard. She asks about them, but does not get an answer. Soon she realizes that no one is talking. She sees a pile of cell phones lying in the corner and realizes that she has walked into the middle of a robbery. She calls the police, but drops the phone when Tipo (Nacho Vigalondo) stands up and begins singing to her. A love song that he's written himself about the beautiful girl that comes into the restaurant at 7:35 every morning that he's never had the courage to talk to. Then everyone starts singing along, contributing lines in an expanding dialogue of song. There is even a dance. It's not until one man flubs a line that we realize that Tipo is wearing dynamite and has taken the restaurant hostage and is making them sing along with him to Mujer.

What crazy things we do for love, right? Tipo's actions are, of course, taking that saying to extremes. But it's often in the extremes that we find the lesser truths about ourselves made clear. I once pretended that I was half Mexican to make a man like me. It's one of my least proud moments, but to deny that it happened would be to deny part of myself. By examining what made me say that, I'm able to look at my own life and hopefully make changes that will make sure I never have to lie like that again.

What must have happened in poor Tipo's life to make him think that the only way he can meet a woman is by taking a restaurant hostage? The entire song is his internal monologue of reasons why he can't simply walk up to her and talk to her. He's a poor, sick man. And he needs to be loved desperately. He's tried everything he can think of. Things he's seen on TV or in movies haven't worked. Things he's read in books haven't worked. Nothing has given him the love he craves. Tipo is a man of last resorts. This is what his life has come to.

Nacho Vigalondo wrote, directed and starred in “7:35 in the Morning”. The fact that I'm able to write two paragraphs of back story for a character in an eight minute film is a testament to his skill. He is still directing and has recently made his first full-length film. Hopefully the skill that he exhibits in the short genre can translate to feature-length.

“7:35 in the Morning” was nominated for Best Live Action Short Film. It lost to the film “Wasp”. The other nominated films were “Everything in This Country Must”, “Little Terrorist”, and “Two Cars, One Night”.

This review was written on July 7, 2008

SPIRITED AWAY (2001)

SPIRITED AWAY
Directed by Hayao Miyazaki
Starring the voices of Daveigh Chase, Suzanne Pleschette, Jason Marsden, Susan Egan, and David Ogden Stiers (American Version)

Hayao Miyazaki is known as the Walt Disney of Japan. He is widely known around the world for such films and television series as “Lupin III”, “Castle in the Sky”, “Kiki's Delivery Service”, and his masterpiece “Princes Mononoke”. In 1985 he founded Studio Ghibli, which has become a giant in the world of animation. In 1997 Miyazaki said he was going to retire after the premier of “Princess Mononoke”, but he was inspired to make “Spirited Away” after observing a friend's daughter.

What luck that inspiration was for those of us who get to see “Spirited Away”, because it's an amazing film. The story is about a young girl named Chihiro (Daveigh Chase) who is moving to a new house with her parents. Along the way they find what they believe is an abandoned amusement park. Lured by the smell of food, her parents keep walking deeper and deeper into the park. Chihiro eventually wanders off and runs into Haku (Jason Marsden), who warns her that she must leave before nightfall. She runs back to find her parents who have gorged themselves on the food they found and turned into swine. The time for running has past, and now Chihiro must find a way to rescue her parents and avoid danger in a public bath house for the spirits.

“Spirited Away” is wonderful. It is wonderfully imaginative and a stunning example of storytelling. The artistry and style of the animation is beyond compare. Those people who were raised on Disney animation will be intrigued by the Miyazaki style, but the differences are not so great to alienate people who don't like change. Children will love “Spirited Away” because of the wonderful visuals and magic performed. When I was watching I felt a remarkable nostalgia, despite the fact that I've never been to a magical bath house. I suspect that other adults will feel this nostalgia too.

“Spirited Away” set all kinds of records. It was the first film to earn $200 million gross before it opened in the United States. It is also the highest-grossing non-American film ever released. It won the Japanese equivalent of the Oscar for Best Picture, as well as top awards at several other international film contests.

In addition to all this, “Spirited Away” is the only Japanese animated film to win an Oscar. It won in the category of Best Animated Feature—A category that was only one year old when it won. The other nominated films were “Ice Age”, “Lilo & Stitch”, “Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron”, and “Treasure Planet”.

This review was written on July 6, 2008

GOLIATH II (1960)

GOLIATH II
Directed by Wolfgang Reitherman
Starring the voices of Sterling Holloway and Kevin Corcoran

Boy, these lesser-known Disney shorts sure do all seem to run together, don't they? “Goliath II” is no exception. It tells the story of a very tiny elephant (about 6” tall) who is a shameful mess to his parents until the day he takes on the worst and baddest enemy in the jungle.

This movie feels like the bastard child of “Dumbo” and “The Jungle Book”. They even threw in the crocodile from “Peter Pan”. “The Jungle Book” was made after this movie, but I found out that they took some of the “Goliath II” animation and re-used it for that film. Disney did this kind of thing all the time, but in this case it seems especially blatant.

“Goliath II” doesn't really offer much beyond the standard Disney fare. It's a very bland story and pretty predictable too. Also, I'm kind of wondering why Walt Disney couldn't find anyone other than Sterling Holloway to narrate his short films. He did a fine job, but come on! Even Scorsese took a break from using DeNiro every now and then!

“Goliath II” earned Walt Disney yet another Oscar nomination for Best Short Subject Cartoon. The film lost to “Munro”. Other nominees were “High Note”, “Mouse and Garden”, and “A Place in the Sun”.

This review was written on June 14, 2008

STRIKES AND SPARES (1934)

STRIKES AND SPARES
Directed by Felix E. Feist
Starring Andy Varipapa and the voice of Pete Smith

I grew up bowling with my 4-H club, but the older I got the more I realized how bad I was at it. So now I've taken the leap to strict bowling spectator. That's why I enjoyed the short film “Strikes and Spares”. It's about Andy Varipapa, who was, at the time, the greatest bowler in the country. He was also well known for doing a variety of trick shots. This film showcases a few of those shots. It also throws in some comic relief in the form of a silly man who is a novice bowler and the mistakes that he makes.

The tricks that Varipapa does are quite amazing. They begin showing simple tricks, like the 7-1-10 split, and they build to tricks like bowling between the legs of 20 beautiful girls, and using two balls at once to hit multiple pins. Varipapa toured the country with his talent, and he became quite the celebrity. He also held the record for most perfect games.

“Strikes and Spares” is a very good film, but does show tell-tale signs of the 1930's. One of the characters is an African American pin boy, and the character is depicted in a very stereotypical way. Even worse, in wide angle shots it's obviously not the African American actor, but someone in blackface make up. In the 1930's there was no problem with this, so it's best to remember this film as the time capsule it is and appreciate it for it's virtues.

“Strikes and Spares” earned an Oscar nomination for Best Novelty Short for it's producer, Pete Smith. It lost to the film “City of Wax”. The other nominee was “Bosom Friends”.

This review was written on June 14, 2008

THE LION KING (1994)

THE LION KING
Directed by Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff
Starring the voices of James Earl Jones, Matthew Broderick, Nathan Lane, Ernie Sabella, Jonathan Taylor Thomas, Jeremy Irons, Whoopi Goldberg, Cheech Marin, Robert Guillaume, and Rowan Atkinson.

Let it never be forgotten that the Walt Disney Corporation has money. I'm talking a LOT of money. As far as stocks go, the Walt Disney Company has a market cap of $64.41 billion. That's a lot of money. The bad thing about an entertainment and arts company having that much money is that it can effectively put blinders on the company when it comes to artistic integrity. Yet the good thing about having that much money is that the company is able to fully realize any artistic task they take on. With “The Lion King”, it is obvious that they spent a lot of money and took time to be perfectionists and not release a film that was anything less than exactly what they wanted! This is always a gamble, and sometimes ('Heaven's Gate') it doesn't pay off. In the case of “The Lion King” it paid off beautifully. Disney released one of the shining jewels in their collection of animated feature films and it went on to gross an incredible $783 million worldwide. At the time of this writing, it's the 23rd highest grossing film of all time in world wide box office and the 4th highest animated film.

“The Lion King” was the fourth in line of Disney films in their “New Golden Age”. It began in 1989 with “The Little Mermaid” and continued in 1991 with “Beauty and the Beast” and with “Aladdin” in 1992. Following “The Lion King in 1995 was “Pocahontas”, which I believe to be the beginning of the end for this mini golden era. “The Lion King” was so well received that there was even Oscar buzz about it following in “Beauty and the Beast”'s footsteps and being nominated for Best Picture. This didn't happen, and it was several years before the creation of the “Best Animated Feature” category, so the only nominations that “The Lion King” earned were the typical ones for animated movies, Best Score and Best Original Song. It was nominated three times for Best Original Song, for the songs “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” (Which won), “Circle of Life”, and “Hakuna Matata”.

The story of “The Lion King” is fantastic. Rather than base it on an existing fairy tale or children's book, “The Lion King” is an original story. Disney would go on to do this again but until they teamed up with Pixar they would never achieve the same success in original storytelling. While the story is original, many people have noticed obvious themes inspired by the William Shakespeare classics “Hamlet” and “Macbeth”. Mufasa is the king of the Pridelands. His younger brother, Scar, is insanely jealous because he will never be king. This is reinforced when Mufasa's son, Simba, is born. Scar hatches a plan to kill Mufasa and Simba with the help of the hyenas and take his place as king, which he does, except that Simba escapes and runs away. Under Scar's rule the Pridelands slowly die.

Meanwhile, Simba has met two friends. The first is a meerkat named Timon. The second is a warthog named Pumbaa. They raise Simba and teach him their philosophy of a life of “no worries”. Simba turns his back on his past until he runs into Nala, his best friend from childhood, who tells him what has happened to their home. Simba returns to fight Scar and assume his rightful place as king.

As I said before, the animation is stunning. This movie was made during the period where Disney was really beginning to learn how computer animation could enhance their films. The special effects were outstanding and give “The Lion King” a natural look, while never losing the animated quality. The voice performances are fantastic. The people responsible for casting this movie obviously spared no effort in assembling one of the best voice casts ever. James Earl Jones was powerful and controlling as Mufasa, Rowan Atkinson was delightfully sycophantic as Zazu, Nathan Lane could not have been better as Timon. The role of Simba was shared by two actors. Jonathan Taylor Thomas voiced Young Simba and Matthew Broderick voiced Adult Simba. I think it's fair to say that “The Lion King” is one of Matthew Broderick's top films.

The music in this film is just as amazing as all of the rest of it. As I mentioned before, three songs were nominated for Best Original Song Oscars. Elton John and Tim Rice collaborated on the songs for this movie and the result was a very memorable score filled with hummable tunes and deep meaning. “Can You Feel the Love Tonight” was the eventual winner. The two nominated songs that weren't from “The Lion King” were “Look What Love Has Done” from “Junior” and “Make Up Your Mind” from “The Paper”.

Hans Zimmer won his first, and so far only, Oscar for his sweeping score of this film. This score is so strong that when “The Lion King” was adapted to the Broadway stage themes from the score were turned into full-fledged songs. This is a truly epic score. I think it's one of the classic scores and it ranks up there with the best works of John Williams and Bernard Hermann. It will drive you to tears when Mufasa is killed and will haunt you when Scar ascends the throne. You will laugh at the antics of Timon and Pumbaa and quake with pride when Simba realizes his true place in life. Other nominees were “Forrest Gump”, “Interview With the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles”, “Little Women”, and “The Shawshank Redemption”.

This review was written on June 9, 2008

CASINO ROYALE (1967)

CASINO ROYALE
Directed by Val Guest, Ken Hughes, John Huston, Joseph McGrath, Robert Parrish, and Richard Talmadge
Starring David Niven, Peter Sellers, Ursula Andress, Woody Allen, Joanna Pettet, and Orson Welles

I watched “Casino Royale” to the very end, hoping with all my heart that something would happen that would make it all make sense. Alas, nothing did, and all that I was left with was a terrible mess of a movie. As the story goes, Charles K. Feldman acquired the rights to make Ian Flemming's first novel, “Casino Royale” into a movie in 1961. It was the only Flemming novel that was not sold to Eon Productions for use in the Bond Franchise. In 1962 “Dr. No” was released and made James Bond a household name. Feldman tried desperately to get his film made. He even tried to get Sean Connery to play Agent 007, but all his efforts failed. With the success of subsequent Bond films “From Russia With Love”, “Goldfinger”, and “Thunderball” Feldman realized that the only way he could make “Casino Royale” was to make it into a spoof of the James Bond films.

He would have been better off if he'd cut his losses and ran, because the film that wound up being “Casino Royale” was plagued by delayed production, fights amongst the actors, and a seemingly never ending line-up of writers and directors. Six directors were finally listed in the credits for this film. That's never a good sign. How can you hope for your film to have any kind of continuity if you've got a different director for virtually every scene? The final film can't seem to decide what type of film it wants to be. It alternates between 60's mod film, spy drama, spoof, romance, slapstick, and a host of other sub-genres.

The plot, what little of it there is, is about James Bond (David Niven) being pulled out of retirement. The REAL James Bond retired before the movie “Dr. No”, but British Intelligence thought that the idea of James Bond was too important. To keep the spy world at bay there would always be an agent named James Bond, 007. Anyway, agents across the world are being killed. SMERSH, the bad guys, have begun using only female spies and luring all English spies to their deaths with their feminine charms. When the real James Bond comes out of retirement, one of the first things that he does is find an agent who is irresistible to women and train him to resist their charms. The choosing of said agent and his training are a couple of very funny scenes, but then this character inexplicably disappears and doesn't come back until the very last scenes, when he isn't needed at all.

There's also a bit where we find out that the bad girls are being trained by an organization that uses a nanny and au pair service as a front. To infiltrate, James Bond finds his daughter (Joanna Pettet). But she winds up going to a training academy for spies in West Berlin, and manages to foil the plot of Le Chiffre (Orson Welles) to sell very incriminating photos of international leaders.
Le Chiffre still needs the money, because he told the people at SMERSH that he could get it for them. So he decides that he's gonna win it by playing baccarat. James Bond hires another secret agent, baccarat expert Evelyn Tremble (Peter Sellers) to pose as James Bond and beat Le Chiffre at his own game.

Even beyond all of this, there's a plot involving Woody Allen playing Jimmy Bond, James Bond's nephew. I won't go into details, because frankly it's not worth it. Needless to say, it makes little sense, so it fits in well with the style of this film, or lack thereof.

“Casino Royale” is random, and it jumps through time horribly. In one cut, Peter Sellers is jumping into a race car to chase after Le Chiffre. In the next scene, Sellers has been caught. Who knows how?

“Casino Royale” was nominated for one Oscar for Best Song for the song 'The Look of Love' by Burt Bacharach and Hal David. The song was sung by Dusty Springfield and went to #4 on the pop charts, but that doesn't mean it's any good. It feels horribly tacked on to this film, and I feel like it only got it's nomination because Bacharach and David had been nominated the previous two years and not won. They were enormously popular. It's very like how Disney films routinely get nominations for best song. The songs may not be the greatest, but they've got notoriety!

The song that won the Oscar that year was 'Talk to the Animals' from “Doctor Doolittle” by Leslie Bricusse. It's not a great song either, but it certainly fits better in “Doctor Doolittle” than 'The Look of Love' fits in “Casino Royale”. Come to think of it, 'Talk to the Animals' might fit better in “Casino Royale” than 'The Look of Love' did.

The other nominated songs were 'The Eyes of Love' from “Banning”, 'The Bare Necessities' from “The Jungle Book”, and 'Thoroughly Modern Millie' from “Thoroughly Modern Millie”.

This review was written on July 8, 2008

RECI, RECI, RECI (1991)

RECI, RECI, RECI... (WORDS, WORDS, WORDS)
Directed by Michaela Pavlatova

This is an animated short that is all about communication. We all have the desire to be great communicators, but how often do we fall short? For me, it's very frequent. I won't go into details, however, because this is a movie review, not a performance evaluation for my life.

“Reci, Reci, Reci” is set in a Parisian cafe where there are many conversations going on. The words spoken are represented by comic strip-style word balloons that take on different forms to show what is being said. A waiter asking for an order becomes a question mark shaped balloon. An old lady spreading gossip becomes a large elephant balloon. A particularly fun part involves a young couple who have just met and have instantly fallen in love. Their words become pieces in a giant puzzle that fit together perfectly. The pieces are accompanied by musical notes, making a fuller and fuller chord every time they speak.

Michaela Pavlatova directed this film, and gave it a style reminiscent of line-drawn animation that was popular in the 60's. It's very stylized. People change shapes easily, and the animation is purposefully unclean. Pavlatova also added a very interesting element—A dog character who runs around and steals everyone's drinks. At first, I though this character was nothing more than a red herring, but I realized that he shows how we can get so worked up in out conversations that we lose sight of the world around us.

“Reci, Reci, Reci” was nominated for Best Animated Short Film. The winning film was “Mona Lisa Descending a Staircase”. Also nominated were “Adam”, “The Sandman”, and “Screen Play”.

This review was written on June 9, 2008

JUNEBUG (2005)

JUNEBUG
Directed by Phil Morrison
Starring Embeth Davidtz, Alessandro Nivola, Benjamin McKenzie, Amy Adams, Celia Weston, and Scott Wilson

We don't get to choose our family, but we do get to choose our lovers. What happens when our lover and our family are so very different from each other? Will they get along? Or will the differences prove to be too much for them to overcome? This is just one of the themes in “Junebug”, which is a delightful film about a Chicago art dealer named Madeleine (Embeth Davidtz) and her husband George (Alessandro Nivola) who go to North Carolina to close a deal with a reclusive outsider artist. North Carolina happens to be where George is from, and they will be staying with his family, whom Madeleine has never met.

George's parents are Peg (Celia Weston) and Eugene (Scott Wilson). They reminded me so much of my parents. Mother is the brains. She makes all the plans and leads the household. Father doesn't talk much, especially when mother is around. They're both kind to Madeleine, but Peg seems to not trust her very much. George's brother is Johnny (Benjamin McKenzie) who is working on his GED, and is very defensive about everything. Johnny's wife is Ashley (Amy Adams) who is absolutely in awe of Madeleine and instantly wants to be her best friend. Ashley is also VERY pregnant.

“Junebug” is guilty of being slow at times, but there are scenes of great warmth. Ashley loves meerkats, and during her baby shower, Johnny is watching TV in the basement when a show about meerkats comes on. He tries desperately to tape it for her, but can't get the VCR to work right. As trivial as this may sound, it's one of the most touching scenes in the film, and it also exposes Johnny's insecurities without turning him into a clown.

All of the actors do a very good job, but the best reason to recommend this film is the effervescent performance of Amy Adams. She's like a ray of light on the screen, and you just can't take your eyes off her. Amy Adams was no stranger to movies, but it was “Junebug” that really launched her into stardom. Now she seems to be in just about every film that is made, which isn't a bad thing, because I know that when she's in a movie there will be at least one thing worth watching in it.

Amy Adams was nominated for Best Supporting Actress. She lost to Rachel Weisz in “The Constant Gardener”. The other nominated actresses were Michelle Williams in “Brokeback Mountain”, Catherine Keener in “Capote”, and Frances McDormand in “North Country”.

This review was written on July 2, 2008

CLOSED MONDAYS (1974)

CLOSED MONDAYS
Directed by Bob Gardiner and Will Vinton

What makes something art? What makes art good art? Does art imitate life? Does life imitate art? These are questions that won't be answered soon. “Closed Mondays” is a claymation short that attempts to weigh in. It's about a drunk man who breaks into an art museum on Monday, the day that it is closed. He stumbles around and looks at all of the exhibits, appraising them with the wit and spirit that lives at the bottom of a bottle. Most of the modern art he doesn't understand, and therefore hates. One sculpture he describes as a “crazy computer”. But then there is one painting that touches his soul.

We all have our favorite things in the art world. Sometimes other people's favorites may be garbage to us. The value of art is in constant flux. It is totally dependent on the person viewing it at any given second.

Having said that, I'll say now that I didn't really like “Closed Mondays”. The animation was sloppy and the characters a bit grotesque. The main character of the drunk man was unsympathetic. There was one touching moment, but overall the film left me feeling flat.

Despite my dislike, “Closed Mondays” won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short and is considered by many to be a masterpiece of animation. Will Vinton would go on to more commercial projects, including creating the California Raisins. Bob Gardiner continued in relative obscurity. This was the only film he ever directed. Other nominees for the award were “The Family That Dwelt Apart”, “Hunger”, “Voyage to Next”, and “Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too!”.

This review was written on June 11, 2008

THE RED BALLOON (1956)

THE RED BALLOON
Directed by Albert Lamorisse
Starring Pascal Lamorisse

This was the most popular film strip in the entirety of Mars Elementary School in Berrien Springs, Michigan when I was in first grade. I have such fond memories of this movie that I seriously doubt that I'll be able to write an unbiased review of it. But here goes.

“The Red Balloon” is a French film that's only about 34 minutes long. Officially, this makes it a short film, which makes it very unusual that the Oscar that it was nominated for, and ultimately won, was NOT Outstanding Live Action Short, but Outstanding Original Screenplay. To my knowledge, this does not happen at any other time in Oscar history. I will probably be proved wrong, but for now it's an oddity to me. It's less odd, but still kind of interesting, that the film that won the Oscar for Outstanding Original Screenplay had virtually NO dialogue in it. But I'm reminded that a screenplay is more than just spoken word. It's stage direction, setting, and overall feel too.

“The Red Balloon” is about a boy who finds a red balloon floating in the streets of Paris. He decided to keep the balloon, and soon we realize that the balloon is smarter than your average red balloon. It is a living thing. It has feelings and fears, just like us. For a little boy who is looking for a friend, the red balloon is a perfect fit.

Not all is well, however. There are lots of bullies in Paris, and they would like to pop the balloon. This struggle makes up the rest of the film. We laugh as bullies are outsmarted by a balloon and we worry as things begin to look grim.

The imagery of the balloon dancing around the screen is one of my fondest memories of my childhood, and it still is very magical, even though I now can very easily see the strings leading off screen to people who are pulling it and giving it life. This is a great movie. Children of all ages will love it. It's a testament to the value of friendship and a surprisingly funny film. Watching the personified balloon dance around the screen filled my 6-year-old with joy.

As I mentioned earlier, “The Red Balloon” won the Oscar for Outstanding Original Screenplay. The other nominees were “The Bold and the Brave”, “Julie”, “The Ladykillers”, and “La Strada”.

This review was written on June 8, 2008

YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN (1974)

YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN
Directed by Mel Brooks
Starring Gene Wilder, Madeline Kahn, Peter Boyle, Cloris Leachman, Marty Feldman, and Teri Garr

When Gene Wilder stepped in at the last minute to play Jim in Mel Brooks's film “Blazing Saddles” he did so with one small request—That Brooks do his idea for a movie next. It was going to be an homage to the old Universal horror films, with plenty of humor thrown in. That idea turned out to be comic gold and “Young Frankenstein” was the product.

“Young Frankenstein” is about the grandson of Dr. Victor Frankenstein (Gene Wilder), who is a respected neurosurgeon and eager to disassociate himself from his insane grandfather's work. A man shows up from Transylvania to tell him that he has inherited his grandfather's castle. Off he goes to meet the maid Frau Blucher (Cloris Leachman), his new lab assistant Inga (Teri Garr), and his new personal assistant Igor (Marty Feldman). They find his grandfather's secret lab and his papers. As young Frederick Frankenstein reads through them, he begins to realize that his grandfather's work might not have been as insane as he thought, and he vows to continue it!
Accidents happen and he wind up creating a horrible monster with an abnormal brain (Peter Boyle) instead of the refined creature he'd hoped for. The monster breaks loose, and though he attempts to train it, things keep going wrong. Dr. Frankenstein realizes that he has only one hope to save his creation, but it may cost him his own life.

Many people consider this to be Mel Brooks's greatest film. Personally, I think that honor goes to his first film “The Producers” (Also starring Gene Wilder, incidentally), but “Young Frankenstein” is easily in the top three, along with his other comedy from 1974, “Blazing Saddles”. This movie s laugh-out-loud funny throughout, and it also manages to be a little scary in places. One iconic moment is a rendition of Irving Berlin's “Puttin' on the Ritz” that is so well done that I've met people who don't believe me when I say that it wasn't written for this film. Another is a cameo by Gene Hackman that is nothing less than brilliant. Hackman plays a blind hermit who meets the monster and mistakes him for a companion sent to him by God. Hackman's blind man proves to be more of a nuisance to the monster than the monster is to all of Transylvania.

Gene Wilder is fantastic. Before he met Mel Brooks he had always considered himself a dramatic actor. This dramatic training definitely shows, because he brings everything to any character that he plays. His Dr. Frankenstein is a conflicted man, dealing with the demons of his past, and longing to make a name for himself in the future. He's also incredibly funny, and a really good straight man. The entire cast plays so well off of each other that the movie has a dance-like feel to it. Marty Feldman executes his role with a style all his own. He mugs to the camera and switches accents quickly enough to make your head spin. Teri Garr is equally wonderful as the naive bombshell Inga.

Mel Brooks's direction is top notch. That man can make anything funny. The script by Brooks and Wilder is one of the best comedy scripts of all time. The jokes are timeless. This places it above “Blazing Saddles” which is burdened by a lot of jokes that are too dated for viewing thirty years later.

“Young Frankenstein” was nominated for two Oscars. The first nomination went to Richard Portman and Gene S. Cantamessa for Best Sound. They lost to Ronald Pierce and Melvin M. Metcalfe Sr. for “Earthquake”. The other nominated films were “Chinatown”, “The Towering Inferno”, and “The Conversation”.

Mel Brooks and Gene Wilder were nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay. They lost to Francis Ford Coppola and Mario Puzo for “The Godfather, Part II”. The other nominated films were “The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz”, “Lenny”, and “Murder on the Orient Express”.

This review was written on July 6, 2008

YANKEE DOODLE DANDY (1942)

YANKEE DOODLE DANDY
Directed by Michael Curtiz
Starring James Cagney, Joan Leslie, and Walter Huston

I was looking at a Reuters Poll the other day that said that only 57% of Americans were “Extremely Proud” of being American. The last time the number was this low was in January or 2001, between the political fiasco that was the 2000 Presidential Election and the events of September 11, 2001. The survey was then broken down to show that among 18-29 year olds, only 38% were “Extremely Proud” to be an American. The number went up with age, peaking with 62% of people 65 and older being “Extremely Proud”.

What's my point? There was a time when those numbers were much higher. Forgive me for sounding nostalgic, but there was a time when being American meant more than just the place you were born. The feeling of pride was a natural part of being American. People trusted each other more. People trusted the government more. Not everything was perfect, but if we worked hard we could achieve more.

“Yankee Doodle Dandy” is a film that celebrates that time in America by telling the story of one of America's greatest showmen—George M. Cohan, stunningly portrayed by James Cagney. Cohan was one of the first big names in the Broadway theatre, writing such standards as “Give My Regards to Broadway” and “Yankee Doodle Dandy”. He also wrote the great World War I song “Over There”.

To go off topic a little, “Over There” is a great song. It rouses the spirit and creates a feeling of pride. Compare it to patriotic songs made today, which are mostly written and sung by country artists, and pretty much all suck. No wonder that American Pride is down!

Anyway, back to the movie. “Yankee Doodle Dandy” is about the life of Cohan, from his early beginnings as a vaudeville performer with his family, to his thrilling comeback in the Broadway play “I'd Rather Be Right” where he played a singing and dancing FDR. The plot doesn't have many twists or much conflict. It's more of a celebration of Cohan's life than an examination of it. There's really never any doubt that Cohan will rise to super stardom. There are a few reasons for this. First of all, Cohan was still alive when this movie premiered, and he was still known by just about every American over the age of 25. Harsh criticisms of celebrities may be common today, but they weren't back in 1942. Also, this movie is more than just a biopic. Released in 1942, it was a dose of patriotism for every American who was troubled by the events of World War II. It was a reminder of what we were fighting for. To make it too cynical or negative would have turned off too many Americans who were incredibly proud of their country.

I don't mean to imply that “Yankee Doodle Dandy” is nothing more than a jingoistic piece of pro-American propaganda. It's a fantastically made film, and it successfully evokes the emotions and takes you on a fun ride through the history of early Broadway. Michael Curtiz's direction keeps the film moving along at a gallop, and manages to keep the viewer on the edge of their seat, despite the lack of suspense. Cagney is simply stunning as Cohan. He shows off such skill in acting, singing, and dancing that any doubt that he could only play the tough guy roles that he is known for is quickly shed. Truly, Cagney was one of the most versatile performers of that or any era.

The supporting cast was also wonderful. Walter Huston played Jerry Cohan, George's father. He delivers a wonderful comic performance. Joan Leslie plays Mary, Cohan's wife, with a wonderful charm and peaceful restraint.

“Yankee Doodle Dandy” was nominated for eight Oscars. It won three of them. James Cagney won for Best Actor for his portrayal of George M. Cohan. He beat out Walter Pidgeon in “Mrs. Miniver”, Monty Woolley in “The Pied Piper”, Gary Cooper in “The Pride of the Yankees”, and Ronald Colman in “Random Harvest.”

Walter Huston was nominated for his portrayal of Jerry Cohan. He lost to Van Heflin in “Johnny Eager”. Also nominated were Henry Travers in “Mrs. Miniver”, Frank Morgan in “Tortilla Flat”, and William Bendix in “Wake Island”.

Michael Curtiz was nominated for Best Director. He lost to William Wyler for his direction of “Mrs. Miniver”. Other nominated films were “Kings Row”, “Random Harvest”, and “Wake Island”.

George Amy was nominated for his amazingly tight editing. He lost to Daniel Mandell for his work on “The Pride of the Yankees”. Other nominated films were “Mrs. Miniver”, “The Talk of the Town”, and “This Above All.”

Ray Heindorf and Heinz Roemheld won Oscar gold for Best Musical Scoring of a Musical Picture. When you're working with as great of source material as the collective work of George M. Cohan, scoring a film can't be that hard. The other nominated films were “Flying With Music”, “For Me and My Gal”, “Holiday Inn”, “It Started With Eve”, “Johnny Doughboy”, “My Gal Sal”, and “You Were Never Lovelier”.

Warner Bros. Studio earned a nomination for Best Picture. They lost to rival studio M-G-M with their production of “Mrs. Miniver”. Other nominated films were “49th Parallel”, “Kings Row”, “The Magnificent Ambersons”, “The Pied Piper”, “The Pride of the Yankees”, “Random Harvest”, “The Talk of the Town”, and “Wake Island”.

Nathan Levenson, the head of the Warner Bros. Studio Sound Department, won an Oscar for Best Sound Recording. The other nominated films were “Arabian Nights”, “Bambi”, “Flying Tigers”, “Friendly Enemies”, “The Gold Rush”, “Mrs. Miniver”, “Once Upon a Honeymoon”, “The Pride of the Yankees”, “The Road to Morocco”, “This Above All”, and “You Were Never Lovelier”.

Finally, Robert Buckner was nominated for Best Writing of an Original Motion Picture Story. He lost to Emeric Pressburger for “49th Parallel”. Other nominated films were “Holiday Inn”, “The Pride of the Yankees”, and “The Talk of the Town”.

This review was written on July 1, 2008

A GRAND DAY OUT (1989)

A GRAND DAY OUT
Directed by Nick Park
Starring the voice of Peter Sallis

“A Grand Day Out” marks the first time that we are introduced to two of the greatest characters that the art of claymation has given us—Wallace and Gromit. Wallace is an inventor who is a little bit slow and Gromit is his faithful and smarter dog. The pair always remind me of a quote that I've always attributed to Mark Twain, “It's far better to stay silent and have everyone think you're a fool than to open your mouth and prove it.” Gromit never speaks. Wallace does, and it's because of this that we realize how simple he is. Yet Wallace is by no means a simpleton. He is an inventor, remember, and in “A Grand Day Out” he invents a rocket ship to take Gromit and himself to the Moon. Why do they want to go to the moon? Because England is celebrating a bank holiday and Wallace can't decide where to go. He eventually decided that he wants to go somewhere where he can find his favorite thing, cheese, in abundance, and everyone knows that the Moon is made of cheese!

He and Gromit work together designing and building, drilling and sawing, painting and wallpapering. The rocket is finished and they blast off and land on the Moon. The cheese there is unlike any Wallace had ever had before so he gathers a basket full to take home with him. This is a problem for the only other thing on the Moon, a robot who looks like he'd been there for a while. The robot wants to chastise Wallace for defacing the Moon, but then learns about skiing and wants to go back to Earth with them. Unfortunately the robot can't talk, and Wallace interprets his actions as hostile. He and Gromit board the rocket and blast off for home. There is a happy ending for all, but I've already spoiled too much.

Since this is the first adventure for Wallace And Gromit it was naturally made with the lowest budget. This shows in the rougher style of animation that was cleaned up in later adventures. Later adventures also had more intricate plots and more special effects. The later films are, I think, superior to this one, but by no means is this film bad. It's a very entertaining film, and quite cute.

“A Grand Day Out” lost the Academy Award for Best Animated Short to another Nick Park film, “Creature Comforts”. The only other nominee was “Cavalette”.

This review was written on June 10, 2008

THE WRONG TROUSERS (1993)

THE WRONG TROUSERS
Directed by Nick Park
Starring the voice of Peter Sallis

This is the second short film in the Wallace and Gromit trilogy from Aardman Animation in England. As far as second parts go, I'd say that this one ranks up there with “The Godfather, Part II” and “The Empire Strikes Back”. “The Wrong Trousers” brings us into the world of Wallace and Gromit again. They have returned from their “Grand Day Out” to the Moon and have resumed their lives as if people went to the Moon every bank holiday.

It is Gromit's birthday. He is up cooking breakfast when Wallace wakes up and joins him. At first we think that Wallace has forgotten about the special day, but soon we realize that he was only pretending and has invented a wonderful present for Gromit. It's a pair of “techno-trousers”--Robotic legs that can take Gromit for a walk. They are also useful for things like painting the ceiling, as they have suction feet that can walk up walls.

But, alas, the duo have hit on hard times. Bills keep going up and inventing just isn't covering the gap like it used to. Wallace decided that they must rent out the spare room to make ends meet, and the person that they find to move in is a penguin that Gromit doesn't quite trust.

The differences between this film and it's predecessor, “A Grand Day Out” are vast. The animation is much cleaner. It has much more of a finished look than the first film did. The story is much bigger in scope. It's certainly funnier, and it's filled with suspense and mystery. The music is also much grander. It sounds as if there is a whole orchestra playing for this movie.
Characterization is one of the strengths of this series and “The Wrong Trousers” earns highest marks. Two of the three main characters, Gromit and Penguin, don't speak at all. They don't even have mouths. Gromit has very animated eyes, brows, and ears, but Penguin has no moving features at all. All he has are tiny little beady eyes and a nondescript beak. Yet he is still able to convey a sense of anger and strength. I never doubt what Penguin is thinking, and this is a credit to Nick Park's skills as an artist.

“The Wrong Trousers” won the Oscar for Best Animated Short. Other nominees were “Blindscape”, “Le Flueve Aux Grandes Aux”, “Small Talk”, and “The Village”.

This review was written on June 10, 2008

A CLOSE SHAVE (1995)

A CLOSE SHAVE
Directed by Nick Park
Starring the voices of Peter Sallis and Anne Reid

The biggest question at the end of the previous Wallace and Gromit short, “The Wrong Trousers” is “How does Nick Park top the climactic ending in the next film?” Well, he manages too, and “A Close Shave” was the biggest and most epic Wallace and Gromit film to date. He wouldn't be able to top himself again without turning the duo's adventures into a full-length film, which he did in 2005 with “The Curse of the Were-Rabbit”. But that's getting ahead of things.

“A Close Shave” is the third Wallace and Gromit film. Times are still hard, and inventing still isn't making ends meet. Wallace and Gromit have learned their lesson when it comes to renting out rooms, so in this movie they've taken to window washing.

Plaguing England is a shortage of wool used to make yarn due to wranglers who are stealing all the sheep. Wallace and Gromit are hired to clean the windows of a wool shop owned by the beautiful Wendolene Ramsbottom, and Wallace is smitten. She has plenty of wool, and repeatedly needs her windows cleaned, so Wallace keeps finding reasons to come back. She is smitten with Wallace too, but Gromit doesn't trust her. He also doesn't trust her dog Preston, and rightfully so. Preston is the one who is stealing the sheep, only he frames Gromit and gets him thrown in prison. Now Wallace and a bunch of sheep must rescue Gromit and clear his name.

“A Close Shave” pushes the limits of what can be done with plasticine clay. There are some truly remarkable shots in this film, and they're even more remarkable when you realize that they were done without the use of CGI. Nick Park once again proves himself to be a master of creating great expression from the least amount of work. Yes, there is a second talking character in this film, but there are also a bevy of non-talking sheep. One in particular, named Sean, is remarkably expressive without uttering a single word and while having a very blank expression on his face most of the time.

This film is the perfect end cap to the original Wallace and Gromit trilogy. Children will love it, and adults will too. It's the kind of movie that families can watch together without anyone being bored.

“A Close Shave” won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short. The other nominees were “The Chicken From Outer Space”, “The End”, “Gagarin”, and “Runaway Brain”.

This review was written on June 10, 2008

Luxo Jr. (1986)

LUXO JR.
Directed by John Lasseter

Anyone who has seen a Pixar movie has seen the character Luxo Jr. He's the little lamp that takes the place of the “I” in the Pixar logo. He's also the title character in the first computer animated short film to be nominated for an Academy Award.

“Luxo Jr.” is about a Luxo-style lamp and his son, Luxo Jr. For those of you who can't visualize, the Luxo lamps are the standard desk lamps that pivot at the base, top, and midway of the neck. They're excellent desk lamps. Luxo Sr. watches as Luxo Jr. plays with a ball. They even play together a bit until Luxo Jr. accidentally breaks the ball. Not to be daunted, Luxo Jr. finds a new ball and the game continues. I apologize for giving away the whole plot, but the film is only two minutes long. It's hard to talk about the plot of a two minute movie without giving it all away. Wait until I review “Ben Hur” or “Return of the King”--Then I'll have plenty to talk about without giving it all away.

Even knowing the plot, “Luxo Jr.” is still a delight. The emotion that is able to be conveyed by two desk lamps is amazing. This movie is really a turning point in animation, opening the flood gates for all the CG-Animated movies that came after it. Not that every CG-Animated movie has been good ('Everybody's Hero'?) but the people at Pixar will not settle for anything less than amazing. I forget where I heard this, but someone once said that Pixar would rather have all their hard drives crash than turn out second-hand work. No need to worry here, because “Luxo Jr.” is definitely first-class.

“Luxo Jr” was produced by John Lasseter and William Reeves and they were nominated for Best Animated Short. They lost to the film “Een Griekse Tragedie”. The other nominee was “The Frog, the Dog, and the Devil”.

This review was written on June 14, 2008

MONGOL (2007)

MONGOL
Directed by Sergei Bodrov
Starring Tadanobu Asano, Khulan Chuluun, Honglei Sun, and Ondyam Odsuren,

“Mongol” tells the story of the rise to power of Temudjin, better known to the rest of civilization as Genghis Khan. Whether Genghis Khan was a hero or a villain is widely debated today, but it cannot be debated that he was an incredibly powerful man, and on of the most important people in all history.

“Mongol” is the first film in what is to be a trilogy directed by Sergei Bodrov about the legend of Khan. After watching it, I cannot wait for the next two! “Mongol” is stunning in all aspects, and Bodrov is equally at home directing intimate love scenes and giant battles.

Young Temudjin (Ondyam Odsuren) is being taught by his father how to rule his tribe effectively. Years before, his father had stolen his bride from a neighboring tribe, and now, to make peace with them, is taking Temudjin to them to choose his bride. Along the way they stop for the night with a friendly tribe and Temudjin meets Borte, whom he chooses, much to his father's dismay. On the way back home his father is killed and a high-ranking member of his tribe claims leadership, vowing to kill Temudjin when he is an adult. For much of the movie, Temudjin is running away from people who mean to harm him. He learns great combat skills and develops fine leadership abilities. He also makes a good friend, Jamukah, who is going to be the leader of his tribe when he grows up.

We next see Temudjin as an adult (Tadanobu Asano), and though he is running most of his life, he never forgets his vow to return to Borte and marry her. When he finally gets back to her, she has remained faithful and grown into a beautiful woman (Khulan Chuluun).

The past proves to be a dangerous enemy, and the tribe that Temudjin was supposed to marry into learns that he has wed Borte, so they come and kidnap her. Temudjin enlists the help of Jamukah (Honglei Sun) and they rescue her, but a terrible accident causes Temudjin and Jamukah to become mortal enemies.

Stylistically, this film is very much like “The Lord Of the Rings” Trilogy. It is epic in scope and contains some of the greatest battle scenes in modern film making. It is also very reminiscent of older Hollywood epics like “The Ten Commandments”, “Spartacus”, and “Ben Hur”. Indeed, the friend that I saw this movie with thought it was a little too “Hollywood” for his tastes, but it never bothered me.

The only problem that I had with the film was that there were times where very important things were skipped over. Early in the film, Temudjin has escaped his captors, but is still trapped in the stocks. We see him at a shrine praying, then the camera pans away. When it comes back, he is free. I guess that we're supposed to believe that his god let him out, but it doesn't make much sense to me.

“Mongol” was nominated for Best Foreign Film. It was the first nomination for the country of Kazakhstan, however it lost to “The Counterfeiters” from Austria. Other nominated films were “Beaufort” from Israel, “Katyn” from Poland, and “12” from Russia.

This review was written on July 2, 2008.

Additional labels for MARY POPPINS (1964)

There were so many Oscar nominees that I couldn't fit the labels into one blog entry. So here are the rest of them!

MARY POPPINS (1964)

MARY POPPINS
Directed by Robert Stevenson
Starring Julie Andrews, Dick Van Dyke, David Tomlinson, Glynis Johns, Karen Dotrice, and Matthew Garber

I met my best friend Matt just over ten years ago. We lived in the same dorm our freshman year of college, and our friendship grew over a mutual love of the musical “Guys and Dolls”. Both of our high schools had done the show in previous years. Matt and I also had a mutual love of movies. I was a theatre major and at the time he was a film/video major, so we often found ourselves up late talking about various movies. The biggest rift that ever came between us was when we found out that I didn't particularly like “The Princess Bride” and he didn't particularly like “Mary Poppins”. Our reasons for not liking the films were valid. We had not seen them until late in high school and the combination of being above the target age and all the hype the films had received made them less than stunning for us. It's not like we disliked them, but we didn't think they were the great films that the other did.

Confused yet? Sorry if you are. For the rest of this review I'll just focus on “Mary Poppins”. This is arguably the greatest live-action movie that Walt Disney ever released. It is filled with an energy and a life unlike any other movie of its type. The wonderful music, fun performances, and magical special effects made “Mary Poppins” into an instant classic, and they're just as good today as they were in 1964 when the film was released.

I won't ignore the elephant in the room any longer. It is possible that part of the reason that this film received so much acclaim was because Julie Andrews was not cast in “My Fair Lady”. I'll explain for those of you who don't know your musical theatre history. Julie Andrews first became a superstar in America when she was cast in the role of Eliza Dolittle in the musical “My Fair Lady” on Broadway. The show was the biggest hit of the decade, and since this was back in the days when the average American cared about the Broadway theatre, Julie Andrews became a big star. Of course there would be a movie made of “My Fair Lady”, that's just how it was done back then! If a musical was a big hit then you could expect a movie version of it to also succeed.
The movie executives had different ideas about who should be in the movie than the Broadway producers did. They didn't want Rex Harrison to reprise his role as Henry Higgins, but they were convinced by the collective will of Hollywood. Then came the time to decide who was going to play Eliza. Legend has it that Julie Andrews was meeting with a couple of the producers of the movie about her playing the part when another producer burst into the room and blurted out “Great news! Audrey Hepburn just agreed to play Eliza!”

To say that people were shocked and angry would be an understatement. But it would up working out well for Julie Andrews. She got hired by Walt Disney to play the title role in “Mary Poppins”, and she went on to win an Oscar for the part. Audrey Hepburn didn't even get a nomination for playing Eliza. Many people say that Andrews's win and Hepburn's snub was all because of the fact that Andrews didn't get to play Eliza. There is likely a great deal of truth to this, because a role like Mary Poppins isn't usually the kind that would get nominated for Best Actress, and Hepburn actually did a wonderful job playing Eliza.

The problem with claiming that “Mary Poppins” only received it's acclaim because of the “My Fair Lady” scandal is that you rob “Mary Poppins” and the people who worked on it of the acclaim that they deserve. It is a fantastic film that appeals to both children and adults. Children will love the talking animals and all of the magic that Mary offers, and adults will enjoy the more subtle things about the movie, such as Mr. Banks's (David Tomlinson) journey from a stoic British banker who happens to have children to loving father.

The music in “Mary Poppins” is sensational. Every song ranks high in the list of the greatest Disney classics. From the haunting lullaby “Feed the Birds” to the tongue-tied showstopper “Supercalifragilisticexpealidocious” all of the songs are instantly hummable, and performed so incredibly well by a wonderfully cast ensemble. Julie Andrews sings her way into your heart as Mary. Dick Van Dyke is a treat to watch as the exuberant Bert, the jack-of-all trades. Glynis Johns is wonderful as suffragette mother Mrs. Banks. Karen Dotrice and Matthew Garber are well suited to play Jane and Michael Banks. David Tomlinson is stunning as Mr. Banks. I certanly hope that his name was on the short list for nominations for Best Supporting Actor, because his performance is wonderful.

“Mary Poppins” was nominated for thirteen Oscars. It won five of them. Walt Disney and Bill Walsh produced their way to a nomination for Best Picture, which they lost to Jack L. Warner for “My Fair Lady”. Also nominated were “Alexis Zorbas”, “Becket”, and “Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb”.

Julie Andrews won her first and, thus far, only Oscar for her performance in the title character. Also nominated were Sophia Loren in “Marriage Italian Style”, Anne Bancroft in “The Pumpkin Eater”, Kim Stanley in “Seance on a Wet Afternoon”, and Debbie Reynolds in “The Unsinkable Molly Brown”.

Robert Stevenson earned his only Oscar nomination for his direction of “Mary Poppins”. He lost to George Cukor for his direction of “My Fair Lady”. Other nominated films were “Alexis Zorbas”, “Becket”, and “Dr Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb.”

Bill Walsh and Don DaGradi earned nominations for Best Adapted Screenplay. They lost to Edward Anhalt for “Becket”. Other nominated films were “Alexis Zorbas”, “Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb”, and “My Fair Lady”.

Edward Colman was nominated for Best Color Cinematography. He lost to Harry Stradling Sr.'s work on “My Fair Lady”. The other nominated films were “Becket”, “Cheyenne Autumn”, and “The Unsinkable Molly Brown”.

In the category of Color Art Direction, art directors Carroll Clark and William H. Tuntke and set decorators Emile Kuri and Hal Gausman were all nominated for “Mary Poppins”. They lost the award to the team from “My Fair Lady” made up of Gene Allen, Cecil Beaton, and George James Hopkins. The other nominated films were “Becket”, “The Unsinkable Molly Brown”, and “What a Way To Go!”.

Tony Walton designed the costumes for “Mary Poppins”, and he earned a nomination in this category. He lost to Cecil Beaton's costume design for “My Fair Lady”. The other nominated films were “Becket”, The Unsinkable Molly Brown”, and “What a Way To Go!”

In the category of Best Sound, Robert O. Cook was nominated for “Mary Poppins”, but lost to George Groves for “My Fair Lady”. The other nominated films were “Becket”, “Father Goose”, and “The Unsinkable Molly Brown”.

Cotton Warburton won the Oscar for his Editing of “Mary Poppins”. Other nominated films were “Becket”, “Father Goose”, “Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte”, and “My Fair Lady”.

The visual effects team of Peter Ellenshaw, Eustace Lycett, and Hamilton Luske won an Oscar for their magical effects in “Mary Poppins”. The other nominated film was “7 Faces of Dr. Lao”.
Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman were the music writing team for many of the greatest Disney films. They earned two Oscars for their work on “Mary Poppins”. The first was for Best Original Song for 'Chim Chim Cher-ee'. The other nominated songs were 'Dear Heart' from “Dear Heart”, 'Hush... Hust, Sweet Charlotte' from “Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte”, 'My Kind of Town' from “Robin and the 7 Hoods”, and 'Where Love Has Gone' from “Where Love Has Gone”.

The Sherman Brother's second Oscar for “Mary Poppins” was for Best Original Score. The films that they beat for this award were “Becket”, “The Fall of the Roman Empire”, “Hush... Hush, Sweet Charlotte”, and “The Pink Panther”.

Another music nomination for “Mary Poppins” went to Irwin Kostal for Best Scoring of Music (Adaptation or Treatment). I wasn't sure exactly how this worked, since the Shermans wrote the music, but then I figured that Kostal must have used the Sherman's themes to create the underscoring for the movie. It was fantastic, but it lost to Andre Previn's adaptation of Frederick Loewe's music for “My Fair Lady”. The other nominated films were “A Hard Day's Night”, “Robin and the 7 Hoods”, and “The Unsinkable Molly Brown”.

This review was written on June 12, 2008

THE THREE LITTLE PIGS (1933)

THE THREE LITTLE PIGS
Directed by Burt Gillett

“The Three Little Pigs” is one of the most classic Disney Short films. Who didn't see this film in grade school when they were young? I just re-watched this movie and I've found that it still holds up. I like it just as much now as I did when I was in first grade. This is truly a timeless film, and it is one that will hopefully be around for many generations, entertaining children for years to come.

The story, in case there is anyone who doesn't know it, is about three pigs who are building houses. Two of the pigs don't like to work and decided to quickly build their houses out of straw and sticks. The third pig is more studious. He has a sense of responsibility, and he takes the extra time to build his house out of bricks. When the big, bad wolf comes to attack the pigs, the first two discover the downside to cutting corners and must run to their brother in the brick house for shelter.

There are so many things about this film to recommend that it's hard to pin down a few to talk about. However, the music is a very major part. The song 'Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf' is a Disney classic and it actually became an anthem of the people, who sang it to ward off fears about the Great Depression. I still find myself humming it when I'm a little nervous about something.

The animation is key too. This was the first cartoon to be fully storyboarded. Before this film, cartoons were made from brief sketches describing the feel of a scene. The result of this new process of writing and directing animated shorts was more fully developed stories and much more clever animation. There were lots of little gems in this film that the casual watcher might not catch on first viewing. For example, in one pig's house are portraits of his mother and father. The mother is a large sow feeding several piglets and the father is several links of sausage. I had never noticed that before, and I have seen this film several times.

“The Three Little Pigs” won the Oscar for Best Short Subject (Cartoon) in the 1932/33 awards ceremony. The other nominees were “Building a Building” and “The Merry Old Soul”.

This review was written on June 3, 2008

BEING THERE (1979)

BEING THERE
Directed by Hal Ashby
Starring Peter Sellers, Shirley MacLaine, and Melvin Douglas

After being passed over for nominations in several excellent films, and losing to Rex Harrison for his performance in “Dr. Strangelove”, “Being There” was supposed to be the film that would allow Peter Sellers to join the pantheon of men who were Academy Award winners. “Being There” was his pet project. It took him nine years to get it made and he still had to convince studio heads that he was right for the lead.

“Being There” is about John Chance (Sellers), an illiterate and simple-minded gardener for an old man. At the beginning of the movie the old man has just died. He has no family, so his lawyers come to take the house away. They inform John Chance that he must leave, which he does without any complaint. He walks out the door and into Washington, DC in 1979. We begin to wonder how he's going to survive his first night on the streets when he's hit by a car owned by Eve Rand (Shirley MacLaine. Eve insists that Chance come home with her to be taken care of by the private doctors who have been hired to take care of her dying husband Benjamin (Melvyn Douglas). On the way home there is a miscommunication and Eve mistakenly believes that John Chance is Chauncey Gardiner, a businessman who has just lost his business.

Benjamin is a very powerful man, and he takes a shine to Chauncey, eventually deciding to introduce him to the President of the United States, who has come to be advised on economic matters. The President asks Chauncey's opinion on the matter, and Chauncey tells him that in a garden there is Spring and Summer, but there is also Fall and Winter. If the roots aren't damaged during Fall and Winter, then growth will happen again in Spring and Summer. The President quotes Chauncey in a nationally televised speech and soon Chauncey is one of the most popular yet mysterious characters in the country.

Peter Sellers delivers a strong performance. He was truly a comic master. His portrayal of John Chance/Chauncey Gardiner was so innocent, yet hilarious. Equally good were the performances of Shirley MacLaine and Melvyn Douglas. They never doubt Chauncey's legitimacy, and in less capable hands this could look asinine, but I was never taken out of the moment.

Unfortunately, Sellers did not win his Oscar for “Being There”. He died a year later, so he would never have the chance again. In a lesser year, “Being There” might have swept the awards, but 1979 was a very strong year, including the releases of “Kramer vs. Kramer”, “Apocalypse Now”, “All That Jazz”, “The Rose”, “Norma Rae”, and “Breaking Away”. Sellers lost his Oscar to Dustin Hoffman's performance in “Kramer vs. Kramer.” Other nominees were Al Pacino in “...And Justice for All”, Roy Scheider in “All That Jazz”, and Jack Lemon in “The China Syndrome”.

Sellers didn't win an Oscar, but the film was awarded a statue for Melvyn Douglas's performance as Benjamin Rand, the dying husband who's last few weeks are made brighter by the presence of Chauncey Garniner. Other nominees for Best Supporting Actor were Robert Duvall in “Apocalypse Now”, Mickey Rooney in “The Black Stallion”, Justin Henry in “Kramer vs. Kramer”, and Frederic Forrest in “The Rose”.

This review was written on June 9, 2008

INHERIT THE WIND (1960)

INHERIT THE WIND
Directed by Stanley Kramer
Starring Spencer Tracy, Frederic March, Donna Anderson, Elliott Reid, Gene Kelley, Dick York, and Harry Morgan

“I say that you cannot administer a wicked law impartially. You can only destroy, you can only punish. And I warn you, that a wicked law, like cholera, destroys every one it touches. Its upholders as well as its defiers.”

“Suppose God whispered into a Bertram Cate's ear that an un-Brady thought could still be holy? Must men go to jail because they find themselves at odds with a self-appointed prophet?”

“Remember the wisdom of Solomon in the book of Proverbs. 'He that troubleth his own house shall inherit the wind.'”

These are three of the greatest quotes from “Inherit the Wind”, which is a fantastic movie that is just as relevant to the times today as it was when it was made almost fifty years ago. It's an amazing coincidence that I chose to watch this film today, because we are once again on the verge of a holy war. A war where people claiming to represent God are going to try to use their influence to spread hatred and discrimination. Most of you who read these blogs know me personally, but in case someone reads this who doesn't know me personally, I'll explain my last sentence. I live in California, which will become the second state in the United States to allow same-sex couples the right to marry next week. That is unless a ballot initiative put onto the ballot by religious fundamentalists puts a discriminatory amendment into our state constitution defining marriage as between one man and one woman.

What does this have to do with “Inherit the Wind”? “Inherit the Wind” tells the true story of the Scopes Monkey Trial, in which a high school teacher was arrested for teaching evolution to his students. The case drew national acclaim and two big lawyers came in to try the case. The Prosecuting Attorney was William Jennings Bryant and the Defense Attorney was Clarence Darrow. They were two of the most important political figures of their time. Bryant was known as the “Silver Tongued Orator” and had ran unsuccessfully for President three times. Clarence Darrow was a leader of the American Civil Liberties Union and had also represented Leopold and Loeb at their murder trial.

For the purposes of the movie the names were changed. Clarence Darrow became Henry Drummon (Played by Spencer Tracy), William Jennings Bryant became Matthew Harrison Brady (Frederic March), reporter H.L. Mencken became E.K. Hornbeck (Gene Kelley), and teacher John T. Snopes became Bertram T. Cates (Dick York). The names changed, but the facts surrounding the trial are largely unchanged. In fact, some of the more outlandish lines of dialogue were taken directly from the court room record.

Why is this film so important? Because even today, almost fifty years after the film was released, there are still people who believe themselves to be divine messengers from God. They may not be right, but they are certainly loud! And they can influence countless others. They rule by fear, and they convince poor people that unless they conform to strict standards they will be left out of the goodness that God has to offer. Evolution and same-sex marriage are not the only issues that they weigh in on! In matters of civil rights, gender rights, environmental issues, and even the selection of presidents these so-called leaders call forth their armies to do their bidding. The blind lead the blind and we all get carried along as they march us off a cliff.

May it never be said that I'm anti-religion. I'm a firm believer in God and his son Jesus and the goodness that can come from them. I draw the line when people use religious teachings to promote hatred and bigotry, or to blind us all from common sense.

“Inherit the Wind” deals with these issues with such passion and fervor that it will leave you breathless. All of the performances are utterly remarkable. Director Stanley Kramer knows how to get the most out of every actor he works with. There is not a moment where he is not turning the knobs of tension, making your heart speed up and your breath shorten with the skill of a fine craftsman. That he was not nominated for Best Director is a shame.

“Inherit the Wind” was nominated for four Oscars. It won none. The first was for Spencer Tracy for Best Actor for his brilliant and powerful portrayal of Henry Drummond. He lost to Burt Lancaster in “Elmer Gantry”. The other nominees were Jack Lemmon in “The Apartment”, Laurence Olivier in “The Entertainer”, and Trevor Howard in “Sons and Lovers”.
Ernest Laszlo was nominated for Best Cinematography in a Black and White Film. He lost to Freddie Francis in “Sons and Lovers”. Other nominated films were “The Apartment”, “The Facts of Life”, and “Psycho”.

Frederic Knudtson earned a nomination for Best Film Editing. The winner was Daniel Mandell who edited “The Apartment”. The other nominated films were “The Alamo”, “Pepe”, and “Spartacus”.

The final nomination went to Nedrick Young and Harold Jacob Smith for Best Adapted Screenplay. Older records will not list Mr. Young. They will instead list Nathan E. Douglas, which was Mr. Young's pseudonym. Nedrick Young was unable to put his real name on the script because he had been blacklisted from the industry because of ties to Communism. How fitting that a film about the dangers of fanaticism should be written by a man who was a victim of it. The Oscar went to Richard Brooks for “Elmer Gantry”. Other nominated films were “Sons and Lovers”, The Sundowners”, and “Tunes of Glory”.

THE THREE CABALLEROS (1944)

THE THREE CABALLEROS
Directed by Norman Ferguson

Viewed by many as a sequel to “Saludos Amigos”, “The Three Caballeros” is far superior in many ways. For starters, the story is much better. “Saludos Amigos” is a documentary about the Disney animators traveling to South America that is expanded with some South American-themed cartoons. “The Three Caballeros” is a full-length cartoon starring Donald Duck. It is Donald's birthday, and his friends from south of the border have sent him presents. We still learn a lot about the culture, but it is presented in a way that is a lot more interesting, and very fun!

Joining Donald in the fun are his two friends, Jose Carioca, the parrot from Brazil, and Panchito, a Rooster from Mexico. They take Donald on a variety of adventures, filled with fun, music, and beautiful women, whom Donald falls for in a crazy fantasia at the movie's end. All of this is accompanied by the skillful animation that Disney is known for. There are also some sequences where animation and live-action are mixed. These scenes are incredibly well done, and set the scene for future movies where animation and live-action are mixed more.

“The Three Caballeros” was nominated for two Academy Awards. This was in a period where there were a lot more nominations per category. For the first nomination, Best Scoring of a Musical, “The Three Caballeros” is one of twelve nominees. The film lost the Oscar to “Anchors Aweigh”, which is one of my favorite films. Other nominees were “Belle of the Yukon”, “Can't Help Singing”, “Hitchhike to Happiness”, “Incendiary Blonde”, “Rhapsody in Blue”, “State Fair”, “Sunbonnet Sue”, “Tonight and Every Night”, “Why Girls Leave Home”, and “Wonder Man”.
The second nomination was for Outstanding Sound Recording, and “The Three Caballeros” is once again one of twelve nominees. The winner was “The Bells of St. Mary”. Other nominees were “Flame of the Barbary Coast”, “Lady on a Train”, “Leave Her to Heaven”, “Rhapsody in Blue”, “A Song to Remember”, “The Southerner”, “They Were Expendable”, “Three is a Family”, “The Unseen”, and “Wonder Man”.

ANGEL AND BIG JOE (1975)

ANGEL AND BIG JOE
Directed by Bert Salzman
Starring Paul Sorvino and Dadi Pinero

While everyone else in America was watching the American Idol finale, I was watching “Angel and Big Joe”, the winner of the Oscar for Best Short Film (Live Action) in 1975. I'm glad that I made this choice. This is a fantastic short film that deals with family and loyalty. Dadi Pinero plays Angel, a young migrant worker who is living with his mother and younger brother in the midwest while they wait for a call from his father telling them that he has found work in Arizona. Paul Sorvino plays Big Joe, a phone repairman who forms an unlikely bond with Angel. Through the course of the movie They grow very special to each other. Joe becomes a surrogate father to Angel, and Angel becomes a pseudo-son to Big Joe. This relationship is threatened when Angel's father calls to say that he's gotten work and the whole family needs to come to Arizona.

This movie is especially heartfelt. The relationship between the two main characters is especially sweet. Paul Sorvino and Dadi Pinero have wonderful chemistry together, even at times when the dialogue seems a bit stilted. Pinero is also guilty of overacting a bit, but it's his first movie credit, and he's very good most of the time, so it's easy to forgive.

Like most of the other shorts I've reviewed, I found this movie on youtube. It's almost a half-hour long. It's definitely worth watching. You won't regret it.

This movie won the Oscar for Best Live Action Short. The other nominees were “Conquest of Light”, “Dawn Flight”, “A Day in the Life of Bonnie Consolo”, and “Doubletalk”.

This review was written on May 21, 2008

MIKE'S NEW CAR (2002)

MIKE'S NEW CAR
Directed by Pete Doctor and Roger Gould
Starring the voices of Billy Crystal and John Goodman

When it comes to computer animation, it doesn't get any better that Pixar. “Mike's New Car” is a short film that is a sequel to Pixar's full-length film “Monsters Inc.” but the only similarities between the two films are the two main characters, Mike (Billy Crystal) and Sulley (John Goodman). If “Monsters Inc.” had never been made, this film would probably be just as strong and just as funny.

The plot is incredibly simple. Mike gets a new car, and he tries to show it to Sulley, but wrong buttons are pushed and hilarity ensues. The movie is designed for kids to enjoy, and they certainly will. There is plenty of broad physical comedy that is very well done. Things like development of character and deep meaning are absent, but they're not necessary in this film. Even if you haven't seen “Monsters Inc.” you know that these two guys are buddies, and that's all that's needed to enjoy this movie. Any deeper meaning or metaphor would only seemed tacked on and un-necessary in this slap-stick buddy comedy.

“Mike's New Car” was nominated for Outstanding Animated Short. It lost the award to “The Chubbchubbs!”. The other nominees were “Atama-yama”, “Katedra”, and “Das Rad”.

This review was written on June 8, 2008