Adventureland (2009)

Posted on September 11, 2015 by 4 Star Films

Oddly enough, the same year the cult favorite Zombieland came out there was another film starring Jesse Eisenberg, also set in a theme park, that did not seem to get as much acclaim. That film is, of course, Greg Mottola’s Adventureland, a coming of age comedy-drama which I actually enjoyed a lot more than his previous effort Superbad.

Adventureland is the basic graduate, boy meets girl, summer job formula. Undoubtedly we’ve seen it before in many forms, but Jesse Eisenberg makes it work again as James Brennan, a high school graduate living in Pennsylvania circa 1987. With little money under his belt and his father getting a pay cut, the only choice he has is to get a summer job. He’s an extremely bright kid. Good at mathematics and the like, but he also has little real-world experience so his last resort is the local amusement park Adventureland.

Instead of an interview or a resume, they look him over, take down his name, and hand him a t-shirt. And so begins his reign as a games booth attendant for Bobby and Paulette (SNL vets Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig playing their typically lovable weirdos).

The staff is rounded out by an eclectic mix of misfits and characters steeped in folklore. There’s the constant jerk of a best friend Tommy Frigo. The bespectacled wisenheimer Joel who also has a penchant for high-end literature. The legendary and alluring Lucy P. who is the park’s eye candy. Mike Connell the parks handyman and part-time musician who is rumored to have played with Lou Reed.

But the most important character, for the purpose of this story, is Em who also works in the games department and saves James from literally being stabbed by a shifty customer over a giant stuffed panda. There’s nothing overly romantic about it at first, and that’s what makes it so intriguing. He’s not the kind of guy who has a lot of experience. School was his forte. Em is cool, collected, and went around with a lot of boys during high school. She’s been around the block as well as watching her mother die. She’s in many ways more wise to the world than Joe.

But she openly invites him into their little community, extending an invitation to a party she is having at her place. He never could imagine being so lucky, but to Em, it’s not a big deal. His mind is racing, and he cannot help but get excited about this amazing new girl he has met. Em is sleeping with Connell who is struggling in his marriage. This looks to be very messy in the foreseeable future.

It is. Em and James share their first kiss, and it’s magical like it’s supposed to be. It all moves so fast and James has heightened feelings for her. But she wants to take it slow with all the crap still in her life. It’s seemingly understandable, but it’s not what James wants to hear. She’s so hard for him to read.

On the advice of Connell, James accepts Lisa P’s invite on a date, because, after all, it’s any boys dream to go out with her. But afterward, being the kind of guy that he is, James feels almost unfaithful and candidly shares his actions with Em. She thanks him, but her own rendezvous now weighs on her mind. She looks to end it with Connell, but of course, James finds out and it hurts him like nothing ever has.

It’s at this point in the story that the downward spiral begins. James turns to Lisa P. as his confidante, but the news of Em gets out and she quits, moving away to New York. A downtrodden James has little more to do but get drunk, and it does not bode well. All the money he tirelessly worked for ends up going down the drain. But he ends up going to New York anyway, to take a chance on a girl, because he is overwhelmed by his feelings, but he also sees Em differently than she even sees herself. She is far from a perfect human being, but she is someone who cares about her friends and loved ones. So although she is a mess-up, James sees only the good in her.

Really the only reasons to set this film in the ’80s was nostalgia sake and then you have a better excuse to have a classic soundtrack of oldies. And it did the trick because I did enjoy the film for the most part and it reminded me somewhat of the Way Way Back. It’s another film about a summer job at a theme park in the ’80s which would feel exactly the same if it was not for the standout characters that make the story interesting.

4/5 Stars

Witness (1985)

Posted on September 7, 2015 by 4 Star Films

I think of Harrison Ford much in the same way that I think of Paul Newman. They both play the brash, bold, smart alec characters that we adore as audiences. They make the perfect action adventure heroes but are not always respected as actors which is a shame. For Ford, his reputation hinges on a number of great characters from Han Solo, to Indiana Jones, to Rick Deckard. They all are magnificently memorable action heroes. Ironically it is the plain, seemingly everyday cop, John Book that allows Ford to truly show off his acting chops like I have never seen him do before.

The film begins when a young Amish boy named Samuel gets to take his first adventure into the big city with his mother, as they head to see some relatives in Philadelphia. Little Samuel has a pair of dark brown, wonderfully inquisitive eyes in which to take in this world that is so foreign to him. That is, in fact, one of the major themes of Witness, the colliding of two worlds that are at odds.

But anyhow, when he ventures into the restroom to use the toilet, he unwittingly sees a violent murder committed and he is able to hide in the stalls, but he also gets a look at one of the perpetrators. And so, just like that, this little boy who never spent a day in the real world is a key witness to a murder investigation.

That’s when steady, straight-arrow cop John Book comes into the picture. He’s not a bad man by any means, and he wants to wrap up the case quickly so he can let Samuel and his mother go as soon as possible. You can see he finds their customs strange, and Book feels a trifle awkward being around them, but he does his job the best way he knows how, by confiding in his superiors and having his partner watch his back.

Everything blows up in his face. He gets shot and he must make a mad dash with Samuel and his mother to their quaint Amish home. Now the roles are shifted as he must wait it out building up his strength as his pursuers try and locate him. His world of cops and guns seems to have no place in this farm community of peaceful people. But as a former carpenter and a decent individual, Book is able to adapt rather well. Rachael Lapp soon finds herself enjoying his presence around their home since she is a widower and her father-in-law Eli reluctantly allows him to stay.

Book learns how to milk a cow and helps in a barn raising, all the while building a rapport with Rachael, but others seem to be wary of the presence of such a man.

As would be expected, we have our final showdown between Book and his pursuers who are a lot closer to home than he would ever expect. When it’s all resolved he leaves the country peaceful once more, but not without some intense memories.

Peter Weir’s film has a rather interesting pacing for a thriller, starting out slowly, but we know it must be building up to some impending doom so I would reserve from calling it boring. When that moment comes, it becomes a breakneck thriller before quieting down once more in the Amish town. Then the last 20 minutes are that of a dynamic action film. However, it is in these more tranquil moments that Harrison Ford gets to show off his humanity, whether it is talking about guns with young Samuel or dancing to a car radio with Rachael. There’s no doubt that you have not seen Ford like this before, and it’s definitely worth seeing him in this gripping ’80s thriller.

4/5 Stars

L’Atalante (1934)

Posted on August 28, 2015 by 4 Star Films

Here is perhaps one of the greatest wedding processions we could ever hope to see. Buster Keaton is more outrageously funny in Seven Chances, but this one is solemn, and somehow still funny in its own way. And that’s what is most striking about L’Atalante (which also serves as the name of the boat of choice). This film seems so serious and strait-laced, you might say, and yet it brims with comedy. It’s the type of everyday comedy that makes us laugh even now. Funny looking characters, odd voices, a plethora of cats all over the place. There’s no way for that to get lost in translation, and it remains quirky and engaging 80 years later.

It also happens to be a beautiful film exemplified by a newly-wedded bride walking the prow of a boat with the fog billowing around her. Or perhaps it’s two lovers embracing passionately and a smile bursting on the face of the woman. It’s so visceral, so engaging in its displays of love, energy, and emotion. In this way, it brings to mind other love stories of the age like Sunrise, It Happened One Night, and certainly the early works of Jean Renoir. Except the thing here is that director Jean Vigo never made another film after L’Atalante. He entered bad health even during filming and died soon afterward in his early 30s, but he left behind a masterpiece.

In short, the story revolves around four main characters living life together on a boat named L’Atalante. Jean is the captain and groom who has picked a beautiful wife named Juliette who is going to share his existence on the sea. His first mate is the weathered and scruffy Pere Jules. He might have a rough exterior, but he and his cabin boy are full of bumbling and buffoonery that endears them to all.

For the two lovebirds, Paris is the enchanting destination for a fantastic makeshift honeymoon, but it also proves to test their relationship from the get-go, since Jean is extremely jealous and a street peddler openly flirts with Juliette. It’s a tragic turn in their love story which leads to Juliette looking for a way home and Jean sinking into a state of depression aboard his boat. That’s what makes their ultimate reunion all the sweeter.

Thus, L’Atalante blends a timeless topic like love with little moments of magic that bubble up from within these scenes. Whether it is Juliette walking the streets window shopping, or Pere Jules giving a lens into his past with all the souvenirs he has accrued over the years. Without a doubt, he was my favorite character. I have never quite seen anything like him.

4.5/5 Stars

Yellow Sky (1948)

Posted on August 18, 2015 by 4 Star Films

From William A. Wellman comes an unheralded western with an intriguing cast dynamic. Gregory Peck is the undisputed star as the boss of a group of outlaws who ride into town, pull a quick bank job, and are forced to flee from the Cavalry across the desert wasteland. It’s the prerogative of “Stretch” (Peck) to continue across the desolate terrain, despite the obvious drawbacks. But everyone else reluctantly follows although a few are opposed including his biggest rival Dude (Richard Widmark).

The story could end there with the band of fugitives dying of thirst in no man’s land and it nearly does happen, but like a mirage, they come upon a ghost town. It’s like a sick joke because it seems that all the people have picked up and left. All that is except an old prospector and his plucky Granddaughter (Anne Baxter). She is wary of these marauders, and she is extremely protective of her old grandpa. The men get a bit lustful since they have not seen a woman for some time and she catches the eye.

Again, the path of this story seems like it will be stagnant once more and yet that’s before we knew that the two relations are sitting on top of a gold mine. That catches the attention of the outlaws and the avarice grows in the hearts of the men. Not to mention their lustful desires.

That’s what makes “Stretch” such an interesting villain as portrayed by Gregory Peck. Certainly, he does wrong in the eyes of the law, but he has his morals in a sense. He vows to the old man that they will keep their agreement to split the gold. It’s the honorable thing to do and he is smitten with the attractive Mike. But Dude is not so excited about this act of charity and so he gets the boys to turn on “Stretch.” They try and pin him down and thus unfolds the necessary gunfight. The power struggle reaches its apex in the shrouded saloon where “Stretch”, “Dude”, and “Lengthy” face off for one final showdown. Shots are fired and a desperate Mike goes charging in to witness the outcome.

The bad boys get their comeuppance and the stooges including Walrus and Half-Pint (Harry Morgan) are okay. Most importantly “Stretch” is now a straight arrow for the girl he loves by pulling the world’s first reverse bank robbery.

Yellow Sky was a thoroughly enjoyable story because it felt surprisingly dynamic and even graphic for a 1940s western. Highlights include Anne Baxter slugging Gregory Peck and dishing out the ultimate insult that he smells bad. Peck is such a commanding presence, and it’s fun to see him in a darker role. Baxter was also deadly in a very different way than her backstabbing Eve Harrington. Richard Widmark and John Russell were worthy adversaries while Charles Kemper was the token fat guy. And I still cannot get over how young and dare I say, scrawny Henry Morgan looks.

I must confess that I have never read The Tempest, but this story is supposedly based on that Shakespearean tale. Well, now I know.

4/5 Stars

Grand Hotel (1932)

Posted on August 12, 2015 by 4 Star Films

Grand Hotel is the epitome of a Hollywood superstar ensemble, and it would set the bar for all the films that would try to imitate and surpass it. Thanks to Irving Thalberg and the studio with more stars than there are in the heavens, MGM delivered a film that was a smash hit and after well over 80 years, it still remains an important visual relic.

The cast was beyond a contemporary viewer’s wildest dreams. It was that good. You had Greta Garbo, John Barrymore, Joan Crawford, Lionel Barrymore, and Wallace Beery among others. Nowadays many of these names do not carry as much clout (I must admit even to me), and the idea of a film starring numerous big names seems almost mundane. Just take a look at Oceans Eleven or The Avengers. But we must understand that at that time it was a stroke of genius because usually only one or two stars were set aside to be in a certain film. It was seen as the most commercially viable philosophy at the time.

Then came Grand Hotel: As Dr. Otternschlag (Lewis Stone) muses it’s “always the same. People come, people go. Nothing ever happens.” It’s counter-intuitive but in some ways, that’s what makes this film so much fun. People love stories with fun vignettes that criss-cross and weave in and out. It’s even better when the stories contain the likes of Garbo and the Barrymores. Not to mention Joan Crawford.

It’s a fun world and a lasting tradition that many films have attempted to replicate because honestly, most audiences love these types of realities that they can escape to and in turn, be a part of. In this case, it’s this opulent hotel in the heart of Berlin full of bustling bellboys, lavish suites, and all the pleasures life could afford.

Furthermore, the guests come from every walk of life imaginable making it all the more enjoyable to watch their intermingling and chance encounters. There is the prima ballerina (Greta Garbo), who has recently gotten cold feet and even canceled a show in her melancholy. It allows for Garbo to utter her famous line, “I want to be alone.”

Then there’s the baron (John Barrymore) who is also in desperate need of money. You might label him a cad because he resorts to theft several times, but if he is a thief he also has a heart of gold befriending and comforting nearly everyone he meets. He especially makes Ms. Grusinskaya very happy and it allows for some amorous scenes between John Barrymore and Garbo.

Next comes Mr. Kringelein (Lionel Barrymore) who is the lowest of all the individuals in the hotel, but since his imminent death is ahead, he is finally going to live a little and he finally gains some of the friends and respect that he has always wanted. On the other hand, Wallace Beery plays Preysing the big magnate who is trying to swing an important deal to keep his company afloat. Mr. Kringelein is one of his nameless underlings who keeps his books. Preysing has little concern for the “little man,” until he is desperately in need of help.

Last, but not least, is a radiant and spry Joan Crawford as the stenographer. She’s far from the star, but she does seem to steal many of the scenes that she pops up in. Also, despite all the ups and downs, she gets the happy ending she deserves.

I must admit that Grand Hotel takes a little time to set the scene and pick up steam, but when it does it’s a lot of fun. You know it’s a special film when the two Barrymore brothers are acting together, playing two so very different individuals. Yet underlining every scene they share together is the indisputable fact that they are related. You also have Garbo and Crawford in the same film without either sharing a scene with the other! For an updated take on this type of story give some attention to Wes Anderson’s Grand Budapest Hotel. Otherwise, this lavish 1930s production is worthwhile, because it really does feel like you’re watching film history.

4/5 Stars

Miracle of Morgan’s Creek (1944)

Posted on August 10, 2015 by 4 Star Films

Preston Sturges was a revelation when I first saw Sullivan’s Travels and then The Lady Eve. His scripts are always wildly hilarious and full of memorable characters, whether they are headliners or just supporting the stars. The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek (1944) was a lesser known film to me, starring Eddie Bracken and Betty Hutton, but I was ready to see what this screwball could deliver.

With the start of the war, there began a push on the home front to strengthen morale by throwing parties and drinking victory lemonade in honor of the boys going overseas. Young Trudy is intent on dancing the night away with a lot of soldier boys. She just wants to do her part in the war effort after all. Her grumpy and domineering daddy Mr. Kocklenlocker (William Demarest) forbade her from taking part in such a shindig.

She sullenly goes to the movies with Norval Jones (Eddie Bracken), the young man who has been infatuated with her since they were kids. However, she somehow talks Norval into letting her go off to a party, and she spends the night living it up, while he waits dejectedly at the theater. When she finally returns its late morning of the next day and Norval knows her father will kill him.

However, Trudy also discovers a ring on her finger signifying that she married a soldier in her wild stupor the night before. The only problem is she cannot remember who it was, there were so many soldiers that she danced with after all. On top of that, add the prospect of a baby and you have a real doozy that has small-town scandal written all over it.

Norval tries his best to help remedy things for Trudy, only to wind up in jail with a big to-do building up — even making its way to the governor! Things don’t look good for poor Norval until Trudy gives birth and it’s a MIRACLE! When he finds out about what happens he has a little fainting spell.

That’s the craziness that is the Miracle of Morgan’s Creek, thanks to the rapid-fire dialogue and caricatures created by Preston Sturges. William Demarest is especially memorable as the hard apple Mr. Kocklenlocker who is always bossing his daughters around, but he’s not all bad. By now Morgan’s Creek looks dated, but all the same, it is still a memorable piece of WWII homefront cinema. Supposedly it was standing room only back in the day and honestly, it’s surprising that this film ever got past the censors. Bigamy, pregnancy, and so much more all comically mentioned in a 1940s film. Who would have thought?

4/5 Stars

Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison (1957)

Posted on August 8, 2015 by 4 Star Films

From John Huston comes another film about a woman of principle and a man who seems to be everything she is not. This time instead of Katharine Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart aboard The African Queen in WWI, we have Deborah Kerr and Robert Mitchum stuck on a deserted island together during WWII.

Kerr is Sister Angela who was on the island only a few days with a priest before he passed away. Now she is alone taking care of herself in solitude. That is until castaway Marine Mr. Allison washes up on her shore in a raft. For a time it is just the two of them as the Sister offers the marine food after his long, arduous journey. But after getting rest and some nourishment, he returns the favor proving his resourcefulness at scrounging up food on the island. For a while, they live in relative ease like this.

But they are reminded that the war is still going when the Japanese set up camp on the island. The unlikely pair finds themselves living in a cave together. Allison invades the camp on the sly to acquire food for them, and they continue to manage in hiding. Once the enemy is gone, the exuberant marine gets drunk on some sake and professes his love to the novice nun. Although the situation had never quite been awkward up to that point, it quickly becomes so. Sister Angela, in a tizzy, flees out in the pouring rain and winds up getting sick as a result.

To add to the predicament, the Japanese forces return, and back to the cave, it is. This time Mr. Allison must kill a soldier in order to get a blanket for Sister Angela. Soon the Japanese are burning the underbrush in pursuit of the culprit. It’s dire straights certainly, but then help comes.

Mr. Allison once again proves himself and regains the faith and admiration of Sister Angela. Once the marines roll in Mr. Allison is able to leave the island on a stretcher with the faithful novice by his side. They are a strange pair, but their relationship makes this story actually engaging. In a way, the life of a marine and a nun have some similarities, although they fall at completely different ends of the spectrum. In the same way, Mitchum and Kerr are adept at playing their roles to that degree. Allison is rough around the edges, a Joe Palooka type, and yet he means well. The nun is devoted to her calling, proper, and it never seems as if she could ever approve of Mr. Allison. And yet, in the midst of all the divides that seem in place, a true bond forms. It’s an entertaining relationship and these two stars, led by John Huston’s direction, made it thoroughly enjoyable.

4/5 Stars

People on Sunday (1930)

Posted on August 2, 2015 by 4 Star Films

One of the last German silent films was People on Sunday, a modest project from a group of young men. Our stars are young professionals in real life and only amateur actors who did not quit their day jobs. They only could film on the weekends and that’s how we end up with People on Sunday! It takes on a faux-documentary style, and it follows the lives of four individuals as they meet one another and then spend a pleasant Sunday afternoon together.

There is certainly a breezy playfulness to the film as the two men and two women spend time frolicking at the beach and reclining in the sun. They share laughs while eating and listening to records. It quality fun and there seems to be a general innocence to their behavior that while sometimes rude is all in good fun.

This is, in fact, a film of the late Weimar Republic, without the cloud of Hitler’s Nazi regime hanging over the country (not until 1933). It stands in sharp contrast to later works or documentaries because People on Sunday is seemingly free and wholly unrestrained by ideology or prejudice.

We should undoubtedly be grateful for this historical piece of New Objectivity cinema and the reasons are twofold. First, since the film essentially works as a documentary, it gives us a wonderfully clear picture of what life was like in the world of Berlin. There are continuous shots of the city streets, passing vehicles, and people making their daily rounds.

One especially memorable moment occurs when the story takes a short aside to afford time for a montage of faces. The camera slowly captures face after face providing a sample of all the individuals who walk these streets. They transcend time and space because of their humanity, their mundane quality, and they have the same lightness of our main characters.

When we look at the names behind People on Sunday, it is almost staggering to acknowledge these men who were formerly unknowns.

As directors, you have Robert and Curt Siodmak. Your main writer is the great Billy Wilder. As cinematographer, you have another great in Fred Zinnemann, and finally, production was helped by the B-picture master Edgar Ulmer. Due to the rise of the Nazis, all of these figures would end up emigrating to Hollywood and the rest was history.

In many ways, we are indebted to them, because they helped form some of the great American classics and you can already see them honing their craft. The images are visually arresting and there is even a sense of humor that we could seemingly attribute to Wilder. It would only get better from then on.

If I’m not mistaken there are several scores that have been used to accompany the film, but I did really enjoy the Czech film orchestra because it added a lot to this otherwise silent picture. Hope you enjoy this unassuming jaunt as much as I did.

4/5 Stars

Monkey Business (1952)

Posted on July 29, 2015 by 4 Star Films

I always was under the assumption that the screwball comedy died off in the 1940s with homages coming out years later. Is there such a thing as neo-screwball comedies? Anyways, after watching Monkey Business I feel it is necessary to reevaluate that general conclusion. Here is a film from Howard Hawks that channels a great deal of the madcap craziness that you see in his earlier works like Bringing up Baby (1938). For lack of a better term, it is very screwy indeed. Right from the opening credits, you have the voice of God (Hawks himself) breaking the fourth wall and calling Cary Grant by his real name.

Then the film actually opens, and we meet the quintessential absent-minded genius Barnaby (Grant) and his loving wife Edwina (Ginger Rogers). They are meant to go to a social gathering and yet he is so caught up in his work that they stay behind. You see he is trying to develop an elixir of youth. His experiments are of interest to the business-minded and much older Oliver Oxly (Charles Coburn), who only sees the positives of such a discovery. Barnaby tries to explain to him that it’s not so cut and dry. In fact, his work could have dire effects if careful precautions are not taken.

Little does Dr. Fulton know that one of his lab chimps got loose in his lab and tampered with some chemicals, dumping them in a water cooler. After this absurd moment, Barnaby unknowingly consumes the rejuvenating concoction and his whole demeanor takes a turn.

Soon he’s out buying flashy clothes, getting a flamboyant car, ice skating, and driving like a speed demon down the thoroughfares with an astonished secretary Ms. Laurel (Marilyn Monroe). Cary Grant even shows off his impressive acrobatic skills, performing a cartwheel and a few other tricks.Only when the concoction wears off does he figure out what happened, and he resolves to be more careful next time. Except next time turns out to come sooner than he was expecting when Edwina willingly drinks some of the substance so Barnaby can observe her. Just like that, she is a prank-pulling schoolgirl with insatiable energy.

Once more Barnaby takes the elixir while Edwina is sleeping off the effect. However, when she wakes up a misunderstanding leads to more mayhem as she tries to get help from Mr. Oxly. What develops is a spiral into more hilarity. Barnaby and Edwina are reunited, Edwina’s old flame is incensed, Ms. Laurel is petrified, and chimps and man alike are taking part in some Monkey Business. If none of this makes much sense then I did my job!

3.5/5 Stars

An Affair to Remember (1956)

Posted on July 16, 2015 by 4 Star Films

An Affair to Remember (1956) has always been noted as a great American romance as far as I can ever remember, and I figured out that part of that was because it gets a mention in Sleepless in Seattle (1993). Whatever the reason, I finally got around to watching it and it is certainly an enjoyable weepy. Any film with Cary Grant as a romantic lead is usually, at the very least, charming and this one is too. He is a famed man on an ocean liner who has finally gone and gotten himself hitched. It’s big news and as soon as the ship touches down he is going to meet his love.

Quite by chance, he meets Deborah Kerr’s character and they are immediately taken with each other. Soon their friendship grows into an affectionate romance, and yet they feel uncomfortable in front of the other passengers who seem to be watching their every move with interest. They both know that once the boat reaches New York things will not be the same between them for some time.And so it is, but they had made one last plan to meet each other at the top of the Empire State Building. Grant makes it, but Kerr is detained for a very good reason. After seeing her in an awkward situation at the theater, Grant resolves to go see her and get to the bottom of what happened. It’s a tearful, albeit happy, reunion as they come back together.

If any of this feels familiar, like a rerun, that’s because it is. Leo McCarey actually made An Affair to Remember (1956) as a scene for scene remake of his earlier film Love Affair (1939). I never thought I’d say that I like a film with Charles Boyer more than a comparable one with Cary Grant, but it’s the truth. I’m not sure if it’s because I saw it first or that the film feels more intimate, but I really enjoyed Love Affair. An Affair to Remember is certainly elegant in color and Deborah Kerr gives a fine performance, but I was personally blown away by Irene Dunne as an actress. In fact, back in the day, Dunne worked quite a bit with Cary Grant (The Awful Truth, My Favorite Wife, and Penny Serenade).

So my advice is, go back and give Love Affair a watch. It’s still by McCarey with much of the same story so it’s really a personal preference what film you like more.

3.5/5 Stars