More Westerns

Today over at www.ew.com they listed their 15 essential westerns due to the anticipation of "3:10 to Yuma" opening next week. It was hard to debate the list, they pretty much had all the essentials like "Red River", "The Good the Bad and the Ugly", and "The Searchers". For me I love westerns, and I wish more were being made today. They seem close to extinction now with the exception of a few re-vitalized looks like "The Proposition" or "The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada" and of course the HBO series "Deadwood". It's hard to believe but a western being made in the fifties was about as common as a comic book movie being made today. So to prove to you people who think it's uncool to ride tall in the saddle here are a couple of other westerns that weren't on the ew list that I think deserve mention.

1. The Outlaw Josey Whales: You should see this earlier Clint Eastwood western before his much heralded "Unforgiven". 20 years before his oscar winning meditation on violence, Eastwood was already asking some of same questions in this film about a man who loses his family in the midst of the civil war and he then becomes a vigilante. This was probably the first film to show Eastwood's talent as both actor and director.

2. Winchester 73: In a story that seemed to be taken out of the film noir of 40s and thrown into the old west famed director Anthony Mann (who cut his teeth in both genres) gives us a tough and rugged western as it follows the titled gun passing from owner to owner. Jimmy Stewart was mostly known for his good hearted everyman characters before this film. In this one he's a complex hero obssessed with killing the man who killed his father. Also great is Dan Duryea as the psychotic Waco Johnny Dean (Ain't that a cool name for a bad guy)

3. Duck you Sucker: I just watched this underrated Sergio Leone western a few days ago and was knocked out by it. Rod Steiger is a mexican robber who steals from the wealthy uppercrust types and James Coburn is the former Irish Revolutionary who shows him what's worth fighting for. The film has more emotion I think than Leone's famed Dollar trilogy and Steiger and Coburn make a great team.

4. Ride the High Country: Sam Peckinpah's first fore in the genre is a powerful moving tale of two old cowpokes (Legends Joel McCrea and Randolph Scott) who go for one last ride together. While one sticks to his principles the other has lost his and plans to double cross his old friend. The ending is that of bittersweetness but unforgettable and heroic.

5. The Man who Shot Liberty Valance: John Ford's late in the day western about a famed Senator (James Stewart) who comes back to town to bury a mysterious old friend (John Wayne). There he tells the story behind the shooting of the outlaw Liberty Valance and what really happened. Ford was always concerned with separating fact from fiction when it came to the mythic west and this is probably his best film that shows that.

6. The Shootist: I don't think any other actor had a better swan song than John Wayne had with this. Basically he's playing a variation of all his John Wayne characters, he's an uncompromising gunfighter who doesn't let anyone tell him how to live or how to die. It's more poignant as we learn the man he plays is dying of cancer which Wayne himself had at the time. The film is more of a character study than a shoot-em up actioner (that is until the last 5 minutes), but it's a touching tribute to the man who was pretty much the west's biggest hero.

7. The Ox-Bow Incident: One of my personal favorites stars Henry Fonda as one of the few voices of reason in an angry mob. The film is like a perfect play and probably the best film ever about a mob-mentality (along perhaps with Fritz Lang's "Fury") as it debates about the lynching of three possibly innocent men. Fonda's reading of a letter at the end is just great acting, and the characterizations or unforgettable.

8. 3:10 to Yuma: It might be fun to check out the original before you see the remake. The film goes the "High Noon" route as it builds tension by the waiting and the mind games. This is probably my favorite Glenn Ford performance as he plays the outlaw who tries to convince his captor (Van Heflin) to set him free. Despite the unsatisfying ending which I thought was a cop out it is a great entertainment

9. She Wore a Yellow Ribbon: How can you talk about westerns and not at least put one of John Fords calvary films. "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon" was the best of the lot with its beautiful color and touching scenes one kinda forgets its got some great action sequences. John Wayne plays an aging commander ready to retire but must prevent a war first.

10. Rio Bravo: I could not leave without mentioning my personal favorite western. Directed by Howard Hawks and starring John Wayne it's just grand entertainment in the fullest. Wayne plays a Marshall who must face a rich land barren who's hell bent on getting his killer brother out of jail. All Wayne has to back him up is a drunk (Dean Martin in his best role ever) a cripple (Walter Brennan being very Walter Brennany) and a young kid trying to prove himself (Teen idol Ricky Nelson). It's fun, it's exciting and it's the kinda movie they don't make anymore.

SUPER-FAD!!!

Just saw "Superbad". For me the jury's still out on the raunchy sex comedy, some people think they are the greatest thing but sometimes I don't think that comedy and vulgarity are the same thing. I do not think "Caddyshack" or "Meatballs" or any of those films were the comic masterpieces some people make them out to be. But out of the best of these comedies comes great truth. "Superbad" is funny cause it's true. It takes the "American Graffiti" route gives us a memorable night of three friends. As I was watching it I couldn't help but think how in my life I myself or old school friends have embodied the characters of either Evan, Seth, or McLovin. They are the not-so-cool sex-obssessed teens who lean on eachother when they get uninvited to a party.

There were so many parts I loved and I was kinda moved at the ending too, "Superbad" is a great coming of age story and a great sex comedy, and a nice ending to a so-so summer season.

A Scandal so Big it even has its own logo and theme music "Bloggergate!!!!"

Just so we're clear I used a phrasing from "The Simpsons Movie" to help with my title. So I was looking around the interweb one day as I usually do and scope out my favorite sites like Kim Morgan, Jim Emmerson, Roger Ebert etc... and I went over to the movie blog "Windmills of My Mind". The owner of that blog Damian a video store Manager from the states is doing his 31 days of Spielberg blog-a-thon where he dedicates every day to a different Spielberg movie and writes his feelings about it.


I've found the blogs very interesting and I admired Damian's critiques on the films which were intelligent and thought provoking. But on this particular day where Damian was supposed to write about "Jurassic Park", I saw a different entry. It seems Damian has been accused and well proven guilty of a little plagarism. It seems Damian used passages from a book called "Directed by Steven Spielberg: Poetics of the Hollywood Blockbuster" a little too liberally. Damian wrote about the mishap and gave a sincere apology. But of course that is when the pig leavings hit the fan (Sorry I'll stop referencing "The Simpsons Movie"). Comments came about both praising Damian for his forthrightness but also bashing him for not being upfront about it in the beginning. You can all read here www.damianarlyn.blogspot.com and judge for yourself. If you ask me (and if you didn't stop reading) Damian has received his punishment, he has been exposed as a plagarist by few and outcasted from other blogger's links, I don't know if that's noble or petty it's hard to tell in this day and age. Damian seems like an ok guy maybe someone I might've hung out with in high school (Those were my big Spielberg days). He might've been a guy who underestimated the power of the blogger.

I've been recently reading other people's view on the idea of bloggers being actual film critics. Richard Schickel who's voice I hear very often in a lot of movie commentaries has made his view about bloggers very clear by not thinking of them as actual critics. Jim Emmerson over at Scanners has always made his site open for discussion on this very topic in fact I think he just wrote a piece recently that made me laugh called "The Stepford Critics" where he talks about this issue. I suppose Damian's little brew ha ha has opened the door a bit for blogger critics, of course it may prove to be a step back, but never the less we are being watched so the next time you decide to go all fanboy over a director or actor or movie just watch your words and cite any references we're playing in the big leagues now.

As a footnote I do hope Damian doesn't stop writing his Spielberg musings. It's been a few days since his last entry so I'm hoping he's just getting his head together. As a former video store clerk myself I couldn't help but have a soft spot for him and I hope this little sticky situation doesn't discourage him from any further writing. To show I'm still on his side I'm gonna add him to my link.

Catching Up

It's been awhile since I've written anything in here so I apologize to you loyal blog readers. I've been busy with some personal and professional stuff. I went to Edmonton to check out the annual "Fringe Festival" they have there and I urge anyone around the area to go see it if you have the chance. I haven't even had time to check out any new movies however I have gotten the chance to go see Werner Herzog's "Rescue Dawn" which I thought was terrific. I'm hoping to have a "Knocked Up"/"Superbad" double feature soon which you'll all hear about, and then wrap up my summer movie watching with what I thought were some of the hits and misses.



Recently I've also viewed some classic films I have not see yet like Leone's "Duck you Sucker" (Which I was totally amazed with) and Ozu's "The Story of Floating Weeds". Plus you'll hear me weigh in on the controversy over at "Windmills of my Mind". So that's all coming up so stay tuned. Plus if anybody visits Kim Morgan's Sunset Gun page you'll notice she added me as a link I am so honored.

Black and White World

I've been having some fun on my computer the past few days watching old Siskel and Ebert shows that are now available here. http://www.atthemoviestv.com/. I was watching one of their special shows about black and white movies which has inspired me to write about my enthusiasm about the same topic.

I get kidded sometimes about black and white movies, I have been asked before to list my favorite movies and after I get through my top five someone will ask me "are there any movies you like that are in color, or from the last twenty years for that matter?" I can't apologize for my love of black and white movies or old movies for that matter. I suppose the fact that one associates black and white with old is a reason some people find them difficult to watch. I couldn't disagree more however, I've always found black and white movies more enjoyable to watch. Black and white has that power to take us from reality, like Siskel and Ebert pointed out in their show, the real world is in color so why go to the movies to see something you see everyday. Black and white is a stylistic way to lift one out of reality and into the world of movies.

I started thinking of movies I love and how I couldn't imagine seeing them in color. One such film that sticks out in my mind is "The Bride of Frankenstein" I cannot think of seeing that film in color, it would be close to blasphemy. The film's black and white works to highly stylize the film. The monsters and characters are already seen out of this world and are wonderfully grotesque the addition to dark shadows and mystery add to the amazement. Only after the commercialism of Frankenstein the monster do we now know his face was green, in 1931 when the first film premiered I'm sure no one had any idea what color her was and I think the monster would look more dated if he appeared on screen in green make up.

Other films like the early Astaire and Rogers musicals which created this whole romantic world that seemed to live in fancy ballrooms and Fred wearing a tuxedo and Ginger wearing a feathery dress just seemed so in tune with the style of black and white.

Even my beloved "It's a Wonderful Life" is better in a black and white world. The black and white some how makes Capra's uplifting tale a little more menacing, it was after all a story about a man who is driven to suicide. As we see good hearted Jimmy Stewart at the end of his rope ready to jump off a bridge part of his face is covered in shadows only showing the desperation of his eyes searching for any other option. Of course "It's a Wonderful Life" was one of those notorious films that were colorized in the mid-eighties something that both Capra and Stewart fought against. Another beloved Christmas film Alistair Sim's version of "A Christmas Carol" is routinely seen on television every year in color. When I first saw the film I actually thought it was filmed in color originally, but when I finally saw a copy of the film in black and white it suddenly became a darker movie for me, it seemed to say that not everything was the way it should be, Dickens after all intended it to be a ghost story.

Then of course there are all of those tough, gritty, intriguing, mysterious films belonging to the category of film noir. Films like "The Big Sleep", "Out of the Past", "The Set-Up", where men like Bogart, Mitchum, and Ryan just seemed to live out of, how can you imagine them being in bright colors?

Siskel and Ebert also make a point in their show by saying many of the film makers we admire today like Woody Allen, Martin Scorsese, and Francis Ford Coppola have all made their black and white movies ("Manhattan", "Raging Bull", and "Rumble Fish"). You could also add Steven Spieberg (Schindler's List), the Coens ("The Man who Wasn't There") and Steven Sodebergh ("The Good German") to the list as well. Film makers, intelligent film makers seem to know black and white movies can raise a film to a higher form of style, and today since it's such a lost art it's a pleasure to see them using it.

Just so you know this is not meant to knock color films, I happen to think when used well color films are just as effective as black and white and after viewing a few gems recently ("Three Colors Trilogy") I would say there are some films that should stay in color just as some should stay black and white. But color is in no way of becoming an extinct art form, and black and white is slowly running on empty, I hope people will revisit some black and white movies and not think of them as a chore to watch but rather an different experience. If you think about it black and white is just the canvas the artist uses to express what he/she sees.

What are some of your favorite black and white movies and why, I'd love to hear them.

Taking another look :The Three Colors Trilogy

I've been taking a break from going to the movies after the double dose of "The Simpsons Movie" last week and I've been going through some of my lost collection of films. These are the films that have been waiting patiently for me to view them once again. One such collection that has been collecting dust has been Krzysztof Kieslowski's masterpiece trilogy of films simply known as "Three Colors". The films "Blue", "White", and "Red" represent the three colors of the french flag and the meaning behind them. Blue means liberty, "White" is equality and "Red" is fraternity.

I suppose it's taken me so long to re-visit these films because I was a bit put off by the all out artistry of them. Let me try to explain, I was not used to films like this before, perhaps I turned my brain off and I didn't want to think too much as I was viewing them. After I watched them I thought the films were good, but they didn't leave me with any permanent impression.

Of course it wasn't the first time I had to see a movie twice in order to discover just how special it really is. It happened when I first saw "2001: A Space Odyssey" or "Tokyo Story" or "Do the Right Thing", I needed to see them a second time to reach a better understanding. I can now say after viewing "Blue", "White" and "Red " again I think they are wonderful pieces as a whole. As separate films they can stand on their own but together they become a testament to a true master's vision.

"Blue" is the story of a woman lives through a car accident only to find that her husband and daughter were killed. The film follows her reluctance to grieve and her determination to wipe the memories of them away but the harder she tries the more difficult it becomes. Juliette Binoche gives a terrific, amazing, remarkable performance as the woman. Why didn't she get an oscar?

"White" is probably the most humorous and ironic of the three as it follows a polish hairdresser who's wife divorces him after he cannot perform in bed. After having to escape to Poland in a suitcase, the man plots to win his wife's love but also gain his revenge. The film is a twisted tale that only a non-Hollywood film can do, you don't know what will happen next. There is also a tender friendship between the hairdresser and a lonely man who wants to die.

"Red" Probably my favorite of the three, this is the story of a young woman who forms an unlikely friendship with a bitter old judge who likes to spy on his neighbours by wiring in on their telephones. The film's philosophy about the truth about people is told in open honesty in a conversation between the judge and the woman, and the way she gets him to come out of his bitter shell was really touching.

I just finished watching "Red" about 30 minutes ago and I had to think about it long and hard, the film moved me in a way few films do. After the film I went outside in the night and walked across my vacant street to get the mail. I breathed in the night air and as I walked back I thought for a moment about the most important things in my life. Films have the power to do that to me every so often, I'm just glad I decided to take a second look at these three films.

Do'h wins by a landslide

Well thanks to all three of you who voted (That's a new record for me) and it was a tight competition but in the end it was Homer's famous catchphrase "Do'h" that won the day. Stay tuned for more polls coming soon.