A lot of my favorite actors and celebrities were born on June 7th. I picked out a few of them, based on how much I have enjoyed their work over the years. I may have even created my own movie marathon for the day!!
On Jun 6th, 1944, Allied forces invaded Normandy, France, in the largest amphibious invasion in military history. This action laid the foundation for the liberation of Western Europe from Nazi control.
There have been some incredible cinematic portrayals based on and around that historic day. Here are some of my favorites.
Pat Garrett, the man who shot and killed William “Billy the Kid” Bonney, was born on June 5th, 1850. He’s become a legend of the old west based on that fact, and he’s been portrayed by many different actors over the years in movies and on TV. I love westerns so the stories of Billy the Kid, and thus Pat Garrett, have always been fascinating to me. As such, on the anniversary of the man’s 176th birthday, here are “4 Shots from 4 Films” featuring some notable portrayals of Sheriff Pat Garrett.
Bruce Dern has made so many great movies that it was pretty tough for me to pick out just 4 shots from 4 films. I ended up picking out the movies that he’s been in that have affected me the most personally, for a variety of reasons. I’ve noticed that Bruce isn’t the “star” of these movies, but each film benefits greatly from his presence. While he has had his share of starring roles over the course of his 6-decade (and counting) career, many of his best performances have come in supporting roles. The man just makes everything he’s in better.
Today, I celebrate the work of a living legend, Bruce Dern!
Today would have been actor Tony Curtis’ 101st birthday!
With a career that spanned almost 60 years, Tony Curtis starred in a whole bunch of classics, especially in the 50’s and 60’s. I’ve always enjoyed watching Curtis, as he could be suave and debonair, hilarious, or even a murderous sociopath, depending on what the role required. Thanks for the memories, Tony!
And one bonus shot…
My wife and I love going to Las Vegas. As a matter of fact, as I type this, I’m sitting in my hotel room looking out the window at the Sphere and Paris Vegas! We gamble very little, but we enjoy the shows, the lights, the food and the people watching. You never know what you might see on the Strip or on Fremont Street.
We only started going a few years backs, so I’ve been watching movies set here. I enjoy revisiting the places I’ve now been. To celebrate Sin City, I present 4 Shots from 4 Films, live from Las Vegas!
And one bonus shot…
Today would have been Andy Griffith’s 100th birthday! I love The Andy Griffith Show so much. It’s one of those shows that just makes me feel good on the inside, as the warmth of its homespun nostalgia still echoes to this very day. At least it does in my house. I’ve seen every episode of the series at least 3 or 4 times in my life, and I’ll often bring various scenes or sayings up in my daily conversations.
As is the case for all people, Andy Griffith was a much more complicated man than his Sheriff Andy Taylor from the classic series. And his many other roles were also more diverse upon a further inspection. What we can be sure about is that Andy Griffith is an icon of American television, and I celebrate him today with 4 Shots from 4 Films!
I have about a 30-minute commute to my office every day, so I love to listen to podcasts about my favorite actors and movies. About a year or so ago, I discovered the “Podcast on Fire,” which mostly focuses on Hong Kong movies, but will veer into other Asian related cinema as well. Kenny B and his various co-hosts may do a series on a prominent Hong Kong director one week and a sleazy category III soft porno the next, so the wide variety is especially enjoyable, and I’ve learned so much by going through their back catalog of episodes. I recently came across their series dedicated to popular Hong Kong melodramas. The first episode in the series included a lengthy discussion of ALL ABOUT AH LONG, an award-winning tearjerker starring Chow Yun-Fat. I haven’t watched it in over 20 years, so it was time for a revisit.
Ah Long (Chow Yun-Fat) is a former motorcycle racer who lives in Hong Kong and works as a truck driver while raising his son Porky on his own. The two seem to have a great relationship, even if their situation can only be described as modest at best. Things get interesting when Ah Long’s former girlfriend Por Por (Sylvia Chang), who also happens to be Porky’s mother, enters their life after being away in America for 10 years. In a cruel twist that was brought on because her family did not want her to be with Ah Long, she had been led to believe that Porky had died and her escape to America was her way of dealing with that pain. Now wealthy and successful, she discovers that Porky is indeed alive, and Ah Long has been raising their son alone all these years. Naturally, she wants to be involved in her son’s life. As a matter of fact, she wants to give Porky a life that his father never could.
My favorite living actor, Chow Yun-Fat, gives one of the best performances of his career in this film. It’s especially impressive because it asks him to behave almost completely the opposite of the cool heroes that made him famous around the globe in his Hong Kong action hits like THE KILLER and HARD BOILED. His Ah Long can be funny and charismatic, but he can also be immature and downright mean. There are times he’s so sweet and likable, and then there are times, especially seen in flashback, where he’s not likable at all. Chow doesn’t try to smooth away the rough edges of the character, either. Ah Long is flawed, but he’s also a great dad, and his chemistry with his son Porky (Huang Kun-Hsuan) feels very natural. I also like Chow’s chemistry with Sylvia Chang as Por Por. Even though she wants to take Porky back to America with her, she’s never portrayed as this evil villain, and she and Chow actually end up working together to do what’s best for their son. Chow would win his 3rd Hong Kong Film Award for Best Actor for his performance here.
The film is very melodramatic, but director Johnnie To goes out of his way to ground the film in some level of reality. Long before To was transforming the Hong Kong film industry in the late ‘90’s through his Milky Way Images production company, he was a working director just making successful movies. With this film’s cramped apartments, simple meals, awkward dinner conversations, and past romantic regrets, the movie gives all of us something we can latch ahold of. When tragedy enters near the end, it’s especially affecting since we’ve grown to understand and care about the characters. If ALL ABOUT AH LONG doesn’t make you reach for the tissues, you’ve got a heart of stone, my friend!
In my opinion, ALL ABOUT AH LONG is also the kind of movie that determines if you’re a Chow Yun-Fat fan or just a John Woo action movie fan. Chow is about as far away from the charismatic hero of A BETTER TOMORROW as he can possibly get. This is Chow at his most human and relatable, and I’ll admit I loved every moment of his performance. I watched it again on the DVD that I purchased about 25 years ago, and there’s just nobody any better out there.
Recently, I was sitting on the back deck of my parents’ house visiting with my family. Of course, when I’m around movies are always a topic of conversation, and my sister brought up the fact that she had just watched AN UNFINISHED LIFE and really liked it. My sister has always loved Robert Redford, and when she brought him up, it was fun hearing my mom get on her case about her long-ago recommendation of UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL, that came without the appropriate warning of the movie’s tearjerker of an ending. That’s a no-no with my mom, and we all had a good laugh. When my wife and I got home, we were browsing the Paramount Plus streaming service, and lo and behold, there was AN UNFINISHED LIFE, so it just seemed like the right time to watch it!
The movie centers in on Einar Gilkyson (Redford), a Wyoming rancher who still hasn’t properly dealt with the death of his son about a decade earlier. He blames his daughter-in-law Jean (Jennifer Lopez) for the accident that killed him. When Jean shows up at his ranch, because she’s on the run from her abusive boyfriend Gary (Damian Lewis), Einar tells her that he doesn’t want her there. His heart softens though as she introduces him to Griff (Becca Gardner), the granddaughter that he never knew he had. This sounds like a setup for big-time melodrama, but director Lasse Hallstrom is able to keep things somewhat grounded as we watch this broken family attempt to reconnect.
It’s time for a confession… I’ve never been the biggest fan of Robert Redford. Now don’t get me wrong, that doesn’t mean that I don’t like him. It’s just that he’s so perfect, maybe too perfect?! My favorite actors are not perfect looking human beings, but they do have an undeniable charisma and screen presence. Actors like Charles Bronson, Roy Scheider, and James Woods immediately come to mind. As such, I’ve never made it a priority to watch all of Redford’s movies, although I’ve watched most of his best at some point in my life. I will say that I think he’s excellent in AN UNFINISHED LIFE. He’s still undeniably “Redford,” but age has a way of evening up the playing field, and this performance relies on his ability to embody a character slowly opening his heart after years of shutting himself off. His scenes with his granddaughter are especially strong, without seeming excessively manipulative. I may look more closely into his later career based on his work here.
I’m also not the biggest fan of Jennifer Lopez. I loved her in SELENA, the film that kickstarted her career, but other than OUT OF SIGHT and ANACONDA, I haven’t enjoyed much else in her filmography. With that said, I think she’s good here. Her character has made one bad decision after another since her husband died, but I can’t help but root for her to find some happiness. In real life, it would have taken a lot of courage to ask someone like Einar for help, and I do appreciate that she’s willing to humble herself for her daughter’s sake.
Have I mentioned that Morgan Freeman is also in the film in the role of Mitch Bradley, Einar’s injured ranch hand and closest friend? He brings his warmth and wisdom to the proceedings even though his character’s unique storyline, which revolves around being mauled by a bear, doesn’t always work. The characters played by Damian Lewis and Josh Lucas also don’t land that strongly. Lewis is Lopez’s abusive boyfriend, but his awful behavior is ultimately dealt with in a way that’s more cartoonish than you might expect in a serious drama. Lucas, who was born in my home state of Arkansas, is fine here as “Crane” Curtis, but he doesn’t have that much to do.
The Wyoming setting for our story is beautiful, but it was actually filmed in British Columbia. My wife spent 18 years of her life in Wyoming, and it’s generally not as green as the “Wyoming” presented here. That’s just a minor nitpick, because for the uninitiated, the setting is beautiful and makes you feel like you’re part of a modern day western. There’s just something romantic and comforting about that, and the wide-open spaces seem to offer endless chances for a new beginning.
Overall, while I don’t think AN UNFINISHED LIFE is a great movie, I enjoyed watching it. It’s a movie that understands the importance of forgiveness by showing us wounded characters who are willing to open themselves up to imperfect people who are just trying to be better. At the end of the day, if any of us want meaningful connections to the people in our lives, we’d better be willing to do the same.
It’s been fun living life as one of the biggest fans of Charles Bronson in the world going back to around 1984 or 1985 when I first watched DEATH WISH on late night TV with my dad. For most of those years, my positive obsession was just shared with my family and friends. That began to change in 2021 when I met a guy named Eric Todd who ran the Facebook page “This Week in Charles Bronson.” Not only did Eric run the page, but he also hosted a podcast of the same name. I guess through my sheer enthusiasm about finally meeting people who love Bronson like I do, Eric asked me to be part of his show. I can’t tell you how much fun I’ve had joining Eric and his various guests over the last 4 years on the podcast. During that time, I’ve been part of interviews with actors Jordan Rhodes and Robert F. Lyons, actress Jan Gan Boyd, author Paul Talbot, and even Charles Bronson’s niece Lindsay Ireland. Each interview has been special to me, and Lindsay shared with us that her cousin Paul (Bronson’s stepson) listened to the episode that she was on. I never imagined my love of Bronson would afford me the opportunity to meet these kinds of people, and that Charles Bronson’s own family would enjoy our stuff!
The fun continued this past week when Eric and I interviewed Native American author Sherman Alexie, who wrote the screenplay for the movie SMOKE SIGNALS, starring Adam Beach, Evan Adams, Irene Bedard, Gary Farmer, Tantoo Cardinal, and Tom Skerritt. Sherman loves Charles Bronson, and he told us that his dad even looked like Charles Bronson. We discussed some of his movie work, some of his short stories and novels, and the Bronson film THE WHITE BUFFALO (1977). We spend a lot of time discussing films in general, where Sherman introduced us to the movies REC (2007) and MEKKO (2015). We even spend some time talking about the “awesome” James Woods and the “scary” David Morse, who have both worked with Charles Bronson! If you want to know why I put “quotations” on those words, you’ll have to check us out.
So, if any of this sounds fun to you, I’ve linked to the YouTube video below for your viewing pleasure! If you like it, go back and watch some of our other shows and even subscribe! Some of my personal favorite shows are when us Bronson fans just sit around and talk about one of his movies. You never know where the conversations might end up. Heck, some of my favorites are shows I’m not even on! I do apologize in advance for my accent. What do you expect from a guy from Toad Suck, Arkansas?
Through the Shattered Lens 