As some of our regular readers undoubtedly know, I am involved in a few weekly watch parties. On Twitter, I host #FridayNightFlix every Friday and I co-host #ScarySocial on Saturday. On Mastodon, I am one of the five hosts of #MondayActionMovie! Every week, we get together. We watch a movie. We tweet our way through it.
Tonight, at 10 pm et, I will be hosting #FridayNightFlix! The movie? 1986’s Top Gun, with Tom Cruise and Val Kilmer!
If you want to join us this Friday, just hop onto twitter, start the movie at 10 pm et, and use the #FridayNightFlix hashtag! I’ll be there tweeting and I imagine some other members of the TSL Crew will be there as well. It’s a friendly group and welcoming of newcomers so don’t be shy.
Today, the Shattered Lens wishes a happy birthday to Oscar-winner Robert Downey, Jr.
This scene that I love comes from 1987’s Less Than Zero. It features Downey as the self-destructive drug addict, Julian. Downey has said that this role wasn’t too far from his real life at the time. Julian’s father is played by the great character actor, Nicholas Pryor.
Happy birthday to Robert Downey, Jr! I’m thankful that, unlike Julian, he got a second chance.
4 Or More Shots From 4 Or More Films is just what it says it is, 4 shots from 4 of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 Shots From 4 Films lets the visuals do the talking!
On this date, 93 years ago, Andrei Tarkovsky was born in Russia. Before he was murdered by the KGB in 1986, Tarkovsky was responsible for some of the most intriguing and visually stunning films ever made. Today, we pay tribute to Tarkovsky’s art and his legacy. It’s time for….
4 Shots From 4 Andrei Tarkovsky Films
Ivan’s Childhood (1962, dir by Andrei Tarkovsky, DP; Vadim Yusov)
Solaris (1972, dir by Andrei Tarkovsky, DP: Vadim Yusov)
Mirror (1975, dir by Andrei Tarkovsky, DP: Georgy Rerberg)
Stalker (1979, dir by Andrei Tarkovsky, DP: Alexander Knyazhinsky)
What’s an Insomnia File? You know how some times you just can’t get any sleep and, at about three in the morning, you’ll find yourself watching whatever you can find on cable or streaming? This feature is all about those insomnia-inspired discoveries!
If you find yourself having trouble getting to sleep tonight, you can always pass the time by watching the 1968 film, Candy. It’s currently on Tubi.
Based on a satirical novel by Terry Southern and Mason Hoffenberg, Candy follows Candy Christian (Ewa Aulin), a naive teenager from middle America as she has a number of increasingly surreal adventures, the majority of which end with her getting sexually assaulted by one of the film’s special guest stars. It’s very much a film of the 60s, in that it’s anti-establishment without actually seeming to know who the establishment is. It opens with a lengthy sequence that appears to be taking place in outer space. It ends with an extended sequence of Candy walking amongst the film’s cast and a bunch of random hippies. Director Christian Marquand appears as himself, directing the film. Yep, this is one of those films where the director and the film crew show up and you’re supposed to be say, “Far out, I didn’t realize I was watching a movie, man.”
The whole thing is a bit of a misfire. The novel was meant to be smut that satirized smut. The film isn’t really clever enough to work on any sort of real satirical level. As was the case with a lot of studio-made “psychedelic” films in the 60s, everything is a bit too obvious and overdone. Casting the Swedish Ewa Aulin as a character who was meant to represent middle America was just one of the film’s missteps. Based on The Graduate, Mike Nichols probably could have made a clever film out of Candy. The French Christian Marquand, a protegee of Roger Vadim’s, can not because he refuses to get out of the film’s way. It’s all jump cuts, flashy cinematography, and attempts to poke fun at American culture by someone who obviously knew nothing about America beyond the jokes told in Paris.
That said, the main reason that anyone would watch this film would be for the collection of guest stars who all show up and try to take advantage of Candy. Richard Burton plays an alcoholic poet named MacPhisto and his appearance goes on for far too long. (Burton, not surprisingly, appears to actually be drunk for the majority of his scenes.) Ringo Star — yes, Ringo Starr — plays a Mexican gardener who assaults Candy after getting turned on by the sight of MacPhisto humping a mannequin. When Emmanuel’s sisters try to attack Candy, she and her parents escape on a military plane that is commanded by Walter Matthau. Landing in New York, Candy’s brain-damaged father (John Astin) is operated on by a brilliant doctor (James Coburn) who later seduces Candy after she faints at a cocktail party. Candy’s uncle (John Astin, again) also tries to seduce Candy, leading to Candy getting lost in New York, meeting a hunchback (Charles Aznavour), and then eventually ending up with a guru (Marlon Brando). Candy’s adventures climax with a particularly sick joke that requires a bit more skill to pull off than this film can afford.
If you’re wondering how all of these famous people ended up in this movie, you have Brando to thank (or blame). Christian Marquand was Brando’s best friend and Marlon even named his son after him. After Brando agreed to appear in the film, the rest of the actors followed. Brando, Burton, and Coburn received a share of the film’s profits and Coburn later said that his entire post-1968 lifestyle was pretty much paid for by Candy. That seems appropriate as, out of all the guest stars, Coburn i the only one who actually gives an interesting performance. Burton is too drunk, Matthau is too embarrassed, Starr is too amateurish, and Brando is too self-amused to really be interesting in the film. Coburn, however, seems to be having a blast, playing his doctor as being a medical cult leader.
Candy is very much a film of 1968. It has some value as a cultural relic. Ultimately, it’s main interest is as an example of how the studios tried (and failed) to latch onto the counterculture zeitgeist.
Welcome to Late Night Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Thursdays, I will be reviewing Highway to Heaven, which aired on NBC from 1984 to 1989. The entire show is currently streaming on Tubi and several other services!
This week, Jonathan is considered for a promotion!
Episode 3.18 “A Mother And A Daughter”
(Dir by Michael Landon, originally aired on February 4th, 1987)
Jonathan and Mark are in Hollywood …. again!
Seriously, it’s interesting how many episodes of Highway to Heaven found Jonathan and Mark dealing with movie stars and entertainment executives in Hollywood. Every Hollywood episode basically followed the same plot. Jonathan is all-business while Mark is excited to meet one of his old screen idols. One thing that is a bit odd is that Mark always acts as if he’s never been in Hollywood before, even though almost every season usually featured several Hollywood episodes.
This time, they’ve been assigned to repair the relationship between veteran film star Phoebe Hall (Gloria DeHaven) and her estranged daughter, Gail (Judith Chapman). Gail is writing a tell-all book about Phoebe, one that is set to be published at the same time that Phoebe is receiving a lifetime achievement award at a televised ceremony. Can Jonathan get Gail to forgive her mother by showing Gail a bunch of old home movies? Can Mark show Pheobe how much her career means to her fans? Episodes in which Jonathan dealt with a film star who hadn’t been there for their children always seemed to hit Michael Landon extra hard. His children have said that Landon was a bit of a workaholic and not always the most present of fathers. One gets the feeling that this episode was Landon’s way of dealing with his own regrets.
While Jonathan works, he’s observed by another angel, Henry Clifford (Basil Langston). Henry confides to Mark that Jonathan is being considered for a promotion into Heaven. Mark briefly thinks about purposefully tanking the assignment so that Jonathan will stay on Earth with him. Jonathan explains that they can’t do that and, to the show’s credit, Mark quickly realizes that Jonathan’s correct. (Doing a bad job on purpose would have gone against everything the show had established about Mark’s character.) In the end, Henry says that Jonathan will be staying on Earth for the time being because that’s obviously where Jonathan can do the most good. Jonathan and Mark are happy.
That said, I do find it curious that the show has never really examined how Jonathan feels about the prospect of finally heading “upstairs.” I mean, as Jonathan explains during this episode, he’s dead. He’s been dead for a long time. Wouldn’t he like to relax and enjoy his final reward? Some people really like to work. To be honest, I’d probably be the same way. Give me a choice between going to Heaven and reviewing movies as a ghost …. well, it would be a hard decision for me.
Anyway, this was a sweet episode. Highway to Heaven‘s strength was that it was shamelessly optimistic and earnest and that’s certainly the case here.
Since today is Marlon Brando’s birthday, it only seems appropriate that today’s song of the day should come from the soundtrack of one of his films. (I’ll also be watching this film later tonight.)
From 1979’s Apocalypse Now, here is the haunting music that plays as Willard and the boat approach the infamous bridge that is built every day so that it can be destroyed every night.
Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Thursdays, I will be reviewing Malibu CA, which aired in Syndication in 1998 and 1999. Almost the entire show is currently streaming on YouTube!
Yes, this is from the first season. I don’t care. I refuse to waste my time looking for a second season advertisement.
This week, Jason ruins his life. Or at least, that’s what I assume happened.
Episode 2.7 “The Long Goodbye”
(Dir by Gary Shimokawa, originally aired on November 20th, 1999)
Here’s the plot of this week’s episode, according to the imdb:
After a successful audition before Alex’s uncle the producer, Jason gets the go-ahead to make a demo recording. He’s surprised to see that the producer sent to work with him is a woman: a young, attractive one. Jason works with Kendall and there seems to be a spark between them. Stads calls from Europe. Jason tells her about the demo but not that the producer is female.
Wow, that sounds great! (If you’re detecting heavy sarcasm, you are indeed a perceptive reader.) Too bad this episode is one of the ones that has not been uploaded to YouTube. Or actually, maybe it’s not that bad that I have an excuse not watch it. I’ve never bought into the whole idea of Jason being this massively talented singer and songwriter. According to Wikipedia, this episode was the last appearance as Stads so I’m going to guess that Jason not mentioning his producer being female led to a break-up. Oh well!
Consider this a placeholder. If this episode ever is uploaded, I’ll review it.
As some of our regular readers undoubtedly know, I am involved in a few weekly watch parties. On Twitter, I host #FridayNightFlix every Friday and I co-host #ScarySocial on Saturday. On Mastodon, I am one of the five hosts of #MondayActionMovie! Every week, we get together. We watch a movie. We tweet our way through it.
Through the Shattered Lens