Alessandro Nivola has some good credits in movies like MANSFIELD PARK (1999), AMERICAN HUSTLE (2013), and THE BRUTALIST (2024), but he’ll always be special to me as Pollux Troy, the younger brother of Nicolas Cage’s Castor Troy, in John Woo’s most awesome American film FACE/OFF!
In celebration of Nivola’s 53rd birthday, enjoy this little taste of late-90’s coolness (the link can only be watched on YOUTUBE, and it’s worth it):
My wife Sierra and I have had a lot of stress in our life lately, so I decided to take her on a little getaway this weekend to Branson, MO. This afternoon we’ve got tickets to the Sight and Sound production of “David,” and tonight we’re going to cruise Table Rock Lake on The Branson Belle.
As good as all of this sounds, my dream town would be the place imagined by THE SIMPSONS called Bronson, MO! That has to be the safest town in the world!!
Today, Mel Brooks is 99 years old!
Mel Brooks. What can you say Mel Brooks? Not only did he help to redefine American comedy but he was also responsible for bringing David Lynch to Hollywood. Brooks was the one who hired Lynch to direct The Elephant Man. It can probably be argued that, if not for Brooks, Lynch’s feature film career would have begun and ended with Eraserhead. Brooks not only hired Lynch but also protected him for studio interference. When the execs tried to make Lynch remove two surrealistic sequences from The Elephant Man, Brooks stood up to them. When they requested a more conventional biopic, Brooks defended Lynch’s vision and the result was one of the best films ever made.
Of course, Brooks isn’t listed in the credits of The Elephant Man. Though he produced the film, he went uncredited because he didn’t want people to assume that the movie was a comedy. By doing so, Brooks missed out on an Oscar nomination but he also ensured that the film was taken seriously. It’s hard not to respect someone who was willing to go uncredited to help make the film a success.
Though Brooks, as a producers, was responsible for a number of serious films, there’s a reason why Brooks is associated with comedy. He’s a very funny man and he directed some very funny films. In honor of Mel Brooks, here’s a scene that I love from 1974’s Young Frankenstein.
Happy birthday, Mel Brooks!
From Mulholland Drive:
RIP, Rebekah Del Rio.
Today’s scene that I love comes from 2012’s The Master, written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson (who celebrated his birthday yesterday).
Philip Seymour Hoffman and Joaquin Phoenix were never better than they were in Anderson’s enigmatic story of two very different men who become unlikely friends. Phoenix plays Freddie Quill, a World War II veteran who has never figured out how to adjust to life during peacetime. Hoffman plays Lancaster Dodd, a writer who claims to have all the answers but who is actually a charlatan. In this scene, Freddie and Dodd meet for one last time and, though they are both characters about who most viewers will have mixed feelings, there’s something undeniably poignant about their final moments together. Both of them realize that the time they had is over. And indeed, watching this scene today is all the more difficult because it reminds us of what a talent we lost when we lost Philip Seymour Hoffman.
From Paul Thomas Anderson’s The Master:
I noticed that character actor Robert Davi turns 74 years old today, which gives me an excuse to share a favorite scene from DIE HARD!
Happy Birthday, Robert! I hope it’s a “Just like Saigon” level of happiness for you today!
Everyone remembers the “Mad as Hell Speech” from Sidney Lumet’s 1976 satire, Network.
Personally, I think this scene below is just as good. Replace “tube” with TikTok and AI and you’ll have a pretty good explanation for why the world today is full of so many ignorant people who think they know more than they do.
(Usually, heavy-handed scenes annoy me. Fortunately, much like David Fincher with Aaron Sorkin’s script for The Social Network, Sidney Lumet knew the right directorial tone to take when translating Paddy Chayefsky’s script to the screen. One shudders to think of what Network would have been like with a less skilled director behind the camera.)
Today is the birthday of Peter Weller, the actor best-known for playing the original Robocop in 1987. Robocop is best-known for being violent and satirical but it also features one of the saddest scenes that I’ve ever seen.
Trying to piece together who he was before he was rebuilt, Robocop visits his former home and has flashbacks to his past life as Officer Murphy. The house is empty now but the flashbacks show that it was once full of life. Even with only half of his face visible, Weller shows Murphy’s loneliness as he walks around the house that he once called home.
I’m a big fan of Gerard Butler, mainly because of his macho performances in action films and thrillers. I also appreciate his ability to sing. I remember being surprised and impressed with his performance in Joel Schumacher’s version of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA. I really enjoy the song “The Music of the Night,” and since I reviewed one of his thrillers today (SHATTERED), I thought I’d balance it out with a video of him belting out a tune. Enjoy!
Today’s scene that I love comes from Bob Fosse’s 1979 masterpiece, All That Jazz. This scene features the legendary Ann Reinking at her best. Roy Scheider said that he cried after shooting this scene.
Through the Shattered Lens 