In honor of Director Frank Darabont’s 66th birthday, I’m sharing a scene from his masterpiece, THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION. One of the best things about this movie is how much humor is found behind those prison walls, often coming from seemingly unexpected places. In this scene, the humor is found when the characters take on the mundane task of cataloging the prison library. Enjoy!
I recently reviewed THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION on my son’s birthday.
Today is Mozart’s birthday so, of course, today’s scene from the day comes from 1984’s Amadeus. In this scene, the Emperor (Jeffrey Jones) delivers his critique to Mozart (Tom Hulce) and anyone who has ever had to deal with an idiotic critic will be able to relate.
“There’s too many notes!”
What really makes this scene work, along with Hulce’s reaction, is Jones’s blandly cheerful manner. The Emperor really thinks he’s being helpful!
Today would have been Paul Newman’s 100th birthday!
For today’s scene that I love, we have Paul Newman winning a fight in 1969’s Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.
“There aren’t any rules for a knife fight.”
Well before THE NAKED GUN was triggering Reggie Jackson, director Don Siegel and Charles Bronson were triggering human time bombs in TELEFON (1977). Quentin Tarantino even borrowed from this film when he chose the Robert Frost poem for Stuntman Mike’s (Kurt Russell) lap dance from Arlene (Vanessa Furlito). It’s not as sexy, but it’s still a good time as Bronson tries to prevent World War III. Enjoy!
Since today is Tobe Hooper’s birthday, it seems fitting that today’s scene of the day should come from his best-known film. The opening of 1974’s The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is genuinely unsettling, from the opening narration to the scene of the body being dug up to the news reports of grave robbery. Even the opening credits feel ominous!
The narration was, of course, provided by a young John Larroquette, who has since said that he was “paid in marijuana” for what would become his first feature film credit.
Today would have been the 76th birthday of actor John Belushi.
Today’s scene that I love comes from Belushi’s first film, 1978’s Animal House. In the scene, Belushi (playing Bluto) gives the greatest motivational speech of all time. My father was quite a fan of Mr. Belushi’s. I’d like to think that this speech was the reason why.
Have you ever wondered what it takes to win an Oscar? The 1966 film, The Oscar, revealed to audiences just how sleazy a world Hollywood can be. Frankie Fane (Stephen Boyd) does everything he can to win an Oscar and he doesn’t care who he hurts! But fear not — Hollywood may not be perfect but it has no room for someone like Frankie Fane! At the end of the movie, a man named Frank does win the Oscar but his last name is Sinatra and Frankie Fane is left humiliated. That’ll teach him to try to pull one over on the Academy!
The Oscar is an incredibly silly film but it’s also a lot of fun. In this scene that I love, Frankie’s best friend — played by Tony Bennett, in both his first and final film — confronts Frankie about the type of star that he’s become.
“That’s birdseed!”
Way back in 1995, Jim Jarmusch gave Billy Bob Thornton a part in his film DEAD MAN. Well the next year, Billy Bob Thornton directed his own movie, SLING BLADE. He asked Jarmusch if he would do a small part in his movie. The resulting scene would be one of my favorites in the entire film. I still mention “French fried potaters” to this day, especially the “big ‘uns!” And I just love the fact that Jarmusch was right here in Benton, Arkansas.
The Frosty Cream is a McDonald’s now, but I love seeing the area how it was 30 years ago! Watch and enjoy!
Yesterday, I highlighted one of my more recent guilty pleasures, Timu Tjahjanto’s unhinged action thriller The Night Comes for Us, and today I highlight an action scene from an earlier film that helped propel Indonesia’s action film scene to most Westerners with a little sequence from Gareth Edwards’ The Raid 2. A sequel to his own earlier film, The Raid.
This sequence stars the character only known as Hammer Girl and played Julie Estelle who is also in The Night Comes for Us. I would’ve picked her scene from that film to highlight but it spoils a major part of the film so I decided on this scene in The Raid 2 that got her noticed with action film aficionados worldwide.
It’s a simple set-up. Girl with two claw hammers in a crowded train silently squares up against a train car full of yakuza members. What comes next is a masterclass in action choreography that induces many a visceral response form the viewer yet hard to look away from.
Today, we wish a happy birthday to actress Geena Davis. Today’s scene that I love comes from 1996’s The Long Kiss Goodnight and features Geena Davis as a badass action movie star!
Through the Shattered Lens 