As some of our regular readers undoubtedly know, I am involved in a few weekly live tweets on Twitter and Mastodon. I host #FridayNightFlix every Friday, I co-host #ScarySocial on Saturday, and 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, #FridayNightFlix presents one of my Arleigh’s favorite movies, The Sword and the Sorcerer!
If you want to join us this Friday, just hop onto twitter, start the movie at 10 pm et, and use the #FridayNightFlix hashtag! It’s a friendly group and welcoming of newcomers so don’t be shy.
The Sword and the Sorcerer is available on Prime! See you there!
Norman Mailer was better-known as a writer than a filmmaker but, over the course of his limited directorial career, he did come up with one scene that will never be forgotten. That scene is a scene that I love from 1987’s Tough Guys Don’t Dance.
Norman Mailer, running for mayor of New York City in 1969
4 (or more) Shots From 4 (or more) Films is just what it says it is, 4 (or more) shots from 4 (or more) of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 (or more) Shots From 4 (or more) Films lets the visuals do the talking.
Norman Mailer wasn’t just a writer and symbol of New York City. He was also an aspiring filmmaker, a director who made three experimental films in the 60s and one studio film in the 80s. And while none of his films could really be described as being a hit with either audiences or critics, they do — to a certain extent — epitomize an era. Plus, the story of Rip Torn hitting Mailer with a hammer during the filming of Maidstone will live forever.
In honor of Norman Mailer the director, here are….
4 Shots From 4 Norma Mailer Films
Wild 90 (1968, dir by Norman Mailer, DP: D.A. Pennebaker)
Beyond The Law (1968, dir by Norman Mailer, DP: D.A. Pennebaker)
Maidstone (1970, dir by Norman Mailer, DP: D.A. Pennebaker)
Tough Guys Don’t Dance (1987, dir by Norman Mailer, DP: Mike Moyer and John Bailey)
Today, we wish a happy 95th birthday to the great actor-turned-writer Gene Hackman!
Today’s scene that I love comes from one of Hackman’s best films, 1974’s The Conversation. In this scene, Hackman’s surveillance expert has a nightmare inspired by his fear that his latest job may cause two people to be murdered. Hackman won two Oscars over the course of his career and was nominated several times. The fact that he was not nominated for The Conversation was a huge oversight on the part of the Academy.
4 (or more) Shots From 4 (or more) Films is just what it says it is, 4 (or more) shots from 4 (or more) of our favorite films. As opposed to the reviews and recaps that we usually post, 4 (or more) Shots From 4 (or more) Films lets the visuals do the talking.
105 years ago today, Michael Anderson was born in London. Anderson may have never become a household name but he directed some memorable movies. Around The World in 80 Days proved that audiences love spectacle and celebrity cameos and it won the Oscar for Best Picture of 1956. (Though Anderson was nominated for best director, the award went to George Stevens for Giant.) However, I think that Anderson’s best-remembered film is probably Logan’s Run. Whenever I shout, “I hate outside!” or I reply to a simple question with, “There is no sanctuary,” people always seem to automatically know which film I’m referencing. Anderson followed up Logan’s Run with Orca, which is one of the better Jaws rip-offs.
Today, we honor the career and legacy of Michael Anderson with….
4 Shots From 4 Michael Anderson Films
Around The World in 80 Days (dir by Michael Anderson, DP: Lionel Lindon)
Logan’s Run (1976, dir by Michael Anderson, DP: Ernest Laszlo)
Orca (1977, dir by Michael Anderson, DP: J. Barry Herron and Ted Moore)
The Martian Chronicles (1980, directed by Michael Anderson, DP: Ted Moore)
Gene Hackman is a tremendous, multiple Oscar winning actor who has been in some of the best movies ever made. Of all that great work, the movie that means the most to me is HOOSIERS (1986). If you don’t believe me, just go ahead and follow me on X. I’m easy to find. My handle is @Hoosiers1986. I’ve shared before that my dad was a high school basketball coach at small schools here in Arkansas that weren’t much different from the one in Hickory, IN depicted in the film. Growing up in the Crain household, basketball was my life and my dad and HOOSIERS have always been such inspirations to me.
On his 95th birthday, I wanted to share this video I found of Hackman discussing his role as Coach Norman Dale in HOOSIERS, which includes clips from behind the scenes and of the film itself. I had never seen this material before so I found it especially interesting. He tells a really special story about a lady he met while on location. It was quite touching. Happy Birthday, Mr. Hackman! Enjoy!
Tom Selleck has been a part of my life almost as far back as I can remember. I was seven years old when MAGNUM P.I. premiered on T.V., so I literally grew up on the adventures of Hawaii’s best private eye! Selleck is such a likable and charismatic screen presence.
My wife and I are celebrating his birthday by watching my very favorite Tom Selleck movie, QUIGLEY DOWN UNDER (1990). I love this scene where Wyoming cowboy Matthew Quigley first arrives at the Australian ranch of Elliott Marston (Alan Rickman), and then proceeds to prove his prowess with a long distance rifle to a bunch of smirkers.
Enjoy, my friends, and Happy Birthday, Mr. Selleck!
Continuing our theme of dystopian noir, today’s scene of the day comes from 1982’s Blade Runner. In this scene, we not only meet Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford) but we also get a look at the future of Los Angeles, from both the sky and the ground.
(Of course, the film takes place in 2019 so its future is our past!)
This is one of the best world-building scenes that I’ve ever seen, one that works because it takes place in a world we can recognize but which has obviously developed and changed over the years. Plus, I just like Harrison Ford wearing a trench coat and looking grumpy. He should have done more noirs.
4 Shots From 4 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!
I have a headache and it’s raining outside. It’s time for….
4 Shots From 4 Dystopian Film Noirs
Blade Runner (1982, dir by Ridley Scott, DP: Jordan Cronenweth)
Streets of Fire (1984, dir by Walter Hill, DP: Andrew Laszlo)
Inland Empire (2006, dir by David Lynch, DP: David Lynch)
Blade Runner 2049 (2017, dir by Denis Villeneuve, DP: Roger Deakins)
The Sundance Film Festival is currently underway in Utah. For the next few days, I’ll be taking a look at some of the films that have previously won awards at Sundance.
First released in 2000, Minari is a classic story of the pursuit of the American dream.
Taking place in the early 80s, the movie follows Jacob Yi (Steven Yeun), a South Korean immigrant who relocates his family from California to Arkansas. Jacob has purchased a farm and he plans to make a fortune selling Korean produce to restaurants in Dallas. (Dallas, I should mention, does have a very large Korean population so Jacob’s plan is not a bad one.) Jacob is enthusiastic and confident that his plan will succeed. His wife Monica (Han Ye-ri) is a bit less confident. She doesn’t want to live in a mobile home and she worries about the health of her young son David (Alan Kim), who has a heart murmur. Monica feels that her husband has dragged them out to the middle of nowhere and that he has no idea what he’s doing. Jacob is determined to become a success and he even hires his first employee, Paul (Will Patton), a local eccentric who often walks up and down the highway with a cross on his back.
I have to admit that I was initially a bit cautious about watching Minari. I have family from Arkansas. When I was growing up, my family sometimes lived in Arkansas. (When I was growing up, we moved around so much that I used to just think of Arkansas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Louisiana, Colorado, and Texas as just being one big state that I called home.) Arkansas is one of those states that is usually not treated particularly kindly in the movies. For that reason, I was pleasantly surprised by Minari. Jacob may be an outsider, as both an immigrant and a former Californian, but, for the most part, the people that he meets are kind and willing to help. Paul is especially an interesting character. Many movies would have treated Paul as a redneck joke but, in Minari, he’s given a certain dignity. The cinematography is wonderful, capturing the humid beauty of not just Arkansas but the midwest in general. Jacob and his family are 20th century pioneers, exploring what for them is a new and untouched land.
Eventually, Monica’s mother, Soon-ja (Youn Yuh-jung), comes to stay with the family. She shares a room with David and it takes a while for David to get used to his grandmother. (David complains that she doesn’t act like a grandmother.) It also takes Soon-ja a while to get used to life in Arkansas. Youn Yuh-jung won a deserved Oscar for her performance here, playing a stranger in a strange land who ultimately inspires David to find his own inner strength. The scenes between Youn and Alan Kim are some of the strongest in the film. Towards the end of the film, Youn has a scene that truly left me in tears.
Minari is about the pursuit of the American dream but it’s also about the strength of family. Jacob is not always a sympathetic character but he proves himself in the end. The film ends on an ambiguous note but I choose to believe that Jacob eventually found his fortune.
Minari won the Dramatic Grand Jury Prize and, like many so many Sundance hits in the past, it went on to be nominated for Best Picture. It lost to Nomadland, despite Minari being a far superior film. That’s the Academy for you.
