In honor of the birthday of actor Steve McQueen, the true epitome of all things cool, here is the famous and trend-setting chase scene from 1968’s Bullitt, featuring McQueen behind the wheel and doing his own stunts on the streets of San Francisco.
Tag Archives: Lisa Marie Bowman
4 Shots From 4 Films: Special Curtis Hanson Edition
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!
Today, in honor the birthday of the late great Curtis Hanson, it’s time for….
4 Shots From 4 Curtis Hanson Films
The Bedroom Window (1987, dir by Curtis Hanson, DP: Gilbert Taylor)
L.A. Confidential (1997, dir by Curtis Hanson, DP: Dante Spinotti)
Wonder Boys (2000, dir by Curtis Hanson, DP: Dante Spinotti)
8 Mile (2002, dir by Curtis Hanson, DP: Rodrigo Prieto)
Music Video of the Day: You Know I’m No Good by Amy Winehouse (2006, directed by Phil Griffin)
Amy Winehouse, still missed. Her music touched my life. Her death broke my heart. Fortunately, her voice can still be heard.
I used to search for excuses to sing this song. Needless to say, my vocals were not quite as effective.
Late Night Retro Television Review: CHiPs 5.12 “Mitchell & Woods”
Welcome to Late Night Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Mondays, I will be reviewing CHiPs, which ran on NBC from 1977 to 1983. The entire show is currently streaming on Prime!
This week …. hey, what is this!?
Episode 5.12 “Mitchell & Woods”
(Dir by Bernard L. Kowalski, originally aired on December 18th, 1981)
Paula Woods (Jayne Kennedy) and Melanie Mitchell (Cindy Morgan) may have once just been two members of the highway patrol who were trained by Ponch but they’ve now been promoted to working as plainclothes detectives in Ocean City!
“Look out Ocean City!” Jon Baker says.
When an old high school friend of Michell’s is murdered, Mitchell and Woods uncover a male prostitution ring. Along with bringing the guilty to justice, they also help Chickee (Pamela Susan Shoop) find the courage to leave her abusive relationship….
No, there’s not much motorcycle action. No, there’s no slow motion car crashes. Yes, this is an episode of CHiPs. Well, kind of.
It’s actually a backdoor pilot for a show about Mitchell and Woods. Ponch and Baker show up at the start of the show to wish Mitchell and Woods luck. Ponch and Baker return halfway through the show so that Ponch can tell Mitchell and Woods about an informant named Avrom (Tony Burton). And, finally, Ponch and Baker return at the end of the episode and give our erstwhile detectives a parking ticket.
Backdoor pilots at the worst! You’re all prepared to spend 40 minutes with people you know and suddenly, a bunch of new folks show up and start demanding your attention. It doesn’t help that Mitchell & Woods is a terrible pilot and I’m not really surprised that it didn’t become an actual series. Can Mitchell and Woods prove that woman can be good detectives? Will they ever impress their new boss (Paul Gale)? I don’t really know the characters so I don’t care.
I swear, they could have at least brought back Caitlyn Jenner for this episode.
Retro Television Review: Miami Vice 5.18 “World of Trouble”
Welcome to Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Mondays, I will be reviewing Miami Vice, which ran on NBC from 1984 to 1989. The entire show can be purchased on Prime!
This week, Al Lombard retuns.
Episode 5.18 “World of Trouble”
(Dir by Alan Myerson, originally aired on Jun 14th, 1989)
Way back in the first season, Dennis Farina appeared as an honorable gangster named Al Lombard who did not want his son, Sal, to follow him into the family business. During his first appearance, Lombard considered ratting out his associates in return for an immunity deal but, in the end, he refused. Al Lombard was old school. He was not a rat. That didn’t make much difference to his associates. The episode ended with an ambiguous freeze frame and gunshot that suggested they had executed him.
In this episode, it is revealed that Al Lombard faked his death and has spent the last few years in Europe. When a judge dismisses the years-old indictment against him, Al returns to Miami so he can visit his son, Sal (Timothy Patrick Quill). Despite the fact that Lombard went back on his promise to testify against his associates, Crockett and Tubbs are still happy to see him. Al is a likable guy!
Unfortunately, the whole thing is a set-up. Rival gangster Federico Librizzi (Ned Eisenberg) arranged for the indictment to be dismissed in order to lure Al back to Miami. Once in Miami, Al is upset to discover that Sal is now involved in the family business and that a gang war is about to break out over a new superweapon that Sal stole from the DEA. When Librizzi’s hitmen try to take out Al, they hit Sal instead.
Sal is dead and Al wants revenge. Al is smart enough to show up at a meeting between Librizzi and Burnett and Cooper (*sigh* the undercover thing again). Librizzi shoots Al, forcing Crockett and Tubbs to shoot Librizzi.
This was one of the fifth season episodes that did not originally air during the show’s network run. It was included in syndication as a “lost episode.” Dennis Farina gives a charismatic performance as Al Lombard but that’s about all this episode really has going for it. The other performances are nowhere close to being as good as Farina’s and the whole plot to bring Lombard back to Miami is ludicrously convoluted. Seriously, there aren’t mob hitmen in Europe?
Join #MondayMania For Sidekicks!
Hi, everyone! Tonight, on twitter, I will be hosting one of my favorite films for #MondayMania! Join us for 1992’s Sidekicks!
You can find the movie on Prime and Tubi and then you can join us on twitter at 9 pm central time! (That’s 10 pm for you folks on the East Coast.) See you then!
Song of the Day: The Theme From Trip With The Teacher by Igo Kantor
Today’s song of the day is the oddly cheery theme music of 1975’s Trip With The Teacher. Composed by Igo Kantor, this music may be inappropriate for a film about a teacher and four students who are kidnapped by a sociopath with narcolepsy but I defy you to get it out of your head!
Scene that I Love: Yojimbo
Yojimbo (1961, directed by Akira Kurosawa)
The great filmmaker, Akira Kurosawa, was born 116 years ago today, in Tokyo. Kurosawa would go on to become one of the most influential directors of all time, making 30 films over a career that lasted 57 years. Though Kurosawa is often cited as an influence on westerns (Seven Samurai became The Magnificent Seven, Yojimbo inspired Serigo Leone to create The Man With No Name), Kurosawa’s influence goes for beyond just one genre. He directed action films. He directed gangster films. He directed social problem films. He directed historical epics. Kurosawa taught an entire generation of future film film directors the language of cinema.
In honor of the anniversary of Akira Kurosawa’s birth, here is a scene that we all love from his 1961 masterpiece, Yojimbo. Playing the lead role of the lone swordsman is, of course, Kurosawa’s frequent star, Toshiro Mifune.
4 Shots From 4 Films: Special Akira Kurosawa Edition
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!
Today, the Shattered Lens honors both the birth and the legacy of the great filmmaker, Akira Kurosawa! It’s time for….
4 Shots From 4 Akira Kurosawa Films
The Hidden Fortress (1958, dir. by Akira Kurosawa, DP: Kazuo Yamasaki)
Yojimbo (1961, dir by Akira Kurosawa, DP: Kazuo Miyagawa)
Ran (1987, dir by Akira Kurosawa, DP: Takao Saito)
Dreams (1990, dir by Akira Kurosawa, DP: Takao Saito)
Monday Live Tweet Alert: Join Us for Slaughter in San Francisco!
As some of our regular readers undoubtedly know, I am involved in hosting a few weekly live tweets on twitter and occasionally Mastodon. I host #FridayNightFlix every Friday, I co-host #ScarySocial on Saturday, and I am one of the five hosts of Mastodon’s #MondayActionMovie! Every week, we get together. We watch a movie. We snark our way through it.
Tonight, for #MondayActionMovie, the film will be Slaughter in San Francisco!
If you want to join this watch party, just hop onto Mastodon, pull up Slaughter in San Francisco on YouTube, start the movie at 8 pm et, and use the #MondayActionMovie hashtag!
Enjoy!
Through the Shattered Lens