The unique character actor, Strother Martin, is established as one of the most quoted people to ever grace the silver screen. His line from COOL HAND LUKE (1967), “What we’ve got here is… failure to communicate” ranks as number 11 on the American Film Institute’s list of the 100 greatest movie quotes of all time! He’s an incredibly talented man, and every time I see him pop up on an old TV show or movie, I smile.
My personal favorite film of all time is HARD TIMES (1975) starring Charles Bronson, James Coburn, Jill Ireland, and yes, Strother Martin. He is so good as Poe, Charles Bronson’s cut man, who also happens to be a recovering drug addict. HARD TIMES is Walter Hill’s debut film, and Hill couldn’t have picked a better cast to introduce himself to the world. It’s my opinion that Martin’s unique talents are a perfect compliment to Bronson’s strong, silent persona, and James Coburn’s motormouth, business man. I think it’s one of his best performances.
My favorite scene with Bronson and Strother Martin in HARD TIMES is the scene where they first meet. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find it on YouTube so I’m sharing this scene where Bronson collects their earnings from a guy who cheated them earlier in the day. Martin’s character isn’t featured in this scene, but he’s always right there with Bronson as a loyal friend. On what would have been Martin’s 106th birthday, I just wanted to take a moment to remember and appreciate him for his great work.
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 would have been Tennessee Williams’s 114th birthday! It’s time for….
4 Shots From 4 Tennessee Williams Films
A Streetcar Named Desire (1951, dir by Elia Kazan, DP: Harry Stradling)
Cat On A Hot Tin Roof (1958, dir by Richard Brooks, DP: William Daniels)
Suddenly, Last Summer (1959, dir by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, DP: Jack Hildyard)
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 wishes a happy birthday to actor/director John Stockwell! Though the critics might not always realize it, Galveston-born John Stockwell is responsible for some of the best beach movies of the 21st Century. No one can make the beach and the ocean look as inviting (or as dangerous) as John Stockwell.
It’s time for….
4 Shots From 4 John Stockwell Films
Blue Crush (2002, dir by John Stockwell, DP: David Hennings)
Into the Blue (2005, dir by John Stockwell, DP: Shane Hurlbut and Pete Zuccarini)
Turistas (2006, dir by John Stockwell, DP: Enrique Chediak and Peter Zuccarini)
In the Blood (2014, dir by John Stockwell, DP: P.J. Lopez)
Every Monday night at 9:00 Central Time, my wife Sierra and I host a “Live Movie Tweet” event on X using the hashtag #MondayMuggers. We rotate movie picks each week, and our tastes are quite different. For tonight, Monday March 24th, Sierra has chosen LAKEVIEW TERRACE starring Samuel L. Jackson, Patrick Wilson, Kerry Washington, Jay Hernandez, and Robert Pine.
The story revolves around the interracial couple Chris and Lisa Mattson (Patrick Wilson and Kerry Washington) moving into their new home in a gated community in California. Their neighbor turns out to be the racist, dysfunctional and abusive LAPD Officer, Abel Turner (Samuel L. Jackson). Turner doesn’t want them in his neighborhood and proceeds to make their lives a living hell.
Neil Labute directed LAKEVIEW TERRACE, which is loosely based on real life events, and he knows how to make an audience uncomfortable. Samuel L. Jackson is an incredible actor, so I’m really looking forward to his take on this hideous character. I’m expecting a lot of scenery to be chewed before this one ends.
So, join us tonight for #MondayMuggers and watch LAKEVIEW TERRACE! It’s on Amazon Prime.
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)
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!
Movie star Toshiro Mifune and director Akira Kuroswa on the set of Seven Samurai.
I love director Akira Kurosawa. He’s one of the all time greats. His movies RASHOMON (1951), IKIRU (1952), SEVEN SAMURAI (1954), THRONE OF BLOOD (1957), THE BAD SLEEP WELL (1960), and YOJIMBO (1961) are some of the greatest movies ever made. His work has inspired so many great filmmakers, and so many great movies, including THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN (1960), A FISTFUL OF DOLLARS (1964), and STAR WARS (1977) just to name a few.
On Kurosawa’s 115th Birthday, I share one of my favorite scenes, from one of my favorite movies (SANJURO), featuring two of my favorite actors (Toshiro Mifune & Tatsuya Nakadai). Enjoy my friends, and rest in peace, Mr. Kurosawa!
One of the great character actors of all time, M. Emmet Walsh, would have been 90 years old today. Walsh lived a good long life, passing away on March 19th, 2024, three days short of what would have been his 89th birthday. The great movie critic Roger Ebert created his own movie rule that featured Walsh. He called it the “Stanton-Walsh” rule, which also honored the great Harry Dean Stanton. The rule went something like “no movie featuring Harry Dean Stanton or M. Emmet Walsh in a supporting role can be altogether bad.” High praise indeed.
When I think of Walsh, I picture his characters in movies like FAST-WALKING (1981), BLADE RUNNER (1982), MISSING IN ACTION (1984), and RAISING ARIZONA (1987). I’ve tried to forget one of his scenes in FAST-WALKING, but I’m afraid it’s a hopeless cause! His characters always stand out. The movie I first saw him in was the Coen Brothers’ BLOOD SIMPLE (1984). Fox 16 out of Little Rock played this often in the 80’s. The advertisements heavily featured Walsh’s amazingly sleazy private detective character, with his cowboy hat and his slimy grin. It’s a truly amazing performance.
On his birthday, I share one of his great scenes from BLOOD SIMPLE. Rest in peace, Mr. Walsh! And enjoy, my friends.
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 is William Shatner’s birthday, which means that it is time for….
4 Shots From 4 William Shatner Films
Judgment at Nuremberg (1961, dir by Stanley Kramer, DP: Ernest Laszlo)
Incubus (1966, dir by Leslie Stevens, DP: Conrad Hall)
Big Bad Mama (1974, dir by Steve Carver, DP: Bruce Logan)
The Devil’s Rain (1975, dir by Robert Fuest, DP: Alex Phillips Jr.)
As a teenager of the late 80’s who was absolutely obsessed with movies, I spent a lot of time in the local videos store in and around Conway, Arkansas. I would meticulously go through their entire inventory. Nobody wanted to go with me to the video store because they knew they were going to be there for awhile. That’s where I first became obsessed with Charles Bronson, and he’s been my obsession to this day, over 20 years after his death.
The video store was a place where I also discovered a lot of other amazing actors. It would always go something like this; I would see a person’s name on a movie that looked good. I would watch the movie and enjoy it. I would go back to the store and notice that person was in a lot more movies. I would then try to watch them all. This pattern started with Bronson, and then moved on to actors like Clint Eastwood, Roy Scheider, Burt Reynolds, Rutger Hauer, and yes, Wings Hauser. On a side note, I always thought it was pretty cool that two of my favorite actors had practically the same name, Hauer and Hauser. The video stores were full of movies starring Hauser that I thought looked good. My preferred box art would generally feature Hauser holding a gun (see picture at the top), and usually with generic sounding titles like DEADLY FORCE (1983), HOSTAGE (1986), NO SAFE HAVEN (1987), DEAD MAN WALKING (1988), and MARKED FOR MURDER (1990). When I rented a movie “starring Wings Hauser” in the 80’s through the early 90’s, I had a pretty good idea what I’d be getting. It would usually be a low budget movie, with some solid action and some sexy ladies, all anchored by a likable and charismatic performance from Wings Hauser. Those are the types of low budget, action movies that I really loved and Hauser did a bunch of him. I know they aren’t great movies, certainly not of the same quality of Hauser’s own best work in movies like VICE SQUAD (1982) and THE SIEGE OF FIREBASE GLORIA (1988), but I enjoyed them so much growing up.
While my favorite Wings Hauser movies featured him as a cop, we watched him in so many different types of roles. I remember our family renting TOUGH GUYS DON’T DANCE (1987). None of us knew what the hell was going on in that movie. Hauser would co-star in movies like BEDROOM EYES II (1989), OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND (1990), and BEASTMASTER 2: THROUGH THE PORTAL OF TIME (1991). I’d watch them all. Hell, he even directed a graphic slasher flick called THE ART OF DYING (1991). That movie is nuts! No matter the quality of the movie, I always enjoyed seeing Hauser on screen.
When YELLOWSTONE hit it big on TV a few years back, my wife Sierra loved the character Rip Wheeler. Since Rip is played by Cole Hauser, I took that as an opportunity to introduce her to his dad Wings Hauser. I never watch an episode of YELLOWSTONE that I don’t think of Wings Hauser and those old times at the video store. The first Wings Hauser movie I introduced my wife to was VICE SQUAD, but we watched quite a few of his movies over the last couple of years. It has been fun revisiting the films and sharing them with her.
Wings Hauser will always have a special place in my heart, because I spent a lot of time with him. Today, as a tribute to him, I share my story and a scene from DEADLY FORCE. It’s just a fun car chase scene featuring Wings in one of his low budget action movies. This is the Hauser I loved the most. Rest in peace, sir!
Through the Shattered Lens