Tag Archives: Movies

FAST-WALKING – James Woods and Kay Lenz light up the screen!

Posted on by Bradley Crain

One of the first movies I ever watched starring James Woods is COP. It’s a 1988 action thriller about a police detective on the trail of a serial killer. I really enjoyed the movie, which was directed by James B. Harris. Harris is a producer and director whose various credits include THE KILLING (1956), PATHS OF GLORY (1957), LOLITA (1962) and TELEFON (1977, with Charles Bronson). Harris also directed James Woods in a movie from 1981 called FAST-WALKING. 

FAST-WALKING is about a prison guard named Frank “Fast-Walking” Minniver. He loves to smoke pot and dream about a future life in a beautiful part of Oregon. In order to make that move, though, he needs to make some money. When a black revolutionary named William Galliot is transferred to his prison, he finds himself with some options, as he receives offers of money from two different sides. On one side is his cousin Wasco, a prison trustee who offers Fast-Walking $25,000 to kill the revolutionary as part of a staged prison race riot. On the other side is Galliot’s own people who offer him a bag of money containing $50,000 if he’ll help Galliot escape. The biggest obstacle to taking the bigger payday is that Wasco threatens to kill Fast-Walking’s lady love Moke, if he doesn’t make the right choice.

The cast is phenomenal in FAST-WALKING beginning with James Woods as the title character. In his best roles, Woods is somewhat morally ambiguous, and we hope he makes the right decisions at the end. This definitely fits that mold. Kay Lenz was sexy as hell as Moke. We’re not supposed to be sure if she’s just using Fast-Walking or if she truly loves him. She plays that balance well. In a surprising turn of events, M. Emmet Walsh gives the most memorable performance of his career, and it doesn’t have a thing to do with his acting. Rather, he does a full frontal nude scene. I’d like to forget this performance, but it’s burned into my psyche at this point. Tim McIntire was the revelation to me, though, as Fast-Walking’s inmate cousin Wasco. This is the only role I really know him from, and he absolutely nails it. The fate of his character is one of the most satisfying parts of the entire film. Unfortunately, McIntire would suffer from drug and alcohol addiction and would pass away a few years after completing his role in FAST-WALKING. I can’t help but think there could have been more great performances if his career would have been longer. 

I recommend FAST-WALKING. It’s not a perfect film, but James Woods, Kay Lenz, and Tim McIntire all make it worth watching. 

The National Board of Review Gets Wicked

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

 

The National Board of Review has announced its pick for the best of 2024!  The National Board of Review is considered to be one of the big precursors as far as the Oscars are concerned, though perhaps not as much as they once were.

That said, Wicked is definitely contender so get ready for the most annoying people you know to suddenly get very emotionally invested in the Oscars.

Best Film:  Wicked

Best Director:  Jon M. Chu, Wicked

Best Actor: Daniel Craig, Queer

Best Actress: Nicole Kidman, Babygirl

Best Supporting Actor: Kieran Culkin, A Real Pain

Best Supporting Actress: Elle Fanning, A Complete Unknown

Best Ensemble: Conclave

Breakthrough Performance: Mikey Madison, Anora

Best Directorial Debut: India Donaldson, Good One

Best Original Screenplay: Mike Leigh, Hard Truths

Best Adapted Screenplay: Clint Bentley & Greg Kwedar, Sing Sing

NBR Spotlight Award: Creative Collaboration of Cynthia Erivo & Ariana Grande

NBR Freedom of Expression Award: No Other Land

Best Animated Feature: Flow

Best International Film: The Seed of the Sacred Fig

Best Documentary: Sugarcane

Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography: Jarin Blaschke, Nosferatu

Outstanding Achievement in Stunt Artistry: Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga

Top Films (in alphabetical order):

Anora
Babygirl
A Complete Unknown
Conclave
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Gladiator II
Juror #2
Queer
A Real Pain
Sing Sing

Top 5 International Films (in alphabetical order):

All We Imagine as Light
The Girl with the Needle
I’m Still Here
Santosh
Universal Language

Top 5 Documentaries (in alphabetical order):

Black Box Diaries
Dahomey
Look Into My Eyes
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story
Will & Harper

Top 10 Independent Films (in alphabetical order):

Bird
A Different Man
Dìdi
Ghostlight
Good One
Hard Truths
His Three Daughters
Love Lies Bleeding
My Old Ass
Thelma

Here Are The Independent Spirit Nominations!

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

Today, most awards watchers will be devoting most of their attention to the National Board of Review and the American Film Institute.  That said, the Independent Spirit nominations were still announced earlier today and Anora had a strong showing.  Meanwhile, The Brutalist, which did so well with the New York Film Critics Circle, picked up a nomination for Best Director but not Best Picture.

Here are the Spirit Nominations.  While looking at the nominations, keep in mind that a lot of potential Oscar nominees were not eligible for a nomination.  As a result, the Spirit nominations aren’t exactly the strongest predictive tool when it comes to guessing what will eventually be nominated by the Academy.

Still, it never hurts to be mentioned!

Best Feature

Anora
Producers: Sean Baker, Alex Coco, Samantha Quan

I Saw the TV Glow
Producers: Ali Herting, Sam Intili, Dave McCary, Emma Stone, Sarah Winshall

Nickel Boys
Producers: Joslyn Barnes, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, David Levine

Sing Sing
Producers: Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar, Monique Walton

The Substance
Producers: Tim Bevan, Coralie Fargeat, Eric Fellner

Best First Feature

Dìdi
Director/Producer: Sean Wang
Producers: Valerie Bush, Carlos López Estrada, Josh Peters

In the Summers

Director: Alessandra Lacorazza Samudio
Producers: Janek Ambros, Lynette Coll, Alexander Dinelaris, Cynthia Fernandez De La Cruz, Cristóbal Güell, Sergio Alberto Lira, Rob Quadrino, Jan Suter, Daniel Tantalean, Nando Vila, Slava Vladimirov, Stephanie Yankwitt

Janet Planet
Director/Producer: Annie Baker
Producers: Andrew Goldman, Dan Janvey, Derrick Tseng

The Piano Lesson
Director: Malcolm Washington
Producers: Todd Black, Denzel Washington

Problemista
Director/Producer: Julio Torres
Producers: Ali Herting, Dave McCary, Emma Stone

John Cassavetes Award

Given to the best feature made for under $1,000,000

Big Boys
Writer/Director/Producer: Corey Sherman
Producer: Allison Tate

Ghostlight
Writer/Director: Kelly O’Sullivan
Director/Producer: Alex Thompson
Producers: Pierce Cravens, Ian Keiser, Chelsea Krant, Eddie Linker, Alex Wilson

Girls Will Be Girls
Writer/Director/Producer: Shuchi Talati
Producers: Richa Chadha, Claire Chassagne

Jazzy
Writer/Director/Producer: Morrisa Maltz
Writer/Producer: Lainey Shangreaux
Writers: Andrew Hajek, Vanara Taing
Producers: Miranda Bailey, Tommy Heitkamp, John Way, Natalie Whalen, Elliott Whitton

The People’s Joker
Writer/Director: Vera Drew
Writer: Bri LeRose
Producer: Joey Lyons

BEST DIRECTOR

Ali Abbasi
The Apprentice

Sean Baker
Anora

Brady Corbet
The Brutalist

Alonso Ruizpalacios
La Cocina

Jane Schoenbrun
I Saw the TV Glow

BEST SCREENPLAY

Scott Beck, Bryan Woods
Heretic

Jesse Eisenberg
A Real Pain

Megan Park
My Old Ass

Aaron Schimberg
A Different Man

Jane Schoenbrun
I Saw the TV Glow

BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY

Joanna Arnow
The Feeling That the Time for Doing Something Has Passed

Annie Baker
Janet Planet

India Donaldson
Good One

Julio Torres
Problemista

Sean Wang
Dìdi

BEST LEAD PERFORMANCE

Amy Adams
Nightbitch

Ryan Destiny
The Fire Inside

Colman Domingo
Sing Sing

Keith Kupferer
Ghostlight

Mikey Madison
Anora

Demi Moore
The Substance

Hunter Schafer
Cuckoo

Justice Smith
I Saw the TV Glow

June Squibb
Thelma

Sebastian Stan
The Apprentice

BEST SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE

Yura Borisov
Anora

Joan Chen
Dìdi

Kieran Culkin
A Real Pain

Danielle Deadwyler
The Piano Lesson

Carol Kane
Between the Temples

Karren Karagulian
Anora

Kani Kusruti
Girls Will Be Girls

Brigette Lundy-Paine
I Saw the TV Glow

Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin
Sing Sing

Adam Pearson
A Different Man

BEST BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE

Isaac Krasner
Big Boys

Katy O’Brian
Love Lies Bleeding

Mason Alexander Park
National Anthem

René Pérez Joglar
In the Summers

Maisy Stella
My Old Ass

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Dinh Duy Hung
Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell

Jomo Fray
Nickel Boys

Maria von Hausswolff
Janet Planet

Juan Pablo Ramírez
La Cocina

Rina Yang
The Fire Inside

 BEST EDITING

Laura Colwell, Vanara Taing
Jazzy

Olivier Bugge Coutté, Olivia Neergaard-Holm
The Apprentice

Anne McCabe
Nightbitch

Hansjörg Weissbrich
September 5

Arielle Zakowski
Dìdi

ROBERT ALTMAN AWARD – Given to one film’s director, casting director, and ensemble cast

His Three Daughters
Director: Azazel Jacobs
Casting Director: Nicole Arbusto
Ensemble Cast: Jovan Adepo, Jasmine Bracey, Carrie Coon, Jose Febus, Rudy Galvan, Natasha Lyonne, Elizabeth Olsen, Randy Ramos Jr., Jay O. Sanders

BEST DOCUMENTARY (Award given to the director and producer)

Gaucho Gaucho
Directors/Producers: Michael Dweck, Gregory Kershaw
Producers: Christos Konstantakopoulos, Cameron O’Reilly, Matthew Perniciaro

Hummingbirds
Directors: Silvia Del Carmen Castaños, Estefanía “Beba” Contreras
Co-Directors/Producers: Miguel Drake-McLaughlin, Diane Ng, Ana Rodriguez-Falco, Jillian Schlesinger
Producers: Leslie Benavides, Rivkah Beth Medow

No Other Land
Directors/Producers: Yuval Abraham, Basel Adra, Hamdan Ballal, Rachel Szor
Producers: Fabien Greenberg, Bård Kjøge Rønning

Patrice: The Movie
Director: Ted Passon
Producers: Kyla Harris, Innbo Shim, Emily Spivack

Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat
Director: Johan Grimonprez
Producers: Rémi Grellety, Daan Milius

 BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM (Award given to the director)

All We Imagine as Light
France, India, Netherlands, Luxembourg
Director: Payal Kapadia

Black Dog
China
Director: Guan Hu

Flow
Latvia, France, Belgium
Director: Gints Zilbalodis

Green Border
Poland, France, Czech Republic, Belgium
Director: Agnieszka Holland

Hard Truths
United Kingdom
Director: Mike Leigh

PRODUCERS AWARD  presented by Bulleit Frontier Whiskey – The Producers Award, now in its 28th year, honors emerging producers who, despite highly limited resources, demonstrate the creativity, tenacity, and vision required to produce quality independent films.

Alex Coco

Sarah Winshall

Zoë Worth

 SOMEONE TO WATCH AWARD  – The Someone to Watch Award, now in its 31st year, recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not yet received appropriate recognition.

Nicholas Colia
Director of Griffin in Summer

Sarah Friedland
Director of Familiar Touch

Pham Thien An
Director of Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell

TRUER THAN FICTION AWARD – The Truer Than Fiction Award, now in its 30th year, is presented to an emerging director of non-fiction features who has not yet received significant recognition.

Julian Brave NoiseCat, Emily Kassie
Directors of Sugarcane

Carla Gutiérrez
Director of Frida

Rachel Elizabeth Seed
Director of A Photographic Memory

SILENT RAGE – Revisiting the Chuck Norris film from my youth.

Posted on by Bradley Crain

SILENT RAGE is one of those movies that I watched quite a bit as a kid, and I thought it was pretty scary. Fox-16 out of Little Rock played it quite often. We didn’t have cable in Toad Suck so I’d watch whatever movies that were playing, especially if they had action. I’d say my initial interest and appreciation for Chuck Norris began with this film, and I still watch Chuck quite a bit to this day. With that said, I’m not sure I’ve watched SILENT RAGE again since I was a teenager. If I’m going to watch Chuck, I’ll generally watch CODE OF SILENCE, LONE WOLF MCQUADE, MISSING IN ACTION, INVASION USA, THE DELTA FORCE, or even FIREWALKER or HERO AND THE TERROR. But this week, I was browsing through Tubi and saw my childhood friend SILENT RAGE and decided to give it another spin.

SILENT RAGE opens in a wild household. John Kirby (Brian Libby) is awakened from his sleep by a kid wearing a Stormtrooper mask and shooting him with a laser gun. The kid tells Kirby he’s got a phone call. Kirby is clearly not doing well. He’s making strange sounds and his body movements are as funky as hell. Add to this situation, wild kids running around the house and a woman, who I’m guessing is their mom, screaming at them. To say this woman’s voice is annoying as she screams at the kids would possibly be my understatement of 2024. When Kirby answers the phone he tells the unseen doctor on the other end of the line, “I’m losin’ it, Doc! I’m not gonna make it” and he hangs up. I have to admit I’m understanding of Kirby at this point. I’ve only witnessed the activities of that house for a couple of minutes and I’m losin’ it! So in what seems like a reasonable move at the time, Kirby goes outside to the woodpile, grabs an axe, and then walks back into the house and confronts the loud lady. She immediately begins screaming in fear and runs upstairs and locks herself into the bedroom. Her fear scream is probably twice as annoying as her “screaming at kids” voice. Prior to Kirby chopping down the door with his axe, she’s able to scream out the window to a passing mailman for help. Soon after this message to the mailman, Kirby puts the lady, and the audience, out of our collective misery. 

In what is possibly the fastest response time in law enforcement history, a blazer immediately pulls up front and sheriff Dan Stevens (Chuck Norris) emerges from the passenger side. From this point forward, I will disregard his character name and refer to him as Chuck Norris. Every other person will be referred to as their characters’ names. I thought Norris was cool in SILENT RAGE when I was a kid, and I must admit I still think he’s pretty awesome as he calmly walks into the house where John Kirby has just committed multiple murders. After a few minutes, Kirby attacks Norris. The two men scuffle, but Kirby is able to break free and jump out the upstairs window onto the ground and run into the woods. Norris follows and is immediately almost shot by his deputy, Charlie (Stephen Furst). Quick tangent – it may seem strange at first to think of Stephen Furst (Kent Dorfman from ANIMAL HOUSE) as Norris’ deputy, and after watching the film again, I’ll go ahead and agree that it is a strange choice. He basically plays a goofy guy who has no business in law enforcement and that is made abundantly clear throughout the film. Back to the woods we go where Norris, after barely escaping being shot in the head by Charlie, engages in an additional fight with Kirby. He’s able to subdue the murderer and handcuff him. Now in the back of the cop car, Kirby breaks out of his handcuffs, kicks open the door and begins attacking various men with guns. It’s at this point that he’s shot about 14 times. He should be dead at this point, but I do understand for the sake of running time, that there will be additional plot developments. 

These additional plot developments arrive in the form of doctors operating on John Kirby to try to save his life. Fortunately, nature takes its course and Kirby dies, or so we think. It seems that Dr. Phillip Spires (Steven Keats) has a god complex and administers an experimental serum that brings Kirby back to life. Not only that, at the dosage he’s being given, it turns him into an indestructible killing machine. Dr. Tom Halman (Ron Silver) is the voice of reason who tries to convince Dr. Spires to let him die, but to no avail. Dr. Spires is doing this for science and mankind and secretly keeps Kirby alive with Doctor Paul Vaughn (William Finley). The two men think they can control him, but of course they’re wrong. Alive, and now superhuman, Kirby escapes to wreak havoc. And only one man can stop the indestructible, superhuman killing machine, and that man’s name is Chuck Norris.

Just a few additional thoughts before I close. First, Toni Kalem plays Chuck’s love interest, Alison, in the film. His relationship with her does slightly take away from his cool factor as they make love at one point to the cheesiest, corniest 80’s song called “A Time for Love.” She also has an extremely annoying scream voice herself when Kirby comes after her at the end. Second, the cool factor is almost completely restored when Chuck takes on a bar full of drunken, violent bikers and single-handedly destroys them. I think it’s nice of the 22 bikers to come at Chuck one at a time. It would have been a lot harder for him to take on 22 people diving on him at the same time. Third, I stated earlier that the power-crazed Dr. Phillip Spires was played by actor Steven Keats. For those who follow the film career of Charles Bronson like I do, you will immediately recognize Keats as the same actor who played Paul Kersey’s son-in-law in DEATH WISH. In SILENT RAGE he’s a narcissistic jerk, in DEATH WISH he’s a whiny wuss. That’s a solid 1-2 fist-punch of un-likability, Steven!!

I did enjoy the nostalgia factor of re-watching SILENT RAGE after many years. And Chuck Norris getting out of that blazer to go after John Kirby at the beginning of the film was still cool. There were a few things already mentioned above that bothered me more now than they did when I was a kid, but at the end of the day, Chuck Norris is still Chuck Norris. And I will always enjoy Chuck Norris! 

The New York Film Critics Circle Honors The Brutalist

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

The New York Film Critics Circle has announced their picks for the best of 2024 and it was a good day for The Brutalist, RaMell Ross, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Kieran Culkin, and — in probably the biggest surprise of the voting — Carol Kane!  As for the social media reaction, there are a lot of happy Brutalist fans but there’s also currently a lot of very angry Wicked stans.

Here are the winners:

Best Picture: The Brutalist

Best Director: RaMell Ross, Nickel Boys

Best Actor: Adrien Brody, The Brutalist

Best Screenplay: Sean Baker, Anora

Best International Feature: All We Imagine As Light

Best Actress: Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Hard Truths

Best Supporting Actress: Carol Kane, Between the Temples

Best Non-Fiction Film: No Other Land

Best Cinematography: Jomo Fray, Nickel Boys

Best First Film: Janet Planet

Best Supporting Actor: Kieran Culkin, A Real Pain

Best Animated Film: Flow

HONDO – John Wayne takes on Apaches!

Posted on by Bradley Crain

John Wayne is just one of those actors I love. He’s made so many great movies. My personal favorites are RIO BRAVO, TRUE GRIT, BIG JAKE, THE SONS OF KATIE ELDER, THE MAN WHO SHOT LIBERTY VALANCE, THE SEARCHERS, THE QUIET MAN, RED RIVER, THE SHEPHERD OF THE HILLS and STAGECOACH. But hell, there are so many great ones not listed above. He just knew how to play tough, honorable, flawed men in his uniquely John Wayne way. When I hit play on a John Wayne film, I know I’m in for a good time. 

The 1953 John Wayne movie HONDO starts with a man and his dog walking through a dusty, rocky landscape on their way towards a pond and a rough looking farmhouse. He’s greeted by a woman and her young son. The man, Hondo Lane (Oscar winner John Wayne), is a scout for the U.S. Cavalry who’s just escaped from Apaches but lost his horse in the process. The woman, Angie Lowe (Oscar winner Geraldine Page), allows Hondo to stay at her ranch to rest and get something to eat. She tells him that her husband is away in the hills chasing wildcats for the day, and he asks her if he can buy a horse to get back to his cavalry post. Hondo ends up having to stay a few days at the ranch in order to break a wild, rambunctious horse before it can be ridden. While there, Hondo learns that Angie doesn’t really know where her husband is, as he left months ago and has never returned. Hondo and Angie share some nice conversation and even a kiss. Before he leaves, he tells her that she’s not safe at her remote ranch. It seems that the U.S. government has broken their treaty with the Apaches and no one is safe in the area. Angie refuses to leave her farm as the Apaches have always treated her well, using her spring for water. Hondo heads back to his post and is barely out of sight when the Apaches show up. Will they scalp Angie and her son, Johnny? Will Angie’s husband ever show back up? Will Hondo come back to the ranch and kiss her again in the moonlight? Will Hondo teach Johnny how to swim by throwing him into the pond? Will Hondo have to save a regiment of pony soldiers and settlers from marauding Apaches? It’s my guess that you probably know the answers to these questions, and that’s part of the fun of watching John Wayne movies. 

It should come as no surprise that I enjoyed HONDO. John Wayne plays a variation of his normal tough, honorable, honest character, and I like that character. Geraldine Page was nominated for her first Oscar for her performance as Angie Lowe. It was the first of eight nominations she would receive in her career. She’s an interesting actress. She’s not conventional at all in this role yet she absolutely nails it. I haven’t watched much of her work so I need to check some more of her stuff out. Ward Bond shows up as fellow cavalry scout Buffalo Baker. It’s always fun to see Wayne and Bond work together. They go together like peas and carrots. Leo Gordon is effectively slimy as the deserter Ed Lowe, and James Arness shows up as cocky young man who’s humbled and then redeems himself through battle. It’s a fine cast that helps in the fun factor. 

It’s not a perfect film, especially by the social standards of 2024, but it’s a fun and entertaining western. I liked it. 

Here Are The Winners Of The 2024 Gotham Awards

Posted on by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Gotham Awards were presented last night.  Here are the winners!

Best Feature Winner: A Different Man
Outstanding Lead Performance Winner: Colman Domingo in Sing Sing 
Outstanding Supporting Performance Winner: Clarence Maclin in SING SING
International Feature: All We Imagine as Light
Best Director: RaMell Ross, Nickel Boys
Breakthrough Director Winner: Vera Drew for The People’s Joker
Best Documentary Feature Winner: No Other Land
Best Screenplay Winner: Azazel Jacobs for His Three Daughters
Breakthrough Performer Winner: Brandon Wilson in Nickel Boys  

The Gothams are not exactly the most dependable of Oscar precursors but still, the people behind Sing Sing and Nickel Boys have to be happy with their awards.  Sing Sing, in particular, is a film that was getting a lot of buzz but seems to have lately been overshadowed by more recent releases.

Awards season is here!  I’ll do my best to keep up.

#MondayMuggers – Why DEATH RACE 2000?

Posted on by Bradley Crain

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. Tonight, Monday December 2nd, we’re watching DEATH RACE 2000 starring David Carradine, Sylvester Stallone, Simone Griffith, Mary Woronov, Roberta Collins, and Martin Kove.

So why did I pick DEATH RACE 2000, you might ask? It’s pretty simple. I think it will be a fun movie to watch with a group. Unlike most of my choices, which are movies I’ve seen many times, I’ve only seen DEATH RACE 2000 one time before and it’s been awhile. I’m looking forward to seeing it again myself. I like that it’s a B-movie from legendary producer Roger Corman. That’s usually a good thing. I like that it’s directed by Paul Bartel. Bartel’s EATING RAOUL was one of those movies that helped me appreciate black comedy when I was growing up. I really like the cast, especially David Carradine and Sylvester Stallone. And finally, I like that it’s 80 minutes long. In today’s world where every film feels the need to be between 2 and 3 hours, I’ve grown to really appreciate movies clocking in at 90 minutes or less! 

It’s on Amazon Prime and Tubi. Join us if you’d like!

TELEFON – Charles Bronson plays a KGB agent in a movie that inspired The Naked Gun and Tarantino’s Death Proof!

Posted on by Bradley Crain

When I was a kid, FOX-16 out of Little Rock, Arkansas would have “Charles Bronson weeks” where every night they’d show a different Bronson film.  I saw several of his films for the first time during those weeks and TELEFON was one of those movies.  I remember really enjoying it that first time I saw it, and I’ve always carried that positive feeling with me.  

The plot of TELEFON is pretty interesting.  In a nutshell, Charles Bronson is Russian KGB agent, Grigori Borsov, who’s been sent to the United States to stop radical Russian Nicolai Dalchimsky (Donald Pleasance), before he can set off more hypnotized human time bombs.  Lee Remick is a beautiful Russian agent (double agent?) who helps him with his mission.  

I personally think TELEFON is an underrated Charles Bronson film, and it seems like a movie that has almost been forgotten.  This is strange to me because it had quite the pedigree at the time of production.  Bronson was a huge star at the time, and the director was Don Siegel, the man behind such classics as DIRTY HARRY, ESCAPE FROM ALCATRAZ, and THE SHOOTIST.  The cast is exceptional as well, with Bronson being joined by the likes of Donald Pleasance, Lee Remick, Tyne Daly, Sheree North and Patrick Magee. The screenplay was co-written by Peter Hyams, who would go on to direct such excellent films as OUTLAND, THE STAR CHAMBER, and RUNNING SCARED.  My point of sharing all of this is that true professionals were at work in front of, and behind the camera, and they created a damn fine Cold War thriller.  I was glad that Shout Factory put out a nice blu ray of the film in January of 2024.  Hopefully film enthusiasts will begin discovering the film again.  

With that said, TELEFON isn’t a perfect film and I do have a few small complaints.  First, Charles Bronson doesn’t appear in the film until we’re already 21 minutes deep.  That’s a long time for me to have to wait for the man!  Second, Bronson and Remick don’t have a lot of sexual chemistry.  She’s beautiful and he oozes masculinity, but somehow it doesn’t really extend to a real connection between their characters.  That’s one of the reasons I like it when Bronson works with his wife Jill Ireland.  That chemistry is usually there between them.  Third, Donald Pleasance wears several wigs and looks kind of dorky at times.  Fourth, Sheree North wears a housecoat during her section of the film.  If you’ve seen her in BREAKOUT with Bronson from a couple of years earlier, you understand just what a missed opportunity that was.  Finally, Tyne Daly is so good in her small role, but she ultimately just kind of exits the film.  I’d have liked even more of her.  These are small complaints, with the exception of Bronson’s entrance & North’s wardrobe choice, that I don’t really hold against the movie.  

The last thing that I want to mention is that there are a couple interesting pop culture references to TELEFON in movies that came out later.  First, the writers of THE NAKED GUN borrowed the plot about hypnotized human time bombs in their own plot to assassinate the visiting Queen of England.  Certain scenes are taken directly from TELEFON.  I remember watching THE NAKED GUN in theaters in the late 80’s and wondering if I was the only person who realized this fact.  Second, in DEATH PROOF, Quentin Tarantino used the major plot device of quoting the Robert Frost poem “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” in order to trigger something. In TELEFON, it was human time bombs.  In DEATH PROOF, it was human lap dances.  God bless Quentin Tarantino!

#SundayShorts with NIGHTHAWKS!

Posted on by Bradley Crain

Since Sunday is a day of rest for a lot of people, I present #SundayShorts, a weekly mini review of a movie I’ve recently watched.

Deke DaSilva (Sylvester Stallone) and Matthew Fox (Billy Dee Williams) are two badass New York City Cops. Wulfgar (Rutger Hauer) is one of the most dangerous terrorists in the world. When it’s suspected that Wulfgar is in New York City, DaSilva and Fox are transferred to an elite anti-terrorist squad, led by the British expert Peter Hartman (Nigel Davenport). Will they be able to find Wulfgar and stop him before it’s too late?

I’m a big fan of NIGHTHAWKS. The performances from Stallone, Williams, and Hauer are all excellent. Hauer is especially good as the terrorist, Wulfgar. He knocks it out of the park. The action is hard hitting at times, and the tension builds nicely throughout the film, leading to its audience pleasing conclusion. Definitely recommended for fans of action movies and the stars!

Five Fast Facts:

  1. Dutch actor Rutger Hauer was a huge star in the Netherlands when NIGHTHAWKS was made. This is his American film debut.
  2. Sylvester Stallone and Rutger Hauer clashed early and often while making NIGHTHAWKS. The first day on the set, Rutger Hauer had to film a violent action scene. While filming the sequence, Hauer was injured when a cable that would yank him to simulate the force of being shot was pulled too hard, straining his back. Afterward, Hauer discovered that the cable was pulled with such force on Sylvester Stallone’s orders. Hauer threatened Stallone that he would “break his balls” if he ever did something like that again. Reportedly, they clashed often on the film from this point forward.
  3. The director of NIGHTHAWKS, Bruce Malmuth, played the ring announcer of the All-Valley karate tournament at the end of THE KARATE KID. I was 12 years old when I saw THE KARATE KID, and I wanted to be the karate kid. It’s one of my favorite movies, leading to a lifetime crush on Elizabeth Shue.
  4. Reportedly, during the exciting subway chase sequence, Rutger Hauer continually outran Stallone, who is known for his competitive streak. This is one of my favorite sequences in the film, and Hauer does look extremely fast.
  5. If you’re looking for a reason to upgrade to the Shout! Factory blu ray…the Universal Pictures widescreen DVD omits the use of “Brown Sugar” by The Rolling Stones and “I’m a Man” by Keith Emerson. The 2016 Blu-ray release from Shout! Factory adds them back.