October 2016 – Page 2 – FilmFanatic.org

Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, A (1966)

October 6, 2016 admin Comments 1 comment

“Poor little moth — she fluttered too near my flame.”

Synopsis:
In ancient Rome, a slave (Zero Mostel) desperate to escape from his brutish owners (Patricia Jessel and Michael Hordern) convinces his young master (Michael Crawford) to trade his freedom for a young virgin (Annette Andre) recently purchased by the owner of a courtesan-house — but matters become more complicated when he learns Andre has just been sold to a soldier (Leon Greene), and Hordern mistakenly believes he has been given “access” to Andre himself.

Ancient Greece and Rome
Buster Keaton Films
Comedy
Mistaken or Hidden Identities
Musicals
Richard Lester Films
Slavery

Response to Peary’s Review:
Peary refers to this screen adaptation of Larry Gelbart, Burt Shevelove, and Stephen Sondheim’s popular Broadway hit as a “spirited, tremendously underrated musical comedy”. He calls out director Richard Lester’s “wild cutting and frantic camera work (handled by Nicolas Roeg)” as setting “the anarchical tone for the slam-bang mix of slapstick, satire, burlesque-vaudeville, farce, and absurd humor”, and he notes that while “not all the gags work and the pacing falters on occasion”, there are “a surprising number of hilarious moments”. He writes that “Lester captures period flavor and finds Wizard of Id-like humor in the brutality the strong and powerful dish out and the weak and powerless endure”.

With all that said, I’ll admit to not being a fan of this beloved cult favorite — primarily due to my distaste over how objectified, sexualized, and/or demonized every single female character is. Could Jessel’s pasty make-up:

— or that of her mother (Beatrix Lehmann) — be any more garishly witch-like? Could beautiful women’s bodies be any more fondled, used as dining tables, or assumed to be merely objects for male pleasure (or reproduction)? However, things become more enjoyable (for me) once Greene (giving “a funny performance”) arrives on the scene; his narcissistic rhetoric is consistently laugh-out-loud humorous:

Miles Gloriosus: What is she like?
Pseudolus: A face so fair, a heart so pure – Sir, if you had been born a woman, you would have been she!
Miles Gloriosus: As magnificent as that?

Buster Keaton, in his final role before dying of cancer, seems literally lost during most of the film (for good reason), but has a nice moment at the end when his character suddenly becomes a pivotal part of the storyline. All film fanatics should check this film out at least once, and more often if it tickles your particular fancy.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

Zero Mostel as Pseudolus
Leon Greene as Captain Miles Gloriosus
Nicolas Roeg’s cinematography
Richard Williams’ closing credits

Must See?
Yes, as a cult comedy favorite.

Categories

Cult Movie

Links:

Revenge of the Nerds (1984)

October 5, 2016 admin Comments 1 comment

“Those nerds are a threat to our way of life!”

Synopsis:
Two freshmen (Robert Carradine and Anthony Edwards) arrive at college ready to have fun and meet beautiful girls, but quickly find themselves homeless when a group of jocks take over their dorm. Banding together with other outcasts — including an underage genius (Andrew Cassese), a booger-eating misfit (Curtis Armstrong), a gay African-American (Larry B. Scott), an Asian exchange-student (Brian Tochi), and a bespectacled violin-player (Timothy Busfield) — they find a house and try to form a new fraternity.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

College
Comedy
Misfits
Revenge
Underdogs

Response to Peary’s Review:
Peary writes that this “surprise box-office hit” may be “just a silly teen comedy”, but is a “standout in [the] raunchy Porky’s genre because at least you don’t mind identifying with these characters.” He argues that while “there are some funny bits”, the “most enjoyment comes simply from hearing Carradine’s horsy laugh”:

and complains that “the bullying tactics of the football players are too cruel to be funny”. I disagree. Sure, the jocks are cruel and brutish (cartoonishly so):

but they get theirs BIG TIME, and the protagonists — a resilient, quirky bunch — eventually have the upper hand. What’s not to love about THAT? Edwards’ romance with a bespectacled female nerd (Michelle Meyrink) is an especially heartwarming subplot.

This may be the ultimate underdogs-get-their-day flick. Watch for a slimmish John Goodman as the jocks’ coach, and Bernie Casey as the head of Lambda Lambda Lambda, the historically black fraternity the nerds attempt to join.

Redeeming Qualities and Moments:

Many enjoyably humorous moments

Must See?
Yes, as a feel-good cult favorite.

Categories

Cult Movie

Links:

No Way Out (1950)

October 3, 2016 admin Comments 1 comment

“Ain’t that a lot to ask of us — being better than them when we get killed proving we’re just as good?”

Synopsis:
A viciously racist thug (Richard Widmark) is convinced a young black doctor (Sidney Poitier) has intentionally killed his brother (Harry Bellaver) during a spinal tap. Poitier wants an autopsy done to prove Bellaver was suffering from a brain tumor, but Widmark and his hearing-impaired brother (Dick Paxton) refuse — so, with the help of his white mentor (Stephen McNally), Poitier approaches Bellaver’s ex-wife (Linda Darnell) for help.

Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:

Doctors and Nurses
Joseph L. Mankiewicz Films
Linda Darnell
Revenge
Race Relations and Racism
Richard Widmark Films
Sidney Poitier Films

Review:
Sidney Poitier made an auspicious screen debut in this no-holds-barred look at racial tensions and violence in mid-century America. Written and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, the film plays out as a sort of noir in which an innocent protagonist (Poitier) becomes trapped in the snare of a sociopath who will stop at nothing to destroy him. Widmark is such a vile character that one could attempt to dismiss his rantings as those of a crazy “mad dog” — but Mankiewicz cleverly positions him within a wider community of individuals, so we see his actions and words are merely the extreme end of the racism spectrum. In a fine, nuanced performance (perhaps her best), Darnell plays a down-trodden woman from the wrong side of the tracks who slowly experiences a change of heart as she’s exposed to decent men and women, both black and white. Poitier is excellent, and Dick Paxton as Widmark’s deaf-and-mute brother is also highly effective without speaking a word. Widmark’s central performance would have been even more impactful if he’d dialed down his gleeful venom, though he’s to be commended for taking on this distasteful role at all, and his choices are understandable.

No Way Out remains an invaluable entry in cinematic history simply for showing middle-class African-Americans attempting to live “normal” lives in the midst of nearly constant bigotry, and for exposing the abhorrent underbelly of racism (notably, the camera focuses on a couple of white women during the “race riot” scene, indicating their complicity as well). No Way Out is tough but essential viewing, and deserves wider recognition, especially as its sordid truths continue to play out today. In his engaging DVD commentary for the movie, film historian Eddie Muller provides numerous insights into the making of the film, as well as its reception — which, not surprisingly, didn’t do well in small American towns (though it was apparently well-received by critics in big cities). Modern audiences should be forewarned that racist diatribes and slurs run throughout the screenplay — a fact which has made it difficult for this film to be shown on television, and it’s not available to rent through Netflix (I had to locate a copy through my local library).

Redeeming Qualities and Moments: