:: Saturday, October 25, 2003 ::

The DVD versions of all three Indiana Jones movies are out, in a box set, and I have no money. But.... a friend purchased the set, and I was able to catch both "Raiders of the Lost Ark" and "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" on my HDTV. I'll have to wait a while for "Last Crusade" and the extras disc. I haven't seen "Raiders" in years, and haven't seen the film in it's full widescreen glory since 1981 in the theater. I had a CED videodisc, which was non-box, and the letterboxed versions of the first two films never came out on laserdisc, so these DVD's are something special, and films I certainly will want to own. Because my friend wanted to see "Temple of Doom" on my HDTV, and had already watched "Raiders", I saw this first, before seeing "Raiders". It might seem that this is out of sequence, but "Temple of Doom" is set a couple of years before the first film, so it makes perfect sense from a timeline perspective.
I still don't like the shrill performance of Kate Capshaw, but this time around I noticed (especially with "Kill Bill" still in recent memory) that the "gruesome" stuff in "Doom" which garnered it the first PG-13 rating in filmdom now seems tame. Somehow in memory, I got the "monkey brains" scene mixed up with real footage featured on the "Faces of Death" series on video, and the footage in "Doom" is fairly tame. I still think "Raiders" is the quintessential entry in the series, and it is still, after all these years, a grand hoot to watch. Karen Allen is delightful as a Hawksian babe with as much moxie as Jones, and I couldn't get over how young Harrison Ford is in the film, which to me, seems like it just came out yesterday.
I'm looking forward to "Crusade", with an excellent turn by Sean Connery as Indy's dad, and to the extras disc.
I understand a box set of Looney Tunes is scheduled for next week, and I missed the original boxed laserdisc set of the classic Tunes so can hardly wait for this release as well.
:: Michael Nyiri 6:00 PM Leave a Comment on this Post ::
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There is no justice. "Mystic River" nationwide at 5th place. The remake of Tobe's "Chainsaw Massacre", which was lambasted by critics, and which I just do not even care to mention is No. 1? "Kill Bill" should have at least spent a second week in the top spot. I can't fathom why movies like "Dreamcatcher" disappear, and remakes of classic films can get a number one spot. Shows that, besides being no justice, people have no sense when it comes to picking product upon which to waste $7.50 (I go to matinees, I know it's closer to ten bucks at night, even worse logic.)
I will cry tonight for the moviegoing public. At least Jack Black's starrer (and the Richard Linklater directed) "School of Rock" is holding in there. I've got this one on my list of want to sees but probably won't get to see it in a theater.
Speaking of the senseless moviegoing public, I rented one of my favorite romantic comedies of the past few months, Peyton Reed's "Down With Love" and watched it the all important second time last night. This was snubbed at the B.O. and is one of the most deservedly comical and interesting pieces of filmed product offered in 2003. The DVD is a must have, lots of neat extras, and the full screen "video" version of the "Up with Love" musical number from the end credits. Renee seemed anorexic to me in "Chicago" but I fell in love with her all over again in her homage to Doris Day. Ewan McGregor proves he's a leading man for the ages, and the direction, production design, costumes, pacing, is all a wonder to behold. Why didn't "Down With Love" prove a hit, at least in it's first weekend, like "Chainsaw" remake did this week?. Well, for one, it came out during the summer of sequels and had the misfortune of being original. Two, Hallowe'en is coming up, and the "kids" like the horror movies. I don't know of course, not having seen (or having cared to see) the remake of "Chainsaw." I just rented the remake of "Willard" with Crispin Glover, and when I saw the picture of his character's "father", Bruce Davison, whom of course was in the original "Willard" , plus the set design and atmosphere, I know it will be fun to watch. But no one saw it, as I remember.
"Chainsaw" got 29mil. I'm upset. "Mystic River" is art. "Chainsaw" is probably wallpaper.
Oh Well.
I added a link to the left under the links for my other sites. The webmaster of a discussion group for movies called "MilkPlus" (after a drink in Stanley Kubrick's "A Clockwork Orange" which I remember seeing in Hollywood a long time ago, and which remains one of Kubrick's masterpieces and a damn fine rollercoaster of a film.) asked to exchange links. I haven't done that with the Electric Movies site, so thought I'd give it a try. I'll see if my link is added to that site, probably along with a million other movie blogs. But it's a start. I won't get readers if I don't actively begin promoting and link exchanges did work in the past, so I'll try to get past my skepticism and look at this as a positive step toward said readership.
Also I fully intend on keeping up the posts now. I've got the HDTV, computer, record player, receiver, and digital camera all hooked up. Soon, the capability I've always dreamed about concerning instantly adding images from my collection of movies to the computer will be complete. The scanner went on the blink, but I rarely use it.
Let me hope, dear Electric Movies Diary, that I will begin to post more incisive insights as to why I watch so many movies, again and again, and try to remember to post on this blog the reasons as they hit me.
Ciao. For Now.

:: Michael Nyiri 1:42 PM Leave a Comment on this Post ::
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I saw "Mystic River" last night.
This is the Best Picture so far this year.
Clint Eastwood has directed, in the later part of his life, a masterpiece of unparalleled quality and unflinching emotion. The story of three friends who suffer an emotional and indelible separation early in their lives when one of them, Dave, played in "later life" by Tim Robbins, is molested, the movie is a straightforward and unblinking look at a lot of Eastwood's motifs from earlier films, yet culminates in a career milestone, even for a director who has already won an Oscar for the gut wrenching "Unforgiven" in 1993.
While last weeks "movie of the week" "Kill Bill" is relentless in it's bloody revenge engine driven plot, it is ultimately and admittedly cartoonish. Eastwood's "River" is heartrenderingly "real". The one murder which drives the plot started a flood of tears to well up and gush over me, causing me to wipe my glasses numerous times. The buzz on Robbins, who plays completely against the "type" to which he usually is cast, has overlooked the rare gem of a performance of this piece. And this is a film (sans the director, who does not have a role) with excellent performances all around. The Oscar should go to Sean Penn, whose performance gives chills as the "hardcase" of the group, Jimmy. I would say that his performance supersedes mere "acting". I felt each and every moment with him as if I were feeling his feelings myself.
Kevin Bacon, as Sean, the third of the friends, is a marvel as well, in a different way, with a mannered performance. Clint doesn't show up as another actor (a la Woody Allen in "Bullets Over Broadway" in John Cusak's performance.) Bacon is a cop, but he certainly isn't Dirty Harry. No squinting or histrionic outbursts here.
Credit should be given to Eastwood, who is a true "actor's director", to the complete cast including Morpheus (I mean Laurence Fishburne), Marcia Gay Harden, and Laura Linney, who all play characters they have not played before. And the city of Boston is a character as well. I'm so glad Clint insisted that the movie be shot on location. His earlier location work on the overlooked gem "Midnight In the Garden Of Good and Evil" (Savannah, Georgia) was equally impressive and wonderfully shot. Tom Stern shot "Mystic River", and is no stranger to Eastwood's ouvere, having photographed not only "Unforgiven", but "A Perfect World" and "Bird" among other works of art by the director.
The film is dark, both in tone, and in the way it is shot. The characters are "normal", but deeply flawed, as with a lot of Eastwood, specifically William Munny and John Wilson, the director (based on John Huston) in "White Hunter, Black Heart."
Best Picture. Best Actor for Sean Penn.
Best Supporting for either Laura or Marcia Gay. (Marcia's won, so let's give it to Laura.)
Lot's of interesting films coming up. I loved "Lost In Translation" Sofia Coppola's second film, although haven't written about it in the blog yet, I don't believe. I loved Bill Murray's performance, and it is very good, and deserving of a nomination. I have a suspicion I'll love Tom Cruise in "The Last Samaruai" too, but right now, Sean Penn's aching realism, and unflinching emotion has bowled me over.
I have to mention that the screenplay by Brian Hegeland is based on the novel by Dennis Lehane. I didn't read the book. I only saw the excellent preview for the movie a few months back, and marvelled at the acting.
Excellence.
On all counts.

I was thinking when Bob Hope died that the world lost an icon. Same with Gregory Peck. Same with Kate Hepburn. Then I thought of Clint. He's not ancient, like Hope. He's still working. Hell, "Blood Work" is vintage Clint. Even though nobody saw it! But someday hopefully not for a decade or so, when Clint Eastwood passes from us, I will feel as if a special friend has left. I implore anyone who wants to see a chronological view of the cultual and political history of America to buy and watch in order the Dirty Harry DVD collection.

Clint Eastwood, Rowdy Yates, The Man With No Name, Dirty Harry, Director.
A true movie God!!!!!!! And he saw to it that "Mystic River" was good.

:: Michael Nyiri 10:09 AM Leave a Comment on this Post ::
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This weeks movies:
"Kill Bill: Volume 1": 8 of 10 "In Theaters Now". Relentless entertainment without a pause. I wanted to see Clint Eastwood's "Mystic River" this weekend, because Eastwood is one of my favorite directors, the buzz is Oscar-worthy, and I'm just sure Clint might get to have another of those golden statuettes in his hand some time this coming April, but "River" is playing on only three screens in LA this week, and I missed it. By about 10 minutes, to tell the truth. Because I couldn't find a parking place in the garage by the AMC Century 14.
Instead, a choice at the local multiplex between the Coen's "Intolerable Cruelty" and the "4th Film by Quentin Tarantino", the relentless "Kill Bill".
The Coen film seemed to much, to me anyway, by viewing the previews, to be a standard romantic comedy, and I remember being excited to see, and then disappointed by after I saw their immensely popular "Oh Brother Where Art Thou", and didn't want to brave the same kind of disappointment.
Instead, I saw "Bill" (Only his hands in Vol. I) and spent the afternoon wandering the back aisles of Quentin Tarantino's Memory Video Store.
Relentless, as I just said. Unwavering entertainment consisting of enough severed limbs and movie references to making me long for the day when they sell the DVD in the lobby so I can "rewind" and "review". There are so many wonderful filmic tricks, sweeping camera moves, and frenetic editing, not to mention a brief but beautifully bloody anime section, that viewing this film once is, like De Palma's "Femme Fatale", is futile. This viewing is merely the preamble to the full experience. (Which continues in February with the release of the second part.
I only give "Kill Bill" an 8 because it's not done yet. I do gush (and that's an apt word) when thinking of Quentin's 4th film. The critics have all mentioned the lack of plot, or more specifically, the "simple revenge scenario." Well, as with all great opera, and operatic films, such as, say "Moulin Rouge", even though that's a musical and this is a drive-in exploitation spaghetti samauri bloodbath, the simple plot is merely the hook to hang the cloak of moviemaking wonder and multiple themes, and Quentin overdoes himself.
I got to thinking, perhaps this is not as grand as I had wished, coming off of (six years ago!) "Jackie Brown", but it's even grander in retrospect.
Don't go if you feint at the sight of blood. More blood is spilled and or/gushes/flows/spurts/pumps than in any movie of recent and perhaps past memory. The setpieces are a filmgoer's feast. The restaruant scene is to die for. There's allusions and references to every thing from Star Trek, de Palma, Ennio Morricone, Bruce Lee, and Run Run Shaw, to the old "Feature Presentation" reels and bad sound editing which show up on all the old drive in exploitation films Quentin loves and so reverentially pays homage to here.
I don't think "Bill" is for everybody. "A man's film" is what my friend said upon leaving the theater, and he looked at his watch quite a few times during the feature.
As I said, relentless entertainment.
Quentin can be proud.
I also saw "You've Got Mail" and "A Man for All Seasons" again on DVD. I love those old English play/movies like "A Man" where the setpieces are all filmed on old castles that look old, instead of new, as they were when the events took place. I thought it weird back then, and do now. But the acting is great.


:: Michael Nyiri 11:20 PM Leave a Comment on this Post ::
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Movies this week:
"Dreamcatcher" 10 of 10
I can't fathom why some of the worst dreck makes tons of money, but a truly great piece of work like Lawrence Kasdan's adaptation of Stephen King's book was overlooked from the beginning. This is a well crafted, excellently acted, and very scary film, and while some might not recommend it for it's similarities to King's "It" or "Stand by Me", I found the two hours a rollicking roller coaster ride into a hellish situation, resolved as some of King's aforementioned work (like "It") could not be, simply because of the advancements in computer generated special effects.
Thomas Jane, Jason Lee, Morgan Freeman, and especially Damien Lewis as Jonesy collectively and separately act up a storm, a cold one at that, in this excellent film adaptation, now out on DVD. I don't want to spoil this one, because I had the luxury of not having read the book, and thankfully, no one ruined the plot for me. I'll only say that besides the "Stand by Me" qualities of the plot and characterization, which is typical for a King work, the film does a terrific and scary turn, sort of like in Richard Rodriquez' "From Dusk till Dawn" although that's not really an apt comparison.
Good show from start till finish, and a recommendation not to watch alone in the dark, especially if you've had any disturbing medical news in the past few weeks before viewing.


:: Michael Nyiri 5:15 AM Leave a Comment on this Post ::
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Movies this week:
"A Mighty Wind" 9 of 10
"The Core" 7 of 10
A delightfully cheesy sci fi "throwback" with an excellent cast , thrilling effects, and a dose of much needed imagination. I truly enjoyed this film.
:: Michael Nyiri 5:08 AM Leave a Comment on this Post ::
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