The Hoax, Rubicon and Some Movies from the 70's...
I'll start off with a fashion comment though-I am tired of seeing men with their pants too short. I don't care about Thom Browne and his short pants-it looks stupid, not stylish and everyone should just stop it.
I went to see The Hoax, with Richard Gere and Alfred Molina and it was very good. Gere did a great job in his portrayal of a man so caught up in his story that he can't tell the difference between fact and fiction-but Molina steals every scene he's in and is a great reason to see the movie. I also watched Four brothers, with Mark Wahlberg, Tyese, Andre Benjamin (who should be doing more movies) and Chweitel Ojiofor. It was good in some parts-the actors had a nice chemistry amongst them and they sold it that they were raised by the same woman but the plot was dumb-their Mother wasn't killed in a grocery store robbery-she was set up for a kill and they want revenge. There were parts I liked but I'd only recommend it to someone who liked action movies and didn't care if they were intelligent or not.
Speaking of intelligent-I finally finished Rubicon. This was a great history book and Holland tells a great story-full of sex, greed and violence. It's the story of the end of the Roman Republic and the beginning of the Roman Empire (thank you, Julius Caesar). It's told in a clear and smart way, with few judgements on people who behaved very badly at times-and their bad behavior had extreme consequences for a lot of people. Caesar changed the Roman Republic and his death lead to it downfall-it's a great story.
The 70's were a great time for movies. I remember as a child hating practically every movie that came out because they were all depressing-someone died (Dog Day Afternoon) or was corrupt (All The President's Men, which was depressing but in a good way), or was a criminal (the Godfather), or chased after the criminals, but was not a great guy himself (The French Connection). Now, I want a movie that, if it should have a depressing ending, it has a depressing ending. I don't want a tacked on happy ending just to make me feel better (The Natural, anyone?). My Dad assures me that this will change as I get older, but I'm not sure that it will-I just want an ending that's right for the movie. And movies in the 70's did not shy away from the unhappy ending, the confusing storyline or the difficult plot. It was even harder for me, because I was a child and my dad took me to see these movies...and then didn't explain them to me. I understand why-it would be difficult to explain Chinatown to a 10-year old today-so it was worse then. And I don't start with One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, which I loved-but didn't understand the end until my brother explained a lobotomy. I was horrified. Then there was my dislike of Annie Hall and its use of the imaginary (the crush on the evil stepmother from Snow White who actually shows up, the kids talking about what they're actually doing as adults, showing what the characters are really thinking by using subtitles) to make it more real-I hated that. Little I know that less than 10 years later, I would write paper for a film class about that very topic and enjoy it. 70's movies aren't for children, unless it's Star Wars, Rocky or Close Encounters (another movie I hated, but it's stayed that way) because almost all of them are depressing, paranoid or extremely violent. That said, I still think it was a great era for movies and here's a list...
The Godfather-yes, it's a great movie, go see it, but The Godfather Part II is better, although it's still depressing to see Marlon Brando looking like a wreck.
Apocalypse Now is a great movie-although you should really read heart of Darkness to go with it.
Star Wars is a great fun movie, one of the few of the 70's, which probably explains why it did so well. It has a lot to answer for though, as does Jaws. Both movies made a lot of money and lead to every director/studio wanting to make a huge blockbuster and make lots of money instead of making
Taxi Driver-which would probably not get made today-not by a major studio, anyway. I didn't see it in the 70's, it was one the few my Dad wouldn't take me to see.
Chinatown is often called one of the best movies ever made and it really is-cool and stylish with a cold, cold heart-it's great movie. It's another one that no one would explain to me after we saw it-I only figured it out a couple of years after seeing it. i was 12, so cut me some slack.
I'll group Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Life of Brian, MASH, Young Frankenstein and Blazing Saddles together. The 70's wasn't really known for comedies, but these are classics-and all of them make some sort of social commentary in some way, not unlike...
Harold and Maude and A Clockwork Orange, both of which turn convention upside down. Harold and Maude is about living life to it's fullest and enjoying the ride, and in it's own way, so is A Clockwork Orange. How can you not love a movie that has you rooting for the murdering, rapist hero because he is truly being himself and is not a brainwashed good guy. This movie is about being who you are, even if that person is a murdering thug. Harold and Maude is about that as well, but in it, the old grab life and enjoy it, while the young want to die. It may be upside down, but in a good way-and one of the few movies form this decade that isn't unrelentingly depressing...unlike.
The Deer Hunter, which is a great movie, but unremittingly dark. It's this sort of movie, along with Alien, that lead to the cheerfulness of the 80's.
And let's not forget the paranoid thriller, which was perfected in the 70's-there's..the political paranoid thriller:
All The Presidents Men (dark but exciting)
The Parallax View (paranoid but confusing)
Three Days of the Condor (dark but lightens up a bit at the end)
The Conversation (really dark but interesting
Day of the Jackal (tense and exciting).
Even THE feel good movie of the 70's (and I mean Rocky) did NOT have a happy ending-Rocky lost the fight even after giving it his best shot-and this was a happy ending. He got to show the everyone what he could do-he was a hero, even if he lost. It's just too bad that Stallone went on to make more Rocky movies, in which he
1) Won
2) Lost and then beat the Russian guy-which made for some very funny stories in the 80's
3) Lost to Mr T and then beat him
4) Is he dead yet? By this point, Stallone has made four too many Rocky movies and had way too much plastic surgery.
And now for the list of great but depressing movies from the 70's-all worth seeing, but don't do it all at once...
Deliverance (this is another movie dad wouldn't take me to see. I can't imagine why-was it the male-on-male rape scene? Yeah, that must have been it.
The French Connection (dirtyish cops take down even dirtier drug dealers)
Dog Day Afternoon-Pacino overacts, but it fits the movie, which is tense and stylish.
Badlands-this is a a beautiful movie to watch-you can't beat Malick for a well-made movie, but it's depressing-right up there with Days of Heaven.
Dirty Harry-I find this movie very depressing-I know it was loosely-based on the Zodiac murders and that people wanted some closure-but I find a vigilante cop very depressing.
Nashville is a great movie-but also depressing, but in a good way and worth it for the music. Ah, the 70's...you wouldn't find those kinds of movies being made today-and I haven't even mentioned The Wicker Man (also a movie I couldn't go see) or or Close Encounters (which I hated and is still the only movie I've fell asleep while watching) or Papillion, a really fun thriller/escape movie. However, I would like to give a shout out to The Sting, which is probably the only movie made in the 70's which had a happy ending-the bad guy was fooled, the good guys (who are con artists-this is the 70's after all, when we rooted for the poor, the underclass, thieves and grifters) got away with the big con...it was great.
I'd also like to quote from All The President's Men-a line which has helped me through many a thriller/suspense movie/con artist movie. And that is "follow the money". You can't wrong with this line-it has lead me through many a plot twist, although truth be told, some were not that hard to figure out.
Join me next time when hopefully I'll have some fashion commentary AND I discuss the 80's-those bright days when Americans kill all the bad guys, whether they be aliens (Aliens, none the less a great movie), Europeans (Die Hard) or Russians (always a popular choice in the 80's, whether they have a sub with nuclear weapons in The Hunt For Red October or are trying to take over the ski slopes of Colorado in Red Dawn). I'll also give a shout-out to V, just because I liked it.
I went to see The Hoax, with Richard Gere and Alfred Molina and it was very good. Gere did a great job in his portrayal of a man so caught up in his story that he can't tell the difference between fact and fiction-but Molina steals every scene he's in and is a great reason to see the movie. I also watched Four brothers, with Mark Wahlberg, Tyese, Andre Benjamin (who should be doing more movies) and Chweitel Ojiofor. It was good in some parts-the actors had a nice chemistry amongst them and they sold it that they were raised by the same woman but the plot was dumb-their Mother wasn't killed in a grocery store robbery-she was set up for a kill and they want revenge. There were parts I liked but I'd only recommend it to someone who liked action movies and didn't care if they were intelligent or not.
Speaking of intelligent-I finally finished Rubicon. This was a great history book and Holland tells a great story-full of sex, greed and violence. It's the story of the end of the Roman Republic and the beginning of the Roman Empire (thank you, Julius Caesar). It's told in a clear and smart way, with few judgements on people who behaved very badly at times-and their bad behavior had extreme consequences for a lot of people. Caesar changed the Roman Republic and his death lead to it downfall-it's a great story.
The 70's were a great time for movies. I remember as a child hating practically every movie that came out because they were all depressing-someone died (Dog Day Afternoon) or was corrupt (All The President's Men, which was depressing but in a good way), or was a criminal (the Godfather), or chased after the criminals, but was not a great guy himself (The French Connection). Now, I want a movie that, if it should have a depressing ending, it has a depressing ending. I don't want a tacked on happy ending just to make me feel better (The Natural, anyone?). My Dad assures me that this will change as I get older, but I'm not sure that it will-I just want an ending that's right for the movie. And movies in the 70's did not shy away from the unhappy ending, the confusing storyline or the difficult plot. It was even harder for me, because I was a child and my dad took me to see these movies...and then didn't explain them to me. I understand why-it would be difficult to explain Chinatown to a 10-year old today-so it was worse then. And I don't start with One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, which I loved-but didn't understand the end until my brother explained a lobotomy. I was horrified. Then there was my dislike of Annie Hall and its use of the imaginary (the crush on the evil stepmother from Snow White who actually shows up, the kids talking about what they're actually doing as adults, showing what the characters are really thinking by using subtitles) to make it more real-I hated that. Little I know that less than 10 years later, I would write paper for a film class about that very topic and enjoy it. 70's movies aren't for children, unless it's Star Wars, Rocky or Close Encounters (another movie I hated, but it's stayed that way) because almost all of them are depressing, paranoid or extremely violent. That said, I still think it was a great era for movies and here's a list...
The Godfather-yes, it's a great movie, go see it, but The Godfather Part II is better, although it's still depressing to see Marlon Brando looking like a wreck.
Apocalypse Now is a great movie-although you should really read heart of Darkness to go with it.
Star Wars is a great fun movie, one of the few of the 70's, which probably explains why it did so well. It has a lot to answer for though, as does Jaws. Both movies made a lot of money and lead to every director/studio wanting to make a huge blockbuster and make lots of money instead of making
Taxi Driver-which would probably not get made today-not by a major studio, anyway. I didn't see it in the 70's, it was one the few my Dad wouldn't take me to see.
Chinatown is often called one of the best movies ever made and it really is-cool and stylish with a cold, cold heart-it's great movie. It's another one that no one would explain to me after we saw it-I only figured it out a couple of years after seeing it. i was 12, so cut me some slack.
I'll group Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Life of Brian, MASH, Young Frankenstein and Blazing Saddles together. The 70's wasn't really known for comedies, but these are classics-and all of them make some sort of social commentary in some way, not unlike...
Harold and Maude and A Clockwork Orange, both of which turn convention upside down. Harold and Maude is about living life to it's fullest and enjoying the ride, and in it's own way, so is A Clockwork Orange. How can you not love a movie that has you rooting for the murdering, rapist hero because he is truly being himself and is not a brainwashed good guy. This movie is about being who you are, even if that person is a murdering thug. Harold and Maude is about that as well, but in it, the old grab life and enjoy it, while the young want to die. It may be upside down, but in a good way-and one of the few movies form this decade that isn't unrelentingly depressing...unlike.
The Deer Hunter, which is a great movie, but unremittingly dark. It's this sort of movie, along with Alien, that lead to the cheerfulness of the 80's.
And let's not forget the paranoid thriller, which was perfected in the 70's-there's..the political paranoid thriller:
All The Presidents Men (dark but exciting)
The Parallax View (paranoid but confusing)
Three Days of the Condor (dark but lightens up a bit at the end)
The Conversation (really dark but interesting
Day of the Jackal (tense and exciting).
Even THE feel good movie of the 70's (and I mean Rocky) did NOT have a happy ending-Rocky lost the fight even after giving it his best shot-and this was a happy ending. He got to show the everyone what he could do-he was a hero, even if he lost. It's just too bad that Stallone went on to make more Rocky movies, in which he
1) Won
2) Lost and then beat the Russian guy-which made for some very funny stories in the 80's
3) Lost to Mr T and then beat him
4) Is he dead yet? By this point, Stallone has made four too many Rocky movies and had way too much plastic surgery.
And now for the list of great but depressing movies from the 70's-all worth seeing, but don't do it all at once...
Deliverance (this is another movie dad wouldn't take me to see. I can't imagine why-was it the male-on-male rape scene? Yeah, that must have been it.
The French Connection (dirtyish cops take down even dirtier drug dealers)
Dog Day Afternoon-Pacino overacts, but it fits the movie, which is tense and stylish.
Badlands-this is a a beautiful movie to watch-you can't beat Malick for a well-made movie, but it's depressing-right up there with Days of Heaven.
Dirty Harry-I find this movie very depressing-I know it was loosely-based on the Zodiac murders and that people wanted some closure-but I find a vigilante cop very depressing.
Nashville is a great movie-but also depressing, but in a good way and worth it for the music. Ah, the 70's...you wouldn't find those kinds of movies being made today-and I haven't even mentioned The Wicker Man (also a movie I couldn't go see) or or Close Encounters (which I hated and is still the only movie I've fell asleep while watching) or Papillion, a really fun thriller/escape movie. However, I would like to give a shout out to The Sting, which is probably the only movie made in the 70's which had a happy ending-the bad guy was fooled, the good guys (who are con artists-this is the 70's after all, when we rooted for the poor, the underclass, thieves and grifters) got away with the big con...it was great.
I'd also like to quote from All The President's Men-a line which has helped me through many a thriller/suspense movie/con artist movie. And that is "follow the money". You can't wrong with this line-it has lead me through many a plot twist, although truth be told, some were not that hard to figure out.
Join me next time when hopefully I'll have some fashion commentary AND I discuss the 80's-those bright days when Americans kill all the bad guys, whether they be aliens (Aliens, none the less a great movie), Europeans (Die Hard) or Russians (always a popular choice in the 80's, whether they have a sub with nuclear weapons in The Hunt For Red October or are trying to take over the ski slopes of Colorado in Red Dawn). I'll also give a shout-out to V, just because I liked it.
posted by SHbookworm at 10:31 AM
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