"Of all the arts, movies are the most powerful aid to empathy, and good ones make us better people."
-- Roger Ebert, The Great Movies

Monday, December 17, 2012

Stripes


  • Title:  Stripes
  • Director:  Ivan Reitman
  • Date:  1981
  • Studio:  Columbia Pictures
  • Genre:  Comedy
  • Cast:  Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, Warren Oates, John Larroquette, Judge Reinhold, John Candy, Lance LeGault
  • Format:  Color, Widescreen
  • DVD Format:  R1, NTSC

"You don't say 'sir' to me, I'm a sergeant I work for a living."  -- Sgt. Hulka (Warren Oates)

"I'm talking about something important, like disclipline and duty and honor and courage.  And you ain't got none of it."  -- Sgt. Hulka

"We're Americans - with a capital 'A'.  Do you know what that means?  Do you?  It means our forefathers were kicked out of every decent country in the world.  We are the wretched refuse.  We're underdog.  We're mutts. ... But there's no animal that's more faithful, that's more loyal, more lovable that the mutt. [pause] Who saw Old Yeller?  Who cried when Old Yeller got shot at the end?  Nobody cried when Old Yeller got shot [raises his hand] I'm sure.  I cried my eyes out." -- John (Bill Murray)

"We're all very, very different, but there is one thing we all have in common.  We were all stupid enough to enlist in the army."  -- John 

In the 1970s, in a "bad economy" much like today, two guys who are down on their luck and out of options join the US Army.  John loses his job, car, girlfriend, and apartment all in the same day.  His friend, Russell (Ramis) has discovered his easy five-week job to teach English involves people who only know a few swear words and that's it.  They decide to join the Army.

At boot camp, John, Russell and the rest of the guys in their platoon have their hair buzzed (it's the 70s - most have long hair or even "afros") and receive basic green uniforms.  Sgt. Hulka introduces himself and has each of the men in his platoon introduce themselves and explain why they decided to join the army.  It becomes obvious that the entire platoon is, to be frank, a group of screw-ups with few other options.

There is a montage of training scenes, inter cut with scenes of John doing push-ups.  A perpetual clown and comedian, he gets on Sgt. Hulka's nerves immediately.  Also at the army training camp is Capt. Stillman (John Larroquette) who enjoys peeking at female officers taking showers, and never listening to anyone.  It's Stillman who orders one of his men to fire a mortar round on the weapons practice field without any co-ordinates.  It flies way off course and takes out the climbing test structure and Sgt. Hulka who is sitting on top of it.

Hulka's men go into town to celebrate their new-found freedom at a mud wrestling expo in a strip bar.  They are caught and dragged back to the camp by the MPs.  However, John and Russell escape immediate punishment when they are rescued by two female MPs they have been chatting-up throughout the film.

Upon returning to the army training camp, they discover they have three hours to get ready for the parade in front of General Barnicke or the entire platoon will be forced to re-take basic training.  Russell convinces everyone they can cram for the test and pass it.  He starts training the others, but disagreements break out.  John delivers his rousing "Old Yeller" speech and gets everyone working together.  They then over-sleep.

When the group reaches the parade grounds, however, John leads them in an unconventional but greatly appreciated drill routine.  They earn applause, whistles, and approval from the gathered crowd.  The general finds out they finished their training on their own after Sgt. Hulka was injured.  He asks for the platoon to be assigned to his secret "EM-50" project.  The EM-50 is an "Urban Assault Vehicle" or more obviously, a Winnebago that's been turned into a tank.  The platoon is supposed to be on a good-will tour in Italy.

However, John and Russell get bored while on guard duty.  They decide to visit the two female MPs they've been chasing throughout the film -- even though the girls are in Germany.  It might have worked, but Capt. Stillman takes his new girlfriend to see the EM-50, finds it missing and panics.  He gets the platoon together to find it, and ignores Sgt. Hulka when he tries to warn him that they've gone the wrong way and they end-up heading into Czechoslovakia, where they are captured by the Russians.  Sgt. Hulka, who's realized there was going to be a problem, escapes capture and sends a signal to the EM-50.  John, Russell, and the two girls pick up the signal, and they manage to find the platoon, and Sgt. Hulka, and rescue them, returning safely to Germany.

The film concludes with everyone arriving safely at home, and magazine and newspaper headlines are used to do a "where are they now / what happened to..." segment very quickly.

Stripes has a couple of very memorable scenes, notably Murray earnestly giving the "Old Yeller" speech to his fellow enlistees, and the well-choreographed parade ground scene.  The Winnebago tank is also funny.  The film screams 70s in everything from the clothes and cars to the attitudes, especially towards women.  Although it doesn't currently work as well as some films from the 1970s, and parts of the film are really dated (like the fact that they invade a country that no longer exists) some parts do still work.  Both Murray and Ramis are very funny, and the cast is filled it with other very funny actors.  Overall it's now a mediocre film, but it wasn't quite as painful to watch as I feared it might be.

Recommendation:  It's OK.
Rating:  3 out of 5 Stars
Next Film:  Sunset Boulevard

Wednesday, December 5, 2012

The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle


  • Title:  The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle
  • Director:  H. C. Potter
  • Date:  1939
  • Studio:  RKO Radio Pictures
  • Genre:  Biography, Drama, Musical
  • Cast:  Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Edna May Oliver
  • Format:  B/W, Standard
  • DVD Format:  R1, NTSC

"Well, we've got our health, we're young, we're in Paris, we're on our honeymoon, what more can we want."  -- Vernon

"Hey, dance with me."  -- Vernon
"All the people downstairs?" -- Irene
"Look, we can do it quietly, like this, just as if we're walking on air."  -- Vernon

"War is a man's business, women only do what they're told."  -- Maggie

The Story of  Vernon and Irene Castle is the last musical that Astaire and Rogers did for RKO and it's notable for several reasons.  It's one of only two films where Astaire and Rogers played a married couple (the other is The Barkleys of Broadway).  It's the only biography the two did, so the only time they played real people.  It's the only one of their musicals that's more of a drama than a comedy.  And it's the only one with a definite downbeat ending (Vernon Castle (Astaire's character) dies).  The film is different from other Astaire and Rogers musicals and that may be why it is not as well known as their other films.

The film opens in 1911, Fred Astaire is Vernon Castle, who at the time is barely working as a vaudeville comedian.  He's not even the star of  the show he's in, but the second banana who takes all the prat falls and on-stage abuse from the star.  He tries to get the show's leading lady interested in him, but to no avail.  However, while at the seaside, he meets Irene Foote (Ginger Rogers) when they both jump into the drink to rescue a small dog.  She, it turns out, is an aspiring actress/performer and she performs "The Yama Yama Man" as an audition for Castle.

After the lackluster audition, the two go to the train station, where a group of "bachelors" and their dates are on an excursion.  When one of  the guys gets up and dances - Vernon shows off  his tap dancing skills. On their later dates, Irene suggests that Vernon should give up comedy and become a dancer.  Vernon actually agrees with her and the two approach his boss with the idea of  being a dance team.  But his boss is having none of it.  However, two French theatre owners approach Vernon and offer him a job in Paris.

Now married, Vernon and Irene go to Paris... but discover that the job they thought started immediately won't start for six weeks.  Irene convinces the theatre owners to give Vernon an advance on his salary so they will have something to live on for six weeks.  After the six weeks of waiting goes by, Vernon returns to the theatre -- only to discover he's to play his comedy role again.  As he explains to his wife, "Well, I refused... I know you don't want me to do, and I didn't want to do it... but he brought up the money we owe him..."  Irene accepts this trying to make him feel better by saying, "Well, at least it's a job, maybe not the job you want, but it's a job."  To console her, Vernon dances with her, quietly.

Fate intervenes in the person of Maggie, an entrepreneur and agent who walks into their apartment at that moment and sees them dancing.  She gets them dinner and an audition at the Cafe de Paris.  The audition is a smash success, and other couples imitate the Castles.  They are hired by the nightclub as professional dancers.  Before long they are back in New York, introducing The Tango to New York. The Castles sell books, records, and dancing lessons.  Irene becomes a fashion icon.  Their merchandising continues with ladies hats, bon bons, and face cream.  Vernon's name goes on cigars and dancing shoes.  They introduce the Fox Trot, and the Castle Polka.  With both scenes of the Castles introducing their ballroom dances, the shot of  the couple dancing is double exposed with sparkles and lights - giving it a dreamy quality.  Irene bobs her hair, which causes a sensation and starts a trend.  The Castles introduce the Moxie, another dance, at a seaside resort.  They then tour nationally.  (We see the couple dancing across a map of  the US and each place they stop - additional dancers appear).  As they return home, Irene and Vernon tell their manager, Maggie, they are tired and want to buy a house and raise a family.  However, as they pull into one little town, there's a fuss outside the train -- Germany's declared war.

At first, the Castles do retire to their new home, and Vernon agrees with Irene that he won't enlist.  But when he's asked to work at a benefit... he sees all the Canadian solders and decides to enlist in the Royal Flying Corps.   He manages to live through the war, but when he returns home he's sent to Fort Worth at the last minute as one of  the pilots in an airshow for a Brigadier General.  An inexperienced pilot takes off and flies into his airspace -- given the choice of  hitting the other plane or trying to avoid the crash he pulls straight up and the plane stalls.  Vernon Castle is killed in the plane crash... the young inexperienced pilot in the plane with him survives, in part because Vernon took the seat in front rather than letting the young pilot do it since he knew that the front was the more dangerous seat.  After her uncle and Vernon's close friend tells Irene the news she walks into the garden of  the hotel her husband had  set-up for her and imagines the two of them dancing together in the garden.

Again, The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle is very unusual for an Astaire and Rogers film.  It has a downbeat ending, and even the dances are mostly not complete dances ... they are excerpts as the story unfolds.  Astaire performs well as Vernon Castle... really getting into the role which is quite meaty.  Rogers has less to do, mostly following her husband around, and worrying constantly about him after he goes to war.  But the film is meant to be a historical film, taking place between 1911 and 1918, when women didn't even have the right to vote, so Irene's somewhat shadowed appearance can be understood if not condoned.  And it is obvious that this couple loves each other, and Vernon, at least, allows his wife to not only have a say in their decisions but to lead in them (It's Irene who insists he's better than physical comedy; it's Irene who wants them to retire from touring; and it's Irene who at first insists that Vernon not go to war).  In a sense, though Vernon dies at the end, the film is not only romantic, but it's a more realistic romance than most movie romances.

The story for the script was written by Irene Castle, based on her autobiographical book about her husband, and she acted as an advisor on the film, especially in terms of  Rogers clothes.

This was not your typical Astaire and Rogers musical, I'd say it's for diehards only, or if you want  to see a different type of film starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.  The rating is based on the film not being what you expect out of a musical -- for example, there are very few full dances in the film.

Recommendation:  Depends.
Rating:  Three and a half out of five stars.
Next film:  Stripes

Sunday, December 2, 2012

The Sting


  • Title:  The Sting
  • Director:  George Roy Hill
  • Date:  1973
  • Studio:  Universal
  • Genre:  Drama
  • Cast:  Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Robert Shaw, Charles Durning, Ray Walston, Eileen Brennan, Harold Gould, Dana Elcar
  • Format:  Widescreen, color
  • DVD Format:  R1, NTSC

"I'll get him anyway."  -- Johnny Hooker
"Why?"  -- Henry Gondorff
" 'Cause I don't know enough about killing to kill him."  -- Johnny

"What was I supposed to do?  Call him for cheating better than me in front of  the others?"  -- Doyle

The Sting is the original caper film.  Without The Sting, there is no Ocean's 11 or it's sequels either the original or the new ones, and there's no White Collar, Leverage, or Hustle either.  But it's a classic that stands on its own two feet as well, not simply as the film that establishes a sub-genre all by itself.  The film begins with Luther and Johnny, two con artists, working street cons.  As the film opens in Joliet, Illinois in 1936, the two con artists pull a switch, but unknown to them they've picked the wrong victim - a numbers runner for the Chicago Irish mob.  Initially, they are thrilled to pull a $11,000 con... but then one of the con artists, Luther, is killed, and Johnny knows that if  he gets caught, the mob will kill him too.

Johnny travels up to Chicago and meets Henry Gondorff an old friend of  Luther's.  Gondoroff gathers a group of con artists together and they decide to pull a con on the mobster they blame for Luther's death.  Luther's so well-known in the con artist underground that everyone wants to help to stick it to his killer where it hurts -- in the wallet.

The film is set-up in sections:  The Set-Up, The Hook, The Tale, The Wire, The Shut Out, and The Sting -- each with a beautifully designed title card.  And each section of the film is exactly what it says, as the con artists rope in and set-up their victim.  However, What makes The Sting a great and memorable film is the surprise ending... which I'm not going to spoil here.  If you've seen the film, you know exactly what I'm talking about -- and if you haven't, it's just not fair to spoil the surprise ending.  There are hints throughout the film, but it does come as a surprise the first time you see it and it really makes the movie.

This film also features a great partnership between the older, nearly washed-up con artist (Paul Newman) master of  the Big Con, and his new, young, apprentice (Robert Redford).  A number of  excellent character actors round out the cast.  Also, the film is set in the 1930s, which means great suits and hats but on the negative side -- some very rough, inappropriate language.

Overall, a great film, especially if you are a fan of  the caper film as a genre.  I recommend it.

Recommendation:  See it!
Rating:  4 out of 5 Stars
Next Film:  The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle