PENN & TELLER'S BULLSHIT, SEASON ONE -- Scott Schaefer, Tim Rogan, Scott Firestone, Christopher Poole, Tom Greenhut, dirs

©2003
studio: Showtime Entertainment
directors: Scott Schaefer, Tim Rogan, Scott Firestone, Christopher Poole, Tom Greenhut
cast: Penn Jillette, Teller


Using a combination of set ups, descriptions, rants and film of practitioners, Penn & Teller show the Bullshit that's everywhere. The initial show covers mediums or Talkers to the Dead. Penn Jillette explains in the first program that while calling someone a liar or a con man could be considered slander, "Bullshit" is safe. Each show has a topic such as Mediums, Fenn Shui, Medical devices or Penis Enlargement. Using humor and experts, they debunk the bullshit.

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For the most part, I really enjoyed this first season of this series, and I look forward to watching more of it.

I like when they go straight for the big bucks money men in the charlatan business specifically the John Edwards in the communing with the dead episode), but didn't respect their picking out some of the wackiest people in some areas (the wacked out people in the UFO episode were certainly not people that most of the nation would take seriously on ANY topic). The Feng Shui episode was really entertaining, and the set-up was fantastic (take three Feng Shui experts into the same house with the same set-up at different times, and since it's a "science" the results should be the same, but of course the results were completely different, with one expert trying to sell things on the side.

The extreme nature lovers episode left me feeling not so good. Although the made reference to the fact that these people we were seeing were "extremists," and they were interviewing environmental activists for pro and con, I felt that their focus was off. Were they bashing environmental extremists? People who jump on the band wagon no matter what the cause? Were they saying that the environmental issue are not issues to be concerned about at all? The episode never clicked and I never felt like Penn nor Teller had their heart in it.

A fun series. If I subscribed to cable, I'd be watching it now. Thanks for Netflix, though!

AMAZON WOMEN ON THE MOON -- Joe Dante, Carl Gottlieb, Peter Horton, John Landis, Robert K Weiss, dirs

©1987
studio: Universal Studios
directors: Joe Dante, Carl Gottlieb, Peter Horton, John Landis, Robert K. Weiss
cast: Arsenio Hall, Donald F. Muhich, Monique Gabrielle, Lou Jacobi, Erica Yohn, Debby Davison, Rob Krausz, Phil Hartman, Corey Burton, Michelle Pfeiffer, Peter Horton, Griffin Dunne, Brian Ann Zoccola, Joe Pantoliano, Stanley Brock, Steve Forrest, Robert Colbert, Joey Travolta, Forrest J. Ackerman, Sybil Danning, Lana Clarkson, David Alan Grier, B.B. King, William Bryant, Roxie Roker, Le Tari, Christopher Broughton, Rosanna Arquette, Steve Guttenberg, Henry Silva, Sarah Lilly, Archie Hahn, Belinda Balaski, Justin Benham, Erica Gayle, T.K. Carter, Phil Proctor, Ira Newborn, Bryan Cranston, Karen Montgomery, Robert Picardo, Rip Taylor, Slappy White, Jackie Vernon, Henny Youngman, Charlie Callas, Steve Allen, William Marshall, Tino Insana, Donald Gibb, Mark Bringleson, Frank Collison, Vistoria Ann Lewis, Bill Taylor, Ed Begley, Jr., Vivian Bonnell, Jenny Agutter, Chuck Lafont, Raye Birk
screenplay: Michael Barrie and Jim Mulholland

A spoof of 1950's sci-fi movies, complete with spoof commercials.

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Oh lord this was dreadful. Is it possible that this was funny back in 1987? Perhaps, to a small segment of the population ... the late night, drunk, college crowd. But generally...I doubt it.

So why did I watch it? It's been on my list of movies to watch for quite a long time. Back in the mid-1980s I knew a woman moderately well who was in this film. She didn't say much about it at the time (now I know why), but that she was glad to work with a well known director. Looking through the credits list, I see that I know at least three people in the film (not surprising, since it has a cast of thousands), and not one of them has ever mentioned making it.

The film relies on the kind of sophomoric humor that makes movies like Airplane and Naked Gun funny. The difference being that this movie isn't really funny. I think that the lack of focus (you can see the lack of focus just by the fact that there are five directors!) really hurts. A spoof of 1950's sci-fi movies is a decent idea (not terribly original), and perhaps even the addition of spoof commercials is okay. But where do the scenes with Arsenio Hall and Michelle Pfieffer and Griffin Dunne and all those other extraneous scenes fit in? They aren't part of the spoof movie and not part of the spoof commercials, so ... what? And the comedian roast for the deceased ... ?! Just watching it I thought I could see on the faces of Steve Allen and Slappy White and Henny Youngman, the question ... "Why the hell are we doing this?"

Looking for a laugh-out-loud comedy? Then keep looking.

CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF -- Richard Brooks, dir

©1958
studio: Warner Bros.
production company: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), Avon Productions
dir: Richard Brooks
cast: Elizabeth Taylor, Paul Newman, Burl Ives, Jack Carson, Judith Anderson, Madeleine Sherwood, Larry Gates, Vaughn Taylor
screenplay: Richard Brooks (from a play by Tennessee Williams)

Based on the play by Tennessee Williams: A party is planned for the 65th birthday of family patriarch 'Big Daddy', but not everyone is in a festive mood. Big Daddy's son Brick, a one-time star athlete, has a drinking problem and has become cold towards his wife Maggie, though she still desperately loves him. Brick's older brother Gooper and his wife hope to gain control over Big Daddy's estate. Big Daddy himself is just coming home from a clinic where he has been tested for cancer. When his doctor tells the family the results of the tests, the family's accumulated lies, frustrations, and secrets quickly begin to come out. [from Amazon]

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I quite enjoyed this film, much more than I was expecting. Burl Ives does a remarkable job as Big Daddy -- a role he looks fit to play but not one that I expected of him, based on his other film appearances.

I've not been a particular fan of Elizabeth Taylor's, but she does a good job here. She's got just the right mix to handle all that's going on around her.

Paul Newman does a splendid acting job, but I feel he came across as too tough. Too tough to then appear concerned about Big Daddy's feeleings for him. I never believed the "soft" side of him. Nor any tender side toward Taylor.

I liked the simplicity in the filming. Very spare. Very theatrical in that sense. And it held on to the Southern ideals well (thanks to Ives), and over-all not a bad stage to film adaptation (though not entirely true).

Recommended for film and theatre buffs.

LOST IN TRANSLATION -- Sophia Coppola, dir

©2003
studio: Universal Studios
production company: American Zoetrope, Elemental Films, Tohokashinsha Film Company Ltd.
dir: Sophia Coppola
cast: Scarlett Johansson, Bill Murray, Akiko Takeshita, Kazuyoshi Minamimagoe, Kazuko Shibata, Take, Ryuichiro Baba, Akira Yamaguchi, Catherine Lambert
screenplay: Sophia Coppola

A movie star with a sense of emptiness, and a neglected newlywed meet up as strangers in Tokyo, Japan and form an unlikely bond. (from IMDb.com)

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I liked this movie. I really liked the bond that was between Murray and Johansson. It was never sexual, but always the possibility, and yet a possibility that they both seemed to be wary of. However, a sexual relationship between them would have reduced their relationship.

When Murray does spend the night with a lounge singer, we see his feeling that he cheated on Johansson, and Johansson feels a little betrayed that he didn't think of her if he was looking for a night-time partner. Still, had they been together, they both would have been racked with a much greater guilt.

The ending also suggests that the relationship isn't over just because Murray is heading back to the States, but also, that it will always be more than merely friends and less than sexual or married partners.

It really is an odd relationship, but totally believable. The film captures that nebulous "more than friends, less than lovers" relationship that may be more prevalent than people care to admit. A strong friendship between two people of the opposite sex that their spouses might consder to be a "cheating" relationship, but is it?

I liked this, and I recommend it, though I can see where many might not enjoy it (there really is very little story other than following these two people who are trying to understand their own lives and their new relationship).

SAVE THE LAST DANCE -- Thomas Carter, dir

©2001
studio: Paramount
production company: Cort/Madden Productions, MTV Films
dir: Thomas Carter
cast: Julia Stiles, Sean Patrick Thomas, Kerry Washington, Fredro Starr, Terry Kinney, Bianca Lawson, Vince Green, Garland Whitt, Elisabeth Oas, Artel Kayaru
screenplay: Duane Adler

A young girl moves in with her estranged father after the sudden death of her mother. Living in the ghetto area of Chicago, she abandons her ballet hopes.

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This was a surprisingly good movie. Like the great teen movies of John Hughes in the 80's, this holds all the charm and magic of good kids surviving, nicely, through their adolescence.

I really wasn't expecting too much, but thought perhaps I'd see some good dancing. I did see some fair dancing (nothing too great), but came away touched by a good story.

What made this work, was the chemistry between the leads (Stiles and Thomas). We liked them both and wanted to see them together as much as they seemed to want to be together.

Stiles showed great stoic strength as she jumped feet first into her new life, and I did wonder at how nothing seemed to phase her, she did let it out to her new "boyfriend" in a "sob" scene.

The sub-plot of Thomas' character, a smart, college-bound student who plans to be a doctor, struggling with his past which included a life of crime (peripherally), was hackneyed. It was so sterotypical, and I never did believe he had any real struggle as to which way to go (hang with his bad-ass homey and go on a drive-by shooting spree or help the good-looking girl with her dance audition). I understand that the sub-plot was moderately important to set up their different pasts and what an inner-city child has to struggle with, but this kid was good through and through and it was a stretch to buy into this past.

The relationship between the daughter and father was wonderful. Here was obviously a dad that loved his child (if there is any question, what he does for here in the end really shows it) but has had little to no contact with her and really is at a loss as to how to be a "dad." Like her, he is sudddenly thrust into a completely new situation and struggles to adapt (though we don't see this much, Terry Kinney [as the father] does a fantastic job with what little he has to work with).

A nice movie, appropriate for older teens.

METROPOLIS -- Fritz Lang, dir

Restored Authorized Edition
©1927
studio: Kino Video
production company: Universum Film A.G. (UFA)
dir: Fritz Lang
cast: Alfred Abel, Gustav Fröhlich, Brigitte Helm, Rudolf Klein-Rogge, Fritz Rasp
screenplay: Fritz Lang, from a novel by Thea von Harbou
B&W
silent

In a city in the future, the division of the classes is highly pronounced. The wealthy, who are the thinkers and planners, live the life of luxury and decadence, while the workers toil and trudge through life. The son of the wealthiest, enters the world of the workers and discovers that his presence could restore balance to the world.

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Wow. This is a FANTASTIC film.

I thought I had seen this, and had not been too impressed, so I was dreading sitting through this again (it's the November film of the month on my calendar). But if I saw any of this, it was a low quality video that I bought (probably for $1) back in the 1980's.

This restored version is crisp and clear and the soundtrack, taken from the original score for the film, really adds the right tone.

While the acting is rather silly in retrospect, I think it is above par for the period. I am amazed at what Brigitte Helm managed to do, conveying both the woman of peace, and the "mechanical man" character.

I was not aware that this film had such strong religious overtones. It worked well with the social aspects of the film.

The sets...my GOD those sets were fantastic. Has EVERY sci-fi film since borrowed something from this movie? This film is worth watching just for the visual aspects. We don't do anything much better today, even with all of our CGI and green-screen effects (and in some cases, we've done so much worse [just look at the new King Kong film]).

The story is strong, and if there's anything wrong, it's that it is too ambitious and some of the secondary plots fail to live up to what they could become.

What is most amazing is that after 80 years, every aspect of this film still stands strong and can challenge any movie of today. The story still is appropriate (perhaps even more so under the US Bush presidency). The effects and setting still generate excitement, the score is lively, and even the acting is strong.

I'm glad that I was "forced" to watch this, and I recommend it MOST highly to anyone who considers themselves to be a film fan.

THE FOREST FOR THE TREES -- Maren Ade, dir.

©2003
studio: German Films
dir: Maren Ade
cast: Eva Lobau, Daniela Holtz, Jan Neumann, Ilona C. Schulz, Robert Schupp, Heinz-Roser Dumming
screenplay: Maren Ade
Newport Intl Film Festival BEST FILM
Sundance Festival: Special Jury Prize
subtitled

short film: ESTES AVENUE by Paul Cotter

A socially inept young woman gets a teaching jobin the middle of the school year, and has a nervous breakdown over her failures.

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This was an absolutely awful film. I struggled to watch it, but kept going because I had hopes that it would get better. It never did, and I can't help but wonder what it was about this film that it managed to win some moderately prestigious awards.

Shot on video, it has the quality of an amateur homemade video, as if the camera were following this woman as part of a reality show. For that, the idea was effective, but it also added to making this very unwatchable.

What we see in the woman is not just social ineptitude, but stalker mentality. To sit in the window and watch her neighbor through binoculars, is more than pathetic, it's pschotic. So why are we following this woman? What redeeming qualities does she have? If none, what are we to get from seeing this?

I can't answer these questions, but I can recommend that you steer clear of this film.

BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY'S -- Blake Edwards, dir

©1961
studio: Paramount Home Video
production company: Jurow-Shepherd, Paramount Pictures
dir: Blake Edwards
cast: Audrey Hepburn, George Peppard, Patricia Neal, Buddy Ebsen, Martin Balsam, José Luis de Villalonga, John McGiver, Alan Reed, Dorothy Whitney, Beverly Powers, Stanley adams, Claude Stroud, Elvia Allman, Mickey Rooney
screenplay: George Axelrod (based on a novel by Truman Capote)

A woman rides the waves of celebrity while hiding her true self from everyone, including herself and the man she won't admit loving.

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This was a wonderful psychological character study. Take a call girl and a gigolo, mix them with high society and have them be neighbors, and this is the wonderful movie that comes from it.

None of the characters are particularly likeable, and I really didn't care whether or not they ended up together, but I enjoyed seeing the realization and determination to change come to Hepburn.

Peppard was a walking mannequin for the most part. I never cared a bit for him or his character, but he wasn't really necessary, as it was Hepburn's movie, as "Holly Golightly."

"She's a phony. But she's a real phony" is the way one character describes "Holly" and it is quite an apt description. She tells her country-bumpkin husband (Ebsen) that she's a wild animal, and you can't expect a wild animal to settle down.

The character analysis is constant but is so well filmed that it sits well. The party sequence is wonderful at showing the decadence and decay of the socialite set

I was expecting a romance, but thoroughly enjoyed the psychological tale that developed.

Recommended.