Welcome to the 201st Edition of my blog. I am right now 0-1 in Fantasy Football. I hope this week I can recover. My quarterback Matt Schaub really bombed and Adrian Peterson was my opponent so no real luck but hopefully my players recover this week and I stay on track. Last week, my dad suggested on my blog that I should do a documentary every week so I am going to try to do that which is not guaranteed but I will always try to look into something that is a documentary. I tried out for a couple shows in Muncie last week which were LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS and THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW but not having luck in either so we'll see what comes up next to try. This week, I pay tribute to the late Dominick Dunne and Army Archerd. I have two selections for the Random Myspace Profile selection process. Next week will at least have one but possibly two. Congrats to Kevin Skinner who won AMERICA'S GOT TALENT. I was with him quite a bit when I was on the show.
The Boys in the Band (1970): I start out this week with my tribute to the late Dominick Dunne who was the executive producer of this movie. Mr. Dunne won a bronze star for saving a soldier during the Battle of the Bulge. He also wrote some movies and novels including A SEASON IN PURGATORY and now to the movie. William Friedkin directed this very daring film based on the play by Mart Crowley who also wrote the screenplay. We have a gay man named Michael, played by Kenneth Nelson, who is celebrating his friend's party and are joined by 6 other gay men and one who says his is not. In this party, many secrets come out leading up to a "telephone" game which was a great scene. I honestly was not sure what I would think of this but I ended up really liking it. There were no big-name actors but they still worked very well together in this movie taking place in mostly one place the whole movie but the great dialogue and characters keep it going. Crowley refused to sell his script to Hollywood until he was allowed to use the original stage actors from the Off-Broadway production.
Fight Club (1999): This is a selection from the Random Myspace Profile selection process and for this one I chose Ilya plus my friend Kayla has been on me to feature this so I saw this as my chance. Edward Norton stars in this drama as a burned out office worker very since of his lonely existance where he goes to support groups and lies about what he has. He soon meets the more devious Tyler Durden, played very well by Brad Pitt, and starts an underground fight league for males to channel their aggression. They start out as just a fight club which expands through the United States but then it becomes far more when they decide to become criminals. Helena Bonham Carter stars as someone else who fakes things to get into support groups and is part of the reason it spins so out of control. Singer Meatloaf also has a good, small role. David Fincher directed this one and I recall when it first came out, I had no idea what to think but then I was very impressed.
Anatomy of a Murder (1959): James Stewart stars in this courtroom thriller which stars James Stewart as attorney Paul Biegler, who reluctantly takes the case of a lieutenant in the army, played by Ben Gazzara, who is accused of taking the life of a bartender. In his defense, the man he killed had raped his wife, played by Lee Remick. Biegler soon sees he gets more than he bargained for in this big case which shows a lot of gray areas in the court system. George C. Scott also co-stars as a hot-shot prosecutor who helps try to put away the defendant. This is almost three hours but worth every minute and possibly one of Stewart's best performances plus good performances from everyone else.
Never Say Never Again (1983): I may get some heat for this one and one I know of for sure that hated this movie so let me make my case. Sean Connery returns to the role of James Bond after many years in this remake of the 1965 film THUNDERBALL which had also starred Sean. This one was not produced by United Artists like the other Bond films were. He plays an aging 007 who must stop two nuclear warheads from going off. This was not nearly as good as the '65 film and this has its flaws but has its moments. Connery was good in his return. Barbara Carrera was a great female villain. Klaus Maria Brandauer plays Largo who was at the helm of the crime and was pretty good as Largo. There was also a really cool scene where Largo and Bond play the game Domination against each other and shows the great 80s computer effects. I had a hard time with Kim Basinger as Domino. She was good to look at but Claudine Auger plays the part in the '65 version and she was always my favorite Bond girl. The teaser (beginning scene) was quite flawed in my opinion. It was better than some in the Moore era and I liked some of the action scenes. So take it for what it is worth and if you're going to bash me for this one, please note my others.
Open the Door Stanley (1945): This is my short film for the week. Dusty Fletcher stars in this and is doing a comedy routine. In some ways he stereotypes his race but is very funny about it. I found it on the Comedy Classics dvd I checked out at the library. He is on the streets after being kicked out of a bar and has some funny methods of begging. He is known more for his music but shows his comedy routine in this one.
Runnin' Down a Dream (2007): This is my documentary for the week and Peter Bogdanovich directed this great rock documentary on Tom Petty. It focuses on his childhood, his rise in the music industry, his battles with the record companies, the ups and downs of the band, and many other things in the long career of the legendary rocker. It shows his collaborations with such people as Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash which has some footage of his version of I WON'T BACK DOWN which was really cool. This was a four hour documentary but a great four-hour one. It also plays music from his early band Mudscratch.
Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971): This is my tribute to the late gossip columnis Army Archerd who played the referee in a boxing match in this movie. He was a columnist with Daily Variety since 1953 and now to the movie. This is the third of the great series with Roddy McDowell and Kim Hunter reprising their roles as the sophisticated apes Cornelius and Zira, along with Dr. Milo, played by Sal Mineo. They end up in modern day L.A. where they become celebrities really quick but like many people in the world, one scientist began to fear they would destroy the future. THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS alum Eric Braeden plays the scientist who believes they will lead us to doom. Cornelius and Zira begin to experience what Taylor did in the future world. It really focuses on our fear of the unknown and even the price of fame.
Rich and Strange (1931): I now bring you some early Hitchcock which I found on TCM. A couple gets an inheritance and go on a trip thinking that will improve things but only find trouble. They go on a cruise but don't have much to do with each other on the cruise. There was a lot of interesting camera angles in this movie and pretty suspenseful. It also shows that a marriage can only be fixed by the husband and wife. A child and money do not do that job for them. Very interesting early Hitch.
The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio (2005): This is my inspirational movie of the week which focuses on mother Evelyn Ryan, a mother of ten, who keeps her family together by winning contests and coming up with jingles for contests. Woody Harrelson plays her husband who works but spends a lot of money on alcohol. Juliane Moore was great as Evelyn and was so well done with her as the narrator. I really liked in the beginning, the way she prepares us for her husband and kind of asking us not to be so quick to judge. This takes place in the town where a good friend of my mom's lives so I'm sure it was great for the town. It was based on a book by her daughter called HOW MY MOM RAISED TEN KIDS ON 25 WORDS OR LESS. They also briefly show Goshen, Indiana where my dad was born and a lot of my family lives. It is a great look at the ups and downs of a struggling family. These are the kind of movies that I like. This is a nice, simple story with a great script that does not need all the CGI. Jane Anderson directed this movie.
Well, That is it for this week. Tell me what you like and what you hate. Stay tuned next week which includes Jason Robards, Douglas Fairbanks, Debbie Reynolds, The Rock, and the late Patrick Swayze.
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