Welcome to the 222nd Edition of my blog. One of the very few times where the numbers are the same and it's hard to believe that I have actually done this many but I do it because I enjoy it. This week I return with one selection from the Random Myspace Profile selection process. I also pay tribute to the late PICKET FENCES alum Zelda Rubinstein, DAYS OF OUR LIVES alum Frances Reid, and Sir John Dankforth. I also want to wish everyone a Happy Valentine's Day if you celebrate it and if you don't like that day just disregard my statement. I guess I did not really accommodate to the holiday with my selection. Get your Netflix and Blockbuster Queues out and read on.
Quest for Camelot (1998): I start this week with some animation in this interesting variation towards the legend of Camelot. This shows King Arthur who has been king for some time and encounters a former knight of the round table, Ruber, who takes Excaliber from Arthur. We then see a young girl named Kayley whose late father was one of the knights of the round table. She aspires to become a knight just like her dad and teams with a blind knight who wants to become a knight of the round table but has not been able to due to his disability. The other person in the picture is a two-headed dragon who cannot fly or breathe fire and the two heads argue a lot. They set out to get Exbaliber back to Camelot to save them. This includes the voice talents of Pierce Brosnan, Jane Seymour, GLEE co-star Jessalyn Gilsig, Eric Idle, Don Rickles, Gary Oldman, Cary Elwes, and many others. Steve Perry, Celine Dion, Andrea Corr, and Bryan White provide the singing for the characters when they sing. This did not hit greatness but entertained pretty well and is good for the family. This is based on a book that is actually quite dark but they wanted a family film.
The Wreck of Mary Deare (1959): Charlton Heston plays small-boat rescue worker John Sands who comes up the sinking Mary Deare ship. Gary Cooper, in near the end of his film career plays the Captain Gideon Patch who is the only survivor of the ship. Patch has had quite a dark past in his career but wants to go to trial to prove it was deliberately sunk. John Sands reluctantly agrees to go along with his plan. This was not the greatest film for either one but seeing them together is worth a view. Also look for a young Richard Harris.
Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon (2006): This is my tribute to Zelda Rubinstein who recently died. My high school friend Chris suggested this to me so I put it in my Netflix queue and I intended to save this for Elizabeth's Horror Movie Madness contest but with recent events I decided to check it out early. This movie is shot like a documentary where Nathan Baesel plays the title character and aspires to be the next big slasher like Freddy Kruger, Jason Voorhies, and Michael Myers. He then has a documentary crew following him around talking about his plans. Robert Englund plays Doc Halloran who is kind of the equivalent to Donald Pleasance's Dr. Loomis character from the HALLOWEEN films. Also look for Kane Hodder as an Elm Street resident. For those of you that don't know Englund was know for Freddy Kruger and Hodder was know as Jason. This was an interesting tribute to the slasher films where we first see Leslie planning what he wanted to do and even getting support from the family while the last half plays like a slasher film.
Invisible Girlfriend (2009): I found this one on the documentary channel. This centered around a man claiming to have an invisible girlfriend in Joan of Arc. He then sets out on a long trip to find the statue so he can supposedly see her. There are lots of interviews with his family members and townspeople who accept his issues. He makes a lot of stops along the way on his bike trek. It does not seem to have gotten much exposure but was rather likable even the main person. Look for it on the Doc channel.
Fathom (1967): This is my tribute to Sir John Dankworth who wrote the music score for this film. Raquel Welch stars in this action-comedy as the title character. She is recruited by a government agency to pursue a lost atomic device stolen from a defector. She soon realizes that nobody is who they really seem and does not know who to trust. Tony Franciosa and Richard Briers co-star in this spy-spoof. This can become a guilty pleasure pretty quick if you are not expecting an absolute blockbuster.
Requiem for a Dream (2000): Darren Aronofsky directed this film based on the novel by Hubert Selby Jr. Ellen Burstyn stars as Sara Goldfarb who becomes hooked on pills and television becoming convinced she is to become part of a game show just not knowing when. Jared Leto who is her junkie son Harry who wants to get his life together but cannot get off the drugs. Jennifer Connelly plays Harry's girlfriend Marion who is also a drug addict wanting a better life. Marlon Wayons plays Harry's friend Tyrone who is a drug dealer. This movie takes a look at the disturbing effects of being on drugs. This is by no means an upbeat film but being a drug addict is not very upbeat. Christopher McDonald also co-stars as the host of the infomercial that Sara loves. The performances in this film were very good with Wayons playing a more serious role than usual. McDonald did a lot of improvising in his part and his scenes were shot in one day. Leto lost 25 pounds and befriended some New York junkies to prepare for his role. All this really worked in the cast to make a good movie but it is not for everyone.
Baby Sitters (40s/50s): This is my short film for the week but I do not know the year but I believe it is in this range somewhere. This is an animated short of the Three Stooges where Larry, Curly, and Moe are looking for employment as baby sitters but must pass some difficult tests. It is part of my animated shorts boxed set which was very inexpensive at Wal-Mart. The live-action was far better but this was a pretty entertaining few minutes.
Alice Adams (1935): George Stevens directed this classic which stars a young Katherine Hepburn as the title character in this study of class. Alice is part of a poor but happy family. Her father has worked a pretty low-end job for many years which he likes but his wife feels he needs to make more money so that Alice can climb the social ladder like other people she knows. Alice then meets Arthur, Fred MacMurray who has a lot of money so she asks her family to impress him with a more upscale dinner which she finds is not easy for them. This movie takes a look at class and does have some good messages in the film. Katherine Hepburn was much different in her usual personality that she is known for in her roles. It is hard to explain but if you see this and compare it to about ten of her roles in her later career, you will understand. Maybe she is more feminine in this character where other films she plays parts where she is determined to have gender equality. She was very good in the movie and was nominated for an Oscar.
DVD REVIEW: ROCKY BALBOA (2006)
PREVIEWS
Here is a list of all the available previews before the film.
Are We Done Yet (2007): This is the sequel to ARE WE THERE YET where rapper Ice Cube where he has married and has a couple stepkids. He also decides to move his new family to the suburbs. I have honestly not seen either one and it just does not look like my thing. When seeing this, I was reminded of the Cary Grant film MR. BLANDINGS BUILDS HIS HOUSE and when looking into this I find this is a remake.
Casino Royale (2006): This is much better where Daniel Craig makes his debut as James Bond. This movie is actually more of a prequel to what we have known over the years where we see 007 get promoted to his double-O status and becomes a very loose cannon. This is actually the original novel which has gotten a spoof in 1967 and a teleplay on CBS in the 60s. CBS had the rights at the time and that is why DR. NO came first instead of this one. United Artists finally got the rights and we get this wonderful treatment. This shows Bond as a very dark person and I found that Daniel Craig is my favorite. I consider this one as more of a character study towards Bond.
The Pursuit of Happyness (2006): I have seen this one which stars Will Smith as a struggling salesman and single father. He then hopes for something big but must take an unpaid internship in order to pursue what he wants making it very difficult for him and his son which is his real-life son Jaden Smith who is about to star in the remake of THE KARATE KID. Yes you heard me right.
Spider-Man 3 (2007): This is the third part of this trilogy which appears to be the last for director Sam Raimi and Tobey Maguire. This one was not nearly as well received as the first two. I admit, I put it in my recommendations but I don't claim to put my favorites. I feel this had its moments but they tried to do too much. I did like Thomas Haden Church as the Sandman. I feel the Venom character was used incorrectly and could have been a main villain in a future film. But at least we have a great cameo from Bruce Campbell.
Surf's Up (2007): This was the time period where we had this big penguin craze and the first time I saw this preview I thought "not another penguin movie". However, I decided one day to give it a shot when I had the opportunity and it was pretty good to me. It is shot kind of like a documentary where we see a penguin named Cody Maverick who dreams of becoming a surfer like his idol Big Z, voiced by Jeff Bridges. However, Big Z became very reclusive so part of it was finding him and the other part was the struggles of Cody who just was not meant for the business. This is from Sony animation.
Daddy Day Camp (2007): This is the sequel to DADDY DAY CARE which have different people in it including Cuba Gooding Jr playing the Eddie Murphy character. Looks like a couple dads trying to run a day camp and seeing the kind gross-out humor which I just really don't care to see. It is directed by none other than WONDER YEARS alum Fred Savage. I have not seen the first movie but I might look into though, it's got to be a classic compared to the previews I watched.
Stranger Than Fiction (2006): I thought this was a pretty clever comedy and a much different role for Will Ferrell who is comedic but not as much as usual and becomes a little more serious. He is an IRS auditor named Harold Crick. When an author writes a book with his name, and whatever is written happens to Harold.
Gridiron Gang (2006): This movie stars Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson as Juvenile Center worker Sean Porter who does not like the statistics of kids in the juvenile center that end up in prison. He then forms a football team and manages to get them into a high school football team hoping to give these kids something to live for. This is based on a true story and I really liked the authentic feel it gave to the juvenile system. It was also a very good look at it. I have a small background in that department which I volunteered and saw these kids were pretty nice but made a mistake and even came from a broken home. Many kids go to juvenile detention and find a way to get back because for many of them it is a better home than their own.
Spider-Man 2.1 (2004): This is a dvd advertised which gives about 8 extended minutes of the film. Much better than the one listed above. This was a very good superhero film and sequel.
The Natural (1984): Now here is a great baseball film with Robert Redford starring as the title character. He was set to play pro baseball but very unfortunate circumstances happen where he starts baseball many years later and becomes a phenomenon.
Stomp the Yard (2007): This looked like one of those formulaic films which focuses a lot on dancing and not much on story. I'm sure it gets mixed opinions. I have not tried it.
Crossover (2006): I see this was not a very well-received film by both critics and fans. Looks a movie of someone going to college on a basketball scholarship but wants to become a doctor than than a professional ballplayer.
FEATURE FILM
Rocky Balboa (2006): This is a selection from the Random Myspace Profile selection process and for this one I chose Voices who is a local wrestler in my area. Sylvester Stallone wrote, directed, and stars in the 5th installment of the series. I know many of you are going to catch what you believe is a mistake when you see 5th and reference what is called ROCKY V. As far as I am concerned, that one does not count. This is the real part five in my opinion. When I first heard about this coming out I started thinking "what?" and maybe I added a couple other words but then I looked into it more and realized Sly knew what he was doing. Many people questioned if this would work and people seemed to think Sylvester Stallone's age and why would someone get back into the boxing ring. Sly is in pretty good shape and George Foreman fought at a young age. With Sly knowing of these questions, he acknowledges people's speculation. Now, let's get onto more of the movie. Sylvester Stallone reprises the role he created which when he wrote the first ever ROCKY, he was broke, down and out, and this was make or break. In this movie, he is long retired from boxing. He loses his beloved wife Adrian to cancer, he has a difficult relationship with his son, and he seems like a rather lonely person. He also runs a restaurant called Adrian's where people come to hear his great stories. He then decides he wants to go back to boxing but just on a small-time, local basis. Real-life boxer Antonio Tarver stars as the boxing champion Mason "The Line" Dixon who carries the belt but many question his legitimacy of opponents. Tarver may not have much acting experience but obviously knows his role in this movie since that is what he does and plays the part well. Dixon's PR guys immediately get word of Rocky getting his boxing license back and ask Rocky to face Dixon in an "exhibition" fight which is intended as a publicity stunt to get Dixon more popularity. We all know the rest on this. HEROES star Milo Ventimiglia co-stars as Rocky's grown-up son Robert who has a hard time having the Balboa name and feeling he is in his father's shadow. Burt Young reprises his role as Paulie. Geraldine Hughes I felt was really good as Marie who Rocky befriends. I really liked that they had this friendship without becoming romantic plus who can ever replace Adrian anyways but I really liked the moments with Marie and Rocky. The next highlight of the film is the actual so-called Exhibition fight which turns into an actual boxing match when people see that Rocky can still go. They did a great job of making this look like any normal sporting even seen on television. Sly had all the actual broadcasters, referees, and so when this starts, it is very authentic. As you all see, I have a lot to say about this movie. Rocky Balboa really ranks up there in my favorite fictional characters and the reason ROCKY BALBOA had to be made is to bring the needed closure to Rocky. Just about everything in this movie clicked. It was cast right, actors did a great job, we got to see good references to the first four Rocky films, and we still got to hear the wonderful theme song.
FEATURE FILM W/ COMMENTARY
This is commentary by Sylvester Stallone which I really looked forward to listening to knowing how passionate he is about this character. I really liked listening to his commentary and explains lots of things that finally clicked into my head. He explains that he used to go to Jack Dempsey's restaurant and he would always tell stories about his boxing career which inspired him to do that with Rocky. He also had some interesting information on his casting of some of the actors and how many people are just locals who have never acted but bring the authentic feel because they have lived the life. I usually don't care about the audio commentary but I did like.
DELETED SCENES AND ALTERNATE ENDING
These are a few clips of things that got cut. Much of it centers around Paulie. It also shows the original meeting of Rocky and Marie in the bar. In this scene there are more people present and the bar is more crowded where Rocky is actually speaking to the owner who is in a wheelchair. He then starts talking some to Marie but not as directly like what was shot so I believe that was a good decision to have the more uncrowded place. They also show an alternate ending which has a slight difference.
BOXING BLOOPERS
This just shows a minute and a half of what happens in all movies, mishaps. Some pretty funny moments.
SKILL VS. WILL: THE MAKING OF ROCKY BALBOA
This is a 17 minute video talking about what went on in the filming. There are interviews with producers and actors all reflecting on what they did. This is a good short documentary taking a look at Stallone's vision. It also talks about how Rocky Balboa is an icon in Philadelphia where they were determined to film there to use the landmarks from the original films. This includes the steps of where Rocky ran and they made the statue. People really do run up there now and put up their arms.
REALITY IN THE RING
This talks about putting the fight together and Sly talking about how he wanted the fight to look as real as possible. This was a very well staged fight with people like Michael Buffer and all the other announcers were there. The punches in the fight were very real and Stallone insisted that Tarver hit him.
VIRTUAL CHAMPION: CREATING THE VIRTUAL FIGHT
What I have not mentioned yet is that in the movie, ESPN creates a virtual fight between Rocky Balboa in his prime and Mason Dixon right now. This is what sparked the ideas of public relations to have this "exhibition" in the first place. This was done in real life to discuss who would win between Muhammad Ali and Rocky Marciano.
OVERALL
It is obvious in the writing how much I loved this film and I really liked watching the special features to go along with it. I was glad to use this in the DVD review. I guess this shows that if you really like a movie, that you are more inclined to want to see the features. However, I have made it clear since doing this segment of the blog that I don't like it overdone and this was not.
Well, that is it for this week, stay tuned for next week which includes Barbara Hershey, Woody Allen, Meryl Streep, and many others.
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