Shaun Berk's 10 Movie Recommendations- 273rd Edition

Welcome to the 273rd Edition of my long-running series. I survived the month of January so now I look to survive what may be the biggest attack by the snow which is February. Also, with this month being February, I want to do what I can to pay tribute to Black History Month so I have a few selections on here. I just joined a new Facebook group called FB Film Geek Circle so if you are a film geek which I just cannot act my way out of that, feel free to join the group. I will be posting this in that group so for those in that group that have not read this as you see I have been doing this for a long time. I choose ten movies a week where I try to make them as different as possible. I range them from everything to year, to different actors and many other factors. I try to accommodate to all tastes in some way but I know there will be some on here you do not like and maybe you don't like any of these. I don't mind you letting me know what you do not like but at least tell me things you do like if there are some in here.

Blue Steel (1990): This is the 13th link on The Chain and this one continues with director Kathryn Bigelow. Jamie Lee Curtis stars as rookie cop Megan Turner who has a rough first day on the job when there is a robbery in the store and she guns down the robber, which was played by Tom Sizemore in his film debut. Ron Silver co-stars as Eugene who witnesses the murder and proves to be quite a psychopath as he steals the gun and puts Turner's name on bullets as he kills people involving her in a game of cat and mouse. Clancy Brown co-stars as Turner's partner who is trying to help her clear her name in the Internal Affairs investigation and to get rid of the murderer. This is by no means a masterpiece but an okay psychological thriller worth a shot. The Chain will continue next week with one of the actors or actresses.

Precious (2009): This is one of my selections for Black History Month which focuses on a very broken family and a teen looking to get away from that way of life and not end up like her mother. This may be part one of a four-part Mo'Nique series who I looked to focus upon this month. This is one that was talked about a lot from that year. Gabourey Sidibe, in her film debut, stars as the title character who is an overweight, illiterate, and pregnant teen who comes from a low-income home and to makes matters worse is abused by her mother and raped by her father who has made her pregnant. She then gets a shot at an alternative school where she realizes that there is hope. Mo'nique plays Precious' abusive mother and turns in the performance of a lifetime. Mo'nique is more known for her stand-up comedy but shows a very dramatic side pulling off a very believable performance of which she states she chose to put abuse out in the open as she was abused as a child. Music stars Mariah Carey and Lenny Kravitz also co-star and pull off pretty good performances in their own right. This is based on a 1996 novel called PUSH by Sapphire. The performances are what keep this one going but it can be hard to watch. It is available on Instant Netflix.

The Rose (1979): I guess this would be my rock drama for the week. Bette Midler stars as female rock star Mary Rose Foster. Alan Bates plays her manager Rudge who makes her tour a lot which is really burning out Mary. We see these effects on her when she goes to things like alcohol and drugs. Frederick Forrest co-stars as Mary's love interest Huston Dyer but even he cannot make her life any easier. Midler was great in her performance which was loosely based on Janis Joplin who had just recently died.

Changing of the Guard (1936): This is my short film for the week which I found on TCM and recorded. This story takes place on New Year's Eve where where a little girl's grandfather tells her about his days in the military. After hearing these great stories, the little girl dreams she is in the changing of the guard ceremony at Buckingham Palace and even has a song and dance numbers. Sybil Jason plays the young girl who was trying to built up as another Shirley Temple which was unfortunate because she may have had her own unique talent to make herself a little more successful. It is a pretty entertaining short film and should be viewed if found.

Tetsuo, the Iron Man (1989): This is my Japanese horror film for the week. No, this is not that superhero which the movies started a resurgence of but a man who was obsessed with iron. He is then hit by someone and finds himself turning into scrap metal. This is a very bizarre film to say the least and quite disturbing. It has pretty limited dialogue and all action and violence. Shinya Tsukamoto wrote and directed this film which he had originally wrote as a play which I cannot imagine what was done on stage to pull it off. Tsukamoto is also the inspiration to many who do Japanese Horror films like Takashi Miike. This is available on Instant Netflix and is not for everyone but a must for Japanese horror buffs.

Pickpocket (1959): This is my French film for the week which was directed by Robert Bresson. Martin LaSalle plays Michel who is getting out of prison for thievery and resorts to pickpocketing for expression and survival when a couple friends show him the art of successfully pickpocketing. This movie does look at the morality of what he is doing and shows some very clever pickpocketing scenes as well as good performances. This French classic is available on Instant Netflix and a must for foreign film buffs.

Unfaithful (2002): After two foreign films in a row, I now bring you a remake to a foreign film directed by Adrian Lyne. This is a remake of the 1969 French film LA FEMME INFIDELE aka THE UNFAITHFUL WIFE which was written and directed by Claude Chabrol. Diane Lane stars as Connie Sumner who has a loving husband, a good son, and a successful life. However, when hailing for a taxi she meets a handsome stranger, played by Olivier Martinez, where she becomes obsessed with him beginning an affair which leads into a lot of trouble. Richard Gere plays her husband and MALCOLM IN THE MIDDLE alum Erik Per Sullivan plays their son. I have not seen the original version of this film but I did enjoy this one where it kept me guessing for some time. Diane Lane was great in this psychological thriller. I really did not know what to expect since I didn't really read much into it except that the wife is having an affair but I thought Lyne did a good job on this film.

Rebound: The Legend of Earl "The Goat" Manigault (1996): This is another one of my Black History Month selections. This is my tv movie for the week which was an HBO film. This is a true story which stars Don Cheadle as the title character. Manigault moved to Harlem and realized he had the gift of basketball and became a very notable street basketball player. However, he hung out with some of the wrong people getting involved in drugs. He was idolized by many future NBA players but his drug problem and even problem with authority kept him from having a professional career. Some of the film is true and some was fictional but still a very compelling biopic for the unsung hero of basketball who Kareem Abdul-Jabber said was the great player he ever played against. Cheadle was very good as "The Goat" which was his nickname that has many stories on his origins. ER alum Eriq La Salle directed this movie. This is a great film for young basketball players to watch.

Black Mama, White Mama (1973): I decided to focus on Pam Grier who stars in this exploitation film which I guess is not the most ideal selection for the month but Pam Grier deserves some recognition as the "Blaxploitation Queen". This starts out in a women prison and like any of the woman prison film it makes it look like the worst place to be and the people running the place are worse than the prisoners. Grier is obviously the "black mama" part of the title and white actress Margaret Markov plays the "white mama" part. They are two people who cannot get along and are handcuffed together. They decided to escape where on the run they battle each other in catfights and must also battle other gangsters and revolutionaries. This is not for everyone and must appreciate the genre to really enjoy it but you can have some fun watching it. Sid Haig also co-stars. This is available on Impact On-Demand in the free movie section.

A Streetcar Named Desire (1951): I end this week with the film that made Marlon Brando a star. Elia Kazan directed the adaptation of this Tennessee Williams play. Brando plays the rough Stanley Kowalski and Kim Hunter plays his wife Stella. Vivian Leigh stars as Blanche Dubois who is the sister of Stella and comes to visit them. Stanley is not very fond of Blanche who has some secrets and Stella must add to her stress as she is already pregnant. Karl Malden co-stars as one of Stanley's poker buddies and becomes a love interest of Blanche. This was full of great performances and is quite the classic. In THE SIMPSONS, there was once a musical version where I believe Marge was Blanche and Ned Flanders was Stanley but I do not believe it ever went any further than that.

Well, that is it for this week. Stay tuned for next week which so far includes Sigourney Weaver, James Stewart, more Mo'Nique, Billy Bob Thornton, Halle Berry, and many others and no it is not MONSTER'S BALL for Thornton and Berry.

FUN LITTLE FACTS

I don't have much on this one so if anyone has anything to add, be my guest.

SUPERMAN FRANCHISE
-Clancy Brown (Blue Steel) has voiced the role of Superman's biggest enemy Lex Luther in some of the animated series and movies.
-Marlon Brando (A Streetcar Named Desire) plays Superman's biological father Jor-El in the 1978 film SUPERMAN

ER FRANCHISE
-Clancy Brown (Blue Steel) played Dr. Ellis West in a few seasons in season four.
-Eriq La Salle (Rebound) was quite the mainstay of the show as Dr. Peter Benton

Louise Fletcher played the part of Nurse Ratched in the 1975 film ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST. My Facebook friend Lori played the part in a Muncie Civic Studio Theater production which I believe was her debut at the Muncie Civic Theater that I did not get the pleasure to see.

Frederick Forrest (The Rose) plays Huck Finn's father in the 1985 tv movie ADVENTURES OF HUCKLEBERRY FINN. My Facebook friend Tom played the part in a Muncie Civic Theater adaptation to the Huck Finn musical BIG RIVER.

Frederick Forrest (The Rose) and Diane Lane (Unfaithful) co-star in the popular 1989 western mini-series LONESOME DOVE.

Richard Gere (Unfaithful) and Don Cheadle (Rebound) co-star in the 2009 film BROOKLYN'S FINEST.

Clancy Brown (Blue Steel) played Wild Bill in the 1997 tv series THE LEGEND OF CALAMITY JANE. Frederick Forrest (The Rose) played the part in the 1984 tv movie CALAMITY JANE.

Frederick Forrest (The Rose) plays Jay Hicks in the 1979 film APOCALYPSE NOW where he is part of the patrol boat that is taking Captain Willard to assassinate the renegade Colonel Kurtz who is played by Marlon Brando (A Streecar Named Desire).

Frederick Forrest (The Rose) plays Lee Harvey Oswald in the 1978 tv movie RUBY AND OSWALD. My Facebook friend Kyle played the part in a Muncie Civic Studio Theater adapation of the Stephen Sondheim musical ASSASSINS.

Diane Lane (Unfaithful) plays Stella in the 1995 tv movie A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE which is a remake of the 1951 version that I have featured this week where Kim Hunter plays the part.

Richard Gere (Unfaithful) plays Sir Lancelot in the 1995 film FIRST KNIGHT. My Facebook friend Gabe played the part in a recent production of the musical CAMELOT at the Anderson Mainstage Theatre.

James Earl Jones (Rebound) plays the Genie in the 1986 episode ALADDIN in the show FAERIE TALE THEATRE. My Facebook friend Ben played the part in a production at The Artist's Studio.