thanks to howard hawks (who had a knack for realism) john wayne seems very much the animal catcher...in fact all of the crew seem to be on a documentary film due to their supreme realistic approach to their characters...its hard to realize sometimes that this is a movie and not a documentary type film...it is one of the few movies that allow wayne to come up with "egg on his face"...which makes for great humor....it is definitely a classic....and in my opinion...john wayne's best...(with the rooster cogburn films...a close second place)....hatari! is a very unique film indeed...cant remember any other movie that captures that realism so well........
Reviews
12 Reviews
Texas Across the River
(1966)
you have to remember the times
13 October 2006
the mid sixties...back before we were so culturally/politically correct...this movie wasn't ever meant to be correct anyway...it was a spoof of course and anyone who comments on it negatively without considering that needs some help.....Texas across the river is a signature film for dean....westerns that he loved so much...also a comedy which he was famous for...(many confirm that off camera he was far funnier than jerry lewis back in his earlier days)
Texas across the river is a perfect example of a spoof done in the sixties...and if you consider it as such you will find it to be excellent!....some have commented about joey bishop (jew) playing an Indian...well (hello) that is exactly why it works...it was meant to be tongue in cheek!...one should have little wonder as soon as the organ spits out a 60's rhythm and melody every time the indians are seen...or the surf sounding guitar also used in the soundtrack....I love this movie for what its worth....escapism....during a time (1966) of tragedy....the Vietnam war.
Texas across the river is a perfect example of a spoof done in the sixties...and if you consider it as such you will find it to be excellent!....some have commented about joey bishop (jew) playing an Indian...well (hello) that is exactly why it works...it was meant to be tongue in cheek!...one should have little wonder as soon as the organ spits out a 60's rhythm and melody every time the indians are seen...or the surf sounding guitar also used in the soundtrack....I love this movie for what its worth....escapism....during a time (1966) of tragedy....the Vietnam war.
Vernon, Florida
(1981)
I still live in vernon
3 October 2006
well near it.....I remember seeing errol morris one autumn afternoon as he stood in the street with tripod and camera back in 1981....I had just gotten off from work at the elementary school (where I still teach)....its hard to remember how different things were then...because the physical side of vernon is still the same....although this is going to change soon....the widening of the main street is going to literally wipe out the town as we know it.
the jury is still out on the purpose of morris' film....most of the town folk look at it today as a mockery....however some who were in it thought differently then (movie stars)....I watched it recently (again) and took it at face value...it was funny....however knowing vernon like I do...I must say that in my days at vernon high school...I remember variety in the culture....all were not rednecks or eccentrics...
morris just let the cameras roll....if there were any genius in the filmaking....it was in the editing...as these characters were patched together to create this look at a seedy, unique town.
to me the "condescending" (as some of the critics have declared) part is summed up in the music (if you can call it music) at the very beginning...this sets the tone for the entire picture....on the other hand...the genuine honesty and realism in the turkey hunter's interview is just that...the reason I know that.... he is my cousin...I have known him all of my life...that attention to details is the way he tells stories...I have heard countless ones through the years.
the jury is still out on the purpose of morris' film....most of the town folk look at it today as a mockery....however some who were in it thought differently then (movie stars)....I watched it recently (again) and took it at face value...it was funny....however knowing vernon like I do...I must say that in my days at vernon high school...I remember variety in the culture....all were not rednecks or eccentrics...
morris just let the cameras roll....if there were any genius in the filmaking....it was in the editing...as these characters were patched together to create this look at a seedy, unique town.
to me the "condescending" (as some of the critics have declared) part is summed up in the music (if you can call it music) at the very beginning...this sets the tone for the entire picture....on the other hand...the genuine honesty and realism in the turkey hunter's interview is just that...the reason I know that.... he is my cousin...I have known him all of my life...that attention to details is the way he tells stories...I have heard countless ones through the years.
The Fall Guy
(1981–1986)
best of the magnum clones
20 July 2006
in a time that was mostly spent remembering pop culture of the sixties and seventies....the eighties have sneaked in now as a nostalgic frame capturing its own spot of fame and remembrance...largely due perhaps to all the sick programming that we have to endure nowadays on the tube..,,,so in turn....the shoot em up action shows prominent in the eighties have taken on a fresh and longing escape from "reality TV"
starting with magnum and the dukes of hazzard...the stage was set for the copycats to go to work....and in the same egg on your face kind of humor...the fall guy compliments sellecks mannerisms well....it makes you respect colt all the more that he is victimized and has to play it by ear...all the while making a serious set of circumstances seem somehow comical...
its an all too familiar trend in TV...one hit produces an onslaught of dups....but in the case of the fall guy...it was done with clever taste and style even though the general theme was on action and adventure...like so many of the eighty TV shows...ending with the most outlandish....the A team.......which basically saturated the genre and closed the door on it..
the bottom line is that I like the series much more now than I did when it was on network TV.....I don't know why someone hasn't decided to do a movie of it like they have with so many other TV series.....
starting with magnum and the dukes of hazzard...the stage was set for the copycats to go to work....and in the same egg on your face kind of humor...the fall guy compliments sellecks mannerisms well....it makes you respect colt all the more that he is victimized and has to play it by ear...all the while making a serious set of circumstances seem somehow comical...
its an all too familiar trend in TV...one hit produces an onslaught of dups....but in the case of the fall guy...it was done with clever taste and style even though the general theme was on action and adventure...like so many of the eighty TV shows...ending with the most outlandish....the A team.......which basically saturated the genre and closed the door on it..
the bottom line is that I like the series much more now than I did when it was on network TV.....I don't know why someone hasn't decided to do a movie of it like they have with so many other TV series.....
Gator
(1976)
its the seventies
5 May 2006
one of the most endearing qualities about this movie is the fact that it brings the seventies back to your memories...it was filmed in 1976 and it shows it often....the scene where jerry (reed) enters the "southside shuffle "topless" bar...nails the period completely... as well as other fashions, lingo, and of course burt himself...who "owned" the seventies....due to this movie and his other good ole boy films of the south....coupled with the overwhelming popularity of smokey and the bandit (yet to come a year later)...established burt as a seemingly permanent fixture in cinema back then...I always thought burt would stay on top I guess...he seemed invincible as the #1 box office attraction...he is definitely an icon of the seventies time capsule...his swagger and his sense of humor put a brand on me as I remember many times in my life (silently) asking myself...what would burt do in a situation like this?....
as pure acting goes...the film had one of the best supporting actors around and due to his lack of experience I guess you would just have to sum up jerry reed as being a "natural".....he played the villain so well you wanted him to stop...and go back to the good ole boy that you knew he could be (later as cletus snow in smokey and the bandit)
gator is/was one of my all time favorite films...from a time period that I thought would never end...I miss it and this film will help you reunite with it if you are nostalgic at all...
as pure acting goes...the film had one of the best supporting actors around and due to his lack of experience I guess you would just have to sum up jerry reed as being a "natural".....he played the villain so well you wanted him to stop...and go back to the good ole boy that you knew he could be (later as cletus snow in smokey and the bandit)
gator is/was one of my all time favorite films...from a time period that I thought would never end...I miss it and this film will help you reunite with it if you are nostalgic at all...
The Hallelujah Trail
(1965)
classic sixties
20 September 2004
the best movies (to me of course) were made in the sixties...the best of these were the westerns and this one among the best of them...this movie seems like one of those lingering titles associated with musicals of that era but it endears as a comedy of views that continue today...burt lancaster was great in his apparent only comedic role...well if you don't count elmer gantry.....his regimented demeanor launches the laughs from the rest of the cast....filled with classic character actors like dub taylor and others...donald pleasance stood out as well....robert wilke was great as chief five barrels....with a name like that you know what you are in for...so don't expect avant grade...anyone who doesn't like this movie is probably boring and would rather watch reality TV....
The Wild Bunch
(1969)
a cut above the rest....Peckinpah at his best
19 August 2004
perhaps the greatest western ever....William holden sheds all "golden boy" images as he plays the leader of a gang of misfit outlaws.....characters evolve throughout with interesting tidbits of soul....such as the line (referring to Ben Johnson and warren Oates)....."we all wish to be as kids again...even the worst of us"....as these deadly outlaws play with a string game with a young Mexican girl.....another moment is the interplay of humor at the most unimaginable time.....right after the gang is ready to gun each other down due to an argument.....
but as humor goes, none could match the chemistry of l.q. Jones and strother martin throughout the picture.....interesting was Sam Peckinpah's touch on these characters....just look at the mixed emotions of both fear and excitement on strother martins face as he is about to participate in a blood bath in the ambush of "pikes wild bunch" outlaws ...
the underlying theme of this picture is character even among the deadliest of outlaws....
Oscar nominated soundtrack adds the right touch of excitement and intrigue......great movie but you need to be in a kind of funk to identify with these off beat, seedy, very realistic, absorbing, characters......
the only fault I find is with the script near the end as to an overwhelming (too) sympathetic heroism to give up their lives for one of the bunch....but I guess that is what they were going for....when the chips are down....the best will emerge from even the worst......(?) holden should have won an Oscar for this role....it is by far, the best of his famous career.....his take on the realistic practical "pike" gives insight to a person who is holding onto what he believes in spite of his shady occupation.....
but as humor goes, none could match the chemistry of l.q. Jones and strother martin throughout the picture.....interesting was Sam Peckinpah's touch on these characters....just look at the mixed emotions of both fear and excitement on strother martins face as he is about to participate in a blood bath in the ambush of "pikes wild bunch" outlaws ...
the underlying theme of this picture is character even among the deadliest of outlaws....
Oscar nominated soundtrack adds the right touch of excitement and intrigue......great movie but you need to be in a kind of funk to identify with these off beat, seedy, very realistic, absorbing, characters......
the only fault I find is with the script near the end as to an overwhelming (too) sympathetic heroism to give up their lives for one of the bunch....but I guess that is what they were going for....when the chips are down....the best will emerge from even the worst......(?) holden should have won an Oscar for this role....it is by far, the best of his famous career.....his take on the realistic practical "pike" gives insight to a person who is holding onto what he believes in spite of his shady occupation.....
chemistry at its best
19 August 2004
steve mcqueen's wife related that newman came from next door to steve's house to offer the sundance role to him and that steve would have taken it had paul given him top billing.....as it turned out of course redford got the role due to steve's stubborness....and in retrospect we cant see anyone now but redford in that role....the chemistry with newman and redford continued in the sting about 5 years later.....
i love the movie but with 2 faults.....one, the dated "ba, ba, bah, bah, ba bah, soundtrack of burt bacharach.....raindrops was nice but enough of the interlude stuff....
the other thing is the film leaves you empty wanting more and of course they died so what do you do?.....I think better editing would have allowed for more scenes of action....perhaps with "percy garret" (strother martin)....or more train action....whatever the case, the film seems short and too fast paced getting to bolivia and their demise.....great movie however and very picturesque in backdrops....but the chemistry and humor are the main ingredients that make this film such a classic....perhaps one of the first films that blended comedy into a drama.
i love the movie but with 2 faults.....one, the dated "ba, ba, bah, bah, ba bah, soundtrack of burt bacharach.....raindrops was nice but enough of the interlude stuff....
the other thing is the film leaves you empty wanting more and of course they died so what do you do?.....I think better editing would have allowed for more scenes of action....perhaps with "percy garret" (strother martin)....or more train action....whatever the case, the film seems short and too fast paced getting to bolivia and their demise.....great movie however and very picturesque in backdrops....but the chemistry and humor are the main ingredients that make this film such a classic....perhaps one of the first films that blended comedy into a drama.
The Magnificent Seven
(1960)
marlboro cigarette anyone?
19 August 2004
in respect to the passing (yesterday) of the Hollywood musical legend elmer bernstein....unbelievable film scores.....his credits read like the A honor roll of film classics.....and non greater was his contribution to the magnificent seven ....one of those few pictures who's soundtrack is more famous than the movie....in spite of a (later to be) all star cast....the score was reportedly sold to marlboro (rj reynolds had just launched its new brand) for 5000 dollars....amazing huh?.....not only getting a well recognized theme but setting a western persona and lifestyle for the cigarette brand as well........one of the greatest bagains of all time no doubt. eli wallach later said of the film's score...."if I had heard the soundtrack first...I would have ridden my horse with a different attitude"...such was the power of the film's soundtrack...
as for the movie, the real fortune hunter was the lesser known of the seven....brad dexter....who had some of the most interesting dialogue in the film...."there comes a time when you have to turn mother's picture to the wall and get out"....in reference to a true soldier of fortune's mentality.....do what you can for someone but when the odds are not in your favor....survival is the ultimate goal.....or as in other homespun philosophies...."i ain't no coward but i ain't no fool"....
the photography was excellent......I think I saw it in the theaters when I was 14.....the angles on the action sequences were unusual at that time....it gave you the impression that the evil calverra was riding right past you.....as for his reappearance ...it literally scared me to see him riding toward me for his return engagement to the village (accompanied with the score's tension music).....when the bandits ride back into the village....and are met by the seven.....Hollywood doesn't get any better as to audience excitement of what is going to happen next.....for the stage is set for the immovable object meets the irresistible force.... as for the calverra character (the evil one)....eli was excellent and his philosophical approach to the dealing of the villagers was right on target (unfortunately true even today)....ie....give the people too many options and they will self destruct.....as calverra said......"you force these people to make too many decisions....with me ..only one choice....do what I say".......
yul brynner was the ultimate professional gunfighter, steve mcqueen seemed dressed too much like a ranch hand to be fully believable in his gun role...although they both did an outstanding job with their characters....as did most all of the other "seven". the only flaw with this film is the script that allows the (seemingly) last bandit to ride out of the village alive shoot coburn, bronson, and vaughn dead....now how could the previous 40 bandits not be able to do this already....anyway it is one of my all time favorites....it set the stage for the greatest era of western films (1960) to the end (1969's "the wild bunch")
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as for the movie, the real fortune hunter was the lesser known of the seven....brad dexter....who had some of the most interesting dialogue in the film...."there comes a time when you have to turn mother's picture to the wall and get out"....in reference to a true soldier of fortune's mentality.....do what you can for someone but when the odds are not in your favor....survival is the ultimate goal.....or as in other homespun philosophies...."i ain't no coward but i ain't no fool"....
the photography was excellent......I think I saw it in the theaters when I was 14.....the angles on the action sequences were unusual at that time....it gave you the impression that the evil calverra was riding right past you.....as for his reappearance ...it literally scared me to see him riding toward me for his return engagement to the village (accompanied with the score's tension music).....when the bandits ride back into the village....and are met by the seven.....Hollywood doesn't get any better as to audience excitement of what is going to happen next.....for the stage is set for the immovable object meets the irresistible force.... as for the calverra character (the evil one)....eli was excellent and his philosophical approach to the dealing of the villagers was right on target (unfortunately true even today)....ie....give the people too many options and they will self destruct.....as calverra said......"you force these people to make too many decisions....with me ..only one choice....do what I say".......
yul brynner was the ultimate professional gunfighter, steve mcqueen seemed dressed too much like a ranch hand to be fully believable in his gun role...although they both did an outstanding job with their characters....as did most all of the other "seven". the only flaw with this film is the script that allows the (seemingly) last bandit to ride out of the village alive shoot coburn, bronson, and vaughn dead....now how could the previous 40 bandits not be able to do this already....anyway it is one of my all time favorites....it set the stage for the greatest era of western films (1960) to the end (1969's "the wild bunch")
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Paint Your Wagon
(1969)
the cap on the timecapsule
17 August 2004
paint your wagon is, in a lot of ways, the end of an era that I cherished the most (my teen years) the musicals were always there as a kid even though I didn't really like them in the fifties (except 7 brides) ....but there is something about the orchestration of those musical movies that sounded so similar....and true to its genre, paint your wagon's soundtrack had a timecapsuled, nostalgic feel reminiscent of those bygone days when musicals ruled.....the negative rap on this film is probably due to the timing of its release...the Vietnam war was hot and perhaps people couldn't accept its bawdy comedy and musical theme....even though it should have been a perfect escape type film...it is considered a major flop....like some others that took on an afterlife that superseded its theatrical run...word of mouth finds favor with the film in almost all venues....except some of the reviews I've read recently.
I love the depth of the dialogue and the nitty gritty reality of the mindsets of those prospectors who took from life what they needed and created their own utopian world (or tried to)...and ironically were sad (inside)even though there was uproarious drinking and carousing...which characterizes man self destructive nature when left to himself to do as he pleases...not unlike ancient rome.
lee marvin played the lead role so well...it was almost as if it had been written for him...even surpassing his clever coolness of a similar character "a #1" (emperor of the north...a film about the great depression hobos)
in paint your wagon so much of man's delemia is characterized in dialogue about growing up, doing what feels good, and paying the price for such behavior later.....the grim reminder of man's struggle with his own self can best be shown in the scene with ben rumson as he takes an assessment of his life in a few brief words to holmbrook (the mediator)...."there are two kinds of people....them going somewhere and them going nowhere....I'm an exodus to nowhere....sometimes I get mighty homesick"....then you hear the profound lyrics to the song "born under a wander star" where even the most blessed place one can get will never be satisfying enough to make these kinds of folk want to stay.
another heady piece is the scene with clint singing "gold fever" and how greed will turn people into a total different character from what they were before the fever hit....
this movie has a lot of heavy thoughts and depth even though it is a great comedy film...it's the reason it is my favorite movie of all times....really cool characters....outrageous comedy....mind provoking dialogue...and a nostalgic soundtrack that will take you back to the fifties....
as for the bad rap on lee marvins singing...just how great would those songs have come off if he had had an operatic baritone with perfect pitch?...in a word...fake.
I love the depth of the dialogue and the nitty gritty reality of the mindsets of those prospectors who took from life what they needed and created their own utopian world (or tried to)...and ironically were sad (inside)even though there was uproarious drinking and carousing...which characterizes man self destructive nature when left to himself to do as he pleases...not unlike ancient rome.
lee marvin played the lead role so well...it was almost as if it had been written for him...even surpassing his clever coolness of a similar character "a #1" (emperor of the north...a film about the great depression hobos)
in paint your wagon so much of man's delemia is characterized in dialogue about growing up, doing what feels good, and paying the price for such behavior later.....the grim reminder of man's struggle with his own self can best be shown in the scene with ben rumson as he takes an assessment of his life in a few brief words to holmbrook (the mediator)...."there are two kinds of people....them going somewhere and them going nowhere....I'm an exodus to nowhere....sometimes I get mighty homesick"....then you hear the profound lyrics to the song "born under a wander star" where even the most blessed place one can get will never be satisfying enough to make these kinds of folk want to stay.
another heady piece is the scene with clint singing "gold fever" and how greed will turn people into a total different character from what they were before the fever hit....
this movie has a lot of heavy thoughts and depth even though it is a great comedy film...it's the reason it is my favorite movie of all times....really cool characters....outrageous comedy....mind provoking dialogue...and a nostalgic soundtrack that will take you back to the fifties....
as for the bad rap on lee marvins singing...just how great would those songs have come off if he had had an operatic baritone with perfect pitch?...in a word...fake.
Cannonball Run II
(1984)
end of the line
16 August 2004
one of the last films that seemed like the old Hollywood... whoever didn't like this one probably is under 35 now and doesn't have a clue as to the classiness that Hollywood used to have....or to many other things in life that cause history to repeat itself...
I know for a fact it was the last time that dean, sammy, and
frank ever appeared together on screen...thought it was neat
that henry silva (one of the original oceans 11) also was in this movie....
I know for a fact it was the last time that dean, sammy, and
frank ever appeared together on screen...thought it was neat
that henry silva (one of the original oceans 11) also was in this movie....
Paint Your Wagon
(1969)
the cap on the time capsule
11 August 2004
the part that no one ever mentions is the soundtrack and its vintage throwback to the grand musicals of the fifties...but of course the film was based on the Broadway musical of the same name and those tunes jarred my memory of growing up in the fifties...this inspired a kind of nostalgia for the film when it debuted in 1969....my favorite film of all times...lee Marvin at his very best...almost as if the character was written for him alone....the only other role that has that much soul is his hobo film..."emperor of the north (pole)"...and thats saying a bunch for all of lee's characters had depth (no doubt created from what lee brought to the table with his own persona)....
in many ways it was the nail in the coffin on the Hollywood musicals...considered a major flop, it went on in reruns on TV etc..to be a wonderful romp with word of mouth being a thumbs up in every respect...I still don't know why it wasn't a success at that time...(it was perfect escape from the Vietnam war era) but in retrospect..I guess its musical theme overshadowed its bawdy comedy...for musicals by then were dead....even Elvis' seemingly inexhaustible musical career had spurted its last time as Hollywood seemed to be getting into a new version of noir type pictures....in any regard...it is still the best movie ever made...profound in dialogue that reaches the heart of man's struggle with his/herself in regard to doing whats fun and free spirited as it opposes their own moral obligations....and yet fully knowing the losing side of both....Ben's quote preceding his song born under a wandering star...said it all..."their are two kinds of people...them going somewhere and them going nowhere...I'm an exodus to nowhere...sometimes I get mighty homesick."
in many ways it was the nail in the coffin on the Hollywood musicals...considered a major flop, it went on in reruns on TV etc..to be a wonderful romp with word of mouth being a thumbs up in every respect...I still don't know why it wasn't a success at that time...(it was perfect escape from the Vietnam war era) but in retrospect..I guess its musical theme overshadowed its bawdy comedy...for musicals by then were dead....even Elvis' seemingly inexhaustible musical career had spurted its last time as Hollywood seemed to be getting into a new version of noir type pictures....in any regard...it is still the best movie ever made...profound in dialogue that reaches the heart of man's struggle with his/herself in regard to doing whats fun and free spirited as it opposes their own moral obligations....and yet fully knowing the losing side of both....Ben's quote preceding his song born under a wandering star...said it all..."their are two kinds of people...them going somewhere and them going nowhere...I'm an exodus to nowhere...sometimes I get mighty homesick."
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