Maestro

 

Leonard Bernstein was one of the Towering figures in the culture of the 20th century. A conductor, a composer, an intellectual and a humanitarian he was also a man who had a conflicted emotional life and who's personal relations seem to have complicated all of his history. Director actor Bradley Cooper has attempted to create a biopic that does justice to this man, in a short 2-hour period. That he largely succeeds has to do with the tools that he used and the choices that he made. Cooper also co-wrote the script and I suspect the combination of his direction and screenwriting is largely responsible for the way this film feels different than a traditional biopic would.

One of the immediate indications that the film is going to be different is in the way it plops us down directly into the story with very little setup. Although we start with a key incident in Bernstein's life, most of the film does not attempt to highlight the key moments in his life but rather reflect the way he lived that life. Bernstein got the opportunity to conduct for the first time on a live radio broadcast very early in his career. The event made him a national figure almost immediately. Cooper stages this at the beginning of the film in a very interesting way with very limited concert footage and instead a creative setup of the situation, and then a follow-up with a press conference that seems to provide plenty of narrative explanation without forcing the issue too much.

The dialogue in this film is delivered in a rapid manner with occasional opportunities for the characters to speak over one another. This however does not feel like a cluttered Robert Altman script but rather a more natural form of conversation. Cooper's script, along with the way he has directed the actors, makes these moments feel very much like we are watching home movies of these conversations and events rather than something that is being restaged for the film. Bradley Cooper and actress Carrie Mulligan both deliver their lines at a quick pace but one that seems to reflect the characters rather than the technique of the filmmaker.

The film focuses on the marriage between Leonard Bernstein and actress Felicia Montealegre. The fact that they are focusing so much on this relationship makes it key that the actors treat the characters as people rather than merely parts that are being played. Cooper for his part does a fantastic representation of Bernstein who had well-known mannerisms, vocal patterns and an appearance. There's been some controversy about his use of a prosthetic nose to create a closer resemblance to Bernstein, but that use seems to simply be a typical dramatic tool that actors have been using for centuries. Anybody who takes umbrage at this tool seems to be looking for something to create controversy, rather than genuinely being concerned about some ethnic slur. Mulligan's character is less well known so it's hard to say that her performance is spot on, but it is easy to say that it is very effective. In many ways her role is the key one in the story since Bernstein is largely reflected in the relationship that he had with her, rather than focusing on his musical accomplishments.

In addition to the script taking a different path in order to make this biopic stand out, Cooper uses a couple of cinematic techniques that do the same thing but, I do think that they draw a little attention to themselves. The first third of the movie is in black and white. It looks beautiful and it feels appropriate for the time period, which I suspect was the point that Cooper was trying to make in the first place. The last half of the film is in color and it also looks distinctive to the time periods of the 60s and 70s, the era which makes up the majority of the period that the film covers. The other technique that looked obvious to me but I'm not quite sure what it accomplishes, is the use of a 1: 33 aspect ratio. When we are dealing with the black and white section of the film, that aspect ratio might resemble a television of the time, so I can see that in creating something that is supposed to resemble real life, the artificial box shape would actually feel more realistic to an audience that recalls that time from what they saw on television. It was not clear to me why we continued to use that aspect ratio when the film transitioned to color. We only get a widescreen presentation at the very end as the credits begin to roll.

In addition to his brilliance Bernstein was a bit of a libertine when it came to his sex life and in the later parts of his life, perhaps to the use of cocaine. This film never suggests that drugs were in any way a help or a hindrance to Bernstein's career or relationship. The sexual issues however, are in fact, the main point of conflict in the relationship between him and his wife. Felicia apparently was aware that Leonard took lovers of both sexes and well not necessarily approving, had accepted that that was part of his persona. As we watch the avuncular and outgoing Bernstein go about his daily life we can understand at least a little bit how he seemed to embrace all of his Passions with little regard to the conventions of the day. His wife seems to simply expect him to behave with some discretion, and it is divergence from that expectation that leads to the tensions that come up occasionally. Even knowing that he was not always faithful to her, Felicia seems to be Lenny's most ardent supporter. Cooper depicts the main conflict as occurring when it's possible his daughter, as a young adult, begins to hear rumors about his infidelities. In this script it appears that Leonard was not ashamed so much of the fact that he was unfaithful to his wife with other men, but rather that he is forced to lie to his daughter because of the conventions of the day and the limitations his wife has imposed on him.

In no way is the suggestion made that Leonard Bernstein had anything other than love for his wife. Rather, the way Cooper has portrayed him is simply a reflection of his ebullient personality and his unwillingness to contain his passions, both for music and for sexual satisfaction. Bernstein does not come across as somebody who is being thoughtless of his partner, but rather has someone who is so enamored of his own lifestyle that he is unaware that sometimes, even though his wife knows of his infidelities, he has hurt her. Although same sex relationships are part of his history, they occur largely off screen in the film.

There are references to Bernstein's musical accomplishments throughout the film but most of that is presented in a very offhand manner. There are only three or four moments where the music dominates the narrative. That is not to say that the music is tangential in this story, quite the opposite. We know that Bernstein is a figure far above the average composer of the 20th century. Two illustrations show us this in the film. There is a sequence of a Broadway ballet featuring three sailors in which Bernstein and Felicia ultimately participate, and which shows how his music can transport us into a different world. Most film goers will recognize that this is the source of the material for the film “On the Town”. The second major musical sequence that is a key component, both of the drama and of the character that is being portrayed, is the segment where Bernstein conducts a piece of music by Mahler in the National Cathedral. The music itself is a moment of elevation, but the portrayal of Bernstein by Cooper in this moment, is also sublime. It also marks a point in the drama where the maestro and his wife reconcile after a particularly unpleasant separation.

As I was watching the movie I was not sure if I was really enjoying it or if it was just presented in a mannered  way simulating the characters in the time period. However the longer the film went on and the more I have thought about it since I finished watching it, the greater degree of respect I have for the movie. It is growing on me even now as I'm writing these words. What I initially thought might be a solid film is turning into one of my favorite films of the year. And most of that has come the deeper I have thought about the movie and the way it has been made. 

This is a Netflix film and congratulations to them on producing something so artistic and worthy, but shame on them for having it in theaters for such a limited amount of time and continuing to pursue creating a streaming audience rather than a theatrical audience. This movie is only scheduled to be in theaters for a short period of time. Maybe the fact that it is in an aspect ratio that fits an old television will make it seem like this is an appropriate choice, but I think in the long run audiences will find it a disappointment if they experience this at home rather than in the theater with an audience and a terrific sound system. I'm not in charge of these things but if I had my way this would be a movie that would stay in theaters long enough to collect honors and awards at the end of the year and then move to home video where a wider audience will discover it, but maybe not appreciated as much.

The Iron Claw

 

I’ve got to admit that I was not particularly interested in seeing this film. However, there had been some hype about it online, and my daughter was interested, so we went ahead and booked an advance preview screening at the Alamo Drafthouse. The screening was followed by a Q&A session that was broadcast from the New York location of the screening. The director and two of the actors who played the brothers, showed up and answered some questions about making the movie.

If there is a movie out there that has less to interest me I'm not exactly sure what it would be. I was never a fan of wrestling. The generation that came immediately after me seem to be preoccupied with the gargantuan physiques of wrestlers with wild names and outrageous personas. This story is about a set of Brothers who wrestle in the early stages of the wrestling phenomena. Their hard-headed father was a wrestler in the earlier days and he created a league of wrestling in their native Texas. The story is apparently famous in wrestling circles because of the lingering tragedies that surround the family. This film Chronicles most of those tragedies in a dramatic family-centered story that emphasizes the relationship between the brothers.

To say that the story is tragic actually underplays the events that took place. If you are like me, and unfamiliar with what happened, it would be unfair of me to reveal too much. On the other hand if you are a wrestling fan, you probably already know the degree of frustration, disappointment, and overwhelming sadness that make up this Tale. The story of the brothers and the way they became champions in the wrestling world, largely depends on the drive of their father who as a legendary wrestler of a previous era created a move referred to as the Iiron Claw thus the name of the film. The father is played by actor Colt McCanally, with a fierceness and single-mindedness that is frightening. This family clearly loves one another almost unconditionally, with one major exception, they are all expected to fulfill the desires of their father for perfection, especially in the field sports.

Actor Zac Efron, who has been famous for playing more comedic parts in the last few years, is the second oldest son and the one that the story focuses on most closely. Obviously Effron took the story seriously, because he has sculpted a body that looks like it could belong to a wrestler who has single-mindedly pursued physical exceptionalism. His character, Kevin, is probably the most gifted of the brothers in the ring, but he struggles to create a persona that will draw in the kinds of Challengers that will raise him to the next level. He never seems to resent his father, even when he passed over, buy a younger brother who has had less success in the ring but who manages to create the kind of personality that succeeds in the new wrestling world.

This is a straightforward family drama, which is directed in a very traditional manner,eschewing any fancy camera tricks, editing, or special effects. The most technically complicated elements of the film come in recreating the era, in particular the “Sportatorium” that was the center of the family's wrestling conglomerate. The ranch is the homestead of the family and is also rendered in a fairly accurate manner, representing the most traditional aspects of this family. The mother in the family is played by actress Maura Tierney, and she is portrayed as slightly detached from the wrestling elements but deeply involved in her children. She does however defer both to her husband and to the brothers themselves, suggesting at one point that the problems that they are sometimes faced with have to be resolved between them and she should be left out of it.

I hope the film succeeds with the audience and that it brings some attention to both Efron and McCanally when it comes to the awards season. Both actors are first rates in their performances. Unfortunately, in spite of the drama that is presented in the film, I was largely unmoved by the story myself. This probably has more to do with my detachment from the wrestling culture than any indifference to the things that happen in this family. The stakes just seem less compelling to me because I'm on the outside. There does seem to be a genuine connection between the brothers as portrayed by the actors in the film, but the family seems somewhat self-destructive in the choices that they're all making, so my indifference is tempered a bit by my frustration at some of their behaviors.

Fans of wrestling on the other hand are likely to embrace this movie and be happy that this story is being more widely told. I don't think that the film will make any converts to the entertainment venues that feature wrestling, but I have a better understanding of why people might like this sport as a result of the film. Some of the characters that are on the periphery of the story I had heard of to some degree, for example Ric Flair and the Iron Sheik are names that are familiar cultural points even for those of us who are not wrapped up in headlocks and body slams. The story of this family, although well-known in wrestling circles, will probably move those who are not familiar with the story, but not in the same way.

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation

 

There are so many Christmas movies out there that it is sometimes tough to decide which ones to watch on an annual basis. In the case of National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, there was never any doubt that this film would become a perennial for us.

Some people are over Chevy Chase and that's understandable. His personal Behavior and professionalism have always been question marks. What has never been in doubt however is whether or not he is funny. That man can make us laugh over the stupidest kinds of things. If there was going to be a Three Stooges of the later half of the 20th century, Chevy Chase would clearly have been one of those Stooges. He can take a board to the face, a slip down the stairs, or a prat fall off the roof, with the best of them. Frankly I started laughing in anticipation of some of those movements before they even happened in last night's screening.

Christmas Vacation succeeds on the shoulders of its star. There are lots of other films where The Supporting Cast can make up for a week lead. This however, is a film that can only succeed if Chase is in top form. In this movie he clearly is. His smirk, his sense of dignity even in the most ridiculous circumstances, and his rants, are all enough for us to ignore any of his personal failings and just enjoy 90 minutes with Clark Griswold and his family.

This film is the second Christmas movie I've watched in the last week that was written by John Hughes. It still has a very strong sense of humor but also a warmth that separates the movie from some of the Lesser Pretenders in the Christmas movie sweepstakes. In the end we are glad that Clark accomplishes what he set out to do, in spite of his sometimes frustrating behaviors. We know that he has a good heart and that he loves his family. Sure he may daydream about the beautiful girl at the lingerie counter, but he stays true to his wife and she in turn is his biggest Defender. He's even willing to put up with Cousin Eddie in spite of his clear dislike of his uncouth relative.

Randy Quaid is brilliant in the part of the dimwitted, thin skilled, hapless husband of Ellen's cousin. The fact that he has no job, no prospects, and no plan for Christmas gifts for his children are enough to make any of us frustrated with him. Yet he still manages to be somewhat lovable and it is as good heart that leads to the solution at the end of the movie that puts us all in the right Christmas spirit. But the movie splits our sides and warms our hearts and reminds us that family is important is the real reason that we should watch this annually. Oh yeah, and the fact that Chevy Chase gets smacked in the face repeatedly by Boards when he is trapped in the Attic. I'm not sure I ever heard my late wife laugh is hard as she did every time Clark stepped on one of those loose boards. The attic staircase crashing into his face was also a gut buster.

This movie has it all for me, there's a great deal of nostalgia, there are appropriate Christmas tropes, and there is entertainment value in just about every scene. The screening we attended last night at the Alamo Drafthouse was a film party where the audience was encouraged to participate in the screening. We were given small American flags to waive during the blessing. We had glow sticks that we waved around our heads every time Clark's house lit up. We even had pine scented air fresheners to open when the family is out searching for that perfect emblem of the Christmas season, the tree. The whole audience was happy to quote along with some of their favorite lines from the movie. No one wanted to spend their holiday dead. And I don't know Margo, is uttered with the complete disdain of 150 people simultaneously. In all it was a great night. I think I had the hap, hap, happiest Christmas since Bing Crosby danced with Danny f****** Kaye.

Godzilla Minus One

I was a fan of Godzilla movies when I was a kid. There have been a number of us made films in the last decade that have tried to repeat the phenomena of the original Godzilla. Most of them have not been very successful, but there have been a few that have been Worthy of viewing. None of them, however, will measure up to the film “Godzilla Minus One”. This is the kind of movie that people who love Godzilla want to love. I was inspired to see this film after seeing many positive reviews from fellow bloggers. Everyone enthusiastically proclaimed this the best Godzilla film since the original in the 1950s. I can say that in my opinion those are not hyperbole but in fact an accurate representation of the film. “Godzilla Minus One” is set in a post World War II Japan and tells the story of Godzilla as if it is being told for the very first time. I won't describe the plot in great detail it is sufficient to say that a Japanese Aviator who had not been able to carry out his Kamikaze role returns to his home, which has been destroyed by the the war and he now must confront a new source of Destruction as the giant monster Godzilla begins to approach Tokyo. The fact of the matter is that most of the film is really a drama about dealing with the post-war economic situation for the Japanese. Our pilot basically adopts a woman and a child and takes on responsibility for them out of his guilt for failing during the war. There are a relatively small number of scenes that feature the actual Godzilla. Much of the film focuses on the human drama of the pilot, his adopted family, and the other veterans who are trying to figure out a way to stop the Kaiju. Most of the scenes of Destruction take place at the very beginning and in one long sequence on land. There are several action scenes where Godzilla destroys warships on the high seas. The CGI in this film is combined with some traditional man in a suit moments but the film still looks very good and the effects are convincing.

The work of the Japanese actors, who I am not going to name right now, is excellent. The lead struggles with his guilt and his anger and an unrequited love story. If you can do all of those things effectively you must be a pretty solid actor. I can recommend Godzilla - 1 to those fans of giant monsters, and to people who are interested in the characters that usually just get wiped out in these types of movies. This time we get a real story to go along with all the Mayhem. It feels like a fully formed film and not simply product, so that there is something to fill seats with during the summer. There have been over 30 of these Godzilla movies from the Japanese film industry, as well as a half dozen made by us and other National film companies. With the exception of the first Godzilla film, this is likely to be the one that is the most memorable, the most dramatic, and the one that is most deserving.

Home Alone In Concert (Revisit 2023)

 

One of my favorite concert experiences, is to see a film I love, with the score delivered by an orchestra. Earlier this year I had the chance to see "Star Wars" in Concert with the Austin Symphony Orchestra. I suspect that the music director of the symphony is a fan of composer John Williams (of course who isn't?), because this week, for the second time this year, a score featuring the music of Williams was featured accompanied by the film, in this case it was the holiday film "Home Alone". 

I was confident that I had written a post on this film before. I thought I might have seen it in a Fathom Event screening, so it would have been on my list of films I have covered. When I looked however, I found no record of having covered the movie before, so it turns out this will be a first time as well. "Home Alone" was the most successful film of 1990, and it shared end of the year financial records with "Dances with Wolves".  The Kevin Costner film ended up with all of the end of the year honors, but this John Hughes written, Christopher Columbus directed film ended up as the box office champ. So Kevin McCallister turned out to be the top Kevin of the year, at least when it came to money. The two Academy Award nominations that "Home Alone" did receive however, both went to John Williams, one for the song he wrote which Leslie Bricusse did the lyrics for, and a second for the score of the film.

Before I get to the music, a little at least about the film. Certainly, almost anyone reading this will have seen "Home Alone", it has become a Christmas Classic. It was the first 20th Century Fox film to be released to the sell through market on VHS, and became, along with E.T. the Extraterrestrial, the biggest selling video of the era. This movie has been in the heads of families for more than thirty years, and it has been parodied relentlessly as well as making a star out of Macaulay Culkin. The plot has been described by some as "Die Hard" with a kid.  Young Kevin, having been accidentally left behind by his family, defends the homestead from burglars played by Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern. Amazingly, Pesci was also in the very different role of  Tommy DeVito, a murderous Mafioso, in theaters just a few weeks before this comic role. The combination of the two may have been the reason that his performance in "Goodfellas" was the sole Academy Award win for that film. 

Director Chris Columbus was responsible for adding the character of the neighbor, suspected of being a shovel killer, Mr. Marley. The character played so effectively by Roberts Blossom, is one of the things that raises the film from a slapstick farce to a more touching human comedy. The movie features several sequences where eight year old Kevin, speaks quite wisely, but still like a kid, and most of that works pretty well. His encounters with the checkout girl at the grocery store, and the Santa finishing his shift, let us believe a lot more in the final conversation with Marley in the church. Of course there is plenty of eye poking, three stooges type humor when the home invasion starts, so you can laugh and cringe simultaneously.  

The audience for the concert was wired for this experience from the very start. There was a noticeable amount of applause and cheering for the 20th Century Fox logo at the start of the film. Maybe some of the audience was like me, nostalgic for a classic film studio that no longer exists. The theme music plays throughout the picture, but it is in the last half of the film that the music soars, in part because of the chorale music and singing that occurs around the time Marley and Kevin have their conversation. In the concert hall, this was accompanied by a 70 person chorale of high school singers who came in and sat in front of the orchestra, after an intermission, which is invented by the event and not part of the original film. 

I have said it before to others when talking about this movie, it is so much better than it has a right to be and than you remember. I took my kids to see the film when they were four and two, neither remembers the experience but I do. We went with my best friend's family, they had two children the same age as ours, and we all enjoyed the movie as best as young kids could. It became a favorite of James, my friend's son. Three years later I lost my friend to cancer and his family dropped out of our lives, but I always think of them when I see this movie. Merry Christmas, ya filthy animals.

Die Hard (Revisit 2023)

 

There is nothing like seeing a movie in a theater to remind you of why you fell in love with a film in the first place. Regardless of the number of times I have seen a film at home, the experience of a theatrical presentation contains an electricity you just won't find anywhere else. Part of the effect comes from the sound system that will be so much more fine tuned in most theaters than you can achieve at home. Another part is the size of the screen, which, despite recent tech advances, is just not going to be 60 feet wide and thirty feet high. The biggest difference however, is that you have committed yourself to an experience, disruption free, with a willingness to be engulfed by the movie in front of you. That's what happened to me last night at "Die Hard".

I knew was engaged before the movie started, because the 20th Century Fox Logo that came up was squeezed and I was immediately on edge that something was wrong and the aspect ratio of the film would be off. That tension was short lived as when the film itself started, all was right. I frequently forget the opening section where John McClane is on the airplane arriving in Los Angeles. I should recall it because it is the reason John ends up without his shoes later on in the film. This was also my only exposure outside of MTV to "Christmas in Hollis" by Run DMC, which was not in heavy rotation on the classic rock stations I listened to. 

Speaking of music, I appreciate the stereo in the theater when I hear Ode to Joy in the background of several early scenes. The crescendo of that Beethoven masterpiece at the opening of the vault is a great use of classical music in an action film. McClane is a simple guy, with modest tastes and the everyday manner he conveys in in great contrast to the ostentatious Hans Gruber. The music sends a subtle reminder of these differences. 

The re are people out there who deny that "Die Hard" is a Christmas movie. For all of you doubters, I will refer you to my previous post on the subject: here. 

The Muppet Christmas Carol (Revisit 2023) Rockin' Around the Paramount

 

No apologies, no excuses, no doubt, The Muppet Christmas Carol is the best version of the Charles Dickens story and as a result, the best Christmas movie out there. Years ago on the LAMB, we had a voting bracket that established this film as supreme over all other holiday movies, including "Die Hard". The reasons are very straightforward, Michael Caine and the Muppets.

Michael Caine is not a singer by nature, but then neither was Rex Harrison. Both of those actors can do a walk through of the songs in their respective films, and talk their way through a song with enough rhythm and inflection to fool us into thinking they sing. Harrison was acting against Audrey Hepburn who's voice ended up being dubbed. Caine is singing opposite Kermit the Frog, Gonzo the Great and a dozen other Muppet characters, so he has to work especially hard.

Because Caine plays it straight, the film works dramatically, even though there is Muppet Mayhem everywhere. The story is one of redemption, and Scrooge's encounters with the Muppet ghosts are really effective. The Ghost of Christmas Present is especially moving as he relates the situation of the Cratchetts to Scrooge, who suddenly seems to be awakening to his own indifference. The look on Caine's face when he sees his nephew revealing that the unwanted creature of the guessing game they are playing is Ebenezer Scrooge. 

Getting a chance to see this heartwarming film on the big screen again is great, that it was at my new favorite spot in my new hometown was even better. The Paramount was packed to the rafters for the show. There were some pre-show activities that we skipped because we were meeting a friend for dinner, but the atmosphere was exactly the tone you want for a holiday outing. 

If there is a third component to the success of the film, it would be the songs by composer Paul Williams. The melodious transition songs are fine but the highlight is the opening number that introduces Scrooge and gives an active part to most of the Muppets in the film.  The wordplay is delightful and sets the tone for the film. 

I was shocked to hear on the Podcast the other day, that my frequent guest, occasional substitute host, and friend, Howard, has not seen this version of A Christmas Carol. If you , like Howard, have not yet found this movie, I strongly encourage you to make an effort to watch, maybe even on Christmas Eve. The Muppet Christmas Carol can put both the Grinch and Scrooge, and maybe even Krampus, in a real Christmas spirit. The fact that this was the first Muppet Project after the death of Jim Henson, makes its quality a sweet comment of the genius of the man who created the performers in this film. God Bless us, everyone. Especially you Jim Henson.