Videodrome (1983) Paramount Classic Summer Film Series

 

David Cronenberg films are an acquired taste. They often have a cult status to them that may be off putting to those who are not familiar with his aesthetic. So it makes perfect sense that the presentation of this film as part of the Paramount Summer Classic film Series, is presented by the Hyperreal Film Club. Their film choices are often off center or feature some esoteric element that makes the movie distinctive. This seems like a perfect match for them. The guest host from the club spent a good deal of time, warning the audience about some of the extreme elements of the picture. They also suggested a number of themes that you could look for in the story to help make it a more insightful experience. There was a little drift in the intro when the film's star came in for a bit of criticism that was not based on the movie and made some presuppositions that were never justified, but that is a minor point.

"Videodrome" takes place in a different cultural time and the technology will seem quaint to an audience forty years from it's origins, but the themes are still relevant, and if we adapt our assumptions from television to the internet, they actually seem more vibrant than ever. At the center of the story is a conspiracy to modify the view of the world for those who consume this product. The hypnotic effects results in fantasy sequences of body horror and violence, or are they fantasies? Cronenberg seems to be having it both ways, the images we are seeing are real and they are imagined. This is also a theme of the film, what is reality? 

Debbie Harry is listed as one of the stars, and she is featured, but her role is definitely a supporting character. After the first act, she is seen only in brief hallucinogenic moments by the protagonist played by James Woods. Max Ren, is a cable TV producer, who has a knack for finding disturbing material that his customers can't take their eyes off of. He is a sleazy character who is primarily motivated by money, but although he does not appear to have a clear ethos, there are lines that he begins to see should not be crossed. Woods appropriately plays him as both hero and victim because that is what Max is. He is heroically, but futilely resisting the Videodrome technology, while at the same time succumbing to the seduction. In what amounts to the first virtual character in a film, Professor Brian O'Blivion , turns out to be the real hero of the film story, although be is never seen except on TV. 

This is one of those mind f*** movies that puts the audience in the position of trying to figure out what is really going on and whether or not they are a part of it. One of the things that makes it disgustingly compelling, is the terrific special effects make-up created by the great Rick Baker. Baker is one of my unsung movie heroes although unsung is hardly the truth, he does have seven Academy Awards to his name. It's just that make-up is often overlooked in the success of a film, but in this case it is essential. Max has physical changes that are revolting to think about, but fascinating to watch on the screen. I do like the trivia that the video tapes used in the film are BetaMax tapes, because VHS was too large for the effect that they created. I think it is also appropriate that they are "Beta" MAX, given out central character. 

The Hyperreal Film Club also presents a short film from one of their members as part of this series. It will supposedly be available later this year on-line. I was quite entertained by "We Joined a Cult", and when it is available, you will get four minutes of gruesome laughs yourself. 

A Quiet Place Day One (2024)

This is a worthy follow-up to the two previous films, set in the world that suddenly has to be silent. The original "A Quiet Place" was one of the best films of its year and continues to inspire us in the performance of Emily Blunt. She does not make an appearance in this film which is set in New York City on the day that the aliens first arrived on Earth. Our new protagonist is named Samira, and she has a different set of problems that she has to manage. She doesn't have children and she's not pregnant, but she does have a cat and I don't think this is much of a spoiler, but she is also terminally ill. This puts a new face on the survival theme of the movie, and the perspective is an interesting one especially when contrasted with the other characters she encounters.

Samira our lead character is played by actress Lupita Nyong'o, who speaks sparingly and communicates so much with her eyes and body language. She is a defiant patient at a hospice facility, she is much younger then most of the other clients there, and this displacement has given her additional attitude toward the world around her. It may in fact be that defiant attitude that helps her navigate the crumbling city as the auditory predators are taking out the population rapidly.

The characters in this version of the story don't have the advantage of speaking sign language, they have to rely on descriptive gestures, pointing, and occasional notes on whatever surface is available for them to write on. This adds an extra wrinkle to the story and makes every potential attempt to communicate a bigger threat because of the high concentration of aliens in the city. Having established that the waterfall effect blocks the aliens ability to hear low-spoken dialogue, there is an interesting sequence where Samira encounters two children hiding inside of a water fountain and she tries to direct them to a safer spot. In the long run we never discover what happens to the vast majority of people that she encounters. We do get a dramatic moment with some of the people that she knew from the hospice, but those folks on the streets are not likely to make it to the next scene, at least not for long.

It is probably essential that another person be involved in the story for us to be able to engage with the character.  About a third of the way into the film Samara encounters a frightened law school student from Great Britain who is so uncertain about what to do that he is practically in tears. The two of them form a tenuous alliance in order to navigate the treacherous streets of New York City in an attempt to reach a pier on the river. Supposedly boats are being used to transport survivors off of Manhattan Island, where it appears that the aliens have trapped themselves due to their inability to navigate water. We know from other films that this is it best a short-term solution, but that's not really part of this particular story. (Although there is one link to the second film)

The first act of the film sets up the conflict and establishes Samira's character, it also provides us with a lot of action beats. During the second act the action moments are more subdued but there are occasional outbursts of violence and more people are sacrificed to the narrative of overwhelming odds facing them. One of the best moments in that opening act involves Samira taking in a marionette puppet show, that she has been maneuvered into attending with other patients at the hospital. Although very resistant to the idea, she did become entranced by a couple of moments in the show, which of course is exactly the point at which the alien invasion arrives. The contrast between human ability to create something beautiful and the aliens ability to destroy everything that humans have created is exactly what was needed at the start of the story. We also get a sense of how headstrong Samira is because of the way she handles being dragged to the puppet show.

The movie is not quite as frightening as it's two predecessors, in large part that's because we already know what the rules are concerning the aliens. We also see the alien creatures far too much in the light of day, and up close. So it is mostly the sudden lightning-like appearance of the aliens when alerted by a sound that gives us a jump scare or two along the way. Most of the fright that takes place in this film is a result of anxiety as we watch the characters that we are growing to care about, struggle to hide and remain silent in the face of the threat. Djimon Hounsou has two brief scenes in the film,  in the first act, a moment of desperation changes him forever, but in the final act, we see that fear and survival instincts have not eliminated his humanity. 

I can recommend the film as a piece of tense theater with two central performances that are very effective. Our terminally ill hospice patient and her frightened companion the British law student, are an unlikely match, but in the long run they show us that humanity can exist even in the worst circumstances, and even between people with very little to connect them,  that is ,except maybe a cat.

Parmount Summer Classic Film Series-Lady Sings the Blues

 

So it has only taken me fifty-two years to catch up with this movie, a film that was very popular in it's release during my favorite decade of movies. So why have I missed it for so long? I can't exactly say, although I suspect I was hesitant because of the downbeat drug elements in the story. Billie Holiday died decades before Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison, but she died from the same disease, out of control drug use. As I was watching the film, I saw that the producers did their best to create an upbeat ending with a redemptive arc, that was not really the way the story ends. In a way, that should have made it more appealing to me as a film, because it focuses on entertaining us, but I still think it is a bit of a cheat.

Nevertheless, "Lady Sings the Blues" is an entertaining biopic that tries to capture the talent of it's subject, while also describing the hard luck existence that describes her life. The biggest plusses the film has going for it are the musical sequences and the star turns by the two leads. I am not an aficionado of Billie Holiday, and I have seen in some places that Diana Ross's interpretations of her songbook are not as impressive, but on their own, they are very effective and I think anyone listening would enjoy her song stylings. Diana Ross also has great star quality, which I don't think was captured in any other screen performance. Of course she only made three films, and was woefully miscast in "The Wiz". She was a better fit for the fashion show that masqueraded as a movie "Mahogany", although that film is not good at all (See my comment on 1000 Nights at the Movies with Dee).

Her acting in this film is stellar, and she maneuvered through a range of ages convincingly, as well as showing us the dark side of addiction. The scene in the bathroom where she threatens Billy Dee Williams with a razor over her drug kit is chilling and sad. The motionless lump that she becomes in the aftermath may seem like an easy shot, but there is physicality to it that requires the actor to commit and boy did she. Her cluelessly high performance while Richard Pryor is being beaten is another spot where her acting talent gets a moment to shine.  Billy Dee Williams as her co-star husband gets credit for spilling his charisma all over the screen. His part is underwritten and I know it is a compendium of characters that his role encompasses, but the script gives him little to do and it is in fact antithetical at the climax of the film. Still, it doesn't matter much when that face appears on the screen and the smile crosses it. That will fill in for a lot of unexplained back story.

There are of course historical markers in the film that are important, but they really come across as cliched, although I think that in 1972, they would have played more dramatically. The incident that provokes the song "Strange Fruit", in particular, feels like it is dramatically staged rather than a natural incident. The screenwriters and director Sidney Furie, try to make it work for the movie, but it feels so staged that it undercuts the moment.   Holliday's defiance of a Klan March while she is on the bus with the band is a good moment for Ross to show off in, but another moment that feels dramatically staged. 

Overall, I quite liked the film and I was impressed with Miss Ross as an actress. She certainly deserved the accolades that she received for that performance. I am not sure, but the soundtrack album may be in my collection in the garage. If it is, it was something that my wife brought to the marriage, because I know i did not buy the record. When I look, if it's not there, I will correct that because the music in the film worked for the movie. This was the third musical in a row that we saw at the Paramount. July is heavy with their theme of "Pop (corn) Idols". They are not all musicals, but I'm happy these were.  

Paramount Summer Classic Film Series-Sunday Double Feature

 

Viva Las Vegas

Over the years, I have had to make a lot of choices as to how to spend my movie time. When I was a kid, if an Elvis movie was on tv on a Friday or Saturday, that is what I watched. I loved the King and was not very discriminatory about the quality of the films. I know I saw parts of this movie when I was younger, but I was not sure I'd seen the whole thing. In the more recent past, I missed a chance to see this on the big screen at the TCM Film Festival. Last Sunday helped me remove my doubts, I had seen the movie, and just forgotten parts of it. One of the Paramount Staff (Zack I believe) told the programmer, Steven Janise, that after watching all of the Elvis movies in a recent binge, that "Viva Las Vegas" was the best. I seem to remember thinking "Jailhouse Rock" was pretty good, but after our screening Sunday, I would not disagree with the "Viva Las Vegas" rating, it is terrific entertainment.

The story of course does not matter, this is not really a drama, and it barely counts as a romantic comedy. The value of the film is in the musical numbers and the pairing of Elvis with the great Ann-Margaret. The two of them have great on screen charisma, and even some romantic chemistry, but the dramatic elements are unimportant and the script does little to address that. There are at least ten musical sequences that are held together by the slim fabric of the story, and those are the things you come to a movie like this for.

The title song gets three showcases, the first is over the titles, with glimpses of Vegas in 1963 shown underneath the credits and making me nostalgic for some of the long gone venues of old Vegas. Elvis gets a showcase presentation of the song, which reportedly was done in a single take, the only time that happened in any of his films. "Viva Las Vegas" is also the exit tune, and it's a good thing the song and performance are so catchy, otherwise a third appearance would be tiresome instead of joyful. Ann-Margaret had some cool dance numbers to songs that were not so easily digested as pop tunes but worked well for the setting of Las Vegas life. Another swinging number by the King is a rendition of "What'd I Say", the Ray Charles number. Elvis does Ray proud with his version.

The only flaw in the entertainment value of the film, comes in the climactic Grad Prix race. Instead of focusing on the contest between Elvis' character "Lucky" and all the other drivers, the majority of the drama is in frequent crack ups of cars in the race. Several of those accidents looked life threatening, but they are only in the film to add a visual flare, there were no stakes. The one crash that should have killed the Count, Lucky's friendly rival, appears to have had no effect since the Count shows up at the end, uninjured and swinging along with everyone else at the celebration. It's all in fun but those crashes looked like anything but fun to me. Fortunately, the King and his Queen, sing and dance again, so all is forgiven.

A Hard Day's Night

The same year that Elvis was in Las Vegas, The Beatles were taking over the world with their own film. The story and plot are just as lazy as the first of our films. This is just a day in the life of the pop group as they get ready to perform on a major television program. "A Hard Day's Night" hold together a little more strongly as a film because it knows it is not taking itself seriously, and all four of the lads get to show their cheeky sense of humor. There is a mix of stage based performances with outlandishly staged musical interludes where the four Beatles are just goofing off for the camera.

Watching the films back to back like this, makes it easy to see how the popular culture was changing in the decade. Although "Viva Las Vegas" is in color with a hip setting, "A Hard Day's Night" black and white photography and mundane London locations, feel so much more innovative and creative. The humor of the film is sarcastic without being nasty, and the four leads all look like they are having some fun at their own expense. It just feels completely modern in contrast to the Elvis film.

Of course the biggest reason for the success of the film are the eleven or so songs from the Beatles, including the title song. The pop melodies of the era were very different than the styling of earlier rockers. It's not hard to think of each song as "three minutes of joy". The songs themselves will stand up without the visual scenes, and that is not the case with many of the tunes in the Elvis film. It would be easy to say that these sequences were precursors of the MTV style videos that would become the standard visual introduction for many artists in the following years.

The subplot about Paul's Grandfather gives the story a chance to get out of the rehearsal studio presentations of the musical sequences. When there is no music though, the scenes are still very amusing. The idea that Paul's grandfather would try to cash in on his grandson's fame is particularly funny. The whole movie is an entertaining high from start to finish. You don't need to smoke, swallow or inject anything to get the effect, you just have to watch and listen. 

Paramount Classic Film Series-Robert Rodriguez Presents Terminator 2

 

We are more than halfway through the Summer Classic Film Series at the Paramount Theater, and I have fallen behind in my posts on the films that I have seen there. Saturday last, I went to the screening of Terminator 2 presented by Robert Rodriguez. The local film maker and Austin hero, has picked several films for the Summer Series and is introducing them himself. He tries to choose films that he can give some personal insight to, often through his connection to the film makers that he has worked with or connected to. These week we got some James Cameron stories. 

I loved the story he told about meeting James Cameron. Back in 1994, he ran into his close friend film maker Guillermo del Toro, at the Virgin Megastore in Hollywood. Del Toro was meeting his own friend at the location and asker Robert if he would like to meet his buddy James. Of course, and when they were talking, Rodriguez mentioned that he was working with a new Steadicam and Cameron said he had one of those, but he wasn't using it to make a film, he was taking it apart to re-engineer and improve it. He told a similar story about visiting Cameron at his home and finding an Avid editing complex, not just one device, set up in a giant screening room. I like thew fact that all three directors met at the Virgin Mega Store in Hollywood. It had the best Laserdisc Sales set up of any retailer and I visited there often. 

"Terminator 2" was the biggest movie of it's year and the most expensive movie ever made up to that point. I have always preferred the original film over the sequel, not for any defect in "Judgement Day", but because the tools used in making the first film are just more meaningful to me. The stop motion animation, the puppetry are all so cool. Terminator 2 ups the ante on effects, and although it uses some of the first really dynamic digital effects, there are still a plethora of  practical effects and make up in the film.

The brilliant twist was to turn the original model of a Terminator into an ally rather than just the antagonist. Kyle Reese still kicks ass but having your own terminator as a protector is just awesome and Cameron, Schwarzenegger and Edward Furlong have a great time playing with that concept in the movie. I mentioned practical effects a minute ago, maybe the greatest of these was the way co-star Linda Hamilton sculpted her body to become the bad ass no nonsense momma bear in the film. Also, when you see the doubles in the film, Hamilton at the end and the security guard at the mental hospital, Cameron used a really old school tool, twin siblings. 

I did not have my shirts in time for the screening, they arrived  Monday, so let's just pretend I was at the club when a gunfight broke out and i was lucky to get out of TechNoir and make it over to the theater to see the movie. 

Fly Me to the Moon (2024)

After the first 10 minutes of this movie I was afraid I was going to be disappointed. In an attempt to create the character that Scarlett Johansson plays, the script creates a series of moments where her bright go-getter, thrives on besting men who are too dim to see the argument that she's making for the advertising campaign she wants to undertake. She relies on manipulation, lies, and downright fraud to convince people to go with her ideas. Since she's supposed to be the romantic lead in the movie, it seems strange to start off by making her an unsympathetic character. The goal might have been to do a Howard Hawks type comedy ala "His Girl Friday". The problem is that it seems rushed in concept not just execution.

Fortunately things calm down when she reaches Florida and encounters her romantic counterpart played by Channing Tatum. Her character, Kelly Jones, is still manipulative but feels a lot less smarmy and condescending. Instead she is showing her smarts and being wily at the same time. Tatum as Cole Davis, deservedly needs some direction with the obstacles he faces, but at least he's not portrayed as a witless man who can be turned simply by the slightest of feminine manipulation. After their meet-cute, we get a much more sophisticated and well-developed character relationship between the two of them. The setting of the late 1960s at Cape Canaveral and Cocoa Beach gives the filmmakers a chance to add some nostalgic romantic elements to the film as well.

Setting the story against the first attempt by man to reach the moon is fine, I think most of us who lived through that era consider it an important period of time. The the complications of NASA and the space program were fraught with danger and uncertainty, but also the thrill of exploration and discovery. Tatum's character is supposed to be the launch director of the mission, a pilot who lost out on being an astronaut because of a heart afib. He's a competent and sincere person, who lives with the guilt that comes from being a survivor of what up until that point, had been the worst disaster in manned space flight, the fire that killed the three astronauts of Apollo 1. He feels responsible, because he was in charge, not because of any real neglect on his part. One of the best things about this film is the sincere respect given to that incident, and the understandable grief that it evokes in one of our main characters.

The romantic parts of the film start working as the two characters clash over little things, and they work their way through mutual obstacles. Lurking in the background is a shadowy character who invents a plot, an hour into the film, that might be the main selling point of the movie but also something that may in fact be unnecessary to make the romance work. Woody Harrelson plays the mysterious government operative, who's using Johansson's character to create an alternative moon landing scenario. The idea is to twist the conspiracy theory of the moon landing on its head, and make the subterfuge a sort of insurance against failure as opposed to a substitute for success. So screenwriters Keenan Flynn, Bill Kirstein, and Rose Gilroy have concocted a story that allows them to play the conspiracy card and then dismiss it. Thank goodness, otherwise this film would have been sunk from the get go. 

Basically, this is an adult film, with charismatic leads in an interesting setting, but with unbelievable plot twists and incidents. In other words, it's a typical Rom-Com. Perfect for date night, but insubstantial beyond that. We don't end up on the dark side of the moon, so you can live with it. 

Body Double (1984) Revisit

 

Contains some Spoilers.