A week of documentaries and comedies - Blackfish, Saving Face, Freeheld, Some Like It Hot

Merry Christmas, belated Happy Chanukah. No snow here in Minnesota for Christmas; I'm not complaining, though. I'm trying to pack in a lot of movies in these last two weeks, before I get the 'must-see' list from the 2014 Oscar nominations. There are so many good movies coming out today, and the plan is to see Into the Woods this afternoon. Stay tuned, because it's already been nominated for some Golden Globes.

I'm going to do this a little differently, as I normally try to review things in the order that I watched them, but I think it makes sense to group the documentaries together.

Blackfish, 2013 - not nominated, Saving Face - Best Documentary Short, 2011, Freeheld - Best Documentary Short, 2007

I feel like it's been a really long time since I've seen a documentary, so I kind of gorged myself, on these three films. It was an emotional feast. I don't mind saying I cried a lot during these three films; tears of joy, sadness, anger, sometimes all three in the same movie.

Blackfish - Blackfish tells the story of captive orcas (think Shamu) and their treatment in captivity, using the death of trainer Dawn Brancheau by Tilikum as the focal point. Director Gabriela Cowperthwaite gives the viewer a history of capturing the killer whales, and that's enough to make you cry. She uses historical footage and interviews one of the men who participated in the hunt. She introduces us to Tilikum who is huge even by orca standards. Cowperthwaite interviews several trainers and they talk about the training, or lack thereof, that they had when they joined Sea World; the trainers give insight into the conditions the animals are held, the animals' emotional intelligence, and their thoughts on captivity. A variety of experts present their opinions and findings as well, especially regarding the harm that is done to the animals when they cannot be with their natural social groups. Believe it or not, there was actually a SeaWorld in northeastern Ohio, and I went there many times as a kid. I thought it was the coolest thing, and loved seeing Shamu and the dolphins and the other animals. But as a kid, I was totally unaware that the whales were kept in less than ideal conditions, or how they were removed from the wild. I'm not sure I would have wanted to see them had I known, but honestly, I don't know if I was that prescient. The movie should certainly make you think about all animals in captivity, and if we are just doing this for our own enjoyment, or are we really being altruistic? I don't know. Ideally, all animals would be in their natural habitat, but how many of us can travel to Africa to see the beautiful giraffes or lions? Or travel to the Pacific to see pods of whales and dolphins? One of the scientists in the film mentions that humans need to see, maybe even touch, things in order to understand them. We need a tangible experience. Hence, our need to move animals thousands of miles away from their homes. And since we are such a destructive species, some animals only exist in 'safety' in zoos and aquariums. We seem to have created our own conundrum. I think if we must keep animals in captivity (and now some of these animals could not safely be released back to the wild), the answer might be to give them an environment as closely similar to their natural habitat as possible. There has been a lot of negative publicity to SeaWorld and they have tried to combat that and the Cowperthwaite in social media. SeaWorld did not participate in the documentary, and I wonder if they would have, if some constructive dialogue might have resulted. The film can be very intense at times, and it's never easy listening to animals crying (it's easy to anthropomorphize the whales), but I think it's important to watch.

Saving Face - I had been looking for this documentary since it won back in 2012 and finally found it on YouTube. Saving Face follows Dr. Mohammad Jawad, a London-based Pakistani plastic surgeon who returns to Pakistan to help women who have been victims of acid attacks. Through Dr. Jawad, we meet women whose lives have been utterly changed and destroyed by family members or in some cases rejected suitors by having acid thrown in their faces. In a country where women are already treated as third-class citizens, even chattel, disfigurement can impede any opportunity for 'success'. Dr. Jawad is a big man, and I imagine it must have been a little scary for these women to meet such a giant, especially since their wounds were often caused by men. But he speaks gently, patiently trying to learn more about the injuries, gaining their trust, because they must remove the scarves on the faces. As the women invariably tell the same story (or a moderate variation), Dr. Jawad listens without comment about a husband throwing battery acid on the mother of his children. I imagine he must keep calm, because erupting in anger will scare the women, and since they have been told that this is their fault anyway, that would probably reinforce that idea, and not be helpful at all. The film focuses on two women in particular, one of whom successfully files charges against her husband, and also receives successful surgery from the doctor. There are women in Pakistan who do have a voice, they are lawyers and Members of Parliament and they advocate for other women and eventually pass a law against acid violence. Some documentaries just provide a view into a different world and offer a neutral voice; there is nothing neutral about this documentary, and I'm not sure how there could be. This isn't a chance to debate the pros and cons of an issue, but an opportunity to learn and get properly outraged, but also uplifted by the work that the doctors and all of the medical staff do, the work that the different organizations do to help these women and the women themselves, who through adversity find some light at the end of the tunnel.

Freeheld - A lot has happened since 2007 in the world as far as gay and lesbian civil rights are concerned; gay and lesbian couples can get married in more states than even just three years ago; benefits for same-sex couples are 'assumed' in many American corporations (not everything is sunshine and roses, but the progress has been quite astounding). The progress that we can now experience and share often comes on the back of ordinary, everyday people who find themselves in the middle of a battle, not of their choosing. That's the case for Laurel Hester and her partner Stacie Andree. Laurel was a police office and detective in Ocean County, New Jersey for over twenty years. She was diagnosed with lung cancer, and in an effort to protect her partner, but also maintain her integrity, she tried to get the county to let Stacie receive her pension after she died. As one of her advocates said in the film, she could have been deceptive and probably gotten away with it, but that wasn't her character. The movie follows the challenge that Laurel and Stacie faced trying to convince the Freeholders (similar to county commissioners) that they had the power, under state law, to allow this to happen. They refused for several reasons, even as they faced increased opposition and anger from Laurel's fellow officers and residents. The director follows Laurel and Stacie in the home they have made together, to the hospital for treatments, showing them as a loving couple. Stacie makes those phone calls to the insurance company, bill collectors, etc., just like any other spouse would do. She doesn't do a lot of talking, but her actions and love for Laurel speak volumes. Laurel's first partner on the police force speaks on camera as well as during the hearings; her police chief speaks on her behalf as well. Watching her neighbors and friends advocate for Laurel should remind us about what is good about people, and that Americans' sense of decency and doing the right thing can be triumphant. Nobody said that they didn't want Laurel to protect their streets and citizenry because she was gay; it probably didn't come up; what mattered was if she was a good cop, and by all the testimony provided, she was. She served her community, and now was asking her community to support her and give her what her heterosexual colleagues would receive without going through these hoops. When the end result is finally achieved, I was pissed off that this women and her partner had to expend energy to get it done, when it should have been a no-brainer, and they could have enjoyed Laurel's last moments more. This is also on YouTube and I cannot encourage you more strongly to take 40 minutes out of your day and watch it.

12/21/2014 Chico and Rita, nominated for Best Animated Feature, 2011
1930s Havana, Cuba

I thought the timing of me watching this film was kind of fortuitous given the recent change in rhetoric about US/Cuba relations (I hesitate to say 'thaw' at this time, but fingers crossed). The film starts in current day Cuba and then is told in flashbacks going back to the 1930s and 1940s, before the Revolution and when people and music flowed with great ease between Cuba and the US. The main characters are Chico, a very talented pianist and Rita, a sensual singer; the two have an on again/off again relationship, professionally and personally. In fact, sometimes I felt like I was watching a soap opera. Rita has bigger success in America than Chico, but still faces challenges, especially because of her skin color. The movie gives the viewer great exposure to Cuban music and the American music it influenced (or vice versa), as well as a glimpse into early 20th century Cuba. The animation itself is very warm and smoky, like the music; it's full of shades of browns, yellows, and reds. Stylistically, I think it was better than most of the other nominees at that time (Puss in Boots, Kung Fu Panda 2, Rango); and I think the content was definitely geared to the adult audience, unlike the other nominees. Perhaps voters weren't in tune with the adult themes (sex, drugs, music), but I remember watching Rango and being bored (I haven't officially reviewed it yet, but I will). It seems the winners of the long form animated feature are tame, even with Frozen, that was the safe and obvious choice. If you're into Latin-flavored music and good animation, you should check this out.

12/21/2014 Some Like It Hot, Best Costume Design - B&W, 1959, AFI #22, National Film Registry

This film is a classic, at least that's what everything tells me, from the AFI ranking of 22, being on the National Film Registry, and also having a cast that most directors would kill for: Marilyn Monroe, Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis. What's a girl to do with these great expectations? She enjoys the damn movie, that's what. I didn't laugh my head off, but I rarely do, I'm fairly stoic, but I did laugh, and I did really enjoy the performances, which were great. First, let me say I'm not sure Jack Lemmon ever made a bad movie, and if he did, it probably wasn't his fault. He was a powerful dramatic actor, but also had comedic chops (The Apartment, The Odd Couple, Grumpy Old Men). Lemmon is Jerry, an upright bass player, who along with his best friend, Joe (played by Tony Curtis who also had comedic and serious roles, The Great Race, Spartacus) who is a saxophone player. The movie is set in the late 1920s, during Prohibition and the height of the gangster era, and in fact, the infamous St. Valentine's Day massacre is the key event in the movie. Joe and Jerry witness the massacre and take off on the run to escape the mob. The only option they see open to them is to join a female band and head to Florida. You may ask, how do they join an all-woman band? Why, they don frocks, wigs and change the pitch of their voices and change their names to Daphne (Jerry) and Josephine (Joe) of course. This was cross-dressing before Mrs. Doubtfire, Tootsie or Bosom Buddies. They befriend a somewhat ditzy ukulele player, named Sugar (Marilyn Monroe), and of course, both men are smitten by her, and she just sees them as gal pals. I cannot remember ever seeing Monroe in anything other than a brief clip or as portrayed by another actress, so I didn't know what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised; she did have good timing, and I liked her character and her portrayal; she was talented and I look forward to watching her other movies. Of course, you know the movie couldn't go along so smoothly, there are a few twists and turns. One of the wealthy men hanging out in Florida is Osgood Fielding (Joe E. Brown) and he has the hots for Daphne; as Osgood is pursuing Daphne, Joe takes on the guise of a rich oil man in order to woo Sugar (are you following this?). Then, coincidentally, there is a gathering of "Lovers of Italian Opera" which is code for gangsters, including the ones that Joe and Jerry were trying to escape. At one point one of the 'chase' sequences reminded me of those silly chase scenes from Scooby Doo (if you've ever watched those cartoons, you know what I mean). The great Billy Wilder directed the movie; I have seen several Wilder films in the past weeks, including The Lost Weekend and Sabrina I believe (not originally, I fear) that if there was no Some Like it Hot, there would not have been a Tootsie, Mrs. Doubtfire or any other cross-dressing characters, at least not quite like this.

12/21/14 Tammy, not  nominated (probably not a concern), 2014

Melissa McCarthy is really funny, and she was funny in Tammy, which she co-wrote with Ben Falcone (her husband) and Falcone directed, but there were parts of the movie that just missed. Tammy works at Topper Jack's, a fast food burger place, but is fired for being late, and probably cursing the manager (Falcone) and throwing things. Then, as if her day could not get any worse, she walks in on her husband talking with their neighbor (this is to be construed as an affair with the neighbor, played by Toni Collette). This prompts Tammy to run away from home, to her mother's (Allison Janney) and then off with her grandmother (Susan Sarandon). Grandma and Tammy head to Niagara Falls, via Louisville, Kentucky. The pair experience many misadventures, including getting arrested, robbing a Topper Jack's, and setting fire to a jet ski. Kathy Bates is grandma's lesbian cousin, Lenore and Sandra Oh is her wife, Susanne, and they made their fortune selling pet food (I think). I did laugh, not uncontrollably, like in Bridesmaids, but there were funny parts. I think McCarthy needs a skilled director and writer to bring out her skills, she is an incredible physical comedian, fearless in tackling material (again Bridesmaids) and she can also play it fairly straight (St. Vincent). I borrowed from the library for a dollar, and I needed a laugh. Here's hoping she gets a good role coming up.




The Theory of Everything but the kitchen sink: Fury, Birdman, Steve Hackett, What about Bob?

Usually when I don't write for a while it's because I haven't actually seen any movies, or have distracted myself with some silly television series or something like that. In this case, I had movie overload and watched movies, tv and went to a concert.

12/3/2014 Steve Hackett, Genesis Revisited, Hard Rock Casino
Steve Hackett, 12/3/2014
Steve Hackett, 12/3/2014
 As you may remember, in September 2013 I traveled to St. Charles, Illinois, to see Steve Hackett (that was after being in St. Louis to see Dar Williams). That was an incredible trip. This time I traveled back home to Cleveland in the winter to see Steve again, on the last round of his Genesis Revisited tour. He was playing at the new Hard Rock 'Rocksino' (that does not trip off the tongue) in a suburb of Cleveland. I was just thankful there was no snow. This was going to be a different set list than the first time I saw him (although that didn't really matter to me) and he had his regular bass player, Nick Beggs, with him, otherwise, the lineup was the same: Nad Sylvan on lead vocals, Gary O'Toole on drums and vocals, Roger King on keyboards and Rob Townsend playing flute, sax and percussion. Cleveland really is a prog city, unlike Minneapolis, and there were some hard core fans there that night. The band played songs like "I Know What I Like in Your Wardrobe" from one of my favorite  Genesis albums, Selling England by the Pound; a few songs from Trick of the Tail, Nursery Cryme ("Musical Box", thankfully no "Return of the Giant Hogweed"), Foxtrot including fan favorite "Supper's Ready", "Lamia" and "Fly on a Windshield" from The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. No "Afterglow" for me, though, which made me sad, but I don't think it was really in the range of either of the singers. Steve Hackett is an amazing guitarist, he seems very underrated compared to other guitarists, but he has influenced many with his style. He also has a great range, classical guitar, to world music, to ripping guitar solos from "Firth of Fifth" and "Supper's Ready". He is also a real gentleman, I met him at the St. Charles show. Since Steve will probably never come to Minneapolis, I'm sure I'll be traveling to see him with his next album. You can hear Steve on older Genesis records, including my favorites, Selling England and Wind and Wuthering. The other great thing about this concert was I got to see my fellow Genesis buddy from high school. We went to several Genesis, Peter Gabriel and Phil Collins concerts in the old days. We hadn't seen each other in over twenty years, but it didn't seem like that much time had passed.

12/4/2014 The Theory of Everything, not yet nominated, 2014

My brother and I went to my favorite theater, the Cedar-Lee in Cleveland Heights, right across the way from our high school. I wanted to see The Theory of Everything with my brother because I was interested in his reaction. It's a pretty safe bet that it will be nominated for several awards, most particularly Eddie Redmayne for Best Actor for playing Stephen Hawking, and possibly Best Picture. The Theory of Everything is about Stephen Hawking, his first wife Jane and Hawking's fight with ALS, the neurological disease that eventually put him in a wheelchair and almost took his life. Like Daniel Day-Lewis in My Left Foot as Christy Brown, Redmayne becomes Hawking, taking on the physical characteristics, limitations and speech patterns. Felicity Jones plays Jane Hawking. The movie begins in the 1960s when Hawking was a student at Cambridge, before he had been diagnosed with ALS. This lets the viewer see Redmayne transform from walking upright as a healthy young man, and slowly lose functionality in his legs, his hands and his voice, but never his mind. All the while, his wife Jane is by his side, encouraging him and finding ways to help him, and raise their children. It's a wonderful love story, but there are ups and downs as you would imagine, as Hawking's condition worsens and Jane feels overwhelmed at different points in their relationship. Hawking was only given a couple of years to live, and that may have been Jane's expectations when she married him (that sounds really cold, but I'm just suggesting it) and not expected him to live so long (he has lived 50 years with ALS). I liked the movie and so did my brother, but neither one of us was ready to give it a 10. He gave it a 7/8 and I agree. Redmayne was tremendous as Hawking and I think Jones was up to the task as Jane, but there was something that I was waiting for, but didn't happen. I don't know what that was, but I felt like I wanted more. There were also times the movie seemed to drag for me. I recommend it for the performances, but I don't know if you need to see it in a theater, DVD would be just as good.

12/4/2014 Fury, not yet nominated, 2014

I thought I had missed my opportunity to see Fury starring Brad Pitt and Shia LeBeouf in the theaters, but lucky for me, it was still showing. My brother and I caught the 10:00 pm showing (I'm still surprised I even considered it, because I'm in bed by 10), but we both wanted to see it and since I was on vacation, I thought I could splurge and stay up until one o'clock in the morning. Fury is about an armored tank crew towards the end of World War II. The crew is lead by Staff Sergeant Don "Wardaddy" Collier (Brad Pitt), and they are repeatedly sent into situations that you think they will never survive. Shia LeBeouf is Boyd "Bible" Swan, the gunner in the tank (everybody has a nickname). There are others in the tank crew, Gordo and Coon-Ass. The tight knit group is joined by Norman Ellison (Logan Lerman) who was only trained as an Army typist, but he his tossed into these battle-hardened men and forced to learn the war game in a matter of days; he soon is given the name "Machine". I have watched a lot of war movies and I cannot recall any where tank warfare is featured, so from that perspective, I found it really interesting. What a claustrophobic atmosphere, and you're kind of trapped. The same armor that can protect you, can also confine you and be death trap. The movie does not shy away from the brutality of war, there is no sugar-coating here. It is filled with violence, close up and from a distance, the battlefield casualties as well as the civilian victims. The action was incredible, and as I mentioned, you feel like you are there. The acting, on the other hand, was uneven to me. I tried to explain to my brother that when they (Pitt, et al) were in the middle of battle, it was engrossing and believable. When the action was removed, it seemed like they were acting; like someone had written the words they were saying (which, in fact, someone had). The last 15 minutes were incredible, and we were both on the edge of our seats. I had a problem with Brad Pitt's hair. What was that? My brother thought it was one of the best movies he's seen. I definitely think that the movie will be nominated for sound editing, editing, possibly make up, screenplay and possibly acting for Brad Pitt.

12/6/2014 Birdman, not yet nominated, 2014

Birdman has been getting so much buzz lately and it was recently nominated for several Golden Globe awards. It stars Michael Keaton as Riggan Thomson, an actor who starred in a superhero franchise years ago, and is now looking for validation and legitimacy on the Broadway stage (if you don't know, Keaton starred as the first Batman in the first two Batman movies in the late 1980s and early 1990s). His somewhat distant daughter, Sam (Emma Stone) is his reluctant assistant, recently out of rehab. Naomi Watts is Lesley, an actress in her first Broadway play (Watts was also in St. Vincent, another 'small' film getting great reviews) and Edward Norton is Mike Shiner a Broadway actor who steps into Thomson's play at the last minute. Thomson is haunted by his alter-ego, Birdman, who pokes and prods Thomson, taunting him, even giving him the illusion that he has super powers. The interplay between Shiner and Thomson was fun, and you can imagine theater actors and film actors having this type of conflict (in fact, the recent television production of Peter Pan was criticized for not having more theater actors in the main roles of something that was a successful Broadway musical). I love Edward Norton's versatility as an actor; in Birdman he is an unapologetic egomaniac jerk; in The Grand Budapest Hotel and The Monsoon Kingdom he plays quirky authoritarian characters. Keaton is really good and raw in this role, and it was nice to see him back (he hasn't really been in a lot the last few years); this is the same guy who was in Beetlejuice and Mr. Mom. He does a great job. I liked how the movie was filmed, one scene seamlessly evolving into the next (very much like in Anna Karenina, 2013). I'm not sure if there is a technical name for that, but it was cool and it worked. The film begins during the previews for the play, so it has not opened yet. Something happens every night of the previews, and Thomson wavers between closing the show, his show, and continuing to prove something, to himself and the critics. Opening night has its own surprises, which you'll have to see for yourself, because that would spoil it. I don't know how I feel about the ending, I don't usually like whimsy mixing in with my comedy/drama, and it was not something I expected. I didn't hate it (the ending), but I didn't love it. Overall, it was worth seeing.

12/6/2014 Children of a Lesser God, Best Actress, 1986

Children of a Lesser God  is a movie based on the play by Mark Medoff, who also co-wrote the screenplay. It is set at a school for the deaf in the Northeast and John Hurt is a new speech teacher, James Leeds, working with deaf students to speak so they can communicate with the hearing world. He is able to use sign language, but he is always trying to get the students to speak to him. He meets Sarah Norman (Marlee Matlin), a former student of the school and now a custodian there. They initially have a combative relationship, with Sarah refusing to speak, and even when they begin a romantic relationship, they struggle with expectations of one another. James wants Sarah to try and speak, and Sarah, for reasons she does not disclose, she does not want to. Piper Laurie plays Sarah's emotionally distant mother, but their relationship eventually heals. You kind of get the feeling that this was originally a play because there is a small main cast, and I would love to see this on the stage. That doesn't take away from the movie at all. Hurt and Matlin were very good together, and Matlin was incredible when you think that she really is a deaf actress, acting with an experienced actor in Hurt, and she did so much with barely speaking (as she would sign, Hurt's character would speak aloud what she she was saying), and she took the Oscar over actresses like Jane Fonda, Sissy Spacek, Kathleen Turner and Sigourney Weaver (Aliens). The only movie that I had seen was Aliens, and you couldn't find two more disparate roles. Matlin was also the youngest Best Actress winner at the time.

12/2014 The Carol Burnett Show, 1970s
Okay, let me explain, oh, hell, I don't have to explain. I wanted some comedy and I love Carol Burnett, so there. Seriously, I remember watching  The Carol Burnett Show with my family on Saturday nights. I don't remember everything, and I'm sure I didn't understand everything, I just remember laughing. Carol and her cast, including Vicki Lawrence, Harvey Korman, Tim Conway and an incredible variety of guest stars never disappointed. I watched about six episodes, and honestly, some were funnier than others, anything with Tim Conway made me laugh. What I enjoyed was seeing this show from almost 40 years ago and who her guests were: Shirley MacLaine, Vincent Price, Maggie Smith (yes, from Downton Abbey fame) and the Jackson Five, including Michael. I got some good laughs and I'll be ordering the other DVDs from the library over the next several months, especially when things get too serious.

12/10/2014 Fast Times at Ridgemont High, 1982

This is for a friend of mine who is a loyal reader of this blog (I know there are a few of you); as a going away present she gave me a collection of movies that admittedly have not won any Oscars, but they were fun movies. So, my friend, this is for you. This is a movie that is referenced all the time, and yet, I have managed never to see it. It stars Sean Penn as Spicoli, the school pothead, Judge Reinhold as Brad, the high school senior with aspirations of, I don't know, fast food management? Jennifer Jason Leigh is Brad's younger sister, Stacy who is in a big hurry to lose her virginity and Phoebe Cates is her wise friend, Linda. I think the movie would have made more of an impression on me if I would have seen it when it first came out, because it was filled with naughty high school moments and great music. But, since I am watching it thirty years later, and I am old and jaded, it didn't impact me that much. There were some funny parts and the music was definitely great, songs by Jackson Browne, Don Henley (actually most of The Eagles), The Go-Gos and other 80's music stars. The retrospective aspect of seeing this movie so long after the release, is you can look back and see what stars some of the actors became: Sean Penn, Eric Stoltz, Forest Whitaker and Nicholas Cage to name a few. Cameron Crowe wrote the screenplay and was directed by Amy Heckerling.

12/13/2014 What About Bob? 1991

I just kind of threw this movie on my list. I was interested to see Bill Murray after recently seeing St. Vincent. Murray plays Bob, a very neurotic man who develops an attachment to his new psychiatrist, Dr. Leo Marvin, played by Richard Dreyfuss. Bob's attachment is so strong that he follows the doctor and his family to their vacation home in New Hampshire. This distresses the uptight doc, but his family become very fond of Bob. The main friction of the story is Dr. Marvin's intense and over-the-top reactions to Bob's antics, and the fact that his family, son Sigmund, daughter Anna, and wife Faye, all connect with Bob in some way that Leo cannot. You get the feeling that Bill Murray is not acting, that he really is like this, and as in St. Vincent, his interplay with the kids seems natural and fun (Kathryn Erbe who is known as Detective Eames played Anna). It was a fun movie, but I kind of went in and out of attention towards the end, however the end had an ironic twist. Dreyfuss's character was really an angry bombastic guy, which makes you wonder how good of a psychiatrist he was. I am glad I saw it to see Murray in another vehicle.

12/13/2014 The November Man, 2014

Hmmm. What to say? Pierce Brosnan taps into his spy background (he was one of the more recent 007s) to play a jaded CIA agent who comes out of retirement to get revenge on the people who killed the mother of his child. Lukey Bracey (who? that's what I said) is his protege. To be honest, I kind of stopped paying attention. There was action, some shooting, some punching, but I didn't care. This could have been good. It was worth the dollar rental from the library, but that's about it.

Whiling away the time while staying at home

There is no denying that these are very strange and tumultuous we're living in. Obviously I haven't been blogging too much lately, i...