A Christmas Story, The Departed, Bogart in In a Lonely Place

12/24/16 The Departed, Best Director, Best Picture, Best Film Editing, Best Adapted Screenplay, 2006

I saw The Departed around the time it first came out, hard to believe it was ten years ago, but I wanted to watch it again. I was surprised at how suspenseful it still was to me. Martin Scorsese told a tight, tense story, with a couple twists and turns. Set in Boston, the story follows Billy Costigan (Leonardo DiCaprio) as an undercover cop trying to get into the mob, lead by Frank Costello (Jack Nicholson in a truly twisted role) and Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon) who is Costello's own mole in the State Police. The supporting cast includes Alec Baldwin as Captain George Ellerby, Martin Sheen as Captain Queenan, Mark Wahlberg as Staff Sargeant Sean Dignam, Ray Winstone as one of Costello's right hand men, French; and Vera Farmiga as Dr. Madolyn Madden, who gets involved with both Costigan and Sullivan. Queenan and Wahlberg are the only people who know about Costigan. The Departed is a story about double-crosses, who can you trust, and is anyone who they say they are. It won Best Picture and Scorsese won his first Best Director Oscar; longtime editor, Thelma Schoonmaker won an Oscar for Best Film Editing. I liked the movie, I thought the performances were good, you really felt Costigan's stress and anxiety at getting caught as a mole; Costello (Nicholson) comes across as you would expect a ruthless mob boss to be, perhaps using Whitey Bulger as a reference. It's not your typical Christmas movie, that's for sure.


12/24/16 In a Lonely Place, 1950 #89 BBC, National Film Registry

As much as I have had my issues with the BBC list of 100 Best American films, I have also had some interesting surprises, like my first Nicholas Ray film Johnny Guitar, my second Ray film, In a Lonely Place, was definitely not anything I expected. Humphrey Bogart and Gloria Grahame star in this film noir (do they make film noir movies anymore?) that stars Bogart as Dixon Steele (really, that's his name), a Hollywood screenwriter who is living off of his past successes, waiting for inspiration to strike; Grahame is Laurel Gray, his neighbor who becomes much more. Steele falls under suspicion for the murder of a young coat check girl. It's kind of hard to talk about the movie without giving too much away, and because I want you to see it, I don't want to spoil anything. Here is what I will tell you: Steele has a bit of a temper and can be a bit possessive and needy; Gray inspires him to start writing again, but does she think that Steele committed the murder, or is even capable of such a thing? Over the course of this movie project, I have watched a lot of film noir movies, and I am rarely disappointed; there is something that is so different from more recent movies that seems refreshing, maybe it's seeing actors from a bygone era, some we know, many we don't, maybe it's the lack of special effects and explosions and CGI, maybe it's watching a movie where the characters don't have smart phones, computers or any kind of modern technology. Maybe try a double feature, In a Lonely Place and Laura with Gene Tierney? Step back in time, put the phone down and enjoy.


12/25/16 A Christmas Story, 1983, National Film Registry

Fragile. - The infamous Leg Lamp

I don't know what they do in other countries on Christmas Day, but here in the U.S., we have A Christmas Story on television for 24 hours. No matter when you turn on TNT (the home of the marathon) over the Christmas holiday, you will enter 1940s middle America and the family of Ralphie Parker (Peter Billingsley). Some people hate this tradition, but I happen to love it. It's not so much a nostalgic feeling, because, while I am old, I am not that old; but it is a loving look back on a simpler time, told from the viewpoint of Ralphie, a somewhat clumsy and awkward nine year old. Storyteller and creator of A Christmas Story, Jean Shepherd is also the narrator, and he adds the right level of drama and irony. Ralphie's big wish for Christmas is a Red Ryder BB gun (you'll shoot your eyes out), and he dreams about it, asking Santa, trying to manipulate his parents, using it to save his parents from marauders. During the movie, we see Ralphie play and fight with his classmates, especially Scut Farkus, things that nine years may still do today. Ralphie's brother Randy (Ian Petrella) doesn't have a lot of speaking lines, but he does get some of the funnier physical bits, including eating like a pig at the table, at his mother's (Melinda Dillon) prodding (according to Ralphie, Randy hasn't voluntarily eaten in three years), and being dressed up so snugly he cannot get up once knocked down. Ralphie's parents Dillon and the wonderfully curmudgeonly Darren McGavin seem perfect in their imperfection. Mrs. Parker has it a little more together and she lovingly tolerates Mr. Parker's swearing outbursts (portrayed with nonsense words) and his penchant for entering contests in his quest to win the big prize. McGavin plays Mr. Parker with no sense of irony or self awareness, and I mean that in the best possible way. I could recount all of the scenes that make me laugh out loud, but I think you should watch for yourself. To me, A Christmas Story is a lot like Young Frankenstein, where everyone knows those iconic scenes, and you just have to say "You'll shoot your eyes out" or "I double-dog dare you" or "Fragile. It's Italian" and people know what movie you're talking about.A Christmas Story holds a special place for me for another reason; key scenes were filmed in my hometown of Cleveland, Ohio. The scenes showing downtown were shot in Public Square, around the Soldiers and Sailors monument and Higbee's Department Store; the Parker house is now known as "A Christmas Story House" on the West Side of Cleveland and you can visit. As I write this, I am watching it for the 3rd time in a row. I'll move on to other things, eventually.