Day 104 - 4/14/09 - Movie #102
BEFORE: This Western is based on a Louis L'Amour story, about two Texas brothers at the end of the Civil War, one was a Union soldier, and one fought for the confederacy. It stars Tom Selleck and Sam Elliott - get ready for the battle of the mustaches!
THE PLOT: Brothers meet up at the end of the Civil after War fighting on opposite sides. They return home only to find their sisters and brother kidnapped by ruthless raiders, so they set forth on an adventure to rescue their family.
AFTER: I think this was a made-for-TV movie, but the Encore Western channel aired it like a feature film. The music is cheezy, the acting is mostly soap-opera level, and there are fade-outs for commercials. The movie also stars Katharine Ross, last seen by me as Butch Cassidy's girlfriend, but Selleck's the standout here - he's a much better actor, but Sam Elliott's soup-strainer wins the mustache war. (sorry, Magnum!)
RATING: 4 out of 10 horses
Friday, April 17, 2009
Butch & Sundance: The Early Days
Day 103 - 4/13/09 - Movie #101
BEFORE: I set up my new computer yesterday, an iMac I bought on closeout (last year's model, I guess) - but it's got Mac's Leopard OS, so things should be much faster for me now that I'm off my old G3 Tower with OS9. Sort of ironic that my home computer is finally 21st-century technology, while I'm watching movies about the 19th century... Maybe I wasn't the only one who found the storyline of "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" incomplete, since this prequel was made, but with Newman and Redford replaced with Tom Berenger and William Katt (yes, TV's Greatest American Hero in a Western!)
THE PLOT: A prequel chronicling the two outlaws' lives in the years before the events portrayed in the Newman/Redford movie.
AFTER: I actually think this prequel has more action than the original film, plus it is nice to see the beginning of their story, how Butch + Sundance met, why they started robbing banks, plus their first encounter with the tracker Le Fors (played by Peter Weller, looking a LOT like Keith Carradine...). Some minor continuity issues - Butch mentions the "mint train" in the first scene, then doesn't seem to know what it is later in the film...plus Sundance tells Butch his real name in this movie, but Newman's Butch is surprised when he hears it in the original film.
RATING: 6 out of 10 strongboxes (is it wrong to like the prequel a little better?)
BEFORE: I set up my new computer yesterday, an iMac I bought on closeout (last year's model, I guess) - but it's got Mac's Leopard OS, so things should be much faster for me now that I'm off my old G3 Tower with OS9. Sort of ironic that my home computer is finally 21st-century technology, while I'm watching movies about the 19th century... Maybe I wasn't the only one who found the storyline of "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" incomplete, since this prequel was made, but with Newman and Redford replaced with Tom Berenger and William Katt (yes, TV's Greatest American Hero in a Western!)
THE PLOT: A prequel chronicling the two outlaws' lives in the years before the events portrayed in the Newman/Redford movie.
AFTER: I actually think this prequel has more action than the original film, plus it is nice to see the beginning of their story, how Butch + Sundance met, why they started robbing banks, plus their first encounter with the tracker Le Fors (played by Peter Weller, looking a LOT like Keith Carradine...). Some minor continuity issues - Butch mentions the "mint train" in the first scene, then doesn't seem to know what it is later in the film...plus Sundance tells Butch his real name in this movie, but Newman's Butch is surprised when he hears it in the original film.
RATING: 6 out of 10 strongboxes (is it wrong to like the prequel a little better?)
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
Day 102 - 4/12/09 - Movie #100
BEFORE: Well, for my milestone 100th film of 2009, I wanted a film that is generally regarded as a great classic - what's better than an iconic Western starring Redford and Newman?
THE PLOT: Two Western bank/train robbers flee to Bolivia when the law gets too close.
AFTER: Yes, there is some witty dialogue and interplay between the two stars, but not enough action for my tastes. A couple shootouts, sure, but the first half of the movie is just one long chase scene, which is essentially a very simple story. I'm not seeing this as a "great" Western (I prefer something like "Posse" or "The Long Riders") since the reputations of the outlaws seem to outshine their actual deeds. Also, a good story should have a beginning, middle and end, and this just seemed like one long middle part.
RATING: 5 out of 10 sticks of dynamite.
BEFORE: Well, for my milestone 100th film of 2009, I wanted a film that is generally regarded as a great classic - what's better than an iconic Western starring Redford and Newman?
THE PLOT: Two Western bank/train robbers flee to Bolivia when the law gets too close.
AFTER: Yes, there is some witty dialogue and interplay between the two stars, but not enough action for my tastes. A couple shootouts, sure, but the first half of the movie is just one long chase scene, which is essentially a very simple story. I'm not seeing this as a "great" Western (I prefer something like "Posse" or "The Long Riders") since the reputations of the outlaws seem to outshine their actual deeds. Also, a good story should have a beginning, middle and end, and this just seemed like one long middle part.
RATING: 5 out of 10 sticks of dynamite.
The Natural
Day 101 - 4/11/09 - Movie #99
BEFORE: I'll wrap up Baseball Week with this classic Redford film - it's set in the late 1930's, when men all wore hats, and women were called "dames". You can always count on Redford to play the most naive, most noble, and usually the prettiest person in the room.
THE PLOT: A baseball player comes out of seemingly nowhere to become a legendary player with almost divine talent.
AFTER: The film has more baseball cliches than you can shake a bat at - the aging manager who's got one last chance at a pennant, Roy Hobbs literally knocking the cover off the ball...the pacing is a little slow but it leads up to a great payoff. The film is stocked with these old-timey actors like Wilford Brimley, Robert Prosky and Richard Farnsworth, maybe to make Redford look young by comparison. Redford's character is supposed to be in his late 30's, but everyone calls him "Kid", and I can't tell if they were trying to be ironic or not. There are moments that are cornier than the cornfield in "Field of Dreams" - Kim Basinger plays the bad-luck temptress that puts Hobbs in a slump, and Glenn Close is the farmgirl from his past who lifts him out of it.
But, the folksiness seems appropriate for the "golden age" of baseball, and there are a solid number of those great dramatic baseball moments, where the gameplay goes into slow-motion, and the music swells...
RATING: Minus 2 (for corniness) leaves 8 out of 10 homers.
BEFORE: I'll wrap up Baseball Week with this classic Redford film - it's set in the late 1930's, when men all wore hats, and women were called "dames". You can always count on Redford to play the most naive, most noble, and usually the prettiest person in the room.
THE PLOT: A baseball player comes out of seemingly nowhere to become a legendary player with almost divine talent.
AFTER: The film has more baseball cliches than you can shake a bat at - the aging manager who's got one last chance at a pennant, Roy Hobbs literally knocking the cover off the ball...the pacing is a little slow but it leads up to a great payoff. The film is stocked with these old-timey actors like Wilford Brimley, Robert Prosky and Richard Farnsworth, maybe to make Redford look young by comparison. Redford's character is supposed to be in his late 30's, but everyone calls him "Kid", and I can't tell if they were trying to be ironic or not. There are moments that are cornier than the cornfield in "Field of Dreams" - Kim Basinger plays the bad-luck temptress that puts Hobbs in a slump, and Glenn Close is the farmgirl from his past who lifts him out of it.
But, the folksiness seems appropriate for the "golden age" of baseball, and there are a solid number of those great dramatic baseball moments, where the gameplay goes into slow-motion, and the music swells...
RATING: Minus 2 (for corniness) leaves 8 out of 10 homers.
Rookie of the Year
Day 100 - 4/10/09 - Movie #98
BEFORE: I'll keep baseball week alive with this sports fantasy film...
THE PLOT: When an accident miraculously gives a boy an incredibly powerful pitching arm, he becomes a major league pitcher for the Chicago Cubs.
AFTER: This was directed by one of the actors, Daniel Stern, so unfortunately that means that most of the acting is over-the-top, the expressions are too exaggerated. This also means that Stern's character, the pitching coach, manages to lock himself in closets or equipment rooms for most of the film, so he doesn't have to act and direct at the same time, I guess (the running joke runs thin REAL fast...) And am I supposed to believe that a National League baseball team would hire a phenom pitcher, and never prepare for the fact that he would have to bat someday? Wouldn't batting practice be required for ALL National League pitchers - so why is it such a shock to everyone when the kid has to take an at-bat? It's too cutesy and simplistic, with way too much slapstick.
RATING: 2 out of 10 strikeouts
BEFORE: I'll keep baseball week alive with this sports fantasy film...
THE PLOT: When an accident miraculously gives a boy an incredibly powerful pitching arm, he becomes a major league pitcher for the Chicago Cubs.
AFTER: This was directed by one of the actors, Daniel Stern, so unfortunately that means that most of the acting is over-the-top, the expressions are too exaggerated. This also means that Stern's character, the pitching coach, manages to lock himself in closets or equipment rooms for most of the film, so he doesn't have to act and direct at the same time, I guess (the running joke runs thin REAL fast...) And am I supposed to believe that a National League baseball team would hire a phenom pitcher, and never prepare for the fact that he would have to bat someday? Wouldn't batting practice be required for ALL National League pitchers - so why is it such a shock to everyone when the kid has to take an at-bat? It's too cutesy and simplistic, with way too much slapstick.
RATING: 2 out of 10 strikeouts
Mr. Baseball
Day 97 - 4/9/09 - Movie #97
BEFORE: Keeping the baseball theme rolling - but here it's combined with a redemption story and also a "fish out of water" story. Nothing at all like yesterday's movie about an aging baseball player looking to to recapture glory - see, this one has Tom Selleck!
THE PLOT: A fading baseball player is traded to a Japanese team and has trouble fitting into the society.
AFTER: I am spotting a common theme - this time Selleck plays the arrogant baseball pro (a NY Yankee, of course...) who has to learn humility in order to succeed on the field - but in addition, he has to learn Japanese customs and overcome a language barrier, and also face his own fears and limitations. The baseball metaphors are even more obvious here - becoming a "team player", and a sacrifice bunt is symbolic of, well, sacrifice... And there's a nice homage to "The Karate Kid" as Selleck trains, with his Japanese coach acting like Mr. Miyagi. Selleck's character does manage to teach his coach a few things about having fun with baseball, but I'm still going to have to penalize the film, though, for making baseball seem like a daily grind instead of an exciting pastime.
RATING: 5 out of 10 noodle bowls
BEFORE: Keeping the baseball theme rolling - but here it's combined with a redemption story and also a "fish out of water" story. Nothing at all like yesterday's movie about an aging baseball player looking to to recapture glory - see, this one has Tom Selleck!
THE PLOT: A fading baseball player is traded to a Japanese team and has trouble fitting into the society.
AFTER: I am spotting a common theme - this time Selleck plays the arrogant baseball pro (a NY Yankee, of course...) who has to learn humility in order to succeed on the field - but in addition, he has to learn Japanese customs and overcome a language barrier, and also face his own fears and limitations. The baseball metaphors are even more obvious here - becoming a "team player", and a sacrifice bunt is symbolic of, well, sacrifice... And there's a nice homage to "The Karate Kid" as Selleck trains, with his Japanese coach acting like Mr. Miyagi. Selleck's character does manage to teach his coach a few things about having fun with baseball, but I'm still going to have to penalize the film, though, for making baseball seem like a daily grind instead of an exciting pastime.
RATING: 5 out of 10 noodle bowls
Mr. 3000
Day 98 - 4/8/09 - Movie #96
BEFORE: Baseball week continues - as Bernie Mac plays an ex-Brewer who comes out of retirement to get three more hits.
THE PLOT: Aging baseball star who goes by the nickname, Mr. 3000, finds out many years after retirement that he didn't quite reach 3,000 hits. Now at age 47 he's back to try and reach that goal.
AFTER: It's not uncommon for a sports film to work as a morality lesson, but this one works better than most. Mac's character, Stan Ross, has to learn to be humble and unselfish in order to reach his milestone goal - and has to discover that the best kind of player is, in fact, a team player. Good supporting work by Angela Bassett and Christopher Noth. It makes you wonder what Bernie Mac himself was close to accomplishing when he passed away.
RATING: Would have been an 8, but I'm taking one away for having essentially the same climactic baseball play as "Major League" did, so 7 out of 10 souvenir balls.
BEFORE: Baseball week continues - as Bernie Mac plays an ex-Brewer who comes out of retirement to get three more hits.
THE PLOT: Aging baseball star who goes by the nickname, Mr. 3000, finds out many years after retirement that he didn't quite reach 3,000 hits. Now at age 47 he's back to try and reach that goal.
AFTER: It's not uncommon for a sports film to work as a morality lesson, but this one works better than most. Mac's character, Stan Ross, has to learn to be humble and unselfish in order to reach his milestone goal - and has to discover that the best kind of player is, in fact, a team player. Good supporting work by Angela Bassett and Christopher Noth. It makes you wonder what Bernie Mac himself was close to accomplishing when he passed away.
RATING: Would have been an 8, but I'm taking one away for having essentially the same climactic baseball play as "Major League" did, so 7 out of 10 souvenir balls.
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