Tootsie (1982) by Sydeny Pollack

Sydney Pollack’s 1982 film Tootsie is a comedy that should be viewed by all. This 119 minutes film grossed over $177 million in box offices and had 9 Oscar nominations, with a Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.
Michael Dorsey (Dustin Hoffman) who is an unemployed actor back steps into an audition after his friend Sandy was dismissed. Dorsey embraces the southern grandma character roll for a Daytime Soap Opera show perfectly and is quick to change his life after getting the role of Dorothy Michaels.

Genna Davis’s debut in this film with an exercise scene in bra and small silky underwear might grab those looking for a little sizzle. Dorsey is quick to realize what women endure to be beautiful, oh forget that, just to be woman.

Bill Murray and Dabney Coleman bring life into the twisted drama of a man pretending to be a woman in everyday life. An engagement and broken up love twist add to the humor of this film.

After ratings soared on the Daytime soap, Dorothy’s contract is renewed and the pressure of being a woman 24-7 is enough for Michael Dorsey. He quickly schemes to change the dramatic scene on live television that will end his role as Dorothy forever..

Pollack does an excellent job bring viewers into this film with personal associations. The scenes were simple but utilized well. Camera angles and lighting was utilized well to accent the film. The laughter will never stop in this film and is a must see in my book!

Some other sites to check out:
www.imdb.com

Coming to A-meh-rica

How was John Landis’ 1988 film Coming to America? Meh. It wasn’t good; it wasn’t bad. It was just meh.

An average PG-rated romantic comedy disguised as an R-rated Eddie Murphy vehicle (drops a couple F-bombs and shows some boobs to pack in the kids), the movie is a far cry from the raucous work of Landis’ Animal House or Trading Places. Production values, however, are all top-notch with some nice looking costumes and scenery.

A fairly standard take on the fish out of water story, the film follows Prince Akeem (Murphy) and Semmi (Arsenio Hall) as they come to New York looking for a worthy wife for Akeem. Where in New York would you find such a woman? Well, Queens, of course!

The highlight of the movie is the make-up effects by Rick Baker. His genius transforms Murphy and Hall into multiple characters throughout the film. (This is just a taste of what Baker and Murphy offer in The Nutty Professor.) Murphy and Hall are much more interesting in these minor roles than they are as the film’s leads.

The bad fashions of the late 80s were distracting and I kept thinking to myself, “Did we really dress like that?” Dr. Huxtable sweaters and balloon mini-skirts make it look like Flashdance exploded all over the cast.

Stay Gold

S.E. Hinton's 1967 novel The Outsiders has been a staple of junior high reading classes for years. The story of rival gangs violently protecting their turf continues to resonate with today's young readers. (Just check out the paperback's sales ranking on Amazon.) Francis Coppola's 1983 film version faithfully captures the book's world of alienated teens in the 60s.

Broken homes, smokes, and switchblades make up the lives of Ponyboy Curtis (C. Thomas Howell) and the gang of "greasers" that are his extended family. Caught in the crossfire of a class war with the "socs"--the more affluent teenagers from the north side of town--Ponyboy and Johnny (Ralph Macchio) run away after killing one of the soc leaders (Leif Garrett). But when they save a bunch of children from a fire at an abandoned church, with the help of Matt Dillon's Dallas, the boys can return to town in time for the big rumble.

Although the 60s setting lends the film the look of a teen classic (think Rebel Without a Cause), it eventually cracks under the weight of the melodrama that characterizes such films. One too many characters are lit by a dreamy Technicolor sunrise/sunset, a la Gone With the Wind, and an easy-listening theme song by Stevie Wonder only serves to pile on the schmaltz.

The film, however, does get some things right. The assembled cast is a powerhouse of talent that also includes Patrick Swayze, Diane Lane, Rob Lowe, Emilio Estevez, and Tom Cruise. These young actors are all consistently good in their portrayals of the troubled Oklahoma teens. The movie's message to always retain some sense of child-like wonder is a good sentiment (although, I figure it is more the work of Hinton than Coppola).

Nepotism Alert: Keep an eye out for a young Sophia Lost in Translation Coppola!

Making light of Mr.Montana's anger problems.

SCARFACE (1983)
WARNING: The video is very explicit!

In the year 1983 Scarface was one of the most controversial films ever. Now, its almost laughable. Don't get me wrong, Scarface is a classic, a truly phenomenal film. To the extent that it has left its mark in pop-culture history, whether it is through cult film lovers, or the professional athletes and rappers that have Tony Montana splashed across there homes, via MTV Cribs. The film is about Tony Montana, a Cuban refugee, who works his way up through Miami’s drug world. I sat down to watch this movie, and my family began to join in.

Strangely, we found ourselves laughing at scenes that weren’t intended to be laughed at. We found that over time a film that was originally serious and intense is now almost comical. I would suggest watching the film twice for those who have never seen it. Once with a serious focus, and the second time focus on making light of the situations. Pay close attention to the facial expressions, and the slurring of words by Al Pacino. As Tony Montana becomes angered about something, the movie does a thing that resembles old kung-fu movies (or Kill Bill for those with more modern tastes) the scene plays loud orchestra music and zooms in on his eyes, to show the anger of Tony. It is humorous to see Tony go ballistic Often the littlest thing sets him off, he goes completely crazy. Looking at the costumes is funny. In the 80's it was the height of the gangster fashion. But now if I saw someone wearing a white tux, with a red shirt, unbuttoned half way down with a gold chain, I would assume that they got lost somewhere on the way to a reunion ABBA concert. Not to mention the beach scenes with spandex. Those are always a fun clothing accessory. So in conclusion I think Scarface is a phenomenal film, I just think that its hard to take it seriously now.

http://imdb.com/title/tt0086250/

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=386922
(this is a fake profile of someone acting like Tony)

Oh to be young again....

32.7 Degrees in the Morning AKA Betty Blue (1986) is a beautiful film about love and how far it can go. Zorg (Jean-Hugues Anglade) is a 30 year old handyman who lives in a shack along the French coast. He is a writer as we later find out and really aspires to be nothing. But then Betty (Beatrice Dalle) walks through his door and his life changes completely.

Betty is 19, wild and free. She sees a lifetime of love with Zorg and wants him to become a worthwhile man. Unfortunately she seems to suffer from a borderline personality that is a ticking time bomb. The couple move to several places around France and revel the joys that life brings them. But Betty wants Zorg's book to be published and Zorg realizes that no matter what he does, Betty will never be happy. The miscarriage of their child tips Betty over the edge. In the end Zorg realizes what he must do.

The movie is 185 minutes long and I never found myself wanting it to be over. The beautiful scenery of the ocean, small villages, and the French countryside only made it harder for me to look away. Wonderful characters adorn this film by way of the wonderful elderly couple who live next door, to Betty's friend Lisa and her over the top boyfriend, Eddie. The film draws you into Betty and Zorg's life and their passionate moments together. The characters are believable and you feel as if you are right there with them.

Wonderful imagery, soundtrack and acting. I would recommend this movie.
www.imdb.com

"Man has made his match...now it's his problem"

It's 2016, Los Angeles, and your job is to hunt down replicants because they aren't human. In fact, you aren't quite sure if you are even human. In Ridley Scott's Blade Runner, there is a fine line between reality and fiction as well as night and day. Decker, played by Harrison Ford, is on the hunt for 6 escaped "replicants". He is a very lucky man indeed, for he drinks like a fish, doesn't get many clues, gets beat to crap everyday, and yet, gets the job done.

I understand that in 1982 this film could be viewed as somewhat futuristic but I just can't buy the whole package. Why is everything so square in the future? Square liquor bottles, square drinking glasses, square flying cars, as well massive square buildings. I would think by 2016 we would have moved forward at least architecturally. Good thing we have the technology to manufacture replicants to take care of us humans in 2016! It seems that in the city of LA here on earth, there is a massive poplulation of Asian people and the only employer in town is the Tyrell Corporation which looms high above the city. This would explain why there isn't any sun in the city and possibly all that rain! Those poor actors!

The replicant Rachel (Sean Young) wrestles with the question of if she is in fact "more human than human" or just a bucket of bolts. She of course gets involved with Decker and he, in turn, questions reality himself. The "bad" replicants come back to earth, try to find their leader, Roy Batty (Rutger Hauer), and while possessing supernatural strength, aren't very smart when it comes to guns and bullets. Batty is in love with Pris (Daryl Hannah) who is quite the acrobat and needs to lay off the eyeliner. The movies' two main characters, Batty and Decker then see themselves in each other and eventually, after a very long fight sequence, one lets go of life and one runs away to a new life.

The style of the 1940's plays a major role in this film and this style can be seen in the costumes, hair styles, set designs and all that incessant cigarette smoking!

I found this movie, its plot, and its characters unrealistic. Possibly that is the idea of the movie but I found it boring.
http://carteles.metropoliglobal.com/4planti.php?id=529
www.imdb.com

Truly a classic film

It is fitting to return to this classic foreign film from the 80s, especially when it seems that a horror film opens every Friday to mega box office numbers. The Vanishing is not a film like Silent Hill, Saw, and all the others, but it is a punishing piece of scary stuff, and what makes it so scary is the last five minutes or so. This is not a Wes Craven like film, instead this is the return of Hitchcock and return he does.

The film opens with us focusing on the couple sitting next to the pine tree and they dominate the screen space for around 20 minutes, but there are inklings that things are not going to go well for the couple, including the running out of gas in the middle of one of those long, long tunnels that barrels through the Alps.

I am not giving anything away when I say that one of the two happy folks in the picture disappears. It then becomes the obsession of the other to discover what happened. And this obsession lasts for three years.

What makes the film so cool, at least in my mind, is the temporal narrative shift that occurs 25 minutes in. We then go backwards in time (although we don't know it at first) and catch up with all the actions of the villain who plans the abduction down to a T.

This is not a film that moves rapidly. It is a movie that takes its time in developing character and in doing so it builds suspense and tension.

A brilliant film and in need of more attention than it currently gets.

The Fly

Maybe it was me, but at moments it seemed like Cronenberg had borrowed the cinematic equipment and sets from one of those bad Skinamax films.

For example, when our lovely leading lady makes her way to talk to her editor and former boyfriend after seeing her stocking, a black stocking at that, teleported between one bee hive telephone booth to another bee hive telephone booth, the setting of his office looks completed handcrafted by the same folks who make classic episodes of Passion Cove and the like. (And yes, I know The Fly is earlier. But go back and watch the film. It seems that Cronenberg really has no interest in crafting a reality outside of the Brundle's laboratory. It is there that the film takes on a level of reality. Everything else rings of plasticity.

Of course, it is interesting that Cronenberg rarely ever shoots the film outside. We only get a few minor shots outside of Brundle's building and that is it.



What we also see here is some interesting acting by Jeff Goldblum who still seems to be channeling his character from The Big Chill. But, you do have to give Cronenberg credit. The last half hour of the film does well for horror, including fly vomit, falling skin, and melting flesh.

A look at the Cronenberg canon:

http://www.filmfreakcentral.net/notes/dcronenbergretrointerview.htm

"Wax on, wax off..."

John G. Avildsen’s The Karate Kid (1984) is one of the best-known 80s films and something of a cult classic. Danny LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) is desperately eager to learn karate because he’s being tormented by bullies at his new high school. Unfortunately, these bullies happen to be students at the local dojo, where the philosophy is “strike hard, strike fast, no mercy.” Mr. Miyagi, Danny’s kindly neighbor, agrees to teach the boy karate himself after witnessing a particularly brutal episode of harassment. The elderly Japanese handyman convinces the dojo to leave Danny alone until the upcoming karate tournament, where they will settle their differences once and for all.

Miyagi (Pat Morita) teaches Danny that karate should be used for defense, never for intimidation. The strength, discipline, and self-confidence gained through karate training enable one to avoid engaging in physical fights except when absolutely necessary. This contrasts markedly with the dojo’s philosophy.

Both Miyagi and Danny are outsiders. Miyagi’s broken English and first-generation immigrant status set him apart, while Danny, having recently moved to California from New Jersey, has yet to find acceptance among his peers. Compared to his classmates, Danny doesn’t have much money, either.

Mr. Miyagi becomes a mentor and father figure to Danny, whose own father is absent. Although Danny’s mother clearly cares about her son, she is a minor character and rarely seen.

As a coming-of-age film, The Karate Kid focuses on the relationship between teacher and student and shows Danny’s transformation from a scared kid into a more confident and mature young adult. This is a film that anyone can relate to, and I highly recommend it.

Some kids go into space...

Ok so I watched this film called Space Camp and it was made in 1986. It stars Kate Capshaw, Lea Thompson, Kelly Preston, Tate Donovan, and Leaf Pheonix before he came jaquin..or however you spell it! The acting is average and the plot is super cheesy but overall I actually liked this film. So pretty much the story revolves around 5 kids who come to space camp and their teacher is named Andie. They learn all about space and then on one day, they get the opportunity to feel an engine burn test. Well the heat curtain fails and one of the rockets starts to burn so in order to not have them burn up they have to send these 6 ppl into space. They get into space ok but they learn they only have one oxygen tank and in 12 hours they will die. They have just 12 hours to make it home so they have to find another oxygen source and they find one in the space station daedalus. They go and collect two oxygen tanks which help them but all of a sudden NASA decides to take auto control and Andie gets stuck outside of the shuttle! The kids override and they bring andie in but she's hurt and they wont make it to the next landing spot and then they realize they can get to white sands in Mexico so they do that and they contact NASA through morse code and they help aid them in getting back home. Kathryn who is one of the kids must pilot them back with Kevin as commander, the shuttle starts to spin as they almost enter atmo but she gains contol and auto takes over and well i think you know the rest. The movie I wouold reccoment because it's interesting and at moments just really funny. the special fx are cheesy and you can tell when they are fake and the music by the great John Williams is fantastic...sometimes a little too over the top.