Tina's February 2013 Movies

February was Oscar month, and I took movie watching to heart by seeing 16 of them.  Movies marked with an * are the ones I had not seen previously, and numbering picks up from the previous month.  They are rated on a scale of 1-5 cans of tuna, 5 being the highest accolade. Here is what I saw:

12.  Shampoo (1975) – Poor George (Warren Beatty).  All he wants to do is open up his own hair salon, so he can do the hair of all the beautiful women of Beverly Hills.  But all of the beautiful women of Beverly Hills want to do him.  Life is complicated by his current girlfriend Jill (Goldie Hawn); Felicia, his not-so-secret, married woman on the side (Lee Grant); and his ex (Julie Christie), who currently is with Felicia’s husband (Jack Weston).  Jumping on his motorcycle and armed with his hair dryer, George aims to please, because, as he admits, “It makes me feel like I could live forever.”  The action takes place as the 1968 election unfolds, and the movie skewers the right and the left for the meaningless of it all.  All George can say is, “You look great,” because when he is looking at their hair and their faces and knowing what happens next, that brings meaning to that moment.  Beatty and Christie represent the beautiful people of Hollywood at that time.  Beatty co-wrote and produced the movie and rocks his leather jacket with aplomb.  4 cans.
13.  The Electric Horseman (1979) – Washed up cowboy Sonny Steele (Robert Redford) makes his living by hawking breakfast cereal for a conglomerate.  Decked out in a cowboy outfit with electric lights that no cowboy alive would wear, one day he steals the beautiful horse he is supposed to trot around a stage in a Vegas hotel and proceeds out the door, his outfit nearly matching the illumination of the Strip.  TV reporter Allie Martin (Jane Fonda) worms some information out of one of Sonny’s cowboy friends and takes off in hot pursuit of Steele and his steed, learning that Sonny’s plan is to set the multi-million dollar horse free somewhere in Utah.  Sparks of every kind fly between them as Sonny doggedly stands by his horse.  The scenery is beautiful – and so is Redford.  But the most memorable line goes to Willie Nelson in a small role when he says he’s after a drink and a woman “who can suck the chrome off a trailer hitch.”  My heroes have always been cowboys – or at least in this film.  3½ cans.
14.  The Queen of Versailles* (2012) – Contrary to what you might think, this movie is not an historical drama.  Instead, it is a contemporary documentary about David and Jackie Segal, a billionaire couple so filthy rich that they are building their own Palace of Versailles in Orlando, Florida, because they “need” a bigger home – one complete with pools, bowling alleys, two grand staircases and millions of dollars worth of tile, marble and antiques – and because, as David says, “we can.”  Except that even billionaires didn’t escape the economic woes of 2008, and the Segals and their 7 children are forced into a life of “frugality.”  Versailles, with its 27 bathrooms and 10 – that’s right, 10 – kitchens lies half completed, with $50 million invested, a $100 million value and no takers.  Frugality for the Segals means flying commercial for the first time: One of the kids inquires, “Why are there other people on our plane?”  When Jackie – who manages to eek out funding for her botox injections – rents a car, she asks the guy at the rental counter for the name of her driver, and she takes shopping trips through Wal-Mart.  You almost feel sorry for David as he strategizes how to hold onto his company, Westgate Resorts, the largest time-share company in the world, as his world crumbles around him and he rails at the family about leaving lights on in the house.  But the opulence of his previous lifestyle, complete with an assembling of all Miss America candidates for a party in his home, reminds you of how far from reality rich people live.  He ultimately loses the unfinished palace and his Las Vegas property and you wonder if his marriage to a much younger Jackie will survive.  I was glad to finally catch this movie as part of a film series shown at the Princeton Library, and found it worth the wait.  4 carat gold cans.
15.  Side Effects* (2013) – Emily (Mara Rooney) is depressed – profoundly depressed – despite the fact that her husband (Channing Tatum) had just been released from prison for insider trading and they are starting to rebuild their lives.  But the medication prescribed to her to combat her depression has side effects – side effects far beyond dry mouth and occasional constipation.  This engrossing tale unfolds as Emily is treated by a psychiatrist (Jude Law) who is determined to help her and it twists its way through unexpected turns.  To say more about the plot would be wrong, but I will say it reminded me a bit of “Fracture” with Ryan Gosling and Anthony Hopkins because, like that movie, the viewer doesn’t see what’s coming.  Or at least I sure didn’t.  Highly recommended.  4 cans.
16.  Friendly Persuasion* (1956) – This film about the lives of Quakers in Indiana during the Civil War is the antithesis of any action movie ever made.  Nothing blows up, nothing derails, and nothing much happens – except for a battle scene – as Gary Cooper and Dorothy Maguire stick faithfully to their Quaker ways, complete with dialog stuffed with “thees” and “thous.”  Aside from the battle scene, the rowdiest scene takes place at the county fair, somewhere between the quilting exhibit and the man who swallows swords.  Meant to be heartwarming, the movie is so leisurely that it borders on the boring.  It is considered a 4-star effort by director William Wyler, but I found it – at almost 60 years old – too slow and well past its prime.  2½ cans.
17.  Quartet* (2013) – This movie is a perfectly pleasant paean to the realities of growing old and the joys of doing it with a circle of friends.  Director Dustin Hoffman guides a stable of veteran performers – Maggie Smith is first among equals, but also starring Pauline Collins, Tom Courteney and Billy Connolly – living in a home for retired musicians in England.  Connolly is a randy old man and incorrigible flirt, Collins is sweetly ditzy and prone to memory lapses, and Courteney is a singer once married to the newly-arrived star Smith.  Maggie looks less the dowager here than in “Downton Abbey” but she still gets to deliver the zingiest lines.  The plot is simple: Can the vets persuade Smith to join them in performing the quartet from Riggoletto in their annual gala performance?  While there is music aplenty in this movie, we never get to hear any singing by the principals, a sure sign that none of them is up to the standard set by their characters.  This is the perfect little movie for those of us who would rather skip car chases and explosions, other worldly locales and general movie madness.  Not great, but a good way to pass the time.  3½ cans.
18.  Boys Town* (1938) – Spencer Tracy won an Oscar for his portrayal of kindly Father Flanagan, the founder of Omaha’s Boys Town.  Flanagan believes there is no such thing as a bad boy, and he takes in boys who are abused, abandoned and neglected and who might otherwise become career criminals.  Mickey Rooney (no relation to Mara Rooney, above) plays a feisty young punk named Whitey whose criminal brother prevails on Father Flanagan to take Whitey in.  He rebels against the rules and the other boys, but it is pre-ordained in this movie that the good father will prevail.  This is a harmless movie meant to be inspiring because of the good works done by Father Flanagan, but I couldn’t help but wonder in looking through a 2013 lens how this effort would be perceived today.  Would there be state and local legislation affecting or preventing Flanagan’s approach?  Would he be carefully vetted to make sure he himself had no record of abuse against boys?  We live in a sad time when a movie as well-intentioned as this one could conjure up such skepticism.  3 cans.
19.  Top Hat* (1935) – So this is what “Dancing With the Stars” is supposed to be like!  I must admit that my exposure to the legendary Fred Astaire has been limited to clips of his great dancing that appeared in the various “That’s Entertainment” compilations.  So here there is an actual story, but it matters less than merely serving as a vehicle for Astaire and the wondrous Ginger Rogers to dance across the screen.  Astaire is all arms and legs, his exuberant dancing propelling the story with grace and charm.  And Rogers is no slouch herself, doing, as they say, everything Fred does but backwards, and while wearing high heels.  The plot here centers around mistaken identity, but there’s no mistaking the chemistry and charisma of the principals as they glide around to the tunes “Top Hat” and “Dancing Cheek to Cheek.”  And who, I ask you, can wear a top hat and tails better than Fred Astaire?  Case closed.  3½ cans.
20.  Identity Thief* (2013) – Let me go on the record and admit that I am a fan of Melissa McCarthy and Jason Bateman, whose career I have followed since “Silver Spoons.”  In this comedy, McCarthy gets to play the over-the-top character who steals Bateman’s identity, going on a wild spending spree and ruining his credit by using his gender neutral name: Sandy Patterson.  When law enforcement refuses to help the real Sandy, he decides to track down his identity thief and drag her back to Denver to confess.  Borrowing generously from “Planes, Trains and Automobiles,” “Midnight Run,” and even from “The Three Stooges,” the road trip includes sexual encounters, preposterous car crashes, bounty hunters and fights, but, in the tradition of Wily Coyote, everyone survives – even walks away – unharmed.  Bateman is a terrific straight man, and McCarthy, I suspect, made the most of a skimpy script.  This movie has way too much slapstick for me and an unbelievable plot (why would she agree to go with him, for example?), but the performances show that Bateman and McCarthy would be great with better material (though, judging by the preview of the next McCarthy movie – with Sandra Bullock – she is in danger of becoming a one-note, broad comedy badass comedian).  Walk, don’t run, to see this movie, or wait until it is free on cable, and you’ll find it modestly amusing.  3 cans.
21.  The Americanization of Emily* (1964) – It’s hard to be a hero when you are a coward, and Naval Commander Charlie Madison (James Garner) relishes his cowardice.  He doesn’t believe in glorifying war, but he is very good at his job of procuring needed supplies for the admiral to whom he reports.  He can find Hershey Bars, liquor and even designer dresses for the women he supplies to the officers.  When he meets war widow Emily (Julie Andrews), she turns out to be as resilient as he is, and they are smitten with each other.  When his slight irrational admiral assigns him to make a movie about the upcoming D-Day Invasion, he figures a way out of that, too – almost.  This clever satire, written by Paddy Chavefsky, takes on the military in the same way he took on TV networks (“Network”) and hospitals (“Hospital”), here reminding us that in war men die for no good reason.  This movie is billed as a comedy, but its reality of war is more cheeky than comedic.  Garner is so handsome, and Andrews is no Mary Poppins in this movie.  4 cans.
22.  Beyoncé: Life Is But a Dream* (2013) – Beyoncé is as much a force of nature as an entertainer, a woman fiercely asserting her independence (she fired her father as her manager) while professing her love for her husband (Jay Z), characterizing herself as an artist yet sensuously cavorting around on stage in thigh-high attire even while pregnant.  Her elaborate stage shows (pieces of which are shown in this documentary but which I have never seen in person) are a highly entertaining assault on the senses, complete with troops of background musicians and a plethora of stomping dancers, strobe lights, sparkly and revealing outfits and graphics that, if I were to see them in person, would make my head explode.  On the stage, she assures the audience that they are going to get everything she has as she exhorts them to stand up and wave their hands in the air.  You see, Beyoncé is in control – or wants to be – of everything in her world (save Jay Z, who even she realizes has power exceeding hers, simply because he is a man).  Hence her name is listed on this documentary as a writer, producer, co-director, part-time videographer and even as one of the choreographers.  Still, she manages to come across as humble, even as she asserts that she doesn’t care what people think of her any more.  She wants people to stop believing that she and other celebrities have perfect lives, and she worries that celebrities are judged not only for their talent but also for all the trappings of fame that make them celebrities.  There is something almost old-fashioned about Beyoncé, and her chance at longevity is closer to Tina Turner’s than some of her contemporaries (like Rihanna, who will, no doubt, grace the cover of People magazine when Chris Brown finally kills her).  She reveals that she had a miscarriage before giving birth to Blue Ivy Carter, her daughter, and that she considers staying current while trying to remain soulful to be the battle of her life.  Personally, I wondered if getting that weave to stay on with the wind machine blowing on her 24/7 were a bigger challenge.  I almost skipped this HBO movie, but I am glad to get a bit of Sacha Fierce in such fine form.  3½ cans.
23.  Butterfield 8* (1960) – Even if you don’t think much of Elizabeth Taylor as an actress – and bear in mind she won an Oscar for this movie – you can’t watch this film without being utterly captivated by her stunning beauty.  Those eyes, that regal bearing, those womanly curves – all contribute to her allure in this role as Gloria, a woman who uses men, choosing and discarding them at will and being well taken care of for her efforts.  The lore is that she was a highly-paid call girl, working the best parts of New York, but she refuses to take money from her latest conquest, played by Anthony Harvey, and is insulted when he leaves her a tidy sum after their initial tryst.  Instead, she steals his wife’s very expensive fur coat.  Then she commits the cardinal sin for women of her ilk – she falls for the guy (see “Pretty Woman” for a better ending).  Taylor’s then-husband, Eddie Fisher, has a small part as her long-time platonic friend, but even in his meager screen time he shows exactly how he got the part, and it wasn’t because of his acting skills.  Legend has it that Taylor won the Oscar after being passed over for “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” and after suffering from life-threatening pneumonia, but really, it is tough to show your best acting chops in a melodrama such as this (you can tell it is a melodrama by the wailing sax in the soundtrack).  3½ cans, but I am glad to finally have seen this movie. 
24.  Alfie* (1966) – What it is all about is the amorous adventures of a charming philanderer.  Alfie (Michael Caine) loves women – he just doesn’t want to commit to any of them since he likes to have casual sex with so many of them.  I’ll grant you he’s right: If you aren’t ready to get married, the marriage will likely fail anyway.  So Alfie is a serial dater, going from woman to woman, occasionally falling for them, and especially falling for the baby son he has with one of them (Millicent Martin).  But the determined bachelor is not about the settle down, so we follow his various trysts as he demonstrates his love for all women.  Caine is appropriately rakish as the cad Alfie.  His paramours include Shelly Winters, who gives him up for a young man, and, in doing so, makes him realize he is aging alone.  I was amazed to see that Cher sang the title tune, not Dionne Warwick, who made it an iconic recording.  3 cans.
25.  Once* (2006) – This little gem of a movie posed a few dilemmas for me.  One, I had a great deal of difficulty understanding the dialog as spoken by Irish musician Glen Hansard and the Czech woman he meets, played by Marketa Irglova.  Second, and more important, I recorded this movie on PBS, which had so much crap at the beginning that the end of the movie was cut off.  I have no idea how close I was to the end, so it is hard to say what I may have missed.  What I did see, however, centered around an Irish street musician (singer-songwriter) in Dublin who meets a young woman who can play piano.  She turns out to have a husband back home and a small child, lives with her mother and has no adequate means of support.  He isn’t much better off economically, but he is determined to go to London and really try to make headway on a career in music.  Together they record a few beautiful songs (with the help of several additional musicians), that convey their romantic issues and potential relationship.  You could see the couple belongs together, and I hope they had a happy ending – one way or another.  The music was lovely, and I can see why this show was a hit on Broadway when it opened last year.  But since I didn’t get through the whole movie, I’ll just give it 3 cans and a guitar pick.
26.  Easy Rider (1969) – Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper get their motors running and head out on the highway in this classic about two hippies on their way to New Orleans for Mardi Gras and good times.  1969 was a time of cultural change and clashes in America, and as the two men ride their motorcycles from California, they encounter some people seeking free expression and others who not only don’t want the times to be a changin’, but who will casually prevent it.  Jack Nicholson is a lawyer they meet along the way, as he bridges the cultural divide between the old ways of getting high through drinking and the perpetually stoned hippies.  Just seeing him explain alien invasions around a fire to Fonda and Hopper as they get him stoned for the first time is worth the price of admission.  Born to be wild, I guess.  You have to hand it to Hopper, who directed the movie, for starring in this classic as well as the iconic “Hoosiers,” one of the best sports movies ever made.  3½ cans.
27.  The Graduate (1967) – Since this movie is my all-time favorite (and a great way to end Oscar month), I have reviewed it previously and won’t go into much detail here.  It is widely considered by critics whose opinions carry more weight than mine to be one of the best comedies of all time.  Cerebral director Mike Nichols gives us plenty of interesting images and much to consider in this critique of conventional mores.  Benjamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman in his film debut), a disaffected recent college graduate, has no idea what to do with his future.  He is lured into an apathetic affair with Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft, who was only seven years older than Hoffman), the much older wife of his father’s business partner.  Their affair is no more passionate than “just shaking hands,” as he ultimately explains to the much offended Mr. Robinson (Murray Hamilton), but that’s not enough for anyone, including their daughter Elaine (Katherine Ross), who Benjamin dates once before she, too, discovers the truth.  His zeal to win her over, amid the displeasure of her parents, is the rest of the movie.  Filled with memorable lines (“I have one word for you, Ben:  Plastics.  Enough said.”) and a Simon & Garfunkel soundtrack, this movie had me at “Hello darkness, my old friend.”  My devotion to this movie came at a time of my life when I was young and also questioning my future.  I saw it seven times in a theater in the first year or so and I have seen it countless times since.  5 cans and a big smile from the back of the bus.