1. Camelot (1967) – “By law there’s simply not a more congenial spot,” as the song says, and Camelot does seem like a wonderful world in which to live. But then kindly King Arthur (Richard Harris) finds himself the odd man out in the love triangle between his beloved wife Guinevere (Vanessa Redgrave) and his loyal Lancelot (Franco Nero) and faces an insurrection by the Knights of the Roundtable. So much for Camelot. When I was a kid, the debate raged among my friends of the merits of this musical versus fellow Broadway show “West Side Story.” Both had love stories, great music and memorable characters. I preferred WSS and still do, and, while this movie is good, it probably would have been better with Richard Burton as the star, as he was on Broadway. 3½ cans.
2. Mona Lisa Smile (2003) – Katherine Watson (Julia Roberts) shows up at Wellesley College in 1953 full of her own ideas on how to educate her students about art history. These young women are overachievers, but their focus is more about earning an MRS than a BA, and the “unconventional” young teacher often clashes with what she considers their limited aspirations. Miss Watson thinks she came to Wellesley to train leaders, not leaders’ wives. Julia Stiles and Kirsten Dunst are among the students whose path to enlightenment under Watson takes time and inspiration. I liked this movie more this time around than when I first watched it. 3½ cans.
3. The Pixar Story* (2007) – Shakespeare said, “The play’s the thing,” and the immensely talented animators at Pixar Studios play by his rule. The creative force behind such movies as “Toy Story,” the Pixar crew succeeds first and foremost by developing stories that capture the imagination of children and adults like, populated by characters that come to life on the screen thanks to visual techniques pioneered by the masters of animation at Pixar. Most of the Pixar people either started with or were inspired by the classic animation of Walt Disney Studios. The “star” of this documentary is John Lassiter, the director of “Toy Story,” who decided as a youth that animation would be his career and who even worked in the Disney Parks. Not only did the producers, directors and writer have to dream up their stories, but the computer wiz folks there had to invent new ways of putting in on the screen. Nearly everything they did was done for the first time at Pixar. This is an interesting account that pays homage to the men and women whose creativity combines storytelling and science in a most entertaining form. 3½ cans.
4. Five Easy Pieces (1970) – No one was hotter around this time than Jack Nicholson, who here deftly portrays an antihero. Bobby works on oil rigs, eschewing his background as the scion of a rich family and his training as a talented musician. He lives with his girlfriend, Rayette (Karen Black), a waitress whom he barely tolerates and never compliments. When he hears that his elderly father is sick, he travels home, leaving Rayette in a motel along the way, to spend time with his family. Always restless and never satisfied, he hits on his boring brother’s girlfriend Catherine (Susan Ansbach) and doesn’t respect any boundaries. I won’t reveal the ending, but it is completely in character for this raffish man who lacks respect for anyone, including himself. 4 cans.
5. Les Miserables (1935) – With all the fuss and bother about the recently released musical version of the classic Victor Hugo story, I thought it was a good time to see the original, non-musical version, starring Frederick March as Jean Val Jean and Charles Laughton as Inspector Jauvert. Val Jean has served time for stealing a piece of bread to feed his sister’s children, and Jauvert is one of the guards at his prison. Their paths continue to cross, as Val Jean is released, changes his name and violates his parole. He becomes a successful man with a great heart, while Jauvert remains a dogmatic pursuer, determined to recapture him. March and Laughton are perfectly cast as prey and captor, each with opportunities to assist the other in ways not anticipated. I didn’t miss the music because the story remains compelling as the characters’ lives intertwine. 4 cans.
6. Sweet Liberty (1986) – Alan Alda wrote, directed and stars in this comedy about a sleepy college town that becomes the setting of a Hollywood production based on the historical novel written by his character, history professor Michael Burgess. The entire town is steeped in Revolutionary War history, relishing its accurate reenactment of local battles while garbed in full regalia. So when the film’s director (Saul Rubinek) takes a liberal interpretation of events – changing things like the color of the soldiers’ uniforms and having the main characters (Michael Caine and Michelle Pfeiffer) fall in love – the townfolk, led by the good professor, go a little crazy. Not as crazy as Burgess’s dotty mom (Lillian Gish), but crazy enough to try to sabotage the big fight scene. Meanwhile, the stars romance the locals and portray every stereotype connected with Hollywood. Alda is his usual smug, self-righteous character (much as he was in “The Four Seasons”) and try as he might to make himself and the movie charming, it comes across as inauthentic as the battle scenes are to the locals. Nice try, Hawkeye, but you were so much better in the Korean War. 3 cans.
7. Continental Divide (1981) – Hard-nosed reporter Ernie Soucek (John Belushi) is a hero in Chicago for his stinging coverage of graft in local politics, but when the bad guys threaten him, his editor sends him away on an assignment clearly out of his range – to the Rocky Mountains to cover a renowned ornithologist (Blair Brown) researching bald eagles. This fish-out-of-water tale develops as you would likely predict, with the two characters first barely tolerating each other and then falling in love. Belushi is restrained and believable as the tough-guy reporter, but less so as a wilderness tolerator, shall we say, adapting better than he should – but I guess love changes everything. There is beautiful scenery and Brown is appealing as the girl-next-door who lives in the wild. This is a sweet story with a happy ending, but it fails to soar like an eagle. 3 cans.
8. All the King’s Men* (2006) – Sean Penn gives an impassioned performance as Willie Stark, who starts his career in politics as someone fed up with the system and ends up every bit as corrupt as the men he decries. When Stark goes up against the powers who built a defective Louisiana school and wins in the court of public opinion, he is wooed to run for governor to be a patsy for the powerful. Jude Law as a newspaper reporter covering the election and aide Sadie (Patricia Clarkson) make him understand that he is being played, and Stark turns the tables, appealing directly to the people and winning the election. Once in office, he will do anything to defeat those whose opinions differ from his and doesn’t care about the fallout. This film noir is a remake of the 1940s film about the rise and fall of real-life Louisiana Governor Huey Long, and it is gripping. The stellar cast (including Mark Ruffalo, Kate Winslet, Anthony Hopkins, Jackie Earle Haley and Kathy Baker) does the script justice, but it is Penn who commands attention on the screen. They say that power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. This film just confirms that adage with its explosive characterization of a power-hungry politician. 4 cans.
9. Dead Man Walking (1995) – Sean Penn gives another powerful performance as badass Death Row inmate Matthew Poncelet, murderer of a young couple in Louisiana. He reaches out to get support from a nun, Sister Helen Prejean (Susan Sarandon, who won the Oscar for her performance; Penn also received an Oscar nomination). The nun is conflicted about helping Matthew and reconciling her faith. She tries to bring him comfort through religion while also reaching out to the parents of the murdered young people. Is killing anyone, whether as an act of murder or a government-sanctioned death, ever acceptable? Sarandon brings poignancy to the good sister, while Penn brings fury and cowardice to the inmate as they warily forge a bond. Directed by Tim Robbins. 4 cans.
10. Get Bruce!* (1999) – If you think you don’t know Bruce Villanch, think again. If you have seen Billy Crystal host the Oscars, or watched Robin Williams do stand-up, or heard Bette Midler’s bawdy Sophie Tucker act, you are familiar with the loony, creative and occasionally crass mind of comedy writer extraordinaire Villanch. With looks like a troll and a razor sharp wit, Villanch collaborates with many of the leading comedic talents around. He is best known for working with musical director Marc Shaiman on those hilarious musical recaps of Oscar-nominated films that start Crystal’s Oscar gigs. In this doting documentary, we get to see the process by which he captures the voice, develops the concepts and partners with the people who embellish his words and ideas into the riotous material they deliver. I declare right now I am a fan, because this guy is as comical as he is topical. 3½ cans of tuna and a big belly laugh.
11. Guys & Dolls (1955) – Colorful characters abound in this movie version of the Broadway musical about New York gamblers looking for action. Nathan Detroit (Frank Sinatra), the proprietor of the oldest established permanent floating crap game in New York, Sky Masterson (a seriously miscast Marlon Brando), a high roller who will bet on anything, Sergeant Sarah Brown, the missionary who tries to save their souls, and Vivian Blaine as Nathan’s long-suffering “fiancé” head the cast. Legend has it that Sinatra wanted the lead part of Masterson, but he got his revenge for letting Brando sing “Luck Be A Lady Tonight,” by recording it as his own signature song. This musical has its moments, but I suspect it was better as a live show, and I swear the Somerville High School 1967 (?) version with John Hanriot, Elaine Logeston and Dennis Devlin was better. 3 cans.
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