You can see that I had a little time on my hands in July, and I used it to watch 21 movies. This month's haul includes a couple that I rated worthy of 5 cans (scoring is on a scale of 1-5 cans of tuna, with 5 being the highest). New movies are marked with an asterisk and numbering picks up from the previous month.
73. Darling Companion* (2012) – From the title, you would assume this is a love story between two people, but it is mostly about a woman’s unrelenting love for her beloved dog. Diane Keaton is the wife of Kevin Kline, a smug, self-centered doctor who pays much more attention to his practice than he does to his wife. When she brings home a rescue dog, Freeway, they both assume custodial duty, but he is always on his phone while taking the dog out for a walk. When they are at their cabin in Colorado, he loses the dog, and she refuses to leave until they find the pet and rescue him all over again. This is a light movie which probably plays better to pet lovers than it did to me. But I love both Keaton and Kline as actors, so it was worth watching just this once. 2½ cans.
74. The Four Seasons (1981) – M*A*S*H* star Alan Alda appeared in a number of movies around this time, all intended for grown-up audiences. Here he co-stars with Carol Burnett as his wife and good buddies played by Len Cariou, Rita Moreno and Jack Weston as three couples so close that they vacation together. When Cariou’s character has the temerity to divorce his bland wife (Sandy Dennis) and fall for a vivacious, younger woman (Bess Armstrong), he upsets the balance among the group. Their respective annoying habits and insecurities come out through their banter and they can really get on each other’s nerves – as couples and as friends. Armstrong’s character is the most honest, while the more “mature” adults are either too reluctant to express their issues or they go overboard. This movie has its moments of warmth and humor in depicting married people whose relationships ebb and flow. 3½ cans.
75. Billie Jean King: Portrait of a Pioneer* (HBO) – Billie Jean King is probably as well-known for what she did for the women’s movement in the 1970s in this country as she is for her tremendous accomplishments on the tennis court. This documentary traces her rise from the courts of Southern California to the courts at the Old England Racket Club and beyond. A champion at Wimbledon many times over – in women’s singles, doubles and mixed doubles – Billie Jean worked just as hard to ensure equal pay for women. She not only ushered in big-time tennis for women professionals, she summarily dismissed Bobby Riggs in their spectacular “Battle of the Sexes.” Even today’s tennis pros and the organizers of the sport understand the gratitude they owe to Billie Jean, as evidenced by putting her name on the stadium where the US Open is played. I have to confess, BJK is one of my sheroes. She should be one of everyone’s heroes. 4 cans.
76. Glory Road (2006) – I am old enough (barely) and have been a basketball fan long enough to actually remember the events captured by this movie. Josh Lucas portrays Don Haskins, hired as the new coach of Texas Western University in the late ‘60s, who does something unprecedented: He recruits inner city players and improbably brings his inexperienced team to the NCAA Championship in an era when black players were barely considered for college play. In the NCAA 1967 final against Adolph Rupp and his all-white Kentucky team, Haskins starts five of his black players. In the course of the season, Haskins shows his team how to win – in the game and at life. An uplifting, inspiring story that recalls how racism is everywhere – then and now. 4 cans.
77. Catch & Release* (2006) – Jennifer Garner has to face the death of her fiancée while discovering that she didn’t know as much about him as she thought she did. She learns more by hanging out and getting close with his roommates (Kevin Smith, Sam Jaeger and Timothy Olyphant), maybe a little too close. Cute but nothing really worth writing about here. 3 cans.
78. Die Hard 2 (1990) – I don’t watch many action movies, but the original “Die Hard” stands out for its action, its humor and for Bruce Willis as LA cop John McClane. Here, instead of a building being taken over by terrorists, it is an airport in Washington DC, where McClane is waiting for the arrival of his wife (Bonnie Bedelia) when terrorists take over the airport. McClane outwits the airport security team as well as the bad guys in once again saving the day (you didn’t think our hero was going to perish, did you?) The first one in this series was so much better, and the last one was forgettable. This one? I could see this a dozen times and still not understand what the bad guys were trying to pull off. And when McClane finds his way through the labyrinth of underground passageways to the right runway to stop the plane, I had to call bullshit. I can’t even find my way around the airport with signs everywhere! 3½ cans.
79. The Shawshank Redemption (1994) – When I posted on-line that I was watching this film for the umpteenth time, some wise friend noted, “You can’t NOT watch it.” True. It is the perfect movie, about strength and friendship, respect and hope -- and all under the guise of a bunch of criminals who live at a prison in Maine. Tim Robbins is understated and touching as convicted murderer and former banker Andy Dufresne and Morgan Freeman is outstanding as his best buddy, Red. If you have not seen this movie or if you don’t love this movie, I’m pretty sure we cannot be friends. 5 cans.
80. A Star Is Born (1976) – It may be corny, it may be a cliché, but this version of the classic story of a rock star whose career is on the decline who meets and falls in love with a woman whose career is on the rise is compelling to see. Barbra Streisand is at the height of her vocal prowess as Esther Hoffman, an unassuming woman who isn’t looking for love when John Norman Howard (an underrated Kris Kristofferson) bulls his way into her life and sets her on a path to stardom. He is nothing but trouble, drinking excessively, using drugs, being stubbornly irresponsible (he doesn’t even know how many rooms are in his LA mansion), but he has a sweetness about him that makes it easy for her to fall for him. He has been singing the same songs for a long time and his stardom is fading just as her bursts of creativity are making her well-known and a popular new music star. There is a new version of this movie heading our way, starring Bradley Cooper (who also directed) and Lady Gaga in the lead roles, so I figured this was a good opportunity to brush up on the ASIB lure. I loved it 40 years ago and still love it. 4 cans.
81. Robin Williams: Come Inside my Mind* (2018) – I’m not sure there would have been room inside Robin Williams’ mind, which is filled with so many characters you’ve seen and hear in his epic comedy rants. This HBO documentary traces the clever comedian’s life, growing up almost like an only child and wanting to win approval. Moving from Michigan to Northern California put Williams in the right place at the right time, giving him the chance to develop his amazing comic chops and band with a brotherhood of comedians. Well trained in drama, Williams fed his addiction to comedy with stand-up, followed by TV and movies, always entertaining his fellow thespians with material not exactly in the script. Here a plethora of comedy comrades talk lovingly but realistically about his excesses – from drugs and booze to women and performing nonstop. It is hard to watch his life story without feeling a tremendous sense of loss – for his family, his friends and his fans. He was a gifted and amazing man and it is unlikely we will ever see a performer like Robin Williams again. 4 cans and a few tears shed.
82. Shattered Glass (2003) – Young (25) writer Stephen Glass gets caught up in a fraud of his own making in this drama that is based on a true story. A writer for The New Republic magazine, Glass (Hayden Christiansen) is a bright and eager-to-please young talent. His insecurities manifest themselves with his constant asking of peers and superiors, “Are you mad at me?” His boss Chuck (Peter Saarsgard) at first indulges his charm yet he is wary when Glass spins detailed accounts of amusing incidents. Then one day Chuck gets a call from a digital magazine that raises doubts about a story Glass wrote on a “hackers” convention. His notes are full of details, but it becomes increasingly clear that they are fabrications. Glass has excuses and denials, but when Chuck accompanies him to the place where the alleged convention took placed, he knows for sure that Glass made it up. This is a shattering story of an ambitious young person without journalistic integrity but he is certainly not the only prominent writer to have committed this journalistic impropriety (The Times’ Janet Cooke won a Pulitzer Prize for a story she largely concocted) – not that I am condoning it in any way. Ironically, today Glass is a lawyer, living and working in Washington, DC, so his fall from grace was not exactly lethal. 4 cans.
83. Die Hard (1988) – OK, since I watched Die Hard 2 earlier in the week, I thought I’d let myself go back to see where this franchise began. John McClane (Bruce Willis) is the perfect wise-guy hero, a live action figure with great lines, whose estranged wife (Bonnie Bedelia) just happens to work in a building that is taken over by terrorists looking for millions in bonds. There is plenty of action – shooting, crawling through elevator shafts, sending dead bodies flying out of skyscraper windows) – and how McClain not only survives by outwits, outplays and outlasts the bad guys is the stuff movies are made of. Mindless but entertaining. 3½ cans, as action movies go.
84. Absolute Power (1997) – Ten years after he played the Secretary of Defense in the terrific “No Way Out,” Gene Hackman is back to play the President of the United States, still flexing his power and looking for someone to blame when his illicit girlfriend is killed. Clint Eastwood, who directed this suspenseful thriller, is an old jewel thief, a real pro at the top of his game, and he is immediately suspected of the murder when the authorities find that the woman’s jewels have been stolen. Oh, he was there, alright, so he actually knows what happened but he is forced to stay one step ahead of the authorities and the bad guys looking to blame him. This movie really held my attention as Clint’s Luther has to outfox the good and bad guys and protect his estranged daughter since the authorities want to use her to get to him. 4 cans.
85. Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987) – No, it isn’t Thanksgiving, but I was looking for something that was funny and light, and this Steve Martin-John Candy buddy movie fits the description perfectly. Martin’s Neil Page is desperate to get home for Thanksgiving, and when he runs into traveling salesman Del (Candy), who is also headed home, the two are first rivals and then grudgingly friends as they face the worst travel adversities (including trains, planes and automobiles – plus a few trucks). Del is a talkative guy who drives Neal crazy as the two are thrown together. This is a guy you don’t want as a seatmate. Anything that can go wrong here does go wrong, and in hilarious style. Candy driving down the highway in the dark while listening to Ray Charles singing “The Mess Around” is only one of the great scenes. 4 cans and a suitcase full of laughs.
86. Beverly Hills Cop (1974) – This is the comedy-action movie that propelled Eddie Murphy from Saturday Night Live to movie star status. His Axel Foley is a Detroit cop who is quick-witted and unconventional. When a childhood friend returns home from California to visit Foley and is murdered, Axel heads west to track down the killers. The Beverly Hills cops are not pleased to see him disrupting their version of law and order, but he eventually wins them over as his unorthodox methods lead them all to the bad guy. Murphy plays all of his comedy cards here and gives a memorable performance. This movie and “Trading Places” are still the best movies in his long resume. The story alone rates 3 cans, but Murphy’s performance pulls this movie up to a 4.
87. Witness to Murder* (1954) – Cheryl Draper (Barbara Stanwyck) lives close enough to Albert Richter (George Sanders) to see into his window, and one night she sees something she wishes she hadn’t – a murder. She contacts the police and Lt. Matthews (Gary Merrill) and his partner come over to check things out. In the meantime, however, Richter has moved the body to an empty apartment, leaving exactly no clues for the investigators. The case starts to really go awry when the clever Richter starts gaslighting Ms. Draper by sneaking into her apartment and writing threatening notes on her typewriter, making it appear that SHE is sending them to him. Even the cops think that she didn’t really see a murder, telling her that it was just a dream. Eventually, she starts questioning herself: Could she have written the notes? Did she really see the murder or was in her imagination? I thought this was a very intriguing drama, and it reminded me of “Rear Window” and of a book I recently read, “The Woman in the Window.” The moral of the story? Close the curtains! 3½ cans.
88. ET: The Extra Terrestrial (1982) – I typically have no interest in any kind of science fiction since I am so down-to-earth that I have trouble suspending my sense of reality. But suspend away for this incredibly moving story about the gentle extraterrestrial creature who ends up on earth and in the home of Elliott (Henry Thomas). Elliott is a typical kid, with an older brother and younger sister (an indescribably adorable Drew Barrymore at age 5 or so). He is curious, and when the creature he ultimately names E.T. (for Extraterrestrial) shows up, he gets over his initial fear and becomes friends with this new creature. This is not so much a sci-fi movie as it is a story of hope, love, friendship and acceptance. When someone or something comes into your life that doesn’t look like you, talk like you or understand you, reach out, teach him and you may find a memorable experience that will enrich your life. The superb acting by the kids in this movie, the amazing direction by Steven Spielberg, the fanciful script and the soaring music by John Williams all make this movie one of the best movies EVER. 5 cans, and don’t forget to phone home.
89. Paper Clips (2005) – This remarkable documentary tells the story of Whitman Middle School in rural Tennessee, where, in 1999, students collected 6 million paperclips (the final tally was 29 million) to honor the victims of the Holocaust. The collection demonstrated to them the enormity of the horrors of intolerance and hate and seems especially relevant in today's fractured US society. We cannot allow such dehumanization of any people to happen again. Bring tissues. I own the DVD but caught the movie on Jewish Life TV (JLTV) on Comcast. 5 cans.
90. Won’t You Be My Neighbor?* (2018) – Mr. (Fred) Rogers became a TV icon with his children’s show that aired on PBS for decades. His gentle approach to serious, everyday subjects won him acclaim from parents and parenting experts and adoration from kids. His quiet conversation, delivered in a languorous way of speaking, gave children reassurance that each child is “special.” By calling each child special, he wasn’t advocating that annoying “every kid gets a trophy” philosophy. He promoted trust and faith in themselves. As an ordained minister, he was well equipped to deliver important, impactful messages in a non-secular way. He believed in love and trust and educated children with the kind of subtlety that contradicts the car crashing, video gaming mentality that is often what children see on TV. He delivered good, sound and simple advice in the wake of national tragedies, such as the assassination of Robert Kennedy and the explosion of the Challenger aircraft. Built from clips from his shows and interviews with Mr. Rogers, his colleagues, friends and wife, this documentary offers insight into a simple man with a simple message that had more depth than a submarine. If Mr. Rogers were your neighbor, you would be assured of a quiet neighborhood. 3½ cans.
91. Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again* (2018) – If you go into something with really low expectations, it is less likely that you will be disappointed, and such was the case with this sequel of the original musical. This festive romp about a young woman who gives birth to a daughter but isn’t sure which one of three men (Colin Firth, Pierce Brosnan and Stellan Skarsgard) is her father, builds on the original. Through flashbacks (nicely edited), we see Sophie in the present day (Amanda Seyfried) trying to reopen the hotel dreamed about by her late mother (Meryl Streep) in the land that she loved – Greece. Flashbacks show Sophie’s Mom Donna (Lily James) at Sophie’s age and we meet the three young men who eventually became her father. Her mother’s old bandmates (Christine Baranski and Julie Walters) are on hand for the festivities, still mourning the death of their friend the prior year. The movie weaves in the ABBA songs well and the entire movie is, as a friend pointed out, the equivalent of a “beach read” – light on the drama and overall just a fun day at the movies. If you want suspense or action, this movie is not for you. But any movie that has Cher AND Meryl Streep is one I will always watch. And, thankfully, Pierce Brosnan barely sings at all this time around. 3 cans.
92. Three Identical Strangers* (2018) – This movie proves the old adage “Truth is stranger than fiction.” When Bobby Shafran enrolls in college, he is greeted as an old friend by people who are strangers to him. That’s because they mistake him for his brother, Eddie, a brother whom he had never met. A mutual friend tells him he knows Eddie and knows they share the same birthday. Sure enough, Eddie and Bobby were given up by their mother and their adoption was arranged by the same agency. Overjoyed to meet each other, the young men are even more surprised when a third brother, David, surfaces. The boys soak up their 15 minutes of fame, making TV appearances and hanging out at Studio 54. But families have their secrets, and as close as the boys are (they lived together at one point and even started a club together), they have different backgrounds and very different adoptive families. This story is gripping, with twists and turns and ethical issues you probably won’t see coming. Oh, brother! 4 cans.
93. Orange Is the New Black, Season 6* (2018) – I waited more than a year to see what happened to the ladies of Litchfield prison after last season’s riot and the murder of a guard. And then I watched the entire 13-episode season in 4 days. The new season is much less intense than the powerful drama of last year. Overall it is lighter, brighter (they actually go outside for fresh air) and funnier (pretty much anything is funnier than a prison riot, I guess), BUT, now the inmates have been moved from minimum security to max, where the rules are harsher and where there are preexisting gangs built around the geography of the prison and not organized by race or nationality. Some characters have disappeared this year, moved to other prisons, but erstwhile star of the show, Piper Chapman (Taylor Schilling), and her girlfriend Alex Vause (Laura Prepon), are still on hand. Among the new characters are a pair of feuding sisters, a small but fierce tough woman and a psychopath. Just as much of last year centered around inmate Tastee, who handled negotiations for the inmates, this year sees Tastee (Denise Brooks) in a prominent role, accused of the murder of the extremely abusive guard who was killed in the riot. To reveal more would not be fair to the fans of the show who have yet to enjoy the whole series. But I will say that my favorite line of the season, and maybe of the series itself, takes place when the inmates are allowed to make a phone call, and Black Cindy (Adrienne C. Moore), a convert to Judaism, calls her rabbi and greets him with, “Rabbi, it’s your girl, Tova.” Kudos especially to Brooks and Moore for stellar work this year. (There is also a great line that has to do with the Wahlberg brothers, but since this is a family blog, I’ll refrain from sharing it.) The only downside is that I have to wait another year to watch Season 7. 4½ cans.
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