Get Shorty

This week is a rewatch. I decided to re-visit the comedy:

Get Shorty (1995).

We meet Chili Palmer (John Travolta), a loan shark from Miami. He is a movie lover that is getting sick of the whole gangster thing. He has to chase down Leo Devoe, a gambler with an outstanding debt, in order to satisfy his new boss Ray 'Bones' Barboni (Dennis Farina). Chili and Bones do not get along and Bones is looking for a good excuse to get rid of Chili. The chase for Leo goes to Las Vegas and from there to Los Angeles.

In LA, Chili has to call in a marker held against a director of cheesy movies, Harry Zim (Gene Hackman). The problem is that Harry is also in deep debt to Bo Catlett (Delroy Lindo), who is having trouble with Pablo Escobar. In the middle of all this chaos, Chili has the chance to ditch his gangster life and become a movie producer, as long as he can take care of all the outstanding business, all the players involved, as well as learn how Hollywood works.

There is a lot more to this story, but that synopsis is already confusing enough as it is. Get Shorty is not really a gangster movie, despite featuring a fair amount of criminals. At the heart it is a comedy about Hollywood. It points a finger at the criminal elements that surround the movie industry, it jokes with the vain, flaky and unreliable nature of movie stars, personified in Martin Weir (Danny DeVito) who eats breakfast at the same table every morning and always faces west so he can look at his own billboard. He also shows up to a lunch meeting, orders something for the whole table that no one wants and dips before the food arrives. According to author Elmore Leonard who wrote the book the movie is based on, the lunch scene is based on a real event featuring Dustin Hoffman.

Get Shorty is directed by Barry Sonnenfeld, and as is usual, it is lovely to watch. Not all of Sonnenfeld's movies have been hits, like Wild Wild West, though others have been, like Men in Black. Whether they were hits or not, his movies are visually great and Get Shorty is no exception.

But lets talk actors. Yes we have John Travolta, Gene Hackman and Danny DeVito, but we also have Rene Russo, James Gandolfini and in a small uncredited role, Bette Midler amongst others. It is a heavy cast, which can sometimes become problematic. If there were problems on set, you can't tell in the movie. It is wall to wall veterans and it works.

Funnily enough, Travolta didn't want the role of Chili Palmer, even though it was written for him, until Quentin Tarantino convinced him to take the role. Likewise, Gene Hackman turned down his role at first, citing that he didn't really do comedies. Sonnenfeld told him that's perfect and that Harry should be played completely straight anyway.

So, do I recommend this movie? Definitely. Get Shorty is a funny movie that doesn't try too hard to be funny, it just is. It is partially a comedy of errors and partially a fish out of water story. Chili Palmer is essentially the prototype for every “too cool for school” character Travolta ever played, but set against all the madness it really works. I do think Get Shorty is the kind of movie anyone can sit down and enjoy. Oh, and the soundtrack is great!

That's that and all that. Join me again next time, and until then, have a great week!

 

Lisa and the Devil

I wanted to watch something so I blindly chose:

Lisa and the Devil (1973).

I was aware of this horror title but I knew nothing about this movie. Turns out it is co-written and directed by the legendary Mario Bava, who has appeared on this blog at least four times.

This is the story: Lisa Reiner (Elke Sommer) is on holiday in Toledo, Spain. There she sees a famous fresco called “The Devil takes the dead”, which disturbs her. The devil is portrayed as a leering, bald man and Lisa quickly wants to go somewhere else. Wandering away from the tourist group, she finds a small shop selling all kinds of things. The owner is apparently also a maker of mannequins and to her horror the owner is talking shop with a customer who is a dead ringer for the devil from the fresco. This is Leandro played by Telly Savalas. Lisa flees from the shop but gets lost and can't find the tour group.

Suddenly a well dressed man appears and talks to her as if they are old friends, calling her Elena. She flees again and encounters a wealthy couple and their chauffeur. She begs them for help and the husband, Francis, agrees to give her a ride. Soon the car breaks down outside an ancient villa and they are invited to stay the night. To Lisa's shock, the butler of the house is non other than Leandro! Soon people are killed, and the mystery deepens. Why do some people call her Elena? Why is Max, the son of the countess who owns the villa so in love with her? Is Leandro the devil himself, or just a butler with a very sardonic and macabre sense of humor? You'll have to watch it to find out.

Since this is a Mario Bava movie it came as no surprise to me that Lisa and the Devil is a gorgeous film. Shot after shot are beautiful and actually the best part of the movie. There can be no doubt that Bava was a master craftsman, and he proves it here yet again.

The actors range from very good to decent. Savalas, Sommer and Alida Valli (the countess) are excellent, while Alessio Orano (Max) and Eduardo Fajardo (Francis) are more hammy and less enjoyable.

Overall, Lisa and the Devil is a mixed bag for me. The story could have been a lot better, with the middle dragging surprisingly much. With the focus on the story being Lisa, I would have liked it if she would have done something besides run around in a state of panic and confusion as well as fainting a lot, but alas.

I'm not the kind of movie watcher who wants everything explained down to the last detail, but I find that Lisa and the Devil leaves a bit too much of the story a mystery. Watching it you can easily accept some things as fact but only by not asking any more questions.

On the other hand, the atmosphere is excellent and Telly Savalas steals every scene he's in. Fun fact: Savalas had just quit smoking, so he used suckers (or lollipops) as a substitute, so Leandro cheerfully sucks on the candy while “taking care of business”. This trait was something he moved over to his most famous role, the TV detective Kojak.

So, do I recommend this movie? Yes and no. If you are on a Bava completionist journey, then I think you're going to have a good time, but I fear most casual viewers are going to be bored. Lisa and the Devil is not a bad movie, but it could also be a lot better, though it has to be admitted that ending was surprisingly good considering the slow story.

That's that and all that. Join me again next time and until then, have a great week!

 

The Gentlemen

I first saw some clips on Youtube which peaked my interest, so I watched:

The Gentlemen (2019).

Directed, co-written and co-produced by Guy Ritchie (Snatch, Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels), this is a return to form for the British director.

Michael Pearson (Matthew McConaughey) is the top producer of marijuana in Great Britain, and he's looking to sell up and retire. One evening on returning home, his number two man, Ray (Charlie Hunnam) finds reporter and scumbag Fletcher (Hugh Grant) in his house. Fletcher has an interesting story to tell, and wants 20 million pounds for what he knows and has in evidence. Thus begins an amazing and convoluted story about crime and manners.

I can't really say much more about the story without going head first into heavy spoiler territory, and that I won't do. The Gentlemen is a movie that has to be experienced first hand. It's worth noting that the movie is not told in pure chronological order, but as a story told by Fletcher, as far as he knows what is going on. It's not a case of an unreliable narrator, as that implies that the narrator lies, it's more a question of who knows what and how things really happened.

From a movie making standpoint, The Gentlemen is a masterpiece. The cinematography, the props, the actors, the dialogue, everything is perfect. I can genuinely say I wouldn't change a thing. Seeing as it is a Guy Ritchie movie, it's worth noting that The Gentlemen is nowhere near as funny as his previous crime movies. But this is not a negative. Instead of funny, it is witty. The dialogue is smart and eloquent which fits this story better than the dialogue in his previous movies.

As I sat there happily watching, it struck me that the plot in The Gentlemen is pretty chaotic, but in the end everything is solved, wrapped up and finished. This is not a small feat considering how many moving parts this story has. Again, a masterfully directed movie.

I want to return to the actors. Matthew McConaughey is amazing as he always is. Not a stand out performance, but great anyway.

Charlie Hunnam, perhaps best known as Jax in Sons of Anarchy, is superb, with his poise and soft spoken demeanor. He is threatening because he isn't yelling.

I can genuinely say I have never enjoyed Hugh Grant as much as I do in The Gentlemen. He is a scene stealer and I loved every minute of his sleazy presence.

Colin Farrell likewise runs away with every scene his Coach character is in. He trains fighters and combines humility with confidence is an amazing way.

So, do I recommend this movie? Of course I do. There isn't a bad thing I can say about it. If you have seen and liked Guy Ritchie's other crime movies, and you haven't seen The Gentlemen, do something about that as soon as possible. If you haven't seen them, The Gentlemen is not a bad place to start. I will absolutely have to re-watch this movie as soon as possible.

That's that and all that. Join me again next time and until then, have great week!

 

The Real Deal.

Back in 1997 I saw Donnie Brasco in the movie theater.

This gangster movie features Johnny Depp as FBI agent Pistone who goes undercover in the Mafia as Donnie Brasco, and much longer than anyone should be undercover.. Other stars are Al Pacino, Michael Madsen and many more. It is a great movie and even then I knew it was based on a true story. 

Of course, "based on a true story" can mean different things depending on the film. Some follow the events closely while others keep a name or two as well as a few minor events before pulling the rest of the script from where the sun doesn't shine.

 

Today I have a documentary for you about the real events depicted in Donnie Brasco. What happened and what was fiction

 Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7YBiST_wcI 

 

That's that and all that. Join me again next time, and until then, have a great week!   

The Funeral

Looking around for something to watch, I chose:

The Funeral (1996).

This gangster movie, directed by Abel Ferrara is about a trio of brothers who run a gangster crew. There is the oldest, Ray (Christopher Walken), the middle brother, Chez (Chris Penn) and the youngest, Johnny (Vincent Gallo).

The movie, set in the 30's, opens with Johnny's casket being delivered to Ray's house. Someone put three bullets in Johnny's chest, and the body is being delivered for the wake. The question everyone wonders is who shot Johnny? There is no shortage of enemies, as we get to see in multiple flashbacks. Johnny was a communist, a loudmouth and a ladies man who had no scruples about bedding married women, and that is on top of being a gangster.

A great part of the film is told in these flashbacks, mostly as memories from his older brothers who are struggling with guilt and grief in equal measure. There are also the long suffering wives, as no one in this movie is even remotely happy. In fact, this is one of the darkest, most gloomy movies I have ever seen. Most of the scenes are set in dark rooms, but even the few scenes we get in sunlight are so bereft of joy that the sunlight becomes wan and depressing.

Mechanically the movie is good. The set pieces, the actors and the music are really good and hammers home how bleak the movie is. The song in the opening shot is Gloomy Sunday, aka the Hungarian Suicide Song. This should tell you how things are going to be.

Overall, I can't say I really liked the The Funeral. It's just so unflinchingly miserable, but I also think it is worth watching just once. I think it is essentially a “reverse gangster movie”, as in there is no glamour, no style, nothing that would make the lifestyle worth having. Other movies like The Godfather or Goodfellas show some positives even as they demonstrate all the negatives. The Funeral have no positives, it is all unrelenting misery.

So, do I recommend this movie? Weird as it may sound, yes I do. Despite all the pain on display, The Funeral is a compelling movie. You get the feeling that something is going to happen, and you want to be there when it does. If you're in the mood for a gangster movie, maybe choose something else, but if you are a fan of crime cinema you should watch it at some point.

That's that and all that. Join me again next time and until then, have a great week!

 

Nobody again

A couple of weeks ago, I watched a movie called Nobody but not the one with Bob Odenkirk. This week I watched:

Nobody (2021)

which is the one with Bob Odenkirk, perhaps best known from his role as Saul from Better Call Saul and Breaking Bad.

Hutch Mansell (Odenkirk) is a middle aged accountant who lives in a nice suburban house with a wife and two kids. He takes the bus to his accounting job, he misses the trash pickup every week, his life is frustrating, boring and dull.

One night they have a break in and the thieves steal some cash and his daughters kitty cat bracelet. This is one step too far, and he sets out to get it back. It turns out that Hutch is in fact quite a lot more than an accountant and a suburban husband and father. He is an Auditor, the kind of person the three letter agencies call when they need someone permanently removed. And he's good at it. He soon finds himself accidentally involved in a war with a deranged Russian mobster and his crew. Things will get very bloody indeed.

The movie was inspired by a couple of real break ins that Odenkirk suffered and how people talked about it after the fact. All the “if it happened to me I would have” and the “if it was my family, then” hurt, and he channeled it into Nobody. The movie is essentially a wish fulfillment story of how we all wish we were secretly a total badass one man army.

Visually Nobody is very nicely made. There is really nothing too ground breaking but I liked that I could follow the fights. Many modern action movies screw up the fight scenes, but Nobody does it really well.

The soundtrack features some really good songs, so that was a pleasant surprise. The real star of the show however are the stars. I haven't seen much of Bob Odenkirk before, but this movie really proves how good of an actor he is. Not necessarily because Hutch is a badass. It's easy to look tough, but because you can see his frustrations through the facade he wears for his children and how hard it is to push down his lethal instincts. Both Christopher Lloyd and Michael Ironside have small roles and it is always fun to see old veterans do their thing. Even though seeing how old they are reminds me of how old I am. Oh well, such is life.

Watching Nobody I was reminded of John Wick. The one man army wrecking people left and right is nothing new in film, but I found something in Nobody that many other movies miss: humor. Nobody is not a comedy, it is in fact pretty grisly, but there are some really good comedic moments that lift the movie to a higher place than just another violent romp. It is in fact funnier than a lot of what passes for comedies these days.

So, do I recommend this film? Yes, absolutely. Just be aware that it is incredibly violent and bloody. If you're okay with that, watch Nobody. I'm probably going to have to watch it again. Like I said, it reminds me of John Wick but also RED (2010).

That's that and all that. Join me again next time, and until then, have a great week!

 

These things happen.

It so happens I've caught a spring cold and been so busy blowing my nose to the point where I'm unsure if I have any brain left in my skull. 

As a natural consequence, I've been too tired to actually come up with anything this week, so I'll give you some comedy instead. I have two full stand up shows, one with Bill Burr and the other with Jimmy Carr. Both are fantastic comedians but be aware that they both like abrasive and controversial humor.

Join me again next time and until then, have a fun week (and don't get sick)!