The Blues Brothers

The Blue Brothers is one of the most odd films of the 1980’s. The film carries itself with utmost grace and it is that grace and heart that saves the movie from going too bonkers. Filled to the brim with car chases from everyone ranging from a zillion cops to a plethora of neo-Nazis plus an array of song and dance numbers, the movie lives dangerously. It threatens to go way over-the-top, but the charisma of both John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd does the movie wonders. There are a huge amount of celebrity cameos that also add to the exciting fun this movie offers. Ray Charles as a soulful music shop owner, Aretha Franklin as a manager of a restaurant, James Brown as a preacher, and a whole bunch of non-music celebrity cameos.

This film was directed by John Landis, whom previously worked with John Belushi in the hilarious 1978 film, Animal House. This whole premise is based off the very popular Saturday Night Live skit that Belushi and Aykroyd created. After Jake Blues (John Belushi) is released from prison, he and his brother Elwood (Dan Akyroyd) visit the orphanage where they grew up. They learn that the Archdiocese will stop raising money for the orphanage and they will auction the place off. This is when Jake receives a, “mission from God.” This mission has the brothers reuniting their old blues band to perform a big gig to raise the necessary 5000 dollars needed to save the place. As they set about their adventure, they seem to be making more ‘friends’  along the way.

The impeccable charms of the cast is one of the great things about the movie. Belushi is a great actor and he shares great chemistry with Aykroyd. Just like in Animal House, you can’t help rooting for the big man. That guy was absolutely funny here. In addition to wonderful leads, we have a whole slew of cameos to mention. My favorite one is Carrie Fisher’s role as a mystery woman who suddenly appears out of nowhere with these giant rocket launchers just to kill Jake. I liked John Candy as the one of the hit men after Jake. Also, Henry Gibson deserves credit as the leader of the neo-Nazi gang. We also have a range of musicians in the move such as the likes of Aretha Franklin, James Brown, and Ray Charles. All of these people really added charm into the movie.

If there would be anything to bring down the film, it would be how over-the-top the film is. I mostly enjoyed how crazy the film got at times, but I know people who had complaints. For example, the Joliet Brothers are chased in the end by what seems to be every police force, the entire U.S Army, and crazy Neo-Nazis….all at once. It may be much for someone to comprehend, but then again the movie works because it truly embraces how silly it can get. It uses its two comedic leads in Aykroyd and Candy as the force of the film and everything else is worked around these two men.

Overall, this is a very fun film filled with an abundant amount of energy. It’s funny, over-the-top, and musically-inclined. I see right away why this film is an instant classic and it goes down as one of my favorite movies.

My Grade: A

Urban Cowboy

Urban Cowboy is a decent movie, no more no less. The story wasn’t exactly inspiring as I am reminded of Grease but with country music. But the plot that has been done a million times before is deemed watchable thanks to some solid acting performances particularly those of John Travolta and Debra Winger. The movie does show what it is like to live in the Texas heartland in the midst of a country music revolution. Maybe it is the clichés, but there are a lot of cowboy hats, bandanas, and line dancing involved. There are two things that stood out in the movie. The first thing is the rodeo scenes in the nightclub. That was probably the best part of the movie. Another thing I liked is the music. Maybe it is my Texas blood, but I caught myself tapping my toes to the songs. What is unique is the movie makes use of live music. Thank you, Charlie Daniels Band!

They story is a simple, albeit clichéd story. James Bridges direct and wrote the film about a man named Bud Davis (John Travolta) who moves from the countryside to the city to be closer with his family. He takes a liking to one of the local joints, Gilley’s. He takes a job at an oil refinery which is owned by his uncle in order to save for his own land. There is where he meets a cowgirl named Sissy (Debra Winger). Just like that, they fall in love and get married. Their marriage is tested when he catches a con man named Wes (Scott Glenn) teaching his wife how to ride the mechanical bull. Wes also wants to rob Gilley’s. When a mechanical bull contest is announced, Bud is intent on saving his marriage.

The performances are key to making this movie watchable as it is. John Travolta has been on an acting slump between Grease and this film, so it’s nice to see him go back to his musical roots. He definitely still knows how to dance. Debra Winger is the breakout of the movie. In fact, she was nominated for Best New Star for this performance at the Golden Globes. She made a believable cowgirl. I think Scott Glenn is often underappreciated as an actor and his performance is a good one.

Urban Cowboy is a fine movie if not forgettable. The story is so-so, but the performances and the music are the highlights of the movie. If you want to see a movie about cowboy life in the Midwest in the early 80’s, well this movie is for you.

My Grade: C+

The Shining

Hello, dear readers. I apologize for the delay in reviews. Between work and getting ready for a major career change, I hardly had the time to write reviews. But I am back! Today, I will review the 1980 genre classic, The Shining. Directed by masterful director Stanley Kubrick, this film went down as one of the greatest modern day horror masterpieces. Although Stephen King will “kindly” disagree. The movie is borderline sadistic in how it psychologically messes with the audience. The amount of twists and turns add up to one hell of a psychological thriller that made a mess out of my brain. The film maintains an eerie atmosphere throughout the film and it never settles until days after the end credits rolled. Jack Nicholson delivers another career-defining performance as Jack Torrance. The actor’s charisma and scary demeanor matches the tone of the movie perfectly. However, Shelley Duvall quite literally took me out of the movie at times with her blubbering performance.

I will explain the basic premise of the movie the best I can. There are so many different parts to the story, so many different interpretations and themes to make sense of, so the story can be difficult to comprehend once you go deeper and deeper into the story. Alas, one of the many traits of a Kubrick film! Jack Torrance (Nicholson) agrees to spend the winter as a caretaker at an old hotel named, “The Overlook Hotel.” The hotel is known to have an angry, haunted past. These demons and ghosts slowly catch up with Jack as he becomes more angry, depressed, and drunk, thus effecting his wife, Wendy (Shelley Duvall), and son, Danny. Danny uses a special talent of his called, “The Shining” to alert the outside world of all the events that are occurring in the hotel.

One of the things that this movie is infamous for is how it made Stephen King loathe it. He wrote the book on which this movie is based on. It is safe to say that Kubrick took liberty of the source material and switched things around, which King was not happy with. As a reader of the book, I can say both mediums are different. As a rabid fan of movies, I do really like the movie for what it was. An incredibly creepy horror that messes with your perceptions. The screenplay, written by Kubrick, can sometimes be hard to follow. That being said, it is something that is open to interpretation. I have read thoughts ranging from simple themes such as effects of alcoholism to how this story alludes to fairytales such as Hansel and Gretel and Three Little Pigs. There are other people asking, “Is this real? Are these ghosts actually real or are they the figment of the Torrances’ imaginations?” Everybody has their own interpretation. Just watch the movie, and you shall see.

I mentioned before that Jack Nicholson delivers another one amazing performance. After his 1974 feature Chinatown, I would not think that would be possible. His demeanor is tough to start out with, but once he is driven to madness by the hotel, he becomes downright crazy and that was great to see. When he says that famous line, “Here’s Johnny,” you can see how unhinged he has become. On the other side of the spectrum, I thought Duvall was mostly terrible. Her constant screaming and crying sounded fake and quite honestly, made my ears bleed. Her performance took me out of the film at times which is disappointing because of Nicholson’s amazing performance and Kubrick’s stylish directing.

The film maintains a consistent atmosphere of eeriness. The Overlook Hotel is an old-fashioned place set in the mountains and miles away from civilization which advances the creepiness of the story. Cinematographer John Alcott does a wonderful job making the film look creepy as it is. His use of the colors and production design was something special. Also that music created by Wendy Carlos was unsettling, which also added to the film. The ghosts were creepy too. Those twin girls? Enough said. Also, fantastic ending story-wise and visually.

Overall, The Shining is a great psychological horror film and a modern-day masterpiece bolstered by Jack Nicholson’s performance. This is one of the creepiest-looking films I have ever seen. I find it sad that I was abruptly taken away from the story from Shelley Duvall’s acting which took down the final score of this movie a notch. But after the commercial failure of his previous film, 1975’s underrated Barry Lyndon, it’s nice to see Kubrick having mainstream success once more.

“Redrum” “Come play with us, Danny. Forever, and ever, and ever.”

My Grade: B+

Star Wars: Episode V-The Empire Strikes Back

In 1977, a cultural revolution began with the little-known science-fiction film called Star Wars created by visionary director George Lucas. It ended up being the highest-grossing film of all-time and it still ranks very high in the midst of today’s blockbusters. It was a very enjoyable movie and it created memorable characters that will live on for eternity. So of course we would get a sequel. In fact, Lucas created a whole world around his baby -an ambition that was not normal in 1980. With the sequel-The Empire Strikes Back, Lucas handed the directorial duties to his former college film professor Irvin Kershner because of his duties with his rising visual effects company Industrial Light and Magic, but of course he was very involved with this film. But enough of the background, let’s talk about this film. This sequel is much darker in tone, more mysterious, and quite frankly the best film in the franchise. Our favorite characters like Luke and Leia Skywalker and Han Solo are back and we are introduced to more characters that are stored away in our hearts forever such as Yoda and Lando Calrissian. This is also the movie where we have the famous battle and reveal between Luke and Darth Vader…or shall I say between father and son, but more on that later.

After the Rebels blow up the Death Star at the end of A New Hope, they hide away in the icy planet of Hoth. But the rebel base is soon discovered by Darth Vader (James Earl Jones and David Prowse) and the empire. From the battle that ensues, our characters are separated. Han Solo (Harrison Ford), Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher), Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew), and C-3PO (Anthony Daniels) flee across the galaxy from the Empire. They end up going into Cloud City where they come across an old friend of Han’s- Lando Calrissian (Billy Dee Williams). Meanwhile, Luke (Mark Hamill) and R2-D2 (Kenny Baker) are sent to the abandoned planet of Dagobath where he continues his Jedi training with an old Jedi master named Yoda (Frank Oz). But will they stay forgotten for long with Darth Vader relentlessly pursuing Luke across the galaxy?

One of the biggest improvements over the original film is the visuals. While the visuals in the 1977 film were good for its time period, George Luca’s new production company really improved upon the visuals. Along with the visuals, the film has strong production design and character design. I loved the look of Yoda, which was a puppet of course. You can tell the visuals were strong for a variety of reasons. There were the sights of the majestic Imperial Walkers during the battle of Hoth, the hairy sloth creature that attacks Luke after he gets lost on Hoth, the creepy, dense look of Dagobath, the spiral towers of Cloud City, and of course that lightsaber battle between Luke and Vader.

SPOILER!! My highlight out of many of them is the revelation that happens near the end of the movie in Cloud City. I am sure most of you have seen the movie but if not, read no further. Darth Vader reveals to Luke during their intense duel that he is Luke’s father, Anakin. Of course in the process, Vader chops of Luke’s hand and he falls through a chute but is saved from falling to his death thanks to the Millennium Falcon. Also, the movie ends with Han Solo being captured by the Empire and frozen solid. So these events are just some of the reasons why this film is darker and more sinister than the space opera feel of the first film.

The acting remains a strong point in the movie. Harrison Ford is excellent as always. I loved his “wounded ego” attitude and his bantering with Chewbacca added some lightheartedness to the movie. Yoda is my favorite new character. Not only did they want a realistic puppet, they actually wanted a good actor to bring that puppet to life. And Frank Oz did just that. Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher remain excellent in their respective roles as Luke and Leia. And the voice of James Earl Jones? Well, the same magic that it always created! Need I say more?

Star Wars: Empire Strikes Back is my favorite Star Wars movie, and frankly one of the best sci-fi films of all time. It really expanded upon the mystery and the lore the first film provided. The film explores its mythology in darker tones and that added depth and humanity to our characters. Lawrence Kasdan’s and Leigh Brackett’s screenplay took Lucas’s world and created something that was evolutionary and breath-taking while staying true to its roots. The film ended on a sinister cliffhanger, so you bet we will be seeing a third film. The story and the visuals are fantastic, and now you can see why this is my favorite Star Wars film.

“No, I am your father!” (Vader to Luke)

“Try not, Do, or do not!” (Yoda to Luke)

My Grade: A