TBT Anniversary/Boomstick Trilogy- The Evil Dead (1981)

The Evil Dead followed five Michigan State students to a Tennessee cabin on Spring Break.  Ashley Williams (Bruce Campbell) was joined by his sister, Cheryl and Linda, his girlfriend. Also, Scott and his girlfriend, Shelly, were along for the ride. They arrived to find a rickety, old bridge and almost got stuck on it.  However, they sped up the car and made it across.

However, the cabin looks homely and has a certain quality to it.  The porch swing was at a leisurely pace while in the car.  Yet, the group gets by the front door and it almost rocked off the chains.  It doesn’t take Scooby Doo to solve that mystery but they found the right key.  Once inside, the cabin seemed to have a rustic, but modern quality to it.  So, what’s the catch?  How come it was so affordable and available?

Wait, what’s in the basement?  A tape recorder?  Hmm, could it be something useful or comical?  Shit, what are Candarian demons doing being translated and conjured from a Sumerian text?!  Turn it off!!!  It’s too late.  What will become of our merry Spring Breakers?

On October 15, 1981, Sam Raimi was on the verge of greatness with his friend, Bruce Campbell.  We know him today as the innovator behind such films as Darkman, The Spiderman Trilogy (yes, the one with Maguire), & Drag Me to Hell.

However, Raimi changed the course of horror and indy filmmaking forever.  Who knew that a cabin in the woods could be this creepy?  Hmm, Sam knew this apparently.  William Peter Blatty could be an indirect link as well.  Who’s Blatty?  He wrote the best selling novel, The Exorcist, while staying at an isolated cabin but I digress.

35 Years Later, we relish in this ultraviolent, demon bloodbath.  It lead to two sequels:  Evil Dead 2:  Dead by Dawn & Army of Darkness.  Ashley Williams was shortened to Ash.  It tends to happen when your girlfriend, sister, and friends get possessed by Candarian demons.  What else is there to do?  BOOMSTICK!!!  But that’s another post for another day.  Heed this advice:  When comes to a Cabin in The Woods, Think Twice!!

 

 

 

True Country Celluloid- I Saw The Light (2016)

I Saw The Light chronicles the life of country music legend, Hank Williams.  The film begins with the marriage of Hiram King “Hank” Williams (Tom Hiddleston) to Aubrey Sheppard (Elizabeth Olsen) in 1944.  After their marriage, we see him performing at a local bar.  However, he oversleeps for his Montgomery radio show at WSFA.  The station manager grows sick of his alcoholism and tardiness.  Yet, he still tolerates Hank’s actions to an extent.  However, he still yearns for the Grand Ole Opry and fame.  His impatience is frowned upon by the Opry establishment. He’s told to schedule an audition like everyone else and wait.  This doesn’t bode well for the troubled singer.  He feels that everyone deserves to hear his voice and watch him perform.

Would he make it to the big time?  Would he receive the acclaim and fame?  Would he find and lose love/lust along the way?  The answer to those questions is yes.

I Saw The Light is based upon Hank Williams:  The Biography by Collin Escott, George Merritt, and William MacKewn.  The book is adapted and directed by Marc Abraham.  He is best known for producing such films as Children of Men and Dawn of the Dead.  Abraham doesn’t sugar coat Williams’ life.  Lifelong and casual fans will already know that.

However, the highlight of the film is Tom Hiddleston.  He breaks free from his Thor/The Avengers role of Loki.  Hiddleston learned to play the guitar and sing for this role.  He has the look, voice, and body language down pat.  His performance is bound to be awarded with an Oscar, a Grammy, and/or a CMA nomination.

Does the film have a few short comings?  Yes.

However, film goers shouldn’t walk in expecting Million Dollar Quartet or Walk The Line.  They will find themselves in an anthology of Williams’ greatest hits.  The film sheds light on the pain behind the twang.  We see that fame has a high price. Our society tends to put blinders on this.  I Saw The Light reminds us to follow our dreams cautiously and remember that they can end just as quickly.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hank_Williams

Before Trilogy Celluloid- Before Sunset (2004)

Before Sunset found Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Celine (Julie Delpy) reunited after nine, long years since Vienna. He was on a book tour in Paris.  The book is titled This Time and recounted his night in Vienna with Celine.  Much to his surprise, she is waiting outside the book store.  They began talking and we realize that they didn’t meet up in December.  She had her grandmother’s funeral to attend.  However, he did make it to Vienna.  He spent a few days there and left flyers at the train station with his room number.

However, they were together now until it was time for his flight.  She is know an activist with Green Cross.  However, he resided in NYC now with a wife and two children.  She has had several boyfriends and was not married.

Jesse will leave Paris later that afternoon.  However, what was there to go home to? Would Celine drop her activist lifestyle and go back to NYC?

Before Sunset answered some remaining questions about Vienna.  It found beautiful, Parisian vistas and familiar conversations.  We are treated to Richard Linklater’s subtle direction again.  Also, Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke pick up right where they left off in Vienna.  They also co-wrote the screenplay for Before Sunset with Linklater and Kim Krizan.  It received a 2005 Oscar nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay.

To borrow a line from Casablanca, “We’ll always have Paris…”

 

TBT Before Trilogy Celluloid- Before Sunrise (1995)

Picture if you will, strangers on a train.  One man, one woman; both moving in the same direction but each to a different destination.  His departure is in Vienna and she’s further down the line.  If you’re looking for Hitchcock, keep browsing.  If romance and sightseeing are your fancy,  welcome to Throwback Thursday.

Before Sunrise found two strangers on a European train, Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Celine (Julie Delpy).  An arguing couple caused them to change passenger cars. Jesse is back to the U.S. tomorrow morning after an extended European holiday. Celine was returning home to France after a trip.  However, they became engaged in conversation and he reached his destination, Vienna.

Three options:

1.   Celine would continue home.
2.   Jesse would bid adieu to her and be alone in Vienna.
3.   She would be his guest to walk the streets…for sightseeing.

Hmm, one night in Vienna?  Will they just walk, talk, and dine or more?

Before Sunrise was directed and co-written by Richard Linklater.  Linklater co-wrote the film with Kim Krizan.  He had two great leads in Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke.  They melded together perfectly with great chat and soothing sights.  When the credits role, film goers wanted to see this duo again.  They would in Before Sunset (2004) & Before Midnight (2013).

Food for thought.  Film goers might notice a possible time loop or alternate dimensional experience with a second or third viewing.  Confused?  

Linklater would go on to direct 2014’s Boyhood.  Ethan Hawke portrayed an absentee Dad who wouldn’t see Mason, his son, for months or years at a time.  At the end of Boyhood, we find Ellar Coltrane (Hawke’s onscreen son) grown up.  Okay, it should be getting clearer now.

What if Mason was actually Jesse on holiday?  Better yet, Jesse was actually Dad before meeting Mom (Patricia Arquette)?  Best of all, Mom could be Celine and Dad could be Jesse?

Maybe, Mason did enjoy his European holiday and some pints.  Or Dad enjoyed the lights?  Mom enjoyed one last night before Paris?  

We’ll always have Vienna, no matter what happens.

Unlikely Detective Celluloid- Inherent Vice (2014)

Protesters, Counter culture, Drugs, & Real Estate? Is Fox News having wet dreams again? 

No, it’s Inherent Vice!

Doc Sportello (Joaquin Phoenix), a P.I., sent on a wild goose case by his girlfriend Shasta to investigate Mickey Wolfmann. Meanwhile, Sportello is constantly dodging and coincendently crossing paths with Lt. Det. “Bigfoot” Bjornsen (Josh Brolin). Bjornsen is a lone wolf just like Doc but then again?
Nothing is as it seems once the wild case unfolds.

Paul Thomas Anderson has masterfully adapted Thomas Pynchon’s novel. Phoenix and Brolin play off of each other masterfully. They are surrounded by an ensemble including Reese Witherspoon and Martin Short.

If a viewer has ever wondered, what Adam 12 and Dragnet would look like on an acid trip? P.T. Anderson’s Inherent Vice answers that question and delves into many more.

(This review was originally written on June 28, 2015.)

Resolve Celluloid- Room (2015)

“To go beyond the walls and back into the outside world…”

Room is narrated from Jack’s (Jacob Tremblay) perspective.  He’s celebrating his 5th birthday along with his Ma (Brie Larson).  They are both living in forced human captivity by Old Nick.  She was taken over seven years ago and has spent that time in a room.  Jack knows about outer space (the outside world) from television.  Ma has taught him to read, write, and cook.  However, she wants to escape with Jack from Nick.  Will her plan work?  Will Jack love outer space?  How will her family react to their return?

Room is hauntingly directed by Lenny Abrahamson and written by Emma Donoghue (based on her novel).  Brie Larson and Jacob Tremblay steal our hearts and our tears.  Larson should win Best Actress at the 2016 Oscars for her role as Ma.  Tremblay gives a performance beyond his years that would make any actor envious.  The film has been nominated for four 2016 Oscars:  Best Picture, Best Actress, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay.  Brie Larson won Best Actress for her role as Ma.

Room is the Best Film of 2015.  It gives viewers a bird’s eye view of how captives feel.  Danny Cohen’s cinematography brilliantly puts us inside the clear, claustrophobic room and into the bright, unfocused world.  The viewers go through the same ups and downs as the captives.  Parents and grown children will empathize with Ma and Jack.

I felt particularly moved because I’m an only child. However, the family size does not necessarily matter but how much love the child received.  Fortunately, I have received and continue to receive love from a caring mother and father.

Room stands as a testament for all parents, families, and friends of captivity survivors.  Don’t miss this timely, emotional drama.  Remember, We All Have Strength!

 

WCW Ensemble Resolve Celluloid- Sleeping with Other People (2015)

“To Lose My Virginity and Keep Having Sex…”

Sleeping with Other People starts in the year 2002 with college students at Columbia, Lainey (Alison Brie) and Jake (Jason Sudeikis).  Lainey is hard up to lose her virginity to Matthew (Adam Scott), the Resident Assistant?  Hmm, she needs to pass a class b/c he’s also a Teacher’s Assistant.  Some T & A to get an A?  Typical as per frickin’ usual.  Hold up, it ain’t like that at all.  Matt wasn’t there and she had a meltdown. Jake saw her and felt that spark.

Slow Your Roll, Homie!  You’re getting ahead of the conquest.

They decide to hang out and bond.  Later on the dorm roof, they stumble reluctantly into losing their innocence.

In 2015, Jake’s a full fledged nympho hopping in and out of bed with every woman possible in New York City.  Meanwhile, we find Lainey in a relationship with Sam (Adam Brody).  She decides to confess her sexual diary out loud in a quiet restaurant.  Sam goes ape and leaves her in shambles.  In a panic, she texts Matthew.  Yes, that one; Oh, My God!!!  She’s still hung up on the T.A./R.A. but does he have a P.A.?  That’s a negative, Ghost Rider!

Lainey decides to go to a sex addict meeting.  After attending, she reunites with Jake?  Hmm, two nymphomaniacs falling for each other?  Will it work?  Can they keep it fresh?

Sleeping with Other People is brilliantly written and directed by Leslye Headland. It is an atypical concept that has been tiptoed around before until now.  Two nymphomaniacs falling in love?  If 50 Shades can have a S&M happy billionaire, let these two air out their needs and wants.

Jason Sudeikis & Alison Brie are magnetic together. They surrounded by a terrific ensemble including Adam Scott, Marc Blucas, and Amanda Peet.  Oh, Billy Eichner (yes, FOR A DOLLAR!) damn near steals the film as the sex addiction group leader.

This comedy is funny and meta. It is an askew companion piece to Linklater’s Before Trilogy. Leslye Headland’s script and direction are spot on in capturing atypical/typical dating dialogue.  She has written one of 2015’s ten best films overall.  Headland should feel comfortable being in the same company as Amy Schumer’s screenplay for Trainwreck.  The film can be summed up in feeling by Drake’s “Hotline Bling”, David Bowie’s “Modern Love”, Meatloaf’s “Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad”, and Elvin Bishop’s “Fooled Around and Fell In Love”.

Ensemble Trilogy Celluloid- Chasing Amy (1997)

Chasing Amy revolved around two comic book artists, Holden McNeil (Ben Affleck) and Banky Edwards (Jason Lee).  They were the co-creators of Bluntman and Chronic.  The film opened on them at New York Comic Con.  The day was going great until someone called Banky a tracer instead of an inker.  Holden had that fan removed and all was well.  However, the real fun was just beginning.

They attended a diversity comic panel featuring artists Alyssa Jones (Joey Lauren Adams) and Hooper X (Dwight Ewell).   Jones was there to promote Idiosyncratic Routine and Hooper’s was called White Hating Coon.  His presentation was over-the-top and crowd clearing in regards to Star Wars (see the link below).  However, his comic wouldn’t sell without the antics.  Hooper’s a gay, black man.  Afterwards, he introduced Banky and Holden to Alyssa.  They were invited by him for drinks in NYC.

The drinks would lead to Holden being attracted to Alyssa.  He’s straight but she’s more than meets the eye.  How would this attraction play out?  Would Banky & Holden still remain comic best sellers?  There’s too much to fill just one panel.

Chasing Amy is the final installment of Kevin Smith’s New Jersey Trilogy.  He didn’t disappoint with some of his freshest and most topical dialogue (this side of Dogma).  Prior to this film, film goers weren’t familiar with terms such as the pronoun game, lesbian chic, and sharing a moment.  Also, he offered an inside look into comic conventions and panels.  It was an honest approach because certain topics/artists may or may not attract an audience.

Ben Affleck shined by not playing a complete jerk (for once).  Jason Lee was funny and atypically homophobic as Banky.  Dwight Ewell brought an unseen aspect to indy cinema, a black gay man.  His role was the funniest and most unexpected among the ensemble.

However, Joey Lauren Adams stole the film as Alyssa.  Her bold and fresh approach challenged LGBT stereotypes.  Alyssa was multifaceted and not just a lipstick lesbian.  One of the best scenes between her and Holden is on The Criterion Collection DVD.  The scene is an extended take of “Love is Fleeting” where a story is told involving a man, a woman, and a train.  In this blogger’s opinion, it was one of his most moving scenes to date.

Fans can expect to see a brief appearance by Brian O’Halloran (Dante from Clerks) and Matt Damon (yes, Ben’s bff and co-writer of Good Will Hunting) as MTV execs.  We were once again treated to an extended appearance by Jay and Silent Bob (Jason Mewes & Kevin Smith).  Silent Bob had a great scene when he told Jay off (beneath Hooper’s Star Wars Rant).

We saw the final connections from Clerks and Mallrats as follows:

Dunn & Reddy Contractors For Hire (Clerks “Death Star Discussion”) are in same building as Bank-Hold-Up (Banky & Holden’s office).

LaFours (Security Guard from Mallrats) is on Issue #1 Cover of Bluntman & Chronic.

Heather, Alyssa Jones’ sister, wrote Boregasm (Mallrats).

Alyssa knew Caitlin Bree and Julie Dwyer (Clerks).

Alyssa slept with Shannon Hamilton and he videotaped her.  She slept with Gwen Turner as well.  (Both were in Mallrats)

She also was intimate with Rick Derris (Clerks).

Banky was intimate with Brandi Svenning (Mallrats).

Viewers will enjoy this fitting sendoff to the New Jersey Trilogy.  Find some great friends and share several moments over this film.

P.S.  Jay and Silent Bob will return in Dogma (promise).

Resolve Celluloid- The Hunting Ground (2015)

The Hunting Ground is a documentary tackling the issue of sexual assault on U.S. college and university campuses.  It features the accounts of female and male survivors of this atrocious action.  Andrea Pine and Annie Clark are UNC-Chapel Hill students and sexual assault victims.  They had their accusations brushed off by administrators.  The administrators of UNC-Chapel Hill (along) with other NCAA schools place blame on dress, sobriety, and firmly saying “No!”  However, they decided to buck the system when ignored.  Will they succeed?  Only time will tell.

Kirby Dick (The Invisible War) has directed of 2015’s best documentary films.  Andrea Pine and Annie Clark are true trailblazers in Title IX defense.  They chose to fight an unspoken wrong and deserve great admiration.  Lady Gaga contributed “Til It Happens to You” for this documentary.  She is a sexual assault survivor as well.The interviews include a retired Lt. of Notre Dame Security Police, Tom Seeburg, Kamiliah Willingham, and Erica Kinsman.  The issue is one that Democrats and Republicans agree that needs to be addressed.

https://www.notalone.gov/

http://www.seeactstop.org/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/lady-gaga-till-it-happens-to-you_55fb547ce4b08820d9181ec7

FBF Trilogy Celluloid- Clerks (1994)

Clerks revolved around Dante Hicks (Brian O’Halloran).  He gets called into work at Quick Stop Groceries.  His boss promised to be there at noon.  Oh, Well!  Dante arrived and set up the store.  Who put gum in the locks?  A bunch of savages live in this town.  Ok, shoe polish and fabric; Check!  I Assure You We’re Open.  Cigarettes, we have those in stock.

“What do you want those for?  Hold this. (hands customer a ring)”, said interrupting fan to customer. “What’s this? Oh, no!  Look dude, I’m tolerant but I don’t accept this.”, said customer.  “Huh?  No, no!  It’s a tracheal ring”, said the interrupter.  “If I were like that, I would have to a lot more to work with”, said the customer.  “Typical, I offer a ring and get a zing”, said the Chewlie’s gum rep.

The Chewlie’s rep was a real, rebel rouser.  (Fire Extinguisher discharged)  Veronica saves Dante’s ass again, Typical.  Wait, when does the video store open?  Randal (Jeff Anderson) was the type that late being born and late to his funeral.  He’s the counter jockey at RST Video, next to Quick Stop.  He won’t be stepped on but does stepping instead.  “As long as Chewlie’s, I’ll allow it”, the rep interrupted.  “Step off, pal.  We’ve already go two loiterers and they deal just fine.”, said Randal.

Dante’s dealt with gum in the locks, a gum slinging demagogue, and a late friend.  What else could wrong?  Who are those two loiterers in front of the store?  Well, Welcome to New Jersey!

Clerks was the first installment in Kevin Smith’s New Jersey Trilogy.  It was blunt and critically acclaimed.  Fans reveled in Jay and Silent Bob’s loitering, Randal’s fresh mouth, and Dante’s every man.  Jeff Anderson and Brian O’Halloran would revive their characters in Clerks:  The Animated Series, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Clerks II, and Clerks III (still in development).

Viewers will begin to notice a pattern of Star Wars themed jokes in all three films. However, the characters will intersect in Mallrats and Chasing Amy as well .  The following names should be kept in mind for the second and third part:  Willam Black, Caitlin Bree, Brad Michaelson, Alyssa Jones, Allan Harris, Brad Michaelson, Rick Derris, Julie Dwyer, and Jay and Silent Bob.

However, the film had an alternate ending.  The link is shared below and it would have altered Kevin Smith’s other Jersey films.  Also, Smith pulled a Spielberg as well.  Dogma was to be the next appearance of Jay and Silent Bob.  However, he decided to film Mallrats next and wait on Dogma until 1999.  Smith chose wisely and allowed his project to mature.  Viewers know that mature is a stretch with his humor but not with his philosophy.

(The Dialogue featured in this post is original and not in the film)