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Lee_Baker
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Casablanca (1942)
As Time Goes By...
What else can I say about 'Casablanca' that hasn't already been said? Truth is, there isn't much; but there is a lot to be said about this movie, so I'm gonna give you my opinion on this legend of a film.
'Rick's Cafe Americain', 1941: War erupts throughout Europe and the US. Cynical bar owner Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart) will not help anyone in need of assistance: He "sticks his neck out for nobody." He is visited in his Cafe by a German trouble-causer by the name of Ugarte (Peter Lorre) who is on the run. Ugarte asks Rick to safeguard two letters of transit (or VISA's) to leave Morocco which have been reported as stolen. Rick holds these in the piano of his entertainer and good friend, Sam (Dooley Wilson).
Ugarte is tracked down and immediately killed by the authorities. Meanwhile, French resistance leader Victor Laszlo enters the bar with his lady, Ilsa Lund (Ingrid Bergman), Sam panics and hopes that Rick stays out of the way - knowing that it will only cause a fuss - Ilsa also knows this, but she desperately wants to see Rick, so she asks Sam to play 'As Time Goes By' (a song that Rick banned soon after his and Ilsa's break-up). Rick storms out of the back, he goes berserk; only to look up at Ilsa. He gives a shy smirk, and in that 5-10 second freeze the audience feels their pre-existing passion and love for each other as the camera switches from face to face.
Ultimately, the decision lies with Rick as to whether he takes the two VISA's for himself and Ilsa, or for Ilsa and Victor. His subsequent decision to leave himself in Morocco is a heartbreaking, but nevertheless honourable, one.
Everyone and their cat should know that 'Casablanca' is one of the most often spoofed/quoted movies in film history. Here are a few of them:
"Play it, Sam, play 'As Time Goes By'. You played it for her, now play it for me!"
"Round up the usual suspects."
"Here's lookin' at you, kid."
"We'll always have Paris. We didn't have, we got it back last night."
"Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship."
(Rick) "This gun is aimed directly at your heart." (Captain Renault) "Lucky for me, that is my least vulnerable spot."
(Rick) "I came to Casablanca for the waters." (Captain Renault) "The Waters? You're in the middle of a desert." (Rick) "I was misinformed."
"I stick my neck out for nobody."
"I'm the only cause I'm interested in."
(Guest) "What nationality are you, Rick?" (Rick) " ...I'm a drunkard." (Captain Renault) "That makes Rick a citizen of the world."
...So now you see why this movie is a major motion picture classic? It sure does speak for itself. the 60-some years since it's release has brought some of the greatest cinematic minds lots of inspiration; and for this, we thank the makers of this wonderful film.
Excellent Film - *****
The Opposite of Sex (1998)
The Opposite of Audience's Expectations
OK, now I understand the reason why many people will dislike this movie. It deals with many taboo issues, such as underage sex/pregnancy, homosexuality in a unfavourable light, murder, profanity, mischief and illegality. Writer/director Don Roos gambled the movie's entire ideologies in order to get the important message across. Lets face it, it's not as if Roos is an inexperienced scriptwriter of this ilk. After all, he penned the screenplay to another "Anti-women's liberation" movie, 'Single White Female'. He seemed the perfect guy to translate the honesty of lower/middle class America to the screen; and the style he chose to produce the movie in needn't be mentioned at this stage. Now, onto the film itself...
Didi Truitt (Christina Ricci) is the most cynical and sarcastic of all teenage girls. She believes the world owes her favours and should pay dividends. Her step-father passes away and so she leaves her mother and goes to find her long-lost step-brother Bill Truitt (Martin Donovan) in hope that he will take her in and give her the life of Riley, which she never had at home. She takes a gun with her...
She knocks at his front door - his boyfriend answers; this shakes Didi up, but nevertheless she is in desperation, although she never lets it transcend. Her step-bother is an English teacher at the local high school: He is a pushover of a man who has no discernible masculinity whatsoever. He lost a very close ex-boyfriend to AIDS a year before which is obvious to the viewers that this wrecked his life, but to his "handsome airhead" of a boyfriend, Matt Mateo (Ivan Sergei), it is not.
Due to the close relationship he held with his ex, he has since adopted a possessive and maniacal "sister-in-law" figure, Lucia (Lisa Kudrow), who wholeheartedly disapproves of Didi right away. Lucia is a dominant presence in Bill's life and she takes the helm whenever any crisis is imminent. Many people hate Lucia - she doesn't care.
Didi and Matt have a crush on each other and basically, they end up in bed together. After months of sneaking around behind Bill's back, Didi announces that she is pregnant, and that Matt is the father. They steal Bill's $10,000 stashed in his safety deposit box and elope to Los Angeles where Matt takes up a minimum wage job to support Didi and the unborn child. Matt quits his job after running into Bill and comes home early one day to find Didi in bed with Randy (the guy with one ball). She announces to Matt that the baby is in fact Randy's. The latter has a terrible temper and he and Matt begin to rumble. Didi and Randy leave together and set up home elsewhere. He and Didi have a confrontation in which she ends up killing him.
Matt visits and they leave together to escape the law. Didi has the baby and the audience's expectations are toyed with again here. The narrator (a monotonous and cynical Didi) tries to convince the viewers that she dies during childbirth. This is held for about 15 seconds, then the truth is revealed.
At the end of the movie, Didi goes back to school - more bad-tempered than ever - and Bill is left with the child, while he becomes involved with Didi's parole officer. The final shot is where Didi shouts "Go!" to the audience. A sign of anxiety and depression, or just plain swings-and-roundabouts for a troubled teen? Anyway, I've missed out a bit involving a character called Jason and the media circus that he erupts on Bill's already sucky life. But just in case you read this before watching the movie, at least there's a couple of surprises in there for ya.
All in all, an excellent, if complicated, movie (of course, in my opinion). There are not enough honest movies like this one. In a time when the only teenagers Hollywood churned out were those from 'American Pie' and 'Cruel Intentions', it was a breath of fresh air. I am a firm believer in that people should be taught the importance of self-discipline when growing up. Knowing how to deal with certain situations, etc. I also believe that Hollywood perhaps shouldn't gloss over things as much as they do. It is really important that some people have access to a film that deals with adolescence frankly; and as far as the message goes - It leaves a deep mark that you won't soon forget.
Great Movie - ****
Clockwise (1986)
Anti-Clockwise
Brian Stimpson, a stern and (newly) punctual headmaster of a comprehensive school in England is chosen as chairman of the Headmaster's Conference in Norwich. He misses his 10:25 train however and, thus, a manic dash ensues so that the 5 o'clock start begins on schedule.
Let me please continue by saying that I am from Great Britain, I am a big fan of Ealing comedies of the 40's and 50's ('The Titfield Thunderbolt' being my personal favourite) and I also love Monty Python. But my problem with 'Clockwise' is, while it isn't a bad movie, it doesn't give possibly our greatest physical comedian, John Cleese, good enough material to make us laugh hard enough. When compared to the Ealing comedies I simply don't think this movie is nowhere near up to the standard of those movies.
It irritated me quite badly, during the second half especially, when our leading man appears in a monastery quite inexplicably, in which the laughs seem to fall off the radar and the viewer possibly begins to lose interest.
Cleese is a brilliant comedian... check out 'Fawlty Towers', or 'Monty Python's Flying Circus' but the lamentable material he is given here isn't up to scratch and does not show him at his full potential.
Like I said, not a bad movie (in my opinion), but a disappointing one.
The Breakfast Club (1985)
A Summary Of Every By-gone Era
While 'The Breakfast Club' appears on the outside to be a one-dimensional high school comedy about five misfits who are each spectacularly different, the truth is actually far deeper and much more intriguing...
Each person in 'The Club' represents each group in schools across the board. We have 'The Athlete', 'The Basket-Case', 'The Princess', 'The Brain' and not forgetting 'The Criminal'. Each of these students believe that they are simply there to be disciplined, but the truth is an eye-opener seeing as detention is possibly the best thing to happen to them in their educational lives. It helps them garner an understanding of each individual and, while some of them don't exactly see eye-to-eye on their first meeting, they grow and crawl out of their typecast shells and see the characters for what they really are: Individual.
This may be an obvious insight, but rarely have we witnessed a movie so spectacularly spellbinding and riveting as this one. Another point of note is that the viewers and the characters and confined to merely a few rooms in this, at times, claustrophobic school which is characterised as some sort of prison for these no-hopers. Thus leaving the movie hinging on it's dialogue and acting (a la '12 Angry Men', 'Dial M For Murder', 'Rope', etc.), which, for a group of young thespians is spectacular... One to be seen to be believed. Thoroughly recommended. Two thumbs up.