Reviews

This serial film is fun to watch, if you can put yourself in the mind of a kid in 1932 chomping popcorn & watching this on the big screen in his local theater.

The real value of the film to me is the scene in which an airplane attacks Wayne & his girlfriend as they stand on a deserted road. Compare it to the crop dusting scene in Hitchcock's "North by Northwest" and there is little doubt in my mind that Hitch stole the scene from Beebe.

I've watched this film at least once a year since it first came out on VHS (or was it Betamax?) It is hilarious. I can't think of a better cast for a comedy than we have here, all playing around the central Dudley Moore character. The jokes, both visual and verbal, are rich with irony and wit. ("What is this, egg salad?" is my personal favorite.) The love story is only a driver for a comedy mix of this wide array of bizarre characters: Dudley Moore, Alec Guinness, John Huston, David Stathairn, Wallace Shawn, Ron Silver and many more whose names you may not know but who's faces you'll recognize.

I was quoting a line from the film the other day and got to talking about it with a friend. That led me to do a search on IMDb. The 4.3 rating makes no sense to me at all. It has my "personal 10", as it is a movie I can watch again any time. After all these years it is just as funny as it was 30 years ago.

Incredible - astounding - genius! Martin Scorsese (pumped up on Scorsese Juice) on his best day, maybe... maybe, could have made this film. The casting, acting, lighting, score, set design, wardrobe, continuity are all superb. Beyond that, in a realm of it's own (where only Angels dwell) the cinematography, lighting and (most of all) editing are beyond words - inspired, even genius. The film is beautiful in every way. There is not a second of dead space. The acting and directing are subdued to the point of cracking. The script is intelligent, crisp, taut, naked and censored of bullshit. The violence is visceral – most disturbing not in its graphic display but in its contextual presentation. Never gratuitous; never senseless - the violence hurts most because it is exactly what it is and nothing more. Albert Brooks says "It's OK, it's OK, no more pain, it's over" an we want to crawl under our seats until mommy wakes us in the morning and tells us it was just a nightmare. Who resurrected Gregg Toland, Robert Wise and Bernard Hermann to photograph, edit and score this film? Who brought the young Orson Welles, Frank Capra, Sam Fuller and Francis Ford Coppola together to direct this masterpiece? Drive should be mandatory viewing for every film student for the next 100 years. Battleship Potemkin, Citizen Kane, The Godfather, Drive: This is our world in miniature.

This American Playhouse TV version of Arthur Miller's classic drama is the best I've seen. And I've seen a lot. From off-Broadway to Community College performances, and everything in between. James Whitmore is perfectly cast as Joe Keller. His hang-dog manner is much better suited to the role than any other I have seen; certainly better than Edward G. Robinson's tough-guy approach in the 1948 film version. Joan Allen is also a perfect choice for the role of Ann. Both she and Aidan Quinn run the gamut of emotions without ever losing authenticity. Michael Learned is one of few actresses I've seen able to pull off the tough role of Kate without seeming silly or disturbed.

Fortunately for me, I wisely recorded, on VHS, the one and only PBS broadcast of this version in my area. It appears to only be available in VHS, and at exorbitant collectible prices.

Even though I read the full plot, with spoilers, I still found this to be the best Sci-Fi film that I've ever seen. No Hollywood histrionics; no catchy one-liners for the previews; no over-the-top acting. The pacing was first rate, flowing as a steady stream of information. No annoying, time-consuming side stories to distract you from the real story. The score added to the film without overwhelming it. The acting was subdued, even sad. The special effects were terrific, but not the focus of the film. Without giving anything away, I'll say that I know quite a bit about the scientific material used. It is accurate; improbable, but not impossible. The photography was especially good, reminiscent of John Ford - if that doesn't sound too strange a comparison to make to a science fiction film. I loved it!