Four Lions (2010)

Directed by: Chris Morris
Run time: 97 minutes

This movie is a biting satire of Islamic extremism and human stupidity. Written and directed by Chris Morris who has also written The Day Today,  Brass Eye, and episodes of Veep. The Day Today and The Brass Eye were satirical takes of the media with no care given to how badly they made fun of them or what subject matter they choose to satirize. The best example of this was the Drugs episode of Brass Eye, the show claimed there was an Eastern European drug called "Cake". "Cake" affects the Shatner's Bassoon region of the brain and slowed the users perception of time. It also was claimed to cause water retention in the neck. Now they asked David Amess, a Conservative member of parliament, to film a PSA about the evils of "Cake". He was so taken in by the joke that he asked the government if they knew what it was and had they banned it yet. This is the level of satire Chris Morris brings to his work.

The tone of this movie is set with the opening scene of the character Waj filming his martyr video with a small toy AK-47 and a camera with low battery life. Instead of recording his last message, he is busy arguing with the other members in terrorist cell on the best way to make the toy look like the real thing. This is one of many videos that Omar, leader of the cell, is trying to edit in some way that does not make their group look like a collection of morons. Like Faisal, who refuses to be filmed unless he is wearing a box over his head. Or Barry, a recent convert to Islam and thinks ingesting sim cards is a brilliant way to avoid authorities listening in or tracking them on their cell phones.

The cell's problems start when Omar and Waj go to Pakistan for terrorist training and direction as to what their target will be. Their training doesn't even start when Waj takes a real AK-47 and uses his cell phone to take a video of himself firing it. This pisses off the people running the camp and Omar and Waj will be sent back to England without the training or guidance. Ensuring that the situation is made worse, Omar spots a drone and gets the bright idea to shoot it out of the sky with a rocket launcher. This dumb idea is made worse by the fact Omar has never used that weapon and is holding it backwards. So instead of missing the drone he hit another near by training camp. Omar and Waj get the hell out of Pakistan and get back to England as quickly as humanly possible. Instead of cutting their losses the group just doubles down on the stupidity.

This movie does a great job of showing four flawed people who are all for killing themselves in the name of God. Collectively the four of them can't agree on why they are dying or where they should attack but they all ready to be welcomed into paradise. No one in this film is the cunning evil terrorist, the ultra innocent bystanders, or officer Amazing Slab Chunkhead. It is a movie universe full of people with absurd ideas with an absurd and satirical slant. It is dark, unapologetic, funny, and unafraid to call everyone an idiot. If you like what you have read so far go out and watch this movie. You will not be disappointed.

MVT: The Cast and the writing are the reason this movie is funny as it is.

Make or Break: This is filmed as cable news feature showing the lead up to an event. So a lot of the footage is from closed circuit tv, news footage, cell phone footage, and documentary like footage. It was jarring getting used to the way this movie is put together.

Score: 7.95 out of 10

The King of Marvin Gardens (1972)

 

During the 2014-2015 NFL season, the Green Bay Packers defeated the New England Patriots by a score of 26-21 at Lambeau Field. Prior to the game, Large William and I agreed upon an interesting wrinkle: if my Patriots won, he’d be required to watch and review a movie of my choosing for the Midnite Ride (e.g. Jamaa Fanaka’s STREET WARS), whereas if the Packers won, I’d cover 1972’s THE KING OF MARVIN GARDENS for the GGtMC blog. This particular gentlemen’s bet was a win-win proposition. It’s long overdue, but here’s my end of the deal.

The antiquated architecture standing in the Atlantic City occupied by this film’s characters was long gone when I walked off the boardwalk and onto the frigid sand nearly 40 years later to spread a departed family member’s ashes. Despite this difference in mise en scène, I can tell you with certainty that Atlantic City in the winter months is every bit as bleak and biting as it is in Bob Rafelson’s 1972 film, THE KING OF MARVIN GARDENS. While the characters find that it’s a terrible time and place to hatch a real-estate scheme or get hired as an auctioneer, it proves more than adequate for bonfires and horsey rides.

During a broadcast into the wee hours, talk-radio personality David Staebler (Jack Nicholson) is urgently summoned to Atlantic City by his older brother, Jason (Bruce Dern). Without any further context, David leaves Philadelphia and arrives at the train station, only to be collected by his brother’s cheeky companion, Sally (Ellen Burstyn) and a clumsy welcoming band of drums and brass players. Trombone Shorty, they ain’t.

When the brothers first reunite, they do so with jail bars between them; jailed for reasons unknown, Jason is optimistic he’ll get out by sundown if David can track down a guy named Lewis. That doesn’t quite materialize, but Jason is cruising around the boardwalk on a motorized caddy in what seems like only hours later. He reveals a plan to secure real estate for a gambling enterprise on an obscure South Pacific island, and he wants David as a partner. Along for the venture as something of a support team are Sally and Jessica (Julia Anne Robinson), a pretty young thing as naive as she is fun-loving. Both women occupy points in an uneasy love triangle with Jason.

As the plan develops, it unravels at nearly the same rate. Certain events reveal Jason’s pattern (neurosis?) of overselling. (Case in point: Jason may not be able to afford the room in a historic hotel he’d convinced Sally he owned). David can barely contain his unease about the scheme and it seems that simply being near his brother puts him on edge. Sally is losing both confidence and trust in Jason, and shifts an envious eye towards Jessica. Failure doesn’t adequately describe the worst possible outcome for this motley crew.

Despite their shared genetics, the differences between the Staebler brothers couldn't be more stark. David is an introverted storyteller leading a dull life in a Philadelphia apartment he shares with their grandfather. Jason is a charismatic con artist and feverish dreamweaver with lofty aspirations. At a dinner following his release from jail, Jason sucks down brightly colored cocktails while rapping about stolen cars full of Swiss watches as David nurses a glass of milk. Rafelson leaves no stone unturned -- be it visual, narrative, or in characterization -- in illustrating this contrast, yet his efforts never feel try-hard, nor do moments feel unearned. 

Lensed by legendary cinematographer Laszlo Kovacs, the film has a bounty of well-composed scenes with tight framing and offbeat arrangements. One of my favorites features Dern and Nicholson facing each other on horseback on the beach, with the animals barely stirring. Why? No idea. Many of the exterior shots on and around the boardwalk have an overcast, dreary look that reflect a decaying environment, but there are timely and purposeful tweaks to the palette -- a daytime bonfire scene which acts as a liberating cleanse for one character might be the brightest among them.

The film is book-ended by a pair of David’s on-air monologues which border on confessionals. I won’t spoil the content or moods of either, but the first one trails off with David describing he and his brother as “accomplices” before a phone call to his booth engineer abruptly interrupts the conclusion -- the same call that prompts his trip to Atlantic City. Towards the end of the film, David delivers an equally engrossing monologue that transitions into a scene where the brothers’ grandfather projects an 8mm home movie on the apartment’s wall showing the two young boys building a sand castle at the beach -- in other words, a temporary structure assumed to be knocked down or washed away. In lesser hands, this closing visual may have come off as clumsy or sickly sweet, but I found it dovetailed nicely with the film’s themes of lofty ambitions and a fleeting (but persistent) want for paradise.

MVT: This is a character-driven film and as such, how you evaluate it depends a lot on how convinced you are by the on-screen relationships. Both Dern and Nicholson put forth measured performances of two complex characters existing in a state of vascillating stress due to their  oppositional quirks. Burstyn is amazing as Jason’s aging, slighted lover. The charismatic performances are great and the chemistry is even better, but the underlying dynamic between the brothers is the most valuable thing in the film. I have a younger brother myself, and I found this element relatable. Fortunately, it's much more dysfuntional than how he and I relate to each other.

Make or Break: There are plenty of scenes featuring crackling dialogue. There are other moments that reveal nuanced and meaningful characterizations and the dynamics among the players (both individual relationships and as a group). There’s dazzling imagery throughout. The scene in the abandoned convention hall where our foursome puts on a mock Miss America paegent combines all of these elements and was a big make for me. David stiffly narrates as the paegent host, Jason screams encouragement from atop a stack of cargo boxes, Jessica plays the wide-eyed starlet, and Sally is off to the side playing the world’s largest pipe organ (allegedly).

Score: 7.75 / 10

A Dog's Breakfast (2007)

Directed by: David Hewlett
Runtime:  88 minutes

This quirky Canadian comedy is the work of David Hewlett. He played the snarky jerk who also happened to be a clever Canadian scientist on Stargate: Atlantis. So David Hewlett wrote, directed, and stars in a film where he plays a snarky psychopathic jerk who lives in Canada. I am starting to see a pattern here. This is A Dog's Breakfast.

It is nearly Christmas somewhere in rural British Columbia and we are introduced to the main character Patrick. Patrick is a man who is trying for the platinum medal in being an awkward jerk and is upset that the judges will only give him a gold medal. He also lives with Mars the dog, the only character in this movie that is completely normal.

The conflict in this film comes by the way of a phone call from Patrick's sister Marilyn (played by his sister in real life). She tells Patrick that she has a surprise for him and that she will be coming to see him soon. When Marilyn arrives Patrick notices a stranger following his sister. So he does what any protective older would do in this situation, he knocks the guy out with a cricket bat. This is how Patrick meets his future brother-in-law Ryan.

Ryan is the lead actor on a cheesy science fiction show and Marilyn is the make up artist for the same show. The two of them meet on the show and they are on the disgustingly annoying and cute phase of their relationship. Patrick is less than happy for them and sets out to just be his annoying self again. This plan is brought to a halt when Patrick overhears Ryan on the phone. The conversation Patrick hears between Ryan and whoever is on the phone leads Patrick to think two things. That Ryan is out to kill his sister and that Ryan is out to get the money from Patrick selling his parents furniture.

Not being a rational or well adjusted human Patrick decided to protect his sister by killing Ryan. Luckily for Ryan, Patrick is just as useless at murder as he is at being a well adjusted human being. Patrick tries to kill Ryan by using martial arts he learned from a gaming console, a wood cutting accident, a bathtub accident, and an electrified ladder. All of these attempts fail so fate gets involved and causes Ryan to fall off a ladder and break his neck.

Patrick's joy turns to dread as his thick brain processes that he is overjoyed that his sister's fiancé. In his own demented way Patrick does not want his sister to suffer, so he hides the body and tries to help her get over the loss she does not know about yet. Two problems arise from this, one problem is the body will not stay where he hides it and he has no idea how to deal with people. To add to Patrick's growing list of problems Mars is digging up Ryan and dragging him into the house.

To address his sister's imagined needs and to soothe his own conscience Patrick sets up his sister on a online dating site. This leads to a guy named Chris showing up for his sixth awkward date. Not wanting to be rude Marilyn agrees to have dinner with Chris while Patrick acts as a waiter for the two of them. With Patrick's conscience not bothering him, Patrick decides to go after his sister for not doing more with her life. Marilyn counters this verbal attack by pointing out that Patrick inflicted brain damage on himself by jumping off the roof in a superhero costume when he was twenty seven years old.

With Chris gone, Marilyn now knows that Patrick's weirdness is beyond what passes for normal for him. This leads to the third act twist of sorts. It also becomes darker in a way and much more funny.

Overall this is a movie worth a rental. It is twisted, dark, insane and a lot of fun to watch.


MVT: Mars the Dog. The dog is the only one in this movie that is sane.

Make or Break: The break on this film for me is the pace. There a lot slow segments filled with Patrick being a neurotic mess and it feels that the movie is dragging.

Score: 7.4 out of 10

Episode #295: King Drummer

Welcome back to another fine episode of the GGtMC!!!

This week Sammy and Will return after a crazy week for both of them personally with reviews of Ex Drummer (2007) directed by Koen Mortier and King Boxer (1972) starring Lo Lieh!!!

Direct download: ggtmc_295.mp3

Emails to midnitecinema@gmail.com

Adios!!!

Live Like a Cop, Die Like a Man (1976)

Fred (Marc Porel) and Tony (Ray Lovelock) are the type of cops that only exist in the movies. They shoot first and ask questions later. They constantly bend the rules in their favor, which gets them on the wrong side of their boss (Adolfo Celi). As he states, they’re criminals with a badge. In their defense (and words), that’s the only way to fight crime. Their methods may be unorthodox, but they get the job done.

Their job this time out is to seek out Roberto Pasquini (Renato Salvatori), who goes by the nickname of Bibi. He’s a crime lord that… well, I honestly don’t remember. What his intentions are is irrelevant. He causes damage wherever he goes and is in trouble with the law. He’s a target for Fred and Tony, which is all he needs to be. He has cronies do his bidding so our heroes have pawns to play with. And boy, do they have fun with them!

Here’s a brief rundown of the action Fred and Tony get involved in. They foil a robbery by eliminating the criminals before they get a chance to enter the bank; they set dozens of cars ablaze at a snooty club; they take out four men who are holding a woman hostage by distracting them with a helicopter; they chase two thieves on a motorcycle throughout town (granted, they weren’t working for Bibi); they put more bullets in heads than a mob boss. They do all of this with a gleeful smile on their faces.

When they’re not disposing of criminals, they’re smooth talking the ladies. They both score with Bibi’s sex-craved sister and are fed dinner by her mother at the same time (not during the act, mind you). They constantly flirt with their boss’ assistant, who shoots them down with vitriolic insults. When being yelled at by their boss, they crack jokes. They never make light of a serious situation, turning on their game faces when the time arrives.

Ruggero Deodato works at a fast pace and keeps the proceedings running smoothly. He does run into the occasional lull, but quickly picks things up with an action sequence or by letting Fred and Tony let loose verbally. He runs through the motions of the buddy cop genre (70’s era buddy cop, I should note), but does so with finesse and exhilaration that you honestly don’t care that you’ve seen this before. That and the action scenes themselves sets this film apart from others in the genre.

What he does quite work out well is the ending. The idea behind it is clever, but I felt it ended abruptly and somewhat anti-climatically. There was so much build put towards it that it didn’t come close to meeting expectations. I wasn’t expecting a grand finale, but a little more than what we got would have been appreciated. It went against the heroes’ actions throughout, though I’ll admit that’s a part of the cleverness.

Weak ending aside, “Live Like a Cop, Die Like a Man” is a wonderfully manic action comedy! The hour and a half running time breezes by at a swift pace, giving the viewer a comfortable relaxation with the film. The heroes are assholes, but they’re charming and likable (slapping women aside). The action sequences are the true highlight of the film. Without them, this film wouldn’t be nearly as fun. Thankfully, Deodato knows how to work an action sequence!

MVT: Porel and Lovelock. They may play assholes, but they’re so charismatic and charming that you can’t help but like them. In the hands of other actors, they would have been detestable, which would have tarnished the film.

Make or Break: The opening motorcycle chase. It starts with a woman’s purse being snatched, yet she’s still connected and gets dragged via a motorcycle into a pole that cracks her head wide open. Our heroes avenge her by chasing the thieves throughout town (including inside of a store), having them fly into the back of a truck. This impales one of them, while the other has his neck snapped. It’s the perfect mood setter!

Final Score: 8.5/10

No Surrender (1985)

I found it to be a chore to sit through “No Surrender”. I waited patiently for the humor to pick up to no avail. I chuckled every once in awhile, but that’s all the comedy amounted to. Surprisingly, most of the chortles came during the beginning of the film. Considering this portion of the film is where the lulls reside most, it’s a depressing realization.

It’s not that the actors don’t try their hardest. Michael Angelis, Avis Bunnage, James Ellis, Tom Georgeson and Bernard Hill all put their hearts into their roles. Too bad their characters don’t have any souls. The only character in the film to have a personality is Billy McCracken, which is a plus for Ray McAnally. He was able to embed a hint of character and liven up the proceedings. Unfortunately, he doesn’t get a lot of screen time.

The blame lies solely on the director, Peter Smith. He can’t decide if he wants the film to be kooky or dry. He labels the film as a dark comedy, but there’s nothing too offensive or bleak present. The swipes at Protestant’s and Catholics are weak and made me wince. Not because I was offended, but because of how lame and pathetic they were. I’ve heard children come up with better insults.

I guess a plot description would help. Admittedly, it’ll make the film sound interesting, as it shows promise. Two group of old-timers are accidentally booked for a New Year’s Eve party at the same bar on the same night. One group is filled with Protestants, the other Catholics. This starts a war of words (and occasional fists) between the two. The workers try to keep things under control by entertaining them with acts (such as musicians, comedians and a magician), but find they’re in way over their heads.

Notice how I didn’t make mention of who’s who in that description? That’s because nobody really matters. The characters exist solely to disperse insults and punch lines, most of which aren’t good. I can’t recall any of the actual dialogue making me laugh. It was mainly sight gags (such as a blind man beating up two teenagers) that slightly tickled my funny bone. Everything else got on my nerves.

Maybe if Peter Smith trusted his characters more to engage the audience, I would have found the humor to be funnier. If I had gotten behind them, maybe the words coming out of their mouths wouldn’t have seemed so benign. It would have certainly helped the strained dramatic elements of the film (such as the stereotypical romance between the new bar manager and one of the singers).

Then again, maybe a good script was in order. This was screenwriter Alan Bleasdale’s only full-length script to be written. He was known mostly for work on television series and mini-series, where an episodic approach works. In a film, there’s a certain flow to the jokes and dialogue. You also have to evolve characters much quicker and don’t have numerous episodes to iron out their rough edges.

Who knows what went wrong with “No Surrender”. Maybe the humor just went over my head. I’d like to believe so, as I do know this did get some critical acclaim. Even if that’s the case, I know for certain the shaky direction and (mostly) soulless characters didn’t go over my head. They were clearly present and a huge detriment to the film.

MVT: Ray McAnally as Billy McCracken. He was the only character in the film worthy of note.

Make or Break: The beginning of the party. This is where I thought the film was going to pick up. Unfortunately, it did not.

Final Score: 3.75/10

The Borrower (1991)

Earth is a horrible place to live. At least, that’s what I’ve learned from the movies. Anytime an alien life form or God is punished, they’re shipped off to Earth. Usually, it’s to New York City, which is ironic considering how many people dream of making it there. You know what they say; one man’s dream is another man’s nightmare. The punished victim this time is an alien criminal who is being sentenced to Earth for his penalty. Making matters worse, he’s stuck in a human body. Considering most of this blog’s readers are humans, I feel we can all relate. Every day, we wake up in a human body and simply sigh. Our alien antagonist does the same thing. That and he murders people. That’s where the comparisons end (I hope). The alien can only live in one human body for a certain amount of time. Once the body’s time runs out, he painfully transforms back into his alien self. I believe the harm in this is that his alien life form can’t handle the oxygen on Earth without a suitable body of armor. That or if he’s discovered to be an alien, he’s doomed. I honestly don’t remember.

In order to survive, he kills innocent civilians and “borrows” their heads. By squeezing their head onto his body, he’s able to become an exact duplicate of them. Well, an exact duplicate visually. Mentally, he’s a blubbering idiot. This isn’t a knock against his race. They seem to be highly intelligent. His intelligence seems to dissipate once he begins wondering how many licks it takes to get to the middle of a Tootsie Pop. This leads to an abundance of fish out of water jokes. It’s handled better by John McNaughton than it is by Arthur Allan Siedelman, who directed the awful “Hercules in New York”, which I just recently had the displeasure of watching. Even so, it’s nothing more than your average bumbling confusions. He doesn’t have a grasp on the English language; he imitates others, including a hipster; he mistakes eating rats as normal. You know, the usual.

As the alien travels through New York and leaves a blood trail, the cops naturally begin hunting him down. Diana Pierce (Rae Dawn Chong) is the main cop on duty. Not only is she tracking down the alien, she’s also tracking down Scully (Neil Giuntoli), a serial rapist. Just when she believes she has him captured, he breaks free of his hospital bed by pretending to be a female cop. Surprisingly, this works. The Scully subplot eventually takes over from the main plot for a bit, which was alarming. I felt it was forced and had no place in the film. We already had a main antagonist. Sure, he was a shape shifting alien, so to speak, but that’s what we came for. The serial rapist aspect felt like more of a needless distraction than anything. It’s apparent they had the story in mind before concocting the gooey special effects (which, at this point in time, was usually the other way around). Though this is a positive, it’s almost a shame Kevin Yagher’s wonderful practical effects don’t get as much screen time as one would hope. They get enough and deliver on all fronts, but I was itching for more by the time the end credits rolled. “The Borrower” is an average fish out of water tale. Setting it apart is the head stealing alien and the tremendous effects! These make the film worth a watch, even though you have to wade through some standard material to get to them. That and a serial rapist.

MVT: Kevin Yagher’s practical effects. Yagher is best known for creating the Cryptkeeper and Chucky doll and, at this point in time, was a hot commodity. He proves why here with his stunning effects and alien design. Make or Break: I’ll go with the alien’s first transformation into another human. Watching the incredible transformation unfold was a good sign of things to come. Final Score: 6.25/10

Episode #177: What Have I Done to Deserve This?

Welcome to another in our long line of special episodes at the GGtMC!!!

Sammy was out of town attending HorrorHound Weekend 2012 Columbus, so William grabbed some friends and decided to talk shop about Pedro Almodovar's What Have I Done to Deserve This? (1984).

Large William is joined by James McCormick from the Criterion Cast, Cristina from Girls on Film Radio and Death Rattle Aaron who is editor-in-chief of the GBtMC and author of the blog The Death Rattle. Star studded folks!!

Direct download: DeservingRM.mp3

Emails to midnitecinema@gmail.com

Voicemails to 206-666-5207

Adios!!!

Oh yeah BTW.....Sammy met Pam Fucking Grier!!!!

Episode #161: South Beach Configurations

Welcome back to the GGtMC!!!

This week Sammy and William bring you reviews of South Beach (1993) directed by Fred Williamson and The Ninth Configuration (1980) directed by William Peter Blatty. Both of these films have AMAZING casts and some of the most GGtMC moments we have had on this show in some time.

Direct download: South_Beach_ConfigurationRM.mp3

Emails to midnitecinema@gmail.com

Voicemails to 206-666-5207

Adios!!!

Episode #156: Seven Beauties on Main Street

Welcome to another episode of the show you have come to love...The GGtMC!!!

This week our show is programmed by listener Tyler for his donation to the Program for Japan initiative and he chose Seven Beauties (1975) directed by Lina Wertmuller and The Shop on Main Street (1965) directed by Jan Kadar and Elmar Klos. We want to thank Tyler for his selections and thanks for the donation!!!

Direct download: Seven_Beauties_on_Main_StreetRM.mp3

Emails to midnitecinema@gmail.com

Voicemails to 206-666-5207

Adios!!!

Episode #118: The Maple Vice Squad

Welcome to a much delayed but ultimately awesome episode of the GGtMC!!!

Sammy has had some personal matters kick up and Large William and Uncool Cat Chris stepped in and put together a lovely little show for the listeners.

The week the guys cover 9 Souls (2003) directed by Toshiaki Toyoda and Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame (2010) directed by Tsui Hark.

Direct download: Maple_Vice_Squad.mp3

Emails to midnitecinema@gmail.com

Voicemails to 206-666-5207

Adios!!!