MOVIES AS TIME CAPSULES

Some movies seem to be uncanny time capsules of an era or decade or even a day. I'm not referring to historical or period pieces, whether they be LINCOLN or the loopy MARIE ANTOINETTE. Time capsules are movies that were contemporary when made and now remind us (those of us who were alive then) of those times but also give a fair fix on the era for those who were not born yet (a growing majority).

SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER (1977) is a prime example. Nothing evokes the late '70's Disco era like John Travolta strutting his stuff and his Brooklyn accent. The soapy melodrama is hypercharged, the clothes are spot-on wonderful or ghastly, depending on your taste, and polyester with the Bee-Gees has never been groovier.

WHEN HARRY MET SALLY (1989) remains one of the most popular romantic comedies of the last fifty years. Its appeal comes from Nora Ephron's socially smart script that addresses the age-old question: "Can a man and a woman be friends without falling in love?" Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan take about 12 years to find out. This time our time capsule is based on clothing and hair styles and even Meg's make-up. As she goes from college to her thirties, she tries so many combinations that we wish she'd decide already. But Meg and the film, like WORKING GIRL (1988), are great reminders of how style can often determine attitudes and behavior in society.

PRIVATE BENJAMIN (1980) stars Goldie Hawn as a spoiled Jewish princess whose second husband dies of a heart attack on their wedding night. In the blankness of her grief and her naivete, she is persuaded to join the army. Laughing yet? You will. Judy Benjamin undergoes basic training under the impatient eyes of Captain Lewis, played to sadistic and hilarious effect by Eileen Brennan. The film takes this premise and gives many of us a time capsule of one of the most miserable times of our lives. Mine was in the summer of 1957, and I was Private Benjamin, just out of high school! Watching Goldie try to climb over those walls, get out of the gas house without breathing, or getting over a rough terrain with bullets whizzing above her head were vivid reminders of my basic training experience, except there were no laughs for Goldie or me, except on the screen.

But watching this comedy again brought up a new idea that hardly occurred to viewers back in 1980. Judy Benjamin suffers sexual harrassment from a superior officer who attempts to rape her when she won't jump from his plane. It seemed funny once; now it seems obscene, and fortunately, the attitudes towards this kind of action are changing.

Do you have any time capsule movies? E-mail me at wawsumb@gmail.com.

Explosions...check. Car chases...check. Incredible plots...check. August movies...CHECK!!

As the summer movie season gasps to a close, there are still a few action films that offer some diversion, if not clarity or purpose. In order of release, here are the last few entries.

WHITE HOUSE DOWN, not to be confused with INDEPENDENCE DAY or MARS ATTACKS or many others in which our first residence gets blown apart, features Jamie Foxx as a cool president obviously meant to remind us of our current cool president. He's caring, savvy, has a loving family, and he's black. Unfortunately, he's also under attack from a commando force of unhinged vets under the leadership of a demented James Woods, who just happens to be the head of security. To save our nation and his own little girl (wow, what an innovation), we have Tatum Channing, who seems to be in every other action movie this year. After constant chases, including a hilarious race around the White House Lawn in those beefy limos, the outlandish plot finally shuts down with a whimper. Some of this is fun, especially the performances of Maggie Gyllenhall as a White House secret service leader and Richard Jenkins as the Speaker of the House. There are surprises that defy credibility, but then this is about Washington, so none of them are logical or particularly surprising.

WOLFERINE. That hairy muscular mutant with psycho tendencies, a bad hair cut to suggest his wolfishness, and projectile claws is back, though who wanted him, I'm not sure. To provide a new setting for Hugh Jackman's rage, we travel to Japan for big and nasty business, the Yakuzu gangsters, family strife as Wolferine's old friend is dying, and three beautiful women, two of whom are deadly. As Jackman flexes and slashes his way through this mess, the plot spins out of control into bad sci-fi mad scientist territory. Open at your own risk.

2 GUNS. Certainly the pick of this crop, TWO GUNS features action favorite Mark Wahlberg and actor of all genres Denzel Washington as two guys pulling a small town heist, one that explodes (along with a lot of things in this movie) into non-stop gunfights, car chases, Mexican mafia violence, and plot twists that defy explanation. Let's just say these guys are not who they or we think they are. Their interactions are akin to those of the heroes of series like BEVERLY HILLS COP and LETHAL WEAPON. Denzel is usually the straight (and smarter) man for Mark's off the wall jokes and decisions, and many of the fast quips are quite clever but don't speed the plot. Let's just say that there are a lot of triple crosses in this caper, which moves at breakneck pace, not allowing you to think how nonsensical some of them are. How could they be when we are talking about the Navy, the CIA, the Mexican drug trade, et al?
This is watchable, though Denzel is slumming and Mark is above his usual element. Their support, though, is top notch. Bill Paxton is a creepy, sadistic CIA operative, and Edward James Olmos is a creepy, sadistic drug lord. Collectively, they make 2 GUNS worth watching.

Crazy, Lazy Lists

Entertainment Weekly, that bastion of middling pop culture, recently published a special issue called "The Top 100," which included the top 100 movies, top 100 tv shows, top 100 novels, top 100 albums (yes, we used to call them that), 50 top plays, and so on. As one reader put it, the magazine managed in one full swoop to @#$%^*(}% all of its readers, including this one (yes, I admit it!). Many of the choices were inevitable and some were woefully misguided.

Some blatant mistakes: Evelyn Waugh's brilliant BRIDESHEAD REVISTED was left off the best novels list (PORTNOY'S COMPLAINT, THE STAND, the Harry Potter novels, etc. were included!) and the magnificent tv series BRIDESHEAD REVISTED, generally considered one of the finest in history,was shunt aside for the likes of THE REAL WORLD, THE RIFLEMAN, SURVIVOR, AMERICAN IDOL, CHAPPELLE'S SHOW, DAWSON'S CREEK, BEAVIS AND BUTT-HEAD, ET AL.

Novel No Shows: Faulkner's LIGHT IN AUGUST, his most profound and readable. Vonnegut's SLAUGHTER HOUSE-5 and Gunter Grass' THE TIN DRUM, two of the greatest antiwar satires, both full of compassion and humor. ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND and THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS pull me back again and again. No film version has come close to its illustrations, its puzzles, paradoxes and original characters. Huxley's BRAVE NEW WORLD...science fiction, a new language, simply amazing. D.H. Lawrence's SONS AND LOVERS and/or WOMEN IN LOVE, not only ahead of their time sexually but also great writing. And the non-listers list goes on and on.

So, here comes another list to get upset about, and more will follow:

Best Animated Feature: PINNOCHIO, 1940, Disney's finest film takes the Italian fairy tale about a wooden puppet who must prove himself before he becomes a real boy. The characters are fully developed humans or personified animals who are even more human. The fox Honest John and his punching bag accomplice the cat Gideon are perfect con men, Stromboli, the traveling showman, is a monstrous showman, Pleasure Island is a paradise for immature boys who are turned into donkeys, and Monstro the whale is truly terrifying. But what's truly amazing are the visuals that seem more fluid and real than most movies even today. The animators have mastered the tricks of great cinematography taking us into the mouth of a whale or on a joy ride on Pleasure Island. The film, with its old world details of Geppetto's workshop and the allures of Pleasure Island, is a worthy precursor to films like INCEPTION.

2. Best Comedy TV Series: THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW. No other comedy series has the heart, comedic invention, and more wonderful characters than this one with lovable but flawed characters who work beautifully together in a workplace filled with
absurdity and reality.  Mary Richards (Moore) was a tv trail blazer, a single woman in her 30's who is seeking a career, not a man to care for her. She was a delightful mix of ambition, caring, and humor who had to handle her gruff but gentle bear of a boss, played to perfection by Ed Asner; Ted Baxter (Ted Knight), the daffy news anchor who  commits malaprops by the dozens; Betty White's lascivious Sue Ann Niven whose sexual asides contrast with Mary's gee whiz innocence, and the rest of a memorable cast.

Now, the above is not really a list. Just two entries in two categories. Time to go wild. LISTOMANIA!

This is not another lousy TRANSFORMERS!!

Though most of the summer blockbusters have busted from overload and hype, there is one I can wholeheartedly endorse: Guillermo del Toro's epic monster vs. monster robot PACIFIC RIM. Why? If you have seen del Toro's visionary masterpiece PAN'S LABYRINTH, then you know why. If you have not, SEE IT! It' s a magnificent combination of fairy tale, the Spanish Civil War, and a little girl who treads the thin line between the two. Del Toro's creative make-up for the various creatures in the labyrinth are both horrific and sublime, and this is brought to a gigantic scale in PACIFIC RIM.

It seems the threat from outer space has turned to monsters from the deep, as in "prehistoric" creatures featured in Japanese movies eons ago. So we get to see Mothra, Godzilla, and dozens of others of their ilk, but the fun surprise is seeing so many variations of the great designs for the ALIEN series. Del Toro uses these creatures freshly and drops in amazing details, some for laughs, some for clues. The movie itself is spectacularly beautiful, every shot flooded with lush colors of hope (mostly blues) and reds and oranges (guess what).

Believe it or not, there are human beings in PACIFIC RIM, played by talented actors. Idris Elba (THE WIRE) is a powerful presence as the head of the robot program with dark secrets. Rinko Kikuchi (who won an Oscar nomination for BABEL) plays a pilot whose family was killed during an earlier attack. She is mesmerizing as her mind melds with her co-pilot's (Charlie Hunnam) during battle.
PACIFIC RIM should appeal to more than teen age boys and sci-fi fanatics. It's got beauty, horror, and great visual impact. In comparison to the other blockbusters in the last few years, PACIFIC RIM is a Delacroix gone wild, while the rest are colorless sketches.

A footnote: If you are not watching CBS's knockout series of Stephen King's UNDER THE DOME, then get with it. Don't start in the middle. Go back and stream the earlier episodes from the beginning. Each one is a gem, and each ends in suspense and directions you never expect. The characters trapped under this suspicious huge dome are good, bad, and both, and they are all played by talented, forceful actors, young and old. It's not often when a network presents an intelligent and mysterious thriller and makes it work.

AT LAST....A SUMMER MOVIE WITHOUT MONSTERS, ROBOTS, ZOMBIES, OR THE APOCALYPSE

Every summer or so, we are lucky to get a respite from all the special effects disaster films. Usually the Brits do the honors, but occasionally America comes through (think back to LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE). This year it's THE WAY WAY BACK,           
a low key comic drama about a family vacation to a beach house owned by an obnoxious control freak Trent, played to the nastiest hilt by Steve Carrell). Steve is wooing recent divorcee Betty ( Toni Collette), who is emotionally fragile and just wants taking care of. Her 14 year old son Duncan is resistant to his potential new dad, especially after he sees how he manipulates him and his Mom.

But help is on the way. One day Duncan finds himself at an old water park run by some engaging slackers, and his new job at the park and friendships with his fellow employees change his life. It's wonderful to see young actor Liam James inhabit the part of Duncan. When we first see him in the back of Trent's station wagon he is hunched into himself and looks like Hamlet as a young teen, but Owen, a punchy, punny manager, pulls Duncan out of his slump and shows him the pleasures of summer. Owen is played by Sam Rockwell with a relish that takes no prisoners. Sure, he's a thirtyish adolescent, but there's real caring within. This is NOT the usual Seth Rogen or Adam Sandler approach. There's also a spot-on comic turn by Allison Janey as a tipsy neighbor. She practically steals the movie. You can't wait for to come back on.

There are a few contrived moments in the film, but THE WAY WAY BACK is a family film that deserves a big audience. It's funny without being crude, it's loving without being mawkish, and it's beautifully acted and directed. SEE IT!

What to read? What to read!

Summer is the time to read; in fact, anytime is the time to read, especially for avid readers who like fine stories and stylistic flourishes. One intriguing novel is Meg Wolitzer's THE INTERESTINGS, an involving story that begins with a group of teens at a free-thinking arts camp. Their summers in the wilds include any artsy projects they choose, including extra-curriculars. The main character is Jules Jacobson, a decidely middle class girl who wants to be special. She's witty and is quickly accepted into a group who dub themselves "the Interestings," because of their upper class creds as well as many talents. The novel follows these friends through the next 30 years. While Ethan Figman grows up to create a smash tv show (Think Simpsons) and marries the beautiful and sensitive Ash Wolf, the shy but talented Jonah Bay whose life is thwarted by his childhood experiences flounders as an adult. And there is Ash's charismatic brother Goodman Wolf. You symbol hunters can do wonders with that name. The group sticks together, despite the large differences in life styles and wealth, and Jules marries a good but ordinary man Dennis. No more specifics, folks, because these friends go through some rough times, and they discover that though they may be interesting they're not always so "special." Wolitzer's ability to make an obvious theme more than just interesting pulls the reader through a complex but always compelling story. Some go off the deep end and recover, and some just keep falling. It's a journey well worth taking.

Colum McCann's new novel TRANSATLANTIC is reminiscent of E.L. Doctorow's brilliant historical novel of 1975, in which the writer places an upper class white family, a Jewish immigrant and his daughter and a doomed black couple in the events from 1910 to the entrance into World War I, so that the fictional characters intermingle with the likes of Harry Houdini, Jacob Astor, Henry Ford, anarchist Emma Goldman, the girl in the red velvet swing Evelyn Nesbitt, and many more.
TRANSATLANTIC is far less fantastical but just as absorbing.
McCann links seemingly unrelated events with the trials of an
Irish maid and her descendants. We witness, along with a female reporter and her photographer daughter, the first transatlantc flight from Newfoundland to Ireland; the abolitionist leader Frederick Douglass' visit to Ireland just as the potato famine begins; and Sen. George Mitchell's trip to Ireland to conclude the Good Friday Accords. In a fascinating tour de force, McCann pulls all of this and more into a moving, transformative novel.

LIFE AFTER LIFE by Kate Atkinson is a tricky (in a good way) novel about a upper middle class family in the years from before the Great War until after World War II. Ursula Todd dies again and again but lives alternate lives until she is an old woman. Atkinson suggests that we have possible outcomes depending on our choices or elements beyond our control. The Todd family is an array of sympathetic (except for the oldest son) people with flaws that often define them. Ursula has always been the odd one out, since she seems to have a second sight about the future and others' fates, but rarely a clue about her own. Atkinson, who wrote the complex and entertaining Jackson Brodie mysteries, handles all of these themes with grace, empathy and wit.

I recommend all three, but TRANSATLANTIC is the top choice.

Minority Report....Me Likum Kemosabe!!

With apologies to any group that is offended by my above title, I would like to recommend THE LONE RANGER (or in real terms, THE LONE TONTO with his sidekick, a really slow white marshall). The critics have been merciless in comparing this one to last year's megabombs BATTLESHIP and JOHN CARTER. Nonsense!  THE LONE RANGER, though 30 minutes too long, is a rough and tumble western with enough chases, gunfights, train crashes, and laughs to satisfy 13 year old boys and action movie buffs in their 70's.

Much of the old tv and radio shows' mythology remains, but this version makes Tonto the real force, both for ideas, action, and laughs. Some of the jokes are cornball, but many of the visual jokes and repartee between Tonto and the Lone Ranger are hilarious. I was with a family audience on Sunday, and they seemed to love this new take. The plot is fairly loose, as is the geography. Did you know that Monument Valley is in Texas? Did you know that the first cross-continental railway was in Texas? Did you know that the Arizona Indian cliff dwellings were in Texas? Hmmm. Did Rick Perry produce this movie?
But I dither. An unscrupulous railman wants to use the railway to ship silver to San Francisco, he also wants to kill Texas Rangers and blame it on Comanches, and he wants to steal the heroine and her son for his own.

Why Monument Valley? This movie is in love with John Ford's THE SEARCHERS and even uses scenes from the greatest western ever. We have the raid on the homesteaders with the same sounds and red sunset; we pass the same rock formations again and again; and we have the Search for kidnapped white woman and child. Homage to John Ford aside, these are impressive vistas. And we even have the famous LONE RANGER THEME when the marshall becomes the MAN. There are train wrecks, bridge collapses, Silver carrying the Lone Ranger across moving trains, et al. And all of this is accompanied by humorous asides mostly from Johnny Depp's Tonto. So, if you're looking for a rousing good ride, take on THE LONE RANGER.