Lady in the Water (2006)



“Man thinks they are each alone in this world. It is not true. You are all connected. One act can one day affect all.”

            I am not a really big M. Night Shyamalan fan. Yes, I have seen the Sixth Sense and thought that was amazing, I have also seen Signs and The Happening (either you hated this movie or you liked it and I just so happened to like it). Shyamalan’s movies always have good stories they are always so different compared to everything that is out there. Lady in the Water, while not a success when it was released, is one of his best movies and one of the most original I have seen in years. Lady in the Water is based off a bedtime story Shyamalan wrote for his daughters.

            Cleveland Heep (Paul Giamatti) is a landlord for an apartment complex. He spends his time fixing things for the tenants and talking to them. Cleveland has been hearing someone splashing around in the pool after hours. He asks some of the tenants but they have not heard anything.

            After work one night Cleveland goes home to relax and falls asleep. When he wakes up he hears the splash in the pool again. He goes out to see who could be swimming but he finds no one there even after going for a swim himself. Suddenly someone flies out of the water and grabs a necklace from a pool chair. Cleveland goes to run after the person but he slips and falls hitting his head and rolls into the pool.

            When Cleveland comes to he is lying on his bed. He looks at the end of his bed to see a young girl who he has never seen before. She has red hair, very pale skin, and she is only wearing one of his shirts. Her name is Story (Bryce Dallas Howard) and she rescued Cleveland at a great cost to her own life.

            As Cleveland gets to know Story he learns that she is from an ancient culture of people who live under the water. She cannot go back to the pool because vicious dogs that live in the grass called Scrunts will come out and kill her. The Scrunts do not like Story’s people and will do whatever it takes to not let her back in the water.

            The fairy tale of Story and her world is very fascinating and incorporates many of the people living in the apartment complex. At first we see these people just as Cleveland sees them- kind of odd and from multiple ethnicities. Each one of these people have their own ways about them and their own intelligences that near the end will help bring Story back to her world. I have to say that Shyamalan is an excellent storyteller this is totally original. I saw this with my friends and my brothers when it was released and I can clearly remember walking out of the theater and all of us just saying how great it was to have sat through a totally original story with none of the overused clichés. Shyamalan even goes so far as to throw in a character who is a movie critic and he has the character say “There is no originality left in the world… That is a sad fact I have come to deal with.” And in another part the character explains all horror movies and characters like himself.

            I have got to tell a very funny story: The Scrunts in the movie (or as they were called once by Story the “JJ Scrunts”) are kind of scary. They are these nasty looking things that just come up out of the grass. My one brother who went with me to the movies was such a chicken and he was scared of them (my brother who is 6’3”… he’s so brave). My friend was driving us back and he pulled up to a space in front of my house and in front of the spaces is a hill of grass. My friend yelled out “Oh my God there’s a JJ Scrunt!” Well my brother screamed like a girl at the top of his lungs and ran out of the car!! We were all laughing at him so hard that we practically crawled out the car holding our stomachs. To this day we never let my brother live that moment down.

            Lady in the Water is an excellent movie. Paul Giamatti and Bryce Dallas Howard were fantastic; the entire cast was put together well (Shyamalan does make an appearance as a character throughout the movie). The movie is very original and very entertaining because it is original. It is movies like Lady in the Water that I still have some hope for modern Hollywood and the return of well made original movies. This is one of M. Night Shyamalan’s best works. It is not intense nor does it comes with a twist ending; it is a nice tale of one person in need who winds up helping many people around her. It brings you back to your childhood when you wanted to believe every story you ever heard and you still had innocence.

Clueless (1995)



“Would you look at that body language? Legs crossed towards each other. That is an unequivocal sex invite.”

            Clueless is one of those movies I can remember watching all the time when I was little. I was never into the whole popularity thing or the fashion thing; I guess I just found Clueless to be funny and entertaining. I still do to this day watching it.

            If you have been living under a rock for the past sixteen years and have never seen Clueless it is about Cher Horowitz and her popular band of friends at a Beverly Hills high school. Cher is a spoiled brat who is used to getting what she wants. She is not a brat to the point where she needs to be slapped she is a funny, naïve brat who likes to manipulate people to get what she wants. Cher likes to shop and talk with her friend Dionne.

            When her report card comes in and the grades are not good she talks some of her teachers into giving her better grades by telling them stories to get their sympathy. But there are two teachers who will not change the grades. In order to get them to grade not so harshly she hooks them up.

            A new girl from the East Coast named Tai enrolls in the school. Cher and Dionne see Tai as a new project and make her over and teach her how to be popular.

            Cher, Dionne, and Tai get into a bunch of shenanigans and heartbreaks throughout the movie. There are so many funny scenes and lines that it is hard to name just one.

            The cast is one of my favorites. I can accurately pinpoint that this is where my crush/love for Paul Rudd all started (he plays Cher’s stepbrother Josh) and I still go nuts whenever I see him in the movie. I find it more fun to see Brittany Murphy, Donald Fasion, Alicia Silverstone, Paul Rudd, Breckin Meyer, and Alicia Donavan so young.

            Clueless is so much fun to watch. It is a movie I have noticed that not just girls enjoy but boys also. It is not extremely girly and annoying at all. Clueless is just the right amount of silly and fun for everyone.

            Suggested: Do not take Clueless seriously and just have fun watching it.

South Park: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut

 

“Blame Canada!”

            Yes, me and all my love for the classy, sophisticated old films where the humor is nothing more than a silly saying has sat through the South Park movie. I do not think I have ever heard so much cursing in one movie in my whole life. But, my God, was I laughing so hard.

            The whole story is the crew of Kenny, Cartman, Kyle, and Stan go to see this movie starring Canadian actors Terrance and Philip. The movie is so foul and horrendous it sets the whole town alight in fury. The boys’ mothers especially Kyle’s gets all up in arms over Terrance and Phillip. She starts a whole campaign to get the movie banned and to punish the two stars.

            Things spiral out of control and the US attacks Canada and a war starts out between the two countries. Oh and in the mean time Kenny dies again and he goes to hell where Satan lives with Saddam Hussein (who has died from being attacked by fish if I remember correctly). Satan is Saddam’s bitch and the two plan on returning to earth and taking over.

            I do have a funny side and I do occasionally watch idiotic movies like this and thoroughly enjoy them. My friend is obsessed with South Park and he is always quoting it so it was nice to finally see and hear all the things he is constantly talking about. I cracked up with some of the songs especially “Kyle’s Mom” and one of the songs Terrence and Phillip sing which I will not write down because it is one big curse (I run a respectable blog, thank you very much).

            Suggested: Only if you have a very good, sick sense of humor and do not mind a ton of cursing and crude humor.

The Vampire Bat (1933)

“Goodnight gentlemen. Don’t let the vampire get you.”

            Before you judge and laugh just looking at the title and think that it is a really bad 1930s “horror” let me assure you The Vampire Bat is not what you may be thinking. The story is actually pretty good.

            The town of Klineschloss has been turned upside down. Many of the villagers have been found dead from blood loss and two puncture wounds on the side of their necks making it look as if a vampire has killed them. Detective Karl Brettschneider (Melvyn Douglas) sits in on a meeting at the burgermeister’s. Three of the men at the meeting believe the work to be of a vampire bat especially now that there have been an influx of bats hanging around as well as old town records indicate a case of vampirism. Karl will not hear of it he knows there is some logical explanation for the killings.

            An old lady known for selling apples has apparently been attacked by the vampire bat. She is frightened beyond measure. Dr. Otto von Niemann (Lionel Atwill) has been called in to try to calm her. A young man named Hermann comes in the room. He has the mind of a child; he walks around the town at night and plays with the bats. Hermann does this innocently since he knows no better.   The villagers think he is working with the devil and killing all the people. The apple lady latter that night is killed. Another local is convinced that Hermann is going to kill him because he told the police about him. The next day the man is found dead and now the whole town is after Hermann.

            Karl is seeing Dr. Niemann’s assistant Ruth (Fay Wray). She lives with the doctor, her aunt, and a maid. The morning when the man’s body is found Hermann sneaks into the doctor’s garden to get some food set up on a table. The aunt comes back from somewhere and sees Hermann. The aunt has no idea who Hermann is. Ruth, Karl, and the doctor sit in his office when news comes that the town is up in arms over Hermann.

            The men from the town in fear chase after Hermann. They chase him into a cave where he falls into a cavern and dies.

 

            That night Dr. von Niemann’s maid is found dead in her bed. If Hermann is dead who has killed the maid? The conclusion (not the very ending) is really good and you can definitely tell it is a pre-code film.

            I really liked the story. It is a very good mix of old folklore and science fiction. The acting was not bad either. Fay Wray was great (and can I add very pretty). She had some over the top facial expressions but she was able to say so much more than needed. Melvyn Douglas at the end of the film was awesome. Lionel Atwill is just the man he is so good at being creepy and mysterious and just had the mannerisms for this kind (and the many others like this he made) of film. The Vampire Bat was made to take advantage of Atwill and Wray being in a film together since their film Dr. X had been a hit and Mystery at the Wax Museum was being promoted (I really like both of these films check them out). The only character that got on my nerves and was totally unnecessary in many of the scenes was the aunt she was such a pain.

            Although the title may sound corny trust me when I say The Vampire Bat is a good film. This film is one of the reasons why I find Golden Era films and their stories to be so much better than today. As I said the story is a very good as well as interesting mix of science fiction. The Vampire Bat could never be pulled off today because the story is a bit dated but for 1933 it worked perfectly.

            Definitely see The Vampire Bat for the story and the cast. Youtube has the film in full just type in the title and the date.

 

A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)

“I don't want realism. I want magic! Yes, yes, magic.”

            The more I read a Tennessee Williams’ play or see a film based off his plays the more I cannot stand him. The same thing goes for Marlon Brando good God does this man drive me up a wall! So you may be asking yourself why if I do not like the playwright or the actor did I sit through A Streetcar Named Desire? Well first my brother several years ago gave me the TCM collection of dramas with the film along with The Grapes of Wrath, East of Eden and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof which I have not watched until a few days ago for the first time and Vivien Leigh was in the film and I adore her so I had to see it. If Vivien Leigh had not been in the film I never would have even bothered to see it.

            I cannot even tell you what the plot is because I did not understand it. All I know is that Blanche Du Bois (Leigh) went to New Orleans to visit her sister Stella and her husband Stanley Kowalski. Blanche is seriously disturbed she has some kind of psychological disorder. She was had been an English teacher but as she says she was forced to resign. The more she stays in the house with Stanley and Stella the more she loses grip on reality and the more she becomes disturbed.

            Stanley certainly does not help at all. He is a greasy, nasty brute. Blanche cannot understand what her sister sees in the man. As time goes on Stanley plays on her illness going so far as to drive her to the breaking point where she needs to be put in a home. Stella hates her husband for what he has done to her sister who mentally is like a child and she leaves him.

            Vivien Leigh was amazing. She won the Academy Award for this role and absolutely deserved it. This is one of the best performances in a film I have ever watched. Before Leigh performed Blanche in the film she originated the character on the London stage. Laurence Olivier had directed her in the stage show and she claimed that his direction rather than Elia Kazan’s direction for the film influenced her the most. You can see her performing like she was on the stage she had such a great intensity that is only seen in a live performance. I read that this point in her life Leigh was suffering from bipolar issues and had a hard time distinguishing her real life from the character. That was sad to read because she was such a talented actress but then again she performed so well she did not let her illness get in the way. The scene where Leigh blew me away was when Stanley’s friend Mitch came by the house. Mitch had been dating Blanche but Stanley was an ass and told him nasty things about her and Mitch no longer wanted to see her. For some reason he went to the house and was just totally cruel to her. She told him to get out of the house or she would scream. She did scream she chased him out of the house screaming and right into the court yard. Leigh was perfection she was intense and emotionally over the edge.

            The rest of the cast was alright. Marlon Brando was not Brando yet. I really cannot stand Brando I know the character was a jerk and everything but whatever the man is in I cannot stand him a minute. The cast including Brando were from the original Broadway play. Jessica Tandy played Blanche in the stage show but she was not well known at the time and the studio wanted a big name so they went with Leigh.

            A Streetcar Named Desire was alright. It is not the kind of film I would want to sit through again. I find Tennessee Williams plays to be boring. Marlon Brando kind of ruined the whole thing for me in many scenes. Only sit through the film if you want to see Vivien Leigh be absolutely amazing or if you like Brando or Tennessee Williams.  

Twentieth Century (1934)



“That's the trouble with you, Oscar. With both of us. We're not people, we're lithographs. We don't know anything about love unless it's written and rehearsed. We're only real in between curtains.”

            When learning about screwball comedies there are a few films that will always be the first mentioned: Theodora Goes Wild, The Awful Truth, His Girl Friday, My Man Godfrey, and Twentieth Century. Twentieth Century has its moments of outright hilarity, but what else would you expect with a cast that includes the Queen of Screwball Carole Lombard and the ham of all hams John Barrymore being directed by Howard Hawks?

            Oscar Jaffe (Barrymore) is a famous Broadway director but he is a bigger ham and more dramatic than any of his actors. His plays are very successful. He is putting on a new play with a young actress named Lily Garland (Lombard). During a rehearsal he is called down. While watching the rehearsal he feels Lily is not giving the part her all she is the lead and she is holding back. Jaffe dismisses everyone but has Lily stay. He draws all her steps down on the stage in chalk and goes over the part with her over and over. He gets an idea to show his leading lady what he wants out of her. Jaffe pulls out a pin and sticks in Lily’s backside! The yell she gives is exactly what Jaffe was looking for.

            The play is a success and Lily has now become a sensation. Jaffe tells Lily she is the best actress he has known and he wants to take her all the way to the top. He does as he promised but he and Lily have a falling out. He is keeping her from going out and doing what she wants. She tells him that for the past three years everything she has done has gone through him first and she is tired of it.  The next day he apologizes but then has her followed. Lily finds out, she hits the detective, and runs away on a train heading for Hollywood.

            Jaffe is now without his leading lady. He finds a new one but she is no good and his four new plays flop horribly. He has to get out where he is because he owes people money that he does not have so he leaves in disguise on the Twentieth Century train. Lily also happens to be on the train and all hell breaks loose between the two egotistical actors.

            Up to this point John Barrymore had only been known for his dramatic roles and Carole Lombard has only been known for her looks. Howard Hawks saw their comedic sides off screen and decided to put their off screen humor on screen. What he got in return was comedic gold. All the praise for this film should be directed to Barrymore. The man was so utterly dedicated to acting and was a big ham in real life that he was perfect as Jaffe. I had such a good time watching him he was so funny and sometimes so over dramatic but never annoying. The whole time I kept wondering if Gene Wilder was inspired by Barrymore when he acted in some of his films especially when he went overboard. Lombard was pretty good. I am still finding it hard to believe that she is the Queen of Screwball Comedy. I found her to be funny in some scenes but most of the time I found her to be way too overdramatic, I guess it was supposed to be her character she became a diva but I was just annoyed (also didn’t the wardrobe department realize that she needed a bra desperately through most of the film?). There is a scene where Barrymore makes a really funny face and then she makes the same face and then snaps back at him. Their faces were so funny. Then of course there is the scene when Lombard is so mad at Barrymore she kicks him and that was really funny because he just kept going and going and knew she was annoyed with him. At the end of filming Twentieth Century Barrymore gave Lombard and autographed picture of himself saying she was the best actress he had ever worked with bar none. They did work very well together.

            Howard Hawks is a genius he knew how to get the best out of his actors. Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur wrote the screenplay. The pair would write His Girl Friday six years later. Hecht is one of my favorite screenwriters he wrote some of my favorite classic films. The dialogue in the film is crazy and completely intelligent.

            Twentieth Century is a true classic. Before this there were comedy films but nothing like this had been seen. With so much overdramaticness and comedy there was also a bit of sexual frustration and tension between Lily and Jaffe. You can see it and feel it whenever they fought or whenever they were around each other. Twentieth Century is a film that should not be missed if you love Screwball Comedies. John Barrymore as Oscar Jaffe is one of my favorite film performances and I am sure you will enjoy him as well.

Together Again (1944)



“Oh, I knew if you came here something would happen”

            Together Again is an appropriate title for this film since it once again pairs Irene Dunne and Charles Boyer. Instead of being a romantic pair waiting months to be together they are complete opposites with not too much in common except that they each bring something out in the other.

            Anne Crandall (Dunne) is mayor of a small Vermont town. Her husband Jonathan was mayor of the town before he died. Anne lives with her father-in-law and Jonathan’s daughter Diana from his first marriage. Mr. Crandall is always telling his daughter-in-law that she must go out and live her life he is tired of seeing her stuck in their small town.

            Every year on the anniversary of Jonathan’s death Anne and Diana have a celebration in the town square where a statue of him stands. That night there is a storm with strong winds and rain and lightning and thunder. Lightning strikes the head of Jonathan’s statue knocking it off. Anne wants to just replace the head but Diana insists on a new statue. They find a French sculptor in New York named George Corday (Boyer)

            When Anne gets to the studio George is asleep on a cot. She does not want to wake him so she goes to leave the studio when a lightning strike from the rain storm outside wakes him up. At first George thinks that Anne is a model he does not know that she is the mayor he has an appointment with. Anne gives him the pictures of Jonathan and he begins to ask all kinds of personal questions claiming that the information is for him to get to know the former mayor. Anne begins to get flustered but deep down she likes it.

            George says that he can guess her weight just by her bone structure. He tells Anne that if he guesses her correct weight he gets to take her out to dinner. He guesses correctly and takes her out to dinner. Anne gets to know George more and she begins to like him. At dinner George spills Anne's drink all over her dress by accident. She goes into the ladies room and the bathroom attendant presses her dress. While in the bathroom there is a raid on the restaurant. Anne is in her flower hat and her slip. When the cops come in they think she is one of the dancers but she lies and tells them her name is Mrs. S. Borat Sosa (the name on a canister in George’s studio) and that she is the wife of a Latvian diplomat.

            After Anne gets out of jail she rushes home never wanting to see George again. All the way home Anne is very gittery and nervous and her father-in-law points it out. Her nerves are further thrown out of whack when George shows up at her doorstep!! He tells her that since she left in a hurry he figured he would come and see her and to start on the statue. Anne is none too happy about him being there but Diana will not let him go and Mr. Crandall wants him to stay because he thinks the sculptor will be good for Anne. On top of her daughter and her father-in-law George has brought his P. Borat Sosa canister as blackmail.  

            Anne’s world that she is used to gets thrown for many loops with George in town. Mayor and sculptor fall in love but Diana and her friend Gilbert manage to complicate things. No worries though a new storm and lightning strike bring Anne and George back together.

            Irene Dunne and Charles Boyer were just as fabulous together as they were in Love Affair. Boyer lives up to his French lover reputation as he woos Dunne. I liked seeing his little comedic side since I have only seen him in serious roles. Dunne is so fantastic at playing a nervous mess; she never goes overboard she is just perfect. In the restaurant raid scene when she is in only her slip, flower hat and fur she looks amazing. Dunne was forty-six at the time and she did not look her age one bit.  

            Charles Coburn as Mr. Crandall was very good. In one scene he gets drunk and tells the local paper about Anne’s escapade in New York. He tells the paper so Anne will leave the town and marry George. He walks in drunk with Anne’s flower hat on his head. He looks hilarious.

            I do not even want to know who the actress was who played Diana because the character was so annoying and so was the actress. The character was an emotional mess, it was like the girl was going through some crazy hormonal changes and her emotions were all over the place and she had no idea how to handle them. The film could have really done without her.

            Together Again is not a laugh out loud hysterical comedy. It is a cute comedy with some moments that will put a smile on your face. Charles Boyer and Irene Dunne were such great actors who worked so well together that they make up for the story being a little silly.

            Together Again is definitely a film for all classic film fans to view. It is available on DVD in a collection entitled Icons of Screwball Comedy Vol. 2