Archive for May 1st, 2009
May 1st, 2009
David Lynch’s 1986 creeptastic masterpiece was on IFC last night, and I stayed up way too late watching it for the umpteenth time. It’s a truly great movie — one of the best of the 1980s, in fact — but there are precious few memorable bits I can post here for your viewing pleasure. (Mostly thanks to Dennis Hopper’s imaginative use of the English language.)
But there is this, and it might just be the best scene in the whole movie. It’s amazing what Lynch does with Dean Stockwell in too much makeup, a mechanic’s shop light, and an old Roy Orbison recording. And watch how Dennis Hopper reacts, his obvious pain building into frustration and fury. And, if you’ve seen the movie, you know this is only the beginning…
Strangely enough, that’s not how the scene was originally planned. According to the book LYNCH ON LYNCH, Lynch had planned to use the Roy Orbison song “Crying,” but when he got a copy of a greatest hits album, he went with “In Dreams” instead. Then, he had planned to have Dennis Hopper sing the song, with Dean sort of watching and singing along, but when Dennis stopped singing and watched Dean, Lynch knew that was the way to go. And finally, the light Dean Stockwell uses was left there by some member of the crew and not originally meant to be in the scene. Dean thought it was, though, and just wound up using it.
Of course, Lynch did end up using a version of “Crying” in 2000’s MULHOLLAND DR. Here’s that memorable scene:
May 1st, 2009
Here’s a nice write-up of Harold Ramis’ sadly ignored 2005 noir comedy THE ICE HARVEST, which stars John Cusack as a mob lawyer, Randy Quaid as the mobster he rips off, Billy Bob Thornton as the not-friend who helps him and Oliver Platt as the drunker friend who’s married to Cusack’s ex-wife. Oh, and Connie Nielsen as the femme fatale who pulls everyone’s strings.
It’s a smart movie full of quirky characters and great set pieces (especially the scene where Mike Starr is locked in a trunk and tries to convince Cusack that Thornton is going to betray him the first chance he gets). As a bonus, it’s a Christmas movie that, like Kubrick’s EYES WIDE SHUT, makes the most of contrasting all those bright lights with dark backgrounds (and an even darker storyline.)
 Of course, it bombed at the box office (which is why it’s being feature in Nathan Rabin’s “Year of Flops” series), but that doesn’t mean you can’t check it out on DVD. Here’s the trailer to whet your appetite…
May 1st, 2009
Courtesy of someone named “Cool Papa Bell” over at the MetaTalk message boards, here’s an interesting theory that combines applies the secret of FIGHT CLUB with the movie FERRIS BUELLER’S DAY OFF. (Spoiler alert — you might not want to read this if you haven’t seen — yet still plan to see — either of these movies).
To quoth Mr. Bell…
My favorite thought-piece about Ferris Bueller is the FIGHT CLUBÂ theory, in which Ferris Bueller, the person, is just a figment of Cameron’s imagination, like Tyler Durden, and Sloane is the girl Cameron secretly loves.One day while he’s lying sick in bed, Cameron lets “Ferris” steal his father’s car and take the day off, and as Cameron wanders around the city, all of his interactions with Ferris and Sloane, and all the impossible hijinks, are all just played out in his head. This is part of the reason why the “three” characters can see so much of Chicago in less than one day — Cameron is alone, just imagining it all.It isn’t until he destroys the front of the car in a fugue state does he finally get a grip and decide to confront his father, after which he imagines a final, impossible escape for Ferris and a storybook happy ending for Sloane (”He’s gonna marry me!”), the girl that Cameron knows he can never have.
Read the other comments here. (Usual message board warning: Some of the language in the comments gets a little salty.)
