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THE LADYKILLERS (Dir: Alexander Mackendrick, 1955).
THE LADYKILLERS (Dir: Alexander Mackendrick, 1955).
Alec Guinness heads an ensemble cast in the last great Ealing comedy.
Seemingly mild mannered Professor Marcus (Guinness) leads a gang of oddball criminals, masquerading as classical musicians, in the planning and execution of a daring bank van raid. When their elderly landlady Mrs Wilberforce learns of the wrongdoings they all agree she must be silenced. However, Mrs Wilberforce is not as easy to do away with and their perfect crime begins to go awry.
Disguised with an oversized set of false teeth, Alec Guinness is excellent in his role as the cardigan wearing criminal. An outstanding ensemble cast makes up the rest of the gang. Cecil Parker as a corrupt retired army major, Herbert Lom as a Soho gangster, a subdued Peter Sellers as a cockney spiv and Danny Green as a dim-witted heavy; all give superlative performances. Upstaging them all, however, is the marvellous Katie Johnson as the seemingly frail Mrs Wilberforce who outsmarts the robbers.
One of a handful of Ealing productions shot in Technicolor, cinematographer Otto Heller's beautiful muted colour palette lends it an oddly surreal, atmosphere. This is complemented by Jim Morahan's excellent art direction; the wonderful tumbledown Victorian house in which much of the movie is set adding to the general off kilter ambience.
Director Alexander Mackendrick fashioned a deliriously dark comedy of the highest order; the only film blacker in the Ealing canon is Kind Hearts and Coronets. He elicits career best performances from his distinguished cast in what is among his greatest films.
William Rose's screenplay balances the light and dark with tightrope precision; neatly offsetting the contrasting worlds of ruthless criminals and twee little old ladies. Some broad farce involving an escaped parrot should sit uneasily with the otherwise subtle humour but, amazingly, the whole thing gels perfectly.
The Ladykillers is a masterpiece among comedy movies. Its mix of humour and thrills is irresistible and as an ambassador for the Ealing legacy it cannot be bettered.
Visit my blog JINGLE BONES MOVIE TIME for a longer, more in-depth review of The Ladykillers. Link below.
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JOKER (Dir: Todd Phillips, 2019).
Joaquin Phoenix stars in Todd Phillips much anticipated movie based on the DC comic book villain the Joker.
Set in a pre-Batman Gotham City, Joker charts the descent into madness of failed comedian Arthur Fleck (Phoenix). Fleck bears a depressing, isolated existence, working as a clown-for-hire by day and caring for his elderly mother by night. Fired from his job and suffering a beating at the hands of Wayne Enterprises employees Fleck turns vigilante on those who those he feels have wronged him, while desperately trying to find acceptance in an uncaring society, ultimately becoming his alter ego Joker.
Joker has divided critics and audiences and I can see why.
Director Phillips found fame with comedy movies Old School (2003) and The Hangover (2009), but his Joker is anything but funny. In many respects it is a love letter to 70s cinema; paying homage, in particular, to the work of Martin Scorsese, notably Taxi Driver (1976) and King of Comedy (1983) and Paddy Chayefsky’s dark media satire Network (Sidney Lumet, 1976). Borrowing its themes and visual style from those movies, Joker could be accused of being derivative, but it certainly is a handsome production; its gritty 70s milieu is arguably its strong suit.
Phoenix’s central performance is undoubtedly powerful and very intense. Many will acclaim this while others, myself included, may find it a little overwrought and lacking subtlety. By contrast, the surprisingly low-key performance by Robert De Niro, as a late night talk show host, is one of his best in recent years. Zazie Beetz, in a relatively small but important role as Fleck’s neighbour was the standout among the cast for me.
Much controversy has arisen over the glorification of violence in the movie. Yes, it is brutal in places but I feel this is inevitable in a DC origins movie about a deeply disturbed, complex character. This is no PG13 or 12A superhero movie. Take heed of the rating, it is a relentlessly dark and very distressing movie and is definitely not suitable for children or young teens. This is a movie whose lead character is suffering mental illness and this was my major problem with Joker. I understand the movie’s conceit that Fleck is the manifestation and result of an unfeeling, disinterested society. However, I feel very uneasy about how mental health is paraded as entertainment and found its depiction here both cruel and potentially damaging.
I wanted to love Joker but I didn’t. I don’t wish to discourage anyone else from watching the movie; this review represents my personal opinion. This may well be a movie that you enjoy as others at the screening I attended obviously did. For me both the handling of the theme and Phoenix's performance were lacking in sensitivity and bordering on the offensive. A disturbing and unsettling viewing experience that I would have difficulty recommending.
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100+ movie reviews now available on my blog JINGLE BONES MOVIE TIME! Link below.
THE LION KING (Dir: Roger Allers & Rob Minkoff).
The 1990s Disney Animation renaissance continued with The Lion King, their biggest hit (when adjusted for inflation) to date.
The movie tells the story of young lion and future king Simba (voiced by Jonathan Taylor Thomas as a juvenile and Matthew Broderick as an adult). Simba’s father Mufasa (James Earl Jones) is killed by his brother and Simba’s uncle Scar (Jeremy Irons). Scar leads Simba to be believe he is responsible for Mufasa’s death and goes into hiding. Believing Simba has been killed by Hyenas, Scar takes his place as king of the Pride Lands. However, Simba is rescued by comic relief duo meerkat Timon (Nathan Lane) and warthog Pumbaa (Ernie Sabella). When adult Simba learns of his uncle’s despotic machinations he returns to fight Scar, reclaim his crown and restore order to the Pride Lands.
Majestic seems a fitting word for The Lion King. Recalling earlier classic The Jungle Book (Wolfgang Reitherman, 1967) with its animal cast, particularly in the characterisation of Scar, a upper-crust Disney villain in the Sheer Khan mode. The movie feels both fresh, in its break from the fairytale genre, yet classic Disney with its anthropomorphised animal antics.
It is easily one of the Studio’s most visually appealing features of the 1990s. It’s beautiful backgrounds of African landscapes is the match of the superior character animation. This is highlighted particularly in the opening scene as the African animal populous gathers to welcome the newly born Simba to the Pride Lands. So impressed were the Disney execs by this scene, that it was used wholesale as the movie’s trailer. Happily the rest of the film has no problem in living up to this breathtaking beginning.
With outstanding animation, excellent voice work and a handful of hit songs by Tim Rice and Elton John, The Lion King reigns as one of Disney’s greatest post-Walt animated feature films.
Visit my blog JINGLE BONES MOVIE TIME for a longer, more in-depth review of The Lion King. Link in bio.
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THE COMPUTER WORE TENNIS SHOES (Dir: Robert Butler, 1969).
Kurt Russell stars in the first of Walt Disney Productions' Dexter Riley trilogy.
Ordinary Medfield College student Dexter Riley (Russell) acquires extraordinary knowledge after an electric shock from the science lab computer. Now able to learn facts and figures at lightning speeds, he finds himself mingling with the world's top intellectuals and winning TV game shows. However, he also finds himself dealing with bent bookie A J Arno; details of his illegal gambling ring having also been stored on the machine.
A decade after their first foray into live action fantasy comedy with The Shaggy Dog (Charles Barton, 1959) one might expect the formula to be wearing a little thin. But actually The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes finds it in pretty robust form. It's all innocent, inoffensive fun, with the attractive youths, inept crooks and car chases that fans of 60s/70s era Disney comedies had come to expect.
Much of the movies appeal comes from the game playing of its appealing cast. 18 year old Kurt Russell was always one of Disney's most likeable leading men and here proves himself adept at light comedy. He is supported by an accomplished cast, notably Joe Flynn as the long-suffering Dean Higgins and TV Batman's The Joker Cesar Romero as shady businessman A J Arno. Disney regular Richard Bakalyan played one of his many small-time hood characters; a role in which he seemed eternally typecast.
The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes was a significant hit for Disney and spawned a valuable franchise. Two sequels followed Now You See Him, Now You Don't (Robert Butler, 1972) and The Strongest Man in the World (Vincent McEveety, 1975), while a remake would appear on US TV in 1995.
Nobody would argue that The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes is a masterpiece. Yet, at the same time it would be churlish to be over critical of it. It is lightweight fun that sets out to entertain and in this it succeeds. Perhaps best enjoyed for nostalgia value today; a whimsical period piece but with enough easygoing charm to coast through its 90 odd minutes.
Visit my blog JINGLE BONES MOVIE TIME for a longer, more in-depth review of The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes. Link below.