Friday (1995)

Craig (Ice Cube) has been fired on his day off. Now he's got a lot of free time on his hands. Oh and it's Friday.

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Remember when movies could be small? Remember when movies didn't have to have giant fighting robots or exploding pirate ships? I know this question in and of itself seems like something out of science-fiction, but believe me this is the case. There was a time in the mid-90s when a movie with no special effects and absolutely no plot could go on to make EIGHT TIMES IT'S BUDGET! How could this be possible you ask? (a) It's funny (b) the characters are likable. Take note Hollywood.

Double Bill: FLARE!

Die Hard and Super 8

Angels In America (2003)

The AIDS epidemic brings together a large swath of disparate characters in 1980s NYC.

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Though it was made for HBO, I still consider this to be a great work of cinema. It's not some simple filming of a stage production. It takes full advantage of all those wonderful things that only cinema can do, and uses them to transport us back to the fearful 1980s. A time when our own President refused to acknowledge a plague that was already laying waste to countless thousands. Not exactly the cheeriest of time periods right? Yet out of this horror, talented artists were able to produce a staggeringly hopeful work. I highly recommend you set aside the 6 hours and take this journey. You won't regret it.

The Natural (1984)

Roy Hobbs (Robert Redford) has a magical bat named "Wonderboy" and is really really really good at playing baseball.

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I hate sports. I especially hate baseball. It's so slow. I mean at least with soccer they're constantly moving ya know? Anyway...Even though I hate baseball with a passion, I cannot help but love The Natural. It's one of those movies that sucks you in when you come across it while flipping channels. Yes it's formulaic and sure it traffics in archetypes, but so what? So what if everyone who's ever gone to film-school knows these story beats? If making a movie this good was as simple as connecting some dots, everyone would be doing it. Only the real naturals are capable of knocking one out of the park.

Home Alone (1990)

Home Alone is a classic for anyone of a certain age...my age, actually. We grew up with it. The first bad word I ever used was "ass" because I heard it in this movie. And now, as an adult, it seems I've committed the price of the pizza in the beginning of the film to memory. Kinda sad, no?

The plot, for those of you who don't know, centers around eight year-old Kevin McCallister (Macauley Culkin) who is accidentally left home alone when his family flies to Paris for their Christmas vacation. Two robbers (Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern) are determined to break into his house whether or not he's home, and he fights back (and how!).

This movie is great because of the unbelievably creative ways Kevin finds to fool and hurt the burglars. I have summarized it in this song.

"On the twelfth day of Christmas Kevin McCallister gave to them...

12 ornaments a-crunching

11 matchbox cars a-sliding

10 feathers a-flying

9 icy steps a-slipping

8 firecrackers a-popping

7 feet of rope a-swinging

6 mannequins a-dancing

5 golden teeth! (except really just one, oops)

4 black eyes

3 (rd) degree burns

2 paint cans

and a tarantula crawling on your faaaace!"

Thank you.

Also a big shout out to the awesome score! John Williams rocks my world, and I especially like the "Somewhere In My Memory" song which gives this movie real heart. This movie IS Christmas to me (among many others, but we'll get to those, haha). Might be worth a revisit this holiday season!

Die Hard (1988)

New York cop John McClane (Bruce Willis) travels to Los Angeles to reconcile with his estranged wife (Bonnie Bedelia) and finds himself in the middle of an international hostage situation.

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Remember when John McClane was just a guy? You know, back before he could maneuver a careening car into taking out a helicopter? I miss those days. I mean yeah I enjoyed Live Free Or Die Hard as an action film, but that sure as shit wasn't John McClane crawling around on top of a jet fighter. Or maybe it is. Maybe after three run-ins with terrorist masterminds God automatically upgrades you to Übermensch! Who knows? What I do know is that the original film still holds up as a true masterpiece of action cinema. And it's also one heck of a Christmas movie too! YIPPEE KI-YAY MOTHERFUCKER!

Double Bill: Retro-Futurism

In The Mood For Love and 2046

Miracle on 34th Street (1947)

Disclaimer: I wrote this a few years ago on my other blog, but I'm sharing it here because it's a holiday weekend and I don't want to do any real writing, haha!

This is probably my favorite and most beloved Christmas movie from my childhood. If you've seen it, I think you'll agree that this movie is pretty special.

When the Macy's Santa gets good and soused before the big Thanksgiving Day Parade, Mrs. Walker (Maureen O'Hara), the no-nonsense chick in charge, grabs the next best thing: Santa Claus himself! Or so he claims...

The new Santa is a huge hit, and he's offered a spot as the in-store Santa during the holidays. But when his mental health is questioned, he has to prove to everyone, Mr. Macy, the psycho shrink, Mrs. Walker and her daughter Susan and everyone else, that he really is Santa Claus and that it's important to believe in other people.

Whoever was in charge of casting this film got it spot-on...Edmund Gwenn IS Kris Kringle. I can't imagine a more perfect Santa! He looks the part, he's sweet, he's just absolutely perfect! A young Natalie Wood plays Mrs. Walker's skeptical daughter Susan, who never believes in fairy tales or Santa Claus or fantasies of any kind. John Payne plays Fred Gailey, Mrs. Walker's neighbor and friend, who ends up being Kris Kringle's lawyer and hero in trying to legally prove that Kris Kringle is the one and ONLY Santa Claus!

Miracle on 34th Street is a very special movie with a lot of special moments...Kris Kringle picking bubblegum out of his beard, Kringle singing in Dutch with a little girl who can't speak English, the pile of letters to Santa on the judge's desk, little Susan finding her dream house...oh, and keep an eye out for Thelma Ritter in a small role as a cranky mom trying to do some Christmas shopping!

Happy Holidays! They're upon us!

The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across The 8th Dimension (1984)

It's up to rockstar/surgeon/test-pilot Buckaroo Banzai (Peter Weller) to save the earth from inter-dimensional aliens and a mad scientist (John Lithgow).

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Buckaroo Banzai is the type of film you use to, "audition" a new friend. If they don't, "get it" then they are not worth associating with. This film is flat-out AWESOME! It has everything one could want in a movie: action, comedy, music, romance, aliens and watermelons. A lot of thought was put into this film and the universe it takes place in is so fleshed out that you could live in it. The DVD even comes with a caption track that adds to the story-line and character development. It's truly an obsessive's wet dream!

Post Script:
I have realized that there are probably about 10 on this planet who will respond to the, "selling points" I put forth in this review. Of those 10, I would say probably 9 have already seen this film. To the rest of the world I guess I'll say: It's kind-of/sort-of like The Fifth Element...but set in New Jersey.

The Graduate (1967)

What can you say about The Graduate? Craig suggested I write about this film after we rewatched it with a friend on Monday, and I'll admit I got nervous. The Graduate is such an important movie, and I didn't want to cheapen it with my rambling about how great it is

I remember the first time I saw it in my film history class. It kinda blew my mind. And the guy I sat next to in class brought me a CD of the soundtrack and told me I was "pretty in a refreshing way" but that's another story, haha. I remember how funny it was, but it also left me feeling melancholy...it perfectly captures that moment when you realize that life is really starting now and you have to make something of yourself or drift aimlessly.

Let's backtrack to the plot. Recent college graduate Benjamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman), has returned home and unsure about what to do next. He begins an affair with Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft, who's absolutely phenomenal), a friend of his parents, and eventually falls in love with her daughter Elaine (Katharine Ross). The movie definitely has laughs, but it's also very sad. The moment that stays with me most is when Mrs. Robinson, when asked what she majored in, sadly replies "Art," after previous claiming to know nothing about art. How much of our identities are we giving up to "grow up"? Are we going to like who we are at the end of our lives?

This film was a game-changer. The world of cinema was evolving, and by the late 60s and the end of the Hays Code, things were ready to get yanked into new territory. Watching The Graduate is an exciting and thought-provoking experience, and one that I highly recommend.