#16. A Better Tomorrow - Review

A Better Tomorrow Criterion Collection A Better Tomorrow is melodrama in its purest, most violent exemplification. Far from being a great film, John Woo’s tale of two brothers on opposite sides of the law reeks of the 1980’s, but that is probably why I loved it so much. It has heart like very few action movies have the nerve to show. Underneath all the blood and slo-mo shootouts, is a love story between two best friends (Chow Yun-Fat and Lung Ti), willing to kill and die for each other, and it is their plot line that is most intriguing. These men are so completely devoted to each other, have such affection for one another, that it made some of the younger kids (18-21) in the audience uncomfortable. They had to resort to laughter to break the tension, because although not homosexual, these vicious gangsters are very much in love.

A brother’s love does not come so easy it seems. With family comes history and baggage. Unlike friends, brothers do not have the privilege of choice. A blood tie cannot be undone, no matter how much hate and judgment poisons the relationship. Themes of responsibility to family and friend alike run on the surface of this film, and are successful at making its point.Chow Yun-Fat in A Better Tomorrow

Ultimately this film wants to be an action film more than a melodrama, and fortunately the bullets only added to my enjoyment. This is the film that really introduced Chow Yun-Fat to the world. He is not only a badass, but he is cool as ice. He chews the scenery like Bill the Butcher and takes full advantage of every moment in the film. The famous twin-handgun hallway shootout is just one of many radical action set-pieces in which Fat dominates the screen.

I am completely ignorant to Woo’s Hong Kong films, having only seen Face Off, Mission Impossible 2, and the terrible Windtalkers. I am filling my queue with his earlier works now, and I can only assume the director built off the awesome base he started with A Better Tomorrow and went on to direct some wicked action flicks. I will let you know when they show up in the mail.

#15. Big Night - Review

Big Night PosterThis small indie film from 1996 turned out to be a real delight. Big Night seems simple enough, two Italian immigrant brothers struggling to keep their restaurant open are called upon to host a big dinner for the famous musician Louis Prima and his band. With the singer comes newspaper headlines, followed by curious diners with money to spend. What this film is really about however, is the difficult love that is shared by brothers. Stanley Tucci (Secondo, the businessman) and Tony Shalhoub (Primo, the chef) are marvelous in this picture. But Primo is more than just a chef, even more than an artist. He is a genius in an apron, willing to spend hours preparing the perfect dish, because he loves to cook.

Unfortunately, it seems his creations are too perfect, at least for American tastes. Business is beyond slow, it is at a halt, and partially because the food is just too authentic. In the opening scene, we are introduced to Primo slaving away on a plate of seafood risotto, completely dedicated to this dish. When the guest receives her food, she is unhappy because she doesn’t see any shrimp. This of course escalates into a battle of wits between the two brothers and the woman, but as is always in life, the checkbook is mightier than a desperate man’s dignity.Stanley Tucci (Secondo) and Tony Shalhoub (Primo) in Big Night

Secondo has the miserable role of not only pacifying his increasingly frustrated brother, but also has full financial responsibility for his Paradise Restaurant. What it must be like to be the brother of a genius? Secondo cares as much for Primo’s work as Primo himself, and respects his process. There is a wonderful scene where Secondo seeks advice, and perhaps a loan, from a friend and fellow restaurant owner. His friend will not give him the money, but he will offer somewhat crude advice on how to make it in America: “Bite your teeth into the ass of life and drag it to you! A guy works all day, he don’t want to look at his plate and ask, ‘What the fuck is this?’ he wants to look at his plate, see a steak, and say ‘I like steak’!”

The actual Big Night is a build up of love affairs, double-crosses, best friends, new relationships, and of course, wonderful food. This dinner for Louis Prima is the last chance Paradise Restaurant has at keeping the doors open, and the brothers know it. So the only question is, do the boys give the musician steak, or seafood risotto? 

#14. Major League II - Review

I wasn’t feeling very well yesterday, so when I sat down to watch a movie, I thought a comedy might cheer me up. Well, I’ll never know if a comedy would have cheered me up or not, because what I watched wasn’t funny at all. In fact, it wasn’t even a little amusing. Major League is to Major League II as Alec Baldwin is to Stephen Baldwin (I’ll let you figure that one out). This movie was so mindless, so incredibly uninspired and hackneyed, they only thing I could laugh at were Charlie Sheen’s soulless eyes as he moped through each seen in apparent misery.

The script was so stupid, even Wesley Snipes had enough sense to not put the Indian’s uniform back on… Wesley Snipes! The man is in prison as we speak on account of bad choices and yet, had the foresight to turn this project down. Of course, I think he instead went on to make Rising Sun, so I will not give him too much praise.

Fall Movie Countdown #8 & #7

Never Let Me Go Poster

#8. I do not know much about Never Let Me Go. Adapted from the Kazuo Ishiguro novel of the same name, it tells a tale of young love and ambition, set in a dark, secretive world. That is about all I have cyphered from the trailer, which you all should check out. 

I'm Still Here Poster

#7. Talk about build-up! How long have we waited for the punchline to joke that is Joaquin Pheonix. We all know the set-up: A young, successful actor, decides he is going to grow a hobo beard, quit acting, and become a rapper. Is it real, or all a hoax? Hopefully we will find some answers in Casey Affleck's documentary I'm Still Here.

Fall Movie Countdown #10 & #9

I am Comic

#10. I Am Comic is a documentary, giving stand-up comics an outlet to discuss their craft, and the occupational hazards that accompany telling jokes. I am fascinated by the stand-up comic. Since I was a teenager I have followed comedians, memorized their routines, and studied their habits. I remember watching Eddie Murphy's Delirious when I was about 10 and went to school the next day trying to pass off his jokes as my own. I am more than excited for I Am Comic, check the trailer and tell me if you think it looks good.

A Woman, A Gun, and a Noodle Shop poster

#9. Out of all the masterpieces the Coen Brothers have given us, I believe their first effort, 1985's Blood Simple is still my favorite. It is traditional noir, hard-boiled murder story that is set in a dreary nameless Texas town. A Woman, A Gun, and a Noodle Shop is a chinese remake of the Coen classic, and I for one cannot wait to see what Yimou Zhang (Hero) can do with such a simple, yet fantastically dark premise. 

#13. Date Night - Review

Date Night PosterDate Night falls perfectly in line with the rest of Steve Carrell’s cinematic efforts post 40-Year-Old Virgin and Little Miss Sunshine: this could have been so much better. This near-debacle could never find its own cadence because the screenplay could never stay on one track. Is it a comedy? Then why have we gone eight minutes without a single joke, save the “he turned the gun sideways” line that is recycled a half-dozen times? I have a feeling they imagined a True Lies of sorts, but ended up lacking in the fun department.

It is interesting to me that its quite easy to distinguish between a Judd Apatow comedy, and all the rest. His films effortlessly find that blend of crude humor and sap. Unfortunately Date Night falls in with the rest crap we have seen in the last couple years that don’t tout Apatow as a producer. Films like Hot Tub Time Machine, Grown-ups, The Other-Guys, and Cop-Out, all over-promise and under-deliver, just like Date Night.

Getting Closer To Reaching My Goal!!!

Man, I am so surprised, and so grateful to all of you that donated to my PIFF fund. I have crossed $700, and I am now only $500 away from reaching my goal of $1200!! Remember, anyone who donates more than $10 can make me watch and review a movie of their choice... No matter how awful it is or how much I will hate it. My loving and supportive father for instance, has decided to make me review Sense & Sensibility... cause he is a jerk! Please help, and again, to all of you that have already donated I am so appreciative.