Movies Archives - Page 15 of 85

Bryan Cranston As LBJ in “All the Way” (Short Review)

LBJ Bryan Cranston HBO’s movie adaptation of Robert Schenkkan’s play about the early presidency of Lyndon Baines Johnson is worthwhile viewing for largely one reason, Bryan Cranston in the lead role. With some help from make-up designer Bill Corso, Cranston gives the viewer what it might have felt like to have been around Johnson while he struggled with the major issues of those years.

The movie begins with Johnson’s rise to the presidency when John F. Kennedy is killed, focusing on Johnson’s advocacy for the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the escalating war in Vietnam amidst his worries about the next election. As Johnson, Cranston captures the brilliance, vulnerability, insecurities, compassion, and vulgarity of Johnson, one of the most complex people to have ever lived in the White House.

All the Way features a number of outstanding performances, such as Frank Langella as Senator Richard Russell, Antony Mackie as Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., Stephen Root as J. Edgar Hoover, Melissa Leo as Lady Bird Johnson, and Bradley Whitford as Hubert Humphrey. One criticism, which others have noted too, is that there is too much material and too many interesting characters for one 132-minute movie. Other important people come and go in the story, but director Jay Roach remains focused on LBJ while viewers may also want more.

Ultimately, it is not Roach’s fault that this era was rich in important events and people. As in the case of Daniel Day-Lewis’s portrayal in Lincoln (2012), Cranston’s portrayal of Johnson is so compelling that it made me wish for a much-longer mini-series that revealed more details of events and more layers to the former president.

Yet, for a one-shot movie that tries to convey the essence of the time and LBJ’s years between Kennedy’s assassination and Johnson’s election as president in his own right, All the Way is worth your time, even if sometimes it deviates from the historical record for dramatic effect. Cranston’s portrayal of Johnson will be remembered as one of the great presidential roles, and the movie does an excellent job at making Johnson a three-dimensional character with the mix of both majestic strengths and deep flaws.

What did you think of “All the Way”? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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Robert Osborne & The Beverly Hillbillies

Osborne Beverly Hillbillies Turner Classics Movie host Robert Osborne was born May 3, 1932 in Colfax, Washington. While most people know Osborne for his wonderful hosting duties on TCM (and before that on The Movie Channel), Osborne had a diverse career and started out as an actor before later focusing on writing and journalism.

One of his television roles was an appearance on the pilot for a TV series in 1962. There was a possibility of a regular role, but Osborne did not think that the series, The Beverly Hillbillies, would be much of a success. “The show itself seemed so loony and unimportant,” he later explained, adding, “I was sure the pilot would never sell.” Of course, the series then ran for nine seasons.

In the clip below, you may see a young Robert Osborne in that pilot episode of The Beverly Hillbillies. Check it out.

If that segment makes you want to see the entire episode, you may watch the entire pilot below. Check out “The Clampetts Strike Oil.”

Osborne explained that Lucille Ball had put him under contract at her studio. And it was she who eventually encouraged him to pursue a career in writing instead of acting. She was impressed by his vast knowledge about the history of Hollywood.

In 2015 and 2016, due to health issues, Osborne announced he would not attend the TCM Classic Film Festival. He also had to cut back on his work at TCM, and he passed way on March 6, 2017.

I do like Ben Mankiewicz, who filled in for Osborne in a number of roles, although I miss Osborne. Whenever I watch a movie on TCM, I would hope for Osborne or Mankiewicz to appear. Without them, I feel like I am not getting the whole value of the movie.

Osborne became a part of the life of anyone who watches classic movies. He became a mainstay of TCM since he introduced the first film the network aired, Gone With the Wind, on April 14, 1994.

For one, I’m glad that his career with The Beverly Hillbillies did not quite work out. He brought us a lot of joy, and he was a wonderful and intelligent companion for many nights watching great films.

This post was updated March 2017. Leave your two cents in the comments.

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Daniel Ellsberg: The Most Dangerous Man

Most Dangerous Man On April 7, 1931, Daniel Ellsberg was born in Chicago. He would grow up to serve in the Marines and work at the Pentagon and for Rand Corporation, eventually becoming disillusioned with the Vietnam War and receiving notoriety as the man behind the release of government documents about the Vietnam War. After the New York Times began publishing the papers in June 1971, the actions prompted the wrath of President Richard M. Nixon and one of the most important Supreme Court cases on the First Amendment.

The 2009 documentary The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers tells the story of Ellsberg’s life and the Pentagon Papers. Directed by Judith Ehrlich and Rick Goldsmith, the film is required viewing for anyone interested in the Vietnam War. The movie reveals much about the controversies on the home front as well as the lies told by U.S. leaders.

The documentary approaches the tale by letting Ellsberg and others report the story from first-hand accounts (while Nixon’s perspective only comes through in recordings made at the White House). As much as you think you might know about Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers, you likely will learn new information from the film.

For example, we see the role that Ellsberg’s wife played in his decisions. We also learn that Egil Krogh — one of the “White House Plumbers” involved in breaking into the office of Ellsberg’s psychiatrist — came to see Ellsberg as a principled man.

The Most Dangerous Man in America takes the position that Ellsberg is an American hero who was willing to go to prison if necessary to try to end an unjust war. While some may disagree with the admiring portrayal, the lessons from the Pentagon Papers still resonate in modern times as we still face issues like Edward Snowden’s release of documents. Thus, the story of Daniel Ellsberg is just as relevant today as it was in the 1970s.

Leave your two cents in the comments.

Buy from Amazon

Harry Shearer’s New Series on Richard Nixon

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A Vietnam Movie About the Continuing Effects of the War: “The Last Full Measure” (Missed Movies)

We the People Here Don’t Want a War: Bobby Darin’s “Simple Song of Freedom”

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Ethan Hawke Channels Jazz Great Chet Baker in “Born to Be Blue”

In Born to Be Blue, Ethan Hawke portrays jazz trumpeter and singer Chet Baker in a “re-imagining” of Baker’s mid-career struggles in the 1960s as he worked for a comeback after spending time in prison on drug charges. In the film, director Robert Budreau attempts to reveal the real Baker through a fictionalized romance with actress Jane Azuka, played by Carmen Ejogo.

It is always risky fictionalizing a biopic about a real person, although it can work in the right hands as it did for Todd Haynes’s treatment of Bob Dylan in I’m Not There (2007). From the trailer for Born to Be Blue, Budreau’s version of Baker seems more like a typical biopic with the exception that it is not completely true. But much of jazz music is about improvisation and variations, so perhaps the best way to understand Baker’s brilliance and demons is through a movie that riffs on his life.

Born to Be Blue opens in limited release starting on March 25, 2016.

In real life, Baker — who was born on December 23, 1929 — followed his brilliant success in the 1950s with struggles with heroin and other drugs throughout the rest of his life. After a difficult period in the 1960s, he began a comeback with his rediscovery fueling performances in Europe. In the early 1980s, he toured with Stan Getz and played on Elvis Costello’s album Punch the Clock (1983). On May 13, 1988, Baker was found dead on the sidewalk beneath his hotel room in Amsterdam, Netherlands, a death that was ruled an accident.

Baker’s death had previously inspired the Born to Be Blue director Budreau to speculate about how the death occurred. In 2009, he wrote and directed a short film about Baker’s death called The Deaths of Chet Baker. You may watch that short film, starring Stephen McHattie below.

Finally, if you are curious about why Budreau is so fascinated with Chet Baker, check out some of Baker’s performances and recordings, starting with this full performance live in Tokyo in 1987.

What is your favorite musical biopic? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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The Perfect Song for Every Film: “Walk of Life”

Walk of Life

Peter Salomone started out with a brilliant and simple premise about movie endings. His hypothesis: “‘Walk of Life‘ by Dire Straits is the perfect song to end any movie.” Spoiler alert: This post features the endings of several classic films.

Perhaps the truth of his hypothesis is an underlying assertion about the universality of human emotion. Or maybe “Walk of Life” is just so incredibly awesome. Is it really possible to improve The Godfather (1972)? Well, just add some Dire Straits.

Charlie Chaplin’s City Lights(1931) has one of the most perfect endings of any film, where the formerly blind woman recognizes the man who had once helped her. The only way to make it better is to add “Walk of Life.”

Were you confused at the end of 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)? Well, it makes more sense if you think of the star child as Johnny coming along “singing oldies, goldies / Be, bop, a, lua, baby, what I say.”