There are so many comedic movies out there that don’t get watched or talked about enough. Whether it’s because they came out at the wrong time or they were overshadowed by another film, many perfectly hilarious movies are underrated. Here is a list of 3 laugh-out-loud but underrated movies.
Galaxy Quest
This film came out in 1999 and actually has a slew of big-name actors in its cast. It includes Tim Allen, Sigourney Weaver, Alan Rickman, and even a small part by a very young Justin Long. The film tells the story of a group of actors who spent their careers in a Star Trek-esque show; really popular but kind of shitty. A sci-fi show everyone hates to love but has a huge cult following. At one of their conventions (autographs, costumes, and all) they are approached by people who they assume to be fans but are actual aliens. The aliens have watched the show and believe that the bad space actors are actual space warriors. Soon they are up to their necks in space ships, alien adversaries, and weapons called things like “the Omega 13.”
The movie is delightfully hilarious with its witty dialogue and great comedic timing. However it is a much underrated film for its time. It may be because a few years earlier hit sci-fi comedy Men In Black came out and Galaxy Quest was covered; sort of like how Wizard of Oz was covered by Gone with the Wind when it first came out. It could also be because the film caters to those who watched the original Star Trek episodes. It makes fun of the show and its followers and only those who watched any cheesy sci-fi show would understand the hilarity behind many of the actors’ sarcastic jokes and corny lines. All in all, it is a wonderful film that deserves more credit for its comedy than it receives.
In & Out
This film also has a cast of some pretty big actors such as Kevin Kline, Joan Cusak, and Matt Dillon. The film begins with a quaint set up: young teacher named Howard Brackett who lives in a quiet little town and is engaged to his girlfriend of three years. All of his students love him, the whole town is coming to his wedding, and to top it off one of his former students, who went into acting, is nominated for an Academy Award! How exciting! But Howard’s life slowly begins to unravel when the former student receives his award and announces on national TV that his most influential teacher, Howard, is gay. The film does a wonderful job of shaking itself of its former picturesque tone and moving into a slap-stick comedy about masculinity and homosexuality.
The movie may be underrated because it comes off as a cutesy film about a young couple, but the film doesn’t get enough recognition for its comedy. Kevin Kline gives his best role, in my opinion, as a man coming to terms with his sexuality and the fact that his little town may not be as accepting as he thought. The film also does a great job of addressing society’s opinion of homosexuality. The town is ecstatic when the young actor is up for an Academy Award for a movie in which he plays a gay soldier, but when they find out that homosexuality is in their town people start getting antsy. It can be on the screen, but not in my backyard, so to speak. The film can also come off as a little corny sometimes, but that doesn’t get in the way of its ability to be a great, funny movie.
Home for the Holidays
This film has to be in my top favorite 20 but it doesn’t get enough recognition out in the movie fan world. It’s about a single mother, Claudia, who is sick with a cold, gets fired from her job, and finds out her daughter has decided to have sex. On top of that she is going to her obnoxious parents’ house for Thanksgiving. The movie is about all of the mishap and comedy that ensues at any neurotic family’s gathering. The cast includes Holly Hunter, Robert Downey, Jr., and Claire Danes. The story takes too many twists and turn to sum up, but let’s just say there would be no Meet the Parents without this film.
The reason the movie is so good is because it does a great job of taking a boring concept, like going to your parents for Thanksgiving, and keeping the dialogue and plot original and fresh. The film also hosts one of the best performances by a young Robert Downey, Jr. who plays a ridiculous and foolish gay brother to Claudia. The dialogue that the two characters have between each other is very similar to the banter between a close brother and sister and keeps the movie sounding unique yet realistic. Director Jodi Foster does a wonderful job of keeping the story simple but overwhelming, kind of like a dysfunctional family.
As I stated in my first post about the film Pulp Fiction, there is a sort of recipe when it comes to making a great film. Quentin Tarantino knows it, as do other brilliant directors such as Woody Allen, Sam Mendes, and Martin Scorsese. The recipe can be different, depending on attempted audience or a director’s personal style. For example I may find the plot of a story to be important whereas director Baz Luhrmann would probably disagree, saying that a film should be more visually pleasing. There are three things I look for in a film that I consider to be necessary aspects. Without one of these things, you have a pretty decent film. But with all three, you have a film that will enchant audiences for generations.
Unique and Surprising Plot
It seems like many directors these days have taken up a sort of formula with their films. Boy meets girl, brave man must prove himself, young girl can’t find love… There’s usually a character that everyone loves who dies or a great injustice is done too. Make them laugh, make them cry. Few times these days do directors or writers create a film that makes its audience think.
Some say that the purpose of film is to entertain. This is true, of course. But there is another end to the spectrum. The purpose of film should also be to create a mirror for reality or society to see itself in. It should make a statement; elicit an emotion in its audience, along with being entertaining. A great example of this is the film The Shawshank Redemption.
The plot moves along at a steady pace and never ceases to entertain. At the same time the story shows its audience a number of things, such as “hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things,” or that a person can continue to surprise you, even if you know them as a best friend. The film also did a wonderful job of showing society an aspect of itself that is not often portrayed: prison. Prison in the 1950s, no less. Credit must be given to Stephen King, who wrote the novella the film was based on. However the decision to create such a film and give it a plot unlike any other film is perhaps the reason it has remained so famous and stands as best film according to the International Movie Database (an acclaimed film website) 1. It refuses to adhere to standard film formulas and dares to venture off on its own. Not to mention the twist ending, a technique which some films fail to use correctly, but this film has mastered.
Witty and Memorable Dialogue
Have you ever been discussing a movie with a group of friends and then someone mentions a great classic that everyone loves? Everyone starts telling their favorite parts and, more often than not, declaring their favorite lines. “We’re on a mission from God,” or “There’s no crying in baseball,” or “Are you going to bark all day, little dog, or are you going to bite?” The thing that makes most films so memorable is their dialogue. Quick paced, elongated and engaging, or even monotonous dialogue, of done correctly, can make a film what it is. The director that I believe has not only conquered but even become an influence to film dialogue is Quentin Tarantino.
In all of his films his dialogue takes place between a few of his characters (usually two), most of the time in a restaurant; a relaxed place where many real people would sit and talk. His dialogue centers usually around various topics of pop culture, whether its 1950 famous faces, Madonna’s song “Like a Virgin,” or the psychological aspects of Superman.
Quentin Tarantino probably spends as much time on writing the script as he does on filming the whole movie. His pace is quick, with characters sometimes talking over each other. His characters never cease to amaze us with their eloquence and knowledge of pop culture. As a society that gets its pulse from pop culture, audiences are not only entertained, but acclaim his films for their wit. They make people think. He doesn’t need flashy violent scenes to hold his audiences’ attention, though he usually uses them anyway. But that’s what makes his film so great; action in addition to intellectually stimulating dialogue. Neither carries the film, both work together to make them unforgettable.
Deliberate and Perfected Style
This last section is the most difficult section to explain. How do you bring style to a film? To tell you the truth, I have no idea how. But I have seen it done. The only way I can explain style is by giving you an example of a director who has grasped and perfected the art of style: Sam Mendes. His directorial debut was American Beauty, a film that swept through the Oscars with five Academy Awards, including Best Picture2. The plot was provocative, the characters and dialogue were phenomenal, and it did a wonderful job of putting a mirror up to society’s face. But that’s not what made the film the blockbusting cinematic phenomenon it was.
There was something else about the film that made it stand out. It was simply juicy with symbolism. Roses and the color red were very important to the film. They at first symbolized sex and lust, and later seem to symbolize innocence and beauty. There are picturesque scenes that seem to hold themselves. They are picture-perfect, in a way; like you are looking through a photo album. You can almost tell as you watch the film, how much time was put into editing the pieces together. They fit perfectly and flow with a kind of strange grace. This is also a part of Mendes’ style.
Another film by Sam Mendes called Road to Perdition does this as well. In this film most of the dominant colors are dark, symbolizing the violent mafia-driven subculture that the story takes place in. However when the son and father –who are attempting to escape and forget all of the darkness of their past –arrive at their destination in Perdition, everything is white, serene, and almost flawless. And like American Beauty, many of the scenes are picturesque, like they are famous works of art come to life. Mendes even almost tells the audience this when his character who is a photographer shows up in these many scenes and snap a photo.
Both of these films use their scenes and colors to give the film an extra kick. Make the audience notice these things and they will remember it. Give them something visually stimulating that all seems to flow together, like a flip book, and they become enchanted in the screen.
Bring all of these aspects together and you have when I call the 35 millimeter hypnosis.
I invite other film fans to comment about what they look for in a film.
An aspect of film that many people may not notice is publicity. Getting the audience to get up and drive to the movie theatre is half the battle, while the other half is creating something entertaining enough to hold their attention for a couple of hours. And one of the most common techniques that film makers have used, besides the movie trailer, is the movie poster. Give them an image that captures their attentions and makes them wonder “what’s this movie about?”
Throughout film history ever film has had a movie poster created for it. But there are a small few whose movie posters have turned into iconic images. People see the image and automatically think of that film. They don’t even need the film title on it to know what movie it is talking about. In a way they have become a form of art and some are as recognizable to movie lovers as the Mona Lisa is to art lovers.
Below are, in my opinion, the four most famous and identifiable movie posters in film history. Due to length restrictions of any blog, all of the iconic images from movie poster cannot be listed. Therefore this compilation of movie posters is incomplete but satisfactory enough to prove how these images hold the essence of the films they portray.
Silence of the Lambs
This movie poster is as strange and queer as the film it publicizes. It shows the face of actress Jodie Foster, who stars in the film. The decision to make her face black and white, but keep her eyes in color may seem bizarre, however in a way it makes perfect sense. As a police detective, she uses her eyes to look for clues throughout her case. Furthermore the orange-brown color with the blue fits beautifully as two complimentary colors. The death dead hawk moth that fits over her mouth is meant to signify a number of things. The covering of her mouth fits perfectly with the “silence” in Silence of the Lambs. Furthermore the moths play an important part in her character’s discovery of her target who has been abducting young women.Lastly death head hawk moths have a strange but very natural formation on their backs which resembles a skull. This promotes a very uneasy feeling in the viewer, making them realize this is a scary film. Another part of the poster that many people may not realize is the actual skull on the moth’s head in the poster. It is not a natural formation in this case, but actually a minimized version of a painting by Salvador Dali. The picture is of naked women bodies that are laid out to form a skull. This is to signify the women that Buffalo Bill killed for their skin.
Almost Famous
The film Almost Famous can easily be recognized with this iconic poster. It shows the face of Kate Hudson, who plays the character Penny Lane in the film. Her face was chosen, even if she is not the main character of the film, because she personified the magic and freedom of the rock music era in the 60s and 70s. This can be seen throughout the film as she wanders with the band as a sort of musical muse. In the glasses that she wears can be seen an image. This image is of a rock concert, and more importantly the image of Russell, the lead guitar player. This image in her glasses is meant to not only show the audience the rock and roll band, named Stillwater, that this movie follows, but also shows Penny Lane’s eyes resting on Russell. Russell and she have a love affair throughout the film and as it dies, so do the wild and fun times that the band has together.
Pulp Fiction
It can be argued that this image not only holds a place in iconic movie posters, but also holds a place is iconic images as a whole. This film and the following image of Mia Wallace on a bed hold a special place in film history. Ask any movie lover about Pulp Fiction and they will probably mention this famous picture. The image of Mrs. Mia Wallace on a bed is meant to show the seductive nature of the film. She has a harsh expression on her face showing the violence and callous killing that takes place throughout the film. She is also a personification of Quentin Tarantino’s wild and almost humorous reality where hit men are cool and a quarter pounder is called a royal with cheese. The items in front of her on the bed are just as important as she is herself. The gun by her shows that this film is not only sexy, it is bloody. And it’s true, as guns are just as numerous in this film as characters. The cigarettes are another iconic image that Tarantino uses throughout his films. Furthermore the cigarettes that lie in front of Mia are Tarantino’s special and fictional brand called Red Apples. He uses them in almost every one of his films. Last but not least is the book that Mia has her hand on. The entire film that Tarantino has created is meant to harken back to the style of pulp fiction books. All of his films, not just Pulp Fiction, get their blood and energy from pop culture and in this case, pulp fiction carries the film through its gun shots and adrenaline needles.
American Beauty
If you asked someone what the movie American Beauty is about, their answer would most always be “it’s about beauty.” And what is more beautiful than the female body, or a flower? But it means more than that, I promise. When the main character, Lester Burnham, first meets the girl of his dreams, he is immediately smitten with her. She changes his life completely for her and her perfect body. It is her stomach that appears on the movie poster, showing Lester’s lust and the sexiness that she exudes as a character. The purpose of the rose can be seen in the film itself. When Lester first sees her, he envisions rose petals coming out of her chest. When he fantasizes about her, she is always covered in rose petals. The roses show up in many scenes of the film, even if we may not realize it. To Lester, the roses symbolize sex and lust. It isn’t until later in the film that we realize they may mean something else: innocence.
Metaphors and symbolism are not just realms meant for the written or visual art form; films have a tendency to dabble in these areas as well, and in a beautiful way. There are symbols that show up within a film and are meant to signify something – in Shawshank Redemption, Andy Defresne’s posters could symbolize freedom or in American Beauty, the roses that Lester Burnham sees are symbolic of lust and passion—or there are metaphors that are there to give the film a deeper meaning – in 2001: a Space Odyssey, the bone that the ape uses to kill another ape turns into a space station, showing how advances in technology can lead to violence and vice versa.
Another very useful tactic that books use, which has not been done often in film, is the concept of a story within a story. I’m not simply speaking of a character in the film telling a story, like Gordy’s story about Lardass in Stand By Me. A film can take its original story and add in a story within it that ties back into the original story. Confusing, I know, but if done correctly, the film can be given new dimensions. And no other film does this better, in my experience with film, than A Little Princess.
The Two Little Princesses
The film, A Little Princess, is actually based on a book of the same name by Frances Hodgson Burnett. Though the film and book differ in many ways, the film actually takes on the literary task of symbolism and metaphor where the book does not. It tells about a young girl living in India named Sarah Crew. She is English and living with her father, who is a part of the English military. When World War I breaks out, her father must go to Germany to fight and she must go to a boarding school in New York City; it is the boarding school that her mother went to, however her mother died when she was very young and Sarah hardly remembers her.
Another important thing to know is that, while in India, Sarah knew an old woman named Maya
who told her an ancient story about a Princess and her Prince. Maya also told Sarah that all girls are princesses, no matter if they are rich or poor, beautiful or ugly.
When Sarah comes to the cold, draconian life-style of the boarding school which clashes very harshly with her free-spirited life in India, she is shocked to see that none of the girls at the school have any imagination or joy in stories. She begins telling them the story throughout the movie that Maya told her. The audience may begin to realize how perfectly the story fits with what is happening to Sarah.
The characters in her story, Prince Rama and Princess Sita, correspond perfectly with the characters of Sarah’s father and Sarah herself, showing that the film is actually about two little princess.
The Circle
In the story that Sarah tells, the prince and princess are sitting in the woods when the princess sees a deer that is hurt. She begs her prince to go help it and before he leaves, he draws a circle in the sand, saying if you stay within this circle nothing would harm her. This happens at the beginning of the film just before Sarah is sent to the boarding school where her father wishes her to stay so she will be safe. In this way, the circle could symbolize the school.
However the princess believes she hears her prince cry out and leaves her circle to go find him. As she searches she is trapped by an evil monster that takes her to his castle and locks her in a tower. In this way, it would seem that the circle symbolized India, and the monster was the war that separated her from her father, or perhaps the evil headmistress, Miss Minchin, who guarded the school, or tower, where she is forced to stay.
To further the symbolism even more, when Sarah hears that her father has died during the war and she must live in the cold, damp tower of the boarding school as a servant, she draws a circle on the ground in chalk and lays in it, crying for her father.
The Yellow Smoke
According to Sarah’s story, the Prince Rama is killed after he saves the deer and before he can return to his Princess Sita. The monster that has kidnapped her sends out arrows that land into the ground around him and emit a thick yellow smoke. The smoke is poison and Rama dies in the woods.
After Sarah tells this park of the story to the girls, the film cuts to her father in the trenches of the war. He appears to be the only survivor, but as he makes his way through the trenches he sees his friend John is still alive, but barely. As he attempts to take John with him to get help, German planes drop mustard gas on them. The last we see of her father during this scene is when he passes out from the gas. In the next scene, Sarah is told her father is dead.
The yellow smoke that kills Rama is to correspond with the mustard gas that kills Sarah’s father. Furthermore her father dies trying to save his friend, just as Rama dies because he left to save the deer. This analogy between the smoke and mustard gas furthers the idea that the raging monster is actually symbolic of the war, as it separates Sarah from her father and attempts to kill her father/Rama.
The Deer and the Resurrection
After Sarah learns of her father’s death and all of her family’s money is taken by the English government, she is forced to live in the boarding school as a servant. She begins to give up on her dreams and imagination, even going so far as to declare that the magical stories she used to tell are “just stories.” The movie continues with Sarah and we do not return to Rama and Sita until she begins to feel the magic of India again. It is an Indian man who lives next door named Ram Dass who subtly begins to remind her of the fantasy she has forgotten. She begins telling her stories again, and tells about Rama’s resurrection.
The deer that Rama had saved comes to Rama’s body and lies down. It magically gives its life to Rama because he is indebted to him for saving his life. Rama lives again and Sarah’s stories come back alive with them. However, as all of this is going on, we learn that the Indian man who lives next door looks after an older man named Mr. Randolph. His son was John, the man that Sarah’s father tried to save. He learns that the man in John’s battalion is still alive and takes him in, at Ram Dass’ suggestion, because he wants to learn what happened to his own son. The man he takes in ends up being Sarah’s father, who is very much alive but suffers from amnesia.
The deer, or John, has brought Sarah’s father back to life and the magic of India, or the character Ram Dass, has brought Sarah and her father closer together. However Sarah’s father still has amnesia, and he and his daughter have yet to be reunited.
The Magic of India
Ram Dass’ character, which is meant to symbolize the magic of India, not only brings Sarah’s father closer to her, but it also helps him to remember who he is. He gives her father hints to his past by mentioning India to him. Finally, when Sarah and her father see each other and her father doesn’t recognize her, Ran Dass stares intently at him, forcing him to remember. The magic of India, which is something Sarah and her father remember from their past, reunites them in the end. An interesting side fact is that the director of this film, Alfonso Cuaron, actually had the actor who played Sarah’s father, Liam Cunningham, play Prince Rama as well.
To call this Academy Award winning actor and film legend a method actor would be an understatement. Daniel Day-Lewis took the art of method acting, or a technique of acting in which an actor aspires to complete emotional identification with a part, to the next level. He is an actor that insists on becoming his character, never breaking focus or stepping out of his character’s mindset, even when the director yells cut. While filming the movie Gangs of New York, he insisted that all people on the set call him by his character name (Bill) even when the cameras weren’t running. He even called other actors by their character names off set, addressing Liam Neeson as “Priest Vallon” when he met him in the gym at their hotel.
His passion for his character is apparent especially onset while the cameras are rolling. While filming his Academy Award winning film, There Will Be Blood, he became so immersed that he almost actually hurt another actor. Paul Dano spoke of the climactic bowling alley scene in the film, where Daniel Day-Lewis’ character began attacking Paul Dano’s character. Dano said, “”They [the bowling balls Day- Lewis was throwing at him] start flying and I realize he’s getting into it. Then a ball bounces up and hits me in the leg, and I’m thinking: ‘OK, those are heavy; this is getting serious – I’d better duck.'”
Despite the fact that it did not win any Academy Awards, Daniel Day-Lewis’ finest film, in my opinion, would have to be In The Name of the Father, where he tells the true and tragic story of a man who is wrongfully imprisoned for many years by the British Government. Daniel Day-Lewis actually spent three nights in a cold prison so he could see the real living conditions that Gerry Conlon dealt with. He even instructed those on the set to be rude to him, battering him, and dumping cold water on him so he could understand the abuse his character dealt with.
Some may call his tactics strange or even insane, but his ability to delve into the character has not gone unnoticed. His has been praised as possibly on of the greatest actors of our time and has delivered nothing but spectacular performances in all of his films. (1)
Robert Downey, Jr.
The Prodigal Son
As the son of a famous director, it was no surprise to anyone that Robert Downey Jr. found his way into the films. What was shocking is how he slipped out. While beginning his film career, Downey Jr. was arrested twice, once in 1997 and again in 1999, for offenses related to drug charges. He was then fired from a show he was working on for his drug use and then spent the next year in a rehab. Some considered this the early end of his acting career. After all, it’s difficult to come back from a fall like that.
But Robert Downey Jr. proved them all wrong. He continued his acting career, doing films such as The Wonder Boys (2000) and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005). But he blew the fans away when he began his binge of films from 2008 to present, starring in films such as Iron Man, Tropic Thunder, The Soloist, Sherlock Holmes, and Due Date. Within a span of a few years, Robert Downey Jr. wasn’t only back on the map, he was taking over the map. It was a film comeback that would stand out in history. The prodigal son has returned.
His perhaps most impressive performance would have to be his comedic, Downey-esque adaptation of the legendary Sherlock Holmes in the film of the same name. He wasn’t playing Sherlock Holmes in that film; he was playing Robert Downey Jr. playing Sherlock Holmes. His genius and quick dialogue was Holmes, but the humor and style was all Robert Downey, Jr. Though it may not be the best representation of Holmes, he was still able to charm audience members and Sherlock Holmes fans into loving him. (2)
Brad Pitt
The Pretty Boy
Some people will scoff at my taste when I tell them that Brad Pitt is my third favorite actor. Really? The pretty boy who was in Troy? The one who married Angelina and adopted tons of babies? But Brad Pitt has never ceased to impress me in his films, especially the most recent. And I would argue that the directors are beginning to see that as well.
Fight Club, Snatch, Ocean’s Eleven, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, Burn After Reading, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Inglorious Basterds… ever film was done nothing but prove to me that he is just an actor that is good a wheat he does. And his versatility is phenomenal. An Irish, gypsey Boxer, secret agent, possibly-gay gym fanatic, Nazi-killing Lieutenant, and the list goes on and on.
And Brad Pitt doesn’t let his fame get in the way. It can be difficult for actors that are very much in the lime light to perform; people begin to see the actor as a person because they keep covering the front pages of every magazine, and have trouble seeing the character they are portraying. But when I watch Fight Club, I don’t see Brad Pitt starting a fighting club and ranting about anti-materialism, I see Tyler Durden. And when I watch Inglorious Basterds, I don’t see Brad Pitt beating the shit out of Nazis, I see Lt. Aldo Raine. And the directing community has begun to realize that he can add to the film with his great ability to be flexible. Even The Cohen Brothers and Quentin Tarantino, who are very particular about the actors that they use, have taken him in to use him for their quirky and legendary characters. He may be a pretty boy, but he’s a pretty boy who knows what he’s doing.
One of the most memorable parts of a film is usually different things for various people. While the story may be the best part of Shawshank Redemption for some, I may insert that the specific character of Andy Defresne made the film what it was. However, something that many people will notice with a film is the music; it can command the film, it can weave in between the scenes, or it can subtly linger in the background of the story. Whatever the reason, films, not even musicals, have the ability to tell their stories or set the tone through music.
The following films have, what I believe to be, the best soundtracks in film. This is not to argue that these are the best films, or that they contain the best music. These films have the superlative example of bringing music into a film to set the tenor and connect to the audience.
The Big Chill – “There is no other music, not in my house.”
The Big Chill tells the story of a group of old college friends coming together at the funeral of one of their fellow friends after his suicide. The friends discuss various things as they stay together for the weekend, including their lives now and the lives they had when they were young radicals in college in the 60s. The music of the film stays near the classic Motown style, venturing off in some places to play bands such as Credence Clearwater Revival, The Beach Boys, and The Rolling Stones.
The film begins with the song “Joy to the World” by Three Dog Night, which is sung by one of the friend’s son as he gives him a bath. It shows how, even though the younger generation that lived in the 60s is older, their ideas and music still live on in their children. The Motown feel of the song comes in as “Heard in Through the Grapevine” by Marvin Gaye plays as each friend finds out that their friend had just killed himself; it effectively plays into what is going on (hearing something through the grapevine) while also bringing each character back to when the song was popular and they were young. The next song, and probably most famous, is when “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” by The Rolling Stone is played at their friend’s funeral because it was his favorite song.
The film continues with the older music, and not just as part of the soundtrack. As they sit around talking, one of the characters, Harold, insists that they play his music, the older music. Another friend asked if they could play something newer, to which Harold responds “there is no other music, not in my house.” It may argue that Harold does not wish to give up the past life; however, as is learned through dialogue later, it is simply because Harold looks at it as a good time in his life and likes remembering it as that. His friends, on the other hand, view the music and each other as a reminder of who they used to be, compared to the people they are now.
The film does a wonderful job of ushering in the nostalgia that the friends feel by playing the old music they used to listen to as college kids. It’s almost as if the music brings back memories to the characters, and gives the audience a feel of what they used to be like, without even telling you everything.
Pulp Fiction – “Unlike so many soundtracks…”
As it is with many of Tarantino’s films, the music is one of the most important parts. He reminds us of this by putting music into the most important scenes and making it unforgettable music at that. And he does this at it’s best in Pulp Fiction.
The film begins with two small-time crooks robbing a restaurant. Just as the girl crook screams her famous line “any of you fucking pricks move, and I’ll execute every motherfucking last one of you,” the scene ends abruptly for a version of “Misirlou” by Dick Dale. This surfer style song sets the tone for the rest of the film, with its intense guitar and brash sounds; it holds in it the style of Tarantino himself.
Another notable song in the film is “You Never Can Tell” by Chuck Berry, which Mia and Vince dance to in the famous Rack Rabbit Slim’s Twist Contest. Though the song may not fit in well with the other songs on the soundtrack, it is the perfect song for that one scene in the film. It’s 50s style tempo and beat made it the perfect song to dance to in a 50s theme restaurant, and the lyrics of the song itself does a good job of foreshadowing what is to come: “’C’est la vie’, say the old folks, ‘it goes to show you never can tell’.” This could be reference to what will happen in the next scene, when Mia overdoses on heroin. You never can tell what Tarantino’s plot will do.
An article in Time Union on Record Reviews had a beautiful explanation for why the music in Tarantino’s films stuck out more than most:
“Unlike so many soundtracks, which just seem to be repositories for stray songs by hit acts regardless of whether they fit the film’s mood, Tarantino’s use of music in Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction exploded with a brash, Technicolor, pop-culture intensity that mirrored the stories he was telling. (1)”
Garden State – “You gotta hear this one song. It’ll change your life, I swear.”
As the directorial debut of actor Zach Braff, the film Garden State was not what people expected it to be. Zach Braff was known for his comedic role in the show Scrubs, so when the melancholy film emerged from the writer, star, and director’s head, people were surprised by its odd style and tone.
The film begins with Zach Braff’s character, Andrew, having a nightmare about a plane crash; however instead of screaming like the other passengers, Andrew sits quietly, unable to react. He wakes up in his cold, emotionless white room to a message from his father telling him his mother is dead. Again, Andrew is unable to react and the film begins with the song “Don’t Panic” by Coldplay. It may seem like a strange song to use, but it fits in perfectly with the scene and sets the tone for the whole movie. As Andrew drives to work, the song plays as if as a reminder that his is not able to panic, and also to argue the main line of the song “we live in a beautiful world.” It’s a world that Andrew really isn’t able to see.
This is until he meets Sam, a young and quirky girl who introduces him to a new band, The Shins. She asks him if he’s ever heard of them and when he says no, she puts her headphones on him, saying “you gotta hear this one song. It’ll change your life, I swear.” The song that is playing is called “New Slang,” a slow song with guitar and tambourine that exemplifies the original style of The Shins. Andrew seems taken by the song, and by Sam, as he looks at her while the music is playing.
The rest of the film plays host to a strange assortment of songs by artists such as Simon & Garfunkel, Remy Zero, Iron & Wine, and Frou Frou. Separately, they would seem like the strangest songs to put into a soundtrack for a film; however when you sits and watch the film or listen to the soundtrack all together, the music could not mesh more perfectly. They all take on a slow, almost downhearted tone, yet all still have a hint of uplift in them. The film and music shows how shitty life can get, but that there are redeeming qualities that we have to grasp onto.
Jane Eyre – The Song of Bertha Rochester
Another type of soundtrack that is important to discuss is the soundtrack that does not consist of a compilation of songs that are pulled together to fit the film, but has music specifically made for it. This music or score is usually without lyrics and serves to be played throughout the film, in the background, and sets the tone of a film more than any other type of soundtrack. The best type of this soundtrack is the music of the newest film version of Jane Eyre.
The film’s music is dark and depressing to say the least, so that it can show the miserable life of Jane Eyre. The music weaves in between her life without her parents, being bullied by her cousins, living in a strict and religious school, and losing her best friend to illness. The only time that the music changes is when she goes to Townfield hall to work as a governess and meets Mr. Rochester, the man that would change her life. Whenever she is around Mr. Rochester or thinking about him, the music changes to something a little more lighthearted. It reaches its happy climax when Mr. Rochester asks her to marry him. The music that follows during their engagement is of peaceful bliss as Jane is finally given something she loves.
However there is a dark side to the music that the audience may not notice until watching is a second time. A certain song is played throughout the film at certain moments. It is played when Jane arrives at Thornfield, when she hears something outside of her door one night, and when Mr. Rochester plays it half-heartedly on the piano, hitting each key with one finger while lost in thought. We find out later in the film that this dark little melody is actually a favorite song of Mr. Rochester’s secret wife, Bertha. When Jane finally meets her on what she thought would be her wedding day, Bertha hums it softly in a mad daze. The audience finally sees that this song that had played throughout the film not only foreshadowed Bertha’s presence, but showed that Bertha was always there, in the background and in Mr. Rochester’s thoughts.
The film ends on a beautiful song which is completely different from the melancholy music of the beginning or the happy music that played during Jane’s engagement. It is slow and simple and is shown during the scene when Jane and Mr. Rochester are reunited after many years. It may sound in melody, similar to their music during the engagement, yet it is sweeter and softer. It plays like it is their song, yet shows that everything that has passed between them has finally come to an end and they are together without complications. It serves as a happy ending that may not be what the audience thought, but is happy nonetheless.
The film Back Swan, directing by Darren Aronofsky, is a riveting film about a young ballerina’s descent into madness as she takes on the lead roles of the Swan Queen and the Black Swan in a production of Swan Lake. Nina, a young repressed dancer with a dark and ambiguous background, slowly crumbles under the stress of her role and begins losing touch with reality. She begins having hallucinations, becoming paranoid, and beginning to literally see two sides of herself; as her dancing director puts it, “the white and the black.” And the same can be said for the film, itself. It is a truly beautiful, yet dark movie and I highly recommend it to any movie lover, especially those who enjoy the psychological thrillers. SPOILER ALERT: Do not read further if you have not seen the film because the analysis that follows tells much of the plot and ending. I invite you to watch the film and then to read on.
What is Schizophrenia?
During my freshman year of college, I became very fascinated with a mental illness called schizophrenia. Schizophrenia is defined as “a chronic, more or less debilitating illness characterized by perturbations in cognition, affect and behavior, all of which have a bizarre aspect. Delusions, also generally bizarre, and hallucinations, generally auditory in type, also typically occur,” (1). It affects approximately 1 percent of the world’s population. According to Dr. Glenn Shean, a clinical psychologist who wrote various books on schizophrenia and other mental disorders, there are ten types of schizophrenia: simple, hebephrenic, catatonic, paranoid, acute, latent, residual, schizo-affected, childhood, and chronic undifferentiated (2). All of the types vary in intensity and symptoms type, to the point where no two cases of schizophrenia are ever identical. Symptoms are too fluctuating and numerous to list without an entire book being written in the process, however some of the most common symptoms are delusions, hallucinations (auditory more often than visual), disorganized speech, disorganized behavior, lack of emotion, lack of interest, and the list goes on and on (3).
After watching the film, Black Swan, I began wondering if this was the disorder that Darren Aronofsky was trying to portray. Although schizophrenia is mentioned nowhere in the film, there was just too much correlation.
Early Symptoms
One of the first things that the audience may notice about the character of Nina is her shyness and her quiet demeanor. She does not show much emotion and often keeps to herself, feeling isolated from the other girls of her dance team. The only time she shows any emotion is when her instructor does not approve of her dancing and criticizes her. Some of the warning signs for a schizophrenic include “social withdrawal,” “inability to cry or express joy,” and “extreme reaction to criticism” (3). This is in no way definitively answers the question, does she have schizophrenia, (not everyone who has these symptoms has schizophrenia, and that can be a common misconception) however as the film continues, one begins to see how these could be early symptoms.
Hallucinations
After Nina receives the part of the Swan Queen, she is loaded with an immense amount of pressure to please her director and achieve perfection. One of the proposed causes of schizophrenia is stress (4) and when Nina has more stress, her symptoms get worse. She begins having intense visual and auditory hallucinations. Although visual hallucinations are not as common in schizophrenics, Aronofsky melds the two together into this film in a very terrifying way. Nina at first has auditory hallucinations, such as hearing whispers, and small visual hallucinations, such as seeing herself in other women as they pass her. However as the stress continues, the visual hallucinations get worse (she sees her reflection doing things she is not, sees pictures moving and talking to her) and even border on unrealistic (she hallucinates a sexual act with a woman from her dance team named Lily, and later she even hallucinates herself killing Lily). But that’s the beauty of the film. Everything seems just as it does to Nina: unrealistic, yet still apparent.
Paranoia
Another of the common symptoms with schizophrenics is delusion, and Nina very clearly shows her delusions. She constantly sees the woman from her dance troupe, Lily, everywhere she goes, and when Lily become the alternate for the Swan Queen, she is convinced it is all in a plot to overthrow her. Nina even runs up to her director and begs him not to make Lily the alternate, saying “She’s after me. She’s trying to replace me!” This is an example of “delusions of persecution – belief that others, often a vague ‘they,’ are out to get him or her. These persecutory delusions often involve bizarre ideas and plots…” (3).
Scratching
Another less known indication of schizophrenia is scratching, which is a method of bodily self-harm that some schizophrenics can suffer from (5). The first example of scratching can be seen when Nina notices scratches on her back and looks at them like she doesn’t know where they came from. Her mother then notices them and quickly cuts Nina’s fingernails, exclaiming “you’ve been scratching yourself again… it’s the role isn’t it? I knew it’d be too much pressure, I knew it.” As I was watching the film the second time, I began noticing scenes where the camera man follows Nina from behind and Nina is subtly scratching her shoulder, something I didn’t notice the first time.
The Suicide
Another symptom that can go hand in hand with schizophrenia is depression to the point of attempted suicide. According to the American Psychiatric Publishing Textbook of Schizophrenia, “40% of patients diagnosed with schizophrenia will have at least one suicide attempt in the course of their illness” (5). At the end of the film, as Nina finishes her performance as Swan Queen, Nina realizes that she has stabbed herself and dies as her performance ends. It could be argued that this was suicide, which goes along tragically with her character as Swan Queen, who commits suicide in the ballet, however it could be speculated that Nina didn’t realize that she had hurt herself.
Through Her Terrified Eyes
All in all, the film still continues to be a mesmeric portrayal of a girl’s fall to insanity. Whether or not Aronofsky truly had schizophrenia in mind, it is still one of the best portrayals of the symptoms that I have ever seen. All of the hallucinations are from Nina’s point of view; therefore as she is frantically wondering what is real and what is in her head, so is the audience. Furthermore his ability to startle and scare the audience puts them in Nina’s place of terror and in some ways shows unaffected people the horrors that can go with schizophrenia.
One of the biggest movies to hit the big screen in the past decade has been the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, a film series that relays the magical word concocted by J.R.R. Tolkien, possible one of the greatest fantasy writers to ever live. The films did more than just stir some geek hearts. The three films won a total of 17 Academy Awards and for categories such as “Best Cinematography,” “Best Makeup,” “Best Original Score,” and even “Best Picture.”
Eye intensity level 100
My friends and I are huge fans of the series. We attempt to watch all the films together at least twice a year, which doesn’t always happen, as all three films have a total running time of 11 hours and 23 minutes. Something that my friends have a tendency of doing is skipping boring scenes so they can get to the battles and hot elves. And the scenes that get cut down more than others are the ones featuring the characters of Frodo and Sam. It cannot be denied; Frodo and Sam’s scenes can get dull, compared to the action packed scenes with Gandalf, Aragorn, and the others. Hell, even Treebeard’s scenes were more stimulating. A few of my friends often complain when we watch the films, claiming that Frodo is the most obnoxious character of the series. He whines, cries, and is ultimately duped into telling his best friend to “go home” so he can be led to death by Gollum. People can’t relate to him, find his story dull (even though he is the main character), and prefer taking a bathroom break when Elijah Wood’s face takes the screen.
I am here to set the record straight. If you are going to hate the character of Frodo in the film, have the decency to blame those who actually turned his character into an obnoxious whiner: Peter Jackson and his team of writers. The character of Frodo in the books is actually a very impressive character that the reader comes to respect and love. His “Hollywoodization” refers to his transformation from sympathetic hero to drama queen. And why? Simply because the director and writers wanted to make his story more interesting.
Frodo: Actually a Badass
Remember the scene in The Fellowship of the Ring where Frodo and his gang of hobbits are being attacked by the Ring-Wraiths while Aragorn, their protector, is off picking berries or something? In the scene Frodo falls to the ground like a damsel and is stabbed by the Witch-King because he wouldn’t give him the ring. Then Frodo becomes a zombie-types mess almost instantly and has to be rushed off to Rivendell by Arwen, the sexy she-elf. All in all, Frodo is unimpressive and Arwen saves the day. Well, that is not how it went down at all in the original story…
Yes, the hobbits were attacked, but Frodo did a little more than fall and cower. The awesome power of the Ring-Wraiths to instill fear in people is mainly psychological and not something that can be shown on screen. Therefore Frodo’s actions during this scene are difficult to portray as anything but cowardly, when in reality he acts audaciously. Sam, Merry, and Pippin are the ones who actually cower on the ground. Frodo is the only one who draws his sword, and when the Witch-King attacks him, he dodges him and actually slices the Witch-King’s leg. After that the Witch-King stabs Frodo with a poisonous blade. Frodo actually travels for days with the others with the poison in his system. He feels cold and weak, but he is anything but a half-conscious victim. He even laughs and jokes with the others as they travel. And it is not Arwen, Aragorn’s love, who enters to save them. They meet an elf named Glorfindel, who gives Frodo his horse so that Frodo can make the journey on his own!
Wait a minute! No Arwen? No chase scene? No epic stand on the banks of Rivendell? Well, not exactly. Frodo runs from the Ring-Wraiths on his own and when he gets to the borders of Rivendell, he shouts at them “Go back to the land of Mordor and follow me no more… By Elbereth and Luthien the Fair… you shall have neither the Ring nor me!” all while brandishing his sword. Not bad for a Hobbit.
Ted Nasmith's (a Tolkien inspired painter) rendering of Frodo being a boss (click to magnify).
But why did this otherwise impressive scene for Frodo have to be altered? Because Peter Jackson decided that Arwen needed a bigger part on the story than she originally had. He needed the sex appeal. Lord of the Rings caters most to men, but where are the impressive lady characters? Eowyn, who was as impressive in the books as she was in the movies, doesn’t show up until The Two Towers. So they spruced up the character of Arwen a bit for the male viewers and the character of Frodo suffered. Why does Frodo need to be a hero? The women already have Aragorn and Legolas to look at and Frodo ends up failing to destroy the ring himself in the end, so there’s no harm in making him the weak link.
Frodo: Actually Faithful to his Friends
The other great injustice done to the character of Frodo is the scene in The Return of The King, where he tells Sam to leave him because Gollum convinced Frodo that Sam is against him. Gollum then leads Frodo to Shelob, a giant spider, and his stabbed with a stinger. And if that isn’t pathetic enough, Frodo actually says Sam’s name as he wanders blindly through the dark
I'm not even going to get into the unnecessary homosexual undertones of these two characters.
tunnels. How is Frodo’s character that easily convinced? Hey, Frodo, ‘gullible’ is written on the dark, creepy tunnel’s ceiling.
But in reality, Frodo is never convinced by Gollum of anything. The entire relationship between Frodo and Gollum is untrue. Frodo takes pity on Gollum and decides not to kill him, just as his uncle did in The Hobbit, and decides to use him as a guide because he really had no other option. But he never connects with Gollum on an emotional level or begins to prefer his over Sam. In the scene where Frodo is stabbed by Shelob, Sam is only away from him because they were temporarily separated in the tunnels. Frodo never tells Sam to go away because he ate all the lembas bread. What is this Days of Our Lives?
So why put in all the unnecessary drama? Because, in all honesty, Frodo and Sam’s side of the story is kind of dull. It’s pretty much them just walking to Mordor with a sulking creature. In the original books, Frodo and Sam’s story did not take up as much of the book and most of their actions went by quickly. The entire story, starting with Frodo and Sam meeting Gollum, to Frodo being stabbed by Shelob (which actually occurred in The Two Towers) takes up approximately 185 pages. Not a lot of material to stretch between nearly two movies, especially when most of it is talking about ancient mythologies and descriptions of the land around them. So Peter Jackson decided to spruce it up by making Frodo, Sam, and Gollum have a kind of awkward love triangle. Thus the character of Frodo, who has already been deemed weak by the audience and writers, is altered again for the sake of the film. Hollywoodized.
One hobbits journey from inspiring Tolkien character to something Stephanie Meyer could have written.
The definition of a cult film and what one would consider to be a cult classic has always been altered due to time period and personal taste. However the most excepted definition is a film that has acquired a mass or following over time of people who worship the film. However another aspect of the cult film that isn’t realized is that a cult film usually did horribly at the box office, sending people storming from the theatres in rage, demanding their money back, And then when the films were released on video, there was a strange rise in the film’s popularity, so much to the point that they actually received a cult following.
For those of you who have not seen The Rocky Horror Picture show I will one, highly recommend it, and two give you a short synopsis of the plot.
The story begins when a young couple, Brad Majors and Janet Weiss, travel to tell their old teacher that they are engaged. One the way their tire goes flat during a storm and they have to seek shelter from a nearby castle. Little do they know that the castle is the home of Dr. Frank-N-furter, a transvestite scientist, and his entourage of anti-conformists. What ensues is a hilarious array of situations that include impulsive sex (both heterosexual and homosexual), Frankensteinian science experiments, and fishnet wearing dances. The plot is terrible, the singing and song lyrics are ridiculous, and characters are both horrible and memorable.
The film of course did not do well when it first came out, however a year after it was first released, it was turned into a midnight movie. After that it was not long until the cult ensued and the film is now actually the longest running theatrical release in film history (http://kisselpaso.com/tags/longest-running-theatrical-release-in-movie-history/). Now when you go to the theatre to see The Rocky Horror Picture Show, you better be prepared to do more than watch a movie.
Dress is almost always a social requirement. Anything that includes fish nets and lingerie should be sufficient; the scantier the better, for both men and women. It would be best to bring some necessary props as well, such as a newspaper to guard yourself from the rain during the rain scene, rice to throw during the wedding scene, and toast to throw at the screen when Frank proposes a toast over dinner.
Not only that, but there basically an unwritten script to stuff that the audience is supposed to yell at the screen. During the scene when the lips fade out and a cross fades in, the audience will yell “crucify the lips!” at the screen. Every time Brad introduces himself and Janet to a character on the screen the audience will yell “asshole!” after Brad’s name and “slut!” after Janet’s. There is a plethora of things the audience can yell at the screen other than the traditional things, such as “waiter there’s a transvestite in my soup,” (when Frank is floating in a pool) “it’s impolite to chew with your mouth full,” (when Frank is having oral sex with Brad), or “sluts can’t read,” (when Janet reads a newspaper). The things yelled at the screen, as seen above are crude and usually very offensive. An actual written up script of the play and what you can screen is found here (http://www.rhps.org/archive/text/scripts/script.all.dec24.95.txt). Audience members are also expected to dance during the infamous Time Warp scene. There is also usual a cast of audience members who dress as characters from the show and actually go on stage and act out the performance while the movie is going on.
Why the Cult Following?
It could be argued that the film really lends itself to being an interactive film. For example, the Time Warp, the song that everyone dances to, actually tells you what to dance through the lyrics (it’s just a jump to the left and a step to the right…). Furthermore the plot and dialogue is so horribly written, while also very crude and sexual, that it is easy for the audience to make fun of it. The characters as well are all a little too ridiculous to not make fun of. But even all of this isn’t enough to have caused groups of seemingly normal people to dress in fish nets and lingerie in public, dance around, and shout obscenities at a screen.
From personal experience I can say there is something to the mood of the movie theatre and audience when you’re at a Rocky Horror Picture Show screening. It could be described as something like impulsive confidence. Everyone is in drag, essentially, and acting like fools, thus giving others the confidence to act like fools as well. You can’t worry about dressing too inappropriately because chances are there’s somewhere there dressed more ridiculously. You don’t have to worry about disrupting other audience members by yelling at the screen because that’s what everyone is doing. You don’t have to worry about possibly offending someone with your crude humor because there’s always someone there shouting even cruder things. Everyone is doing it, so why not?
And that really is the explanation for the actions that people do at the screenings. It really is something like a cult mentality to it. For those couple of hours you are surrounded by a group of strangers, however you are all drawn to this one deity, in this case a film. It is comforting knowing that everyone around you is essentially just like you.
Why this Particular Movie?
Another thing we have to ask is why is there such a following for this particular movie? Harry Benshoff said it best in his book, The Monster and the Homosexual, when he said “the conventions of normality are ritualistically overturned within a prescribed period of time in order to celebrate the lure of the deviant.” While Benshoff was referring to horror films that portrayed homosexual characters or tendencies, it still very much relates to The Rocky Horror Picture Show.
What this film does to its audience exactly what it is portraying: the seduction of the sweet, virginal peoples (Brad and Janet) into the world of the degenerative transvestite and premarital sex. At the beginning of the film Brad and Janet and adorned in normal, concealing clothes and behave very conservatively. By the end of the film they have both engaged in premarital sex and are dressed in corsets and fish net tights. In the same way the audience is morphed from everyday people into beings of promiscuity and primitiveness. They dance around the theatre dressed in fish nets and high-hells and shout out cuss words and inappropriate callbacks. The lure of the deviant, the ability to be something you aren’t for a couple of hours, is what draws the masses.
When it comes to Quentin Tarantino’s films it’s easy to see why he has remained a popular director and writer in film history. His stories craftily combine his humorous dialogue and his ability to shock us with violence. And nothing is more exemplifying of this then the chapter in Pulp Fiction title “Vince and Mia.”
The story of Mr. Vincent Vega and Mrs. Mia Wallace begins when Vince comes to Mia’s house to take her out to eat. As Vince explains in an earlier scene “It ain’t a date. It’s like when you and your buddy’s wife go to a movie or somethin’. It’s just… you know… good company. It’s not a date.” Vince knows that this is his boss’ wife and his boss is a man who would probably kill him if anything went down. The scene already has weight on it before it even begins. Two characters that cannot have any feelings for each other are about to go out to eat and share Tarantino conversation? This should get interesting.
Jack Rabbit Silm’s
The choice of the restaurant where they eat is very characteristic of Tarantino; a 50’s based dinner where the booths are old cars, the waiters are dressed as Buddy Holly and Marilyn Monroe, and the menu is sure to provide very American foods. Vince describes the restaurant as being “a wax museum with a pulse,” which is essentially what Tarantino’s movies are.
The two characters sit across from one another in the booth and begin the famous Tarantino dialogue, discussing pop culture and other unimportant things. Tarantino shows his ability to make his audience fascinated by meaningless conversations. But because the characters talking are original and the dialogue doesn’t cease to entertain, people will sit and happily watch the two characters discuss a $5 shake. They also talk about Mia’s pilot that she played in called Fox Force Five, old corny jokes, and the waiter’s characters around them. Things begin to change when Mia mentions uncomfortable silences and how she knows she’s met someone special when she can share a comfortable silence with them. Vince brushes it off, but there is now a feeling of intimacy around the table. They continue their conversation, talking back and forth, flirting, and getting more comfortable around each other.
The dinner ends when they dance together on stage for a dance contest the restaurant has. The scene was beautifully shot, showing in motion the way they had been with each other the entire night: dancing around each other, flirting back and forth through their conversations. It also completes the level of comfort they have with each other because in the next scene, when Vince takes her home, they are very intimate with one another, laughing and goofily dancing with each other.
“I’m out of balloons. Is a baggy okay?”
The scene up to this point had remained very comical and leaning towards more of a romantic comedy feel. Mia dances around the living room while Vince is in the bathroom deciding whether or not he will try anything with Mia tonight. It’s not until Mia finds Vince’s stash of heroin in his jacket that things return to the normal, bloody Tarantino the audience knows and loves.
In the scene before Vince and Mia go out to dinner Vince goes to his drug dealer and buys some heroin. His dealer is out of balloons, which is what heroin is usually out in, and puts it in a baggy, making it look sort of like cocaine. This at first seems like an unimportant scene, but Tarantino throws in his twist by making this fact the catalyst for the craziness that was about to ensue on Vince and Mia.
Mia thinks that Vince’s stash is cocaine because of the baggy and tries to snort some. She begins overdosing and Vince has to take her to his dealer so he can save her life. What’s interesting is that during this scene Vince hardly refers to her as Mia, but calls her “Marcellus Wallace’s wife.” She is no longer a woman of sexual interest to him at this point, but is simply his boss’ wife and if she dies, he dies.
The scene continues with emotional panic and chaos as Vince wrecks his car into Lance’s house, brings Mia inside, and has to stab her in the heart with an adrenaline needle. Lance rips Mia’s shirt off and they have to draw a red dot on her breast to show where the needle needs to be stabbed. The scene focuses on this spot on Mia breast for a few hanging seconds just before Vince stabs her with the needle. The beauty of the scene is that had the story continued sans heroin overdose, Vince may well have ended up on top of Mia with her shirt off. However Tarantino shows us that his movies will never turn out as expected and that his characters are really at the mercy of his plot, his plot does not rely on his characters.
Tarantino’s recipe for the perfect movie scene is complete when Mia is saved and tells Vince the corny joke that she didn’t want to tell him in the restaurant. “Papa tomato, mama tomato, and a baby tomato are walking down the street. The baby tomato starts lagging behind and the pap tomato gets really angry with him. He goes back and squishes him and says ‘ketchup’.”
This scene, particularly the dancing scene, has become an iconic part of film history. Many posters and t-shirts feature the image of Mia and Vince dancing. Why is this chapter of the movie so loved by people? Because it is the Tarantino scene recipe: you take witty dialogue and blend it with shocking violence. Sprinkle on some drugs, pop culture references, and great music and you have the epitome of Tarantino style.
This film came out in 1999 and actually has a slew of big-name actors in its cast. It includes Tim Allen, Sigourney Weaver, Alan Rickman, and even a small part by a very young Justin Long. The film tells the story of a group of actors who spent their careers in a Star Trek-esque show; really popular but kind of shitty. A sci-fi show everyone hates to love but has a huge cult following. At one of their conventions (autographs, costumes, and all) they are approached by people who they assume to be fans but are actual aliens. The aliens have watched the show and believe that the bad space actors are actual space warriors. Soon they are up to their necks in space ships, alien adversaries, and weapons called things like “the Omega 13.”
It may be because a few years earlier hit sci-fi comedy Men In Black came out and Galaxy Quest was covered; sort of like how Wizard of Oz was covered by Gone with the Wind when it first came out. It could also be because the film caters to those who watched the original Star Trek episodes. It makes fun of the show and its followers and only those who watched any cheesy sci-fi show would understand the hilarity behind many of the actors’ sarcastic jokes and corny lines. All in all, it is a wonderful film that deserves more credit for its comedy than it receives.
This film also has a cast of some pretty big actors such as Kevin Kline, Joan Cusak, and Matt Dillon. The film begins with a quaint set up: young teacher named Howard Brackett who lives in a quiet little town and is engaged to his girlfriend of three years. All of his students love him, the whole town is coming to his wedding, and to top it off one of his former students, who went into acting, is nominated for an Academy Award! How exciting! But Howard’s life slowly begins to unravel when the former student receives his award and announces on national TV that his most influential teacher, Howard, is gay. The film does a wonderful job of shaking itself of its former picturesque tone and moving into a slap-stick comedy about masculinity and homosexuality.
get enough recognition for its comedy. Kevin Kline gives his best role, in my opinion, as a man coming to terms with his sexuality and the fact that his little town may not be as accepting as he thought. The film also does a great job of addressing society’s opinion of homosexuality. The town is ecstatic when the young actor is up for an Academy Award for a movie in which he plays a gay soldier, but when they find out that homosexuality is in their town people start getting antsy. It can be on the screen, but not in my backyard, so to speak. The film can also come off as a little corny sometimes, but that doesn’t get in the way of its ability to be a great, funny movie.
This film has to be in my top favorite 20 but it doesn’t get enough recognition out in the movie fan world. It’s about a single mother, Claudia, who is sick with a cold, gets fired from her job, and finds out her daughter has decided to have sex. On top of that she is going to her obnoxious parents’ house for Thanksgiving. The movie is about all of the mishap and comedy that ensues at any neurotic family’s gathering. The cast includes Holly Hunter, Robert Downey, Jr., and Claire Danes. The story takes too many twists and turn to sum up, but let’s just say there would be no Meet the Parents without this film.
parents for Thanksgiving, and keeping the dialogue and plot original and fresh. The film also hosts one of the best performances by a young Robert Downey, Jr. who plays a ridiculous and foolish gay brother to Claudia. The dialogue that the two characters have between each other is very similar to the banter between a close brother and sister and keeps the movie sounding unique yet realistic. Director Jodi Foster does a wonderful job of keeping the story simple but overwhelming, kind of like a dysfunctional family.
donotavoidthecelluloid 