Shatner And Lloyd's Senior Moment

 

OMG!

Captain Kirk and Doc Brown!

Having a Senior Moment!

I know I just said I'd go back to a theatre for the Beatle movie in September.

But assuming that restrictions will be less around the end of March...

...this just might be a way to get out for a laugh! 

At least until we figure out how to utter the word "ha" safely in a comedy club, that is.

I was going to say that it was about time that William Shatner and Christopher Lloyd worked together.

But it turns out that they already did, in a 2015 Hallmark Channel movie called Just In Time For Christmas.

And there sure seems to be comedic chemistry in Senior Moment between Shatner and Designing Women's Jean Smart!

In theatres and on demand March 26.

OMG...Happy Beatles!

 

OMG!

Happy Beatles!

Laughing Beatles!

In 1969 and 1970

I mean...weren't they breaking up?

Yes they were.

But contrary to popular belief, they were in a much better (and better lit) place, while recording the Let It Be album.

The Beatles: Get Back is Peter Jackson's reshaping of the 1970 documentary Let It Be, using 56 hours of newly-found footage of the Let It Be album recording sessions at London's Twickenham Studios.

Just by way of comparison...

...the original 1970 trailer for the Let It Be film.

Yes they may have been "rapping".

But I'm not that sure about relaxing.

Even the nominally cheerful Ringo looks pretty pissed off in some of those still shots.

And speaking of Mr. Starr, here he is after seeing Get Back way back in pre-pandemic 2019, enthusiastically singing (so to speak) its praises:

Get Back is now expected on August 27, 2021.

Since that date falls smack dab in the middle of a milestone birthday week for me, I think I can safely say that this film will be my return to a theatre, should one be open.

And it's fitting that Peter Jackson should be shepherding this endeavor.

After all, aren't The Beatles a sort of  fellowship, as in the director's Lord Of The Rings trilogy?

Call me eccentric if you wish. But I think so.

He can even cast himself as the Gandalf figure if he likes.

Because he has shown surviving Beatles Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr that not all was as moody and dark as it first appeared.

And let's face it...it's been a while since a Peter Jackson film has been a zeitgeisty cause for celebration!

In closing, here is Sir Paul's take on the Get Back film, from a chat with the one and only Howard Stern:

EELS w/ Journey lead singer Steve Perry in St Paul [FULL, HIGH QUALITY]

Just as I was thinking that Steve Perry would never sing with Journey  again, here comes video from a few nights ago as he joined rock band The Eels in St. Paul, Minnesota during their second encore, singing one of their songs plus two Journey classics. He's gone down a few octaves to be sure, but this is still special. Have a great night!



MTMG

Videodrome Closes: End Of An Era

They fought the good fight.

We all bought and rented like crazy, trying to keep the magic going.

But sadly. it had to end.

On October 26, 2013 at 9PM, The Videodrome closed its doors.

To the person who commented on the Edmonton Journal's story of the store's impending closing, something to the effect of "No big deal, movies are online now, sheesh!". On the face of it, of course you are correct.

As I've said, the Netflix concept is brilliant, and I'm very much a fan.

But I ask you to consider this: Unless you've purposely gathered your friends around your computer or big screen for a movie night, how do you share that you found somehing awesome or moving if you're alone? Facebook or Twitter, I suppose you'll tell me. Fine, but I'll bet your machine slows down to a crawl if you have two social apps plus Netflix open at the same time.

There is nothing like rediscovereing pure joy of The Blues Brothers with a group of people, as I did in the store one cloudy Saturday afternoon.

Not every video store owner would turn on the director's commentary for Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan because you were curious to find out what director Nicholas Meyer had to say. Quite a bit, actually. He seems very well-read, and expounded on the nautical aspects of the story and the importance of A Tale of Two Cities in its opening and closing. But most importantly, he detailed how he sneakily drained the Shatner out of Captain Kirk's line "Here it comes" in the Khan battle by shooting multiple takes. But Heather did that for me, because she understood that people have deep connections with the movies they love.

And Videodrome, I have to say thank you for stepping up my movie knowledge immeasurably over the last two years or so, and for putting up with me when transportation issues dictated that I sometimes stay at the store literally for hours at a time. I appreciate it, truly. Hopefully we can meet again, in some form or capacity. While I'm thinking of it, thank you Heather for making it possible for me to reconnect with Burt Reynolds' underappreciated 1978 gem The End, which he also directed. Playing a man who's told he's  going to die, Reynolds as director and star manages to walk the fine line between the serious and darkly comic aspects of the situation. And all this in the midst of the Smokey and the Bandit/Cannonball Run craziness to boot.

In closing...some pictures:

 Owner John was doing his best to smile that day, helping faithful customers find treasures amid the remaining stock. My friend, you fought the good fight. I salute you!

Kevin and Moira, bathed in an otherwordly glow...do they know something we don't?

Thanks also to Dave, Glenn, Chris, Sandy, and all the fellow customers I had very lively discussions with. It was all very enlightening and educational.

See you soon!

Your Friend,

Mike

Water For Elephants (2011) ****

So the question is, does Robert Pattinson have the talent to breathe life into a well-written script and character?

And the answer is, definitely yes!

Pattinson may finally be able to erase the RPattz side of his persona, or at least keep it at bay, with Water For Elephants. He plays Jacob, a hardworking son of loving Polish immigrants who is about to graduate from veterinary college in 1931. Deciding to abandon those plans when his parents are suddenly killed, he hops a train which just happens to house the Benzini Brothers Circus. Jacob very nearly gets thrown off the train but for the ministrations of kindly carnival worker Camel (Jim Norton), and is soon put to work putting up tents, keeping out nonpaying customers, and (of course) shoveling shite.  August  (Christoph Waltz), Benzini's charismatic owner and ringmaster, finds out about Jacob's training, he is immediately promoted to circus vet. His first patient? Ailing trick horse Silver Star, ridden by the lovely and talented Marlena (Reese Witherspoon), who just happens to be August's wife.

Water For Elephants is exactly the type of movie for which the long-unused term "sweeping melodrama" was invented. Based on Sara Gruen's acclaimed novel and boasting a script by 90s mainstay Richard LaGranevese (Bridges of Madison County, The Mirror Has Two Faces), it also features superb unhurried direction from Vienna-born Francis Lawrence. And the combined efforts of cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto and Jack Fisk capture the circus milieu perfectly, almost inviting the audience to run away and join.

As to the performances, Pattinson, although still very much a brooding presence at times, has moments where he is able to loosen up and open up, this being a romance and all. He is helped immeasurably by the presence of Witherspoon, a costar he can finally play off of. Waltz continues to display the simmering charisma-to-mania slow burn that we first witnessed in Inglorious Basterds . The romantic elements are refreshingly old fashioned, unfolding at a pace respectful of the Depression-era time period, also allowing us to understand the bright spot that the circus was in people's lives at that time.

Step right up, and enjoy!

MTMG

Bonus Post: Before We Start

Before we embark on our experiment in legit cyber home theatre, as a child of the 80's I'm gonna give a shout-out to a vanishing breed: the bricks-and-mortar video store.

Think back. Do you remember rushing to be the first to be the first at your local video store on Tuesday to grab the latest new release? On VHS? I sure do! I was among the first on my block to grab copies of 1990's Gerard Depardieu vehicle Green Card and Tim Burton's Edward Scissorhands from the same year. My thoughts at the time? Green Card was a good first effort in North America for Depardieu, while Burton's Scissorhands stayed with me then, and remains with me still.

And 22 years later, thanks to a minor miracle, I can still experience that Tuesday rush, thanks to an absolute gem of a video store called The Videodrome, named after the cult David Cronenberg film. The store is run by people who love movies, for people who love movies. You won't hear, "We don't carry the Slaughterhouse series" when asking for Slaughterhouse Five, or have to spell out the name of your favorite cult director while the clerk goes blank. Need a suggestion, or want to know the Top 5 films from last year because you've fallen behind? Heather and her intrepid staff can help! And yes, they carry the latest new releases as well. I personally witnessed four copies of Lincoln fly off the shelves last week.

And The Videodrome knows how much people love their movies, and how they'd sometimes just love to have their favorite movie in their personal collection. More than anything else, it is Heather's special talent - almost a mission, really - to help you find your special movie after your chain store employee has looked in their one book and told you it's been discontinued. Don't believe me? Issue her a challenge by visiting the store at 8001 102 St in Edmonton, or by calling (780) 757-2232. The store's website is www.thevideodrome.ca and their email is info@thevideodrome.ca.

Happy hunting!

MTMG

A Rebranding: The Great Netflix Film Festival

Where does the time go?

Since I last posted on Mighty Mighty Movies Unlimited, home entertainment has undergone somewhat of a sea change, with a lot of us now sitting in front of our computers to catch up on our favorite films, thanks primarily to a wonderful streaming service called Netflix.

I will be unapologetic here: I love Netflix. Just love it. For roughly eight bucks, where else can you catch up on the last year or two of new releases and a smattering of fill-in-gaps-in-your-movie-knowledge old favorites? (A word to the wise however : If you see an old favorite today, watch it today. It may be gone tomorrow. And that's no lie!) Just to name a few...

RIP Runaway: Caught about a half-hour of this 1984 Tom Selleck-Gene Simmons starrer at Edmonton's Twin Drive-In with Silverado, and was looking forward to catching up with the rest. RIP 1978's Casey's Shadow (Walter Matthau, a girl, and a horse), 1980's Stir Crazy (that one really stung, seeing as it is a Richard Pryor-Gene Wilder classic that I first saw on local broadcast TV, of course edited for television.  I could go on. But you get the idea.

Now on to the positives. There is a heck of a lot of stuff to catch up on and revisit, and I'm looking forward to sharing my journey with you all. As I've posted before, there will be almost no rhyme or reason to my posts, except on days when I ask myself basic questions like:

Can Robert Pattinson stretch beyond Twilight?

So I guess this is my way of saying that my first films in The Great Netflix Film Festival will be 2011's Water For Elephants.

Looking forward to getting started!

Mikey The Movie Guy