Issue 43: Sydney Brown's Sixty Seconds
By Sydney Brown

Movie Review: The Taking of Pelham One Two Three

A few months ago I was blown away by a movie, and not a recent one, although this year has produced some very entertaining films. And after seeing it again a few weeks ago, a mere sixty seconds just won’t do,

So this go around, an essay about The Taking of Pelham One Two Three.

Not a very catchy title, is it?

Pelham is a 1974 film based on the novel of the same name with an ingenious premise. Four criminals who seem to be strangers to each other and have colors as names, (gee, I wonder who ripped that idea off……), take a subway train and its passengers hostage. They demand $1 million in one hour. And they will kill a passenger for every minute they don’t get it. The film stars Walter Matthau, Robert Shaw, Martin Balsam, Hector Elizando, and Jerry Stiller.

There are four strokes of genius in this film:

1. The score. I can’t even describe it. Angry 70’s funk doesn’t do it justice. One of the best musical scores of any movie. Period.
2. The plot. Think about how ludicrous the plan seems to be. You’re underground. You can be identified. There are cops at every exit. How the hell are you supposed to escape?
3. The hero. When you think of action heroes, Walter Matthau doesn’t come to mind. But he delivers one of the most realistic everyman heroes you’ll see. No acrobatics, no death-defying stunts. Hell, he isn’t even terribly bright.
4. The villain. Most people know Robert Shaw as Quint from Jaws. Not after this. Shaw as Mr. Blue is one of the most awesome villains of the screen. Cold. Calculated. Polite. Brilliant. He does only what he has to do, yet does exactly what he says he is going to.

Is this the best movie ever made? No. Surrounding this is a rather silly subplot involving the mayor of New York, and there are some pretty cornball lines you’ll see coming miles away. But despite that, you’ll get a sharp thriller and one of the single best closing shots in any film.

A smart, sharp thriller with a brilliant payoff. What more do you people want?

Issue 41: Sydney Brown's Sixty Seconds
By Sydney Brown

Sydney Brown’s Sixty Seconds

THEME WEEK!!!!!!

Well, I’ve been watching documentaries. Not intentionally, but it just so happens I have seen five lately. And it just so happens my column usually involves five movies. And it just so happens my intros are usually short, and here I am done with it.

Helvetica (2007) ***

A documentary about a font. A font? Yes. A font. A look at why the Helvetica font, created only fifty years ago, is the most used typeface in the world. The film also looks at graphical styles from the ‘50’s but it’s the interview subjects that make the film, from the egotistical to the flamboyant. The film’s strength is also its weakness as a few of the interviewees are just a tad dull. Though anecdotes about Coca-Cola using the font for print ads and how one might save a boring Bryan Ferry interview by changing a font are hilarious. You won’t look at a bathroom sign the same after this.

The Hole Story (2005) **1/2

A pseudo-documentary about a filmmaker traveling to the Midwest to investigate a mysterious hole in a lake only for the hole to have disappeared by the time he gets there. Film turns into a plight for the documentarian to find ANYTHING to shoot leading to some very funny moments. However the film loses its luster around the halfway point and somewhat limps to the end. Film is noteworthy for using the real citizens and real situations though in scripted form. Would have been an excellent short, just not enough meat to sustain a feature.

The Filth & the Fury (2000) The Sex Pistols ***1/2

The history of The Sex Pistols told by the members themselves, (even dead member Sid Vicious), and through amazing clips and footage of the band at their decadent worst. Director Julian Temple had filmed so much of the band over the years and had access to so much of their lives, he paints an almost perfect picture of 70’s British unrest. The Pistols going nuts on live British TV is worth the film alone. Much better than the earlier drama Sid & Nancy.

The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters (2007) ***½

Hysterical documentary about two men battling to attain the highest Donkey Kong score and the measures each man will go through to get it. Film clearly establishes sides pitting the bearded egotistical champ against the down-on-his-luck nice guy. Brilliant look at a culture that perhaps never fully grew up, it’s incredibly ironic when a six year-old girl makes the smartest observation in the movie. A must-see.

The Office: Season Three (2007) ****

Yeah, okay, I’m cheating. Probably the best sitcom on television, and damn, if it doesn’t compete with the UK version. Season three arguably is the best season of this mockumentary of office life in Scranton. While Steve Carell is no Ricky Gervais, and the office romance has a twinge of “been there”ness to it, the supporting characters and brilliant scripts more than make up for it. If you even think about starting fresh with season 4 without a rewind, think again, buster.

Issue 40: Sydney Brown's Sixty Seconds
By Sydney Brown

Sydney Brown’s Sixty Seconds

I’ve been somewhat out of action lately, and you all get to be rewarded. Here’s some movies I’ve been watching:

Mystery Date (1991) Ethan Hawke, Teri Polo *1/2

Basically a teen version of After Hours, Hawke is a shy kid too afraid to ask his next-door neighbor out, so he assumes the identity of his much cooler older brother only to discover his brother has mob ties and two dead guys in his trunk. Film actually has a few good ideas and starts off well, but most scenes end up in the variety of, (“Ethan: Hey, what’s that? Bad Guy: Where?” Then Ethan runs away.) Not to mention the subplot somehow becomes the main plot in the last half hour involving guys nobody cares about. But the lesson learned? If you almost get your date killed, she will be SURE to have sex with you when the date is over.

Real Life (1979) Albert Brooks, Charles Grodin ***

Extremely funny and odd movie about a film producer looking to document a family’s life for a year, only for the film to end up being more about himself. Albert Brooks’ directoral debut is both dated and twenty years ahead of the TV reality craze. Many jokes fall flat, but some of the satire is merciless: Brooks’ fear of minorities, the insane cameras used, and the fate of a horse for starters. Not his best work, but an underappreciated gem. Listen for Harry Shearer as one of the cameramen.

Broadcast News (1987) William Hurt, Holly Hunter ****

Back in the 80’s, flash was replacing substance in TV news, and this film chronicles that trend. William Hurt is an “all-style-no-brain” reporter, Albert Brooks is an “all-brain-no-style” reporter and Holly Hunter is the self-controlling producer who both reporters want. A savagely funny portrayal of how TV was and still is, twenty years later. Hunter loves Hurt even though he’s not very smart, despite her intellectual equal, (Brooks), being in love with her. Film is ultra-realistic in that it’s the little gestures that ruin relationships, not the big ones.

Mystic River (2003) Sean Penn, Tim Robbins ***

Mesmerizing two hour film that falls apart in the last twenty minutes. Three childhood friends experience tragedy when one of them is kidnapped and molested, and the three reunite years later when one of their daughters is brutally murdered. Penn and Robbins both won Oscars, (and deservedly so), for their roles as a grieving dad and an emotionally scarred parent, and the acting is tremendous. The problem I have is that the movie cheats, all but forcing you to look one way solely to give you a “gotcha” involving characters barely hinted at in the film. And the moral of the story left a very bitter taste in my mouth. Maybe that was the point, I don’t know. A very good film, but one that could have been great.

Superbad (2007) Jonah Hill, Michael Cera ***½

Every column I seem to proclaim a new “funniest film of 2007.” I think this is the last time I do that. Two less-than-popular kids try to score alcohol for a huge party, but the plot is meaningless. A rare film that is both incredibly smart and incredibly dirty, the movie hits all the right notes, and even the slow scenes know they are slow and end quickly. Obviously the McLovin character is the breakout, but the two cops pretty much steal the film themselves, reinventing the “bad cop” stereotype. The film works because the characters are believeable and we actually care about them.

Issue 37: Sydney Brown's Sixty Seconds
By Sydney Brown

Sixty Seconds with Sydney Brown

Hey, it’s Mr. Brown back wit’cha with some more movies for you to see or ignore. It’s been a long week, my brain is tired. Here we go:

The Simpsons Movie (2007) Dan Castellaneta, A. Brooks ***

Homer adopts a pig which somehow leads to Armageddon in Springfield. If you honestly go to The Simpsons Movie for the plot, you get what you deserve. The first half hour is some of the sharpest and funniest the Simpsons have been in years with rapid-fire jokes so fast and furious you wonder how they can keep it up. Well, they don’t, but it’s all-in-all a very funny film. Movie kinda falls apart in the end when too many people learn lessons they learned in about ten different episodes, but it’s still an easy recommendation.

Edmond (2005) William H. Macy *1/2

A film that starts off so promisingly with Macy as an average joe who’s had “enough,” (ie. Falling Down), collapses so spectactularly with a single scene that begs you to laugh at its ridiculousness, (and I’m not talking about George Wendt as a Russian pawnbroker.) A play by David Mamet knows the words but not the feeling. The first ten minutes are intriguing, and the last scene is equally so, but the rest of it is just brutal. Rarely have I been more disappointed in a play adaptation. Macy starts off as a naive businessman then turns racist psycho on a dime. There are memorable moments for sure, (and probably for the wrong reasons), but just an all-around letdown.

Commando (1985) Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rae Dawn Chong ***

Very guilty pleasure that sums up 80s movies completely with Arnold as an Army colonel forced to assassinate a Latin dictator to save his daughter’s life. Oddly, Arnold objects to this, yet doesn’t object to killing over 100 people in the course of 90 minutes. Even more odd is how Arnold can barely break a sweat doing so yet can have trouble with the main bad guy, who is about the size of Arnold’s thigh. Epitome of 80s movies, it makes no sense, but it makes no sense in a fun way.

To Live and Die in L.A. (1985) William Peterson, Willem DaFoe ***

I watched this a while ago and forgot to review it for some reason. Peterson is a “renegade” cop out to do whatever it takes to bring down counterfeiter DaFoe for killing his partner. Looks like your typical Miami Vice story until our hero takes a MAJOR wrong turn and the film becomes almost an entirely new film. Both leads give wonderful performances, (this was one of DaFoe’s first roles), and a rather sharp script with not one but two shock twists that even more shockingly….make SENSE!! DaFoe is actually counterfeiting real money, and legend has it, the entire cast and crew came dangerously close to being arrested, (since that’s a federal offense and all….)

Breach (2007) Chris Cooper, Ryan Philippe ****

Fact-based account of the 2001 arrest of a US FBI agent caught selling classified documents to the Russians. Chris Cooper and Ryan Philippe give outstanding performances as both the agent and the informant assigned to take him down. Don’t expect The Bourne Identity, this is a character study showing how the agent’s flaws were what ultimately led to his demise. From Billy Ray, director of one of the great unseen films, 2003’s Shattered Glass. Both films based on true stories, both films having great performances, and both films having great performances from actors usually ignored (Philippe here, Hayden Christensen in Glass.) A must-see, and as of this writing, 2007’s best film.

Issue 34: Sydney Brown's Sixty Seconds
By Sydney Brown

Sydney Brown’s Sixty Seconds

Just a quick note, I’ve gotten some positive feedback on my Wonder Years essay from a few weeks back, and if you want to relive the magic, (in syndicated form), the series starts all over again on either Thursday June 21st or Friday June 22nd.

Now for some porn and frogs:

Hardcore (1979) George C. Scott, Peter Boyle **

Scott is a midwestern religious man whose daughter runs away to L. A. and becomes a porn actress. Scott then tries to find her using the most convoluted methods possible. Somehow Paul Schrader, who wrote the greatest film of all time, (Taxi Driver), wrote AND directed this mess. Many of the scenes are so ridiculous they are laughable, not to mention the mystery “bad guy” who doesn’t even get mentioned until the end. Good soundtrack and Scott gives a very good performance, but the movie is just too damn weird and silly to be taken seriously.

Frogs (1972) Sam Elliot *

Awful “horror” film about nature fighting back against humanity. A rich family with a house in the swampland gets attacked by alligators, birds, snakes… ironically, everything BUT frogs. Hokey and so-bad-its-good dialogue doesn’t quite make it a must-see, but the film’s logic just about does. Grandpa’s having a birthday, and despite the fact that a family member has just DIED, still INSISTS on going on with his party. Sam Elliot is almost unrecognizable with short hair and no beard, and I’d say he’s probably pretty happy about that.

Knocked Up (2007) Seth Rogan, Katherine Heigl ***

Very funny film about a pothead loser getting a hot on-air talent pregnant during a one-nighter. Rogan is great, and Paul Rudd is his usual show-stealing self, (as is an oddly sensitive doorman.)

The film is hilarious, but the thing just goes on too long. It’s an excellent 90 minute movie that goes two hours. It was very funny, I laughed a lot. BUT. . . . .

Just for the record, I really think I’ve seen one too many romantic comedies. There has GOT to be another plot device that doesn’t involve “boy says something stupid, girl leaves him, boy realizes his mistake, they get back together. ” Knocked Up could have been JUST as funny, and in fact maybe even more charming, if they dropped the pointless “conflict” and just had funny things happen and have the kid born. There’s a good half-hour that REALLY lags because the plot becomes more important than the jokes. I still recommend it, but I don’t feel it was the comedy sensation of the year.

Little Children (2006) Kate Winslett, Jackie Earle Haley ***

Tale of suburbia stars Kate Winslett as an unhappy housewife falling for a stay-at-home dad neighbor. Their story is intertwined with a sexual deviant recently released from prison who may not be completely reformed. Winslett and Haley, (as the sex addict), received well-earned Oscar noms in this gripping story that perhaps has a less than satisfactory ending after what appears to be a huge build-up. I’m not entirely clear what the message is, though I am to assume that just because your sins aren’t publicized, it doesn’t make you any less guilty.

Boogie Nights (1997) Mark Wahlberg, Burt Reynolds ****

One of my all-time favorite films, bar none. Wahlberg is Dirk Diggler, a go-nowhere dreamer with an enormous gift who uses it to become a successful porn actor. Paul Thomas Anderson’s breakthrough is hilarious, scary, sad, uncomfortable, and poignant and all done perfectly. Reynolds was robbed of an Oscar in what is truly a remarkable performance. The writing is sharp, the performances sharper, this film is lightning in a bottle.