Category: Articles

The Reputation of Classic Women’s Pictures: Gone with the wind?

By Jennifer Baldwin. I ran across an interesting list from Filmcritic.com the other day: The Top 50 Movie Endings of All Time. The list was compiled in 2006. Many of my favorite endings were listed, including the endings to Casablanca, The Godfather, and Bonnie and Clyde. But as the list got closer and closer to number one, I waited giddily for my favorite ending of all-time to appear. I knew it would be near the top spot, at least top five, maybe it would even be the number one ending. It is, after all, one of the most famous endings in all of Hollywood’s history, and includes two of the most famous lines in all of cinema. It’s one of the greatest classics of all time, how could it not be near the top of the list?

I’m writing, of course, of the ending to Gone With the Wind. There is no more iconic and well-known ending in all of cinema, with the exceptions of perhaps The Wizard of Oz, Casablanca, or The Empire Strikes Back. But Gone With the Wind stands as one of the greats, arguably the greatest, if only for the thrill of hearing the word “damn” uttered for the first time in mainstream cinema and to see Scarlett rejected so deliciously – only to see her rise again with indomitable resilience. I knew it was coming. I kept reading. I was almost to the end of the list …

And Gone With the Wind was nowhere to be found. They had left it off.

I couldn’t quite believe it. A few people in the comments section couldn’t believe it either. Where was Gone With the Wind? Where was “Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn”? Where was “After all, tomorrow is another day”? Where was that last gorgeous Technicolor shot of Scarlett returned to Tara, the sweeping main theme of Max Steiner’s unforgettable score rising to a crescendo on the soundtrack? I was in a bit of shock, sitting there looking at a list of the Top 50 Movie Endings that did not include Gone With the Wind.

But then again, why should I be surprised? GWTW has been losing its place in the pop culture pantheon for a while now. The writing was on the wall when the revised AFI Top 100 American Films list came out and GWTW had slipped from fourth place to sixth place, replaced at #4 by Raging Bull. Not a huge slip, of course, but a telling one I think. GWTW is too iconic, too huge (still the top box office of all time, adjusted for inflation), to really go away altogether. But slowly, in little drips and quietly telling ways, it’s losing stature in the film community – especially in the mainstream online film community. And it’s not surprising because the online film community – which drives so much of film culture and conversation these days – is simply not that interested in what gets called, for better or worse, a “chick flick.”

And despite its status as a Civil War epic, GWTW is a women’s film. Vivien Leigh as Scarlett O’Hara is in nearly every scene. It’s her story that we watch unfold, even as Rhett Butler pops in and out of the narrative. It’s her emotional journey that dominates the film. And in the second half especially, it is her domestic drama that takes up most of the action (and it’s not surprising to read commentary from guys online who think the second half of the film is “weak” compared to the first, more war-focused half – the domestic struggles of Scarlett hold little interest for the online fanboy types). Continue reading The Reputation of Classic Women’s Pictures: Gone with the wind?

Hollywood Round-up, 7/12

From "Despicable Me."

By Jason Apuzzo. • Despicable Me won the weekend box office race, and it looks like Pixar may have some new competition – in the form of Universal’s family unit Illumination, combined with the French animation outfit Mac Guff.  Glad to see some new players emerging on the animation front.

• New York Magazine’s David Edelstein and The LA Times’ Steven Zeitchik have posted tepid reviews of Inception.  Money quote from Zeitchik about the film: “more headache-inducing than pleasure-producing.”  From Edelstein: “clunky and confusing … I truly have no idea what so many people are raving about.”  Expect more of this to come as critical tongues slowly loosen prior to the film’s release.

• Roman Polanski has been set free, and the Swiss will not cooperate in extraditing him. And frankly I would care more about this story if Polanski wasn’t so long past his prime as a filmmaker, anyway.  What’s worth seeing after Frantic?

• Ed Norton has apparently been dumped by Marvel from playing The Hulk due to his bad attitude, although his attitude can’t possibly be as bad as mine was after seeing him botch the role.  Better give it back to Bana.

• New set pics are out from Transformers 3, featuring cars. And more cars.  And still more cars and … where’s Rosie Huntington-Whiteley?

Amanda Seyfried.

• Kevin Costner’s oil/water separator has been deployed in the Gulf. It’s amazing that Waterworld would have such a positive legacy.

• Hollywood power players turned out to raise money for Barbara Boxer the other night, which makes perfect sense given how wonderful Boxer’s tenure has been in terms of keeping film production right here in the Golden State where it belongs.  [Sigh.]

• Volvo is the latest corporation to piggyback off Twilight for advertising purposes. That’s odd; I always assumed vampires drove Hyundais.  Meanwhile Twilight: Breaking Dawn starts shooting this fall in Vancouver and Baton Rouge, provided the entire state of Louisiana isn’t covered in crude.

• The Mel Gibson Thing is started to have wide consequences in the industry, with questions even being raised about the forthcoming Gibson-DiCaprio collaboration on a Viking epic (!).  And, of course, as you’ve probably heard by now, the Gibson situation continues to spin further out of control by the hour.  I’m really hoping we don’t see Mel driving a Ford Bronco down the 405 next week, because this is getting really ugly.

• AND IN TODAY’S MOST IMPORTANT NEWS … According to Variety, Amanda Seyfried will be starring in the forthcoming Andrew Niccol science fiction film I’m.mortal, about a future dystopia in which no one has to age … although to keep the population in check, people can only stay alive as long as they can pay their way.  Hey – why set this in the future?  All of this sounds like West Los Angeles right now!

And that’s what’s happening today in the wonderful world of Hollywood …

Posted on July 12th, 2010 at 11:10pm.

New Anti-Soviet Film Farewell Depicts Spycraft That Won the Cold War

Fred Ward as Ronald Reagan.

By Jason Apuzzo. According to The New York Times today, the Cold War is back.  Have they been reading Libertas?

Not only is the Angelina Jolie Russian spy thriller Salt opening later this month – a film which, incidentally, has already been banned in China; not only is the Red Dawn remake being released later this year (presumably); not only is Mao’s Last Dancer coming out later this summer, but so too on July 23rd is a new French Cold War thriller called Farewell being released starring (among others) Willem Defoe, and Fred Ward as Ronald Reagan.  The film deals with one of the crucial Cold War espionage coups that delivered vital intelligence to America and the West.  The film opens July 23rd in New York and Los Angeles, spreading to other markets all the way through September.  Farewell showed at the Toronto and Telluride film festivals earlier this year, and has already received glowing reviews from Todd McCarthy (formerly of Variety), as well as Stephen Holden of The New York Times and Jeff Stein of The Washington Post.  You can watch the trailer to the film below.

Farewell tells the true story of a disenchanted K.G.B. colonel named ‘Sergei Grigoriev’ (the real colonel was actually named Vladimir Vetrov)  — eventually code-named ‘Farewell’ by Western spy agencies – who decides that he can no longer serve the Soviet state, and consequently chooses to funnel classified information to French intelligence agents.

This intelligence apparently included information on what the Soviets knew about our air defenses, how much the Soviets were spending on defense, what defense technologies they were stealing from the United States, and also a list of highly placed K.G.B. agents who’d infiltrated government and industry in the West.  The leaking of this information, when later combined with President Reagan’s public commitment to create the ‘Star Wars’ missile defense system, were crucial elements in the winning of the Cold War.

The French angle on this story is twofold: the courier for the secret information was Pierre Froment, an otherwise innocent employee of a French multinational corporation.  And the information itself was eventually transmitted to Ronald Reagan by then-French President François Mitterrand.

The trailer for the film certainly looks compelling.  Here’s some of what Todd McCarthy said about the film while he was with Variety: “A harrowing, richly human and well-acted espionage tale. … It’s juicy, fascinating stuff, well orchestrated, and finely thesped.  [Director Christian] Carion keeps things simmering on medium-high heat throughout.” Continue reading New Anti-Soviet Film Farewell Depicts Spycraft That Won the Cold War

New French Competition for Pixar? LFM Reviews Despicable Me

Gru, the not-so-villainous villain of "Despicable Me."

[Editor’s Note: “Despicable Me” dominated the weekend box office, taking in over $60 million.]

By Patricia Ducey. Gru’s archvillain mojo is beginning to fade – even his mom (Julie Andrews) calls to needle him when another, better, villain steals the Great Pyramid of Egypt. Even Gru’s usual evil misdeeds, like scaring his suburban neighbors, aren’t as much fun as they used to be. Somehow he has to concoct an even bigger heist to take back his title, so to speak – and gain his mother’s love?

In its first release, Universal’s family unit Illumination scores a solid hit with Despicable Me (directed by Pierre Coffin and Chris Renaud). Full of wit and heart and remarkably free of left-leaning messages (no cynicism, environmentalism or US bashing here), Despicable is actually quite lovable. (I quickly forgave the one stereotype of people from Alabama in an early scene, when they skewered Keith Olbermann in the next.) At 95 minutes, it’s just right for kids.

Gru (ably voiced by Steve Carell) decides to steal the Moon, using a Shrink Ray gun, but he needs venture capital to get the project, literally, off the ground. Aided by Dr. Nefario, in a hilarious turn by Russell Brand – and hundreds of tiny yellow, perhaps robot, minions (Grunions?) – he hatches a plan. Gru rallies his minions a la Steve Jobs, in a very funny scene only the adults will get.

At the “Bank of Evil (formerly Lehman Brothers),” though, loan officer Mr. Perkins is not impressed. Perkins dismisses Gru with a curt: “We’re going with somebody younger.” Later we learn that Perkins is actually funding his son Victor, now ‘Vector,’ as top villain after his triumphant swiping of the Pyramid.

A not-so-master criminal.

If Gru can’t build a Shrink Ray, he will steal a Shrink Ray. After all, he is a villain. Gru decides to adopt three orphan girls who have managed to gain access to Vector’s lair by selling Vector his favorite cookies. But the best laid plans sometime go awry, and Gru finds himself falling for the delightful little girls instead. Continue reading New French Competition for Pixar? LFM Reviews Despicable Me

Loving the Cold War Lifestyle: UFO Remake on the Horizon

[Editor’s Note: Today we combine our recent space/invasion theme here at LFM, and Steve Greaves’ ‘Loving the Cold War Lifestyle’ series, with a brief look back – and forward – at the classic British TV show “UFO.”]

By Steve Greaves. Fans of the Supermarionation series Thunderbirds and the live-action Space:1999 alike will be intrigued to know that Gerry Anderson’s influential British TV series UFO is currently on track for a Hollywood summer tentpole updating. [See the opening titles of the original series above.]  Producer Robert Evans and British network ITV are slated to team up on the project, which will find the year 2020 as the new backdrop for the business of SHADO – the crafty organization that combats alien invasion threats from on high with an arsenal of labs, gizmos, purple wigs and cool vehicles that traverse every frontier.  Here is the new film’s website.

Scenes from the original British TV series "UFO."

Anderson himself was appalled by the miserable remake of his fantastic Thunderbirds franchise, as would be anyone who saw it, but the rumor is that he’s optimistic about the new UFO getting off the ground in style. The original series, which ran for just one season in 1972 in the US, was ahead of its time – especially for TV – and was notable for its special effects, art direction and vehicle design. Perhaps the most important legacy of UFO is that it directly influenced the look and approach to the better-known and more widely enduring Space:1999, which was Anderson’s series that ran from 1975-77 and starred Martin Landau.

Now, one key factor sure to be absent from any new UFO launch that anchored the many other-worlds of Gerry Anderson is the music of Barry Gray. Gray scored or wrote themes for virtually all of Anderson’s shows from the puppeteering days forward, including Fireball XL5, Stingray, Captain Scarlet, Joe 90, Supercar, Journey To The Far Side Of The Sun, Thunderbirds, and – of course – UFO and Space:1999. The groovy, jaunty flavor of Gray’s music was part of what made these shows something fun and exciting to tune into, not to mention that his themes are among the catchiest in this universe or beyond. One listen to the head-bobbing Joe 90 theme will set you straight [see here and here].

Posted on July 11th, 2010 at 12:11pm.

The Mixed Blessings of Foreign Aid: Good Fortune

From "Good Fortune."

By Joe Bendel. According to filmmaker Landon Van Soest, $2.3 trillion (with a “t”) worth of western foreign aid has flowed into Africa over the last fifty years. What has been the result of these enormous outlays? Mostly ill-will and corruption according to the average Kenyans whose daily struggles Van Soest documents in Good Fortune, which airs this coming Tuesday on PBS’s POV.

UN program manager Sara Candiracci does not exactly have the common touch. The poverty of Nairobi’s Kibera slum personally offends her, which is laudable. Partnering with the Kenyan government, the UN is launching an ambitious redevelopment project for Kibera. However, she admits up front: “the strategy to move people and to bring them back is still not clear” – yet the residents should welcome the project anyway.

Kibera might be an eyesore to Candiracci, but it represents a better way of life for midwife Silva Adhiambo. Finding ample work there, she happily calls it home. In one telling scene, she perfectly illustrates why Kibera is so skeptical of the UN’s plans. The so-called slum is actually surrounded by three modern housing developments. One high-rise estate was billed as low income housing during construction, only to become home to well-connected government officials when completed. Another neighboring housing project remains unfinished due to litigation stemming from government embezzlement. A third development was allegedly built by Kenya’s First Lady with western aid money earmarked for AIDS programs – and then sold for a tidy profit. Indeed, having gone down this road before, the Kibera neighborhood is dead-set against the UN project, but Candiracci and the Kenyan government are not listening. Continue reading The Mixed Blessings of Foreign Aid: Good Fortune