Weekly Movie Recommendations

Movies to See Right Now (at home)

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I’M AN ELECTRIC LAMPSHADE, world premiere at Cinequest. Photo courtesy of Cinequest.

We’re in the final four days of Cinequest, so take a gander at my Best of Cinequest. And here are my remembrances of Yaphet Kotto, George Segal and Jessica Walter.

ON VIDEO

Anthony Hopkins and Olivia Colman deliver heartbreaking performances in The Father, an unsettling exploration of memory loss. I saw The Father while covering the virtual Mill Valley Film Festival in October, and it’s now widely available to stream (just before the Oscars). It’s on my list of Best Movies of 2020.

The most eclectic watch-at-home recommendations you’ll find ANYWHERE:

ON TV

Jean Gabin (right) in PEPE LE MOKO

On March 27 and 28, Turner Classic Movies brings us one of the greatest movie stars, Jean Gabin in a pre-noir film, Pépé le Moko. Probably the greatest male French movie star ever, Gabin had dominated prewar French cinema with La Grande Illusion, Port of Shadows and Le Bete Humaine.  After the war, he aged into noir (Touchez Pas aux Grisbi, Razzia) and, in the 1960s, into neo-noir (Any Number Can Win, The Sicilian Clan).  Gabin oozed a seasoned cool (like Bogart) and imparted a stately gravitas to his noir and neo-noir characters.

Jean Gabin is on my very short list of the most perpetually cool humans to ever walk the planet, along with Dean Martin, Ben Gazzara, Joan Jett and Barack Obama.

In Pépé le Moko, Gabin plays the titular Algiers gangster who operates, immune from police interference, in the Casbah. The cops have been trying to lure him out of the Casbah for ages – and then they learn that he is obsessed with a woman…

Pépé le Moko was filmed in 1937, four years before the emergence of the film noir movement, an American cinematic phenomenon soon appreciated, named, and joined by the French. Pépé le Moko foreshadows noir with its elements of the dark, shadowy underworld setting and, of the course, the protagonist who has a dame for a weak spot. TCM is airing Pépé le Moko on TCM’s addictive Noir Alley, with intro and outro by Eddie Muller.

Mireille Balin and Jean Gabin in PEPE LE MOKO
Jean Gabin in PEPE LE MOKO

THE FATHER: as reality shifts

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Olivia Colman and Anthony Hopkins in THE FATHER

Anthony Hopkins and Olivia Colman deliver heartbreaking performances in The Father, an unsettling exploration of memory loss.

As we meet the elderly Anthony (Hopkins), he is insisting on independence that he can no longer sustain. That makes it hard on his daughter Anne (Colman), who is trying to keep him safe and healthy, despite his resistance. But Anthony is losing his memory and becoming ever more suspicious. Soon, all the characters are experiencing disorentation, even fantasies and hallucinations.

The Father is the directing debut for Florian Zeller, who wrote the original play. Along with the superb acting, the key to The Father is Zeller’s ever shifting of reality as understood by the characters and by the audience. As we think we understand what is going on and then have it unraveled, we, like Anthony, lose confidence in our orientation.

Anthony Hopkins has an Oscar and a long list of great performances (The Silence of the Lambs, The Remains of the Day, Nixon, The Human Stain, The Two Popes), but none is better than this one. His Anthony is a man whose characteristic wilfulness is finally self-defeating; he is a man ever confident of his opinions, but the factual basis for those opinions is eroding. He is a man who firmly believes he is always right, facing a new reality in which he demonstrably is not.

Colman is also superb as the able and devoted daughter who is hurt by her father’s perception that she is betraying him. The rest of cast – Rufus Sewell, Imogen Poots, Mark Gattis and Olivia Williams – is impeccable.

The Father, which I saw while covering the virtual Mill Valley Film Festival in October, will be widely available to stream on Friday. It’s on my list of Best Movies of 2020. It has earned six Oscar nominations, including Best Picture and acting recognition for Hopkins and Colman.

Movies to See Right Now (at home)

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CARVER: world premiere at Cinequest. Photo courtesy of Select Films.

I’ve been absorbed in preparing for Cinequest’s Online Film Festival Cinejoy, which begins next Saturday, March 20. I’ve already screened over a dozen films from the program, and there are some winners in the program.

As usual, I’ll be publishing a festival preview with recommendations and writing about individual films. Here is my coverage of previous festivals: CINEQUEST. Follow me on Twitter for the very latest coverage.

Here’s a wistful note – the last movie that I watched in a movie theater was on March 5, 2020, at last year’s Cinequest, which had to be shut down mid-festival because of COVID. It was The Burnt Orange Heresy, and I sat, not yet masked, in a corner of the 1122-seat California Theatre, distanced about 20 feet away from other festival goers.

ON VIDEO

ON TV

Paul Newman and Elizabeth Taylor in CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF

If you want drama, Tennessee Williams ladles it on thick in 1958’s Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, which Turner Classic Movies presents on March 17.   The movie version of Williams’ steamy Southern Pulitzer Prize-winning play stars Elizabeth Taylor in a slip and Paul Newman with a crutch and a drink.  Taylor and Newman are great, but Burl Ives steals the movie as Big Daddy.  Madeleine Sherwood is outstanding as the weaselly daughter-in-law Ida.

Okay, so they couldn’t explicitly mention homosexuality on screen in 1958, but that doesn’t tke away from the dramatic tension. And, think about this – let’s all forebear the course word bullshit and substitute mendacity.

Movies to See Right Now (at home)

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Frances McDormand in NOMADLAND. Photo courtesy of Searchlight Pictures.

This week, make sure you see the year’s best movie, Nomadland. Plus a highly original first feature for a female writer-director and two strong recommendations on TCM.

ON VIDEO

Nomadland: The fierce authenticity of Frances McDormand’s performance and Chloé Zhao’s genius with nonprofessional actors illuminates this extraordinary film with humanity. It’s the year’s best movie. Streaming on Hulu.

Jumbo: A painfully shy girl, who is embarrassed by every human interaction,falls in love with a not-really-inanimate object. Jumbo is the first feature for writer-director Zoé Wittock, and it’s a helluva super-imaginative calling card.   Ever bouncing between the sweet and the outre, Jumbo worked for me.  Available to stream at Laemmle.

Other current films:

ON TV

KILLER’S KISS

On March 6 and 7, Turner Classic Movies will present one my Overlooked Noir, a young Stanley Kubrick’s Killer’s Kiss; it will be on Noir Alley with an intro and outro by Eddie Muller. It doesn’t take long to realize that Killer’s Kiss is not a typical film noir – there’s Kubrick’s own bracing visual style, an interracial relationship and a comically absurd fight to the death. The cast matched a couple one-hit wonders with the pioneering African-American actor and civil rights activist Frank Silvera.

Harry Dean Stanton in PARIS, TEXAS

And on March 10, TCM will air Harry Dean Stanton’s masterpiece in Wim Wenders’ Paris, Texas. In Paris Texas, Harry Dean plays Travis, a man so traumatized that he has disappeared and is found wandering across the desert and mistaken for a mute.  As he is cared for by his brother (Dean Stockwell), he evolves from feral to erratic to troubled, but with a sense of tenderness and a determination to put things right.  We see Travis as a madman who gains extraordinary lucidity about what wrong in his life and his own responsibility for it.

At the film’s climax, Travis speaks to Jane (Natassja Kinski) through a one-way mirror (she can’t see him).  Spinning what at first seems like parable, Travis explains what happened to him – and to her – and why it happened.  It’s a 20-minute monologue so captivating and touching that it rises to be recognized as one of the very greatest screen performances.

Paris, Texas is on my list of the fifty or so Greatest Movies of All Time.

Natassja Kinski and Harry Dean Stanton in PARIS, TEXAS

Movies to See Right Now (at home)

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Frances McDormand in NOMADLAND. Photo courtesy of Searchlight Pictures.

This week: the best film of 2020, Nomadland, is streaming. Recenty catching up to Nomadland, Sound of Metal, Mayor and Black Bear allowed me to finalize my Best Movies of 2020.

ON VIDEO

Nomadland: The fierce authenticity of Frances McDormand’s performance and Chloé Zhao’s genius with nonprofessional actors illuminates this extraordinary film with humanity. Streaming on Hulu.

Minari: This autobiographical drama of family cohesion is set in the immigrant experience. Streaming from various VOD providers.

Other current films:

ON TV

Lee Remick and Jack Lemmon in DAYS OF WINE AND ROSES

On February 28, Turner Classic Movies airs Days of Wine and Roses, Blake Edwards’ unflinching exploration of alcoholism, featuring great performances by Jack Lemmon and Lee Remick (both nominated for Oscars) and Charles Bickford.

Movies to See Right Now

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Riz Ahmed in SOUND OF SILENCE

Tonight Chloé Zhao’s Nomadland with Frances McDormand can be streamed. I haven’t seen it yet, but, after The Rider, I’m a huge Chloé Zhao fan, so I’ll be watching and writing about it soon. Nomadland is the critical consensus choice as the year’s best film.

Here’s my remembrance of the late cinematographer Giuseppe Rotunno with some of his images and a link to a brilliant video essay.

ON VIDEO

Sound of Metal: This psychological pressure-cooker is super intense ride, but there’s a satisfying payoff. Both Riz Ahmed’s performance and the sound design are Oscar-worthy. Amazon (included with Prime).

Black Bear: Making full use of Aubrey Plaza’s unique gifts, this dark comedy is edge-of-the-seat movie and a cauldron of surprises. Amazon, AppleTV, Vudu, YouTube, Google Play.

Bruce Springsteen’s Letter to You: The reflections of the Boss bring poignancy without melancholy to this musical documentary. We glimpse creative collaboration in the recording studio and get a range of songs, from the heartbreaking to the exhilarating. AppleTV.

More current films:

Chadwick Boseman and Viola Davis in MA RAINEY’S BLACK BOTTOM

Movies to See Right Now (at home)

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Riz Ahmed in SOUND OF METAL

This week, I recommend Sound of Metal (Amazon, included with Prime) and Bruce Springsteen’s Letter to You (Netflix). I’ll be writing about both of them soon. Sound of Metal will be going on my list of Best Movies of 2020.

REMEMBRANCE

Christopher Plummer in KNIVES OUT

Christopher Plummer has died at age 91. I loved him in his Oscar-winning performance in Beginners and in 2019’s Knives Out. One of the great Shakespearean stage actors of his generation, Plummer’s TV and movie career, with its 372 screen credits, eclipses the adjective “prolific”. Plummer, of course is best known for that beloved movie that I despise (as did he for decades), The Sound of Music. Plummer elevated some fine movies in his supporting roles: The Man Who Would Be King, Jesus of Nazareth. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Here’s his NYT obit.

ON VIDEO

ON TV

Catherine Deneuve in THE UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG

On February 15, Turner Classic Movies airs the romantic French musical The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964). Innovative writer-director Jacques Demy had the actors sing all of the dialogue. Umbrellas is also notable for the breakout performance by then 20-year-old Catherine Deneuve; and an epilogue scene at a gas station – one of the great weepers in cinema history. 

Nino Castelnuovo in THE UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG

Movies to See Right Now (at home)

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MAYOR

Don’t overlook the year’s best documentary, Mayor. Mayor is both a dark comedy about local politics and a masterpiece of cinéma vérité that informs us about human foibles and aspirations, all nestled within the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Mayor is one of the Best Movies of 2020, and it’s still streaming on Virtual Cinema, including at Laemmle.

And here’s my tribute to Cloris Leachman and my recommendation to watch her indelible performance in The Last Picture Show on Amazon, AppleTV, Vudu, YouTube or Google Play.

REMEMBRANCE

Actor Hal Holbrook, known for his one-man stage personification of Mark Twain between 1947 and 2005, has died at age 95. Holbrook was responsible for the most gripping moments in a great movie, All the President’s Men, even though he was always in the dark or on the phone, and his face was never seen.

In 1970, Holbrook played a liberal US Senator in The Bold Ones: The Senator, a fictional character that I reacted to in the way so many responded to the Martin Sheen president in West Wing (or Atticus Finch) – why can’t he be real? Holbrook was also excellent as Capt. Lloyd Bucher in the ripped-from-the-headlines TV movie Pueblo, which, alas, I can’t find streaming anywhere. I recommend this excellent NYT obit.

ON VIDEO

Some more current films:

MLK/FBI

ON TV

Gene Wilder and Zero Mostel in THE PRODUCERS

On February 6, Turner Classic Movies presents my choice for the funniest movie all time – Mel Brooks’ 1967 masterpiece The Producers. Zero Mostel plays a human tornado of a crooked Broadway producer, who drags along his bewildered and terrified accountant (Gene Wilder). The brilliant Wilder has never been funnier, and The Producers also features career-best performances by funnymen Dick Shawn and Kenneth Mars. And, of course, there’s the unforgettable musical show stopper Springtime for Hitler. (See this INSTEAD of the 2005 remake.)

On February 11, TCM once again airs the little known and underappreciated A Man Called Adam with Sammy Davis Jr. and the late Cicely Tyson.

Movies to See Right Now (at home)

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Cicely Tyson in A MAN CALLED ADAM

Cicely Tyson, who has just died at age 96, received her first big screen credit in the film I wrote about yesterday. More on that below, along with an engrossing documentary that is one the year’s best films.

ON VIDEO

MAYOR

Mayor: The camera shadows the intrepid mayor of the Palestinian city of Ramallah as he goes about his daily adventures.  Director David Osit, in just his third feature, has created a masterpiece of cinéma vérité that informs us about human foibles and aspirations, nestled within the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. One of the Best Movies of 2020.  Streaming on Virtual Cinema, including at Laemmle.

And some more current films:

Gil Carrillo in NIGHT STALKER: THE HUNT FOR A SERIAL KILLER

ON TV

On January 31, Turner Classic Movies presents the hard-to-find film A Man Called Adam, which I wrote about in depth yesterday.

Sammy Davis Jr. plays Adam, a self-destructive jazz star. Cicely Tyson, in her first credited movie role, is radiant. A Man Called Adam features an unflinching look at race in America, some excellent jazz and early-career glimpses of Ossie Davis, Lola Falana and Morgan Freeman.

Cicely Tyson and Sammy Davis Jr., in A MAN CALLED ADAM

Movies to See Right Now (at home)

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This week: a handful of excellent new documentaries explore American history, true crime and pop music.

I also recommend this wonderful NYT interview with Mads Mikkelsen, who really used to be professional dancer (who knew?) and touches on his exhilarating dance scene in Another Round.

ON VIDEO

MLK/FBI: Sam Pollard, the master of the civil rights documentary (Eyes on the Prize), takes on the FBI’s quest to discredit and even destroy Martin Luther King, Jr. MLK/FBI is gripping history, with much to say about American then and America now. Amazon, AppleTV, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.

Night Stalker: The Hunt for a Serial Killer: This limited series about a roller coaster of a whodunit and a man hunt is elevated by the intoxicating storytelling of a genuinely good guy. Netflix.

The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart: This very well-sourced showbiz doc tells the story of a band and that of a family, especially from the perspective of the affable Barry Gibb. We see some very young kids with what seems like ridiculously audacious ambition becoming an Aussie version of a British Invasion success. As pop music evolves, they keep reinventing themselves until the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack takes them to unsurpassed heights. Then, when the Disco Sucks movement caught fire, the brothers again reinvented themselves as songwriters for other pop, rock, soul and country stars. It’s a bit reverential, but not fatally so. HBO.

Mads Mikkelsen in ANOTHER ROUND

And some more current films:

ON TV

On January 24, Turner Classic Movies will offer the delightful Peter Bogdanovich screwball comedy What’s Up, Doc? The nerdy academic Howard (Ryan O’Neal) and his continually aggrieved fiance Eunice (Madeline Kahn) travel to San Francisco to compete for a career-launching grant. The luggage with Howard’s great discovery (musical rocks) is mixed up with two identical suitcases, one containing valuable jewelry, the other with spy secrets, and soon we have juggling MacGuffins.

That’s all funny enough, but Howard bumps into Judy (Barbra Streisand), the kookiest serial college dropout in America, who determines that she must have him and utterly disrupts his life. Our hero’s ruthless rival for the grant is hilariously played by Kenneth Mars (the Nazi playwright in The Producers). Austin Pendleton is wonderful as the would-be benefactor.

The EXTENDED closing chase scene is among the very funniest in movie history – right up there with the best of Buster Keaton; Streisand and O’Neal lead an ever-growing cavalcade of pursuers through the hills of San Francisco, at one point crashing the Chinese New Year’s Day parade. I love What’s Up, Doc? and own the DVD, and I watch every time I stumble across it on TV. Bogdanovich’s hero Howard Hawks, the master of the screwball comedy, would have been proud.

WHAT’S UP, DOC?