60/60 Extra: The Untouchables.

I said last time I was surprised how I liked the first film of this month so much. Let's make that 2 for 2. This one takes place during the Prohibition during the reign of Al Capone (Robert De Niro). Treasury Agent Eliot Ness (Kevin Costner) is out to get him, so he puts together a team including beat cop Jim Malone (Sean Connery), Oscar Wallace (Charles Martin Smith), and a young rookie named George Stone (Andy Garcia). Together they become known as the Untouchables, as they are somehow beyond the law, yet cannot be bribed or turned dirty. Patricia Clarkson also co-stars as Ness' wife.

I was into this movie from the opening credits. Why? The music. I think that had a big reason as to why I enjoyed this movie so much. The score of this film is absolutely fantastic. But that shouldn't be a big surprise. Doing a bit of looking about, the composer is the same man who composed, among many other things, The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly (then again, he also did Salo...). But anyway, I just loved the score from opening to closing.

The film is also very well paced. It's 2 hours long and, in something quite rare lately, I didn't feel that length. In fact, the only reason I would look at the clock was because I watched it at a late hour and needed to see how much time I had left before I had to get to bed. So, yes, it held me captivated, and I never felt it really dragged at all.

The acting was both a strength and a weakness. Sean Connery was fantastic, and he was my favorite character in the film. Dr Niro and Garcia ate up their scenes in their respective ways. Costner was fine, though his character was relatively dull... at least in comparison to the others. But I think he acted it to the best of his abilities.

There's also some good action, though at times it can get a bit cheesy. There's a particular scene with a baby carriage (with a long setup) and a long slow-motion shootout that comes to mind. It's a fun scene in a strange way, but it's also very silly at the same time. I don't hold it as a detriment to the film, though. It's charming in its own way.

And I think that's the best way I can describe the film. Sure, it's violent and gritty at times, but there's a certain charm to it. The music, the characters, the action, the dialogue... it just has a great charm to it all. Most movie reviewers will tell you that positive reviews are much more difficult to write than negative ones, so I'll just leave it at this. It's a fun film, and I recommend it to those who like the crime genre who have not yet seen it.


Royale With Cheese

Thoughts On The (Original) Indiana Jones Trilogy.

As the new movie is coming out soon, Indiana Jones is all over the place. As I don’t own the movies on DVD or the like (as of now), I was fortunate enough to DVR the entire thing from USA Network during their marathon over this past weekend. Well, I just finished watching them for the first time since I was really little, and I believe my opinion is… not warranted… but I’m going to give it anyway. And I’m probably going to get steamrolled for it.

Now, I both can and cannot see why Mr. Jones was and/or is such a big deal. I can see how he might have a cult following, but not a super-huge blockbuster following. Because, honestly, the movies (specifically the first two) were badly made (except for the nifty shadow shots in all three). But before you get on me, please let me clarify.

Starting with Raiders of the Lost Ark, I must say that, at least by today’s standards, the acting is bad, the fights scenes can be good or bad, and the continuity is plain awful. To further explain the latter two bits, there was one scene in particular where Harrison Ford punches at a guy, CLEARLY misses, the guy reacts a bit late, and there’s an over-the-top punching noise. As for the continuity, there’s just too many to pinpoint. However, these things said, I had no problem suspending disbelief, and I thought the movie was really fun. I can totally see what made him an iconic figure, and why people loved the movie. It’s escapist fun.

The second movie, however, is a whole other story. It has similar issues with acting and continuity, but the biggest issues with Temple of Doom are Willie (the main female), the very over-the-top slapstick/physical humor, and the overall difficulty in suspension of disbelief. Willie was pretty annoying, basically screaming or complaining the whole time. And it doesn’t help that, randomly, about halfway in, Indy and Willie suddenly fall in love with each other, even though he couldn’t stand her minutes before. As for the slapstick, it is in the other movies, but I feel it just really didn’t work for this one. And I don’t know much about Indian culture, but while I was watching that dinner scene with the snakes and the monkey brains, etc., even I was like “This is absurd.” And then there were just some things that happen in this movie that I just couldn’t believe, even if it’s meant to be fantasy-like. The coolest thing about the second movie, though? Short Round. That kid was awesome.

So now we’re left with The Last Crusade. Well, really, this one is the best in the series (so far). The only things it had wrong with it were a few continuity errors, but nothing major. There’s slapstick/physical humor in this one, but it works. I think because Sean Connery is usually involved, and that man can pull off anything (“You’re the man now, dawg!”). The stuff at the end with going after the Grail and the three trials is great, and the dude aging super-fast is still creepy, even with the cheesy effects. Not to mention the action was really stepped up in this one. And it starts off with young Indy (R.I.P. River Phoenix) and shows how he came to get his iconic look.

So really, Indiana Jones is cool. He’s human, he has faults, but he’s also a funny badass with a whip. Though, in those respects, he’s also kind of a loser if you really pay attention. He’s only ever been able to keep one item that he’s ever gone after (the golden cross at the beginning of Crusade). The golden skull thing at the beginning of Raiders is stolen. The Ark is taken by the government. The diamond at the beginning of Temple is lost. He drops two of the three stones, and has to give the other one back to the tribe. And then he can’t take the Holy Grail with him at the end of Crusade. Not to mention he can’t seem to keep a woman (one dies, and two are never heard from again, at least until this next one where Karen Allen returns as Marion). But in all seriousness, the Indiana Jones movies (as of right now) are just meant to be escapist fun, and Indy is a great, iconic character played marvelously by Harrison Ford. I just think it’s interesting as to how he grew to the level of popularity that he did. And I’m still stoked for the next one.