Saturday, January 16, 2021
Falling Down
- Commentary: I almost feel like I have to explain my affection for this movie. Michael Douglas portrays such a tortured, confused character, one with whom I don't identify. And, yet, in my opinion, he plays it brilliantly and the story within which he unfolds this character is believable and thrilling. Initially, I think he was brave to take on this role. On second and third thought, though, Michael Douglas is refreshingly ready to surprise his audience with the range of the characters he takes on. This is one of his more complicated characters. For me, it's a Michael Douglas coup. I am always ready to watch this movie, which is why I have it in my collection.
One last mention: Roger Ebert wrote an interesting article about the rise of Donald Trump (pre-election) that used four different movies as grist for his mill. It's quite interesting. This movie is one of his four. And, BTW, all the movies he mentioned are in my collection and are favorites of mine. Who'd-a-thunk!
Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Michael Douglas William Foster Robert Duvall Sgt. Martin Prendergast Barbara Hershey Beth Trevino Rachel Ticotin Det. Sandra Torres Tuesday Weld Amanda Prendergast Frederic Forrest Nick Lois Smith Foster's Mother Joey Hope Singer Adele Foster-Trevino Michael Paul Chan Mr. Lee Raymond J. Barry Cpt. Bill Yardley D. W. Moffett Det. Lydecker Steve Park Det. Brian
Here is the Wikipedia article on this film.
Release Date: 1993
Directed by Joel Schumacher.
Labels: action2, adventure2, barbara-hershey, drama1, economic, haunting1, lois-smith, michael-douglas, political1, psychological1, robert-duvall, satire1, thriller1, tragedy1, tuesday-weld, violence1
Friday, March 09, 2007
The Bible Collection
- Who's watched: M & G
- Mentions: None
- Commentary: This set of Old Testament Stories, covering:
Abraham [Directed by Joseph Sargent; Release Date: 1993; Wikipedia link]
Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Richard Harris Abraham Barbara Hershey Sarai/Sarah Vittorio Gassman Terah Maximilian Schell Pharaoh Carolina Rosi Hagar Kevin McNally Nahor Gottfried John Eliezer Andrea Prodan Lot
→ richard-harris
David [Directed by Robert Markowitz; Release Date: 1997; Wikipedia link]
Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Nathaniel Parker David Jonathan Pryce Saul Leonard Nimoy Samuel Sheryl Lee Bathsheba Ben Daniels Jonathan Maurice Roëves Joab Franco Nero Nathan Gideon Turner Young David
→ jonathan-pryce
Jacob [Directed by Peter Hall; Release Date: 1994; Wikipedia link]
Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Matthew Modine Jacob Lara Flynn Boyle Rachel Sean Bean Esau Joss Ackland Isaac Juliet Aubrey Leah Irene Papas Rebeccah Giancarlo Giannini Laban Christoph Waltz Morash
→ matthew-modine
Joseph [Directed by Roger Young; Release Date: 1995; Wikipedia link]
Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Ben Kingsley Potiphar Lesley Ann Warren Potiphar's Wife Paul Mercurio Joseph Stefano Dionisi Pharoah Michael Attwell Judah Pete Lee Wilson Gad Kelly Miller Tamar Warren Clarke Ednan
Moses [Directed by Roger Young; Release Date: 1995; Wikipedia link]
Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Ben Kingsley Moses Frank Langella Merneptah Christopher Lee Pharaoh David Suchet Aaron Geraldine McEwan Miriam Enrico Lo Verso Joshua Maurice Roëves Zerack Sônia Braga Zipporah Philip Stone Jethro Anthony Higgins Korah Anton Lesser Eliav Vincent Riotta Midian
Samson & Delilah [Directed by Nicolas Roeg; Release Date: 1996; Wikipedia link]
P.S. The revenge2 movie in this collection is Samson & Delilah, one of the ultimate revenge stories in the Abrahamic bible, in part because it features more than one revenge story. It is as though "God" created Samson to be an instrument of revenge.
Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Eric Thal Samson Jonathan Rhys Meyers Young Samson Elizabeth Hurley Delilah Dennis Hopper Gen. Tariq Diana Rigg Mara Paul Freeman Manoah Michael Gambon King Hanun Ben Becker Prince Sidqa Alessandro Gassman Amrok Debora Caprioglio Rani Sebastian Knapp Yoram Jale Arıkan Naomi
This is the collection that most captures my interest. Mom considers it a continuation of The Bible Series. My favorites are the stories of Joseph, Abraham and Moses, as it is a delight for me to watch Ben Kingsley and Richard Harris in anything. One of the aspects of both this and The Bible Series that I appreciate is the obvious attempt to authentically capture the time periods. I notice, especially, the tight use of space and the fact that they are somewhat less full of eye candy as, say, the productions of The Ten Commandments and One Night with the King.
Labels: barbara-hershey, ben-kingsley, bible-movies1, jonathan-pryce, leonard-nimoy, matthew-modine, moses, religion1, revenge2, richard-harris
Sunday, December 24, 2006
The Last Temptation of Christ
- Who's watched: M & G
- Mentions: *1* *2* *3*
- Commentary: I noticed, in the mentions, one of them states that Mom always thinks she wants to see this movie, then she gets bored with it. This is no longer true. It is now one that she asked after the last time we did a "jesus movie" festival, so, this year, I purchased it.
For me, as well, the more I watch the movie, the more I like it. I tend, now, to ignore the discontinuities, like yet another Nordic Jesus, Harvey Keitel as a red-headed Judas and Barbara Hershey's bee-stung lips. Especially since I've read the book, I tend to appreciate the story more for what it symbolizes rather than what it portrays.
I think what Mom likes about it is the gritty realism and the startling detail, like how the crosses are made. We watched this movie again, recently, right after I ordered it and just after a couple of other Jesus movies. It seems that each movie has its own version of how crucifixion crosses are constructed, which mom noticed this time around, which led to yet another Jesus movie festival.
The only disappointing aspect of this movie was that it promised subtitles and they may exist but they aren't listed in any of the menus so I'm not sure if listing this as a feature was an error or if there is an Easter Egg technique to cuing them. I need to check this out. It does not feature Closed Captioning. I was afraid this would be a problem for Mom but the first time we watched it after receiving it, Mom had no problem with it. This is, at any rate, primarily a visual feast for her, so I guess that's why it doesn't matter. As well, the dialogue is not mumbled or distorted by other sound tracks.
The review linked to the title of this post is an interesting view of the movie from the perspective of how it had been (up to the point of its writing) and may continue to be viewed by the religious community. It seemed to me a relevent discussion to have about it.
Roger Ebert reviewed the movie twice, once as a "regular" movie and once more as a Great Movie.
Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Actor Role Willem Dafoe Jesus Harvey Keitel Judas Iscariot Barbara Hershey Mary Magdalene Harry Dean Stanton Saul/Paul of Tarsus David Bowie Pontius Pilate Verna Bloom Mary, Mother of Jesus Andre Gregory John the Baptist Nehemiah Persoff Rabbi Leo Marks Voice of Satan Tomas Arana Lazarus Victor Argo Peter Martin Scorsese Isaiah
Here's a link to the Wikipedia write-up of the film.
Release Date: 1988
Directed by Martin Scorsese.
Labels: barbara-hershey, bible-movies1, Criterion2, drama8, fantasy3, harry-dean-stanton, harvey-keitel, jesus-dvds, martin-scorsese, nehemiah-persoff, period4, religion1, shared-favorite, spiritual1, willem-dafoe
