DAN AYKROYD & EDDIE MURPHY 'TRADING PLACES' FOR JOHN LANDIS

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6D6VAHhFibRNSnu7iv4_cWDfpRiR6IcFoHPWlRivkknplz8JQmA90ANZhvE1quZm0nteyKSo-uXvRfi4_CibixWr6LCDxCPIQfK6OHGM9BtM4gJQ4sAUCfeljBJSD8e5qxZlvihKHruPxBH-gHRCGXTfPYtw-aWtdQu7IX8AS7KB0RJLvhAmev8Jj-c5E/s2012/Screen%20Shot%202023-11-24%20at%203.18.20%20PM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="988" data-original-width="2012" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6D6VAHhFibRNSnu7iv4_cWDfpRiR6IcFoHPWlRivkknplz8JQmA90ANZhvE1quZm0nteyKSo-uXvRfi4_CibixWr6LCDxCPIQfK6OHGM9BtM4gJQ4sAUCfeljBJSD8e5qxZlvihKHruPxBH-gHRCGXTfPYtw-aWtdQu7IX8AS7KB0RJLvhAmev8Jj-c5E/s16000/Screen%20Shot%202023-11-24%20at%203.18.20%20PM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u> Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy in TRADING PLACES Year: 1983 Rating: ****1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>The comedy classic TRADING PLACES was an extremely important vehicle for both leading actors <i>and</i> director John Landis since Dan Aykroyd, after the death of SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE and three-picture-partner John Belushi, got a chance to pull-off a multi-layer character with Wall Street to Skid Row businessman Louis Winthorpe while the then-current SNL breakthrough Eddie Murphy was paving his own way... <br></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Having succeeded with a semi-dramatic turn in Walter Hill's 48 HRS, his brash, foul-mouthed and fast-talking, street-smart humor now translated into what's possibly Landis's greatest mainstream venture, ironically released sixteen-days before the infamously tragic TWILIGHT ZONE movie...  </p><span></span>

comedy, dan aykroyd, denholm elliott, dom ameche, eddie murphy, jamie lee curtis, john bedford lloyd, john landis, nicholas guest, prostitute, ralph bellamy, wall street

DAN AYKROYD & EDDIE MURPHY 'TRADING PLACES' FOR JOHN LANDIS

Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy in TRADING PLACES Year: 1983 Rating: ****1/2 The comedy classic TRADING PLACES was an extremely important vehi...

DAN AYKROYD WITH HOWARD HESSEMAN IN 'DOCTOR DETROIT'

<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_lGXDbmhA9Gy679DyKILCu2e6gyr2156Z8iYnYctyRk7gsQUSAevr8z8bEWVEF2lv2YtJsr4ZMvEQ2ESegbUgUc5AyQq5NybbbHBQT0diLAEQPCxwqsUFs46s0A7eGmAodCGhNjJMJKkWsJKzteI83NF490uRzDS2ExC5cEoTH1Env9xf39Bb-Ad5_4PI/s1474/Screen%20Shot%202023-11-08%20at%201.54.32%20AM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="668" data-original-width="1474" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_lGXDbmhA9Gy679DyKILCu2e6gyr2156Z8iYnYctyRk7gsQUSAevr8z8bEWVEF2lv2YtJsr4ZMvEQ2ESegbUgUc5AyQq5NybbbHBQT0diLAEQPCxwqsUFs46s0A7eGmAodCGhNjJMJKkWsJKzteI83NF490uRzDS2ExC5cEoTH1Env9xf39Bb-Ad5_4PI/s16000/Screen%20Shot%202023-11-08%20at%201.54.32%20AM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>End Credit Fake Sequel Gag from DOCTOR DETROIT Year: 1982 Rating: ***1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>By 1982, Dan Aykroyd wasn't completely into playing a total goofball since, after four gorgeous limo-riding hookers spot his ultra-nerdy college professor Clifford Skridrow power-walking in an obviously rehearsed/notably overboard fashion, they can't quit noting how cute and even sexy he is, thus marking Dan's first stand-alone leading role following the tragic death of legendary comedy-partner John Belushi... </p><p></p><p>Basically a NUTTY PROFESSOR alter-ego theme, foreshadowing Aykroyd's forgettable THE COUCH TRIP in that an otherwise average dolt wields conveniently miraculous traits of an improvisational performer yet here, Clifford feels idealistically motivated to save those hookers (including future trophy wife Donna Dixon and mouthy Fran Drescher) from encroachment by viciously monopolizing Kate Murtaugh after their own flashy pimp Howard Hesseman, owing tons of money and driving the film's entire first act (while literally being driven by T.K. Carter), heads for the hills... </p><p><span></span></p>

andrew duggan, comedy, dan aykroyd, donna dixon, eighties, fran drescher, george furth, hank salas, howard hesseman, lynda lei, prostitute, t.k. carter

DAN AYKROYD WITH HOWARD HESSEMAN IN 'DOCTOR DETROIT'

End Credit Fake Sequel Gag from DOCTOR DETROIT Year: 1982 Rating: ***1/2 By 1982, Dan Aykroyd wasn't completely into playing a total go...

DIRECTOR JOHN LANDIS EIGHTIES NEO-NOIR OF 'INTO THE NIGHT'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihXZn1mkXMQUQxitmMyQnUJ2LuWCC_xSic-6NL-xDCvODWP7kjEjkMoAIFL-zJaMts9L8rcI7WeYDDW1eEhnYxVIyqA8lOhCI5PY_1ynJoQRTSAE_7utGhAy_wV1dHZBmtRLtqn5covnzRsPbfaUfIF0oCUq-KorSLxoP8TW81LliILKeXvWdNEfj-qraz/s1815/Screen%20Shot%202022-08-12%20at%209.11.54%20PM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="981" data-original-width="1815" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihXZn1mkXMQUQxitmMyQnUJ2LuWCC_xSic-6NL-xDCvODWP7kjEjkMoAIFL-zJaMts9L8rcI7WeYDDW1eEhnYxVIyqA8lOhCI5PY_1ynJoQRTSAE_7utGhAy_wV1dHZBmtRLtqn5covnzRsPbfaUfIF0oCUq-KorSLxoP8TW81LliILKeXvWdNEfj-qraz/s16000/Screen%20Shot%202022-08-12%20at%209.11.54%20PM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Title: INTO THE NIGHT Director: John Landis Year: 1986 Rates: ****1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>The same year Martin Scorsese took a break from edgy dramas to make the humorously frantic Neo Noir AFTER HOURS, John Landis broke from full-comedy for his own active Noir, INTO THE NIGHT, and both have a passive male thirty-something within the lively depths of an enigmatic big city albeit Los Angeles instead of New York...<br></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Meanwhile the most intriguing sequences occur before the hopelessly cheated-on insomniac Jeff Goldblum, as morosely spaced-out aerospace engineer Ed Okin, gets thrust into blind adventure with jobless model Diana played by the incredibly gorgeous Michelle Pfeiffer... a flaky pawn whose connection gets murdered in an airport parking lot, where Ed's possibly awaiting a quick flight that co-worker Dan Aykroyd said would...</p><p><span></span></p>

action, adventure, art evans, clu gulager, dan aykroyd, david bowie, eighties, irene pappas, jeff goldblum, john landis, kathryn harrold, michelle pfeiffer, neo noir, stacey pickren, thriller

DIRECTOR JOHN LANDIS EIGHTIES NEO-NOIR OF 'INTO THE NIGHT'

Title: INTO THE NIGHT Director: John Landis Year: 1986 Rates: ****1/2 The same year Martin Scorsese took a break from edgy dramas to make th...

JOHN BELUSHI & DAN AYKROYD SIGNING OFF WITH 'NEIGHBORS'

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUgdkZTGzp_nxl7J1k-TjC4nTM2ctALoOCaIe1Ci-1enGev7SF27vvLSeBCZLvDvqTe5lcOGQbZxqqfYqCQqPgc8wpEmFSXR-Ec9YyPQ9PnOiOqZswSiImQM_OsMueBcFfq-BNJ8h4cV9IRZJG_agHdDV3MjK9Ks4HYKJMmgCZ9RUu1eeIqute56-dAw/s1004/Screen%20Shot%202022-07-05%20at%203.44.36%20PM.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="657" data-original-width="1004" height="261" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUgdkZTGzp_nxl7J1k-TjC4nTM2ctALoOCaIe1Ci-1enGev7SF27vvLSeBCZLvDvqTe5lcOGQbZxqqfYqCQqPgc8wpEmFSXR-Ec9YyPQ9PnOiOqZswSiImQM_OsMueBcFfq-BNJ8h4cV9IRZJG_agHdDV3MjK9Ks4HYKJMmgCZ9RUu1eeIqute56-dAw/w400-h261/Screen%20Shot%202022-07-05%20at%203.44.36%20PM.jpeg" width="400"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Title: NEIGHBORS Year: 1981 Rating: **1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table>John Belushi's last film is unique, to say the very least. And the least, plot-wise, is what NEIGHBORS is all about: Against type he plays an uptight suburban husband with a bland wife in a big bland house at the end of a rural col de sac... also bland...<br> <br> <div style="text-align: left;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3UbwK-sVjQ7up-54IQgtuKlkDV4smx8JVWRJZwUt6J7p61onsbCUCyxFW79Jg54Cf9rQCiVK2mWFdY-aMzNz8BQJj0UnPXue9SfFip821fjWl6ncvRGnIMwpmjJBat-IQuPv0ZbATRdav/s1600/220px-Neighbors.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="323" data-original-width="220" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3UbwK-sVjQ7up-54IQgtuKlkDV4smx8JVWRJZwUt6J7p61onsbCUCyxFW79Jg54Cf9rQCiVK2mWFdY-aMzNz8BQJj0UnPXue9SfFip821fjWl6ncvRGnIMwpmjJBat-IQuPv0ZbATRdav/s200/220px-Neighbors.jpg" width="135"></a></div> Until wacky Dan Aykroyd and Cathy Moriarty move in next door, making his existence, through the course of one night, a tedious yet, in its own way, strangely addicting experience... An everything-goes-wrong kinda thing — only there's too much bizarre intrusion to make the ordinary domestic setting seem real in the first place. And under the otherwise capable direction of John G. Avildsen (who made edgy, smaller films like JOE and SAVE THE TIGER before his Oscar winning ROCKY), composer Bill Conti's horrendous, cartoon-like score (replacing Tom Scott at the last minute) adds insult to injury: traipsing along with the antics... while sometimes even spoiling them...<br> <br> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNL75P3I0woseS3C5L44f3tF0qNpeka4BW_hhxpFJC_gbNstmOw40qn00SEId3GtRvn_gOSb7buHwR3zSY75i5SOQw1eqRzL5S7i3I8HzE2GL5TnzDCDLZzo6gKb0Z2BM7pJDadgW0XDgU/s1600/Screen+Shot+2018-07-21+at+11.18.23+AM.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="910" data-original-width="1600" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNL75P3I0woseS3C5L44f3tF0qNpeka4BW_hhxpFJC_gbNstmOw40qn00SEId3GtRvn_gOSb7buHwR3zSY75i5SOQw1eqRzL5S7i3I8HzE2GL5TnzDCDLZzo6gKb0Z2BM7pJDadgW0XDgU/w400-h227/Screen+Shot+2018-07-21+at+11.18.23+AM.jpg" width="400"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd NEIGHBORS </u></td></tr> </tbody></table> So there are very few surprises; which includes variations of particular theme songs, like for instance, THE TWILIGHT ZONE (both are weird, get it?) and especially No Place Like Home, and yet, despite the many flaws, it's still very intoxicating, somehow.<br> <br> But while considered a disaster on the Belushi/Aykroyd curve of THE BLUES BROTHERS and their Saturday Night Live greatness, NEIGHBORS actually does more damage to the excellent page-turning novel by Thomas Berger. The weirdness is secondary to the characters and not the other way around, which gets tedious, quick. Then again, it's a really tough book to adapt. Maybe, in this age of binging streaming vehicles, someone can do this justice. And it wouldn't necessarily be a remake.<br> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div>

cathy moriarty, dan aykroyd, dark comedy, eighties, john belushi, john g. avildsen

JOHN BELUSHI & DAN AYKROYD SIGNING OFF WITH 'NEIGHBORS'

Title: NEIGHBORS Year: 1981 Rating: **1/2 John Belushi's last film is unique, to say the very least. And the least, plot-wise, is what N...

JASON REITMAN'S NOSTALGIC 'GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgKa20lcUUu6EHof4LXIK1zHyi-h_99bFGQTHTr5e_ST8ZBMLYhJ2OGwjNNaP_OAYRYBC5cHdHeJq8uyLPp8B_QwDhfbM96A0veqwetSrBLK1XMsKgFYZAWpTBRpa2aSGm8dhs20vxDtwqKQ4J54EWO-WyU4CrQSa8thfpMzZHr7hQveb-bigVqiDAmuw=s1015" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="1015" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgKa20lcUUu6EHof4LXIK1zHyi-h_99bFGQTHTr5e_ST8ZBMLYhJ2OGwjNNaP_OAYRYBC5cHdHeJq8uyLPp8B_QwDhfbM96A0veqwetSrBLK1XMsKgFYZAWpTBRpa2aSGm8dhs20vxDtwqKQ4J54EWO-WyU4CrQSa8thfpMzZHr7hQveb-bigVqiDAmuw=s16000"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Title: GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE Year: 2021 Rating: **1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>The whole "Mary Sue" comparison is dated... a talented youngster with a built-in knowledge of everything who can do no wrong, right off the bat... but in GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE the token super-girl in the late Harold Ramis's late Egon's antisocial granddaughter Phoebe is not only the best character, she's the only one who <i>really</i> seems into the movie that director Jason son-of-Ivan Reitman has attempted to make...</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>A retro-driven Spielbergian adventure set in a modern day yet 1950's-style small town, with one of everything from a school to a diner to a hardware store to a jailhouse to a dusty main street, and Carrie Coon as Egon's abandoned daughter feels extremely <i>not</i> at home... </p><p><span></span></p>

2021, action, adventure, bill murray, carrie coon, comedy, dan aykroyd, ernie hudson, finn wolfhard, franchise, mckenna grace, new, paul rudd, science-fiction, sequel

JASON REITMAN'S NOSTALGIC 'GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE'

Title: GHOSTBUSTERS: AFTERLIFE Year: 2021 Rating: **1/2 The whole "Mary Sue" comparison is dated... a talented youngster with a bu...

CAPTURING THE PANDEMONIUM OF STEVEN SPIELBERG'S '1941'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlbSPe9sVXXftLMWxHNcpQWrGh5TScreklJzpYU-z1sijR7Zc3qUxkbhawj11R5EhAARBD4vn6pOcQcUlleLpnrjugd5CJ1aqcdfCkUna4YpNmpnhy2t-Exju9iQAqJeyFJUgDjFr6lpryrhOziYx5i2y-IQdp97VPKz_FsE6R8ZpHsob_Z4vGXLSwiw/s1936/Screen%20Shot%202023-06-12%20at%209.31.51%20PM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="939" data-original-width="1936" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlbSPe9sVXXftLMWxHNcpQWrGh5TScreklJzpYU-z1sijR7Zc3qUxkbhawj11R5EhAARBD4vn6pOcQcUlleLpnrjugd5CJ1aqcdfCkUna4YpNmpnhy2t-Exju9iQAqJeyFJUgDjFr6lpryrhOziYx5i2y-IQdp97VPKz_FsE6R8ZpHsob_Z4vGXLSwiw/s16000/Screen%20Shot%202023-06-12%20at%209.31.51%20PM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Title: 1941 from 1979 Director: Steven Spielberg Pictured: John Belush, John Landis Rating: ***1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>While considered by many to be Steven Spielberg's worst film... especially compared to DUEL, JAWS and CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND... the 1979 blockbuster 1941 is actually his most important motion picture... </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>For a director whose camera-flowing style REMAINS the prototype for other big budget (including comic book adapted) extravaganzas, 1941... from the warplane dogfight to the climactic rolling Ferris Wheel... moved Spielberg from action-BACKED thrillers to action-PACKED thrills...</p><p><span></span></p>

bobby di cici, comedy, dan aykroyd, dianne kay, ensemble, john belushi, john candy, mickey rourke, murray hamilton, nancy allen, ned beatty, seventies, steven spielberg, treat williams, world war II

CAPTURING THE PANDEMONIUM OF STEVEN SPIELBERG'S '1941'

Title: 1941 from 1979 Director: Steven Spielberg Pictured: John Belush, John Landis Rating: ***1/2 While considered by many to be Steven Spi...

CHEVY CHASE AND DAN AYKROYD SEEK HOPE IN 'SPIES LIKE US'

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7GW_lK2gHzA-YpbycOOZdhsDfA2u7Q1JJtYqb-Ck73c3pCy3H6HDNiXsPjjkTxaZMaY1etzEYzXdjoknoCBzEIzGFS7mXf1_TlXm10v_XhE2CUVFEl8WwdpZbReCv15eicI69Y66Q_dVY/s1092/Screen+Shot+2021-08-30+at+12.13.11+AM.jpeg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="789" data-original-width="1092" height="289" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7GW_lK2gHzA-YpbycOOZdhsDfA2u7Q1JJtYqb-Ck73c3pCy3H6HDNiXsPjjkTxaZMaY1etzEYzXdjoknoCBzEIzGFS7mXf1_TlXm10v_XhE2CUVFEl8WwdpZbReCv15eicI69Y66Q_dVY/w400-h289/Screen+Shot+2021-08-30+at+12.13.11+AM.jpeg" width="400"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Title: Spies Like Us Year: 1986 Rating: ***</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Spouting technical jargon with a computer-like brain, Dan Aykroyd could have made the perfect <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2013/08/ghostbusters.html">GHOSTBUSTERS</a> type straight man... so it's strange John Landis made him equally buffoonish as Chevy Chase within the jovial spirit of those Hope/Crosby "Road" movies of yesteryear's yesteryear: Making SPIES  LIKE US an attempt to get young viewers into the frolicking comic adventure the director (and his generation) grew up on... </p><p>The funniest scenes occur during the training camp with Bernie Casey as a tough but likeable Sgt. Hulka type while square-jawed Steve Forrest and Pentagon partner Tom Hatten feel part of a bonafide Russian vs America Cold War thriller (Steve's brother <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2016/07/iCURTAIN.html">Dana Andrews</a> starred in one of the first), sending our reluctant/oblivious expendables to randomly traipse from the Arab desert to<i> </i>snowy missile-hiding Russia. And along this ROAD are are some fun obstacles and decent one-liners ("What's a Dickfer?" "To pee with").... albeit dialogue that could've been uttered by any comedic actor. For unlike Landis/Aykroyd's classic BLUES BROTHERS and TRADING PLACES, the talent isn't deliberately retrofitted to the surroundings. Instead, our two SNL vets seem like guest stars in someone else's picture, and, this being a deliberate homage, perhaps that was the nostalgic director's intention all along. <br></p><p><span></span></p>

action, adventure, bob hope, bruce davison, chevy chase, comedy, dan aykroyd, eighties, james daughton, john landis, nuclear, political, ray harryhausen, road movie, team-up, terry gilliam, tom hatten

CHEVY CHASE AND DAN AYKROYD SEEK HOPE IN 'SPIES LIKE US'

Title: Spies Like Us Year: 1986 Rating: *** Spouting technical jargon with a computer-like brain, Dan Aykroyd could have made the perfect ...

A SEMI NOSTALGIC REVIEW OF GHOSTBUSTERS II

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhokT0GwtKJAVKelKFoKiXgQ3ee8pwEHw4JP37U1rm6ZxQRvPiOMjUyFZgNGydQ7Rrl93j_qggFVGtIj4XVt2k-XgotEM0yjDNIJv-jSNRdEZK3wfW9nBB2nfNFLQmo47agNNZ-WyUD_GY/s1600/Screen+Shot+2016-07-15+at+4.37.00+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="353" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhokT0GwtKJAVKelKFoKiXgQ3ee8pwEHw4JP37U1rm6ZxQRvPiOMjUyFZgNGydQ7Rrl93j_qggFVGtIj4XVt2k-XgotEM0yjDNIJv-jSNRdEZK3wfW9nBB2nfNFLQmo47agNNZ-WyUD_GY/s400/Screen+Shot+2016-07-15+at+4.37.00+PM.png" width="400"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Working On The Old Familiar Sign</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> "One day," says Ernie Hudson's fourth Ghostbuster, Winston, in GHOSTBUSTERS 2, "these kids," referring to a party where he and Ray Stanz, played by film creator Dan Aykroyd, are desperately performing for. "They won't even know who we are!"<br> <br> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> That's true and untrue. Oh we remember. And how. Especially with the female reboot a month away from hitting theaters. But it's the classic original, a big budget phenom that acquired everlasting cult status because, like JAWS or STAR WARS, it could have easily <i>not </i>worked – like this sequel, for instance: As most know, Breaking the Fourth Wall refers to a character looking into the camera (the audience perspective of any setting is that of the phantom structure's side we don't see) or simply smiling or winking. In this case, it's shattered audibly as the Ray Parker Jr. hit song blares from a "Ghetto Blaster" while those party kids, instead of yelling "Ghostbusters" following the song's buildup, "Who You Gonna Call?", scream repeatedly, "He-Man! He-Man!"<br>

bill murray, dan aykroyd, eighties

A SEMI NOSTALGIC REVIEW OF GHOSTBUSTERS II

Working On The Old Familiar Sign "One day," says Ernie Hudson's fourth Ghostbuster, Winston, in GHOSTBUSTERS 2, "thes...

THE TIMELESS IMPRESSION OF GHOSTBUSTERS

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9k9hSPcS4Za5Exsm8mm35FgTaOOR-ZnaB2AXtOk7zKry1EFABnC87MmJapqjt5c-yYO2-dGeTG0wcFJIL3Y6l6jmdET27edkJSmHREBo73ZI3eM3gz5aQfVo4FUDFzduEX-TGvPhiiUQ/s1600/Screen+Shot+2016-07-20+at+2.32.56+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="338" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9k9hSPcS4Za5Exsm8mm35FgTaOOR-ZnaB2AXtOk7zKry1EFABnC87MmJapqjt5c-yYO2-dGeTG0wcFJIL3Y6l6jmdET27edkJSmHREBo73ZI3eM3gz5aQfVo4FUDFzduEX-TGvPhiiUQ/s400/Screen+Shot+2016-07-20+at+2.32.56+AM.png" width="400"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>THE TIMELESS ORIGINAL CIRCA 1984</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> John Winger, Bill Murray’s lovable loser in the boot camp comedy STRIPES, the second of three collaborations with director Ivan Reitman beginning with MEATBALLS, had his very own theme song: a lazy piano-bar riff, whose likeness can be heard in GHOSTBUSTERS throughout Elmer Bernstein’s immense score, but only when Murray’s sarcastic Peter Venkman flirts with Signourney Weaver or clashes jovially with Dan Aykroyd's rambling Dr. Raymond Stanz, who Venkman describes as “the heart of the Ghostbusters.”And that would make Harold Ramis's Egon the lungs (or as Ramis and Reitman described him, the brains). Murray’s reluctant sidekick in STRIPES and the director of CADDYSHACK and GROUNDHOG DAY, Ramis is an essential ingredient to make the gadgets and demonic backstory completely believable and, as a team-up, one of the great things about GHOSTBUSTERS is seeing Murray play off of two science-minded serious guys. Aykroyd and Ramis wrote the film and obviously knew Murray had the stuff to steal scenes. Although the lead role was originally intended for Aykroyd’s cinema partner, the late John Belushi: who inspired the iconic green ghost, Slimer.<br>

annie potts, bill murray, comedy, dan aykroyd, eighties, franchise, harold ramis, ivan reitman, rick moranis, science-fiction, william atherton

THE TIMELESS IMPRESSION OF GHOSTBUSTERS

THE TIMELESS ORIGINAL CIRCA 1984 John Winger, Bill Murray’s lovable loser in the boot camp comedy STRIPES, the second of three collabora...

MICHAEL DOUGLAS & MATT DAMON GO 'BEHIND THE CANDELABRA'

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlV86w0T4aSSbRLTXx_1i11PPjRpMotVSu2fYKHCaC_ZgZH4MwAo7LfUovwbPwa3jEF8Z4ELTjCw8WSR6lSFs7HhBR-OVtMX8lxfzB1PAM-udvhUCzKtYgf0RU8hYdTY3xWnXIi3VQ08T3/s1600/1.jpeg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="504" data-original-width="616" height="326" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlV86w0T4aSSbRLTXx_1i11PPjRpMotVSu2fYKHCaC_ZgZH4MwAo7LfUovwbPwa3jEF8Z4ELTjCw8WSR6lSFs7HhBR-OVtMX8lxfzB1PAM-udvhUCzKtYgf0RU8hYdTY3xWnXIi3VQ08T3/s400/1.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Michael Douglas and Matt Damon in Behind The Candelabra 2013</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> At one point, Michael Douglas, after enough time channeling the ultra-effeminate, Las Vegas piano playing virtuoso, Liberace, gets a surge of Alpha Male via Gordon Gekko from WALL STREET when Matt Damon, as the glittery star's boyfriend for around five years, Scott Thorson, defends himself in a Charlie Sheen/Bud Fox put-upon whine when their relationship is compared to a classic sit-com...<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMrfDJ2Z0Dnpd3EVK3YXDyMoHNKi3VmDSDnWl11j7pqi8YjhYMCwykF9333fddh3biXxcpxUcE9qfhgPdkWb0DIk4_nzvWiO_f5mholbGENvhXigQYjHrUGvuByftTuPlwUlgk185a0TIw/s1600/Screen+Shot+2018-12-16+at+6.48.38+PM.jpeg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1298" data-original-width="440" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMrfDJ2Z0Dnpd3EVK3YXDyMoHNKi3VmDSDnWl11j7pqi8YjhYMCwykF9333fddh3biXxcpxUcE9qfhgPdkWb0DIk4_nzvWiO_f5mholbGENvhXigQYjHrUGvuByftTuPlwUlgk185a0TIw/s400/Screen+Shot+2018-12-16+at+6.48.38+PM.jpeg" width="135" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Caught in Lib's Web</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> "Why am I the 'Lucy'?" Scott complains. "Because," says Douglas's Liberace with blunt finality, "I've got the Nightclub Act!" And Michael doesn't hold back in Steven Soderbergh's HBO original BEHIND THE CANDELABRA, centering on Liberace just as he's nearing has-been status: but only outside the perpetual gleam of Las Vegas, where he reigns with enough glitter and gold to make Fort Knox blush... <br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0vigtHS2IeGiIvBbq4Cr9fMTnjMp_gQ0JfCgaea5s5fTmW7XpOS4RHc2y0ZPdPBoIG-YBRVZoD58xtvzycDJyKx9HVHGxBWJDeQfk61vmmp147DjstNMfFHw9_oqtIfu8RB3oYdv4hZNj/s1600/Screen+Shot+2018-12-16+at+7.11.59+PM.jpeg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1360" data-original-width="1370" height="317" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0vigtHS2IeGiIvBbq4Cr9fMTnjMp_gQ0JfCgaea5s5fTmW7XpOS4RHc2y0ZPdPBoIG-YBRVZoD58xtvzycDJyKx9HVHGxBWJDeQfk61vmmp147DjstNMfFHw9_oqtIfu8RB3oYdv4hZNj/s320/Screen+Shot+2018-12-16+at+7.11.59+PM.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Dan Aykroyd's Seymour Heller's ongoing damage control</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> With a stubborn and blunt Jewish agent Seymour Heller (Dan Aykroyd resembling Andy Kaufman's bogus lounge singer Tony Clifton) making him the hardest-working act in Sin City, we're able to experience not only what's BEHIND all the sparkle, but random performances on stage to make our centerpiece seem talented enough to base a movie on... Which of course he was, but as an actor persuading a movie or TV audience, imitating a musician (one of the best in the world) isn't always easy, or realistic... And according to both Thorson and Liberace's buddy (Scott Bakula playing a sort of White Rabbit character that doesn't mean much beyond introducing the couple), Mr. Entertainment's audience supposedly had no idea he was a homosexual, and, well, let's be honest here: most people <i>must have</i> known, deep down, but just didn't dwell on it: enjoying his immense talent in a sort of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Care" before "coming out" meant (and still means) more than having the talent to make it matter in the first place: gay first, celebrity second seems to be the new politically-correct standard, but at one time, from the likes of Montgomery Clift to Paul Lynde, talent meant everything.<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS71smQu2eXppHBnDkd6BLO_wARzRsSiLFxrUbWgDHMuv1hyphenhyphene5RMjV3K8Z1V_lyVKds5bdknTymPn8brisoCa4dl61_Rp8smZZBffPPeFwO9jlSU7p9dGyviER6ediA4EROkigLFJqFTcY/s1600/Screen+Shot+2018-12-16+at+6.43.02+PM.jpeg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1287" data-original-width="453" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS71smQu2eXppHBnDkd6BLO_wARzRsSiLFxrUbWgDHMuv1hyphenhyphene5RMjV3K8Z1V_lyVKds5bdknTymPn8brisoCa4dl61_Rp8smZZBffPPeFwO9jlSU7p9dGyviER6ediA4EROkigLFJqFTcY/s400/Screen+Shot+2018-12-16+at+6.43.02+PM.jpeg" width="140" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Soakin' in Libbie's Lair</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Beyond his big secret, Liberace's life was a non-stop work ethic that, according to him, didn't derive from his mother, played by an accented Debbie Reynolds in a tour de force fashion... and taking this reviewer a few seconds to realize it's her... or his long dead, deadbeat musician father... But his source was from God Himself... A proud Catholic! <br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw_Xs57HzQFu7nSqQIW0CAFmYjIrjanpInaC6wA6WjmIM83R7rVsCqt1eqCYhL75BVdzzxPtgPs4WupuR2AGnaDx0cEH1ogZFdgjk72X_86ID7_1R2Eg4v7UZaUC8VenTtFU-WwEW1a7x6/s1600/Screen+Shot+2016-12-28+at+6.24.47+PM.png" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw_Xs57HzQFu7nSqQIW0CAFmYjIrjanpInaC6wA6WjmIM83R7rVsCqt1eqCYhL75BVdzzxPtgPs4WupuR2AGnaDx0cEH1ogZFdgjk72X_86ID7_1R2Eg4v7UZaUC8VenTtFU-WwEW1a7x6/s320/Screen+Shot+2016-12-28+at+6.24.47+PM.png" width="301" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Debbie Reynolds vanishes in the role as Lee's mother</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> And perhaps even a Republican as, in one extremely ironic scene, as the outspoken liberal Damon is seen in the foreground, we see and hear Liberace complaining about how Jane Fonda and Ed Asner put politics above being entertainers... And there's a fine line with what Liberace was hiding from the press to what he was open about in the presence of hired help within the multi-million dollar mansion, and was no stranger to secret spots around Vegas where gay sex wasn't being practiced in the safest manner. Yet most of the film occurs during the pre-AIDS era, following the loose disco decade and rolling into the "Conservative 1980's" (which, with the number of raunchy sex comedies, and tons of movies and music videos against President Reagan, it really wasn't... at least not the media) wherein a licorice curving font, beginning in 1977, displays sporadic years, and 1985 flashes on the screen right after a magazine ad about a dying Rock Hudson is shown...<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtbOyv6fY0wZmU_5KhOUCpxwKNNZq_uOjArSVPIlspHkeomg-B8JGqlwyBbpHRLtrvdjjdplJlMRVOszTZxzqXANw3_qIgAp8gsM_KhJ55NylYF85SUeqn7T8z6325JRM0tGCBouXMrDk9/s1600/Screen+Shot+2018-12-16+at+6.36.00+PM.jpeg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1369" data-original-width="749" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtbOyv6fY0wZmU_5KhOUCpxwKNNZq_uOjArSVPIlspHkeomg-B8JGqlwyBbpHRLtrvdjjdplJlMRVOszTZxzqXANw3_qIgAp8gsM_KhJ55NylYF85SUeqn7T8z6325JRM0tGCBouXMrDk9/s400/Screen+Shot+2018-12-16+at+6.36.00+PM.jpeg" width="217" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Damon's glam rockstar look</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> At this point, after the media-blitzed breakup, it's pretty much a downhill Disease of the Week that does, in fact, resemble a TV movie (let's call it an After-College Special)... despite cable being the new cinema nowadays... Thus the most risque scenes occur right before their love story becomes truly bizarre and morbid... Liberace passively ordering Thorson to go under the knife to surgically resemble his, Liberace's, younger self, which is the epitome of fact being stranger than fiction. Although, Damon still looks pretty much the same: like Matt Damon. But some of the best use of computerized-cleansing occurs in the beginning, as the still semi lucrative box-office actor is made to look even younger than when his fame ignited in GOOD WILL HUNTING...<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOtTFzqQaTBq7NP1f-mul5CObofQ9-LPMUykhye79N5jqmxRNcTg3DCUDqXScKFlWrnVkauTtiylRm5adiUBv9AW07Xh8FAM6lB3uoRTXtI9WQ4RWaeT5otTuXvxe2QQbIUEyC2O_SUTI/s1600/4.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOtTFzqQaTBq7NP1f-mul5CObofQ9-LPMUykhye79N5jqmxRNcTg3DCUDqXScKFlWrnVkauTtiylRm5adiUBv9AW07Xh8FAM6lB3uoRTXtI9WQ4RWaeT5otTuXvxe2QQbIUEyC2O_SUTI/s320/4.jpg" width="175" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>The bad doctor</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> Eventually, Scott turns into a boy-toy primadonna, and it's fun seeing Liberace's futzy partners and/or young stud "assistants" being literally shoved out the door (with a check handed to them by Aykroyd's Heller)... And so, when Scott eventually realizes he could be next on the list, that Disease melodrama becomes a sort of mundane Anti-Drug programmer... yet more realistic and intense than most. In one scene, Thorson and Nicky Katt's coke/speed dealing Mr. Y are sitting around, moaning to themselves while rocking back and forth: which is actually what intense "tweeking" really looks like...<br /> <br /> Although originally, Thorson didn't need a secret source when scene-stealing Rob Lowe, playing plastic surgeon Dr. Jack Startz (resembling a cross between Michael Jackson and something out of THE DARK CRYSTAL... which is what Jackson resembled as well), follows Liberace's orders to not only alter the aging kid's mug, but to make him skinny again with an endless prescription of speed pills leading to Thorson's eventual drug-riddled downfall, which is probably why he wrote the book that inspired this movie in the first place: he didn't get much of a payoff since, during the 1980's, exposing a beloved cash cow (especially in Vegas) wasn't the wisest choice. Plus he had to admit that Liberace wasn't only his lover, but an adopted father. Strange days indeed!<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkdQXezCkBk7_tpGRooWZALnRVsKAoyUJ36UJHn8baK3XSSLu2u-ZJoi2PfeCyMJmdgGK_fiCcfNg-Dn5HdX0aD_-aAWRShElwZbkoK1FhV2rlIJwLyLLAAgpHSc4O1gfkv5qOE_VMRfbU/s1600/Screen+Shot+2018-12-16+at+7.06.33+PM.jpeg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1367" data-original-width="1222" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkdQXezCkBk7_tpGRooWZALnRVsKAoyUJ36UJHn8baK3XSSLu2u-ZJoi2PfeCyMJmdgGK_fiCcfNg-Dn5HdX0aD_-aAWRShElwZbkoK1FhV2rlIJwLyLLAAgpHSc4O1gfkv5qOE_VMRfbU/s400/Screen+Shot+2018-12-16+at+7.06.33+PM.jpeg" width="357" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Scott gets a Rolls Royce for Christmas BTC RATES: ****</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> Thorson's denial of his own sexuality is as intriguing as Liberace's stubborn drive to remain not only straight in the eyes of his die-hard old-time fans, but to keep any rumor out of the papers, ultimately Thorson's ace in the hole that, like everything else, unfolds...<br /> <br /> And with a BOOGIE NIGHTS vibe propelling two straight actors not exactly taking a risk in a politically-correct era, but truly stretching beyond their usual mainstream characteristics, on cable providing more than a glimpse into where motion pictures won't go...<br /> <br /> The only really noticeable, distracting downside is that, at times, this BEHIND <i>feels</i> a bit too much like Thorson's own one-sided propaganda piece. For example, on their first "date" as he's looking bashful and shocked, reluctant, vulnerable and apprehensive sitting in Liberace's hot tub (did he really not know what would happen next after bathing naked with the Gayest man on Earth?). For the most part, Thorson's portrayed as an oblivious babe-in-the-woods under the predatory eyes of the famous pianist, who becomes somewhat infamous here, at times bordering on DADDY DEAREST... and he's interesting too. Or is that Douglas's doing? Sometimes it's tough to tell good from bad, right from wrong, real from fake, what or who's going or has already gone too far. And yet, CANDELABRA is a ultra-entertaining biopic either way. Let's the viewer be the judge, but not without the jury being swayed. 

2013, biopic, cable, dan aykroyd, drugs, matt damon, melodrama, michael douglas, music, scott bakula

MICHAEL DOUGLAS & MATT DAMON GO 'BEHIND THE CANDELABRA'

Michael Douglas and Matt Damon in Behind The Candelabra 2013 At one point, Michael Douglas, after enough time channeling the ultra-effem...

REMASTERED GREEN OF GHOSTBUSTERS

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNuhOEpBtP4XZ1shxA4FHvIS9_W1dPez3MRROjcf50VVisCPSSKfcr-6MJ1JV1ZFZ1YNkLqPtJz8pgw7A8D7Q2BbpGB_i8mkbL2r9X6a6l6a2bnCCsYNOn3TPpJqawzrc644eLdYN1QLA/s1600/ghostbusters1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNuhOEpBtP4XZ1shxA4FHvIS9_W1dPez3MRROjcf50VVisCPSSKfcr-6MJ1JV1ZFZ1YNkLqPtJz8pgw7A8D7Q2BbpGB_i8mkbL2r9X6a6l6a2bnCCsYNOn3TPpJqawzrc644eLdYN1QLA/s1600/ghostbusters1.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ghosting in theaters again</td></tr> </tbody></table> Insanity is described as doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. So then, watching the same movie over and over and expecting the same results would be half-crazy… And this week, GHOSTBUSTERS has reentered theaters for the 30th Anniversary, and it looks better than ever... Even after, so far, seven viewings in seven nights by yours truly... <br /> <br /> What really stands out in the remastered digitization is the color green. Not just Slimer, the rambunctious ghost based on John Belushi, who provides the GB’s their first chore, but things as simple as Dan Aykroyd’s collared shirt in the beginning, and tinges of Bill Murray’s dress clothes on the first day they set up office... <br /> <br /> Mind you, since this was 1984, Green refers to the color, not the Environment. Strange that this movie’s villain is, of all things, a persistent stiff-suit working for the EPA. Dickless would be extremely well hung in today’s PC climate. That being said, as the lead weenie herein, character-actor William Atherton ruled in a Ted Knight-like CADDYSHACK unapologetic jerk-bully fashion. And while his Walter Peck gets drenched in melted marshmallow, a year later, Mr. Atherton would practically drown in REAL SCIENCE popcorn. <br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNLOAhS8az6t75Ji_yHlS0S92TVjhKKB0ii30ZWVGsw3mp9pYx1AjXELi3hiFcXGBAndUkyYC-T_3dnLITudgL6srAB8yh9ItgQwFy3f0ZLTPdd7K3yFEg4RXuoBRe2lVE4QlYm9p1wuM/s1600/4.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNLOAhS8az6t75Ji_yHlS0S92TVjhKKB0ii30ZWVGsw3mp9pYx1AjXELi3hiFcXGBAndUkyYC-T_3dnLITudgL6srAB8yh9ItgQwFy3f0ZLTPdd7K3yFEg4RXuoBRe2lVE4QlYm9p1wuM/s1600/4.jpg" width="199" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bill Murray as Dr. Peter Venkman</td></tr> </tbody></table> So there it is... of all the gorgeous remastering accomplished for GHOSTBUSTERS, soon to be transferred onto an official Blu Ray release, the color green is the most prominent... even moreso in clothing than building exterior and interior... <br /> <br /> Actually, <i>everythin</i>g looks really incredible... And best yet, no CGI was added... What was great then looks even better now...<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEJzk3g5UwTYxNeZUH7LkQjk8ebSTCvTWccE_jKZF0J1mfghX6kyonAQMHxRpo3AWzGx0vYP7W7KILPb1Dj20H1naPd3qcUEdCz5GuRYRZN2M9NLO4SoK32fkC-hkHeSAwZilAZ0PRrSg/s1600/3.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEJzk3g5UwTYxNeZUH7LkQjk8ebSTCvTWccE_jKZF0J1mfghX6kyonAQMHxRpo3AWzGx0vYP7W7KILPb1Dj20H1naPd3qcUEdCz5GuRYRZN2M9NLO4SoK32fkC-hkHeSAwZilAZ0PRrSg/s1600/3.jpg" width="188" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dan Aykroyd as Dr. Ray Stantz</td></tr> </tbody></table> So if you’re reading this, watch GHOSTBUSTERS the way it was intended: a thoroughly amazing film that somewhat derailed a legitimate cult following because of the initial box office success, the Top 10 title track (Keith Forsey's groovy instrumental break during the Revelations scene, and Elmer Berstein's dramatic score are much cooler than the Ray Parker Jr song) and the fact Bill and Dan were already popular comic actors... <br /> <br /> But cult cinema is based on risk – and a movie about hunting ghosts resulting in a standoff against a giant Marshmallow Man… if that ain't a gamble, nothing is. The fact GHOSBUSTERS turned out so perfect makes it seem predestined for greatness. And yet, there are countless avenues wherein things could have gone the other way (like the sequel)...<br /> <br /> Writers Aykroyd and the late Harold Ramis created a world so vibrantly bizarre that it takes Bill Murray’s constant sarcasm to bring things down to Earth. This combination works to counterbalance the farfetched yet completely involving premise, providing some of the funniest one-liners in history... And not to forget the sexy and smart Sigourney Weaver, who grounds Murray as he grounds the science while ultimate credit's due to Ivan Reitman, whose creative direction gives this big budget extravaganza the kind of subtle nuances that makes repeated viewings worthwhile...<br /> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAt6XsKKdBprMwGzTld4BR3WpWsSRSJ9Rt2qOlZN1H-izYYoxJJoxaxQVIQdYugZgW3gmTdwUeem9XYCHWvN4EMOPpaZxfGvFGycLID6CT_P0NkffjjXa_j1FCfl_ZR004X9JopYwc3f0/s1600/55.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="254" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAt6XsKKdBprMwGzTld4BR3WpWsSRSJ9Rt2qOlZN1H-izYYoxJJoxaxQVIQdYugZgW3gmTdwUeem9XYCHWvN4EMOPpaZxfGvFGycLID6CT_P0NkffjjXa_j1FCfl_ZR004X9JopYwc3f0/s1600/55.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">William Atherton nails the token jerk as Walter Peck</td></tr> </tbody></table> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrOJwUcVMBaSizIYWFFebl5Qu6E2cMn3ezlbC4E5tyUkByvsnLg-v3Mnk0RAKfAJrt5K5k7QYPvytYycc2FBdjuc6c72Sl8aR-_4HcwffaPyQ4vPs-Kpij7UtIZJg-Manp7tRqh49PyHw/s1600/title01_220934496.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrOJwUcVMBaSizIYWFFebl5Qu6E2cMn3ezlbC4E5tyUkByvsnLg-v3Mnk0RAKfAJrt5K5k7QYPvytYycc2FBdjuc6c72Sl8aR-_4HcwffaPyQ4vPs-Kpij7UtIZJg-Manp7tRqh49PyHw/s1600/title01_220934496.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The late Harold Ramis as Dr. Egon Spengler... He collects spores, molds, and fungus...</td></tr> </tbody></table> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzvLsqetsqOPTAJ273flHViW4Oi6p8VX2-ZakWgTXEi2Nzg0jndWW6gqv86TKNwZjzP3RVgAgb3IaPYnscXbfus2MTl2bhHvlg2-BobJOJLr7O2YddVBttAPtHOma6T2ClfOKPvO8rWBo/s1600/44.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzvLsqetsqOPTAJ273flHViW4Oi6p8VX2-ZakWgTXEi2Nzg0jndWW6gqv86TKNwZjzP3RVgAgb3IaPYnscXbfus2MTl2bhHvlg2-BobJOJLr7O2YddVBttAPtHOma6T2ClfOKPvO8rWBo/s1600/44.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Creator Dan Aykroyd wrote a super long script years before GHOSTBUSTERS got green-lit</td></tr> </tbody></table> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNlfUCRP-W3QbP9BTPcKkaCj1ca5-ll4xjrc-fXt1xqWwhcAJpu0A5WZlTM5mEif69kxsSJ8BW-9yR7OXgOnK8Rh-BHr-z6XXQvy87K5_ttXaySBhvJlznBVLtXAHo7riSfS78wPYE2CQ/s1600/66.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNlfUCRP-W3QbP9BTPcKkaCj1ca5-ll4xjrc-fXt1xqWwhcAJpu0A5WZlTM5mEif69kxsSJ8BW-9yR7OXgOnK8Rh-BHr-z6XXQvy87K5_ttXaySBhvJlznBVLtXAHo7riSfS78wPYE2CQ/s1600/66.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spook Central Matte Painting wide shot, right before the final standoff...</td></tr> </tbody></table> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXg893-cgyS8X0OeNXCpNt36hOqemmc0MmE6ThcsqSMjuJcqIMkMUZiVrLePQqefHVsUSK1TNkWAoViFpLS13uHcaDX1RDQug4L8xcshL2_6BfNBPE_gBti4GtiVw-zL6mPHg2UyMqkfs/s1600/0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXg893-cgyS8X0OeNXCpNt36hOqemmc0MmE6ThcsqSMjuJcqIMkMUZiVrLePQqefHVsUSK1TNkWAoViFpLS13uHcaDX1RDQug4L8xcshL2_6BfNBPE_gBti4GtiVw-zL6mPHg2UyMqkfs/s1600/0.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Signourney Weaver watches the GHOSTBUSTERS make the news</td></tr> </tbody></table> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh50xYgSnPbgpVZxOdJqwEnGDC0wkfRvk6XDEYoR4o8wQ84iLwWcKudldgCpDyx57XMFXg4fpoJ0JI6_8RnYaJX9ZpRqp-YqXGzc15vPftcgQ-knn2pU-f7b_M1WMrVpv2aW7TLNaZ-WFM/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="278" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh50xYgSnPbgpVZxOdJqwEnGDC0wkfRvk6XDEYoR4o8wQ84iLwWcKudldgCpDyx57XMFXg4fpoJ0JI6_8RnYaJX9ZpRqp-YqXGzc15vPftcgQ-knn2pU-f7b_M1WMrVpv2aW7TLNaZ-WFM/s1600/1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Newscaster and a throwback hippie who walks onto the scene</td></tr> </tbody></table> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmNg1D3rYPg9nReDmlEzVRtrnfWCbf99Fhud6By921p0k8X-okFF5RebH4WTezE0pK5cxD04LoG6BtZZPuIuhjZvNsV99MWfO2QG46RCKXljQuXypxLpA6AyxHysNI3JsUM_VJkA0PTSk/s1600/2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmNg1D3rYPg9nReDmlEzVRtrnfWCbf99Fhud6By921p0k8X-okFF5RebH4WTezE0pK5cxD04LoG6BtZZPuIuhjZvNsV99MWfO2QG46RCKXljQuXypxLpA6AyxHysNI3JsUM_VJkA0PTSk/s1600/2.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The GHOSTBUSTERS make USA TODAY headlines as Egon gets dressed</td></tr> </tbody></table> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiirtcjr69IaRppPgbO5aoB9YhyphenhyphenyNc27xQVivzviYGiA8nR2Zgskgke3FidUdRbP66JcIMK1yieVZ7kF5cun2506yvaOjgMeTgo53TeiiRJXOP_Ma7ClsuXipAen3C-VpiM93O9svd0884/s1600/3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiirtcjr69IaRppPgbO5aoB9YhyphenhyphenyNc27xQVivzviYGiA8nR2Zgskgke3FidUdRbP66JcIMK1yieVZ7kF5cun2506yvaOjgMeTgo53TeiiRJXOP_Ma7ClsuXipAen3C-VpiM93O9svd0884/s1600/3.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">NEW YORK POST covers the GHOSTBUSTERS </td></tr> </tbody></table> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_EWCb2gYBDy0HBVlhVEmf5D7mohm7mqsepYMETYJCK7ZjPcc_AmiGdxqiLzrZ3Wt4NXMDyd2NHd3FNKGKyNmhW_fTWf-jS9aUxgPeyO97lYRqTseEGLzd5ks5ljRyrHFFkaPi1seKH9Q/s1600/4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_EWCb2gYBDy0HBVlhVEmf5D7mohm7mqsepYMETYJCK7ZjPcc_AmiGdxqiLzrZ3Wt4NXMDyd2NHd3FNKGKyNmhW_fTWf-jS9aUxgPeyO97lYRqTseEGLzd5ks5ljRyrHFFkaPi1seKH9Q/s1600/4.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Larry King covers the boys and TIME magazine too</td></tr> </tbody></table> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhclsNMUmT1u99whHmrlrqej7p6o7O7pUWlLJIoqxCCacCGam_EbKDb3L0YT5K5L1mW7iShCeqPQ2f9thRNUaS5pw1Wh94TtJQTNImwmbNMZ05smGx2XRRfkaf7g1daA4Y-VO-jHwp4_Jg/s1600/5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhclsNMUmT1u99whHmrlrqej7p6o7O7pUWlLJIoqxCCacCGam_EbKDb3L0YT5K5L1mW7iShCeqPQ2f9thRNUaS5pw1Wh94TtJQTNImwmbNMZ05smGx2XRRfkaf7g1daA4Y-VO-jHwp4_Jg/s1600/5.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Egon, the brain of the GHOSTBUSTERS, and OMNI Magazine</td></tr> </tbody></table> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGYvBYTHZlCuX0IAYRP3BtgIWhy6CO-97ILBTxGuUZNWUj-IUBOAUH0qx3J-mjay-9l_6dHnCEIHutZ7HnRlGNL9-feKKVPQdFEhXi49Ggfehpmmvt2d1fX9ue0rtv02ukqJttnXtB2lc/s1600/7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="264" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGYvBYTHZlCuX0IAYRP3BtgIWhy6CO-97ILBTxGuUZNWUj-IUBOAUH0qx3J-mjay-9l_6dHnCEIHutZ7HnRlGNL9-feKKVPQdFEhXi49Ggfehpmmvt2d1fX9ue0rtv02ukqJttnXtB2lc/s1600/7.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Go see GHOSTBUSTERS in theaters, or order the Blu Ray when that happens...</td></tr> </tbody></table> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_fnvzZ6kWTsIO9FIVDqd6z3NvvamKYhogixR5j97RNKz4Lvo9lnmsM_88nShkaBzL1AfwhlcMCqymBi11XP0Xb3wQLGpDg18zIKwQ7ptszZQFyO1dqfpt-6I_kVVAAN5HtKaSL-Xb8LQ/s1600/joe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_fnvzZ6kWTsIO9FIVDqd6z3NvvamKYhogixR5j97RNKz4Lvo9lnmsM_88nShkaBzL1AfwhlcMCqymBi11XP0Xb3wQLGpDg18zIKwQ7ptszZQFyO1dqfpt-6I_kVVAAN5HtKaSL-Xb8LQ/s1600/joe.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And last but not least, Joe Franklin: "How is Elvis, and have you seen him lately?"</td></tr> </tbody></table> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb9OoxoCeedALVZJt-FXqFIqLuCOeFWnmi_n6BHFIgRXasGD8ABbcM7lENBmrbAj0YKHoFX8MGABF-LXajs78blMzg4sXdSJ9dPs4_m5ZXRSU3zI7MDZBnLI7hhEOy58RNafwSb1CLzLU/s1600/di.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb9OoxoCeedALVZJt-FXqFIqLuCOeFWnmi_n6BHFIgRXasGD8ABbcM7lENBmrbAj0YKHoFX8MGABF-LXajs78blMzg4sXdSJ9dPs4_m5ZXRSU3zI7MDZBnLI7hhEOy58RNafwSb1CLzLU/s1600/di.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2013/08/ghostbusters.html">Click here for a much better GHOSTBUSTERS article/review</a></td></tr> </tbody></table>

annie potts, bill murray, dan aykroyd, eighties, harold ramis, ivan reitman, sigourney weaver, william atherton

REMASTERED GREEN OF GHOSTBUSTERS

Ghosting in theaters again Insanity is described as doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. So then, watchin...

CHADWICK BOSEMAN AS JAMES BROWN IN GET ON UP

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBJUNG9kXEheKzrkrkTp3q0YyxLAfd2rcivVavUaXGZtJlOXOD47Co3dhlk7CbixnyISIakTbtUO5k6oRB-vvAnxwjvbTjsHZk47ETlLThzRwQCWuBUFlo2HBVlderCflPboeMc3JCcpw/s1600/get-on-up-poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBJUNG9kXEheKzrkrkTp3q0YyxLAfd2rcivVavUaXGZtJlOXOD47Co3dhlk7CbixnyISIakTbtUO5k6oRB-vvAnxwjvbTjsHZk47ETlLThzRwQCWuBUFlo2HBVlderCflPboeMc3JCcpw/s320/get-on-up-poster.jpg" width="202" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2014 rating: ***</td></tr> </tbody></table> <span style="background-color: white;">GET ON UP is an entertaining music biopic that sticks firmly to the tunes, only veering off during particular roadblocks caused by James Brown’s unpredictable behavior…</span><br /> <br /> The Godfather of Soul wound up polarizing his family, band, and sidekick/fellow musician Bobby Byrd, who, played by Nelsan Ellis, is almost as important as Chadwick Boseman's portrayal of a man who made soul music funky and loud, and bankable…<br /> <br /> Both have wonderful chemistry and seem like they really know and love each other. So while Brown’s abuse towards his wife is glossed over quickly, the real suspense depends on the friendship and collaboration with Byrd, remaining a faithful barometer throughout the turmoil.  <br /> <br /> At first, in a bizarre prelude set in 1988 having to do with Brown’s run-in with a group of totally unhip Caucasians (no surprise for director Tate Taylor), Bosewick seems like he’s doing an imitation – but after we venture back in time, the performance blends neatly into the music. And while scenes of Brown as a youngster, dealing with an abusive father, are heartfelt and deeply tragic, they really serve as sporadic reminders to humble beginnings, continuing throughout the story in an attempt to visualize a haunted inner-child without being too artsy or pretentious.   <br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTIcz6B1dESkkCkeJcvMBicvURoqcLrkS0jeIBjOw0q410PZXqMtkLtPdpjhyKTTZx2MekYocQNrv4w74fh9_9hkrgRHAEYQR4vjFiy10E9WZBA-DJq_YJ-kaKEYIRoq3GKgB4CTxlHqw/s1600/james-brown.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTIcz6B1dESkkCkeJcvMBicvURoqcLrkS0jeIBjOw0q410PZXqMtkLtPdpjhyKTTZx2MekYocQNrv4w74fh9_9hkrgRHAEYQR4vjFiy10E9WZBA-DJq_YJ-kaKEYIRoq3GKgB4CTxlHqw/s320/james-brown.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The real James Brown</td></tr> </tbody></table> While we unfortunately never learn about the inspirations of the classic songs, ranging from “I Feel Good” to “Papa’s Got A Brand New Bag,” we experience the singer’s climb through various stages, literally, providing examples of how the James Brown sound differentiated from everything and everyone else, including Little Richard and The Rolling Stones...<br /> <br /> He created music that not only punctuated the downbeat but  continuously “got down” without letting up. Thankfully the transition of that unique groove onto the big screen isn’t filtered in the process, as happens in many “rock biopics.” <br /> <br /> Real life rhythm and blues fanatic Dan Aykroyd, who appeared with Brown in THE BLUES BROTHERS, plays one of the few cool white dudes: the pivotal manager/promoter who winds up learning from his own student about business... <br /> <br /> It’s fun seeing Brown taking over by sticking to his guns, sometimes sharing information with the audience via breaking the fourth wall. Although random dramatic scenes, planted throughout the concerts and recording sessions, often feel out of place and, in the case of one overlong conversation with his deadbeat mother (Viola Davis), downright unnecessary. Yet it’s the music that really mattered in Brown’s career, and that’s what carries the film.

2014, biopic, chadwick boseman, dan aykroyd, music

CHADWICK BOSEMAN AS JAMES BROWN IN GET ON UP

2014 rating: *** GET ON UP is an entertaining music biopic that sticks firmly to the tunes, only veering off during particular roadbloc...

MELISSA MCCARTHY AS TAMMY WITH SUSAN SARANDON

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVtZSTORfTm70v-hKMp1rj6hwIjyZWl_rtjePYcWzSr_18z9GeE08usDbcrYc0Rr4vqsoVKbtB8SgvXYHGCB_zeNNKem6rROEyoYZq9cK_CTtEMEVdSTvFVdyaol7P6zLg7qdDF8AbDpk/s1600/tammyposterlarge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVtZSTORfTm70v-hKMp1rj6hwIjyZWl_rtjePYcWzSr_18z9GeE08usDbcrYc0Rr4vqsoVKbtB8SgvXYHGCB_zeNNKem6rROEyoYZq9cK_CTtEMEVdSTvFVdyaol7P6zLg7qdDF8AbDpk/s400/tammyposterlarge.jpg" width="270" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2014 rating: **</td></tr> </tbody></table> A movie with the title of the main character usually means that person is kind of… you know… unique and, um... special: And in a matter of speaking, the latter fits TAMMY since it’s a "Labor of Love" by star Melissa McCarthy, serving as a producer and co-writer along with her husband <i>and</i> the film's director, Ben Falcone.<br /> <br /> We begin with Tammy hitting a deer, the first similarity to Chris Farley’s TOMMY BOY, and not the last: Both centering on a self-evasive, overweight slacker with a heart of gold, our husky heroine, TAMMY, revels in her problems, including a wrecked car, lost job, cheating husband and a comparably raw and restless grandmother…<br /> <br /> Enter Susan Sarandon, the reason TAMMY is being compared to the iconic feminist cult flick, THELMA & LOUISE... But be warned: this is <i>not</i>  a Road Movie. After a quick highway montage, promising themselves an adventure full of cathartic mileage, Tammy and Sarandon's bluntly honest Pearl hit a snag after one night of drinking. At this point the movie repeats itself with saucy conversations about how Tammy needs a point in life, and Pearl needs less men, pills, alcohol. And so, as a loose cannon, Sarandon doesn't provide very much input or purpose. For an actress with her talent and long-lasting career, she never becomes the character. With the exception of a gray mop of a phony looking wig... she's simply being Susan Sarandon. And McCarthy has little to offer as well, having, along with her husband, written a story so self-absorbed, it hardly seems catered to an audience at all.

2014, comedy, dan aykroyd, melissa mccarthy, susan sarandon, team-up

MELISSA MCCARTHY AS TAMMY WITH SUSAN SARANDON

year: 2014 rating: ** A movie with the title of the main character usually means that person is kind of… you know… unique and, um... spe...

OUT OF THE HAT REVIEW OF 'TWILIGHT ZONE: THE MOVIE'

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIMiWrphaX1tkVRI9AATMEmm4rA9_QrydISPc9OYiaEADI8QPpXXxSzbrFr8LkCtr7CCLqc5v4Rysa87UVvaRCcP7eP-h7kV0L-pNtmUK76t9S2Y6MArpVK4pSMZSg9f6QSgcwcvI7uxs/s1600/twilight+zone+movie+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIMiWrphaX1tkVRI9AATMEmm4rA9_QrydISPc9OYiaEADI8QPpXXxSzbrFr8LkCtr7CCLqc5v4Rysa87UVvaRCcP7eP-h7kV0L-pNtmUK76t9S2Y6MArpVK4pSMZSg9f6QSgcwcvI7uxs/s400/twilight+zone+movie+1.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 1983 cast: Vic Morrow, John Lithgow rating: ***</td></tr> </tbody></table> The tragic deaths of actor Vic Morrow and two children aside, this theatrical version of Rod Serling’s groundbreaking television series has a few other problems...<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> The first story, directed by John Landis, centers on Morrow as a racist loudmouth spouting epitaphs in a bar – overheard by a group of tough black dudes who, if they only beat him up when he walked out the door, would have deleted any need for the character’s descent into various historical settings where racism reigned: From walking a ledge as a Jew in Nazi Germany to sloshing through swamps as a Vietnamese native (the tragic helicopter sequence was filmed there), Morrow discovers sticks and stones have nothing on words.<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi02HIPgLFx4hEd9_maGlmtnQbeuWzf8yOooMSFGgjUVuIo66_2PFJPw497r14EpWApZMYdknnVuvTPYMm3YZpk-YweZwqZq9GfayuyInI3Eb6F4EGd-7mUc2K9EDE37u18Uddj_bksdec/s1600/Screen+shot+2015-10-13+at+1.17.25+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi02HIPgLFx4hEd9_maGlmtnQbeuWzf8yOooMSFGgjUVuIo66_2PFJPw497r14EpWApZMYdknnVuvTPYMm3YZpk-YweZwqZq9GfayuyInI3Eb6F4EGd-7mUc2K9EDE37u18Uddj_bksdec/s1600/Screen+shot+2015-10-13+at+1.17.25+AM.png" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not Shining Here</td></tr> </tbody></table> The story itself is somewhat intriguing – you’ll wonder what’ll happen next – but the ultimate punishment of the main character, as unlikable as he might be, is too forced and would have been much different had there been no on-set tragedy: Vic Morrow's Bill Conner could have learned his lesson and saved the Vietnamese children.<br /> <br /> The worst of the lot is Steven Spielberg’s KICK THE CAN. Making for an eerily nostalgic fable on the original series, Speilberg's take, with his flowing signature style overdosing to the point of seeming like a Spielbergland Theme Park, is a mushy melodrama centering on rest home old-timers who yearn for youth. The discontented coots turn into youngsters that seem part of a corny stage play. The child actors, instead of simply being children, are doing imitations of their older selves, so the entire episode feels like a parody. Veteran icon Scatman Crothers, as the mysterious traveler who wields the magic, tries his best but to no avail.<br /> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCWuXfHJbM1eLPVDRPnu29ps-SKKxPMyEk4oKjqpAOKyO_mL38wm0g-hdUvYVsOoSIWNKgnSYyQ9v_WnEhufvRjx1UHIQvtca8YSqHs-6QzpSdaNECsjxM7MbdwxVYvX09GRUrkU4nwI8/s1600/twilight+zone+movie3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCWuXfHJbM1eLPVDRPnu29ps-SKKxPMyEk4oKjqpAOKyO_mL38wm0g-hdUvYVsOoSIWNKgnSYyQ9v_WnEhufvRjx1UHIQvtca8YSqHs-6QzpSdaNECsjxM7MbdwxVYvX09GRUrkU4nwI8/s400/twilight+zone+movie3.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bart Simpson's voice actress stalked by killer cartoons</td></tr> </tbody></table> <br /> Leading to the third entry as THE HOWLING director Joe Dante re-imagines one of the coolest episodes of the original series. Remember Billy Mumy as a sinister child holding his family, and the residents of a small town, at bay with evil powers to send chosen people into the Cornfield?<br /> <br /> The boy this time around is, like director Dante himself, heavily into cartoons. His house has a TV in each room and his family makes sure everything goes his way. When the maniacal brat brings home a beautiful passerby (Kathleen Quinlin), she witnesses this strange behavior. Although it can get too bizarre for its own good, Dante builds suspense nicely, setting a taut vibe where anything can happen – including the actress who’d later voice Bart Simpson being hunted by demonic cartoons: inside a television set!<br /> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJXK8okdn1deax0kWmhXxnZX6EyshQ0IFIQAK6T1vu75X19f1j7NjOJkJcWFG8hK5YU3ZW5rkYoD3cNmRI3jEC7Vg5TP4wycbMF0SucFVJUtXyVfFYlBnvDlTJaj4oGv_HLei2eO5RZEmx/s1600/twilight%252Bzone%252Bmovie%252B6.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="324" height="277" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJXK8okdn1deax0kWmhXxnZX6EyshQ0IFIQAK6T1vu75X19f1j7NjOJkJcWFG8hK5YU3ZW5rkYoD3cNmRI3jEC7Vg5TP4wycbMF0SucFVJUtXyVfFYlBnvDlTJaj4oGv_HLei2eO5RZEmx/s400/twilight%252Bzone%252Bmovie%252B6.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Monster on the wing in the best segment</td></tr> </tbody></table> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> Leading to the last, and by far the best, episode: John Lithgow (reprising William Shatner) plays a man terrified to fly. Stuck on a plane during a raging lighting-packed thunderstorm, he sporadically witnesses a scheming creature on the wing.<br /> <br /> MAD MAX director George Miller paints an intense canvas. From the claustrophobic fuselage to the storm-struck exterior where the monster wreaks havoc, each element adds nightmarish touches of one man’s descent into a personal hell. Lithgow turns-in the best performance, balancing manic desperation and edgy pathos, eventually facing off with the sinister ALIEN-looking Gremlin. And although Landis's first story fails in content... His prologue/epilogue involving hitchhiker Dan Aykroyd getting a ride from nice guy Albert Brooks – jovially discussing old TV shows like THE OUTER LIMITS and, yes, THE TWILIGHT ZONE – is both humorous and ultimately intense, leading to a terrific twist ending... Making you forget the first half was practically, and tragically, a complete throwaway. <br /> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyE1mllhCnTZ02nkMXRKDwqFzu9O5niSKb_SBGhcYGVa9CrpAjJlaCUHCcwEn7oMElSaNZfDRxSl0cZcD7kQ5IxrDNXOoi-1RwjG1hxeXNEN0lD3VSN4M6f1E7TtbX6Kk7JsGlgXrjcus/s1600/13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyE1mllhCnTZ02nkMXRKDwqFzu9O5niSKb_SBGhcYGVa9CrpAjJlaCUHCcwEn7oMElSaNZfDRxSl0cZcD7kQ5IxrDNXOoi-1RwjG1hxeXNEN0lD3VSN4M6f1E7TtbX6Kk7JsGlgXrjcus/s1600/13.jpg" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The demonic alligator creature just ate Bart Simpson...</td></tr> </tbody></table>

dan aykroyd, eighties, joe dante, john landis, john lithgow, remake, rod serling, scatman crothers, science-fiction, steven spielberg, vic morrow

OUT OF THE HAT REVIEW OF 'TWILIGHT ZONE: THE MOVIE'

year: 1983 cast: Vic Morrow, John Lithgow rating: *** The tragic deaths of actor Vic Morrow and two children aside, this theatrical ...

COMEDY FILMS MORE ENTERTAINING THAN FUNNY

<div style="text-align: center;"> <i><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiASMjRUc0Vxx_QQTZGyDNk9gR9TcmsMMtZ07CVaqf0jXQnQe9-iSAu8jLGnHSgckFKFAzSoXfg8ZB4DGguG6X9NOghwfoVc6EwOAUZH8jUIC7Fj4jHM6M5jtvI6-QCYk-oijzyOPMyPQr3KYnpQqSCz5xM7D9h-LQ95dui-ymgLZ-2eC-IdVnDgVvbHy_u/s851/modernproblems%202.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="479" data-original-width="851" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiASMjRUc0Vxx_QQTZGyDNk9gR9TcmsMMtZ07CVaqf0jXQnQe9-iSAu8jLGnHSgckFKFAzSoXfg8ZB4DGguG6X9NOghwfoVc6EwOAUZH8jUIC7Fj4jHM6M5jtvI6-QCYk-oijzyOPMyPQr3KYnpQqSCz5xM7D9h-LQ95dui-ymgLZ-2eC-IdVnDgVvbHy_u/s16000/modernproblems%202.jpeg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>1) MODERN PROBLEMS (CHEVY CHASE)</u></td></tr></tbody></table>A lot of times, those particular comedy films that <u>don’t</u> provide constant sidesplitting/laugh out loud moments are just what the doctor ordered…  Sometimes side-splitting hurts, and isn't very fun or funny... So, during particularly lonesome afternoons or pallid sleepless nights, you just want a movie with a humorous baseline that doesn’t make you have to react in any particular way i.e. motion pictures that aren’t that funny but still entertain… So let’s begin with:</i></div> <div style="text-align: center;"> <br /></div> <div style="text-align: center;"> Chevy Chase is a loves-truck air-traffic controller who, after getting nuclear waste spilled on himself, gains powers to manipulate elements and human beings, and not in that order… Relying on physical gags and special effects, Chase wields his usual butter finger schtick but lacks the glib humor that worked in CADDYSHACK and FLETCH.. Yet it's still fun seeing the tables turning for our likable underdog...</div> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9V7Zl3NZRRA70ZIoa2gbi11ew4qQsLHMcsy7My_KeYaLaR7Bs-wroTe8KmZGNX1XlCg9PKdY75zfGtrXMv6c72bWXXClEkZl_X1niiwI-IcUVVcrm1mv2ndmz5TlYZSgHopHHAyikCks/s1600/club+paradise.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9V7Zl3NZRRA70ZIoa2gbi11ew4qQsLHMcsy7My_KeYaLaR7Bs-wroTe8KmZGNX1XlCg9PKdY75zfGtrXMv6c72bWXXClEkZl_X1niiwI-IcUVVcrm1mv2ndmz5TlYZSgHopHHAyikCks/s1600/club+paradise.jpg" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>2) CLUB PARADISE (ROBIN WILLIAMS, PETER O'TOOLE)</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> <div style="text-align: center;"> The promo picture of musical Jimmy Cliff, comedic Robin Williams and dramatic Peter O'Toole is proof this is a unique film, at least in the casting… Robin Williams is a retired fireman turning a shabby tropics hotel into a "resort"… Not many laughs but it's a nicely developed story, especially when the hotel fills up with guest-stars, all misled into paradise whilst experiencing hellish conditions...</div> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja2W4d9Lh0f44ocdhS7Ny6CW7m7tR5udkAUA80tRrFdjCLaQtFEyWvtRpgnYBX8kaVsgW_O9rQXBI7YFAhKZcXuny749QctP8pyEF-9H4OL31I4sqj_wbJgxsVquL8U-1sweEzAn_TV3g/s1600/spies+like+us.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="418" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja2W4d9Lh0f44ocdhS7Ny6CW7m7tR5udkAUA80tRrFdjCLaQtFEyWvtRpgnYBX8kaVsgW_O9rQXBI7YFAhKZcXuny749QctP8pyEF-9H4OL31I4sqj_wbJgxsVquL8U-1sweEzAn_TV3g/s640/spies+like+us.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>3) SPIES LIKE US (CHEVY CHASE, DAN AYKROYD)</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> <div style="text-align: center;"> The first John Landis comedy that wasn’t hilarious, this homage to the Hope/Crosby ROAD TO flicks has Chevy Chase and Dan Aykroyd as expendable government agents sent into the Middle East and ultimately Cold War Russia… Although it’s hard to tell which is the straight man and who’s supposed to be the nitwit, SPIES is an entertaining adventure as they go from one dire situation to the next...</div> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPUzf54DYboYE-uIQ4kqKzW9SBlnrlT38TiUHYoTiYi0OqVSccOAflSM5QalpO5AlqcWTeRHCbADHR1Pm-iEeOEg_fCSTeenxLDsDhmassa9Vf7PGhjWcRskzzEoPfq2DSCedC5eXYGvE/s1600/gung+ho.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPUzf54DYboYE-uIQ4kqKzW9SBlnrlT38TiUHYoTiYi0OqVSccOAflSM5QalpO5AlqcWTeRHCbADHR1Pm-iEeOEg_fCSTeenxLDsDhmassa9Vf7PGhjWcRskzzEoPfq2DSCedC5eXYGvE/s640/gung+ho.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>4) GUNG HO (MICHAEL KEATON)</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> <div style="text-align: center;"> In this underrated Ron Howard venture, Michael Keaton plays a small town big talker who manages to get a Japanese company to buy out a dying car factory in his home town... Havoc ensues as the American and Japanese workers square off… It's great seeing Keaton with his back against the wall, fighting with his wily charm to make everything, and everybody, work despite the constant odds...</div> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjyBf1zyX_oOfKhntnhI8eRvAwMsd0ejbb9yhK21Oh0B0siLNZ-bvydNrsMKiiaX2BYCjpcWTFs8aqhYTf_qDU6_1ARsIt44p7wUpZGNxEyCUsACNrGb8jFbOM_HypeOlA5Gm4hQ3jmig/s1600/vibes.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjyBf1zyX_oOfKhntnhI8eRvAwMsd0ejbb9yhK21Oh0B0siLNZ-bvydNrsMKiiaX2BYCjpcWTFs8aqhYTf_qDU6_1ARsIt44p7wUpZGNxEyCUsACNrGb8jFbOM_HypeOlA5Gm4hQ3jmig/s1600/vibes.jpg" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>5) VIBES (JEFF GOLDBLUM, CYNDI LAUPER)</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> <div style="text-align: center;"> Pop icon Cyndi Lauper is damn cute, and watching her traipse around New York and South America with Jeff Goldbum (along with Peter Falk as a fortune seeking con man) is decent lightweight time-filler viewing, that is, if you just wanna have fun…</div> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhc5mrTl2B3JIwL_NjZ840eubMJZXlULkk32Rd-q5AdJbSbUb_jXltyP2dCiTE_8n_yWAI_8Dz8h-XejEDDcBcPw1kwygDPXW0tzg55RyiBk7gFR0f0rS9gCkgRd-0rzftnou-T_-QV1c/s1600/paternity.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="491" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhc5mrTl2B3JIwL_NjZ840eubMJZXlULkk32Rd-q5AdJbSbUb_jXltyP2dCiTE_8n_yWAI_8Dz8h-XejEDDcBcPw1kwygDPXW0tzg55RyiBk7gFR0f0rS9gCkgRd-0rzftnou-T_-QV1c/s640/paternity.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>6) PATERNITY (BURT REYNOLDS)</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> <div style="text-align: center;"> The tagline/poster, with Burt Reynolds looking like Uncle Sam, pointing forward with the words HE WANTS <u>YOU</u><i> </i>TO HAVE HIS BABY, is the funniest thing about this filler rom-com during the mustache star’s box office peak… Burt is relaxing, charming and cool, as usual... And the lovely Beverly D'Angelo makes a worthy love interest...</div> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjskLP4ywKSCRobzrp1x7Tf7aoYorDPwEzQsYY8RGSzigNJ53aHGhItzrK0nWKt6MSSAxBrGIBviMHpZC1bXd1F_v51bm4iS7ZQly3kqm-1LFpZso42t7hAXVF9hNd0u_YkzxFbGo2WXfg/s1600/for+love+or+money.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjskLP4ywKSCRobzrp1x7Tf7aoYorDPwEzQsYY8RGSzigNJ53aHGhItzrK0nWKt6MSSAxBrGIBviMHpZC1bXd1F_v51bm4iS7ZQly3kqm-1LFpZso42t7hAXVF9hNd0u_YkzxFbGo2WXfg/s1600/for+love+or+money.jpg" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>7) FOR LOVE OR MONEY (MICHAEL J. FOX)</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> <div style="text-align: center;"> This revamp of THE SECRET OF MY SUCCESS is a much more laidback outing where the laughs might be fewer but the unrequited love story between Michael J. Fox, as a hotel concierge, and a gorgeous yet down-to-earth perfume sales girl is a lot deeper and more realistic than SUCCESS and with intriguing results for our kindhearted, dealmaking hero, pulling favors and odd jobs for the rich guy the dream girl he loves, loves…</div> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglU1lnwxRV_0J02e20AM8RMHAVGD48nTaFaS-N67m2yQ61Z0fHqXDc6T0zGpxRL0s2EQ_8ZoXMbs2AZH0RmhOBSnscP8mTz3Z36REb3V8loHm3SYlYv1707H66g12OvzU79jbz7uOqKWA/s1600/take+this+job+and+shove+it.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglU1lnwxRV_0J02e20AM8RMHAVGD48nTaFaS-N67m2yQ61Z0fHqXDc6T0zGpxRL0s2EQ_8ZoXMbs2AZH0RmhOBSnscP8mTz3Z36REb3V8loHm3SYlYv1707H66g12OvzU79jbz7uOqKWA/s640/take+this+job+and+shove+it.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>8) TAKE THIS JOB AND SHOVE IT (ROBERT HAYS, ART CARNEY)</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> <div style="text-align: center;"> Known mostly for the singalong country theme song, this is a decent working class comedy starring Robert Hays as a corporate clone returning to his roots where a big beer company buys out the factory employing his pals (including David Keith and Tim Thomerson)… Hays learns that no matter how expensive the suit, his heart's still made of gold: the frothy kind...</div> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhggCOSNwUVSsFpEZb2DIqH2vBJr15VSrh23nIDS23hpbpI-LDIb-UqEvE4E5gx2OfFdnlWyJSOGaV_Ubet3McZQi4GsIb6W7YUZZ6NGIv1udPnPU8v0LjIyzaIrG3QFlwMZHEutCUyQig/s1600/straight+talk.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhggCOSNwUVSsFpEZb2DIqH2vBJr15VSrh23nIDS23hpbpI-LDIb-UqEvE4E5gx2OfFdnlWyJSOGaV_Ubet3McZQi4GsIb6W7YUZZ6NGIv1udPnPU8v0LjIyzaIrG3QFlwMZHEutCUyQig/s1600/straight+talk.png" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>9) STRAIGHT TALK (DOLLY PARTON, JAMES WOODS)</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> <div style="text-align: center;"> Before Dolly Parton vanished from the film scene, she was still cute and energetic in this underdog comedy about a hick town dance instructor who winds up a popular radio shrink/doctor, falling in love with a reporter out to expose her real identity… Completely banal and predictable but one helluva guilty pleasure...</div> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1N1OoL6tx0wsXbmiDdVxjT7rZu7llaBnYNvUnfMgtxUGrDfy8pg7JYbikPqdzzyGklySJzC_RM8_DAKE7d-lcAxNIfTVyYGWiPMgRAqCL2CJbiFZCFEOxsFg7pM5ppbTT0SX6NPAeBKs/s1600/1941.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1N1OoL6tx0wsXbmiDdVxjT7rZu7llaBnYNvUnfMgtxUGrDfy8pg7JYbikPqdzzyGklySJzC_RM8_DAKE7d-lcAxNIfTVyYGWiPMgRAqCL2CJbiFZCFEOxsFg7pM5ppbTT0SX6NPAeBKs/s1600/1941.jpg" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>10) 1941 (JOHN BELUSHI, DAN AYKROYD, ROBERT STACK)</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> <div style="text-align: center;"> After JAWS and CLOSE ENCOUNTERS, Steven Spielberg, still a young man, was doomed to fail with this big budget everything-goes World War II extravaganza that mixes so many elements the projector gets indigestion… But John Belushi as a crazy pilot in the air, and Dan Aykroyd as a crazy Sergeant on the ground, are both fun to watch along with an all-star cast, running around like headless chickens... Yet it's great to see them under the camera-wielding FX-driven direction of a master filmmaker who, despite playing too many cards, still pulls off an amazing visual spectacle...<br /> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRdAirXCuqLO5efkXMR7fi-ZOEVeBeiLw1p5Pf9qqLW5A07YQ78ppi7q6Wp0TihSooFeVLlu6iSp2evEUa8-FqNaywgff2h52Sm1XlPuLaKyWYIqQfqknX7tMBr6IP4_S1nocUNgKp2elP/s1600/1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="644" data-original-width="1600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRdAirXCuqLO5efkXMR7fi-ZOEVeBeiLw1p5Pf9qqLW5A07YQ78ppi7q6Wp0TihSooFeVLlu6iSp2evEUa8-FqNaywgff2h52Sm1XlPuLaKyWYIqQfqknX7tMBr6IP4_S1nocUNgKp2elP/s1600/1.jpg" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Spielberg seems to be going for a wacky Apocalypse Now sequence... The Do Lung Bridge Carnival destroyed, again...</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> </div> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbpL3-yCDefoJaUz3VS6by4ZtYyLNPhmcBNhT5W9hv-jju8lRY7WJSoe-UUDb8pwLLy-hleT4btZBP3HpxYzd95cp5i-VaGNeiWVFpIOIgxqFLXce_Tdw6FAnee37qTl_73SfjSMKNWbiX/s1600/1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="591" data-original-width="1600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbpL3-yCDefoJaUz3VS6by4ZtYyLNPhmcBNhT5W9hv-jju8lRY7WJSoe-UUDb8pwLLy-hleT4btZBP3HpxYzd95cp5i-VaGNeiWVFpIOIgxqFLXce_Tdw6FAnee37qTl_73SfjSMKNWbiX/s1600/1.jpg" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>One of the coolest fonts neon green for Modern Problems which is as you know...</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL37Oifn-u9ZPp_imdCCb4CluWo7PYVkp-mOpWyQR_vrxUsstqYb6qA-egRtWtdVJHQsCA9y3jqkiouPgRCHr9u7mFztqX7nRS94gWy5c31_HW8hyphenhyphenR8ODc4mH6sLY2BnAeRJTL-0cMjIYq/s1600/2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="649" data-original-width="1600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL37Oifn-u9ZPp_imdCCb4CluWo7PYVkp-mOpWyQR_vrxUsstqYb6qA-egRtWtdVJHQsCA9y3jqkiouPgRCHr9u7mFztqX7nRS94gWy5c31_HW8hyphenhyphenR8ODc4mH6sLY2BnAeRJTL-0cMjIYq/s1600/2.jpg" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>The CITIZEN KANE of Comedy Films More Entertaining Than Funny... VOLUME ONE... Stay Tuned....</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirCsum-iuOX4zOLmMl7wNRrY-GzXG8rEt_ARr-eReqUyCAoc2czXbihhThcJZ11Z7xGuFZXPv4q9hS5mNocPHlfK7luXrm0re5pX6UH8eFBG5IBvCa2g5DBWGmNunY4fVQkqXPGgpc_sch/s1600/Screen+Shot+2018-07-20+at+12.52.49+PM.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="849" data-original-width="1600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirCsum-iuOX4zOLmMl7wNRrY-GzXG8rEt_ARr-eReqUyCAoc2czXbihhThcJZ11Z7xGuFZXPv4q9hS5mNocPHlfK7luXrm0re5pX6UH8eFBG5IBvCa2g5DBWGmNunY4fVQkqXPGgpc_sch/s1600/Screen+Shot+2018-07-20+at+12.52.49+PM.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u> "Take a woman like your kind... To find the man in me..." Did Modern Problems inspire The Big Lebowski?</u></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdu5ulF1vYf5VHSRZarC9zzmkv2qjgIMjsa7cSE1Ydua68xuE41YuNOnqWGlWnPpSRa3W1ON7caClZS6FLn9wRU6ZOfXmltpeLHewuGP5xdF-jWnYAWbdvZ56UtrzdLYzf-i-iZdvOXlYTFkdS_6looghtAxRXsfv05MoFVOzRZhWIyPskgPkbHde2FykF/s920/37550498_525350577894123_7905018244660985856_n.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="697" data-original-width="920" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdu5ulF1vYf5VHSRZarC9zzmkv2qjgIMjsa7cSE1Ydua68xuE41YuNOnqWGlWnPpSRa3W1ON7caClZS6FLn9wRU6ZOfXmltpeLHewuGP5xdF-jWnYAWbdvZ56UtrzdLYzf-i-iZdvOXlYTFkdS_6looghtAxRXsfv05MoFVOzRZhWIyPskgPkbHde2FykF/s16000/37550498_525350577894123_7905018244660985856_n.jpeg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Here's an example of two straight men/two wacky guys rolled into two tall straight-goofy SPIES LIKE US stars</u></td></tr></tbody></table><br />

burt reynolds, chevy chase, comedy, cyndi lauper, dan aykroyd, jeff goldblum, john belushi, john landis, list, michael j. fox, romantic comedy, steven spielberg

COMEDY FILMS MORE ENTERTAINING THAN FUNNY

1) MODERN PROBLEMS (CHEVY CHASE) A lot of times, those particular comedy films that don’t provide constant sidesplitting/laugh out loud m...