Bandslam

If you think about it too much, there’s no way Bandslam should be as much fun as it is to watch. The story, about a group of misfit teens winning the school’s music competition, is an overworked cliché. The actors, for the most part, are way too old to be convincing as teenagers. And the music, with the exception of the classic rock that fills out the soundtrack, is forgettable pop pap. But somehow, Bandslam turns out to be delightful. Part of the credit goes to Gaelan Connell, a slightly odd looking leading man who manages to capture both the intensity and anxiety of being a kid with a unique style all his own. The real treat of the film, though, is watching Lisa Kudrow play his mom, Karen. Not only can she make even the lamest line of dialogue shine, Kudrow has a natural ability to be physically funny without going over the top. The scenes of the band drummer trying to seduce her (thinking she’s her son's older, hotter sister) are exceptionally well done. Given its slick pop culture sheen, it’s easy to see why kids will want to see Bandslam. It’s the film’s other aspects – the good acting, the playful sense of character, the honestly rendered moments of drama – that make it worthwhile watching for film – and music – fans of any age.

The Sorcerer’s Apprentice

Caught up in all the summer 3D movie hype, this story of a young man who discovers he’s made for something greater than he ever imagined didn’t get the audience it deserved. Now here’s your chance to sit back and watch it on its own terms. The story is good and the effects are string, but what makes it so darn watchable (and enjoyable) is the fine acting from Nicholas Cage as the Sorcerer and Jay Baruchel as the apprentice, not to mention the delightful scenery chewing of Alfred Molina as the bad guy.

Undercover Brother (2002)

It’s tough to imagine, but there was a time when Black Cinema – so called Blacksploitation movies – was a force to be reckoned with at the box office.

Movies like Coffey, Black Caesar and Superfly were not only huge hits, but serious films – at least more serious than they are taken now when the platform shoes, wild threads and big Afros of the stars are seen more as campy fun than serious style.

Writer John Ridley and director Malcolm Lee managed to combine their obvious love for Blacksploitation cinema with their comically twisted nostalgia for the time when they came up with the idea for Undercover Brother.

The film tells the story of Anton Jackson, a Black spy/superhero who joins forces with The Brotherhood (an all-Black secret service) to stop The Man and his plan for world domination, appropriately called Operation Whitewash.

It’s a silly movie. OK, very silly. But if you are a fan of the films it both honors and lampoons – sometimes in the same sentence – it’s also very, very funny.

Eddie Griffin is terrific as Jackson, whether he’s battling bad buys with his unique kung fu style or going undercover as a wannabe poser trying to fit into The Man’s world. Dave Chappelle is hilarious as the militant Conspiracy Brother and Neil Patrick Harris steals every scene he’s in playing Lance, the White boy trying to pass in The Brotherhood.

Starring Eddie Griffin, Dave Chappelle, Neil Patrick Harris.

IMDB Site.

The Sting (1973)

There are hundreds of so-called ‘classic’ movies, and chances are that you haven’t seen many of them.

Well, it’s time to try and change all that starting with The Sting.

Directed by George Roy Hill and starring the dynamic duo of Paul Newman and Robert Redford, The Sting is one of the best con movies ever made, as well as being one of those rare films that gets better with time.

In the film, Redford plays Johnny Hooker, a low-rate grifter who stumbles on a big score when he steals a wad of money from a mob bagman. The mob boss, Doyle Lonnegan (Robert Shaw) kills Hooker’s partner and tries to kill Hooker, too, but he gets away and heads to Chicago to set up his elaborate revenge plan.

Even if the Oscar-winning script, written by David S. Ward, weren’t so damn much fun, The Sting would be worth renting just to see Newman and Redford in action. Made just four years after they starred in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Newman and Redford look like they are having the time of their lives in the movie. There’s no upstaging or petty crap going on between them; it’s just two actors at the top of their game doing what they do best.

And it’s a joy to behold.

Starring Robert Redford and Paul Newman.

IMDB Site.

Smokey and the Bandit (1977)

It’s been 30 years since The Bandit (Burt Reynolds) and his good buddy Cledus (Jerry Reed) made their first high speed run from Georgia to Texas to deliver 400 cases of Coors to "Big Enos" Burdette, and while there have been dozens of car chase movies made since then, few have come close to being as much fun as Smokey and the Bandit.

Made at the height of Reynolds’ box office fame – long before he started doing direct-to-video crap like Cloud 9 – Smokey and the Bandit is little more than an excuse for good ol’ boys to go chasing each other around in fast cars while the law -- in the bombastic form of Sheriff Buford T Justice (Jackie Gleason) -- chases after them. It’s silly, but its charm lies in the fact that it knows it and just wallows in it with glee.

The film is anything but a stretch for Reynolds, who had been playing pretty much the same character for the past 10 years before he even got behind the wheel of the iconic Trans Am he drives in the film. Smokey and the Bandit did, however, give two of its cast members a chance to stretch far beyond their audiences’ expectations.

The film was released only a year after Sally Field won her Emmy for her deeply disturbing work in Sybil, and it was a relief to everyone to watch her lighten up and have some fun (and be darned sexy, too) as The Bandit’s sidekick.

And what can be said of Gleason’s work as Sheriff Justice, beyond the fact that it is among the best comedic work he ever did, and given the fact that the man is a comedy legend that’s saying a lot.

Starring Burt Reynolds, Sally Field and jackie Gleason.

IMDB Site.

Midnight Run (1988)

Before his face was plastered all over the Hollywood Wall of Shame for being the guy who made the infamous Ben Affleck/Jennifer Lopez bomb, Gigli, director Martin Brest made some fine movies including the thoroughly entertaining action comedy Midnight Run.

The film stars Robert De Niro as Jack Walsh, an ex-Chicago cop forced to make a living as a low level bounty hunter. He gets the job of a lifetime when his bail bondsman hires him to bring in Jonathan “The Duke” Mardukas (Charles Grodin), a tax accountant who stole $15 million from the mob and donated it to charity.

While the Duke is easy to find, getting him from New York City to Los Angeles to make good on his $500,000 bond proves to be a lot more challenging for Jack to pull off. The FBI is after him. The cops are after him. The mob is after him. There’s even another bounty hunter after him.

Brest, who also directed Beverly Hills Cop, knows how to put an action sequence together and he pulls out all the stops to make the duo’s cross country adventure a full scale stunt extravaganza complete with lots of car crashes, shoot outs, fist fights and aerial stunts. What makes the film work, however, is the acting. De Niro and Grodin are great together, and the supporting cast is a who’s who of great character actors, including the always enjoyable Dennis Farina as the acid-tongued mob boss Jimmy Serrano.

Starring Robert De Niro, Charles Grodin.
IMDB Site.

Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (1974)

Back before he became the Oscar-winning elder statesmen of meaningful movies (Letters from Iwo Jima, Million Dollar Baby), Clint Eastwood made a career out of quirky character-driven action flicks that felt more like really well done home movies than big budget Hollywood productions. They all featured pretty much the same cast of Clint and his friends – character actors Geoffrey Lewis, Bill McKinney and Gregory Walcott to name a few – and told pretty much the same story of a bunch of good old boys taking on the system and, after a few smack downs, triumphing in the final reel.

Thunderbolt and Lightfoot is cut from the same cloth of these classic Clint movies, with the notable exception of tossing a young Jeff Bridges into the mix. The result was not only one of the best of Clint’s films from that era, but a performance good enough to garner Bridges an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor (He lost to Robert De Niro and Godfather II).

The plot to Thunderbolt and Lightfoot is, to be honest, silly. A group of robbers band together to break into an armory in Montana using a giant cannon to blow a hole in the side of the safe. It’s a pretty gutsy plan but they have faith that it will work because they did it a few years before – they just lost the money from that heist and need to do it again.

Like I said, it’s silly.

But the performances are good and director Michael Cimino does a good job of balancing the action and humor in the film.

Starring Clint Eastwood,Jeff Bridges.

IMDB Site.

Kansas City Bomber (1972)

I’ve had a mad crush on Raquel Welch since I was a boy sitting in the Paris Cinema in Providence watching Kansas City Bomber.

I can pinpoint the exact moment she stole my … heart, too. It’s the scene when the slimy team owner (Kevin McCarthy) gets her back to his apartment. He takes off her coat revealing what the woman who up to this time had been dressed primarily in an unflattering roller derby uniform looks like in a skin tight sweater dress.

To quote Mike Myers, who was just nine when this Hollywood thunderbolt first hit me, schwing!

I’ve seen Kansas City Bomber many, many times since then and, while the unveiling scene always makes my heart skip a beat, I’ve come to appreciate the film for more than Raquel’s physical charms.

In the movie, Raquel plays K.C. Carr, a journeywoman roller derby player who gets her big break when she is traded to the Portland Loggers and is finally given a chance to show fans she’s more than just another pretty face. Unfortunately, the Loggers already have their own star, the hard-living Jackie Burdette (Helena Kallianiotes) who does not intend to give up without a four-wheeled fight.

There’s plenty of roller derby action in Kansas City Bomber and director Jerrold Freedman makes it look a lot more believable than the actual sport (although the slow-motion ending is a bit corny).

Kansas City Bomber is the best skating action/comedy since Slap Shot, and, since it was made five years before the Hanson Brothers even hit the big screen, it deserves a to be seen.

Starring Raquel Welch, Helena Kallianiotes, Kevin McCarthy.

IMDB Site.