ROFL !!! If I had gotten my cup of coffee yet, your comment would have made me spew it, so we are even, lol.

I have been keeping up my John Wayne Western festival. After a spate of rather blah movies - The Comancheros, The Undefeated, Cahill U.S. Marshall - I saw a true gem today: The Searchers.

This is a very powerful movie. As one of the commentors said, it was not about the violence of the West, but rather what the violence did to people. Racism and hatred are the themes that flow through the entire film, how violence feeds and waters them, and how they burn people up. I have to give props to John Ford for making this film, and not shying from showing the ugliness and brutality on both sides of the West. In 1956, that was a real statement. Such as showing the aftermath of a US Cavalry massacre of Comanche. Or even more powerful, the aftermath of the raid on the settlers. Which is even more powerful because he never shows you the bodies. You just see the reactions of the characters.

Wayne's character Ethan is as much a villain as he is a hero (really an anti-hero, one of the few times Wayne ever played such a dark role). The main villain Scar is his mirror image in fact. Here is a man who shoots out the eyes of a dead Comanche, so that his ghost can never find the Spirit World, and will be doomed to wander the land for eternity as a lost soul. While he starts out wanting to rescue his two kidnapped nieces, half-way through the search we see that change. When he realizes that his surviving niece Debbie has been with the Comanches so long, she is probably more one of them than a White woman anymore. This picture illustrates that realization so powerfully. The way his eyes are shrouded in darkness as he stares with loathing at the White women taken from a Comanche camp.

I saw it on blu-ray, and I have to say wow. Even for a movie not originally done in the format, it is just eye-popping. The sky is bluer than blue, and the characters seem to practically jump out of the screen. A lot of that is just John Ford's cinematography. He went to great lengths to really make the landscape a character in the film, rather than just a backdrop.

This post has been edited by SubRosa: Mar 13 2011, 01:40 AM

Great film, that. Don't forget the iconic line:

"That'll be the day."

I just saw the Adjustment Bureau, which was good, as I expected. Really, when you have a Philip K. thermos story, the director of the Bourne movies, and Matt Damon, then end result is usually awesome. In this case, I was a little surprised on how the romantic side of the story was a very large part of the movie, as the reviews hadn't really painted it that way, but it was still an enjoyable movie. Terence Stamp as Thompson was a highlight.

I've been watching more European cinema recently and came across a real treasure which I shouuld have watched earlier. The lives of others is about a writer under observation under the Stazi in the GDR. The main character is a Stazi officer which gives it an unusual edge but it really captures suspicion and mistrust throughout. The characters a subtly put together but really shine and the mood is equally rich.

I'd really say this is one to watch, it's also remarkable how recently it's set...

I don't watch TV much, rarely a movie will come on I want to see. I caught this one last night - another chick-flick (as usual) - "Love Comes Softly" - about a rich city woman who travels west with her husband in a horse-drawn wagon. He gets killed their first day there, she is pregnant, and it is winter. (no stage coaches till spring). She is stuck there, and must marry a widower with a young daughter to have a roof over her head till she can get a stage coach home. Although nothing happens quickly or easily, she eventually ends up falling in love with both the widower and the little daughter by the time spring comes.

Yes, it was a tad predictable, but fun to watch. The little daughter steals the show with her amazing performance.

Anyway, it brought to mind another chick-flick I saw and loved - Stolen Women, Captured Hearts:

A young (red haired) woman's parents die and she travels west to live with her brother. On the way, the stage coach is attacked by a marauding tribe of native americans. They kill almost everyone but let her and another woman go. One really great looking man amongst them stares at her really hard - she somehow feels a connection to him.

When she arrives at her brothers, he promptly sells her to the farmer next door for a wife so the two properties will be tied together.

After mating on the wedding night with her new husband she is laying in bed (unhappy with her new husbands performance of his duties) and thinking about that one man that had stared at her during the attack. The next day she and the other girl that was on the stage with her are inside her new house when it is attacked by the same tribe - the man that stared at her is amongst them. In the attack they hurt no one, do no harm to the farm or others, but they kidnap the redheaded woman (WOO HOO!) and that other girl.

She has to live in the tent with the great looking guy and keeps trying to escape but he keeps catching her and bringing her back. So he tells her the reason he keeps bringing her back is that he heard her calling to him that night after she slept with her new husband. So they end up mating (HOT scene, but not hot enough to be rated) and she falls in love with him.

Then Custer (another great acting job on his part) comes and takes her back to that man her brother made her marry - and then IT IS ON because the great guy wants her back.

If I'm going to watch a western, this is what I want to see - it's about as chick as you can get - I loved it, lol.


Here is a clip of scenes from it:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Xs-8ussipQ...5E2915F5E23669C


*

This post has been edited by mALX: Mar 22 2011, 06:01 PM

I got the Borne movies in a box set for my birthday. I guess I'll be watching those.

The Bourne movies are the exception to the rule that the movie is never as good as the book.

At first when I heard Matt Damon was selected to play Bourne, I was like "Matt Damon?? Are you kidding me??" I thought he was just too nice and too 'boy-next-door' to play such a complex character as Jason Bourne.

Then my brother rented the first movie on one of his increasingly rare visits to my house. I watched it with him, and had to pick my jaw up off the floor at several points throughout the movie. Matt Damon played the character with an intensity that exceeded that of the book.

Matt Damon owns Jason Bourne. There can be no other. I don't think you'll regret it.

This post has been edited by haute ecole rider: Mar 22 2011, 06:20 PM

Very enjoyable movies. If you like well done action/suspense, you'll like these.

Dr. Rider is correct...Matt Damon OWNS Jason Bourne!

Matt Damon is perfect as Jason Bourne, precisely because he has that ordinary, regular guy look to him. He is the perfect spy, because he is the kind of guy you look at once and then forget about as soon as you look away.

Plus the Bourne movies have Brian Cox, whom I have adored since his turn as Hannibal Lecter in Manhunter.

I have been continuing my John Wayne fest for the past few weeks. I have had several good ones: The Alamo (which was more about the myth than the reality, but no surprise really. I have never seen an Alamo movie that showed the Tejanos who fought to defend it.), where he really shines. The Cowboys was just bland, as I found Sons of Katie Elder to be. Fort Apache was a lot of fun, although Wayne is just a supporting character there. The Horse Soldiers, while inspired by Grierson's Raid IRL, just did not do much for me. Same with She Wore A Yellow Ribbon, which is the red-headed stepchild of Fort Apache.

However, I got a truly brilliant one in there. Stagecoach. When I was young people used to always rave about it, but I never got to seeing it. So unlike the others, this was my first time seeing it. Wow. It just blew me away.

First off, it is a character-driven piece, about a group of extremely diverse people all thrown together on a stagecoach journey. The ride, and the ever-present threat of Indians on the warpath, turns up the pressure on all of them, allowing us to see who they really are under the veneer of civilization (which some wear more heavily than others).

Wayne himself is simply magnificent. Any other description would be a disservice to him. He is the quintessential Western hero in this film. Larger than life, a man of simple ways, resolute determination, and a heart of pure gold. Right from the first moment you see him, you want to cheer. He makes a wonderful juxtaposition with John Carradine, who is actually young in this film! Carradine plays the Gentleman/Gambler, who is always at the service of the Upstanding Lady, yet practically curls his lip at the Fallen Woman. Where on the other hand Wayne is always the true gentleman, and treats both women with equal grace. Yet of course is drawn into a sweet romance with the Fallen Woman.

Add in the action scenes. While rare, they had a big impact on me. The reason being that this was shot in 1939. Before CGI, before wires. This was all done for real. We see a man leaping from a horse onto the fist of three pairs of horses pulling the stagecoach, while all are going at a full gallop. Then he is shot and "dies", falls to the ground between the horses, and the other horses and coach pass over him. One miscalculation and that stuntman - Yakima Canutt - would have been dead. Then Wayne (or his stuntman I am sure), makes a similar leap from the coach to the first set of horses pulling it, and then continues jumping to the leading pair. Goddess, those men have balls of pure brass!

This post has been edited by SubRosa: Mar 22 2011, 09:43 PM

Finished the Borne movies. I thought Identity was a little meh, but Supremacy and Ultimatum were fantastic!

Borne will have 2 armed guys against him and in a blink of an eye he'll have them knocked out with their guns in his hands.

Goin old school here. City Lights by Charlie the Chap. It was suprisingly AMAZING for such an old 'movie'. Made me cry at the end.

This film shows that even without words, one can express his thoughts with actions. Bravo is all I can say.

I am so digging Netflix. Last night, my better half and I finished watching Season 2 of Dexter. It originally aired on Showtime. What a great show! Twisted, but really cool.

Tonight we started a new series on Netflix that was also on Showtime originally. Jeremiah. The setting is 15 years after a virus has caused every human that had past puberty to die. The end of the world meets Lord of the Flies. Awesome show so far.

This post has been edited by TheOtherRick: Mar 29 2011, 03:43 AM

Not big on watching network TV - but have found myself watching two of these quasi reality shows:

The "Top Chef All-Stars" - Missed the end of the episode, but caught a preview of the finale, looks like the cousins Mike and Antonia are going to be "batter-ing" it out.

Celebrity Apprentice - Dionne Warwick got the axe - and pretty well deserved, (IMHO). Am I the only one that thought she was closet tippling through the show? Dionne looked smashed, appeared to be holding herself upright in the chair by dint of stiffening herself into a board, either that or 'The Donald' now knows where that missing broom went.

We'll probably be seeing her in "Celebrity Rehab" next, from the lines on her face that alcohol has been pickling in her for a long time.

She quit, then tried to take it back - said she "changed her mind." (Let's hope the new one works). 'The Donald' cannot tolerate a quitter, it never went into deliberation after that.

Let's face it - he himself never gives up. He has fought tooth and nail to keep those three hairs covering that bald spot for how many years? It isn't like he couldn't go to "The Men's Club" and get implants, he certainly has the funds. But he doggedly continues in the 'comb-over'.

I always wondered if "The Adoring Fan's" hairdo was inspired by him.


Her charity earned nothing during her stint in the show - pretty unimpressive for the Diva of the 60's.

"The moment I wake up..
Before I put on my make-up,
I take a little sip of you." ... Dionne Warwick

This post has been edited by mALX: Mar 29 2011, 03:44 PM

I liked that show, but I really did not like how they ended season 2. He was my favorite character. I have not watched any of season 3.

I know....Dokes was cool. We haven't seen Season 3 yet either.

I saw that last year. It was fantastic! If you liked Babylon 5, you will like Jeremiah. It was made by the same man: J. Michael Straczynski.

Tonight I watched My Soul To Take. A solid Wes Craven teen horror film. Lots of WTF is going on moments, plus a good amount of misdirection on the part of the director. It all adds up to a fun film.

This post has been edited by SubRosa: Mar 30 2011, 02:14 AM

Still going through all the seasons of Monk (yay Netflix!). Also watching To Serve Them All My Days- it is one of those BBC series. Set at a boarding school following WWI- the main character is a shell-shocked Welshman who becomes a history teacher.

It is a bit- slow... And the episodes can be uneven.

Ooooo....Babylon 5....Now I need to see if Netflix has that too!

They do have it. There were five seasons. It is one of the best Sci-Fi shows ever made. Unlike most t.v. shows of its time, the episodes were not standalones, but rather followed a larger story though to its conclusion. You will see smaller arcs within it, but each builds upon the latter. Just like Jeremiah was.

The first season is a bit rough, mainly because of the poor acting of the lead. They get rid of him and replace him with Bruce Boxleitner at the beginning of the second season, and it really takes off then. I have to say the ending of the first season really rocks though. "Nothing's the same anymore." You will see what I mean by that. Straczynski really knows how to tell a story, how to make it epic in scale. You will see parallels to LOTOR, which was definitely an influence. But mainly Straczynski understands the power of myth and the hero-cycle, and uses that to the utmost.

There were several made for tv movies after the series. One was In The Beginning, which is actually a prequel to the series, basically setting things up, and creating links between characters that even they do not realize are there. You might start with that. Or wait until after watching the series. It is not critical either way. When I periodically go back to re-watch it, I always start with it though, just to keep it all chronological.

This post has been edited by SubRosa: Mar 30 2011, 04:02 AM