Hola all! Well, its another week and time for another
AFI update - I am really starting to roll through these suckers! Had a great bunch of films on tap for this round:
The Deer Hunter: Intense doesn't even begin to describe this film, which stars Christopher Walken and Robert DeNiro as two friends who leave their small mill town to go fight in Vietnam. They are captured and forced to participate in their captives sick game of Russian Roulette they put on between the prisoners. Managing to escape, due to DeNiro's character Michael's daring risk with the game, the two manage to get out with their lives, but not without some very deep scars. Michael returns home a reluctant hero, and ends up getting close to Walken's girlfriend, played by Meryl Streep (who knew she was in this!?). He soon finds out that his friend is still deep in the city of Saigon, making money at an underground Russian Roulette club, where it seems he's developed a taste for the game. If you watch this film, you may wonder to yourself why the director chose to spend so much time on the wedding ceremony & reception that happens at the beginning of the film (it takes up a good hour of the movie!). Personally, I think we needed to see these men, their lives, and who they were BEFORE they left for war, because who they are after it shows just how much the toll of violence takes on people. This is a hard movie to watch because it is so unflinching in its depiction of conflict (people set on fire, bones poking through skin, and of course, the Russian Roulette scenes), but its never done for gratuity's sake. This is a film of contrasts, of beauty and death, discord and moments of quite heartbreak. Though Christopher Walken is the actor most associated with this film, it is really about DeNiro - the film's "Deer Hunter." I won't go into the obvious symbolism that occurs between the deer hunts and the war, but it definitely does make its point.
West Side Story: This award-winning musical adaptation of the classic tragedy, Romeo and Juliet tells the story of two warring New York City gangs- the white Jets (led by Riff) and the Puerto Rican Sharks (led by Bernardo). Their hatred escalates to a point where both sides plan a winner-take-all rumble to decide control of the streets. But when Riff's best friend (and former Jet) Tony and Bernardo's younger sister Maria meet at a dance, no one can do anything to stop their love. Maria and Tony begin meeting in secret, planning to run away. Unfortunately, both get caught in the crossfire of the gang war, and before anyone knows it, it all goes heartbreakingly wrong. The music in this film is just incredible, and even if you've never seen the film or the Broadway show, you probably know at least a little bit of one of the songs. The cast is great as well, especially the phenomenal Rita Moreno as Anita.
Rear Window: A movie who's premise and visuals have been referenced and spoofed in countless other films and tv shows, including The Burbs' and The Simpsons, Rear Window tells the story of photographer LB Jeffries (played by James Stewart) who is confined to a wheelchair after a photography assignment gone wrong. Bored, he passes the time by looking at his neighbor's lives through his window, seeing them go about their daily activities (there is a struggling composer, a female dancer who enjoys prancing around in her underwear, and a salesman with a bedridden wife). One night, Jeffries notices that the salesman's wife has disappeared, soon after the salesman is spotted by Jeffries lugging a large sample case out of his apartment at 2 in the morning. He suspects foul play, and brings in his caretaker Stella and his girlfriend Lisa (played by the gorgeous Grace Kelly) to help him prove it. The set design for this film is probably one of the best done for the movies, and it unfolds like a play to the viewer. Hitchcock knew his audience, and actually had his characters become the audience for this film, turning them into the ones that could only sit helplessly by and shout "no - don't go in there!" Rear Window becomes this especially bizarre voyeuristic experience where the viewer watches the watcher watching the watched! Brill!
Next in my film queue: A Streetcar Named Desire, It Happened One Night, Shane
Tired of the same-old, same-old, 4th of July celebrations? The obligatory parades that seem to consist only of eight floats? The 5 mile long traffic jams and $10-an-hour parking? Screaming kids and waiting three hours for a 30-minute firework display to start? Well, banish those bad, tired "celebrations" and instead, celebrate our nation's independence by checking out the live local music of the "Live Free or Die" state!
New Hampshire Magazine
The Portsmouth Music Hall
