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Filmspotting buys a house ... on the lake
 Wanted to share a couple of programming notes to start off... First,
be assured that, unlike Filmspotting #108, future Chicago Public
Radio editions of the show will not have nearly as much -- if any --
repeated content. (To be fair, it was only about 12 minutes in a 58
minute show.) In fact, we've already got the July show planned if
you're curious:
1. Review: Lady in the Water
2. Review: Clerks II
3. Massacre Theatre, Interview (Guest TBA)
4. Top 5 Male-Bonding Movies ... tying in with our planned guest
and, of course, Clerks II.
Also, on Tuesday's show and in the show you'll hear Friday, we
promote next week's Arthouse Roundup featuring reviews of "The
Proposition" and "Down in the Valley." Unfortunately, Sam won't be
able to get to "Valley" before we record next, so we've decided to
mix things up a little bit and devote the first segment to three
movies -- "The Proposition," "An Inconvenient Truth" and, yes, "The
Lake House."
Misael in Ft. Lauderdale explains: "I know what makes a great
film. But I also know what makes great entertainment, and The Lake
House is just that. It contains no subtext or higher meaning. It is
what's presented at its surface; it is what it is: a wonderful piece
of romantic escapism, to be savored and enjoyed like a mid-summer's
sunset."
Evelyn in New York writes: "On a side note, while I get why many
would not dig The Lake House with its seemingly drippy
sentimentality... I think it was actually the better movie this
summer and found it very affecting and moving. I realize many critics
have dismissed it as illogical and lame, and in all honesty, how
'realistic' did they expect a movie with a magic mailbox to be?"
James in Chicago calls it "the biggest surprise so far this year."
OK, you've convinced us. We'll see it. Actually, it wasn't YOU so
much as that great Coldplay... I mean, KEANE... song.
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Nothing seems right in Cars
Everybody remembers Gary Numan, right? Anyone? The '80s? Man, I'm
old...
Last week in The Dope Sheet I printed an email from listener Nick
Poblocki wondering why we weren't going to review the new Pixar movie
"Cars." Basically, we've just been more curious about other movies --
yes, even "Nacho Libre." However, I did see "Cars" opening weekend
with the wife and kids and, for whatever it's worth, my 4 year-old
son stared at the screen with a smile on his face the entire movie
and still mentions Lightning McQueen (voiced by Owen Wilson) roughly
400 times a day. So there you have it -- Holden Kempenaar gives it 5
stars.
Well, son, I understand what you're saying... but... you're
wrong. On my Pixar rankings list (see below), "Cars" finishes dead
last. It's not a bad movie, not at all; the racing scenes at the
beginning and end are particularly fun.
But for my taste, there was too much medicine and not enough
sugar, which is something I feared going in after hearing director
John Lasseter on "The Treatment" with Elvis Mitchell. Lasseter
discussed how "personal" the story was, how his wife made him realize
that he was working so much that he was missing watching his kids
grow up, how important it is to slow down and realize what's
important...
Maybe I'm too cynical, but for a decent chunk of the movie,
"Cars" felt just as preachy as that last paragraph must have sounded.
I know, ALL of the Pixar movies -- not to mention virtually all
animated movies -- impart important life lessons. But "Cars" was the
first time the moralizing was so blatant that it actually got in the
way of the entertainment. There's a long passage in the movie where
Sally (Bonnie Hunt) explains to Lightning McQueen what their town was
like back in the glory days of Route 66, back before the interstate
was built to shave a few minutes off everyone's trips -- effectively
eliminating the need for any meaninful car-to-car interaction. It all
could have been very touching if it wasn't so forced.
It made me think of the incredibly moving "When She Loved Me"
sequence in "Toy Story 2" where Jesse recounts how her owner grew up
and forgot about her. Somehow we know exactly what she is singing
about. We can relate because we can put ourselves in both her
position and her owner's position; growing up means casting aside
childish things. The song has an "important" message -- or at least
has a real emotional kick -- without coming off as grandiose or
manipulative. Lasseter seems to want this 'glory days' sequence to
have the same emotional/nostalgic resonance, but it doesn't even come
close. Maybe I'm too caught up in the rat race to relate.
My Pixar Rankings (the top 4 are pretty interchangeable)
Finding Nemo
Toy Story
Toy Story 2
The Incredibles
Monsters, Inc.
A Bugs Life
Cars
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Overlooked DVD Pick: This So-Called Disaster
 I'm positive a listener recently suggested a Stage Adaptations top 5,
but I can't find the email... So, let's just say I was inspired to
make this pick -- or picks -- by our recent Marathon review of
Herzog's "Woyzeck," based on the Georg Buchner play.
I'm going with a Sam Shepard multimedia trifecta:
1. Michael Almereyda's 2002 documentary
"This So-Called Disaster - available through Peerflix.
The movie details the weeks leading up to the premiere of Shepard's
play "The Late Henry Moss." Shepard, who worked with Almereyda on the
Ethan Hawke "Hamlet," directs the play, which stars Sean Penn, Nick
Nolte and Woody Harrelson. I'm not sure I came away from "Disaster"
with a much clearer understanding of what makes Shepard tick as an
artist, but then, you won't find many people more aloof than he is.
It's worth seeing just to be taken behind the curtain and glimpse
what Shepard is like as a director, not to mention watching great
actors like Penn, Nolte and Harrelson struggle their way through some
truly challenging material.
2. If you can track it down -- some libraries have it -- check
out the American Playhouse (PBS, 1984) version of Shepard's
"True West" starring John Malkovich and Gary Sinise. Brilliant
actors, brilliant play. I'll always regret never doing whatever it
took to fly to New York to see the 2000 version featuring Philip
Seymour Hoffman and John C. Reilly as brothers Austin and Lee.
Here's an excerpt from the NY Times review: "Speaking of
competitions, let's get one crucial thing out of the way. You've
probably heard by now that Mr. Reilly and Mr. Hoffman are alternating
in the lead roles in 'True West' ... Rest assured that no matter
which performance of the production you attend, there's no way you're
going to lose."
Hoffman. Reilly. Alternating parts. True West. Come on, the
chance to watch either of those guys as Lee one night and then Austin
the next ... I'll start the bidding at a kidney.
3. Finally, I'd be remiss if I didn't recommend my favorite Sam
Shepard play -- "The Tooth of Crime." That's right, something to
read! I'm pretty sure I can't sum up the text any better than
Randomhouse does, so here goes: "An aging rock star in a world in
which entertainment and street warfare go hand in hand, Hoss must
defend himself against Crow, a newcomer who battles him for fame.
Combining musical styles and intense dialogue in an unconventional
musical-fantasy, Tooth of Crime riffs brilliantly on rising stars and
fading legends, and rock lived and died for."
Shepard wrote the play in 1972 and it feels just as relevant, if
not more so, today. The verbal battles between Hoss and Crow are
truly exhilarating, like witnessing Charlie Parker and John Coltrane
in a last man standing sax duel.
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