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Why NOT To Pull A Siegel
Hello Filmspotter,
From Chicago, this is The Dope Sheet... I'm Adam Kempenaar.
Note: The Dope Sheet will be off next week while Sam enjoys his honeymoon.
In response to the recent Dope Sheet entries about 'pulling a
Siegel' -- walking out of a bad movie early -- listener Kathleen Kalb
explained that she has only skipped out of two movies before. "More
important," she writes, "is why I do not walk out on more. I see many
bad movies and I generally do not regret seeing them because I figure
you have to sift through a lot of shaft to get to the wheat. And I
always think of "Breaking the Waves." This movie was painful
to watch, I can't believe I stayed and watched it. But the last 5
minutes, for me anyway, made up for the first 2 hours of discomfort.
If I would have left, I would have missed that, and that would have
been a real shame. So anytime I think about leaving the theater I
think about "Breaking the Waves."
---
Something for us all to keep in mind, Kathleen... though I refuse
to believe the ending might have saved "Weekend at Bernie's 2." Off
the top of my head, I can only think of one real "wavebreaker" --
David Fincher's "The Game." Of course, I doubt this movie is
as difficult for anyone to sit through as "Breaking the Waves." But
when I watched it on video, I was only mildly enjoying all of its
twists and turns. Then comes the 'surprise' ending, which I know many
regard as awful. Sorry, I loved it. Sure, it's preposterous in every
way, but it made everything that came before worth it for me. We see
corny movies all the time about characters who undergo some kind of
life-changing experience. Well, I don't think it can get anymore
life-changing than what Michael Douglas goes through at the end of
"The Game." The last 5 minutes took it from an interesting diversion
to something that really made an impact on me.
Of course, I can site several more examples of just the opposite
-- movies that are completely derailed by their endings. One that
immediately comes to mind is a recent drug movie I watched in
anticipation of this week's top 5 list -- "Rush," starring
Jason Patric and Jennifer Jason Leigh as undercover narcs who fall in
love and into junkie-dom. Whenever I thought of drug movies, this
movie immediately came to mind for some reason despite having never
actually seen it (posters in a video store, maybe?). So I knew I had
to watch it, and up until the last 30 minutes or so it was decent --
solid character study about two people falling apart with good
performances by Patric and Leigh. And then it turns into a movie
about the hypocrisy of authority, culminating with a bad courtroom
scene and an even worse final scene that eliminated any positive
feelings I had left for it.
Any good "wavebreakers" come to mind for you?
Email feedback@filmspotting.net
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Trailer Trash or Treasure
The Departed
Release date: Oct. 6
Watch the trailer here
You'll recall that this movie was #1 on my Top 5 Most Anticipated
Movies of 2006 list and #2 on Sam's. It's Scorsese ... it's a
re-telling of a 2002 Hong Kong crime film I love, "Infernal Affairs,"
transplanted to South Boston ... it stars Nicholson, Matt Damon,
Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Wahlberg, Alec Baldwin, Ray Winstone and
Martin Sheen. Did I mention Scorsese?
I saw the trailer for the first time over the weekend and I have
to admit that I wasn't blown away by it for a variety of reasons. 1)
Its focus on Nicholson and Damon. DiCaprio's character gets very
little screen time here. As I recall, the Damon character from
"Infernal" (Andy Lau) IS a bit more interesting -- the cop who is
actually a bad guy as opposed to the bad guy who is actually a cop.
But Tony Leung is such a brilliant actor and presence on screen --
not to mention he's the "good" guy, of course -- that you identify
with him just as much if not more than Lau. This must be the 'bad
guy' version of the trailer; I'm sure we'll see another one that
shows more of DiCaprio.
2) The music. I'm not a fan of any of it. The Rolling Stones bit
at the beginning immediately feels like "GoodFellas" (not necessarily
a bad thing, I suppose), and there's an Irish-themed portion in the
middle that seems too lighthearted. I don't recall anything
particularly funny about "Infernal Affairs," but I'll give Scorsese
the benefit of the doubt.
3) Damon and DiCaprio. I like both of these actors, especially
Damon. But I have to be honest... just based on this trailer, they
seem too boyish to be carrying the mental baggage these characters
require (something they'll always have trouble with, I suppose). Of
course, I'm comparing them to Leung and Lau, but how can you not?
Grade: Treasure. OK, so I didn't love the trailer. It
still looks more compelling than 95% of the other trailers I've seen
recently. Plus, several of the most intense scenes from "Infernal
Affairs" seem to be in tact. Can't wait to see it.
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Overlooked DVD Pick: Permanent Midnight
 Permanent Midnight - Available through Peerflix
"Permanent Midnight" is an adaptation of television writer Jerry
Stahl's memoir of the same. Stahl wrote for the hit shows "Alf" and
"Moonlighting" in the '80s and developed a nasty little heroin habit
along the way -- six grand per week, to be exact. I watched this
movie on DVD with a couple friends and remember rewinding and
watching a part three times because we couldn't stop laughing at it
-- some bit of Ben Stiller physical humor. Of course, the movie isn't
really a comedy, but considering its star and the fact that Stahl was
a successful comedy writer, it's not really a surprise that it so
capably mixes humor with some truly disturbing drug use -- including
one scene where Stahl shoots heroin into his jugular while sitting in
his car with his infant daughter looking on from the passenger seat.
Didn't quite crack my top 10 on this week's Drug Movies list, but
came very close. Definitely worth seeing for Stiller's performance,
the dark humor and its handling of addiction.
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Email(s) of the Week
Top 5 Early Movie Memories Feedback
Sam - you walked out of The Empire Strikes Back? I find your lack
of faith ... disturbing.
Very truly yours,
Darth Vader
Hey Adam and Sam,
Just to tell you how young I am, my first boobie experience
occured when I saw Kate Winslet in all her glory in Titanic. It may
be the girliest chick flick, but I will always love it and Ms.
Winslet's assets.
Naveen Sivakumar
Toronto, ON
---
And Naveen wasn't alone with Titanic. You have no idea how old
this makes me feel.
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