THE BOYS FROM BRAZIL
YOUR MAY 2003 RMC RESULTS ARE IN!
The Preshow Entertainment was DAVID BOWIE'S SERIOUS MOONLIGHT TOUR. We got to watch about 5 songs. I often questioned his set list for this show, which says it is from Japan, but seems to be lying to us (lotsa caucs in the crowd). He opened with LOOK BACK IN ANGER. Not a big hit for him. Next was HEROES, which is a simple song brought to life by a man who understands what the meaning of "performer" is (have you heard The Wallflowers ultra-boring version?). Then WHAT IN THE WORLD from his album LOW (I got to tell my LOW story- After Bowie released LOW, Nick Lowe released an EP called BOWE). From the SHOWING YOUR AGE DEPARTMENT- I remember LOW was the first record to have an $8.98 list (from $7.98). It set the trend. I don't think I ever got over it.
Then he went into the fabulous GOLDEN YEARS (I remember him lip-synching this
on Soul Train), and a medley of FASHION (my favorite Bowie rocker) and LET'S
DANCE (maybe my least favorite Bowie song, but I believe his biggest hit).
He looked great and sounded great (of course, why would anyone release a
video where he looked like shit and couldn't sing). He was still a bit "thin
white duke"-y, maybe between that and his current "classy."
The Random Movie selected was-
A movie I really love to death. Now you're probably thinking, all the movies in your collection are movies you like. Well, no. I probably haven't seen most of the movies. And the rest? A mix of movies I like (and love) and movies that suck, so we can have a nice selection. I mean, we need some clunkers (we had LONELY LADY) now and then.
I used to say of THE BOYS FROM BRAZIL that if you buy the premise, you will love the movie. True for any movie, but super true for a movie with a preposterous story. But it unfolds so well, by the time the story gets silly, you're hooked.
Franklin Schaffner, the late and great, was brilliant. He had a great eye for detail. I love what ELSE is going on his shots. There's a lot of busy, and at the same time, his style is very slow. He takes his time. It's a great way to build suspense. He did PLANET OF THE APES (the telling, not the re-telling), and his use of pacing is what nails the suspense, especially in the first 1/4 of the movie. I wish he had made more movies. I remember after seeing APES for the what, 10th time? I rented NICHOLAS & ALEXANDRA. I dubbed it, but never got around to seeing it. (He also did PAPILLON and PATTON, but we'll forgive him for YES, GIORGIO). Schaffner knew what he was doing. Today he'd be lost among the MTV and commercial directors now doing features.
I won't tell you too much about this movie at the risk of tipping it, but I will say you watch Lawrence Olivier as Lieberman (a Simon Wiesenthal-type Nazi Hunter) and you simply believe him. You watch him, and gasp at his choices.
Gregory Peck plays Josef Mengele. Again, without telling you too much, what bad can you say about a movie where Lawrence Olivier and Gregory Peck bite each other's ears, pull their mouths apart, scratch their faces off, etc.
Also in the cast, James Mason (wearing rad boots), Ute Hagen, a young Steve Guttenberg (whereas Olivier is great even when he is bad, Guttenberg is bad even when he is great), John "Pippin" Rubinstein (son of Arturo), and even Anne Meara.
TRIVIA: The boy, Jeremy Black, auditioned for a play I directed back in 1990.
Maybe you think I'm getting too excited about this movie. And maybe you are right. But THE BOYS FROM BRAZIL is a movie that is a must on your list. If you have Netflix, QUEUE IT!
Tags: random movie club, the boys from brazil, david bowie, serious moonlight tour
