FILM FRENZY

Michelle Pfeiffer in What Lies Beneath (Photo: Shout! Studios)

By Matt Brunson

(For a review of the new 4K UHD + Blu-ray release of Re-Animator, go here.)

(View From The Couch is a weekly column that reviews what’s new on Blu-ray, 4K and DVD. Ratings are on a four-star scale.)

JUST FRIENDS (2005). There were so many high-gross-out, low-IQ comedies made during the 2000s that it often felt like they rolled off a conveyor belt. Just Friends is exactly that sort of dumdum fare, yet it fares a bit better than most thanks primarily to a note-perfect cast tackling this material as if it were Shakespeare. In the establishing flashback sequences, it’s shown that portly New Jersey high school kid Chris Brander (Ryan Reynolds in a fat suit) suffers many humiliations due to his friendship with the popular Jamie Palamino (Amy Smart). Cut to a decade later, and Chris is now a successful — and skinny — L.A. music executive whose favorite pastime is womanizing. Forced to babysit imbecilic pop star Samantha James (Anna Faris), he returns to his Jersey hometown and bumps into Jamie. It’s an awkward reunion, and Chris’ attempts to woo her are hampered by a series of mishaps. This opens the door for another high school nerd who has since blossomed, sensitive Dusty Dinkleman (Chris Klein), to make his play for Jamie. Too many gags fizzle, and it all ends in predictable fashion, but Just Friends nevertheless offers a few solid laughs and a hilarious performance by Christopher Marquette as Chris’ younger brother Mike (the film gets a lot of comic mileage out of their physically abusive relationship). Smart has never been more appealing, and while Faris has tackled this sort of role numerous times, she always devours it with ravenous zeal. As for Reynolds and Klein, they’re both aptly cast as two dudes with different approaches to the dating game.

Blu-ray extras include behind-the-scenes featurettes; deleted and alternate scenes; and a gag reel.

Movie: ★★½

MERRY-GO-ROUND (1923). Merry-Go-Round was first and foremost an Erich von Stroheim production, with the filmmaker commissioned to write and direct the picture following the success of 1922’s Foolish Wives (reviewed here). But tensions between von Stroheim and Universal began immediately, and von Stroheim was soon fired and replaced by Rupert Julian. Very little of what remains in Merry-Go-Round was shot by von Stroheim, leading cineastes over the decades to wonder what sort of classic he would have made had he completed the film. It’s a fair speculation, but too many unfairly make it sound like Julian was basically the Uwe Boll of the silent era, taking von Stroheim’s baby and murdering it. That’s hardly the case, as this box office hit stands as an absorbing and often moving melodrama. Mary Philbin delivers one of the finest performances I’ve ever seen in a silent flick — she plays Agnes Urban, an organ grinder who works alongside her father (Cesare Gravina, also excellent) in an amusement park in Vienna. Agnes falls for Franz Hohenegg (Norman Kerry), believing him to be a tie salesman when he’s actually a count set to marry another woman (Dorothy Wallace) for political purposes. The busy storyline rarely slows down, even finding room for an orangutan, and only the rushed and awkward ending disappoints (it’s hard to cheer when another key character’s unhappiness is so magnified). Two years later, Julian would helm the best filmic Phantom of the Opera, the one with Lon Chaney (and Philbin), while one year later, von Stroheim would run into more trouble trying to release his 9½-hour cut of Greed.

Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by film historian Richard Koszarski; the 1915 movie Old Heidelberg, co-starring von Stroheim; and six shorts showing early 20th century life in Vienna.

Movie: ★★★

SHORT NIGHT OF GLASS DOLLS (1971). Here’s a giallo that most of the time doesn’t even feel like a giallo, given the lack of graphic violence, the absence of an endless succession of murders, and the minimal employment of garish color schemes throughout. The picture finds Jean Sorel cast as a journalist whose paralyzed state leads everyone to believe he’s dead. As doctors prepare to perform an autopsy on his body, his mind races to solve the mystery behind his present state, a startling development that began with the recent disappearance of his girlfriend (Barbara Bach, six years before becoming a Bond girl and 10 years before becoming Mrs. Ringo Starr). In the current climate, this unusual effort works just as well as an expose of the evil machinations of the ruling class as it does as a murder-mystery or a horror yarn. It’s ultimately a thinly veiled indictment of the perpetual power structures that will seemingly never die out, be it the rich over the middle and lower classes, aged cynicism over youthful idealism, or conservative beliefs over progressive values. Writer-director Aldo Lado refuses to pull punches at any point, resulting in a shocking denouement.

The excellent 4K + Blu-ray edition not only contains the original theatrical cut (in either original Italian or English dubbing) but also a 35mm grindhouse version and the American VHS version (ah, the days of pan & scan!) titled Paralyzed. Extras include audio commentary by Lado and Federico Caddeo, director of the documentary All the Colors of Giallo (reviewed here); interviews with Lado and Sorel; the credits for the film’s release in Germany, where it was called Malastrana; and an isolated track of Ennio Morricone’s score. A 64-page booklet is also included.

Movie: ★★★

SPRINGFIELD RIFLE (1952). Springfield Rifle isn’t really about the titular weapon any more than GoldenEye was about the exploding pin given to James Bond by reliable Q. Like that writing instrument, the firearm is discussed then forgotten until its presence is needed for the climax. The focus of this Civil War actioner is instead on the troubles of Lex Kearney (Gary Cooper), a Union Army major who’s accused of cowardice and dishonorably discharged. Angered by his treatment, he then aligns himself with a gang of Confederate sympathizers stealing Union horses and weapons. Gary Cooper, that most noble of movie heroes, playing a coward and a traitor? Say it ain’t so! It ain’t so. Kearney is only pretending to be such an unsavory character so that he can join the rebel bunch and ascertain the identity of the Union officer providing them with valuable intel. Cooper made two Westerns in 1952, and it’s safe to say he probably preferred the other one — after all, High Noon won him his second Best Actor Oscar and is routinely hailed as one of the all-time great Westerns. Springfield Rifle, on the other hand, only sporadically rises above the level of a routine oater, given some lift by its espionage angle but defeated by drab characters and unexceptional action sequences. The supporting cast includes Lon Chaney Jr., Alan Hale Jr., and Paul Kelly, but no one has much of an opportunity to stand out.

Blu-ray extras consist of the 1952 live-action short So You Want to Enjoy Life; the 1952 cartoons Rabbit’s Kin (starring Bugs Bunny) and Feed the Kitty; and the theatrical trailer.

Movie: ★★

THE UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG (1964). How pronounced is Damien Chazelle’s love for The Umbrellas of Cherbourg? Not only did the Oscar-winning filmmaker cite that French release as an influence on his La La Land, but he had previously lifted two of its characters’ names for his jazz-infused 2009 effort Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench. Chazelle is hardly alone in his appreciation of writer-director Jacques Demy’s musical, which upon its original release emerged as an international sensation. Winner of the Palme d’Or at Cannes, the film is a musical from first note to last, with every word sung by its characters (Demy wrote the lyrics while Michel Legrand handled the music). At heart a simple love story between a young girl (Catherine Deneuve) who works at an umbrella shop and a young man (Nino Castelnuovo) who works as an auto mechanic, the film is effortlessly romantic but also hauntingly bittersweet, and the vibrant color schemes employed by Demy match anything later attempted by Pedro Almodovar. The Umbrellas of Cherbourg earned five Academy Award nominations, including bids for Best Foreign Language Film, Best Original Screenplay, and in three different music categories. A follow-up of sorts appeared three years later in the form of The Young Girls of Rochefort, with Deneuve returning as a different character and Gene Kelly imported from Hollywood to contribute movie-star magic in a supporting role.

Extras in the 4K + Blu-ray edition include a 2008 documentary on the film; a 1964 television interview with Demy and Legrand; a 1983 audio interview with Deneuve; and a restoration demonstration.

Movie: ★★★½

WACKY RACES: THE COMPLETE SERIES (1968-1969). For folks of a certain age (i.e. Baby Boomers and Generation Xers, of which I am the latter), many animated characters on television seem to have been so omniscient during the preteen years that it’s fair to assume the starring vehicle must have lasted approximately eight seasons and 200 episodes. Such a lengthy tenure is usually the exception rather than the rule (see: The Flintstones with its six seasons and 166 episodes); a more accurate example would be something like The Magilla Gorilla Show (recently reviewed here), which lasted only two seasons (the second quite shortened) and 23 original episodes. And then there’s Wacky Races — while I don’t really remember the series, I do recall its central characters of the villainous Dick Dastardly and his dog Muttley. The pair seemed to be a constant fixture during a stretch of my formative years, and yet Wacky Races lasted just one season and 17 episodes, and a spin-off show, Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines (I recall this one a bit better), similarly went one and 17. No matter: Those who were fans when Wacky Races aired on Saturday mornings (and later for a lengthy syndicated run) will be thrilled to have all 17 episodes, each containing two segments, on Blu-ray. The show centers around racers who compete against each other in a string of intercoastal competitions. Dick Dastardly, aided by the sniggering Muttley, always tries to win by cheating but ends up in last place anyway. Others competing include Penelope Pitstop (who also had a short-lived spin-off series), the Ant Hill Mob, Professor Pat Pending, and the Gruesome Twosome. A decent amount of inventiveness went into this simple yet mostly satisfying series.

Blu-ray extras include a trivia track and a retrospective piece.

Series: ★★★

WHAT LIES BENEATH (2000). As schizophrenic as any movie that comes to mind, this box office hit from director Robert Zemeckis and scripter Clark Gregg (later Agent Coulson in the MCU) starts off like an imitation Rear Window with a sunnier Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf backdrop. But wait, now it’s The Haunting, and, whoops, there it goes, changing gears again to morph into Fatal Attraction. And then suddenly, we’re in Tales From the Crypt territory. At this rate, I reasonably wondered if elements from Wuthering Heights or Won Ton Ton, the Dog Who Saved Hollywood wouldn’t somehow find their way into this crazy patchwork quilt of a movie. Having just shipped their daughter (Katharine Towne) off to college, Dr. Norman Spencer (Harrison Ford) and his wife Claire (Michelle Pfeiffer) move forward, he by throwing himself into his work as a scientist and she by spying on a neighbor (James Remar) she suspects of having murdered his wife (Miranda Otto). While home alone, Claire learns that her house is being haunted by a blonde specter — after receiving little help from her skeptical husband, she finally learns the identity of the ghost, a revelation that also helps unlock some of her own buried memories. Zemeckis and Clarke don’t build on any underlying tension in the story; instead, their scares are all predictable, artificial ones (e.g. when you see a door suddenly bang open, you can guess that it’s only the family dog entering the room). The plot twists aren’t always convincing and the film’s final stretch is ludicrous. Only Pfeiffer’s strong central performance keeps this partially afloat.

Extras in the 4K + Blu-ray edition include audio commentary by Zemeckis and producers Jack Rapke and Steve Staerkey, and a new retrospective documentary.

Movie: ★★

FROM SCREEN TO STREAM

CAPTAIN AMERICA (1990). No, this isn’t the MCU Captain America;  it also isn’t the serial from the 1940s nor the 1979 TV movie. It’s the film version that failed to even receive a U.S. theatrical run, instead sitting on the studio shelf for two years (it did play internationally). The film isn’t as bad as its reputation, with its bold ambitions mainly neutralized by the lack of skill on the part of director Albert Pyun and the lack of finances on the part of notorious cheapo producer Menahem Golan (of Cannon Group infamy). In a role absurdly sought by Arnold Schwarzenegger, Matt Salinger is actually pretty good as Steve Rogers, who becomes the super-soldier Captain America and soon finds himself squaring off against the villainous Red Skull (Scott Paulin) during World War II. Cap fails to win that skirmish but gets another chance about 50 years later, after he’s thawed out from a lengthy stint in the Alaskan ice and discovers that the Red Skull is still up to his murderous ways. The microscopic budget appears to have been spent on Cap’s costume and shield (both are passable … if you squint) and a recognizable supporting cast (Ned Beatty, Ronny Cox, Darren McGavin), leaving nothing for convincing action sequences or interesting plotting. Still, it’s better than those infinitely more expensive Fantastic Four dogs that came out earlier this century (2005, 2007, 2015). Years later, a director’s cut emerged; a Charlotte screening of that version will be held May 24 at the Independent Picture House.

Movie: ★★

HAMLET (1990). Shakespeare’s immortal play has been brought to the screen on numerous occasions, but nobody had ever attempted to do what Kenneth Branagh achieved: Film the entire, uncut text. His four-hour Hamlet is a dazzling achievement, a highly charged interpretation that paints the great Dane not so much as a melancholy, morally confused prince but rather a jock with a rapier wit and an unquenchable thirst for revenge. For the most part, the acting is superb — Kate Winslet as Ophelia, Derek Jacobi as Claudius, and Richard Briers as Polonius are especially good — and Branagh and cinematographer Alex Thomson elected to shoot this in ultra-wide 70mm, resulting in some staggering vistas. Unfortunately, in an obvious attempt to add marquee value to his piece, Branagh cast some incongruous American actors in small roles, yet with the exception of Charlton Heston (surprisingly effective as the Player King), these gents (Jack Lemmon, Robin Williams, Billy Crystal) distract from the proceedings with their Yankee accents, vaudeville schtick, and awkward line deliveries. Among this film’s four Oscar nominations was a nod to Branagh for Best Adapted Screenplay — curious since the entire text was lifted straight from Shakespeare!

Movie: ★★★½

MY BODYGUARD (1980). Opening during the summer of 1980, when most moviegoers were flocking to see the high-profile likes of The Empire Strikes Back, Airplane! and The Blues Brothers, My Bodyguard — a 90-pound cinematic weakling by comparison — nevertheless managed to ride a limited-release pattern and the attendant wave of fawning reviews to a decent box office score. Chris Makepeace plays Clifford, the new kid at a Chicago public school and a frequent target of the bullying Moody (Matt Dillon) and his sycophants. Clifford eventually acquires the services of hulking fellow student Ricky Linderman (Adam Baldwin) to protect him, but as their relationship develops, Clifford soon learns about the dark secret from his new friend’s past. Scripter Alan Ormsby (better known as the writer-star of Children Shouldn’t Play with Dead Things) never decides whether violence is the problem or the solution, but his teen protagonists feel real, and there’s some additional interesting material focusing on Clifford’s life as the son of a hotel manager (Martin Mull). Joan Cusack makes her film debut as Shelley, and look for future Cheers fixture George Wendt as a hotel handyman (and although she’s unbilled, that’s clearly future Flashdance star Jennifer Beals as one of the high school teens).

Movie: ★★★

UNDER THE CHERRY MOON (1986) / GRAFFITI BRIDGE (1990). The 1984 box office hit Purple Rain was released on 4K last summer (and reviewed here), and a Blu-ray audio edition debuted last month. But while that movie briefly made Prince a movie star, his status was short-lived, as his two follow-up features effectively killed his cinematic career.

For Under the Cherry Moon, Prince took on directing as well as acting duties, and the result was a commercial bust, a critical disaster, and the winner of five Golden Raspberry Awards, including Worst Picture (tied with Howard the Duck) and Worst Actor and Worst Director prizes for Prince. As usual, Razzie voters were overreacting — let’s not forget that 1986 was the year of the Madonna bomb Shanghai Surprise, Judd Nelson in Blue City, and George P. Cosmatos helming Cobra — as there are a few compensations in this leaden tale about a gigolo named Christopher Tracy working his magic in the French Riviera. Prince is actually looser and more relaxed than in Purple Rain; he enjoys a nice rapport with Purple Rain co-star Jerome Benton, here cast as his sidekick Tricky; Kristin Scott Thomas makes a winning film debut as socialite Mary Sharon; and the rich production design by two-time Oscar winner Richard Sylbert (Dick Tracy) is captured in shimmering black and white by the great cinematographer Michael Ballhaus (Bram Stoker’s Dracula). The final stretch is grueling, but the majority is average rather than awful.

Such leeway can’t be accorded to Graffiti Bridge, a dreadful quasi-sequel to Purple Rain that found Prince overextending himself as star, director, and writer. As much of a vanity piece as his previous efforts, this one finds The Kid again locking horns with Morris (Morris Day) and his sycophant Jerome (Jerome Benton), this time over control of a nightclub known as the Glam Slam. The romantic interest this time is an angel (no, really) named Aura (bland Ingrid Chavez), who has been sent from Heaven to help The Kid get his groove back. Visually unappealing and inane at every turn, this one’s the absolute pits, and its failure at the box office (it grossed $4 million, even less than Under the Cherry Moon’s $10 million and of course far less than Purple Rain’s $68 million) ended Prince’s brief rain — excuse me, reign — as a motion picture presence.

Under the Cherry Moon: ★★

Graffiti Bridge: ★

WON TON TON, THE DOG WHO SAVED HOLLYWOOD (1976). Here we have a spoof that was inspired by the stunning success of Rin Tin Tin when the German Shepherd first appeared in motion pictures during the silent era. Rated PG, it’s a family film, but because it was made in the 1970s, it’s a family film that includes sexual harassment, attempted rape, stag films, and prostitution — to say nothing of various scenes in which dogs are involved in some pretty stressful and gruesome situations. Then again, such a mismatch of content seems perfectly in line for a film as loopy as this one. Its humor is on the anemic side, failing to conjure many laughs as it relates the rise and fall of Won Ton Ton and his human handlers, aspiring actress Estie Del Ruth (Madeline Kahn) and aspiring writer-director Grayson Potchuck (Bruce Dern). But the assemblage of former silver-screen stars in cameo appearances is absolutely staggering, with over 65 — 65! — aged celebrities popping up usually for only one second or one scene. There’s Joan Blondell as a landlady who tells a naked little girl named Norma Jean (decked out on the grass in true Marilyn fashion) to put on some clothes, former Tarzan Johnny Weissmuller as a crew member, Edger Bergen as a showman who savagely beats Won Ton Ton, Stepin Fetchit (real name, sadly not acknowledged in the film, Lincoln Perry) as a dancing butler, Milton Berle as a blind man, and on and on and on. Dern and especially Kahn do fine in a losing battle, but the only reason to see this is to play spot-the-star.

Movie: ★★

YOURS, MINE AND OURS (1968). Forget that godawful 2005 version starring Dennis Quaid and Rene Russo — for the real deal, check out the 1968 original, one of its year’s biggest hits and, incredibly, based on a true story. Lucille Ball stars as Helen North, a widow with eight children, while Henry Fonda plays Frank Beardsley, a widower with 10 children. Immediately attracted to each other, they begin dating, each reluctant to let the other know just how many rugrats are residing under their respective roofs. Despite initial resistance from most of the kids, they do eventually get married, and they try to best ascertain how to smoothly run a household that contains a whopping 18 children. Ball and Fonda are perfectly cast in this delightful family film, and Tom Bosley (later Mr. Cunningham on TV’s Happy Days) amuses in a small role as the wry family doctor. The young actors are well-chosen as well, with a few headed toward sustained careers in film and television — these include National Lampoon’s Animal House’s Tim Matheson (billed as Tim Matthieson), Bosley’s future Father Dowling Mysteries co-star Tracy Nelson, Dallas’ Morgan Brittany (billed as Suzanne Cupito), and Gary Goetzman, who subsequently turned to producing and won Emmy Awards for Game Change, Band of Brothers, and more.

Movie: ★★★½