The French Connection

 And this week's Friday night movie has been... The French Connection!

Original image located here. Accessed 28th June 2024

Best Picture Oscar winner no.: 44 (1971)

Hey, did you now that the director of The Exorcist made other movies? And he has a Best Director Oscar to his name?!

Okay, sarcasm aside, this is very much a product of it's time: the era of New Hollywood was underway and the Academy voters has discovered cynicism. And here we do indeed have a more realistic approach to film-making and film-makers more than willing to take risks. 

And it works. There's so many highlights I don't know where to start: Gene Hackman on fire. An opening scene that has our protagonist dressed as Santa Claus chasing down and beating up a guy. A detective protagonist that is less Dirty Harry and more Captain Ahab. An intense car chase that was famously illegally shot. Some truly stunning location photography. The template for countless police procedural movies to follow. And an ending that hits like a truck.

Speaking of which, is this the bleakest movie to win the Best Picture Oscar? One would think so but that's what makes it a unique entry compared to it's brethren. And all the better for it. 

Inside Out 2

Recently I saw Inside Out 2.

In a way I'm not surprised that Inside Out would get the sequel treatment: the original idea is strong enough that there is plenty of room to expand. Are the five emotions the only ones? Are there more? And if so, are they there for all time? And what happens to Headquarters when one reaches the end of their life?

It would be easy to dismiss this movie as being nothing more than a cash grab and has no hope of replicating, let alone surpassing, the magic of the original. 
And yet, that may be case but I'm not willing to write this movie completely. There is certainly a lot of expansion on the original idea as we see Riley movie into her teens and gain a whole bunch of new emotions. True a lot of them don't do much - and I can't help but notice that Joy is still the only positive emotion present - but Anxiety makes for a compelling addition. Indeed, it may hit a little too close to home for some people to see Anxiety at work - in particular the representation of a panic attack is genuinely frightening. 

All in all, a solid sequel and I'm keen to see where this series goes to next.

Midnight Cowboy

And this week's Friday night movie has been... Midnight Cowboy!

Original image located here. Accessed 21st June 2024

Best Picture Oscar winner no.: 42 (1969)

Last week, I talked about that particular movie being the last of the old guard. Well, here we have the first of the new. 

Nowadays we may debate about the Oscars getting it wrong but personally, I think such a debate is a disservice to the times when the Academy shows a spine and gives the top prize to something daring. 
Of course, a film that has a heavy gay theme, helmed by a director who is gay, would be the type of film that, nowadays, the Academy would be falling over themselves to shower accolades. Thing is, this won big in 1969. And is, so far, the only R18+ movie to win Best Picture.
Furthermore, given the passage of time, this seems worlds apart from the type of movie that was winning big in the 1950s and 60s. Coming off the back of Oliver!, one would think that the movie-making rulebook changed overnight. 

Indeed, this movie comes across as incredibly cynical: The two leads are a pair of lost souls, the streets of New York shown here look anything but attractive, the struggle of making a living is a key theme, likewise for the pursuit for identity, the editing is fast paced, and the spotlight is shown on the misfits of life. Heavy themes indeed, and it is indeed ballsy for a movie to demand the audience meet it on it's own terms. 

There's no way around it: This is the announcement that the New Hollywood had begun and audiences everywhere had no choice but to get used to it. 
That being said, what do I think of this movie? Well it still has a power that still resonates decades later and still has a brutality that few other movies can match. It may be a game-changer but, thankfully, for the right reasons.

Oliver!

And this week's Friday night movie has been... Oliver!

Original image located here. Accessed 14th June 2024

Best Picture Oscar winner no.: 41 (1968)

When I was planning this year-long operation out, I was tossing up whether to include this movie in the schedule. But in the end, I remembered I have a resonance with Oliver as I have performed in the original musical on stage. So we're watching this then.
It's also worthy of note that this movie came out at the beginning of the New Hollywood era (1968-1980) which would make it the last of the old guard. With this in mind, it's strangely fitting that this movie won Best Picture over Bonnie and Clyde - the movie that is largely credited as being the starting point of the New Hollywood.

Given the source material, as in both the musical and Dickens' original text, it would be easy to dismiss this as an adaption and nothing more. And yet, there is much to admire here. The cast is fantastic with both the children and adults doing a top notch job. In particular, Oliver Reed is chilling as Bill Sykes and Ron Moody is fantastic as Fagin to the point of becoming the model for all to follow (why didn't he win the Oscar for Best Actor?). The musical sequences are all well done, the use of colour is superb and there is a solid balance of bright and dark to make this an ideal family movie. 

But in the end, as mentioned above, this is the last of the old guard. Watching this I can't help but feel this is a product of an engine running out of steam. Seems a change was needed.....

In the Heat of the Night

  And this week's Friday night movie has been... In the Heat of the Night!

Original image located here. Accessed 7th June 2024

Best Picture Oscar winner no.: 40 (1967)

In recent years, some people have grumbled that the Oscars have become 'too political'. I personally don't know what they're complaining about because as I have traversed through Oscar history it seems that they have always been political. 
And so we come to this: One of the more indispensable Best Picture winners with an agenda behind it. 
Because this came during the Civil Rights Movement and saw a dramatic change in the perception of people of colour.

Needless to say, I can only wonder the audience reaction to see a person of colour not only in a leading role but playing a character who has a well-paying career, in a position of credibility, can take charge of situations, is intelligent and doesn't take any crap from anyone. Radical at the time? Without a doubt. A trailblazer? Sadly, not a lot of movies since have taken note. 
It's interesting to note that this may be a 'message' movie but it doesn't feel like a message movie largely because it comes across as wanting to talk to it's audience as opposed to talking down to it's audience. I think this due to the movie being unafraid to challenge the perceptions of it's protagonist (ie Gillespie's "You Listen to me" speech) 

Still Sidney Poitier has a presence that is unbeatable and Rod Steiger is just as compelling. The murder mystery is handled well and the movie is gripping stuff all the way through.  

Really, this is a class act all the way.