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.

You Only Live Twice

And this week's Friday night movie has been... You Only Live Twice!

Original image located here. Accessed 7th May 2021

The plan to watch more James Bond movies continues.
I hadn't planned on seeing this. That was until i realised that this movie was written by one of my literacy heroes: Mr Roald Dahl. Roald Dahl writing James Bond? That seems like a combination that's too good to be true!

As it happens, this movie is not well liked by some Bond fans. Not sure why because there is a lot going for this movie. The location footage in Japan is great. The Little Nellie is fantastic. The set design is extraordinary (particularly the lair at the film's climax). The Final fight scene is one of the finest action sequences ever conceived. We have a face reveal of Blofeld and Tiger Tanaka is a great character. So what's the problem?
Okay sure the formula is clearly setting in, sure Connery may be phoning his performance in and Bond's Japanese disguise makes him look like a Romulan but are those enough to be a deal-breaker? I don't think so.
And in the terms of this series, You Only Live Twice does indeed serve as a good way to farewell the Connery era. Which means starting next month, we start taking a look at his successors.

The Graduate

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

Original image located here. Accessed 29th June 2018

It's been fifty one years since this movie was first released. Fifty one years! Considering the ravager that is Time (and how people these days would associate The Sound of Silence more with Sad Affleck), how does this movie hold up?

Well the acting is great, I like the scenes of repartee and this is definitely a document of the counter-culture/rebelliousness that defined much of the 1960s.
But is this the romantic-comedy this film has been pitched as? I think not. Maybe I'm viewing this through the lens of age and experience but Ben doesn't resonate with me that much. He's not interested in his future, he just wants to rebel against the confines of his life. And he does - but, as that last shot indicates, he's not sure what to do next. And he, along with Elaine, are both stuck with nowhere to go from there.

So in a way, I don't get The Graduate as a rom-com - in fact not as a comedy at all. It's something different. And more substantial.

"Hello darkness my old friend..."