Chevy Chase and Carrie Fisher in a muted Oz comedy

UNDER THE RAINBOW (1981)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

Slapstick and screwball comedies are dependent on a consistent rapid-fire tone, or at least having situations that develop at a fast clip. "Under the Rainbow" is a cross between a screwball "It Happened One Night" and a Blake Edwards slapstick comedy. There is a little of everything here, from mistaken identities to clumsy pratfalls to destruction of any semblance of normalcy. Anarchic is one way to describe it, but funny it is not.

Chevy Chase is an American Secret Service agent who is protecting a royal duke (Joseph Maher) and his duchess (Eve Arden) from assassination attempts. All three characters stay at an L.A hotel which happens to be a stone throw away from the MGM studios where "The Wizard of Oz" is going be filmed. Carrie Fisher works for a movie studio and is in charge of all the Munchkin actors who practically tear up the entire hotel by swinging on chandeliers, playing music with kitchen appliances, removing elevator cables, etc. Adam Arkin is the hotel assistant manager who eventually gives up trying to restore order. We also have Mako as a Japanese spy, a Nazi dwarf (Billy Barty) who holds some secret map of Germany, a dwarf from Kansas with dreams of stardom (Cork Hubbert) and there is another assassin with revenge on his mind, and I just about lost count of any other characters that appear.

"Under the Rainbow" is ambitious in content but an unforgivable mess overall - it is overcooked and too busy. Not one character ever sticks out except as a slapstick routine minus pitch, humor, a joke or any remote sense of comic timing. Perhaps picking a director like Steve Rash (who helmed "The Buddy Holly Story") was not the wisest move - this movie desperately needed the anarchic and brilliantly funny staging of Blake Edwards (why he wasn't chosen to make this film instead of those dreadful last couple of Pink Panther sequels I will never know). Chevy Chase is so subdued that he barely exists, and the same holds true of Carrie Fisher (their one kiss scene is romantic though). Billy Barty's monocle-wearing Nazi grows repetitious - one scene lasts more than ten minutes where he runs for an eternity inside that hotel with barely a laugh. If only the movie settled down with the one scenario that works - the crashing of the "Wizard of Oz" and "Gone With the Wind" sets during a car chase where we see Clark Gable! It is the best part of the movie but by then, we really wish we were somewhere else. Munchkinland, perhaps? 

The dead shall rise...and get married

CORPSE BRIDE (2005)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

        Tim Burton's "Corpse Bride" is a return to the stop-motion 

animation of his incredibly inventive film from 1993, "The

Nightmare Before Christmas." Is it as good? Not quite, but

it is no downer either and has enough wit and imagination to

rise above most animated films of late.

Johnny Depp voices the lead character, a worrisome wart

named Victor who's about to get married to Victoria (Emily

Watson), an also highly demure girl. Victoria's parents are

the Everglots, Maudeline and Finnie (Joanna Lumley and

Albert Finney), a couple of dour people who don't like each

other and maintain a house of dour paintings of their ancestors.

The Everglots look forward to this union because Victor's parents,

Nell and William Van Dort (Tracey Ullman and Paul Whitehouse),

are wealthy fishmongers who would lend financial stability and

some status to them in this colorless town. Victor has trouble at

the wedding rehearsal and wonders if this union is something he

really wants. He crosses a bridge into a world where corpses and

skeletons walk about. Before you can say that this is an animated

version of "Night of the Living Dead" crossed with Ray Harryhausen,

Victor mistakenly places his wedding ring in the finger of a female

corpse named Emily (voiced by Helena Bonham Carter)! Worse

yet, he does so while preparing his vows! Now Emily thinks she

is the lucky bride-to-be, fulfilling her dream of walking up the altar.

"Corpse Bride" is not a wicked black comedy nor is it suffused with

any gore gags (though there is a maggot with a Peter Lorre voice).

In fact, it is hardly as wicked as "Nightmare Before Christmas" and

I suppose that is what I miss. Tim Burton has often suffused his own

fairy tales, such as "Edward Scissorhands," with a dark sense of

humor. Burton at his best epitomized the rose with a black cherry

on top that would ooze a trickle of blood. That is not to say that his

films were always nasty or violent but the threat was always there

with ominous atmosphere and ghastly characters. "Nightmare Before

Christmas" had some of that, including a lead character named Jack

Skellington who loved Halloween and dressed up as Santa Claus

giving horrendous contraptions as gifts to kids on Christmas.

"Corpse Bride" is not filled with such humor - it is lighter fare with

a love story as its focus (The same was true with Burton's last picture, "Big Fish").

Don't read this as a negative review. There is much to admire in

"Corpse Bride." The movie occasionally has raucous energy, sometimes

taking it up an extra notch with vivid musical numbers featuring skeletons (though the

songs don't rate as memorably as Oogie Boogie's song or Jack

Skellington's "What's This?" from "Nightmare Before Christmas"). I love

the look of the film, basic Burtonian visuals with the grayish,

black-and-white world of some aristocratic society coupled with bursts of

color in the world of the Land of the Dead (Once again, corpses are

always more colorful than humans). The animation is extraordinary in

every sense of the word. The characters are engaging enough, though

Depp's Victor was somewhat standoffish to me. The soul of the movie is

really poor Emily whose eyeball is always popping out of its socket -

she may be dead but she wants to be loved like everyone else.

"Corpse Bride" is good enough and clever enough, and I smiled through

most of it. The ending is stunningly beautiful and rhapsodic. But the film

lacks the flavor and the sense of dread that we've come to expect from

Burton. Perhaps time has caught up with him and we no longer see the

surprise in watching an animated cadaverous underworld. Such

sanguineless characters deserve more than a pretty little love story.

Severed entrails in listless Ripper tale

FROM HELL (2001)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

Jack Ripper is known for being the notorious serial killer of the 19th century who was never caught ("I invented the 20th century"). A slew of films and books have theorized on the identity of the killer, ranging from some unknown peasant to someone connected to the Royal Family. "From Hell," based on the graphic novel of the same name by Alan Moore III, makes the case that someone from the Royal Family might have been the Ripper. Though it is a mystery that is somewhat compelling, it fails miserably to gain our interest.

Set in 1888, "From Hell" stars Johnny Depp as the real-life Inspector George Abberline, a laudanum addict who has visions of the future (in real-life, he was a portly man who looked nothing like Depp). Apparently, some of Abberline's visions involve Jack the Ripper's murderous rampage in the slum area of Whitechapel, located on the East End of London. It is a city that is dark, dank and oozes corruption and menace on every corner. Murder is also a commodity in this town but this Ripper is no ordinary murderer. He kills prostitutes and "removes their livelihood," in rather grisly, gruesome ways. Inspector Abberline is convinced that it is no peasant or poverty-stricken individual - it is an educated man of some esteem and possibly a surgeon due to the dexterous manner in which the victims are butchered.

Abberline notices several details in the murder of these prostitutes. The most telling detail is the roots of grapes left behind, a tactic used by the killer to lure the victim. Also, the knifes used might have been surgical tools. This would mean that a surgeon could be responsible for the murders, considering they took place in the dark where he would instinctively know how to perform his handiwork. One prostitute that might be able to help Abberline in his search is redheaded Mary Kelly (Heather Graham) who was well acquainted with the slain prostitutes. Still, this relationship develops into an unconvincing love story that simply marks time.

Most of "From Hell" is in-your-face with little grace or style. The directors are the Hughes Brothers, responsible for the nightmarish classic "Menace II Society." That film was harsh and offputting but for a justifiable purpose, to place us in the unpredictable chaos of living in a ghetto where a gunshot was as frequent as a car noise. "From Hell" needed some space to breathe and perhaps a degree of elegance to tell such a compelling story. Instead, we have Abberline's dreams which consist of green-tinted, jump-cutted nightmares of cobblestones and blood. The cinematography is so dark and often out-of-focus that it is hard to discern what is happening half the time. The washed-out, desaturated color schemes are becoming a frequent style in films nowadays but here, it smacks of mediocrity. Black-and-white would serve the story better, a Universal Gothic approach a la Tod Browning's "Dracula."

Frankly, the pacing of "From Hell" is laborious and disconnected. I could swear I was almost ready to fall asleep at times, but the film picks up when the focus is on the grisly investigation. That comes in too little and too late. Part of the problem is that Johnny Depp and Heather Graham are so devoid of life and magnetism that they bored me whenever they appeared on screen. At least, the great Ian Holm saves the day with some core of integrity as Sir William Gull, a doctor for the Royal Family. He breathes some life into the story when he shows up. Robbie Coltrane is also a delight as Sergeant Peter Godley who loves to smack Abberline out of his druggy states.

"From Hell" is a rather vivid title for a listless, lifeless film. There is no soul, no fire, no hell. It simply starts and sputters but never feels as unified or as compelling as the real tale. It just feels ripped apart from the truth.

Introduction to Jerry at the Movies

INTRODUCTION TO JERRY SARAVIA AKA JERRY AT THE MOVIES

For those of you interested in finding more about me, check out the video link below. Although it serves as an introduction to my youtube channel, it is also useful for those who have been reading my reviews and perhaps wish to subscribe to my channel where I also review films and lots of other stuff. Thanks for your time and enjoy.

Jazzy Indy travels to Chicago, 1920

YOUNG INDIANA JONES AND THE MYSTERY OF THE BLUES (1993)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

 George Lucas's "Young Indiana Jones" TV series was short on action and thrills and long on exposition and story. Lucas's intent was to have a younger Indy involved in historical spectacles and meeting all kinds of historical figures. Lenin was one, Teddy Roosevelt another, and of course Pancho Villa. I was never a huge fan of the show but I admired the attention to historical detail even if it occasionally robbed the series of much action or adventure. Talky is one way to put it since the serialesque attitude of the Indiana Jones movies was clearly missing. There were two-hour "Young Indiana Jones" movies and one of the best was "Mystery of the Blues," aired in March of 1993. Of particular significance in this special was the appearance of the one and only iconic Indiana Jones - Harrison Ford himself.

The Ford aspect is interesting because he sports a salt-and-pepper beard (this is only because of the simultaneous shooting of his thriller masterpiece, "The Fugitive") and his appearance bookends the blues plotline of the show as he recounts the days of Sidney Bechet and Al Capone. Ford is an older Indy, 50 years old to be precise, being chased in Wyoming in 1950 by some bad guys who are wanting a sacred Native American pipe. Indy and a Native American named Grey Cloud (Saginaw Grant) are shown in a car chase that is thrilling in a snow-bound Wyoming with treacherous roads. The chase is not elaborate nor does it contain much in the way of stunts but it gives you goosebumps seeing Ford as Indy with his wit and the gleam in his eye lashed ever so firmly ("Good driving," says Grey Cloud. Indy quips, "Not my first time you know!") Eventually the duo walk during a hazardous blizzard to an empty log cabin.

The rest of the film has Sean Patrick Flanery as the younger Indy working as a busboy at Colosimo's restaurant in Chicago in 1920. Sidney Bechet (Jeffrey Wright, who is amazingly good) plays jazz and Indy thinks he can play too, specifically his soprano sax. The kid needs practice and annoys his roommate, future federal agent Eliot Ness (Frederick Weller). Indy and Eliot are also friends with future author Ernest Hemingway (Jay Underwood), a contrivance that just annoys me. Does every person that Young Indy knows have to be famous or of historical relevance? Nevertheless, "Mystery of the Blues" confronts racism, jazz, Prohibition-era gangsters, a brief discussion of World War I, a floozie or two, a well-choreographed car chase and an equally absurd and improbable finale that wraps everything up a little too neatly.

"Mystery of the Blues" is essentially oodles of fun and you gain a lot of historical value from it but it is overstuffed and little too preachy. Flanery still seems to be uncomfortable with his role and lacks any of the trademarks of the character that Ford would make his own - I just don't see how Flanery could ever grow into the resourceful archaeologist adventurer of the 1930's and beyond. Still, the film is entertaining and a good time for the whole family. One wonders, though, if that opening teaser with Ford could have been expanded into a whole 2-hour adventure of its own and if Lucas had even considered it at some point (he was thinking about aliens at that time and discussing a fourth Indy flick with Ford, who wanted nothing to do with aliens - a fun fact that "Crystal Skull" detractors might love).   

Props fighting props

KRULL (1983)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

 

A black fortress from space arrives in the planet Krull and disappears and materializes anywhere it wishes to go. The fortress is operated by some sort of monster. A valiant hero named Colwyn (Ken Marshall), who will someday be king, has to find a star-shaped weapon that can destroy the monster and save the planet. Of course, he has to save his marriage from dissolving since his wedding ceremony was interrupted for reasons unknown by the Slayers, monstrous beings who shoot lasers and seemed to have come from the world of J.R.R. Tolkien. Throw in a cyclops, a magician who keeps notes on how to use his magic, a terrific band of thieves that includes a young Liam Neeson and you got something called a movie.

"Krull" has several problems. For one, the tale is a prophecy as mentioned by the narrator but what exactly is the prophecy? This simple-minded tale is just about a future king who has to vanquish evil from corrupting the planet, but what is the monster's purpose? Why does this monster care about the planet Krull or the damsel in distress? What is it with the all-seeing eye (Tolkien, once again) and the Cyclops who can foretell his own demise? And there is the fascinating sage and the Widow of the Web (complete with a giant crystal spider that the Widow keeps at bay with an hourglass) but much of their story is short-changed for action scenes that never go anywhere or propel the plot forward. Basically, there is not much depth to any sort of mythology and the movie makes up its own rules as it goes along.

"Krull" makes the most unforgivable mistake of any sword-and-sorcery adventure crossed with a dose of sci-fi - it is tiresome and snail-paced. Say what you will about "Star Wars" (which this movie copies along with tropes inspired by "Lord of the Rings") but that series had a mythology that was extensive and clear with exciting action and colorful characters. "Krull" has some characters I wanted to know more about, especially the Cyclops and the magician and the Robin Hood gang of thieves, but they never develop into anything other than props. It is props fighting props without an ounce of imagination.  

Hackman and Romano in tight mayoral race

WELCOME TO MOOSEPORT (2004)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

This may be one of those guilty pleasure movies for me but "Welcome to Mooseport" is an affable, pleasant and thoroughly disarming comedy that works. The critics hated it but I liked it well enough. It is not a political satire nor is it the funniest political comedy. Its charms are simple and small, much like the small town it depicts.

Gene Hackman is the former President of the United States who wants to settle down in the small town of Mooseport. The town welcomes him with great open arms, though the President is not very keen on small town meetings and speeches and wanting to mingle with the innocent townsfolk. Some members of the town council, however, want the President to run for Mayor of Mooseport. His competition is Handy (Ray Romano), a soft-spoken younger man who knows how to fix toilets. Handy is unaware that he is in the mayoral running and drops out until he catches the President eyeing Handy's own girlfriend (thanklessly yet wonderfully played by Maura Tierney). Guess who asks Handy's girlfriend out for dinner? It is then that Handy decides to run for Mayor and it turns out that Handy can solve problems and beat the President in golf like no one's business.

Don't think for a moment that this movie is on the level of Frank Capra with its small-town witticisms and genial citizens. Yes, "Welcome to Mooseport" is too good to be true but I enjoyed the picture for not trying to be a cynical, savagely satirical take on small-town politics. It is simple and pure with a great cast that imbues the film with more nostalgia for a bygone era than sentimentality. Ray Romano is quirky and diverting enough to separate himself from his "Everybody Loves Raymond" character. Gene Hackman is a consummate actor who knows all the tricks to bring his guile President to boisterous life. Ditto Tierney as the tired girlfriend who wants to settle down, Marcia Gay Harden as one of the President's aides who feels the leader of the free world has lost some of his noble virtues, Fred Savage as another aide who tries to stay out of the President's eyeline, and the always engaging Rip Torn as the campaign manager.

"Welcome to Mooseport" is a lively, upbeat comedy that doesn't try too hard to be anything else. I would have liked more debates between Handy and the President and more direct punches at certain targets of humor (the Tiger Woods jokes are not as funny as Clinton's Presidential Library being bigger than Hackman's). Still, we sometimes need movies like this as a much-needed break from reality and cynicism.