Elusive commercial success make the Fleshtones even stronger

PARDON US FOR LIVING BUT THE GRAVEYARD IS FULL (2009)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

How is it possible that an electrifyingly rockin', energetic, purely adrenalized garage rock band like The Fleshtones still can't get the attention they are so warranted? For 30 years plus, they have played venues of all sizes and shapes, they even played at the now defunct CBGBs, and they still struggle to make ends meet just to perform at some local venue in some American city where they hope there is a huge turnout. Such are the complications and hexbreaking anxieties exemplified in the documentary, "Pardon Us for Living But the Graveyard is Full," which details the band's roots in Whitestone, NY to their success in the 1980's that eventually dissipated leading to a new bass player and a new record label. Life was never easy for the Fleshtones, nor would they have wanted it any other way.

Charting a 35-year history of a band in a little over an hour running time is no easy task. In "Pardon Us...", we are introduced to the members of the Fleshtones which includes Peter Zaremba (harmonica, keyboards, and vocals), Keith Streng (guitar), Bill Mihizer (drummer) and Ken Fox (bassist, replacing Jan-Marek Pakulski who had quit the band in the mid-80's and was one of the founding members of the band). They are possibly the only band to stay together for such an inordinate amount of time while recording new songs and touring all over the world (no surprise for an American band with a distinctive American Beat, but they are more popular in Europe than in America). The early 80's is the decade where the Fleshtones enjoyed a little success with some of their songs featured in films like 1984's raunchy "Bachelor Party" (Keith tells a funny story about passing out while seated in front of actor Tom Hanks during a screening). We learn a little about their gigs at CGBGs and their lack of respect among the punk crowd (closing night of the iconic club, according to Zaremba, did not include an invite of the band). There is also a stunning, virtually avante-garde clip of a music video for "Soul City," which was edited together with photo cutouts of the band in motion and splashes of color added in each frame - quixotic stuff to say the least.

Most of "Pardon Us..." focuses on the trials and tribulations of being out on the road. One club can feature over a hundred people in the audience, and another can feature one person who comes up to the band and tells them they suck. No matter how grand or miniscule a turnout there is, the Fleshtones play to the hilt without losing their passion for the music. There are also tidbits about Keith's heroin addiction, the loss of Gordon Spaeth, the saxophonist who committed suicide in 2005, the graduating loss of interest when they couldn't find a good bassist prior to the induction of Ken Fox, and how they re-energized themselves when Yep Roc Records (fans of the band, which always helps) landed them a new record label. I also love hearing Zaremba stating that professionalism and a polished sound is not what they seek when recording an album - they like to keep it real and a little rough.

This highly entertaining documentary is based on a terrific and densely-packed-with-information book by author Joe Bonomo (who lends his informative thoughts in the film) entitled "Sweat: Story of the Fleshtones, America's Garage Band" which is the definitive, in-depth account of this undervalued American band. No matter how the Fleshtones have to cut expenses on the road or stay at friends' homes to save money from hotels or to find a good cup of coffee for less than a dollar, they manage to persevere and continue to rock. Nothing will stop them until, as most of the members admit, one of them dies. Keep up the American Beat! Long live the Hexbreaker!

Flying gags high and low

AIRPLANE! (1980)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

The comedy fools who brought slapstick and movie spoofs to a new level were the Zucker Brothers. They were responsible for some of the funniest movies of the 1980's, namely "Top Secret" and "The Naked Gun." "Airplane" followed the purely ingenious "Kentucky Fried Movie," their first film, with several in-jokes and references throughout, poking fun at just about everything. It is a no-holds-barred approach and they could care less if anyone was offended or grossed out - the gags just keep coming at full speed.

"Airplane!" spoofs the "Airport" movies and an old movie from the 50's called "Zero Hour." The pilots are played by Peter Graves and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (!), the doctor on board is played by Leslie Nielsen, and one of the main stewardesses, Eileen, is played by Julie Hagerty. On board the plane is Ted Striker (Robert Hays), a war veteran who is in love with Eileen and wants her back (he is also a cab driver who left his fare at the airport). Also on board is a girl in need of a heart-transplant, some jive-talking dudes, a jive-talking lady (Barbara Billingsley, formerly June Cleaver on "Leave it to Beaver"), a nun who reads "Boy's Life," a young kid who idolizes Kareem and who reads "Nun's Life," a Japanese General, David Leisure as a Hare Krishna and so on. The plot deals with the fish menu on board that is tainted and is making all the passengers sick, including the pilots. It is up to Striker to land the plane and for the doctor to cure the passengers.

The jokes in this type of movie are easily hit and miss, and there are lots of hits and a few misses. Watching feces splattered across a fan is not especially funny. A woman running and bumping into every object while saying goodbye to her love aboard the plane was just plain silly. I also found one of the air traffic controllers (the late Stephen Stucker) to be the equivalent of fingernails being run across a chalkboard.

As for the jokes that hit, I like the dueling voices at the airport for red zone and white zone parking, especially when they argue. I like that the autopilot is actually an inflatable doll who needs air every once in a while, and darling Eileen helps breathe some air into an area that...well, just a moment you have to see to believe. Robert Stack as the solidly calm and determined Captain Kramer who beats the hell out of every passing Jehovah's Witness, Krishna and religious zealot is hilarious. And the nods to "Jaws," "Saturday Night Fever" and "From Here to Eternity" bring quite a few smiles. But when Ethel Merman appears as an officer in drag singing "Everything's Coming Up Roses," you know you are in for a treat.

"Airplane!" is not a great movie but it is undeniably clever and grossly funny enough to keep you occupied for 88 minutes. It was the beginning of the Zucker Brothers' successful comedy spoofs that lead to "The Naked Gun" and other similar spoofs. But pay close attention to the visual puns in the foreground as well as the background, and you can just as easily miss a joke or a reference on first viewing. They are clever that way.

I hate to burst your...

BUBBLE (2005)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia
(Originally viewed in 2006)

Something awe-inspiring happens in the first few frames of Steven Soderbergh's "Bubble." It is nothing we haven't seen before. There are a few shots of some anonymous town, an anonymous trailer and, suddenly, a lonely close-up shot of a woman in bed staring out the window as the first ray of sunshine hits. Her daily routine is about to begin and the absorption of "Bubble" is just starting.

Martha (Debbie Dobereiner) is the first character we see in the film. She lives in a trailer with her elderly father and every morning, she prepares his breakfast. She leaves to pick up her best friend, Kyle (Dustin Ashley), and they proceed to eat at a bakery. After some small talk, they are off to work at a doll factory that is slightly understaffed. Their lunch consists of pointless chatter and junk food. When they leave work, Kyle is off working a second job and comes home to his mother, and he goes off to sleep (and probably smokes a little weed beforehand). Martha, meanwhile, feeds her father and while he sleeps, she works at her sewing machine. Yep, this almost seems like a regular independent film about anomie and listlessness from a boring, indifferent life. You'd almost be right.

Something bursts the routine bubble though when a newcomer named Rose (Misty Dawn Wilkins) is the new employee at the doll factory. She is younger than Martha and lives alone with a two-year-old daughter, and has work experience in airbrushing. Her life is not any brighter as she just barely makes ends meet and has a whiny ex-boyfriend. Rose likes Kyle and they smoke together during their lunch break, almost excluding Martha. Rose and Kyle go on a date, much to the chagrin of Martha, but it is a date where they simply go to the bar and then back to Kyle's house to smoke pot. Nothing earth-shatteringly romantic about any of it, but it certainly bothers Martha who has to babysit Rose's daughter so Rose can go on this date! But Martha doesn't trust Rose and, as we watch her alone in Kyle's room while he fetches a drink, she has every reason to distrust her as well.

I could reveal much more about "Bubble" but it would not be fair to do so. This movie only runs 73 minutes yet it certainly gets under your skin. It is explicitly realistic and has a documentary feel, especially the opening scenes of small-town life, the manufacturing of dolls in the factory, etc. But there is something more to "Bubble" that is harder to describe - the characters live such ordinary lives that something does threaten their existence. You feel it every moment, as if something awful is headed their way and when it happens, it will haunt you for days. But I still cannot reveal it, unlike some critics that have described this film as something that it is not.

"Bubble" is a tremendous experiment for Steven Soderbergh, a director who makes big-budget films like "Ocean's Eleven" and occasionally throws in a "Full Frontal" to spice up his resume. "Bubble's" other experiment is that it was released in theaters while simultaneously available on HD Net cable and DVD. What it will hopefully allow is for independent filmmakers to get more attention and exposure in the future. I am all for that and who else but the innovative Soderbergh could make the indie filmmakers happier.

As a film, "Bubble" is not as extraordinary an account of small-town life as say "Heavy," James Mangold's feature film debut which was a small masterpiece, but this film is not meant to be taken as a character study. It is a study of the routines of living and working in a small town that has nothing to offer. It bothers the characters so much that one of them decides to do something about it. "Bubble" is tragic, moving, haunting and exquisitely made (shot on HD video and with mostly static shots). Soderbergh observes the ennui of such anomie with tactful detail thanks to the incredible cast of non-actors, which helps builds the credibility. Some might argue that he does this too well, but that is precisely the point. Don't let it burst your bubble.

Eating Donuts under Domes

THE SIMPSONS MOVIE (2007)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia
(Originally viewed in 2007)

I came into the "Simpsons" phenomenon rather late. I had always seen posters and advertisements showing this cute, animated yellow family, including Bart, Homer, Lisa and Marge, and heard countless positive things about it. I came into this show so late that I started seeing "South Park" episodes before "Simpsons." Recently, I have had the benefit of a fiancee who knows all 400 shows by heart, so I was inducted into the "Simpsons" mania. Now there is "The Simpsons Movie" and I am happy to say it is as sharply funny, boisterous, smartly written, and emotional as the series is.

"The Simpsons Movie" starts off with an Itchy and Scratchy cartoon set in space before we realize that the Simpsons clan is watching this cartoon in a movie theater. Then we have Homer yelling at us, as he stands up from his seat and argues that nobody should be stupid enough to pay to see this when they can see it on TV for free. It was at this point that I thought, uh, oh, we have yet another self-referential animated film. On the other hand, though this movie has its share of pop-culture references and pokes fun at itself, so does the series. So let's move on, shall we? D'oh!

Everyone knows the Simpsons clan. There is pot-bellied Homer Simpson (voiced by Dan Castellaneta), the patriarch; his wife, blue-haired Marge (voiced by Julie Kavner); the rambunctious Bart (still rather incredibly voiced by Nancy Cartwright); the ever so smart and sweet Lisa (Yeardley Smith); and little baby Maggie (Nancy Cartwright), who has been chewing on a pacifier since 1989. They all live in good old Springfield, a town where everyone knows your name. There is Krusty the Clown, good old Moe and his tavern, Mr. Catholic Do-Gooder Ned Flanders (Homer's neighbor), the Howard Hughes-like Mr. Burns, Comic-Book Guy, Chief Wiggum, etc. Most of the regular characters are on display, and others barely appear (Selma and Patty for one).

The story has Homer adopting a pig, and creating a song for it ("Spider Pig" is one of the funniest parodic songs I've heard in a long time). Most of the clan disapproves of the pig, especially when muddy pig feet prints appear on the ceiling. Of course, a pig has to defecate and, in typical Homer fashion, pig feces accumulate and are placed in what appears to be a missile silo that is kept in their backyard, and then promptly dumped in a lake! Of course, the smell permeates the entire town, and Lisa and a new male companion do their best to spread a global warming message which the town's denizens have zero interest in. That is until the goverment comes in and quarantines the entire town by placing an impenetrable dome over it.

"The Simpsons Movie" is silly fun and it made me smile. I was flabbergasted by how many big laughs there are in the film - I don't think I laughed as much as any film in the last couple of years. I love the moment when Homer screams out "Dome!" There is a hysterical "Austin Powers" gag where we see Bart in his birthday suit as he skates all over town, with enough objects blocking his little pecker (sorry Bart). There is the delectable Tom Hanks in animated form as a spokesman for the Grand Canyon. I love the sandbox that sucks you in and transports you from one area to another. I love the visual gag of the dome itself, especially the actually thrilling climax which has to be seen to be believed. There is also Albert Brooks as the head of the Environmental Protection Agency, though he is not interested in helping the environment.

There is plenty to enjoy in "The Simpsons Movie" and I wouldn't want to give away any more of the delicious comic dialogue, visual gags and innuendoes. I will say that Homer is more dunderheaded than usual, and has just as much heart. Marge is still the devoted wife despite what Homer does or doesn't do. Lisa is still the smartest and brightest of the lot, whereas Bart still gets his kicks from laughing at his father's accidents (what a guy!). If there is a sequel, I want to see more of Apu and a few more digs at Moe's Tavern. Personally, I think I've had enough of Milhouse.

Ambiguous ambiguities

THE MYTH OF FINGERPRINTS (1997)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

Bart Freundlich's "The Myth of Fingerprints" left me angry and confused. Sometimes, great movies accomplish those goals with a purpose. "Myth of Fingerprints" is a frustratingly thin dysfunctional family drama where each character is merely introduced and nothing more. There is no follow-through, no desire to see where each character is headed. We see them as character types yet we are as removed from them as one can imagine.

Thanksgiving is around the corner in a New England home. Roy Scheider is the Dad who would prefer if nobody came to visit. Blythe Danner is the Mom who welcomes everyone. Living with them is their youngest daughter, Leigh (Laurel Holloman), a cheerful young woman (and that is all we learn about her, plus her super duper foot massages). The guests include a terminally annoying and hostile older daughter, Mia (Julianne Moore) and her husband, a therapist (Brian Kerwin); the glum son Warren (Noah Wyle) who is still pining for his ex-girlfriend; and another son named Jake (Michael Vartan) who has a girlfriend (Hope Davis) who has nothing on her mind except sex. So there are two dinner sequences in this movie and one repeated and notable flashback, and some delightful scenery.

I wish there was more to "Myth of Fingerprints" but the only enthusiasm I can muster is that the locations and the New England house have a lot of character. The human characters leave no real impression. Noah Wyle's Warren is given more screen time than anyone yet his passivity can grind your nerves (funny, he played a different kind of Warren in the forgotten "Crooked Hearts"), but at least his character is the most interesting. Julianne Moore's Mia is hostile to everyone and has a moment to let her guard down to an old childhood friend but that is all. Holloman's Leigh is cute and bubbly. Roy Scheider appears to be drunk throughout, and has one inexplicable moment during a family dinner. Blythe Danner smiles a lot. The less said about Michael Vartan and Hope Davis, the better.

I think Freundlich is interested in exploring a realistic look at families without an ounce of melodrama, cliches or clear-cut resolutions. All fine and good, however, there is no social dynamic to these people, no reason to spend two hours with them and no reason to believe they are dysfunctional. I am all for ambiguity but I do not believe in ambiguous ambiguities.

Demonically comical Polanski

THE NINTH GATE (1999)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

When Polanski takes a walk on the wild side, it can be fearless and threatening to the art film crowd (you know who you are). When he chooses to do a simple lark, a nifty little walk on the safer side, it can be atrocious ("Pirates") or downright brilliant ("Rosemary's Baby"). "The Ninth Gate" is simply comical fun.

Johnny Depp stars as Dean Corso, a goateed, unethical book dealer who specializes in finding rare books for wealthy collectors (the kind of books not available online at Amazon.com). One particular collector, Boris Balkan (Frank Langella), requests Dean's help in locating two existing copies of "The Nine Gates of the Kingdom of the Shadows," a guide on how to conjure the spirit of Satan, reportedly written by Satan himself. But Satan could not have written three different copies of the same book, now could he? Dean's job is to authenticate the other existing copies, and to determine if Balkan's is the real deal. At first hesitant, Dean decides to travel to New York, Paris and Portugal on his search. He encounters twin booksellers, a feisty widow (Lena Olin), a stringent baroness in a wheelchair (Barbara Jefford), and an aristocrat who plays the violin (Jack Taylor) and lays out all his precious books on the floor of his living room. Naturally there are mysterious deaths along the way, and there is a mysterious woman, identified in the credits as the Girl, with piercing green eyes (Emmanuelle Seigner, Polanski's wife) who happens to appear wherever Dean goes.

"The Ninth Gate" has a smoothly refined, exquisitely moody feel to it, thanks to the amber, murky tones in the cinematography. Every scene in the film feels as if there are mysterious forces within waiting to be uncovered, and the pages of the books evoke an elusiveness in Dean's close introspection of every single detail - you just sense he will find something which may lead nowhere. That is Polanski's gift as a storyteller, letting minute details flourish in our mind but we must be quick to catch them. I like the way he makes us focus on the Girl when she first appears at Balkan's lecture, he tilts the camera down to show that her legs barely touch the floor where she sits. The other neat touch, though incidental in theory, is when Balkan shows Dean his collection of books guarded by glass doors where the password to open them is 666. I also found it interesting that Dean never sees the Girl floating in the air whenever chaos ensues.

In the past, Polanski's atmosphere, mood and implicit horror always lead to a dramatic, shocking finale as in "Repulsion" or "Rosemary's Baby." This time, the film sort of ends but in such an abrupt, wanting fashion that we wonder why he went through the whole expense of involving us in the first place. To add insult to injury, the film's final half-hour is submerged in absolute ridicule, including a laughable Satanic ceremony, Langella yelling and screaming while chanting to Satan, and a gratuitous sex scene that would make Hugh Hefner chuckle with derisive laughter.

I still enjoyed "Ninth Gate" overall but it is more of an exercise in style than substance, and Polanski does not take the film as seriously as he should have. It is as if he wanted to revisit the themes of "Rosemary's Baby" and decided to end it all in a "Fearless Vampire Killers" mode. A guilty pleasure for us, and probably for Roman as well.

Disney's Indiana Jones 5 in 2 years?

INDIANA JONES 5, BY WAY OF MICKEY MOUSE

By Jerry Saravia

As many of my readers are aware, I happily look forward to a new Indiana Jones flick, even if by some standards the last Indy flick, "Crystal Skull" was seen as the rotten apple in the series. Nevertheless, Disney chairman Alan Horn stated that it won't be for another 2-3 years before we see a new film in the iconic action-adventure saga. Boo! More telling is that Mr. Horn claims there is no script, let alone an idea for a fifth Indy film. Never mind that a few years back, director Steven Spielberg claimed he "cracked" the story for a new film. Shia LaBeouf (who trashed "Crystal Skull," where he played the role of Mutt Williams) told the press that Harrison Ford was working out, preparing himself to be in shape for the new installment. Creator George Lucas said he was working on it. That was a few years ago. When an announcement was made that a new Star Wars film was in the works (despite Lucas claiming that no more Star Wars movies would be made), my heart sank a little. The rumor is that Ford revisiting his Han Solo character in "Star Wars Episode VII" would guarantee his reprisal of Indiana Jones. In addition, Disney now owns LucasFilm and all its subsidiaries, including the Indiana Jones franchise. However, a deal was reached between Paramount Pictures and Disney where Disney would have distribution rights to the franchise as well. So do not expect to see the iconic opening credits with the Paramount Pictures mountain logo dissolving to a similar outline in the next Indy film. Maybe it will be the Mouse ears or, heaven forbid, the Cinderella castle. Mr. Horn stated the following: "It didn’t make sense to produce the movie at Disney and then have it be distributed and marketed by Paramount."

I have faith that Indiana Jones will return but will it be a fifth adventure in the series or will they reboot? Ford has been mum about Star Wars and Indy but, maybe it is just me, I rather see Ford cracking the whip than Mickey Mouse. It is just too odd to fit those two companies together.