This Town Isn't Big Enough For this Band

 THE SPARKS BROTHERS (2021)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

The Sparks Brothers as the name of a band? Heck, no, just call them the Sparks.

Director Edgar Wright asks them: "Are you guys brothers?"

Russell Mael: "Yes."

Edgar Wright: "How did you first meet?"

Ron Mael: "We are brothers."

"The Sparks Brothers" could've been one of those youtube GQ career discussions where a celebrity breaks down their hits and follies. Thankfully, it is more than that though I would've been just as entertained by listening to their career assessment. The wacky, highly theatrical American duo rock band from the late 1960's, who have been performing with no end in sight as of this review, are so exultant in their performances that you can't help but want to play along. Despite criticisms that they were a comedy band or performance artists more akin to Gilbert and Sullivan, or that they did not fit in to the mainstream in any way, it is arguably what made them stand out. The Sparks stood their ground and their creativity took them wherever they needed to go. The last thing you can ever say about them is that they sold out.

Their 1980's hit "Music That You Can Dance To" might qualify as their sell-out to the industry (and what better way to sell out than to have your song appear in an abominable BMX movie like 1986's "RAD") yet listening to the lyrics, the irony may fall on deaf ears since you can dance to it. Sparks (originally named Urban Renewal Project and later HalfNelson before changing it altogether to their current name) were heavily influenced by British bands like the Kinks and the Who and their desire, despite being true-blooded Americans, was to become a British band! That English vibe did not work for them yet their on-stage presence and their music had such vitality that you could easily groove and dance to it. There is a joy in their performance and their on-stage presence shows not just their infectiousness but also that they were in on the joke as well. Russell Mael was the fiery singer with a falsetto voice, and Ron Mael was the keyboardist with a Hitler-like (or Chaplin-like depending on who you ask) mustache and he often stares unblinkingly at the audience and the camera. 

The Sparks secured a cult following and after a few years they had a stunning Number 2 single called "This Town Ain't Big Enough for Both of Us" from their breakthrough album "Kimono My House." Interestingly some of their album covers told their own stories and the band's name was not even in the front of their Propaganda album from 1974! Once they returned to America and felt they had to reinvent themselves, mostly their sound and their look, they transitioned into an early synthesizer pop sound thanks to their collaboration with Giorgio Moroder, the father of euro disco and electronic dance music. As aforementioned, the Sparks had an 80's hit yet their pop music was more of an affront to the standard pop. That had become their standard - to go beyond what was traditionally accepted in rock music form. A key to their strengths is that they went with their gut; they did not follow what was popular and in the ether in any decade. They were always reinventing themselves.   

"The Sparks Brothers" has the traditional talking heads of admirers and rock musicians alike, some of which don't get enough screen time (Flea, Steve Jones, Beck, Depeche Mode, Duran Duran) and others I could live without (Do we need a reminder that actor Jason Schwartzman's mother is Talia Shire who was in that abysmal "Rad"). The movie, directed with unbridled enthusiasm by fanboy Edgar Wright, employs more than ample footage of the band from the 70's onward and has the art pop duo (and all talking head interviews) in black-and-white while reminiscing about their past which is shown in color. At two hours plus and an overview of their 25 albums (they hope to make many more), we get a real sense of the camaraderie between the brothers and their upbeat attitude, the demise of their film projects with Jacques Tati and Tim Burton, and their inability to somehow crossover into the mainstream. There are no real insights into their private lives whatsoever, only the heady look at their discography and concert performances. It may be the way they want it and that is fine - this gloriously pleasing film is big enough for them.  

Do the next thing

MICHAEL DES BARRES: WHO DO YOU WANT ME TO BE? (2015)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

Many rock and roll legends had lives mired in drugs, some tragically. Too much hedonism may not be a good thing when you try to forge a path of responsibility towards a normal family life. That is the case of Michael Des Barres in the stunningly vivid, fast-paced and strictly focused documentary, "Michael Des Barres: Who Do You Want Me to Be?" It is focused on Michael Des Barres through the five decades of being a movie actor and a formerly glam rock musician and all the hedonism he could handle until one day he said, enough was enough. Forget those R.A.D PSA's from the 1980's - this documentary should do the trick in how to survive the hurdles of rock and roll. 

Many friends and acquaintances are interviewed here discussing Des Barres' life, including Des Barres himself. I'd almost say that Des Barres is sufficient enough in telling his own story because he is a completely watchable, freakin' amazing presence (Don't believe me? Check him out in one shot of David Lynch's  "Mulholland Dr." for proof - he looks like a rock star dressed with a leather jacket and has no lines). Still it does help to hear validation for Des Barres' wild tales from an odd assortment of celebrities of all walks of life including Steve Jones (The Sex Pistols); actors Gabriel Byrne and Don Johnson (who let Michael stay in his home during financially strapped times); John Taylor (Duran Duran); film director Allison Anders (who directed him in "Sugar Town"); Ed Begley Jr.; Michael's first wife, actress Wendy Hamilton, and lastly Michael's second wife (ex-rock and roll groupie, actress, musician and author) Pamela Des Barres.

Michael's life ranges from being an actor in films like "To Sir, With Love" and hundreds of TV shows such as "Miami Vice," to his actual goal of being a famous rock and roll star as a lead vocalist. He fronted bands such as Silverhead (his first band), Detective, the Power Station and opened for many acts including KISS, Deep Purple, Uriah Heep, Nazareth, among others. He was relentless in his pursuit of sexual conquests, even while married (gee, not many rock stars sexually restrained themselves in the 60's and 70s.) Eventually he literally set his sights on the rock and roll groupie Pamela Des Barres (one of the direct influences for the character Penny Lane in Cameron Crowe's film "Almost Famous"). Despite settling down with Pamela, he still pursued his sexual and drug addiction until he finally went cold turkey in 1981. Though the marriage did not last forever, they sired a son named Nick and, in one touching memory, the son had touched the screen when Michael performed at Live Aid (replacing Robert Palmer). 

I have seen quite a few rock documentaries over the years but none have hooked me into the power of rock itself, the indulgence of performing with an unremitting fiery passion, like seeing Michael Des Barres. Unintentionally or not, his hedonism seems to include the very act of performing as an undying love - an artist's need to create and share it with the world. That in itself is gratifying to witness and it is self -evident in his performance of "Sixteen and Savaged" which he sang for Silverhead. Director J. Elvis Weinstein lets Michael Des Barres be as honest as he wishes with his life, various anecdotes and some tidbits of backroom shenanigans (one involves the Rolling Stones, but many more deal with his cocaine addiction and alcohol). Also fascinating are his nobility roots - Michael is the 26th Marquis Des Barres! How often do you hear such info in a rock and roll doco about anyone?  

"Who Do You Want Me to Be?" is a captivating, thrilling biography of a man who came very close to mainstream success. From his grueling boarding school days and absent parents (father was in jail, the mother was "bonkers") to the several chances at fame and fortune he somehow missed, to the several TV and movie credits he amassed, the film never fails to keep our interest in this charismatic man (I am sure there are plenty other stories he hasn't told). A few of his friends feel Michael Des Barres missed his chance to match the glam rock power of David Bowie, or the suaveness of a Brit actor like Terence Stamp. Nope, Michael was just moving on to the next thing.

Supercriminals vs. a giant Starfish

 THE SUICIDE SQUAD (2021)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

Director James Gunn has a surefooted sense of humor, albeit humor that is completely bonkers and hitting-over-the-head-with-Harley-Quinn's-javelin type of humor but humorous nonetheless. I am no lover of Gunn's blood-soaked, inane and confused cult film "Super" though I do like his witty and upbeat "Guardians of the Galaxy." (Not seen "Movie 43" so don't ask). Blood-soaked with a hard, coarse R-rating is the name of the game with "The Suicide Squad" which is infinitely better than the by-the-numbers "Suicide Squad" from 2016. One of the saving graces of that film was Margot Robbie as the devious, devilish, hell-on-wheels Harley Quinn. This new sequel is funnier and insanely over-the-top with special-effects that are more than a little loopity loop and other colorful characters that are thankfully on an equal wavelength with Harley. A major plus.

Two Task Force X teams are sent to the fictional South American island known as Corto Maltese. Within this dangerous island that has military commandos is housed a lab known as Jötunheim, which looks like a straighter version of the Tower of Pisa. Within this lab are computer drives that contain information relevant to Project Starfish, a secret government plan involving an extraterrestrial starfish that decimated an astronaut crew. This starfish grows exponentially in size as it spawns smaller starfish that attach themselves to humans. More human hosts, bigger starfish that could be weaponized by some bad Corto Maltese heads of military against the U.S. and possibly the world. 

One Task Force X team fails to approach the island beyond its initial perimeter and they all die except for Harley Quinn (Robbie). Captain Boomerang (returnee Jai Courtney from the first "Suicide" film) is killed in addition to a creature named Weasel (less said, the better which adds to the wicked humor). The other Task Force X team is far more reliable which includes Bloodsport (Idris Elba), who is adapted with a metal suit that can adapt and shape shift weapons; a hilarious John Cena as the ironically named Peacemaker who is deadly with his guns and explosive bullets and is often mocked for wearing what appears to be a toilet on his head; the always hungry-for-humans-as-snacks King Shark (Sylvester Stallone) who has no friends and is literally an anthropomorphic shark; creepy David Dastmalchian as Polka-Dot Man who tosses colorful polka dots as weapons (not sure I can explain that power), and finally  Daniela Melchior as Ratcatcher 2, a millennial who sleeps too much and can summon rats from everywhere with a wand of sorts. These supervillains are joined by Colonel Flag (returnee Joe Kinnaman) who actually has more fun with the role this time than in the previous entry - he tries to keep these super criminals in line. Also on board from the original film is Viola Davis as Amanda Waller, the unforgiving head of the task force. 

What is a little amazing is how writer-director James Gunn keeps all these characters in balance without ever sacrificing anyone for limited screen time. Unlike the jumbled 2016 "Suicide Squad," this one focuses squarely and expands on its characters with enough background tidbits to make us root for them (there was no one to root for in the original film). Robbie holds her own as the maniacal Harley who is a fierce killer yet she also wants to be friends with the group's members, notably the reluctant Bloodsport. Bloodsport has a fear of rats and also has little hope for these misguided criminals on his team, not to mention friction with his expletive-laden daughter whom Waller might kill if he does not comply with the mission. We learn how Polka Dot Man acquired his condition through a viral exposure and how he sees his dead mother everywhere. Most thrillingly with some emotional heft is the backstory of Ratcatcher 2, who learned from her dad how to summon rats and how not to fear them.  

"The Suicide Squad" runs a bit long and is probably far too gratuitously violent yet it has chunks of profane and abrasive humor, inventive visual gags (the formation of intertitles within certain backgrounds is clever), stirring moments of escapism especially involving Idris Elba's Bloodsport and his literal cliffhanging moments, terrifically splashy music (Jim Carroll Band's "People Who Died" is the title opening song choice) and a very moving finish involving Ratcatcher 2 and Harley's sense of compassion over a dead character. The huge starfish that wrecks a Mexican town is so funny and so striking that you are not likely to forget it. An enjoyable romp that surprised even me. 

Searching and reclaiming the dream

 SUGAR TOWN (1999)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

A cinephile recently asked what movie do I wish there was a sequel to. I thought of some mainstream efforts and I also thought of small, independent films that either slipped by the radar or were successful at the box-office and became sleeper hits. 1991's largely forgotten "Late for Dinner" is one smaller film that came to mind. The other one would be 1999's "Sugar Town" and they both share one intrinsic quality that begs for continuation - they end prematurely.

Largely set in the fringes of the L.A. music industry scene, "Sugar Town" evolves in odd ways that I did not anticipate. Actual rock and roll singers are on board for this multi-character mosaic such as John Taylor from Duran Duran as a rock star guitarist with giggling groupies constantly barricading his home. He lives with his low-grade horror scream queen wife (Rosanna Arquette) who is offered the dubious film role of playing Christina Ricci's mother. Taylor is trying to form a new band and get a record produced yet sexual favors may be a prerequisite on the part of the singer (Michael Des Barres from Power Station) who has a proclivity for younger, nubile women. Let's not forget John Doe, an actual rock, punk, country and folk musician (he was brilliant in 1995's "Georgia"), as a roadie with a pig farm, a pregnant wife (Lucinda Jenney) and three kids and he's struggling to put food on the table. Doe has the added hindrance of his returning brother (Richmond Arquette), a reformed drug addict who has the hots for his wife. I do not want to neglect the mention of Martin Kemp from Spandau Ballet in a largely blink-and-you'll-miss-him role. 

Then there is the always nuanced work of Ally Sheedy as Liz, a Hollywood production designer who is having a tough time finding a reasonable man to date. One date is a well-known music producer who has nothing to say about her looks, or much of anything else (he's the one trying to get Taylor's band a contract). Another date foolishly expects her to use her connections to get a client list for his massage therapy practice! To top it all off, Sheedy's recently hired housekeeper, Gwen (Jade Gordon), is stealing her jewelry, and also wants to become a rock and roll singer. Gwen pays 300 dollars to a rock and roll writer who is always high yet this woman has no real moral or ethical ground - she'll do just about anything to get ahead.

"Sugar Town" is not flawless in its cross-section of one group of characters to another, and a couple are only of passing interest (Doe's pregnant wife and his brother seem more like distractions). Sheedy plays the most well-rounded character though why they made her into a movie production designer instead of a concert promoter or something akin to music is a mystery. The film is most successful in showing the difficulties of attaining or holding on to a dream, and that helps builds the poignancy. Music is in their souls yet it is interesting how little music is actually played in the film. Directors/writers Allison Anders and Kurt Voss aim for a low-key approach and nothing here is heightened for any dramatic effect. "Sugar Town" is often sweet-tempered and affecting and by the time it reached the finishing line (especially the memorable pairing of Michael Des Barres and Beverly D'Angelo), I wanted more. 

Eddie Murphy's Toilet-Humored Family Business

 NUTTY PROFESSOR II: THE KLUMPS (2000)
Reviewed by Jerry Saravia
Original Review from December 19th, 2001

What has happened to Eddie Murphy? Here is a man who prided himself on raw humor with an intent to poke and nudge his head at everyone, from women to homosexuals to Michael Jackson to his own family. It is a probably a sign of the times that

his act is now considered politically incorrect. Murphy has now become the improbable star of family comedies, possibly because he is married and has children. "Bowfinger" at least seemed to point in a new direction but "Nutty Professor II" is as lowbrow and as keen on flatulence as one might expect.
Whereas the first film focused on the obese Sherman Klump and his paranoia about his sexually potent alter ego, this sequel offers nothing but flatulence. If all five writers can pass for comedy nowadays are flatulent jokes and anal rape by a hamster then I must be behind the times.

This time, Sherman Klump (Eddie Murphy) is about to marry a sweet, always smiling professor,
Denise (Janet Jackson), who loves the man for his intelligence and warmth. Lately, though, Sherman has been seeing and feeling his alter ego, Buddy Love (also played by Murphy), inside him. Buddy Love is ready to burst out of Sherman to such an extent that poor old Sherman says the most unflattering, sexually provocative statements to his Denise instead of proposing to her. To put an end
to Buddy Love, Sherman works on eliminating the DNA sequence that contains Buddy. Buddy is eliminated but it causes Sherman to become dumb and dumber by the minute. But what will he tell his bride-to-be? And how will he win a grant for 150 million dollars for his newfound youth formula if he can't even explain the science behind it? And what's with Buddy Love regenerating from a pool of
liquid and a single strand of dog hair? The latter joke was funnier in "Hot Shots! Part Deux."

The selling point of this movie is the Klumps, Sherman's flatulent family who delight in gorging food at "all you can eat" restaurants. There is Grandma Klump, Klump's mother and father, his surly brother, his overweight nephew, and all they do is eat and talk about sex and impotence. That is it. No attempt is
made to make these people more than stereotypes and part of the charm of the original "Nutty Professor" was how little we saw of them (the famous flatulent dinner scene was as over-the-top as a family comedy can get). But the movie goes overboard giving these characters so much screen time and so little to do except make sexual references galore. A little of Grandma Klump goes a long way
(including an astoundingly awful jacuzzi scene), as do the trite bedroom shenanigans between Mama and Papa Klump. True, they are all played brilliantly by Eddie Murphy and the special-effects of having them all together in certain shots is seamless. But the humor is about as far down the toilet drain as one
can imagine and not particularly funny either.

The biggest laughs I had, as correctly indicated by Internet Movie Critic James Berardinelli, are the brief outtakes that follow the movie. I also enjoyed Buddy Love's antics in the bathroom, which I will not go into detail explaining. That is approximately less than five minutes of laughs in a 1 hour and forty minute movie. Need I say more? There, I just saved you one hour and forty minutes.

Harley Quinn sprinkles glitter in overstuffed Squad

 SUICIDE SQUAD (2016)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

No matter what movie she is in or how it is geared to audiences - Margot Robbie stands out. Okay, she is not the only actor to stand out in the wicked "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood" and she shared equally stirring time with Alisson Janney in the garishly entertaining "I, Tonya." Robbie reigns with glee and sheer manic power in the disappointingly thin "Suicide Squad" only because her performance, though seemingly trimmed as is everyone else's role, has gargantuan-sized fire and passion written all over it. "What? I got a hickey or something?," she asks during several shoot-them-up scenarios. That is the overall problem with "Suicide Squad" - too many shootouts, too much CGI spectacle and too little character investment. Yet Robbie's Harley Quinn - we love yah, you sick demented girl!

The set-up has promise yet even that is so frantically cut and short-circuited that it never breathes through its relatively thin story. Robbie is Harley Quinn, a complete madhouse of a woman who licks the bars of her cell and flings herself violently against it - she is Joker's ashen-faced girlfriend. Will Smith is Deadshot, a professional assassin who is aware that his young daughter knows what he does for a living (he is later caught by Batman, played in a quick-as-a-flash cameo by Ben Affleck). There's also Jai Courtney as Captain Boomerang who occasionally throws one; Killer Croc (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje), a reptilian metahuman who emits more grunts than words; the literally fiery metahuman known as Chato Santana / El Diablo (Jay Hernandez) who has certain regrets regarding his dead family; Karen Fukuhara as Tatsu Yamashiro/Katana who is deadly with a sword that carries her husband's soul (she is not a criminal), and there is an archaeologist (Cara Delevingne) who becomes some sort of a super witch (The witch can go a long way towards tedium). Essentially we have bad guys summoned by Viola Davis as an amoral government official who is good at making threats and is quite efficient at shooting and killing people at random. The team is known as Task Force X and they have to destroy the witch - failure in this mission can result in death for the team of bad guys.  

"Suicide Squad" is too anxiety-ridden from the start with too many fast millisecond cuts, too many quick introductions with too many characters, and it is too eager to keep its mojo of relentless shootouts going. When the film settles down from all the noise during a bar scene, we learn a bit about our villains such as El Diablo's past as a former L.A. gang member. I also enjoyed some of the backstory involving Deadshot and his devotion to his daughter yet much of this is truncated. Only Robbie's Harley Quinn is somewhat three-dimensional by comparison - she has a memorably giddy wickedness that blows away all the competition including the underwhelming Jared Leto's ultra-punk tattooed version of the Joker. Director David Ayer (who also wrote this) and editor John Gilroy keep cutting away too often from the character interaction. The action scenes are an eyeful towards the climax yet the rest of the action was mediocre at best - nothing here was nearly as astounding as Nolan's Batman trilogy (or for that matter, "Batman v. Superman"). "Suicide Squad" resembles a movie that somebody fast-forwarded through, leaving its motley crew of supervillains in the dust. 

Beautiful romantic bore

THE LOVE LETTER (1999)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

I would pick "The Love Letter" as the worst romantic comedy ever made if it hadn't been for the exquisite photography. This is a beautiful bad movie and, even if remarkable images are sometimes a good reason to see a film, something of some substance should support said images. There is more substance in the substance-free short film "Mothlight" by the late avante-garde filmmaker, Stan Brakhage, than anything inthe "The Love Letter."

Kate Capshaw is Helen, a divorced bookstore owner living in a New England picture-postcard town. She has no real social life, mostly jogs, and is envious of others who go on dates including her best friend, Janet (Ellen DeGeneres). One day, Helen finds a love letter and assumes it is for her eyes. She thinks her 20-year-old employee at the bookstore wrote it, and thus a short courtship ensues. But then
Helen imagines every person she comes in contact with is reading lines from the letter. And there is Tom Selleck, minus his mustache, as a fireman and Helen's former high-school flame. And the letter gets passed around to the different townsfolk, and blah, blah, blah.

Capshaw seems too restrained and bored for this kind of material - she was far more dynamic in "Windy City" and "A Little Sex" than here. Tom Selleck merely shows up and smiles with that familiar grin. Ellen DeGeneres is wasted as the comic relief, though nothing she says is remotely funny. Julianne Nicholson as another young bookstore employee fares better but her role is severely trimmed.

"The Love Letter" has some astounding photography - it works as an advertisement for New England's fishing docks. As a movie, it has no sense of romance and is devoid of humor or drama or any reason for its existence. Just visit New England instead.