Frolicsome dinner party you don't want to end

 WAKING NED DEVINE (1998)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

Irish villages in the movies are becoming as common as actors sporting Irish
accents, such as Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt. "Waking Ned Devine" is a harmless,
pleasant black comedy that aims at the funny bone in delicate, sophisticated
ways and, oh, the actors really seem Irish, too.

The movie begins with Jackie O'Shea (Ian Bannen) clutching a lottery ticket
and claiming that he's won millions. Truth is he just wanted to tease his wife
into bringing him dessert while watching TV. Later, it turns out that in the
cozy, rainy village of Tully More, Ireland (actually the Isle of Man, which is
not quite Ireland), somebody has won the lottery. Jackie, along with his best
friend, Michael O'Sullivan (David Kelly), aims to locate the lucky winner. In a
place with a population of 51, it can't be too difficult. But who could it be?
Is it the smelly pig farmer or the single mother he pines for? The witch-like
eccentric woman? The lucky winner is actually a Ned Devine, who died while
holding the winning ticket. Jackie decides that the ticket is his, and basks in
the glory that the money will bring him.

"Waking Ned Devine" doesn't quite end there since there are many surprises and
delights that unfold along its merry way. There is also a wicked sense of humor
throughout, particularly involving naked motorists, prying a dead man's mouth
open, a funeral for a living person, and some hysterical business involving a
telephone booth.

The supporting characters could have used more depth (the pig farmer is a good
example), but the film is a breezy triumph of comic spirit and laughter. Ian
Bannen and David Kelley have the kindest faces I've seen at the movies in quite
some time - they linger long after the movie is over. When these two appear on
screen, "Waking Ned Devine" becomes a frolicsome dinner party that you don't
want to end.

Brief Encounter crossed with Lawrence of Arabia

 THE ENGLISH PATIENT (1996)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

Audiences are in favor of love stories told in the traditional Hollywood
manner: sweeping locales, breathtaking scenery, crisp dialogue, and, more
importantly, romantic chemistry between two gorgeous Hollywood stars. We have
been privy to sweeping love stories such as "Sense and Sensibility," which was
much admired by Hollywood and the Academy Awards, as was "Titanic." In 1996, it
was "The English Patient," a flawed yet superbly acted romantic tragedy told
mostly in flashbacks, and set prior to World War II. It's "Brief Encounter"
crossed with "Lawrence of Arabia" (funny that they were both directed by David
Lean). It has romance to spare but, in terms of tragic love, it doesn't have
much weight.

"The English Patient" is the Hungarian Count Almasy (Ralph Fiennes), who is on
an expedition with a group of cartographers in the blazingly hot desert of
North Africa. It is there that he meets and falls in love with Katherine
Clifton (Kristin Scott Thomas), the noble, beautiful wife of one of the
cartographers. When Katherine's husband leaves for another expedition, the two
embark on a passionate love affair, instigated by their bonding in a sandstorm.

Count Almasy is the narrator of the film, telling his story in a deathbed after
being horribly burned in a plane crash. He's cared for by his nurse, Hana
(Juliette Binoche), who decides to stay in a nearly decrepit castle with this
"english patient." The present storyline is set during the last days of World
War II, but the Count remains haunted by Katharine's death and by the intrusion
of a wandering thief, Caravaggio (Willem Dafoe) - he recognizes the Count and
suffers a physical handicap as well.

"The English Patient" is a beautifully mounted film told in the typical
Hollywood style - the opening shot of the contours of the desert layered
against a plane flying overhead is an extraordinary moment to behold. The movie
has all the right ingredients of an old-fashioned Hollywood romance yet it
somehow manages to trivialize the crucial romance...between Almasy and
Katherine. Their relationship leaves you out in the cold because
writer-director Anthony Minghella ("Truly, Madly, Deeply") truncates too many
scenes between them. The strong passionate romance is only suggested and,
therefore, it misses at becoming an affair we can become involved in and its
eventual tragic repercussions. That leaves room for the other supporting
characters such as the always grinning Hana, who is completely devoted to
Almasy, and falls in love with an Indian soldier, Kip (Naveen Andrews). There's
also the thief and morphine addict, Caravaggio, who has a personal vendetta
against our scarred hero. This is a character who becomes secondary and trivial
when comparing to the overwhelming love stories the movie wants to tell.
Caravaggio keeps intruding the narrative.

The relationship between Hana and Kip is sweet and invigorating, and it
climaxes with Ella Fitzgerald singing "Cheek to Cheek" on the soundtrack.
There's also a moment that is quite intoxicating - it is when Hana observes a
bare-chested Kip washing his long, flowing black hair. She is aroused by it,
and it is a moment that is as breathtaking as you can imagine - a moment to
stop time. There are several scenes like that especially when Hana and Kip
elevate themselves with a harness to look at an enormous painting using flares
in the darkness. These are precisely the moments missing in the
Almasy-Katherine affair.

The love affair between Almasy and Katharine is handled with just as much
discretion but it feels wrongfully neglected. The chemistry between Ralph
Fiennes and Kristin Scott Thomas crackles with excitement yet the affair is not
equally handled as scorchingly - Ralph Fiennes's performance is fine but he
projects a cold, detached mood that deemphasizes the love story. As Almasy
reminisces in his final days about her, it becomes just that - a reminiscence
lacking in substance. We see how much they love each other but we never really
see how they become in love with another. It is really only the love affair
between Hana and Kip that makes us feel the passion and commitment between two
lovers. The late, great director David Lean, who made some of the most
enlightening romances of the last thirty years, showed you the passion and the
tragic loss of love in its entirety.

"The English Patient" is an exquisite film and it is beautifully acted by all
the principal actors. It certainly makes you see the tragic consequences of
their love affair, but it doesn't invite you to share them.

Woody Allen sings?

 EVERYONE SAYS I LOVE YOU (1996)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

Of all of Woody Allen's movies, his latest work, "Everyone Says I Love You," is
his most typical and, paradoxically, his most atypical. It is modern-day New
York mixed with the typical romanticized love story parallels and heartaches.
There's one crucial difference, the cast members break out singing different
songs and ballads from the 30's and 40's at the most inappropriate times.
Allen's hybrid of musical and romantic comedy is not a complete success, but
who cares? It is so funny that you'll forget and forgive its faults.

Woody Allen stars as Joe, a writer living in Paris who constantly migrates to
New York to visit his daughter, DJ (Natasha Lyonne), and his ex-wife (Goldie
Hawn). DJ lives with her mother and her stepfather (Alan Alda), along with some
half siblings, on Manhattan's Upper East Side. Joe is a lonely guy (a typical
Woody egoist) until he meets the woman of his dreams in Venice (she's played by
the luminous Julia Roberts). DJ is visiting her father at the time and
instantly recognizes her - she's a psychiatric patient of her mother's. When
Joe realizes he shares no common interests with her, DJ feeds him all the
details of her life by eavesdropping on her psychiatric sessions.

Another major subplot in the film involves Holden (Edward Norton) who is
engaged to Skylar (Drew Barrymore), one of the offspring of the East Side
family clan. He wants to propose to her in a restaurant, and proceeds to give
her the engagement ring which he hides in a custard pie. Skylar takes a bite of
the pie, and what occurs thereafter is one of the most laugh-out loud moments
I've experienced in the movies in quite a while.

As a movie, "Everyone Says I Love You" is heavily disorganized and messy but
never boring or uninspired. The deftly funny musical numbers are what gives
Woody's oft-told tale of romance and neurosis an added texture of wit. And yes,
all the cast members sing and they sing badly but who cares? This is a comedy
musical that makes a mockery of the musical form by having everyone burst into
song at the most inappropriate moments. It's not meant to be "West Side Story."

One of the highlights is Edward Norton (clearly the best singer in the cast)
crooning "Just You, Just Me" at the start of the film, or when he's shopping
for Skylar's engagement ring and sings "My Baby Just Cares For Me." Less
effective (and downright embarrassing) is Woody Allen mumbling the words to
"I'm Thru With Love" (he thankfully cuts the singing short). Two of the most
side-splitting numbers are: "Makin' Whoopee," a production number performed by
hospital doctors and patients with crutches, and "Enjoy Yourself (It's Later
Than You Think)" which is sung by ghosts in a funeral home (When was the last
time you saw ghosts singing a tune?) The true comic highlight is the
effervescent Goldie Hawn doing a flying duet with Woody reprising "I'm Thru
With Love" - it is the one number that shows the absurdity in the charming,
romantic silliness of those early 30's and 40's musicals.

Beyond the sheer comic inventiveness of the musical strategy, "Everyone Says I
Love You" is too thinly plotted and structured for my taste. The notion of
having the irritating DJ serve as the narrator is dubious and tiresome at best.
It should have been Woody narrating (as he did memorably in "Annie Hall" and
"Radio Days") - he can deliver dialogue with delectable comic timing and
energy. Some characters drift in and out of focus so quickly, you'll be hard
pressed to figure out their purpose. There's too little of Edward Norton and
Woody Allen, and too much of Drew Barrymore unconvincingly smiling and flirting
with Tim Roth, who plays an unrefined criminal.

On the whole, the performances are terrific, and I especially enjoyed the
Woodman's relationship with Julia Roberts (she shines more brightly here than
ever before). I also liked the fast-talking Alan Alda and the sprightly Goldie
Hawn in the best and shrewdest role of her career. And let's not exclude the
siblings of the East Side clan, including Natalie Portman who has a sobbing
fit and hilariously starts singing, and the wide-eyed Lukas Haas as the
dogmatic Republican son of the family ('The American people should have a right
to bear arms'). "Everyone Says I Love You" is one of the most endearing
of the experimental films of Woody's career. At the ripe old age of 61, he is
still the funniest and most original comic writer of the 20th century. Nobody
else could have tackled a concoction like this, and make it work. Or make it as
funny and strangely moving.

I'll Charge it to the Underhills

 FLETCH (1985)

An Appreciation by Jerry Saravia

Chevy Chase's movie roles have run very hot and extremely cool, like 20 below. In the 1980's, he had some genuine comic treats like "Seems Like Old Times" and "National Lampoon's Vacation" and some hilarious moments in "Caddyshack" and "Three Amigos." Yet even amongst the good films he made, there were still numbing atrocities like "Deal of the Century," "Under the Rainbow," "Modern Problems" and even "Fletch Lives." You can't get me started on "Caddyshack II" because I have not seen it (perhaps for the better). I mention his 80's success and follies only because his wisecrackin' investigative reporter Fletch F. Fletch (Don't call him Irwin) in Michael Ritchie's fabulously funny and clever "Fletch" is such an anomaly. Chevy Chase really seems to be playing a character and his wisecracks define his character. That is why "Fletch," though not one of the greatest comedies of all time, is such a spirited, sly delight and gives Chevy Chase a chance to carry a film with his ample, romantic charm and of course his wisecracks.

"Fletch" was a 1985 box-office hit yet it also remains a quotable cult hit. It is so memorably quotable that according to "Fletch's" screenwriter Andrew Bergman, it is a mandatory prerequisite to recite every line of dialogue to join Princeton University's Eating Club. "Charge it to the Underhills" and, in the medical records room, "Do you have a copy of the Beatles' White Album?" - these are funny and become funnier the more often you see the movie. When Fletch, who scores many of these comic quotes, calls his news scooper assistant Larry (Geena Davis) and says, "Love your body Larry" while a motel owner looks on, you can't help but laugh. You also wonder how few pop culture references are retained by many of the characters Fletch confronts. The villain of the film, Boyd Aviation Senior Executive Alan Stanwyk (Tim Matheson), thinks Fletch is some sort of junkie living in the beach and asks Fletch to murder him for the insurance policy. Fletch uses the name "Ted Nugent" and talks about "Hopalong Cassidy" and clearly Alan has no idea he's being put on. How can you not know who Ted Nugent is but know Little Bo Peep?  

Despite the innumerable wisecracks and the various disguises (my favorites are the Washington, D.C. SEC investigator with a bloody nose, and the Harry S. Truman insurance agent), "Fletch" scores highest when Chevy Chase mutes his comic side and gets serious. Few can beat Chase for looking a little terrified by the Chief of Police (Joe Don Baker) who threatens to shoot him if Fletch prints the story of crooked policemen and drug trafficking. These moments and the climax where he confronts Alan show Chase at his most vulnerable yet still able to hold his own, seeking justice and righting all wrongs. Yet there is still Chase playing Fletch as the wisecracker who will not back down from start to finish, making us care about him without ever resorting to maudlin inclinations. It is an impressive performance in its own way, combining stubbornness with resilience and a wink. 

"Fletch" is not perfect yet it is pitch perfect (with a slightly complicated story told simply and without fuss) and it is a nearly seamless blend of comedy, action and detective noir. The one thrilling chase scene, complemented with a "Beverly Hills Cop"-type soundtrack song by Dan Hartman ("Get Outta Town"), finds something fresh in having Fletch in a getaway car with a young car thief! It also helps to have a well-rounded, colorful cast including Tim Matheson, playing it real straight as Alan, the bigamist drug smuggler; Joe Don Baker as the crooked Chief of Police; Richard Libertini as Fletch's boss whose smile at Fletch's romantic manner is something you won't soon forget; Dana Wheeler-Nicholson as the put-upon rich wife of Alan's; George Wendt as Fat Sam whose dilapidated hamburger stand is a front for drug smuggling, and a precious bit by George Wyners as raincoat-wearing lawyer for Fletch's ex-wife. The Gregory McDonald book features a more mean-spirited, callous Fletch but I think I prefer Chevy Chase's smart-aleck approach. He knows he might be in over his head but he doesn't care. 

TOP GUN: MAVERICK'S INEXPLICABLE SUCCESS

 HOW DID TOP GUN: MAVERICK RAKE IN SO MUCH DOUGH?

By Jerry Saravia

Maybe the answer should be obvious to me but I don't know. There are some big-budget Hollywood flicks that become huge box-office hits and you wonder how. James Cameron's "Titanic" was a monster hit but how did it keep repeating business weekly and remain holding to that number one spot for 15 consecutive weeks in North America! Is it a good movie? Not really, I find it represents the best and worst of James Cameron - a director who crafted something that could almost have been a Michael Bay production. Some effects were not so terrific though the sinking of that famous boat is awesome in every way. The love story (the potential key to its success) never worked for me and I can't imagine sitting through it again. Still, "Top Gun: Maverick" has outperformed "Titanic" in domestic gross, by little more than 26 million (it terms of adjusted box-office earnings, "Titanic" will probably always beat it internationally combined with domestic gross). But I don't see the appeal of "Top Gun: Maverick" at all. Sure, it has great aerial footage where you really feel you are in those Boeing F/A-18's with the pilots, its got Tom Cruise in an iconic role that many love to see him play, and its got a love story though it is rudimentary at best (even with Jennifer Connelly). The nostalgia factor is very high but I did not think there was such demand for this overlong yet fitfully exciting sequel (it is better than the original). I don't think anybody was clamoring for a revisit of the jingoistic excesses of the original back in the 1980's, let alone in 2022.

Maybe the fact that politics and woke-isms don't play a part here might be responsible for its success. The villainous threat is quite possibly Russian though never revealed. Maverick just shows he's the best fighter pilot of all time and maybe that is all people want. A simple good time, a roller coaster thrill ride, without making too much of a fuss about the world we live in now. Maybe this is the "Star Wars" people want - not much to ponder or discuss after it is over and no thoughts crossing into how a woman can do what Maverick does better. In this movie, Jennifer Connelly is a woman who just runs a bar and rekindles her relationship with Maverick. Simple.

Boogie on out of that house

 SINISTER (2012)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

It isn't often that an imaginative, supernatural horror flick leaves me partially awake during the night. Sometimes real-life crime stories have that effect on me, particularly missing people cases. "Sinister" frightened me more after I saw it than while I was watching it - the feeling of dread and being disturbed is closer to what I felt while watching and I could not take my mind off of horrifying images that are sure to keep you off balance. 

The opening shot alone (complete with white noise that you might hear if you start playing an old film projector) had me floored and spooked. It is a Super 8mm projection of a family of four with their heads covered as they are hung by rope in a backyard setting. The image was so unsettling, so horrific and somehow so real that I would've given this film high marks if it was an example of short horror film about found footage in someone's attic. "Sinister" has more up its sleeve. A popular non-fiction crime author, Ellison Oswalt (an excellent Ethan Hawke), uproots his family to this particular house with this haunting backyard, unbeknownst to his wife and kids. His plan is to write a book about his blood-curling true crime event because it involves a missing child. What should be an easy tale to spin, especially if he solves the missing child case itself, turns out to be far more complicated and horrifying. A metal case of 8mm reels are found in the attic. Who left them there? Oh, I won't say and the reels are marked and labeled as supposed family outings such as a barbecue, a camping trip, etc. Only the content is not so innocent as their labels indicate - they are haunting and deeply unsettling murders that follow innocent outings. I've seen my share of horror films but the 8mm reel footage is nightmarish.  

If I have one flaw to pick with "Sinister," it is understanding why Ellison never feels the need to tell his wife at least about the history of the house they bought dirt cheap ("Amityville Horror" comes to mind). His caring wife Tracy (Juliet Rylance) shows her support yet she's also skeptical and implies she would rather have him writing school textbooks than a real-life crime tale. Ellison could've told her the truth from the start especially about the 8mm reels. For some reason, the projector starts up on its own yet only awakens Ellison, not the rest of the family. Odd to say the least which means that only Ellison has a connection with something potentially supernatural? Then we discover that someone else in the family does. And the discovery in the snuff film footage of some entity, or is it the actual murderer, will keep your stomach in knots. 

I will not spoil the rest of "Sinister" because even though I had an idea about where it was headed, I was surprised and shocked by the last half-hour which went beyond what I anticipated. It left me in such shock that I was reminded of the beauty of finding a capable director (Scott Derrickson) and capable writers (Scott Derrickson and co-writer C. Robert Cargill) who could summon horrors that have zilch to do with the formulaic "found footage" era or anything remotely "Saw"-like. These guys have created unforgivable, unexpected horrors that exist in the bump of the night and curdle the blood (now I sound like Mary Shelley). Though there are some horror cliches (walking through dark hallways, noises from the attic), they do not come at the expense of the story - they actually make sense and are organic in hindsight! Ethan Hawke and the rest of the cast make us believe and we care for them (even Fred Dalton Thompson as the dubious sheriff and James Ransone as the celebrity-obsessed deputy). The cardinal rules of horror have been followed and "Sinister" also accomplishes something else - it is one of the scariest films I've ever seen.  

Black Balloons are an ominous sign

 THE BLACK PHONE (2022)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

Most modern horror films do not grab me, at least in the last decade or so. Blumhouse Horror puts out new rebooted variations on "Halloween" and the upcoming "Exorcist" flick. Still, my interest was sky high when I heard about this "Black Phone" movie and seeing the grainy visual look of the trailer. This is sneaky, pulling-at-your-hair-in-shock-of-what's-around-the-corner horror superbly directed with flair by writer-director Scott Derrickson (the excellent "Sinister"). The title sounds freaky but what really sold me, other than the 1970s Kodak look of it, was Ethan Hawke. If Ethan is on board, so am I.

Ethan Hawke doesn't have a lot of screen time yet his presence and that horrifying mask he wears (designed by makeup legend Tom Savini) is shown often enough to give anyone the heebie jeebies. The film begins in 1978 with the disappearance of a high-school teenage baseball player. He hits a home run and Finney (Mason Thames), the 13-year-old pitcher is miffed yet accepts defeat. Seems like everything is fine until after Finney fires a small rocket and the player approaches a black van. The screen fades out as it does with other disappearances seen in the first hour of the film. The only clue to these missing kids is that black balloons are seen on the road, and Finney's sister, Gwen (Madeleine McGraw) sees them in her nightmares. Meanwhile, after Finney encounters bullies and is saved by one tough kid who also disappears, a black van is seen again with a man wearing a stovepipe hat and now Finney is kidnapped!

"The Black Phone" could easily be nothing more than an eerie kidnapping story not unlike some of the real-life horror stories we have heard for so long of missing kidnapped children. The difference is that the characters are given some insight, some measure of sympathy and we have scenes of familial discord that are uncommon in horror films nowadays. There is the aforementioned bullying of Finney who has to prove he can stand up to anyone (of course, standing up to a child killer is an unprecedented task for this youngster). The physical and emotional abuse from Finney and Gwen's alcoholic father (Jeremy Davies, a hirsute mess) is deeply felt and disturbing, more so for the viewers who can identify with such unwarranted violence. In one particularly fierce scene, the father whips a sobbing Gwen with a belt after he was interrogated by the cops at his job. What makes him mad is that his wife, who committed suicide, had visions in her sleep and it reminds him too much of Gwen's visions of these current disappearances. That scene hit me like a ton of cement blocks, never mind bricks, and how Gwen seeks comfort from Finney while watching TV is emotionally true and devastating. The two kids, Thames and McGraw, are amazingly credible as is Jeremy Davies - this is about as real a dysfunctional family as you are likely to see in a horror flick. 

So how is Ethan Hawke as the Grabber? He is terrifying and the less we see of him, the scarier the guy is. No motive is given and none is necessary. The tragedy masks he wears are to sure make jaded horror fans, myself included, a bit uncomfortable and the most original of its kind we have seen since the Munch-inspired Ghostface mask from "Scream." That is the pervasive feeling underneath "The Black Phone" - the discomfort and the supernatural aspects revolving around a black rotary phone in the basement that rings despite it being disconnected. How Finney deals with the grim situation and with the Grabber will have you rocking back and forth in suspense (added bonus is including Pink Floyd's "On the Run" on the soundtrack to build momentum). Blumhouse Horror has done itself proud with this one - it is literally a grabber.