Brady's list for the 80s
Aug 12 '01 (Updated Aug 17 '01)
The Bottom Line A list of ten, plus an extra bit of pondering at the bottom about Robert Altman.
10. Intervista (1987)
This is Federico Fellini's semi-autobiographical reminiscence, featuring Fellini, Marcello Mastroianni, and Anita Ekberg all playing themselves. It all revolves around a Japanese TV crew interviewing Fellini on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of Cinecitta, the motion picture production facility built six miles from downtown Rome in 1937 and dubbed "Hollywood on the Tiber". This movie combines reality and fiction in a magical way that has become synonymous with Fellini. My rating: A-
9. Beyond Therapy (1987)
This is one of the most underrated movies of the eighties, the kind you can find lost in the shelves of your local video store. Don't be put off by the lame packaging artwork -- rent it! Anyone in love with the Christopher Durang play on which this is based will probably not like the movie, but anyone who enjoys the work of director Robert Altman will love it. It's set in New York but has a peculiarly Parisian flavor that is explained by the movie's odd twist-ending. My rating: A-
8. Prénom Carmen (First Name: Carmen) (1983)
Carmen and her terrorist cohorts attempt a bank robbery and in the process Carmen falls in love with a cop guarding the bank. Maruschka Detmers plays Carmen. This movie contains more nudity than Americans are accustomed to, so if that offends you skip this movie. Others may find Jean-Luc Godard's impossible-to-describe non sequitur storytelling and discontinuous directing equally offensive. My rating: A
7. A Passage To India (1984)
This is David Lean's adaption of E.M. Forster's novel. Judy Davis plays a prudish English woman in India who claims that a local doctor raped her. I've only seen this on video and unlike earlier Lean movies (Lawrence of Arabia, Dr. Zhivago, Bridge On The River Kwai) this one fits nicely onto a television screen, perhaps because it was co-produced by HBO. I also think this is Lean's best movie. He was in his seventies when he directed it and he endowed the picture with a lifetime of experience. My rating: A
6. Fool For Love (1985)
Like Beyond Therapy, this is another underrated Robert Altman movie from the eighties. This is about a woman living in an old motel in a rural part of the American Southwest, and her cowboy ex-boyfriend (her cowboyfriend?). Emotional fireworks ensue courtesy of Sam Shepard, who wrote the play upon which the movie is based. Shepard also stars in it as the boyfriend. Kim Basinger is the woman. (If you groaned and rolled your eyes as you read the name Kim Basinger, you're not alone. That was my reaction, too, until I saw the movie. She gives a great performance. I think Altman knows how to work with her, as evidenced by her fine work in another, more mediocre movie -- Ready To Wear.) Also like Beyond Therapy, this movie might appeal more to women than men.* My rating: A+
5. King Lear (1987)
Like Prénom Carmen, this was directed by Jean-Luc Godard, and my warning about the style of the former picture also applies to this one, only more so. If you were expecting this movie to be an adaptation of Shakespeare's play, you'll be disappointed. On the other hand, being familiar with the play might make this movie easier to follow. The movie has no story, really, and it's difficult to describe just what this movie is. Though it does star Molly Ringwald as Cordelia, this movie is about as far as a person can get from Sixteen Candles and its ilk. Just because you like Molly Ringwald, that's no guarantee you'll like this movie. The cast also includes Woody Allen, but, again, even if you like Woody Allen, that's no reason to think you might like this picture. I guess the only way to sum up this or any Godard picture is by saying you'll either love it or hate it, and most will hate it. My rating: A+
4. The Shining (1980)
This movie is more faithful to its source material than Godard's King Lear, but that ain't saying much. Anyone who's in love with the Steven King novel on which this movie is based shouldn't even bother seeing it. Steven King was so disappointed by this movie that he wrote his own adaptation of it for television a few years ago. I've never read the book so I've had no problem enjoying this movie for what it is -- top notch cinema. The writing, set design, costumes, photography, acting, and musical score are all excellent. I list these thing to remind people that they should remember something when watching this and many other great movies -- movies aren't just about a story and some characters you can "relate to". It's about the total experience, the massive sum of information coming at you in all different ways. Also remember that movies don't grow on trees. Everything in a movie had to be created by someone and placed there for you to see and hear. Making all these elements work at a superior level simultaneously and in concert with one another is not as easy as it might seem, as Steven King himself amply proved with his sole foray into movie directing -- Maximum Overdrive. My rating: A+
3. Kagemusha (1980)
This movie was directed by Akira Kurosawa and the international version was produced in part by none other than Francis Ford Coppola and George Lucas. With credits like these, one expects an interesting movie. Kagemusha does not disappoint. Set in medieval Japan, it's the story of a poor thief whose is hired to impersonate a once-powerful-but-now-dead warlord. It's a tough job made even tougher when he clashes with the spirit of the warlord. I must admit that it's been a while since I've seen this one, but I remember it being similar in style to Ran (see below), with every shot a powerful and meticulous mise-en-scene composed for and photographed by long lenses that diminish the effects of perspective and create a noticeably two-dimensional image. My rating: A++
2. Ran (1985)
By coincidence, this Kurosawa picture has some similarities to two other movies on this list. Like Godard's King Lear it's based on Shakespeare's play, and like Kagemusha it's set in medieval Japan. It's style is also similar to Kagemusha -- brightly colored costumes and superb compositions that remind me of Japanese prints, though maybe the comparison of a Japanese movie with Japanese art is too superficial and obvious. This is the best version of King Lear I've seen on screen or stage. Kurosawa was in his seventies when he directed it and perhaps he could understand the aging and faltering character of Lear better than a younger director could have. This picture also features some far-out battle scenes staged with scads of extras and buckets of really red blood. My rating: A++
1. Full Metal Jacket (1987)
Set in Vietnam in 1968, but filmed in England in the eighties, this movie about a handful of American Marines has been polarizing audiences since its release. Some critics labeled it an anti-war movie, but, if I remember correctly, Samuel Fuller, himself a veteran and director of movies that depict the horrors of war, derided this movie by calling it a "recruitment film". Stanley Kubrick adapted this movie with the help of Micheal Herr from a novel by Gustav Hasford. This is clearly a war movie, but has a bit of other genres mixed in as well -- westerns (specifiacally, there's a shot of the character Animal Mother when he first meets Private Joker that reminds me of a shot in the fifties western Vera Cruz); film noir (Private Joker's voice-over and emotionally-detached observations remind me of movies like The Maltese Falcon or Double Indemnity); and a genre that originated in the eighties that one might call Punk or Slacker (I'm thinking of low-budget cult movies like Repo Man, or maybe Sid & Nancy, that were influenced by the popular youth sub-culture of the time.) My rating: A++
*This leads me to an off-topic comment that I'd love to get reactions to. Based on unscientific polling, I believe that a majority of Robert Altman's movies appeal more to women than to men.
Specifically -- Cookie's Fortune; Prêt à Porter (Ready To Wear); Vincent & Theo; Beyond Therapy; Fool For Love; Streamers; Come Back To The Five And Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean; Popeye; H.E.A.L.T.H.; A Perfect Couple; Quintet; 3 Women; Buffalo Bill and the Indians; Thieves Like Us; Brewster McCloud; MASH; and That Cold Day In The Park.
However, I have also noticed over the years that many critics have labelled Altman as a "misogynist". Is this contradictory? Please leave a comment. I'd love to hear what people think about this.
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Epinions.com ID:
bradywahl
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Member: Brady Wahl
Location: Cardington, Ohio, USA
Reviews written: 10
Trusted by: 21 members
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