SONGCATCHER, MY BODYGUARD AND STARMAN

SONGCATCHER – A

Songcatcher (2000) is a beautiful gem and recommended for its emphasis on music and history.  The story follows a woman musicologist who discovers English ballads while visiting her sister in the Appalachians.  Produced by Richard Miller, written by and directed by Maggie Greenwald, the film stars Janet McTeer, Aidan Quinn, Michael Davis, Michael Goodwin, Jane Adams, E. Katherine Kerr, Emmy Rossum, Pat Carroll, Iris DeMent and Hazel Dickens.  The music score is by David Mansfield and the soundtrack features many famous female country singers who perform mountain ballads in traditional as well as contemporary arrangements.  Running time:  109 Minutes.

 

MY BODYGUARD – A

My Bodyguard (1980) stars Chris Makepeace, Adam Baldwin and Matt Dillon with notable appearances by Martin Mull, Ruth Gordon, Joan Cusack, and John Houseman.  Makepeace is a fish out of water when he goes to a new school and attempts to befriend the local black sheep as his bodyguard.  Produced by Don Devlin, directed by Tony Bill and written by Alan Ormsby, this endearing film was nominated by the Writers Guild of America as best drama written directly for the screen.  Running time:  102 Minutes.

 

STARMAN – A

Starman (1984) stars Jeff Bridges as an alien who is stranded on Earth and has the good fortune to meet Karen Allen who decides to help him get home while avoiding being captured by the Charles Martin Smith.  This charming story takes a lighter look at some of the ridiculous things that earthlings do while maintaining enough of a sci-fi angle to keep the story moving.  Also starring Charles Martin Smith and Richard Jaeckel, the film was directed by John Carpenter and written by Bruce A. Evans and Raynold Gideon.  By way of a better synopsis, here’s a good quote:  “Do you seriously expect me to tell the President that an alien has landed, assumed the identity of a dead housepainter from Madison, Wisconsin and is presently out tooling around the countryside in a hoped up orange and black 1977 Mustang?” [Richard Jaeckel as George Fox].  Running time:  115 Minutes.

WORLD WAR Z - A

I am by no means an expert on zombie movies but World War Z (2013) is a strong apocalyptic horror film that packs a realistic punch.  Starring Brad Pitt, Mireille Enos and Daniella Kertesz, the film was directed by Marc Forster who has some very impressive credits: Monster’s Ball (2001, starring Billy Bob Thornton, Halle Berry); Finding Neverland (2004, starring Johnny Depp, Kate Winslet, Julie Christie and Dustin Hoffman); The Kite Runner (2007, starring Khalid Abdalla, Ahmad Khan Mahmoodzada and Atossa Leoni) andQuantum of Solace (2008, starring Daniel Craig and Olga Kurylenko).  He also directed Machine Gun Preacher (2011, starring Gerard Butler, Michelle Monaghan and Michael Shannon), which I have not seen but is on my list to see soon.  Mr. Butler and Mr. Pitt are equally easy on the eyes in my book but just because they are does not mean I will recommend everything they touch…I’m just sayin’!

World War Z is one of those movies with so many writing credits that it is impossible to give credit where it is due except to say it is based upon the book “World War Z:  An Oral History of the Zombie War” by Max Brooks.  If you want to know more then please visit the awesome website www.imdb.com and look up the movie to find the full cast and crew credits.

The producers’ credits are also lengthy and include Mr. Pitt but it’s difficult to say how much beyond its being initially feasible by virtue of his name being attached is given over to a producer’s other expertise; however, it is important to note that several very solid films have his producer credit on them:  The Departed (2006, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Mark Wahlberg and Jack Nicholson and winner in four of five Oscar categories); Running with Scissors (2006, starring Joseph Cross, Annette Benning [in her Golden Globe nominated performance], Brian Cox, Joseph Fiennes and Evan Rachel Wood among others); The Private Lives of Pippa Lee (2009, starring Robin Wright, Alan Arkin and Mike Binder); Eat Pray Love (2010, starring Julia Roberts, Javier Bardem, Richard Jenkins and Viola Davis); Moneyball (2011, starring Brad Pitt, Robin Wright, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Jonah Hill and nominated in six Oscar categories) ; The Tree of Life (2011, starring Brad Pitt, Sean Penn and Jessica Chastain and nominated in three Oscar categories) and 12 Years A Slave (2014, starring Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael K. Williams, Michael Fassbender and Lupita Nyong’o in her Best Supporting Actress Oscar performance and winner of Best Picture and Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay Oscars amongst nominations in nine categories total).

Other worthy films in which Mr. Pitt has appeared (if not already mentioned): Thelma and Louise (1991, starring Susan Sarandon, Geena Davis and Harvey Keitel); A River Runs Through It(1992, starring Craig Sheffer, Brad Pitt and Tom Skerritt); Interview with the Vampire (1994, starring Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise and Antonio Banderas); Se7en(1995, starring Morgan Freeman, Brad Pitt, Gwyneth Paltrow and Kevin Spacey); Twelve Monkeys (1995, starring Bruce Willis, Madeleine Stowe and Brad Pitt); Seven Years in Tibet(1997, starring Brad Pitt, David Thewlis and JD Wong); Fight Club (1999, starring Brad Pitt, Edward Norton and Helena Bonham Carter); Ocean’s Eleven(2001, starring George Clooney, Brad Pitt and Julia Roberts, amongst others);Ocean’s Twelve (2004, starring George Clooney, Brad Pitt and Julia Roberts, amongst others); Ocean’s Thirteen(2007, starring George Clooney, Brad Pitt and Julia Roberts, amongst others);The Curious Case of Benjamin Button(2008, starring Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett and Tilda Swinton) and Inglourious Basterds (2009, starring Brad Pitt, Diane Kruger and Eli Roth).

Other Pitt films may or may not be to your liking but they are not strong enough for me to recommend.  I have not seen Sleepers (1996, starring Kevin Bacon, Robert De Niro, Jason Patric, Dustin Hoffman and Brad Pitt amongst others) but it is on my list to see soon. Mireille Enos has been in several TV series; however, her most picture before World War Z was in Gangster Squad(2013, starring Sean Penn, Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone). Daneilla Kertesz also comes from a TV background but World War Z appears to have been her first film.

Running Time:  116 Minutes

According to www.imdb.com World War Z 2 is to be released in 2015.

THE QUIET MAN - A

Director John Ford’s love story stars John Wayne as an American boxer who returns to the Irish village where he was born and has to endure an epic fight in order to secure his bride.  A strong supporting cast and Oscar-winning cinematography make this movie a paean to Ireland.  This film is my most favorite John Ford movie and in my top twenty films of all time.  The Quiet Man (1952) won Ford a Best Director Oscar and also stars Maureen O’Hara, Ward Bond, Victor McLaglen and Barry Fitzgerald.  The screenplay was written by Frank Nugent and is based upon the short story by Maurice Walsh.

Most notable films directed by John Ford:  Mary of Scotland (1936, starring Katharine Hepburn and Frederic March); Stagecoach (1939, starring John Wayne, Claire Trevor, Andy Devinem, John Carradine and a Best Supporting Actor performance by Thomas Mitchell); Drums Along the Mohawk (1939, starring Claudette Colbert, Henry Fonda, Edna May Oliver); Young Mr. Lincoln (1939, starring Henry Fonda, Alice Brady and Marjorie Weaver); Grapes of Wrath (1940, starring Henry Fonda, Jane Darwell [in her Oscar-winning Best Supporting Actress role], John Carradine for which John Ford won the Best Director Academy Award); The Long Voyage Home (1940, starring John Wayne, Thomas Mitchell and Ian Hunter); How Green Was My Valley (1941, Starring Walter Pidgeon, Maureen O’Hara, Anna Lee, Donald Crisp [in his Oscar-winning Best Supporting Actor role] and Roddy McDowall, winner of five Oscars including Best Picture and Best Director); They Were Expendable (1945, Robert Montgomery, John Wayne); Fort Apache (1948, starring John Wayne, Henry Fonda, Shirley Temple also written by Frank Nugent); She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949, starring John Wayne, Joanne Dru and John Agar also written by Frank Nugent and winner of Best Cinematography Oscar); Rio Grande (1950, starring John Wayne, Maureen O’Hara, Ben Johnson); The Searchers (1956, starring John Wayne, Jeffrey Hunter, Vera Miles, Ward Bond, Natalie Wood also written by Frank Nugent); The Last Hurrah (1958, starring Spencer Tracy, Jeffrey Hunter, Dianne Foster, also written by Frank Nugent); The Horse Solders (1959, starring John Wayne, William Holden, Constance Towers); The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962, starring James Stewart, John Wayne and Vera Miles); How the West Was Won (1962, “Civil War” Section, starring James Stewart, John Wayne, Gregory Peck among others and winner of three Academy Awards); Donovan’s Reef (1963, starring John Wayne, Lee Marvin, Elizabeth Allen, Jack Warden and Cesar Romero also written by Frank Nugent); and Cheyenne Autumn (1964, starring Richard Widmark, Caroll Baker, Karl Malden, Sal Mineo, Dolores del Rio and Ricardo Montalban).  While this does not include all of Ford’s pictures, they are the ones I feel are worth at least one viewing.

Writer Frank Nugent also wrote Mister Roberts (1955, starring Henry Fonda, James Cagney, William Powell and Jack Lemmon in his Oscar-winning Best Supporting Actor performance).  John Ford, Mervyn LeRoy and an uncredited Joshua Logan directed the film.  Additional notable films with Maureen O’Hara include:  The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1935, starring Charles Laughton, Maureen O’Hara and Cedric Hardwicke); Miracle on 34^th Street (1947, starring Edmund Gwenn, Maureen O’Hara, John Payne, Gene Lockhart and Natalie Wood); Against All Flags (1952, starring Errol Flynn, Maureen O’Hara and Anthony Quinn); The Parent Trap (1961, starring Hayley Mills, Maureen O’Hara and Brian Keith); Mr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation (1962, starring James Stewart and Maureen O’Hara); McClintock! (1963, starring John Wayne, Maureen O’Hara and Patrick Wayne); The Rare Breed (1966, starring James Stewart, Maureen O’Hara and Brian Keith) and Big Jake (1971, starring John Wayne, Richard Boone and Maureen O’Hara).  Barry Fitzgerald as well as Ward Bond and several other cast members had many bit parts in John Ford films as well as numerous others; however, most famously Barry Fitzgerald appeared in:  Bringing Up Baby (1938, starring Katharine Hepburn, Cary Grant and Charles Ruggles); The Dawn Patrol (1928, starring Errol Flynn, Basil Rathbone and David Niven); The Sea Wolf (1941, starring Edward G. Robinson, Ida Lupino and John Garfield); And Then There Were None (1945, starring Barry Fitzgerald, Walter Huston, Louis Hayward among others); and The Story of Sea Biscuit (1947, starring Shirley Temple, Barry Fitzgerald and Lon McCallister).

A Favorite Quote:  “Put his name on the list.  Now cross it off!” (Barry Fitzgerald as Michaleen Oge Flynn)

Running Time:  129 Minutes