When Hollywood Was Cool…..

A cup of coffee on a cool morning found me reflecting on the really great things I have been privileged to experience in my lifetime. The cars of the ‘60’s were all about displacement and horsepower. The women about understated sophistication and raw beauty ensconced in denim and exuding warmth and honesty. The cinema relied less on special affects and more on substance with story lines being far more important than computerized imagery. I have been a movie guy from the time I was able to pony up fifty cents at a box office, usually on an Army base, to escape the military routine for an hour or so. I have spent hours in a theater and been blessed with a wife who enjoys the escape that good movies provide as much as I do. Today I am offering a synopsis of my 10 all time favorites for your review. The mention of any of these films always elicits a smile…..

1. The Graduate

A wonderful coming of age film, shot in 1967, about a college graduate (Dustin Hoffman) who has his degree and lacks focus as to “what’s next”. He is seduced by an older lady (Anne Bancroft) and falls in love with her daughter (Katherine Ross). He is in a pickle that perfectly describes that tenuous time when young men are guided by instinct, testosterone and confusion. It is ranked 17 on the list of all time great movies. Raw and honest comes to mind.

2. Christmas Vacation

Chevy Chase is at his best in this 1989 classic Christmas movie. The cast is star studded, the acting superb and the humor elicits side splitting laughter. Randy Quaid is damn near type casted playing the hillbilly relative who shows up with his crude but honest persona. His surprise appearance during the Holidays is superbly cast and written. The humor is timeless and we have seen this film many times. We have all lived through similar Christmas vacations……

3. Bullitt

This 1968 film, shot on the streets of San Francisco intensely sharpened my desire to become a police officer. It has it all, the macho image of swaggering Steve McQueen, a vintage Mustang, car chases and the adorable Jacqueline Bisset to offset the excitement laden car chases. McQueen was at his best as a detective on the hunt.

4. Shawshank Redemption

A 1994 film starring Morgan Freeman and Tim Robbin’s shot in Mansfield, Ohio. This is about con men in a prison where relationships are really all you have. Morgan Freeman is splendid in his role as a wise man among wise men in a prison setting. This movie is all about the acting chops of Freeman, understated excellence and immensely entertaining.

5. Schindler’s List

A 1993 tour de force. Liam Neeson is Oskar Schindler who saved well over a thousand Polish/Jewish folks from the holocaust by employing them in his factories during the war. Filmed in Krakow, Poland, Schindler must navigate the twisted world of WWII German occupation while maintaining an image of the good German industrialist.The cast includes such notables as Ben Kingsley and Ralph Fiennes taking the viewer on an emotional ride the likes of which few films can. Both educational and deeply disturbing, you won’t be disappointed with this terrific film.

6. Saving Private Ryan

Tom Hanks is superb (when is he not) in this 1998 film about an American Infantry company on a deadly mission to bring a WWII serviceman home to save him from the fate of his brothers, already killed in combat. This movie was filmed in England and Ireland and features Edward Burns, Matt Damon and Tom Sizemore as soldiers supporting their Captain in this deadly mission. Believe me when I tell you that Spielberg is at his best here, with the combat footages being as close to real as you will ever see. The efficiency of a rifle round, and the sounds of small arms fire is captured brilliantly. If you have ever wondered what combat is like this will help you to understand. In war, death comes quickly.

7. E.T.

I loved this show. If you let yourself go, empathize with the little extra-terrestrial, and identify with the young man’s attempt to get the alien back where he belongs, this one will get you. This was filmed in 1982 and stars Dee Wallace, Henry Thomas and Drew Barrymore. The special affects are necessary to pull this one off and evokes an “Old Yellow” kind of emotion with a better ending. One can get lost in this movie, in a good way.

8. One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest

Shot in 1975, in and around a mental institution in Salem, Oregon, this movie showcases the incredible skills of Jack Nicholson with an interesting performance by Danny DeVito. Nicholson feigns insanity to gain entrance to a mental institution as opposed to prison and is incredible in his ability to identify with and manipulate the patients and staff. It is listed as #33 on the list of all time great movies but could easily be in the top 10. This movie garnered 5 academy awards, an amazing acknowledgement of its incredible power. Nicholson has never been better.

9. In The Heat Of The Night

This 1967 film captures the racial overtones of policing in the Deep South with terrific performances by Rod Steiger and Sidney Poitier. It is a sweaty portrayal of the emotions prevalent in that day and time. This is a gritty movie, nominated for 5 Academy Awards, and brings small town Mississippi to the screen. The portrayals by these guys is powerful in every sense of the word. The age, the circumstances and the police…..

10. The Shootist

This was John Wayne’s last film, shot in 1976. Wayne died in 1979. He plays an aging gunfighter who tallied thirty killings before being diagnosed with terminal cancer by a doc who guarantees a painful death and suggests he (the doc) would not want to die that way. Wayne ends up going out in a blaze of glory, racking up several more kills before his final, dramatic ending in a bar fight. I loved John Wayne, a swaggering hulk who took no bunk from anyone throughout his film career. This movie was a fitting end to his tremendous career, is a western classic and featured a star laden supporting cast.

Of the hundreds of movies I (we) have seen, these immediately come to mind, although there are several others that merit consideration. My purpose here is not to persuade, or even solicit affirmation, rather to provoke thought about your list. Hollywood is seeking political relevance today and has become a special affects cauldron of noise and light while abandoning reality. What a shame…..For me, the plot needs to be at least plausible. I am not a sci-fi kind of guy and loved it when Hollywood was cool.

Have a great week!

SR