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Ed Bagley's Articles in Movies & Film

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Movie Review - American Film Institute Rates Wilder's "Some Like It Hot" as the Best Comedy Ever In its day, "Some Like It Hot" was a hot ticket, being nominated for six Oscars and winning one. Released in 1959, this black-and-white film also served as the greatest comedy platform for its three main characters—Sugar Kane (Marilyn Monroe), Joe as "Josephine" (Tony Curtis) and Jerry as "Daphne" (Jack Lemon). Find out why AFI named the film the best comedy ever made. Movie Review - "Last Chance Harvey" Gets Quality Acting, But Suffers From Writer/Director's Effort Is it possible for your two leads to be nominated for Best Actor and Best Actress Golden Globe Awards and yet your magnum opus is average at best? Yes it is, especially if your leads are Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson, and the writer/director of the film is Joel Hopkins. Find out why it happened in the making of "Last Chance Harvey". Something to Talk About - Examines Critical Issues About Trust in Marriage "Something to Talk About" stars Julia Roberts, which immediately makes me think romantic comedy, but trust me when I said that this 1995 film has more drama than comedy as it tackles a subject prevalent in today's modern marriages—adultery. Find out Great Writing, Directing, Acting and Music Make "Steel Magnolias" an Excellent Film It isn't often that a guy could get pulled into a movie about a bunch of women sharing their lives, loves, hopes, dreams, struggles and tragedies in a beauty shop, but Steel Magnolias reeled me in like a bait on a fishhook. This movie is no "chick flick"; it has great writing, great direction, great acting and great music that make it an excellent film. Find out why. "Chocolat" Is Moviemaking at Its Best: A Sweet Story With an Important Message It is rare when you can say that a movie is so warm and wonderful that it can even overcome a manipulative, vindictive authority figure and a husband guilty of spousal abuse, but "Chocolat" manages to do so with some great acting, writing and directing. Chocolat is everything that is right about moviemaking—don't walk, run to this film and warm your heart with a wonderful viewing experience you will remember. "Radio" Is One of the Most Under-Rated and Under-Appreciated Films in Movie History "Radio"—the true story of high school football coach Harold Jones and a mentally-challenged young man named James Robert "Radio" Kennedy—might well be one of the most under-rated and under-appreciated movies in film history. Find out why this movie will tug at your heartstrings, and settle your soul. "Kingdom of Heaven" Sought to Be an Epic Film, But Became a Disaster in Production Unfortunately for "Kingdom of Heaven", what started out as an ambitious epic film about a little known time in history, became an almost disaster at its release and was only average at best. There is probably enough blame to spread around. Find out the nine reasons why Kingdom of Heaven could not cut the mustard as a good film. Even With Sandra Bullock, "Two Weeks Notice" Becomes Only an Average Romantic Comedy "Two Weeks Notice" is just a tad too predictable to be a good romantic comedy, so it must take its rightful place as average when placed against other much better efforts such as "Sleepless in Seattle", "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" and " Breakfast at Tiffany's". Find out why this film, even starring Sandra Bullock, does not really impress. Two Funny Comedies, "Talladega Nights" and "Wedding Crashers", But Only One Is a Good Film There are comedies that can make you laugh that are not good films because they lack any meaningful substance or worthwhile message. Then there are comedies that can make you laugh that appear to have a lack of substance, but slowly pull you into a character as you become emotionally involved with his situation. Find out what makes the difference. Two Action Adventure Films, One Comedy and One Serious, Both Turn Out Average If you want some over-the-top laughs, see Ben Stiller's "Tropic Thunder", a very confused film that can't make up its mind whether it wants to be an action adventure, war story, comedy, satire, mockumentary or wannabe drama. If you want fantasy disguised as action adventure, see "300", a film with more animation than acting. Waking Ned Devine by Kirk Jones Is the Best Comedy I Have Ever Seen - Part 2 - Sooner or later one has to come clean. When pigeonholed about what is my favorite comedy, I said some time ago that "Meet the Fockers" was the best comedy I had seen in a long time. What I did not say was what is the best comedy I have ever seen. So let me say it here and now: as of Sunday, March 11, 2007 the best comedy I have ever seen is "Waking Ned Devine" and it is not even a close call. Find out why. Waking Ned Devine by Kirk Jones Is the Best Comedy I Have Ever Seen - Part 1 - Sooner or later one has to come clean. When pigeonholed about what is my favorite comedy, I said some time ago that "Meet the Fockers" was the best comedy I had seen in a long time. What I did not say was what is the best comedy I have ever seen. So let me say it here and now: as of Sunday, March 11, 2007 the best comedy I have ever seen is "Waking Ned Devine" and it is not even a close call. Find out why. A Jewish Family Flees Germany and Settles Only Walter could see it coming. His extended family in Germany could not see that Adolph Hitler would turn on his own German citizens who were Jewish. Walter was a professional, a judge and a German citizen, not a Jew who happened to be a German citizen. He would leave Germany and take his family to Africa in 1938. "Nowhere in Africa" is his story. Friendly Persuasion - Finds a Pacifist Quaker Family in the Middle of a War If "Friendly Persuasion" was produced 52 years after its original release in 1956, it might have won some of the 6 Oscar nominations it received, such as Best Sound and Best Writing, not to mention Best Picture and Best Director. The technical advancements in moviemaking today are light years ahead of where they were when William Wyler directed this simple film about a simple family in a very complicated situation. Forest Gump - Teaches Many Lessons, and Tom Hanks Earns Best Actor Oscar Everything that happens in "Forrest Gump" is worth seeing, and much of what happens through its central character Forrest Gump teaches us important lessons in life. This is a love story, a story of relationships and the story of one person in a very big world that is sometimes almost impossible to understand. Forrest Gump won 6 Oscars and another 7 Oscar nominations and remains one of the most successful films ever made. Find out why. "For a Few Dollars More" Establishes Leone as a Master of Creating Emotion After the unexpected, smashing success of Sergio Leone's direction in "A Fistful of Dollars" with the newly-found presence of Clint Eastwood as the gunfighter who would become The Man With No Name, Leone 's direction in "For a Few Dollars More" was even more successful, artistically and financially. Learn why a film that could not garner a single award in its day has become a classic western film with a faithful following. "Coach Carter" Sends an Outstanding Message About a Coach with Integrity, Honor and Goodness Samuel L. Jackson plays Coach Ken Carter in a good sports drama with an outstanding message for today's high school basketball players who see playing with the pros as their only objective in life. Carter believes that a basketball scholarship and ethics should go hand in hand. This is an incredible story of a coach who will not compromise his values by not compromising his integrity. Four Average Movies That Do Not Get Any Better the Second Time Around Here are four average movies that do not get any better the second time around: Anger Management with Jack Nicholson and Adam Sandler, The Emperor's Club with Kevin Kline and Emile Hirsch, The Fast and the Furious (a totally mindless guy flick about macho wannabe men street car racing), and Five Easy Pieces with Jack Nicholson and Karen Black (both Oscar nominees in a depressing film about a guy going nowhere 1,000 miles an hour). "To Kill a Mockingbird" Exposes the Destructiveness of Bigotry Gregory Peck won a Best Actor Oscar in this adaptation of Harper Lee's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel about white lawyer Atticus Finch defending an innocent African American man accused of raping a white woman. This is a story that illuminates everything that is wrong about hate, prejudice, bigotry, ignorance, stupidity, lack of backbone and lack of a heart. "Tipping the Velvet" Is First Alternative Lifestyle Film with an Educational Message - Part 2 Based on Sarah Waters' acclaimed debut novel, Tipping the Velvet was adapted by Andrew Davies, an Emmy award-winning British screenwriter who has also written "Doctor Zhivago", "Bridget Jone's Diary", "Sense and Sensibility", "Vanity Fair" and "Pride and Prejudice". Davies is a very talented heavyweight. "Tipping the Velvet" Is First Alternative Lifestyle Film with an Educational Message - Part 1 "Tipping the Velvet" is what some viewers would consider a terrible film about a sinful, raunchy lifestyle, and what I would consider an excellent film despite any apparent raunchiness. The BBC brought this controversial movie to a 5-millon strong mainstream television audience in England. Tipping the Velvet is an incredibly unusual firm because you rarely, if ever, see an alternative lifestyle movie with a happy ending. "The Quiet Man" Is a Love Story Set in the Emerald Isle of Ireland No one ever said that filmmaking was easy, only that it could be very good and sometimes enduring, as in "The Quiet Man", starring John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara with legendary Director John Ford. The Quiet Man was the first American feature to be filmed in Ireland's picturesque countryside. Ford earned his 4th and last Best Director Oscar for The Quiet Man in 1952. See the film and understand why this love story will touch your heart. "Nanny McPhee" - An Excellent Movie with Magic and a Message for Children In an entertainment world full of trashy and violent video games and movies, Nanny McPhee is everything good about movies for children. You and your children can watch this film without fear of unpleasant and unwanted garbage rooted in sensationalism for ratings and greed. Nanny McPhee is an excellent film with a wonderful message for all children to recognize and understand. "A Lot Like Love" Is Light Enough to Fly Away and Never Be Missed "A Lot Like Love" chronicles the indecision of two young adults who are misguided and muddled in both their careers and love life. They haul off and do nothing with themselves and then wonder why they are not happy. No wonder they are confused about love. They deserve each other. See this film once and move on. Movie History: If You Thought Titanic Was the Largest Grossing Film in the U. S., Think Again A lot of moviegoers think that "Titanic" is the largest grossing domestic film of all time, topping $600+ million in revenue following its release in 1997. Titanic, while No. 1 in actual dollars generated, is only No. 6 when adjusted for inflation. Learn the real No. 1 largest grossing domestic film in moviemaking history in this article. "Lost in Translation" Makes the Meaning of Life Sound Elusive "Lost in Translation" was written and directed by Sofia Coppola and won enough awards to fill a grocery cart. Seeing this film, I would not have guessed it would have won so many awards. I gave this film an average rating rather than a good or excellent rating. I wanted real substance in this film and I was left wanting. Learn why in my review. Nancy Meyers Comes Up With a Winner: A Romantic Comedy that Really Works Christmas is coming soon and everybody is busy getting ready for another holiday season. A movie can be great comic relief. We want to be entertained and interested by a story that keeps us attentive and has a happy ending. Nancy Meyers delivers what we need as the writer/director of "The Holiday", a romantic comedy with Cameron Diaz, Kate Winslet, Jude Law, Jack Black and Eli Wallach. "Breakfast on Pluto" Is Really Not About an Alien from Outer Space "Breakfast on Pluto" is a gender preference movie about a boy who really wants to be a girl, and settles for being a transvestite trying to find a place in a world that curses his very existence. I endured Boys Don't Cry and Transamerica and am pleased to say I did not have to endure Breakfast on Pluto. I think that Neil Jordan is the reason why. This film is worth viewing for its message: to thine ownself be true. "Transamerica" Transsexual Tale Misses Opportunity to Inform and Educate Viewers There are easier films to review than productions involving alternative life styles, and Transamerica is an example. It is one thing to make a comedy or romantic comedy with no other purpose than to entertain viewers, it is quite another to tackle a difficult, controversial subject without assuming some responsibility for making its presentation a positive, productive impact upon viewers. To do less is entertaining but useless. You Cannot Forget Captain Jack Sparrow, But National Treasure Is One Heck of a Hunt It took an inordinately long time for movie land to bring us a modern day treasure hunt worth watching, but Director Jon Turteltaub delivered big time in National Treasure, the story of a secret treasure that crosses the centuries. National Treasure is full of obscure clues. National Treasure stays focused on the clues with the actors not upstaging the treasure hunt story line. Boys Don't Cry Stirs Our Baser Emotions But Fails Miserably to Increase Our Understanding How can a film produce an Oscar winning Best Actress performance and a Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination and still be a terrible movie? Easy, just fail to deliver an important message involving understanding and knowledge when you have millions of moviegoers who are glued to your presentation. 2 Weird Films That Have Stood the Test of Time: "Drag Queens in the Desert" and "Rocky Horror" What would Hollywood be without its share of bitchy, catty, gaudy, outrageous and crazy films? Two examples are "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert" and "The Rocky Horror Picture "Show". Both of these films have a very limited audience because they are more negative than positive and have few redeeming qualities. "The Departed" Is Best Mob Film Since Mario Puzo's "The Godfather" in 1972 Let me get to the most important thing first: Director Martin Scorsese won an Oscar for "The Departed". Scorsese, one of the most accomplished directors of our era, has been nominated for 7 Oscars—5 for Best Director and 2 for Best Screenplay—before winning with The Departed. The Departed is simply the best mob film since Mario Puzo's original Godfather in 1972. Mel Gibson's "Apocalypto" Brings the Past Violent Mayan Life into Our Consciousness Mel Gibson's "Apocalypto" shows the raw, violent face of the advanced Mayan civilization in its decline, with its rulers insisting that the key to continued prosperity is to build more temples and offer more human sacrifices to their Gods. The result is innocent Mayans being viciously attacked and their communal way of life being destroyed to meet an insane desire. Will they be able to survive the onslaught? Four Average Movies: Two Messy and Two Unpretentious Here are four average movies, two of which are pretty screwed up (The Family Stone with Sarah Jessica Parker, Diane Keaton, Craig T. Nelson and Rachel McAdams, and Mona Lisa Smile with Julia Roberts) and two of which are unpretentious and easy on the eye (Indian Summer with Diane Lane and Unlikely Angel with Dolly Parton) Despite being pure fluff, I would rate the last two better than the first two. These Two Films Create Confusion or Unbelievably Overblown Drama Ocean's Eleven is a confusing film about a $160 million heist of three Las Vegas casinos from an impenetrable safe 200 feet underground. Is Ocean's Eleven supposed to be an action flick, a comedy, a crime story or a drama? The Hours features three depressed women from three different generations trying to cope with life, some Academy Award-winning performances and a story line that is even more depressing and repugnant. Two Films With Tons of Recognition That Leave This Viewer Unfulfilled A lot of moviegoers saw Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World as a great picture with great acting and pretty much a shoo-in for a handful of Oscars. I did not see it the same way, nor did the Academy. The Lion in Winter is a 2 Star movie with some 4 Star (Excellent) performances. Both movies stir no emotion in me, foment ill will and breed confusion when clarity should rule the day and resolution should be the result. Whatever Happened to Helen Hunt After Making What Women Want? What Women Want is a romantic comedy light enough to float away. Helen Hunt is a real talent with real hardware and seemed so on top of her game after the release of What Women Want in 2000. Heck, I figured, move over Julia Roberts and hello Helen Hunt as America's newest sweetheart, but Hunt did Cast Away with Tom Hanks and then returned to Broadway. The two rising stars today are Reese Witherspoon and Hilary Swank. A Romantic Comedy That Works With a Couple of 60+ Senior Citizens Something's Gotta Give is a romantic comedy without substance that works because of Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton. Keaton is one the few actresses at age 60 who has been able to partner with bankable leading men. She seems to have found the secret to staying young, alive and attractive while Nicholson at 69 and counting appears his age and has not benefited from the passage of time. Keaton is one fine looking 60-year-old woman. Five Movies That Try Hard Yet Still End Up As Terrible Here are five movies that try hard but are rated terrible for the effort. They include Napoleon Dynamite (with Jon Heder), Once Upon a Time in Mexico (with Antonio Banderas, Johnny Depp and Salma Hayek), The Notebook (with James Garner, Gena Rowlands and Rachel McAdams), Of Human Bondage (W. Somerset Maugham's novel with Leslie Howard and Bette Davis), and The Prince and the Showgirl (with Marilyn Monroe and Laurence Olivier). Put These 5 Films Together and Spell Terrible 5 Times Here are five more movies you think would be really better than they are, unfortunately for the films, the scripts, the direction, and the actors, they are not. All five get my terrible rating; they include Love Letters, Monster-in-Law (with Jennifer Lopez, Michael Vartan and Jane Fonda), The Fast Runner (about Eskimo life and culture on the tundra in Alaska), Myths and Logic of Shaolin Kung Fu, and Myra Breckenridge (with Raquel Welch). Another 5 Movies You Think Would Be Better Than They Are Here are another five movies you think would be really better than they are, unfortunately they are not. All five get my terrible rating; they include Gods and Generals (with Robert Duvall, Jeff Daniels and Stephen Lang), Mr. and Mrs. Smith (with Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie), Just Like Heaven (with Reese Witherspoon), Miracle (the U. S. Hockey Team victory at the 1980 Olympic Games), and How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (with Kate Hudson). "Camelot" Is a Magical Movie, and a Primer in Civilized Human Relationships and Growth Camelot, released in 1967, celebrates its 40th anniversary this October, and was based on the 1960 musical play Camelot written by Alan Jay Lerner with music by Frederic Loewe. Camelot became a modern day legend when it was immortalized after President John F. Kennedy's assassination. Camelot the play and Camelot the film were both truly inspirational musical productions. "Prada" Boss Drives Away Everyone and Everything But Blind Ambition Meryl Streep, one of Hollywood's best actresses, carries The Devil Wears Prada like the namesake handbag we see early in this movie, which is about Miranda Priestly, a powerful New York fashion magazine editor who hires Andy Sachs (Anne Hathaway), a recent journalism grad, to be her new gofer. In the end, she ditches the job when she realizes that life without her boyfriend, her friends and family are not worth the price of being exclusive. Hollywood's Most Perfect Actress Had Beauty, Fashion, Grace and Humility Was there ever an actress who combined these four timeless qualities—beauty, fashion, grace and humility—better than Audrey Hepburn? I think not, especially when I see her again in Breakfast at Tiffany's. We shall not see another like her in our lifetime and by then the film industry may be on the way out when some newer, better technology unknown to us today arrives. Audrey Hepburn was a model of grace and humility. An Iranian Foreign Film Fails To Promote Real Understanding Children of Heaven is an Iranian movie with subtitles about a boy who accidentally loses his sister’s worn out shoes after being sent to get them repaired, and must share his own worn out sneakers with her in a sort of relay while each attends school at different times during the day. Unfortunately, Children of Heaven has an unsettling ending. If it were not for this terrible ending, I would rate this film higher. Two Excellent Films That Could Not Win an Oscar Secondhand Lions is a masterpiece of storytelling written and directed by Tim McCanlies (remember the name). Near as I can tell, this film had absolutely no nominations for Oscars. First time French Director Christophe Barratier has given us an incredibly good movie in The Chorus, which was nominated for two Oscars but came up empty handed at the presentations. No matter. It did not affect the effort and excellence of The Chorus. Two Excellent Films With Oscar Nominations A Man for All Seasons poses the question: What would a man sacrifice for his principles? When Henry VIII seeks approval to divorce his wife and marry Anne Boleyn, his new Chancellor and Cardinal - Sir Thomas More - stands in his way. In the end, Sir Thomas becomes the only person in England who will die for his principles. Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl becomes the best pirate picture every made, thanks to Johnny Depp. An Independent Film Production That Became an Excellent, Big Fat Paycheck My Big Fat Greek Wedding is simply one of the best movies ever made about close families and their traditions. The estimated $5 million budget for the film generated worldwide revenue of $368 million, making it the highest-grossing independent film of all time, and the the highest grossing movie never to have hit number one at the box office. Five Average Movies That Are Worth a Look, But Only Once Here are five movies that are worth a look, but only once. All five get my average rating; they include The Bourne Supremacy (with Matt Damon), Catch Me If You Can (with Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks), The Breakfast Club (with Emilio Estevez, Anthony Michael Hall, Judd Nelson, Molly Ringwald and Ally Sheedy), The Christmas Child, and Arsenic and Old Lace (with a very young Cary Grant).