This week on The Movie Gourmet – a preview of the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival, including new reviews of Speer Goes to Hollywood and The Faithful: The King, The Pope and The Princess. Plus reviews of the year’s wittiest movie so far, Official Competition, and My Donkey, My Lover and I.
REMEMBRANCES
Actor L.Q. Jones, born with the already Texas-colorful name of Justus E. McQueen, took the name of his first movie character (in Battle Cry) and rode it through 165 roles, bringing something interesting and different in every one. His NYT obit quoted him an liking to play “a heavy that is not crazy or deranged — although we play those, of course — but rather someone who is a heavy because he enjoys being a heavy.” Jones worked in some excellent war movies (Men in War, Torpedo Run, The Naked and the Dead, Hell Is for Heroes) and revisionist westerns (The Wild Bunch, The Ballad of Cable Hogue, Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid, Hang ‘Em High). He was also a delightful raconteur, which you can enjy by searching for “LQ Jones” on YouTube.
Composer Monty Norman created the James Bond Theme for Dr. No, which has been used in every Bond film flick since. Norman massaged a tune he had written earlier, and, as his NYT obit quoted him, “I thought, ‘My God, that’s it. His sexiness, his mystery, his ruthlessness — it’s all there in a few notes’.”
CURRENT MOVIES
- Official Competition: egos, power and a perfect ending. In theaters.
- Bitterbrush: two women at work. Amazon, AppleTV, Vudu, redbox.
- Both Sides of the Blade: not your conventional love triangle. In theaters.
- Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, a Journey, a Song: reflective artist, reflective movie. In theaters.
- Montana Story: a family secret simmers, then explodes. Amazon, AppleTV, Vudu, YouTube, redbox.
- Compartment No. 6: a surprising journey to connection. Amazon, AppleTV, Vudu, YouTube, redbox.
- Cha Cha Real Smooth: decent people and their foibles, navigating life. AppleTV.
- Everything Everywhere All at Once: often indecipherable and mostly dazzling. Amazon, AppleTV, Vudu, YouTube, redbox.
- My Donkey, My Lover and I: it had me at the title. In theaters.
- Jazzfest: A News Orleans Story: introducing the perfect 8 days of culture. In theaters.
- Hit the Road: a funny family masks their tough choice. Amazon, AppleTV, Vudu, YouTube.
- Like a Rolling Stone: The Life and Times of Ben Fong-Torres: tell me more. Netflix.
- The Tale of King Crab: storytelling at its best. Amazon, AppleTV, Vudu, YouTube, redbox.
WATCH AT HOME
The most eclectic watch-at-home recommendations you’ll find ANYWHERE:
- Touching the Void: the gripping true life story of a mountaineer who had to cut his climbing partner’s rope. Amazon, AppleTV.
- The Outfit: no one is just what they seem to be. Amazon, AppleTV, Vudu, YouTube, redbox.
- Jockey: he finally grapples with himself. Amazon, AppleTV, Vudu, YouTube.
- The Imposter: you gotta see this. Amazon, AppleTV, Vudu, YouTube.
- Step Into Liquid: “insanely gorgeous” surfing. Amazon, AppleTV, Vudu, YouTube.
- Riding Giants: obsessive search for the biggest wave to surf. Amazon, AppleTV, Vudu, YouTube.
- Electrick Children: magical Mormon runaways in Vegas. Amazon, AppleTV, YouTube.
- NUTS!: the rise and fall of a testicular empire. Amazon, AppleTV, Vudu, YouTube.
- Dick Johnson Is Dead: funny, heartfelt and frequently bizarre. Netflix.
- The Women’s Balcony: a righteous man must keep his woman happy. Amazon, AppleTV, Vudu, YouTube.
- The Handmaiden: gorgeous, erotic and a helluva plot. Amazon (included with Prime), Vudu.
- Very Semi-Serious: glorious The New Yorker cartoons. Amazon, AppleTV, YouTube.
ON TV
Cynda Williams and Billy Bob Thornton in ONE FALSE MOVE
On July 27, Turner Classic Movies will air the gripping contemporary neo-noir One False Move. This is a fundamentally noir story – there are guys overreaching for greed and ambition, a femme fatale, and a very dark secret. America’s original sin – race – is at the core of One False Move.
The tale begins with a home invasion in Los Angeles. Two vicious professional robbers, with one’s beautiful girlfriend, steal money and cocaine, leaving a trail of corpses. The crime is solved right away – the cops know who did it and that the murderers are headed to a small town in Arkansas. The LA cops fly to Arkansas and lay in wait with the local constabulary. One False Move is a ticking time bomb as we wait for the criminals to drive across the Southwest to the inevitable confrontation.
One False Move features a great performance by the late Bill Paxton. It’s one of my Overlooked Neo-noir, and can also be streamed from Amazon, AppleTV, Vudu and YouTube.
