No fighting! This is the war room!

It's hard to believe that Stanley Kubrick, the man who brought us such wild and bizarre films as A Clockwork Orange and 2001: A Space Odyssey could also direct the quintessential black comedy. The entire cast does such a great job of playing their roles with such straight faces that some of the funniest lines don't hit until a few seconds (or even minutes) after they've been uttered; this is probably the type of comedy that gets funnier with repeated viewings. The story, for those not aware, concerns a deranged US general who orders a fleet of B-51 bombers to attack Russia at the height of the Cold War. His second in command, Col. Mandrake (Peter Sellers), tries to get the Gen. Ripper to divulge the call-back code, while the President (Sellers again) and Gen. Turginson (George C. Scott) meet with other officials at the Pentagon's War Room. While inside the room they try and explain the mistake to the drunken Russian premier, while also seeking advice from former Nazi Dr. Strangelove (Sellers again, completing his brilliant trifecta). As I said, the way the actors play everything with such grim resolve adds to the brilliance of the film, because there aren't any cutesy "wink wink nudge nudge" moments. While the audience may be laughing at the film's dark satire of the Cold War, the characters are stuck in a perpetual state of dread for the possible nuclear holocaust. Filled with memorable scenes and great comedic performances, this is one comedy that is just as brilliant today as it was 30 years ago.

Grade: A

Kubrick-fest, PART 3! - A Clockwork Orange(1971)

........I hated the first 20 minutes of it......the rest was so overwhelmingly I'm still having trouble wrapping my head around it.

one coherent thought I can put together is that Malcolm McDowell truly gives one of the most astonishing performances of all time.

Grade: A

Kubrick Fest continues! "The Shining" (1980) - REVIEW

After years of seeing bits and pieces of The Shining (aka: the mother of all good horror films) I finally lifted myself out of my sunken position in my living room sofa and picked up the film at Blockbuster (you're welcome in advance for the free press). Even after seeing all those fragments, watching the whole film to completion was still a wonderfully surprising and frightening experience. Jack Nicholson does a brilliant job at transforming from a clean cut family man to a deranged killer. Kubrick's gliding tracking shots are a nice touch, and can function so as to be calming, unnerving, or flat out menacing. Perfectly matching the camera work is the music, which is erratic, chaotic, strange, and brilliantly unsettling. Perhaps what makes "The Shining" truly brilliant though, is the story itself. Few horror films have so many memorable scenes: "redrum", "Here's Johnnie!", the twin girls, the woman in the bath tub, the list goes on. One aspect of the film I really want to examing (briefly) is

"OH MY GOD! Is that what my hair really looks like from this angle!!!???"

Shelley Duvall's performance. She often gets quite a bit of hate, though honestly I don't really understand why. Yes, by the end of the movie all she's doing is screaming and panting, but really, what would you do if you were a waif-ish, submissive housewife being hunted down by your husband? I'm not saying she was brilliant, but it worked for what the role offered. I think this is one of those cases where people cross the line between an annoying performance, and an annoying character.

Grade: A+

expect Kubrick fest to continue in the weeks to come with A Clockwork Orange, Full Metal Jacket, and more!

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) - incredibly lazy review

Stanley Kubrick is my god now. I mean......WOW.

Quick thoughts:

- the use of music was genius and added to the mood of the scenes brilliantly

- on the other end of the spectrum, there's also brilliant use of lack of sound.

- building on the last point: steady breathing, when isolated, is one of the most unnerving sounds ever.

- the special effects have actually held up pretty well.


- HAL 9000, with his soft, calm voice, is one of the most terrifying characters ever created.

- the final act has to be one of the most bizarre and mind blowing sequences I've ever seen

- the only thing I didn't care for was the second segment (with doctor Heywood traveling to the space station/going to the government meeting/going to the Lunar Base), which really could have been trimmed down quite a bit.

Grade: A/A+