I’m not religious or addicted to shopping but Christmas is always a great period of the year because I get time off work. It’s been a pretty rubbish year for a myriad of reasons, but I think we need to look to the positives for 2021!
While we are under severe restrictions in the UK again, I am hoping everyone stays safe and well and we begin to see light at the end of the tunnel in 2021 from this COVID-19 nightmare. So, stay positive and hopeful and to start the Christmas celebrations, here is a clip from my favourite Christmas film of all time, BAD SANTA (2003)!
In this CLASSIC MOVIE SCENE, Willie T. Stokes (Billy Bob Thornton) is saved from suicide by Therman Merman and then beats some bully skater kids up as a thank you and f*ck you! If that doesn’t represent the generosity of Christmas, I don’t know what does!
Happy Christmas and see you all in 2021 for more blogging, reviewing and screenwriting.
CLASSIC MOVIE SCENES #14 – RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK (1981) – GUN VERSUS SWORD!
Directed by: Steven Spielberg
Produced by: Frank Marshall
Screenplay by: Lawrence Kasdan
Story by: George Lucas, Philip Kaufman
Cast: Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Paul Freeman, Ronald Lacey, John Rhys-Davies, Denholm Elliott etc.
Music by: John Williams
Cinematography: Douglas Slocombe
*** CONTAINS MASSIVE SPOILERS ***
It’s Saturday morning in London, so what better than to conjure up memories of classic weekend film entertainment. Because I recall, one Saturday, watching the monumental adventure classic, Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), when I was eleven at the ABC Cinema in Fulham with my nine-year old brother. Nothing like a great film to bring back happy memories. After the film ended, we were exhilarated and hungry. We decided that rather than spend our remaining money on bus fare, we’d prefer to walk home to Battersea and share a bag of chips in the rain.
The three mile walk lasted no time at all as we were full of excitement about the incredible film we’d just witnessed. Gigantic rolling balls, snakes in cockpits, treacherous monkeys, villainous Germans, a hard-drinking heroine, unforgettable fights, shootouts, chase scenes galore, and a whip-cracking, charismatic, never-say-die archaeology Professor as our leading protagonist. Those Nazis never stood a chance chasing the ultimate McGuffin in the lost Ark of the Covenant.
With a film like Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), you essentially have one classic scene after another. So much so you could do a top twenty easily. I have chosen to focus on an earlier middle act chase sequence which ends with one of the greatest punchlines ever committed to celluloid. Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) is chasing baskets around the marketplace searching for Marion (Karen Allen). It’s an incredibly well directed and edited scene. Moreover, it’s funny, exciting and full of twists; including that darned monkey! John Williams music is utterly wonderful to boot. Mid chase Indy is faced with a swordfighter from his pursuers. The fighter displays an amazing set of skills and we wonder how our hero will escape certain death. Well, Indy just shoots him!
The story goes that a massive battle was planned but Harrison Ford had food poisoning, thus the scene was rewritten. Thus, movie magic was conjured, not from expert planning, but from having dodgy guts! They should have stuck to sharing a bag of chips. But then we wouldn’t have this amazing end to a magnificent movie sequence.
CLASSIC MOVIE SCENES #13 – BLADERUNNER (1982) – “TEARS IN THE RAIN.”
Directed by: Ridley Scott
Produced by: Michael Deeley
Screenplay by: Hampton Fancher and David Webb Peoples – based on the novel, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip K. Dick
Cast: Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young, Daryl Hannah, James Edward Olmos etc.
Cinematography: Jordan Cronenworth
Music: Vangelis
*** CONTAINS MASSIVE SPOILERS ***
Philip K. Dick’s dense, dystopic and futuristic novel, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep (1968), is an ugly, beautiful, depressing, obtuse, hypnotic skip-through-treacle read full of incredible concepts relating to: Artificial Intelligence; robot technology; android simulacra; animal husbandry; apocalyptic disease; virtual reality/empathy mood tech; extinguished humanity; and ultimately, of course, mortality and death. The fact that Hampton Fancher and David Webb Peoples were able to fashion a workable screenplay for Ridley Scott to direct is a creative miracle. Moreover, it is testament to the writing and Scott’s incredible production team that, Bladerunner (1982), is held in such high esteem among cinema fans now.
The original Bladerunner, despite bombing at the box office and subsequently going through a number of cuts, re-cuts, final cuts and re-re-re-releases, has become a bona fide science fiction cinema classic. I watched the original theatrical version recently and despite the deadpan Harrison Ford voiceover and spurious, tacked on “happy” ending, it actually has a lot going for it. Obviously the ‘Unicorn Dream’ re-edits released under the guidance of Ridley Scott are the purer versions but the film holds up notably because of Ford’s gruff, depressive and world-weary performance as Rick Deckard; the imperious psychopathy of Rutger Hauer as android assassin Roy Batty; Scott’s glorious tech noir rendition of our desecrated future; as well as the evocation of Philip K Dick’s thematic existential power.
Such existential power is demonstrated in one of the final scenes where Batty has pushed Deckard to the edge of a building and death. The rain falls and the majestic soundtrack swells. A stripped down Batty, rather than let Deckard die, saves his life. It’s an ambiguous decision, but one of redemption for a replicant that is more used to delivering death. Perhaps, it proves that Batty does indeed have human qualities and Deckard will take up the cause. Delivering one final heartfound speech, Batty regales and laments the beautiful things he has seen. But they are gone – just like tears in the rain. It is a moving epitaph and amazing end to an incredible science-fiction classic. Batty closes down for good, but his demise and Hauer’s incredible performance will live long in the memory.
CLASSIC MOVIE SCENES #11 – JAWS (1975) – QUINT’S U.S.S. INDIANAPOLIS SPEECH
Directed by: Steven Spielberg
Produced by: Richard D. Zanuck, David Brown
Written by: Peter Benchley, Carl Gottlieb, Howard Sackler (uncredited)
Based on the novel by Peter Benchley
Main cast: Roy Schieder, Robert Shaw, Richard Dreyfuss, Lorraine Gary
**CONTAINS SPOILERS**
I have genuinely lost count the amount of times I have watched Jaws (1975). It is one of my favourite films and has one of the tightest written screenplays of all time. There is not an ounce of fat in the lean human versus monster thriller. The story as everyone knows finds a gigantic great white shark attacking beachgoers, tourists and locals at a New England summer resort town. Sheriff Martin Brody (Roy Schieder) is tasked with stopping the shark, but due to pressure from business owners and the Mayor he cannot close the beaches.
Spielberg, in only his second feature film cinema release, directed this classic thriller amazingly, filling it with a series of gripping set-pieces, fearful jump-scares and bloody carnage. He’s ably assisted by John Williams iconic score, Bill Butler’s impeccable cinematography, and sterling character acting from Robert Shaw, Richard Dreyfuss and Roy Schieder. However, amidst the suspense and heart-pounding scenes, arguably the best moment of the film is Quint’s speech that related to his experiences on the U.S.S Indianapolis.
The monologue itself comes as Quint and Hooper share “war stories” from their past experiences at sea. The men share a laugh before Brody asks Quint about a particularly nasty scar. Then the mood darkens and the old sea dog recounts a story about the U.S.S Indianapolis on which he was aboard when it sank in 1945. The chilling tale of a sinking ship and over one thousand men at the mercy of the sea, hunger, dehydration and shark attacks, is eerily recounted by Quint; loss and bitterness in his eyes. Shaw is incredible during this classic monologue as he not only establishes why Quint hates sharks, but also builds palpable suspense prior to the frenzied final shark attack on the doomed Orca.
Lastly, many writers have sought to take credit for the amazing monologue and the debate is almost as famous as the scene itself. An excellent article outlining who wrote the speech can be found here.
CLASSIC FILM SCENES #10 – THE SHINING (1980) – “HERE’S JOHNNY!”
Directed and Produced by: Stanley Kubrick
Screenplay by: Stanley Kubrick & Diane Johnson – based on The Shining by Stephen King
Cast: Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd and Scatman Crothers.
Music by: Wendy Carlos and Rachel Elkind
Cinematography: John Alcott
**CONTAINS SPOILERS**
With Stephen King’s latest adaptation Doctor Sleep (2019), hitting the cinemas, I thought it interesting to remind myself of the original classic horror film of which it is a sequel, The Shining (1980).
Uber-writer Stephen King was not a fan of Kubrick’s adaptation. Indeed, he was alleged to have been asked to cease complaining, in exchange for the book rights reverting back to him. Nonetheless, The Shining (1980) is quite rightly lauded as a horror classic. It slowly shows a writer’s descent into madness; something which is exacerbated by the ghosts living in the creepy Overlook Hotel.
Jack Nicholson plays Jack Torrance with a brooding menace throughout, exploding into full insanity after several encounters with the phantom hotel’s grim residents. In the famous “Here’s Johnny!” scene, Jack pursues his poor wife, Wendy, (Shelley Duvall) and gifted son, Danny, with an axe in hand. Wendy is trapped in the bathroom and Duvall’s petrified performance is chilling.
Beautifully framed, edited and acted, the scene is scary and nerve-wracking. The mania of Jack also casts a dark humour at the end. It took, according to Shelley Duvall, three days and sixty doors to shoot. Moreover, it has been widely reported the, “Heeerree’s Johnny!” line was famously improvised on set by Jack Nicholson. The rest they say is history.
CLASSIC FILM SCENES #9 – RIFIFI (1955) – THE SILENT HEIST
Directed by: Jules Dassin
Produced by: Henri Berard, Pierre Cabaud, Rene Bezard
Written by: August Le Breton, Jules Dassin, Rene Bezard
Cast: Jean Servais, Robert Hossein, Magali Noel, Janine Darcey, Pierre Grasset, Marcel Lupovici, Robert Manuel etc.
Cinematography: Philippe Agostini
**CONTAINS SPOILERS**
I was reminded of this classic low budget crime film recently while watching the brilliant 1980s set spy drama, The Americans. In it, Elizabeth Jennings (Keri Russell) is once again undercover manipulating a source, who happens to be a film geek. There she “bumps” into said source while watching Rififi (1955).
If you haven’t seen Rififi (1955), it’s a genuinely brilliant example of the heist movie. Directed by Jules Dassin, the standout sequence in the silent heist in the middle of the film. Lasting around 30 minutes there is NO dialogue and NO music. It is pure cinema of the highest quality and absolutely absorbing. We may not vindicate the actions of these criminals, but we are dragged into the cleverness of their crime.
Shot for what was a pretty low budget of $200,000, it features a cast of mostly unknowns or actors whose career, like the characters they play, was in decline. However, due to the sublime direction, tricky plot and stylish photography, Rififi, is a great example of ideas and ingenuity outweighing budgetary constraints.
Rififiwas a critical and commercial success in France and other countries. However, it was banned too in some countries because the governments were afraid the robbery would be copied by actual criminals. Moreover, the film and the silent heist legacy live on. Brian DePalma’s film Mission Impossible (1996) clearly riffed on the set-piece with the elaborate Langley heist sequence. Interestingly, Keri Russell herself would appear in Mission Impossible III (2006); as an American agent this time.
CLASSIC MOVIE SCENES #8 – DEAD MAN’S SHOES (2004) – RICHARD MEETS SONNY
Directed by: Shane Meadows
Produced by: Mark Herbert, Louise Meadows
Written by: Paddy Considine, Paul Fraser, Shane Meadows
Cast: Paddy Considine, Toby Kebbell, Gary Stretch, Stuart Wolfenden etc.
Cinematography: Danny Cohen
**MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS**
Shane Meadows’ Dead Man’s Shoes (2004) is both a revenge thriller and a metaphor for the lost youth of England. Specifically, the youth of the Midlands discarded and forgotten by society.
Paddy Considine gives an incredible performance full of intensity, guilt, pathos, pain, self-loathing and regret. He portrays, Richard, a returning soldier, out to get back at those that hurt his brother, Anthony (Toby Kebbell). The film asks: can revenge absolve guilt? Alas, there is no easy answer.
The film was shot in three weeks on a shoestring budget. Among many, many brilliant and disturbing scenes is the one where Richard initially meets main gang-leader, Sonny (Gary Stretch). It’s a short but impactful scene full of menace and suspense. Richard makes it plain he is coming for Sonny and his motley crew of low level criminals. Apparently a larger scale confrontation was scripted, but due to budget constraints this scene replaced it; proving that more often than not less is definitely more.
CLASSIC MOVIE SCENES #7 – ‘FLAMENCO DANCE’ SCENE – HAPPY GO LUCKY (2008)
Directed and written by: Mike Leigh
Produced by: Simon Channing Williams
Cast: Sally Hawkins, Eddie Marsan, Alexis Zegerman, Andrea Riseborough, Karina Fernandez etc.
Music: Gary Yershon
Cinematography: Dick Pope
**CONTAINS SPOILERS**
While I’m a massive fan of Mike Leigh’s body of work, I disliked Happy Go Lucky (2008) when I first saw it. I think I must have been in a bad mood or just did not get it. Maybe, on first watch, I felt it was an inconsequential film when compared to his others?
However, having re-watched it a couple of times in the last year I must admit I have completely changed my mind about it. Indeed, Sally Hawkins’ characterisation and acting as Poppy Cross is a joy.
In the ‘Flamenco Dance’ scene we find Poppy joining a dance class for what she hopes is a bit of fun and exercise. The teacher, passionately portrayed by Karina Fernandez, is Poppy’s opposite in terms of intensity and seriousness. This is all meant to be a bit of a laugh as Hawkins’ wonderful facial expressions suggest.
Yet, while the scene begins humorously it ends rather embarrassingly as the Flamenco teacher has a hell of an emotional meltdown in front of the class. I love this scene because of Hawkins’ sly performance juxtaposing with Fernandez’ heartfelt breakdown; all of which captures wildly different emotions in a short period of time.
CAPTAIN AMERICA: WINTER SOLDIER (2014) – “THE ELEVATOR SCENE”
Directed by: Anthony Russo, Joe Russo
Produced by: Kevin Feige
Screenplay by: Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely
Based on: Captain America: by Joe Simon , Jack Kirby
Starring: Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Sebastian Stan, Anthony Mackie
Cinematography: Trent Opaloch
Edited by: Jeffrey Ford, Matthew Schmidt
**CONTAINS SPOILERS”
In my original review of Captain America: Winter Soldier (2014) – which can be found here – I described the film as: “. . . neat socio-political commentary – full of the rip-roaring action.” In fact I think it is still my favourite Marvel film of the lot due to the fantastic conspiracy driven plot allied with some incredible stunts and action. Moreover, Steve Rogers’ relationship with Bucky Barnes is also further developed and thoroughly tested in an emotionally effective fraternal friendship breakdown.
The film has many standout scenes but one is more memorable than others in my view. It’s the scene in the elevator where Rogers finds himself being turned on by those he believed he could trust at Shield. It doesn’t intrinsically, until the culmination of the set-piece, involve massive explosions and CGI-driven action. Indeed, the “elevator/lift scene” is a wonderfully executed fight scene which makes use of its limited space to place our protagonist in an almighty bind.
Rogers enters the lift and immediately begins to feel something could be afoot. As more and more – what we eventually learn to be – Hydra henchmen enter the lift the editing builds fantastic suspense. Various shots build anticipation: looks from Rogers; a bead of sweat running down a man-in-black’s back; plus hushed conversation from an “office worker” in the lift. Then just before the fight ensues Rogers utters a great one-liner to set it all up: “Before we get started – does anyone want to get out!”
It’s already a classic scene before the brutal hand-to-hand combat kicks off and encapsulates the mix of paranoia and adrenalized action present within the whole movie. Watch it here:
CLASSIC MOVIE SCENES #4 – ZODIAC (2007) “The Basement Scene”
Directed by: David Fincher
Produced by: Mike Medavoy, Arnold W. Messer, Bradley J. Fischer, Ceán Chaffin
Screenplay by: James Vanderbilt
Based on: Zodiac & Zodiac Unmasked by Robert Graysmith
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo, Robert Downey Jr., Anthony Edwards
Arguably, the finest thriller director around at the moment is David Fincher. His film Zodiac (2007) was a detailed analysis of the characters involved in the hunt for the eponymous serial killer. It’s a film full of brutal murders and obsessive characters, notably Jake Gyllenhaal’s cartoonist turned investigator, Robert Graysmith. His character almost goes insane discovering who the Zodiac killer; so much so he risks losing everything – including his mind!
Toward the end of the film, Graysmith interviews Bob Vaughn (Charles Fleischer), a film projectionist, and the suspense is created literally out of nothing. The total absence of a known nemesis creates an unlikely amount of tension, especially allied with the way Fincher shoots in shadows and frames his characters. Graysmith is not seemingly in any danger but his paranoia, claustrophobia and growing sense of unease petrifies him until he is forced to flee. In fact, the thriller genre convention of revealing the murderer is, like in the real-life case of the Zodiac, rejected; thus catharsis is denied to the audience throughout this nail-biting paranoiac thriller classic.
Jake Gyllenhaal’s sweaty, panicked performance is perfect here as is his counterpart Charles Fleischer, who seems scary without even trying. Moreover, while it seems obvious to state that a director is the one controlling the various creative aspects of a film, David Fincher is one of those filmmakers whose form and style is often remarkable. This scene is testament to his skills as a cinematic craftsman par excellence.
For an excellent analysis of the “basement scene” check this link out too:
The Cinema Fix presents 