WHITE MISCHIEF

Greta Scacchi

WHITE MISCHIEF (1987). Director: Michael Radford.

In 1940 beautiful young Diana (Greta Scacchi of Shattered) has married the much-older Jock Broughton (Joss Ackland of Crescendo) and moves with him to Kenya. There the couple are part of a wealthy or would-be wealthy social set that includes rampaging lover boy Joss, Lord Errol (Charles Dance of Alien 3). It isn't long before Diana and Joss begin a highly indiscreet affair that has tongues wagging, and reaches the ears of Jock. Apparently resigning himself to the fact that his wife and Joss are in love, he agrees to step aside and even toasts the couple. But that same night one of these three people is found dead on a highway, and a murder trial ensues ... 

Scacchi with Charles Dance

White Mischief is inspired by true events that led to a fictionalized book of the same title. The characters are all one-dimensional, but that may be because they are especially superficial people, the two illicit lovers in particular. The performances, however, are quite good, with Ackland a stand-out. This is another movie which tries to present Charles Dance -- a good actor who is not especially good-looking -- as a male sex symbol. The real Lord Errol was actually better-looking than Dance -- the same is true of the real Broughton and Ackland -- although the glamorized Scacchi is much sexier than the real Diana. 

Old pals: Joss Ackland and Trevor Howard

The movie has a few intriguing scenes, such as a party in which the guests, both men and women, are required to dress in drag. A very bizarre, even gross, scene, has Alice (Sarah Miles) pleasuring herself as she stands over a corpse of a man she once loved. Murray Head plays Alice's boyfriend, and John Hurt is a weird farmer named Colville who is also attracted to Diana. Geraldine Chaplin flits in and out of the action without making much of an impression, and Trevor Howard -- who nearly got fired because of his drinking -- is fine as a dissolute friend of Broughton's. Hugh Grant appears briefly at the beginning of the film as one of Diana's lovers. White Mischief holds the attention but never fully engages the viewer. 

Verdict: Rich Caucasians behaving badly. **1/2. 

JACKIE

Natalie Portman as Jackie

JACKIE (2016). Director: Pablo Larrain.

Jacqueline Kennedy was the most famous, admired, and influential woman in the world, and that all ended in one shocking moment in Dallas in 1963. Whatever the flaws of JFK and the First Lady, neither of them deserved such a terrible fate, and I think the president's widow never fully got over what happened that day -- the suddenness, the gruesomeness, the shock and horror of it all. Jackie presents JFK's widow in all her complexities and mixed emotions as she struggles to get by in the hours and days after her husband's assassination. Natalie Portman [Black Swan] gives an excellent performance as Jackie, and there is good work from Peter Sarsgaard [The Dying Gaul] as Bobby Kennedy, Greta Gerwig [The Humbling] as Jackie's aide, Nancy; John Hurt as a priest; and Billy Crudup as a reporter who comes to interview Jackie some time after the tragedy (the main story is told in flashback). There is first-class photography from Stephane Fontaine, and a deeply poignant score by Mica Levi (some could argue that the music does most of the work). This may not be the last word on the final days of Camelot, nor on Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, but it is a moving and absorbing picture. Portman and Levi both received Oscar nominations.

Verdict: An American tragedy. ***.

FRANKENSTEIN UNBOUND

Pretty Boy: Nick Brimble as the Monster

FRANKENSTEIN UNBOUND (aka Roger Corman's Frankenstein Unbound/1990).

In 2031 a scientist named Buchanan (John Hurt) is developing a kind of disintegration beam that has the side effect of causing severe weather conditions and holes in time. Buchanan winds up back in the days of Victor Frankenstein (Raul Julia) and also encounters Percy Shelley (Michael Hutchence), his girlfriend, Mary (Bridget Fonda), Lord Byron (Jason Patric), and an intelligent if homicidal monster (Nick Brimble). The servant Justine (Catherine Corman) has been accused of murdering little William Frankenstein and Victor refuses to save her by telling the truth about the monster. The formerly callous Buchanan tries to rescue Justine and makes out with Mary (Shelley). It all winds up in a frozen future time period and not a moment too soon. Based on a novel by Brian W. Aldiss (Roger Corman was co-screenwriter as well as director) Frankenstein Unbound emerges as a mish mash of some admittedly interesting ideas, none of which jell in very compelling fashion. Hurt is completely miscast, Julia and Fonda are okay, Brimble does a good job as the monster, Catherine Corman is effective, and Patric makes an interesting Lord Byron. [Some of these real-life characters also appeared in Haunted Summer.] Carl Davis' [Ben-Hur] score is a plus -- much better than the movie deserves -- but the gore scenes are more silly than anything else.

Verdict: Stick with Corman's Attack of the Crab Monsters. ** out of 4.

HERCULES

Dawyne Johnson, Rufus Sewell, and Ian McShane

HERCULES (2014). Director: Brett Ratner.

"I can deal with an ambitious man because he can be bought. But a man with no ambition wants nothing."

Hercules (Dwayne Johnson) has finished most of his twelve labors and is now a mercenary for hire, along with some comrades, when he is importuned by Lord Cotys (John Hurt of Alien) of Thrace and his daughter, Atalanta (Ingrid Bolso Berdal),  to help them fight the warlord, Rhesus (Tobias Santelmann), who has magic  and centaurs on his side. Don't expect to see much of that magic because this is yet another mythological film that downplays the fantastic aspects of the legends in favor of warfare. However, Hercules is exciting on that level, and well-staged battle scenes get across the violence without needing to depict extreme gore. Johnson is fine as Hercules, with good support from Rufus Sewell as his comrade Autolycus, Ian McShane [The Last of Sheila] as old seer Amphiaraus, Aksel Hennie as crazy Tydeus, and Reece Ritchie, as Hercules' nephew Iolaus. There's only one monstrous creature in the whole movie, and it looks like video game imagery, but the movie is nicely photographed. This is somewhat better than The Legend of Hercules, which was also released in 2014.

Verdict: Entertaining action flick with muscles. ***.

JASON PRIESTLEY: A MEMOIR

JASON PRIESTLEY: A MEMOIR. Jason Priestley with Julie McCarron. HarperCollins; 2014.

Jason Priestley became well-known when he appeared on the long-running television series Beverly Hills 90210 -- he has been a busy actor ever since. In this memoir Priestley, who started working as a model and actor at a very early age, writes about the effects of fame, his colleagues on the show, his film projects, occasional stage appearances, early girlfriends, a racing accident that nearly killed him, and his wife and children. Along the way he documents some truly stupid behavior, and on more than one occasion writes about how he needed to grow up, that being a celebrity did not prepare one for a normal life. Priestley is typical of some celebrities who bemoan the fact that they lose their privacy and all that goes with it, but forgets that this loss came about because of success, not because of a personal tragedy or some disaster -- would he rather have been an unknown waiter desperate for an acting career? McCarron insures that the book reads well, and it will probably be of interest to young, aspiring actors as it does describe how the business of acting, and making a career at it, works. Priestley writes hardly a word about his film with John Hurt, Love and Death on Long Island. For some reason Priestley uses a comparatively crappy photo of himself on the cover.

Verdict: Strictly for fans and aspiring actors. **1/2.

YOUNG AND WILLING aka THE WILD AND THE WILLING

Virginia Maskell and Ian McShane

YOUNG AND WILLING aka The Wild and the Willing/1962). Director: Ralph Thomas.

"Damn it woman! Lloyds doesn't underwrite everything in life!"

Harry Brown (Ian McShane in his film debut) is a charismatic ladies man at an English college who has a steady girl, Josie (Samantha Eggar of Curtains), but has an affair with the wife, Virginia (Virginia Maskell), of one of his professors, the rather stern Chown (Paul Rogers). Harry is kind to his somewhat geeky roommate, Phil (John Hurt of Alien), and friendly with what appears to be the sole black student on campus, Reggie (Johnny Sekka). Other characters include Sarah (Katherine Woodwille), for whom Phil is carrying a torch, and somewhat snooty Andrew (Jeremy Brett), who was also involved with Virginia. It all leads up to a protracted finale in which Harry gets Phil to help him climb a tower and plant a flag as a prank, an act that leads to tragedy. Young and Willing has its moments, but a lot of it is very predictable. However, the actors are quite good, especially McShane and Maskell, here playing a role very different from hers in Doctor in Love, which was also directed by Ralph Thomas.

Verdict: Some compelling moments and performances. **1/2.

ALIEN [2003] "DIRECTOR'S CUT"

The crew of the Nostromo make an amazing discovery -- but things get worse.

ALIEN (1979). Director: Ridley Scott.

"This place gives me the creeps."

When Twentieth-Century Fox re-released Alien, they asked director Ridley Scott to prepare a new version incorporating footage that had been excised when the film was first released. Scott complied, but had always liked the original cut, and found the new cut to be too long and lumbering. So he did a final edit and came out with an alternate version that was a minute shorter than the original. But any way, you slice it, this is Alien, and it's good.

The crew of the Nostromo are awakened early by what they assume is a distress signal and land on a foreboding, stormy planet wherein they discover a derelict spaceship with a dead economy-sized navigator [see photo]. In the bowels of the derelict ship they find a mass of strange eggs, one of which unleashes a creature that attaches itself to the faceplate of crewman Kane (John Hurt). Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) is concerned about admitting Kane to the ship due to possible contamination -- it turns out she's right to be concerned -- but compassion overrides directives and Kane is taken to the medical center. From then on it's a mounting spiral of horror as the alien creature proves to be deadly and nearly unkillable. Alien admirably sustains tension throughout and works up a beautifully creepy atmosphere. The acting is good, with the ladies Weaver and Veronica Cartwright (who was in The Birds as a child) taking top honors. H. R. Giger's biomechanical alien design is intriguing and the film has superior art direction and scenic design. Dramatic license allows for the sounds of explosions and so on in space even if the ads claimed "In space no one can hear you scream." Jerry Goldsmith's musical score is a plus.

New scenes include one in which Cartwright gives Weaver a smack in the face and calls her a bitch. And one late in the movie when Ripley comes across cocoons containing some of the crew members, and toasts Captain Dallas (Tom Skerritt) when he begs her to kill him.

Alien was an influential movie, even as it was itself influenced [in script, incident, and design] by such B movies as It, the Terror from Beyond Space! and Mario Bava's Planet of the Vampires. It was followed by Aliens. In 2012 Ridley Scott made a prequel entitled Prometheus.

Verdict: Very well-dressed and absorbing popcorn movie. ***1/2.

IMMORTALS

Henry Cavill vs. opponents

IMMORTALS (2011). Director: Tarsem Singh.


After his mother is murdered in front of his eyes by Hyperion (Mickey Rourke), Theseus (Henry Cavill) -- with the aid of pretty seeress Phaedra (Freida Pinto) and plucky Stavros (Stephen Dorff) -- takes on the evil ruler and his armies of masked, bloodthirsty warriors. Hyperion has a weapon called the Epirus Bow, and hopes to unleash the imprisoned Titans for even more havoc. If only this was half as interesting as it sounds! If you're expecting mythological fun a la Jason and the Argonauts, be forewarned that this is a fairly tedious mess that juggles around a lot of mythology without ever coming up with an intriguing storyline of its own. Previous films have cast imposing filmic legends [think Olivier, Maggie Smith etc. in the original Clash of the Titans] as the gods of Mount Olympus, but here we get a kind of bony Luke Evans as Zeus, proclaiming that "no god may interfere in the affairs of man!" Since when? The movie has one impressive sequence, when Theseus rallies the troops and they all bang their swords in unison and there's a temporary excitement, as well as skill in editing and direction. Then we're back to fight scenes that resemble gory video games. Cavil, Pinto and Dorff are okay, but Rourke underplays his role to the point of somnambulance; he's as bad in this as he was good in Iron Man 2 [there has to be more to a performance than intensity]! John Hurt and Stephen McHattie turn up in supporting roles. The film is generally good to look at, with some beautiful photography and striking scenic design, but that and some okay FX work can't save a pretty lousy and tedious picture. This is even worse than the remake of the aforementioned Clash of the Titans.

Verdict: Even if you think you like mythological movies, think again about this one. **.

THE SKELETON KEY

THE SKELETON KEY (2005). Director: Iain Softley. Screenplay by Ehren Kruger.

A young woman (Kate Hudson) applies for a position as nurse to a dying man in a Southern mansion and becomes embroiled in a mystery allegedly involving voodoo curses and a black servant couple who were murdered by a mob many years before. Hudson seems to suspect the dying man's wife Violet (Gena Rowlands) of being responsible for his condition, but she never bothers to take a sample of his blood to the police for analysis. The “twist” ending to this may be a surprise but it will not seem especially original to anyone who's seen The Mephisto Waltz and other films with a similar theme. The movie looks good and holds your attention, but the script is superficial and rather silly at times; the characters barely developed. An unrecognizable John Hurt is fine as the mostly mute old man. Gena Rowlands is simply splendid; next to her Kate Hudson seems a tame kitten coming up against a tigress. But neither Hudson nor her character are very appealing in this.

Verdict: Passable, but you've seen better. **.

A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS

A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS (1966) Director: Fred Zinnemann.

King Henry VIII (Robert Shaw) wants the Pope to allow him to divorce wife Catharine so that he can marry Anne Boleyn (Vanessa Redgrave). If you disagree with the King you're considered a traitor, but one man -- the Chancellor, Sir Thomas More (Paul Scofield) -- thinks that the Pope's, God's law, overrules the King's, and refuses to take an oath of loyalty on the matter. This study of a man of principle, who adheres to private conscience over public duty, is absorbing, well-acted, literately scripted (by Richard Bolt from his play), and expertly photographed by Ted Moore, with a nice musical background by Georges Delerue. Orson Welles offers one of the best performances as Cardinal Wolsey, but Leo McKern as Cromwell, Shaw as King Henry, Nigel Davenport as Norfolk, and John Hurt as Richard Rich are all quite excellent as well. Vanessa Redgrave's brother, Corin Redgrave, also makes an impression as More's son-in-law William Roper, as does Susannah York as his daughter. Wendy Hiller seems to play her role as More's wife, Lady Alice, in only one note throughout, and Scofield, although he won the Best Actor Oscar, is overly cool and theatrical, as if he had toned down his stage performance a bit too much. At times he seems perfunctory instead of impassioned, busy speaking lines instead of feeling the emotions. And the question remains: was More a principled man of courage or a self-destructive religious fool (or fanatic) who cared more for the Church than for his wife and family? The film also won Oscars for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Costumes, and Best Screenplay.

Verdict: Even if you grow impatient with the the central character, the film is well-made and compelling.***.