This batch of 15 films covers the period July 16 - September 19, 1997. Two Best Picture nominees came out in this period: The Full Monty on August 13 and L.A. Confidential on September 19.
The Full Monty, in which out-of-work steel workers in desperate need of money form a pseudo-Chippendales act promising full frontal nudity, was one of many British indie/arthouse films that took the US and Oscar by storm in the 1990s; indeed, between 1992 and 1998, nine such films were up for Best Picture. It was an insanely successful film, financially, grossing over $250M on a $3.5M budget. Of course, money isn't everything, but cultural impact is, and The Full Monty can boast that, too: two stage productions, one a musical (2000, book by Love! Valour! Compassion! playwright Terrence McNally), one a non-musical (2013); a television series spin-off that debuted on Hulu last summer; and, I would argue, is the reason other similarly-toned and -themed films from 2003's Calendar Girls to 2014's Pride were greenlit and made.
L.A. Confidential is the movie people today claim came closest to threatening Titanic's Best Picture win (I assume that's quite relative). Adapted from the James Ellroy novel of the same name, it depicts the corruption of the LAPD, its relationship with Hollywood and organized crime, and a trio of cops who decide, yeah, maybe it's time to do the right thing. Titanic may have been the people's choice, but L.A. Confidential was the critics' pick: the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, the New York Film Critics Circle, the National Society of Film Critics, and the Critics' Choice Awards all named it the Best Film of 1997. It was also a hit - $126M gross, $35M budget, hoo yeah.
Interesting to see two Best Picture nominees among these releases, especially as, nowadays, August and September aren't really considered "awards season" periods. Times change. Anyway, the rest of the summer:
George of the Jungle
release: July 16
dir: Sam Weisman
pr: Jon Avnet / David Hoberman / Jordan Kerner
scr: Dana Olsen and Audrey Wells, story by Dana Olsen
cin: Thomas E. Ackerman
A rewatch for me. I feel like I saw this movie in theaters with my Georgia cousins? And I remember being frustrated that someone thought Ape was the Narrator just because of a final gag, almost ruined the rest of the trip for me. Anyway. Funny adaptation of the Jay Ward cartoon that works because it clearly loves the source material. Brendan Fraser's George is a total innocent, the king of the himbos, his performance working both because of his beauty (think of the scene where Ursula's friends gather round the paddock to watch him run with equestrians, hair whipping in the breeze; says one guy who spots them, "What is it about chicks and horses?") and his credulous comedic ability. Ryan Reynolds' fourth-wall shenanigans wish they were as effortless as Fraser's!
Mrs. Brown
release: July 18
nominations: Best Actress (Judi Dench), Best Makeup (Lisa Westcott / Veronica McAleer / Beverley Binda)
dir: John Madden
pr: Sarah Curtis
scr: Jeremy Brock
cin: Rochard Greatrex
The film that even Judi Dench herself says made her a Hollywood star - at the tender age of 62. we'll get into her performance next week; the movie itself is a moving drama about Queen Victoria in mourning, with the only person able to lift her spirits a Scottish servant named John Brown, whose influence over and intimacy with the Queen caused enough controversy as to unsettle the Royal Family and the government of the time. No dusty period piece, this, but rather one about the dust being shaken off, about a Queen and country in need of rejuvenation. Madden and Brock together craft a drama of political intrigue and unspoken, unrequited, perhaps not even romantic but nevertheless very intimate love. Billy Connolly is wonderful as Brown; also aces are Anthony Sher (as Disraeli) and Geoffrey Palmer (as the Queen's chief secretary). A quiet and deeply affecting movie.
Air Force One
release: July 25
nominations: Best Film Editing (Richard Francis-Bruce), Best Sound (Paul Massey / Rick Kline / Doug Hemphill / Keith A. Wester)
dir: Wolfgang Petersen
pr: Armyan Bernstein / Gail Katz / Wolfgang Petersen / Jon Shestack
scr: Andrew W. Marlowe
cin: Michael Ballhaus
What a fun movie, am I right, folks? Pro-Soviet terrorist Gary Oldman and his goons hijack Air Force One but not only has President Harrison Ford not evacuated when he was ordered to, he's a decorated veteran with combat skills they have not anticipated. One of those "Die Hard but on/in a..." movies, it's a great concept whose execution doesn't beggar belief - I believe this man could be President and be this awesome, yeah, I buy it, I'm in. Glenn Close as the loyal Vice President running things from the ground is a stabilizing presence. Moves briskly at just over two hours.
Good Burger
release: July 25
dir: Brian Robbins
pr: Kevin Kopelow / Brian Robbins / Heath Seifert
scr: Dan Schneider and Kevin Kopelow & Heath Seifert
cin: Mac Ahlberg
A rewatch for me, I first saw it in cinemas! Past generations had Abbott & Costello and Laurel & Hardy, mine had Kenan & Kel, the former a perfect straight man who refuses to acknowledge his schemes are the reason for their troubles, the latter his pure-hearted, empty-headed, breathtakingly handsome comic foil. This one's a classic premise, local mom-and-pop finds its existence threatened by a bigger, flashier entity. Kenan & Kel have the chemistry and the talent to keep it moving and engaging, Carmen Electra's a good sport in the film's best sequence. Features the classic ska song "We're All Dudes" by Kel and Florida's own Less Than Jake.
Spawn
release: August 1
dir: Mark A.Z. Dippé
pr: Clint Goldman
scr: Alan B. McElroy, story by Alan B. McElroy and Mark A.Z. Dippé
cin: Guillermo Navarro
Can't believe it took me this long to see the whole thing (I have a vague memory of watching it in college, maybe, but everything felt so fresh and unfamiliar that I assume it was mostly on as background during a party or something). Michael Jai White is great as the elite government agent killed by his boss and turned into the hellspawn of the title; I am not convinced John Leguizamo (unrecognizable but also very recognizable, if you know what I mean) actually read his script, his riffs and asides relevant to...nothing. But, whatever, he's playing a grotesque and pulls it off. Odd movie, cool movie, kind of undone by a finale that's pure animation, distancing.
Career Girls
release: August 8
dir/scr: Mike Leigh
pr: Simon Channing-Williams
cin: Dick Pope
Mike Leigh's examination of two friends who reunite after college, flashing back and forth between an exaggerated past and their present. Feels slight. Admire the broad play of the past scenes though: our memories are distorted, our embarrassing moments play bigger in our recollections than they probably were.
Conspiracy Theory
release: August 8
dir: Richard Donner
pr: Richard Donner / Joel Silver
scr: Brian Helgeland
cin: John Schwartzman
A rewatch for me, I first saw it here in LA during a movie night with friends. This movie has the goods. Mel Gibson is the conspiracy theorist cabbie whose thoughts are constantly intruded upon by memories, hallucinations, and short-circuiting. Julia Roberts is the Justice Department lawyer who first tolerates then, increasingly, trusts and defends him. It should be ludicrous but it's a blast, and I must salute the work by editors Kevin Stitt and Frank J. Urioste, who craft a suspense thriller that is equal parts jagged and patient, depending on whether Gibson or Roberts is the scene's POV. Great score from Carter Burwell.
The Full Monty
release: August 13
wins: Best Musical/Comedy Score (Anne Dudley)
nominations: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay
dir: Peter Cattaneo
pr: Uberto Pasolini
scr: Simon Beaufoy
cin: John De Borman
Never saw it before this viewing. We'll discuss it more when we cover Best Picture next week.
Cop Land
release: August 15
dir/scr: James Mangold
pr: Cathy Konrad / Ezra Swerdlow / Cary Woods
cin: Eric Alan Edwards
Small town in New Jersey houses much of NYPD's force, but the internal corruption that keeps the place running begins to spin out of control. Roger Ebert said something along the lines of the movie being too short for its plot, which is fair: at just over two hours, it's got a lot on its plate, examining the rot of a community built by men and women whose job is to protect and serve the people, but who've become so distanced from the people they not only live as far from them as possible, they have isolated themselves from accountability and humanity. So that's a lot, sure, especially with the myriad relationships and personal threads that are touched on but beg for further examination - I'm thinking specifically of the local "police" force assisting protagonist Sylvester Stallone, figureheads uneasy with their positions; and of Cathy Moriarty as the unofficial First Lady. It's enough, though, I feel. An incisive, exciting movie.
G.I. Jane
release: August 22
dir: Ridley Scott
pr: Roger Birnbaum / Demi Moore / Ridley Scott / Suzanne Todd
scr: David Twohy and Danielle Alexandra, story by Danielle Alexandra
cin: Hugh Johnson
A rewatch for me, I first saw it in college as part of a film class where we studied depictions of race, class, gender, etc. A wonderful showcase for Demi Moore as the only woman competing alongside the men for a spot on a special unit of the US Navy (one that, I guess, isn't the SEALs, but God knows what they are, real or fictional, I'm no military expert). She's magnificent, the movie drags.
Mimic
release: August 22
dir: Guillermo del Toro
pr: Ole Bornedal / B.J. Rack / Bob Weinstein
scr: Matthew Robbins & Guillermo del Toro
cin: Dan Laustsen
Genetically modified insects, created to wipe out a strain of cockroach carrying a fatal disease, have evolved into giant, carnivorous horrors. Gross, which I appreciate. Awesome ensemble cast: Mira Sorvino and Jeremy Northam, of course; also, Charles S. Dutton, Giancarlo Giannini, and F. Murray Abraham with quite the hair.
Hoodlum
release: August 27
dir: Bill Duke
pr: Frank Mancuso, Jr.
scr: Chris Brancato
cin: Frank Tidy
Harlem's Bumpy Johnson crosses wits and exchanges gunfire with mobster Dutch Schultz, who attempts to take over the numbers racket from Madame Queen. There's one moment where our cast is in the club, and there's this shot of Cicely Tyson, Vanessa L. Williams, and Loretta Devine looking 1930s glamorous: isn't that wonderful, isn't that beautiful? Laurence Fishburne is Bumpy, a powerful presence; Tim Roth is having a time as Dutch Schultz; Williams is great as Bumpy's girlfriend, her work with the Salvation Army and alliance with Bumpy evidence of a small neighborhood with few options - not just dating-wise, but Bumpy and Madame Queen are depicted, at least at first, as heads of an empire that is nominally criminal but is also the greatest source of employment and philanthropy for the Black community. Kind of sleepwalks to its finale. Costumes and sets are beautifully done. Its depiction of Thomas Dewey as being sustained by bribes is an outright lie.
The Game
release: September 12
dir: David Fincher
pr: Ceán Chaffin / Steve Golin
scr: John Brancato & Michael Ferris
cin: Harris Savides
Michael Douglas is a controlling, megalomaniacal businessman who elects to take part in a fucked-up "game" that threatens his livelihood and sanity. Wild twists. A hoot.
In & Out
release: September 19
nominations: Best Supporting Actress (Joan Cusack)
dir: Frank Oz
pr: Scott Rudin
scr: Paul Rudnick
cin: Ron Hahn
A famous actor claims his former high school English teacher is gay on national television, upending the small-town pedagogue's life in the days leading up to his wedding. Let's talk about perception and performance of sexuality: in a place where heterosexuality is the given practice, no one suspects someone might be gay, but once the question arises, everything people liked about you - your sensitivity, your love of poetry, even your fussiness - suddenly becomes evidence of how "not normal" they always knew you to be. And suddenly, too, Gay becomes the motivating factor in every facet of your being: "normal" people can be teachers and coaches because they love learning and care about being a part of their community, but if it's a gay man, it must be for predatory reasons - can you believe a 17-year-old movie is as relevant now as it was then? The movie embraces some stereotypes, sure ("With your coloring?"), but it does so while saying, "And so what?" It's part of who he is but not the sum total of him - Kevin Kline, by the way, plays all this beautifully. It never comes off as preachy, presenting its case wittily, approachably: you catch more flies with honey, etc. We used to make breezy entertainments about accepting the gays! A pleasant surprise, honestly.
L.A. Confidential
release: September 19
wins: Best Supporting Actress (Kim Basinger), Best Adapted Screenplay
nominations: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Score (Jerry Goldsmith), Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction-Set Decoration (Jeannine Oppewall / Jay Hart), Best Film Editing (Peter Honess), Best Sound (Andy Nelson / Anna Behlmer / Kirk Francis)
dir: Curtis Hanson
pr: Curtis Hanson / Arnon Milchan / Michael Nathanson
scr: Brian Helgeland & Curtis Hanson
cin: Dante Spinotti
A rewatch for me, having first watched in college (and boy, was I underwhelmed). I see it now and it's very much my thing, but we'll get into why when we discuss Best Picture next week.
Waco: The Rules of Engagement
release: September 19
nominations: Best Documentary Feature
dir: William Gazecki
pr: William Gazecki / Michael McNulty
scr: William Gazecki / Dan Gifford / Michael McNulty / Ron Nelson
cin: William Gazecki / Rick Nyburg
Documentary about government overreach in its siege on the Branch Davidians in Waco, Texas. Not so much concerned with the group's leader David Koresh or any of his shadiness, the doc points out that none of the unsavory stories about him figured at all in the FBI's decision to go after him. No, this is about what happens when the government targets you, fucks up their own mission, and proceeds to rewrite the record. Pretty risible!
Next time, Starship Troopers, Boogie Nights, and more!
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