The Jesus House

Favorite Movies #2

The Empire Strikes Back

In 1977, George Lucas made a movie that changed special effects and cinema and marketing and science fiction for the next twenty years. We all know it was called Star Wars, and then it was so huge that he realized he could make more, so he made it part of a trilogy and called it Star Wars, Episode IV, A New Hope. Star Wars swept the world and made movie history.

Then came the daunting task of finishing what he started, or trying to. Lucas did what most movie makers cannot … he made a better movie.

Now, I don’t mean better just because the special effects improved, although they did. I don’t mean better as in better action scenes, although it had that, too. I mean better in every sense of the word. Empire gave us everything we wanted out of the sequel and then gave us one thing more … a cliffhanger. It didn’t all work out in the end. You knew there would be a third one.

The story was more complex. The writing was equal, if not better. The developing romance between Solo and Leia took a few scenes at best, and it worked. The characters were more developed. We got to see how a Jedi trains and a fight between Luke and Vader! And the direction was much better by Lucas’ mentor, Kershner. Lucas also had help with the screenplay, which explains a lot.

This movie should have been the template for following Star Wars movies, but alas, Lucas is too much of a control freak to actually let that happen. As he proved through Return of the Jedi, Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, and Revenge of the Sith, he should have let experts do their job while he did his.

And yes, even for a sci fi movie, this is one of the greatest movies of all time and one I will always love …

I know.

Peace out.

Favorite Movies #3

Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner

I love old movies. Many are great, and many could have made my list, but few crack the top ten. Some came close, but I have to include this one as one of my favorites.

The recent remake was a disappointment, by the way, but this original one had everything a movies should have. It had a great setup, a great story, great acting, writing and a phenomenal message.

The year is 1967. A young woman comes home with good news, her coming nuptials. The man shows up, and he is black. Her parents see themselves as progressives, liberals, but this is a shock to them. Then the young man’s parents are invited, as well. This culminates in an evening with epic conversations laced with emotion, truth and love.

The casting is impeccable. Sidney Poitier, Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn are three of the best actors of all time, and this might be their best each. Tracy and Hepburn are as good as ever and their chemistry is something to behold.

There are several great moments in this movie, and the cheesy sixties music dates this movie more than anything, but the speech at the end by Tracy is incredible and moves me every time. The pride in Hepburns face at her husband and his stand was perfect.

Then they all sit down together and have dinner.

Peace out.

Favorite Movies #4

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

So, when I was young, like five or six, I loved Star Trek, the original show. But it came on too late for me to watch. It was on some UHF channel past my bedtime on Friday nights or something. I would scream and cry and beg to watch Star Trek. My parents patiently told me no. But I wore them down, and they let me watch Star Trek. Five minutes into it, I would be asleep, smiling and happy.

Then the movies came out. The cult would not let these characters die, even though the series had been cancelled years before. The first movie came out, which I saw as a young one, and then came the best Star Trek movie: The Wrath of Khan.

And I still think its the best one. First Contact was awesome, as was the Undiscovered Country, but Khan gave us what we wanted in a Star Trek movie, space battle scenes! It resurrected an old character from the TV show and put together a plausible new technology and a conflicted Kirk with some explanation about what he’s been up to the last few years. The interplay between the main characters was built on throughout the rest of the series, but the formula was found here. There was drama and comedy and action and sci fi through and through.

And they killed Spock! What a way to let us know that the movies were going to throw it all out the window. No one is safe. And for a Trek movie, it was well written, directed and performed.

And if you haven’t seen the movie Trekkies? You must.

Peace out.

Favorite Movies #5

When Harry Met Sally

Movies don’t come around like this very often. I saw this movie in the theater (yes, I am that old!), and I laughed out loud through the whole thing. Something just clicked with this movie, and to be honest, its been a little forgotten by everyone lately. I mean, ask someone twenty years old or younger about this movie. You’ll feel old, trust me.

This movie had all the right elements. A great cast in the prime of their careers (with the exception of Princess Leia, who still did a great job). Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan went on to do more movies and required bigger salaries after this one, although Crystal never again captured the character and spirit of Harry. Rob Reiner made a real name for himself with this one (although his best still has to be either the Princess Bride or A Few Good Men). And Nora Ephron’s writing never hit a cultural chord the way she did here.

The music was also incredible. All the old standards sung by the greats glues this movie together. And the little vignettes by old couples talking about how they met, seeing the love and the joy in their eyes … amazing. It was a timeless love story that you could have watched twenty years before and you could watch twenty years from now and still have it tug at your heart. The soundtrack by Harry Connick, Jr. (his big break) is still in a regular rotation of CD’s I listen and sing to.

The writing is, as you can tell, the type of writing I like. Classic story with good lines that you wish you had said or things you wish you had been bold enough to do. The story flows over years quickly but easily understood and sincere.

And the scene in the diner? “I’ll have what she’s having”

Peace out.

Favorite Movies #6

The Matrix

Okay, so I’m bound to get some flak because of this one. But come on, have you watched the original one lately? Brilliant and spiritual, this movie really works as a sci-fi movie and as a story of a man coming into his gifts and becoming the One.

This movie has almost been ruined by Reloaded and Regurgitated … I mean Revolutions. They were decent movies, but nothing like the first one. Fortunately, I am able to put aside my disappointments with a failed trilogy and admit the achievement of the first. The special effects were revolutionary, the combination of martial arts, computer technology and philosophy/spirituality gave us a modern type of mythology and some really cool fight scenes. I mean, think about it. Everybody loved this movie. Guys loved the fight scenes, geeks loved the technology, chicks and the educated loved the philosphy and the spirituality. With the exception of one f-word at the beginning of the movie (to purposefully give it an R rating … you know, because R ratings are more cool!), it was really clean.

And … okay, I’ll say it … it was the most original sci-fi/fantasy movie since Star Wars. Which made the next two all the more disappointing.

But I still love it!

Peace out.

Favorite Movies #7

Man From Snowy River

Jim is a young man who lives with his father in the high country of Australia. His father dies in an accident and is told by the high country community that he is not yet a man. The high country is hard, they say, and it takes a man to handle it. They tell him to come back when he’s a man to take over his father’s place.

Jim goes to the valley, the low country, and gets a job as a hired hand with an American rancher, Harrison, and falls in love with the man’s daughter, and the conflict ensues.

This is an Australian western and very well done. Many of the western aspects are there, but we are introduced to a different cultural take on it. Kirk Douglas plays two parts (twin brothers) and the other actors are believable and endearing. The wild horse chase at the end of the movie is excellent.

But the message here is great. In our modern society where manhood just seems to naturally happen, we are reminded of a time when manhood was earned and achieved. The overall story is one of a boy becoming a man independent of the laurels of his dead father or mountain heritage. We can all learn from that.

Peace out.

Favorite Movies #8

As Good as it Gets

This one is just pure genius.

I know that some people really don’t like this movie, but I can’t get over how good this movie is. It is seriously one of the most well done movies of all time. And yes, I’ll tell you why.

We could mention the great basic story of how this older man with a serious obsessive compulsive issue is redeemed through caring for a dog, a homosexual artist and a waitress, maybe not in that order. We could mention the incredible lines that pepper the movie. Movies don’t have great lines much anymore, but this one did. We could mention the performances of every one of the actors and actresses, brilliant performances that took time and effort to perfect, which also took impeccable casting, everything down to the dog himself.

But what makes this movie genius to me is the main character, Melvin Udall. From the writing to the direction to Jack Nicholson’s performance, this movie manages to give a character that we hate and love at the same time. I’m not talking about a character we love to hate. That’s different. I’m talking about a person who is walking that edge of doing things that turn people away, but who also possesses characteristics that draw people to him … even though they “evict” him from his “life.” Through this, we experience his struggle as well as the struggles of those around him.

And the end of the movie satisfies me with a realistic picture of redemption and hope for the future, despite all the obstacles.

Peace out.

Favorite Movies

#9 School of Rock

This is a recent addition to my list of favorites. I think Jack Black is hilarious. Its amazing to look back at how many movies he’s been in, even in bit parts. The problem is that its difficult to find a proper avenue for his very unique crazy, energetic style. He’s not a comedian, an actor, a musician or a vocalist, but he’s kinda all four. Its his energy that carries anything he does (along with those eyebrows) and a sense he has of musical history, style and what is absolutely cool and what a farce being cool is. He is mainstream and yet mocks it good heartedly all at once. He’s not a romantic lead, but he fills the screen with his talent.

So they had to write a movie just for him. And someone did. Nothing he’s done comes close to this movie, and I’m afraid nothing else ever will. For those of us who have been in bands and listened to rock as a religion and a law, we remembered the dorks we were with pride.

But the movie isn’t just great because of Jack Black. The kids are amazing. They are cute and talented all on their own (except for that bass player … did she actually play any of the songs?). The messages of finding yourself and playing one good rock show that could change the world and believing in something bigger than yourself and playing an important role are all well played and genuine. The movie is also fairly clean, which is many times the downfall of other Jack Black movies. Joan Cusak is funny in just about everything, so we should have expected nothing less than a great performance from her and that’s just what we got.

And any time you pray to the God of Rock, I’m sold.

Peace out.

Favorite Movies
#10 The Blues Brothers

I’ve decided to begin my postings with the one thing I know the most about. Movies. I know you might think that’s sad …. and guess what … it is. But there will be some variety, and it took me a while to narrow it down to ten.

Please notice the title. FAVORITE movies. I am not saying these are the best movies ever, just my favorites and I’ll give a little blurb about each one. Each one of these movies are films I could watch over and over again and have memorized at least parts of them … sometimes whole scenes.

First we have the Blues Brothers. It comes in at #10, if only because of the music. People think they’re cool to even know about this movie, but there are some of us that have watched this countless times. Blues Brothers 2000 was a waste of talent and film, but this one was genius. Every scene is hilarious and the cameos are incredible. Everyone in this movie just propels it along to one of the most ridiculous endings ever. Akroyd and Belushi make the film and it makes us all want to be on a mission from God.

Peace out.