Blues in the Night (1941)

Plot: A struggling blues band, headed by world class jazz pianist (Whorf), gets mixed up with a Gangster (Nolan) and his Moll (Field).
Stars:  Priscilla Lane, Betty Field, Jack Carson,  Richard Whorf, Lloyd Nolan, Eli Kazan.

Blues in the Night is an interesting mish-mash of Hollywood musical, film-noir and melodrama.  Up to the 30 minute mark, its about a struggling band headed by  piano wizard "Jigger Pine", criss-crossing the country trying to play "real" Jazz.  However, after the band moves to an illegal Casino/Jazz club, it turns into a melodrama about gangster moll/man-eater "Kay",  Nolan, and "Jigger". The cast is definitely "B" although Carson, Nolan, and Field do good work.  However, the leading man, Whorf, soon left acting for directing and you can see why. He's not bad, he just doesn't have the charisma for the role. Another black hole is Kazan as the "comedy relief".  

Summary: Despite some good moments the film never rises above mediocrity.  The ending is rushed and the band characters often seem like stereotypes. Note: Although 5 songs are listed on the soundtrack, only 2 are actually song in full.

South Park - Season 16

This was another incredibly uneven season, and Parker's hatred for Christianity and his childish vulgarity  were often hard to take. Once again, several episodes start out well with funny ideas/setups and then just dissolve into incoherent silliness, poop jokes, and unsubtle attacks on Christianity. Laziness? Or giving the South Park audience what they want? Who knows.  My Ratings:

Excellent:  Cash For Gold,  A Nightmare on Face Time, Obama Wins.
Note: A Nightmare is a clever parody of "The shining" while the other 2 show Cartman at his manipulative best.

Good: Going Native, Butterballs,  Raising the Bar
Note: Butters Rules.

OK: Sarcastaball,  Faith Hilling,  Insecurity, Cartman finds Love
Note: Sarcastaball is one joke episode repeated far too long, the others just aren't that good.

Bad:   Jewpacabra, Reverse Cowgirl, A Scause for Applause, I Should Have Never Gone Ziplining,
Note:  South Park handles Religion badly, whether it trying to be serious or funny.  Cowgirl is all about toilets,  Ziplining is boring and includes real life actors playing "our guys". They're quite repulsive.

3 By Miyazaki - Castle in the Sky, The Wind Rises, and Castle of Cagliostro

The Castle in the Sky
Plot: A young boy and a girl with a magic crystal must race against pirates and foreign agents in a search for a legendary floating castle.

This was a fun, “boys own adventure” although the hero is a girl. The plot is a little muddled and some characters are bizarrely drawn, but it’s full of imagination and action. The so-called "Castles" are actually extremely large Zeppelins. The story and characters are not complex. Its best for those under 14 or the “young at heart.” I rank it 5th on my list Miyazaki films.

The Wind Rises
Plot: An animated biopic of Aviation Engineer Jiro Horikoshi, designer of the Japanese Zero. We observe his life from child to adulthood as he makes his dream plane and, in the process, falls in love with Naoko.

This really isn’t a “kids Film” but a fairly serious examination of Horikoshi’s life, with a strong emphasis on his romance with Naoko. It easily could have been a live action film with real actors, although there are a few dream/fantasy sequences. Beautifully animated and with good Japanese voice acting, it kept me interested and it had some inspiring scenes. I give it a high rating, but would rank it 4th of Miyazaki films since it lacks their imagination.  Note: Some reviewers were upset that the hero designed a plane that fought against us in WW2. However, fighter planes can be used for defense or offense, and Horikoshi can’t be held responsible for their misuse.

Castle of Cagliostro
Plot: A flamboyant thief struggles to free a princess from an evil count's clutches and learn the hidden secret to a fabulous treasure.

Usually ranked as one of Miyazaki lesser films, the character animation is much broader and more obviously cartoon-like that matches the very light tone. It’s a simple spy adventure story and doesn't try to add any complexities. It also has an exaggerated feel, like James Bond to the extreme. This isn’t a world where the hero is held in check by physics or reality, he can drive his car up the side of a mountain and has gadget for every occasion. But it’s very fun, very inventive, and doesn’t have a dull moment. But I’d rate it well below “Castle in the Sky” in 6th place. .

Bob Newhart roasts Don Rickles 2

The Devils Brigade - Fight scene

Irma La Douce (1963) Wilder

Plot: A Parisian Policeman falls in love with a prostitute, and tries to get her to go straight by paying for all of her time.
Stars: Shirley MacLaine, Jack Lemmon

A single idea spread out over a charm-free  witless, 147 minutes minus the songs from the Broadway (Paris) musical it's based on. It's a pace-less, pointless, plot less, plodding...but why go on and on like the movie.  MacLaine received an Oscar nomination, but I don't know why.  And neither did MacLaine, who called the script "crude" and "clumsy". Supposedly, Wilder planned to make a musical, but then dropped all the songs because it slowed up the plot - too bad he didn't add any good jokes. This was the first movie, that showed Wilder needed the Production code and Studio Execs to keep his natural vulgarity in check.

Summary: Its amazing that the same man who made "The Apartment"  just a few years before, made this atrocity. Even more incredible "Irma La Douce" was Wilder's most popular film, and made him more money than "The Apartment" and "Some like it Hot" combined.  Zero Stars.

High Fidelity (2000)

Plot: A record store owner and compulsive list maker, recounts his top five breakups, including the one in progress.

Stars:  John Cusak, Jack Black. Iben Hjejle

High Fidelity is one of those movies that's hard to rate.  Part of the movie, the one that focuses on the record store and the clerks and customers, is absolutely hysterical.  Jack Black in particular is pitch perfect as the obnoxious know-it-all store clerk who refuses to sell records to the "wrong-type" customer, and attacks everyone else's musical tastes.  

However, that's only 1/3 of the movie. Two thirds is about John Cusak and his current/past bad relationships. Cusak isn't bad and and  there's a funny bit with Tim Robbins - but on the whole ,its somewhat boring and mediocre.  Cusak and Hjejle had no chemistry and it was hard for me to care.  So, five stars for the record store part,  two starts for the rest of the movie.   Composite rating ***

Favorite Quote:

[Rob turns off Barry's tape]

Barry: OK, buddy, uh, I was just tryin' to cheer us up so go ahead. Put on some old sad bastard music, see if I care.
Rob: I don't wanna hear old sad bastard music, Barry, I just want something I can ignore.
Barry: Here's the thing. I made that tape special for today. My special Monday morning for *you*... special.
Rob: Well, it's Monday afternoon! You should get out of bed earlier!