January 27 - February 2:
Office Space (1999)
Ron Livingston, Jennifer Aniston
Friday was a hard day for me, so it was a comedy emergency. It was a toss up between this one, UHF and Tootsie, but Office Space won out and it was just what the doctor ordered. It struck me again what a great film this is--hilarious, while remaining utterly true to life. Anyone who's ever worked in a corporate setting will back me on this.
I have to admit I've been enjoying catching bits and pieces of The Beverly Hillbillies, which TVLand has just started showing. I'm surprised at how much I love the cranky character of Granny. A psychiatrist would no doubt tell me she reminds me of some of my long-lost relatives.
January 20 - January 26:
Rescue from Gilligan's Island (1978)
Bob Denver, Alan Hale, Jr., Dawn Wells, etc.
Our great pal Zach came up for the weekend and we had a veritable cinematic cheesefest, beginning with this gem. It's TERRIBLE, but I love it anyway! The castaways get rescued, thanks to a convenient tidal wave and Gilligan's blundering. They all have a little trouble adjusting to society fifteen years after their shipwreck, but that's okay, since they end up shipwrecked again at the end (leaving a big opening for future sequels).
Teen-Age Strangler (1964)
Bill Bloom, John Ensign, Stacy Smith
You say you've never heard of any of these folks? That's because most of them were locals in the town (Huntington, West Virginia) in which this film was made and never did anything else and it seems to have killed the career of the one actor who had more than one credit. The film has many highlights, but I think my favorite part is where you can see the janitor pulling his script out of his pocket, holding it just out of camera range, and READING his lines. The ham acting is also a treat.
Dance Little Children (1961)
Leonard Belove, Herk Harvey
Another in which you've probably heard of no one, although Herk Harvey is notable for the one feature film he directed, Carnival of Souls (which is actually pretty good, in a low-budget sort of way). This one is brought to us by the Kansas State Board of Health and the U.S. Public Health Department because, yes, it's about teenagers getting syphilis. Most of the little snots are in total denial and don't want to tell whom else they might have infected, although we do feel sympathy for nice girl Lynn, who only slept with the boy because he was rich and her mother liked him. Despite their utter stupidity, all the syphilitic teens of Oakdale and surrounding communities are eventually cured.
We also watched Gas-s-s-s (click here to read my review from last January), which Zach had never seen.
January 13 - January 19:
Rosemary's Baby (1968)
Mia Farrow, John Cassavetes, Ruth Gordon
Can you believe neither of us had seen this movie before, not even Mr. Film Major? I wanted to watch it for research for a future project--I didn't expect to love it, but I did! It's the ultimate conspiracy film--they really ARE all working against Rosemary, including her husband, who agrees to allow her to give birth to the spawn of Satan (without her knowledge) to further his acting career. I need all of Mia Farrow's dresses in this film and most of Ruth Gordon's!
Anything but Love (2002)
Isabel Rose, Andrew McCarthy, Cameron Bancroft
This is one of my contemporary favorites, which I've discussed here before. Cabaret singer Billie Golden has to choose between the stuffy corporate attorney who can give her material comfort and the poor, obnoxious musician who's the love of her life. It's a slippery slope, but it all works out in the end.
January 6 - January 12:
The Best of Everything (1959)
Hope Lange, Stephen Boyd, Joan Crawford
A perennial Lounge favorite, based on the Rona Jaffe novel (another perennial Lounge favorite). The turgid story revolves around three young secretaries (and, eventually, roommates) who try to make their dreams come true in the Big Apple. They all get slapped around, some harder than others. A camp classic!
Viva Las Vegas (1964)
Elvis, Ann-Margret
I got this deluxe DVD for Christmas and it's a great gift because it's one of my favorites and it's never the wrong time to watch it! It's one of Elvis' many films in which he plays a race car driver, of which Rusty (Ann-Margret) disapproves. Don't worry, they end up together anyway! I just want to jump into the TV and BE in Las Vegas in 1964.
X: The Unheard Music (1986)
The members of the band X
Paul got this documentary about the punk band X for Christmas and we watched it on the train Wednesday night. I enjoyed it more than I expected to, although I maintain that, musically, they're a little too good to be considered a real punk band.
Click here to see what we watched in December and early January 2007
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Click here to see what we watched in December 2006 and early January
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