Star Wars

Title: Star Wars (a.k.a. Star Wars: Episode IV- A New Hope, 1977)
Director: George Lucas
Starring: Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Alec Guinness
Rank: 13

To all of you out there who are over twenty-five and still get a rush of glee at the thought of adding another piece to your action figure collection, to anyone who makes electronic sounds as they mime swordplay, to anyone who has ever been called a scruffy-looking nerf herder- you owe a debt of thanks to George Lucas.

I know there are several people out there who would throw out AFI's list without hesitation had Star Wars not been included. Of course, it's on there, and in the top 15 nonetheless! And with good cause, too. Any self-proclaimed film buff, sci-fi fanatic, or cultural history major would be mocked if they had never seen at least one (often times, if they had not seen ALL) of the films from the Star Wars franchise.

But what makes Star Wars such a cherished piece of cinematic history? Several things, actually. It could be the epic battle scenes in space, the hot princess, the clever dialogue, or the memorable characters and special effects. Really, though, Star Wars is great because it's a story about the underdog defeating a monster much bigger than himself by just having faith.

Underdog stories are always a hit, especially when the underdog comes out on top, because we all feel like we are the underdog at times. The world is big, and we are just one person, and sometimes it may feel like we make no difference. Get up, go to work, come home, go to bed, get up, go to work, come home, pay taxes, go to bed. Lather, rinse, repeat. We are just one little, replaceable cog in the wheels of the world. But when we see someone who is, as we often feel ourselves to be, an unlikely hero stand up for what is truly right and come out ahead, we feel hope, and a deep satisfaction that someone was able to "stick it to the man." I know I don't need to tell any of you what happens in Star Wars (and if I do, then it's time to take a day off work and watch the films, but don't worry I won't tell anyone), I'm sure many of you are more familiar with the details that I am.

Not only is it an underdog story, but Star Wars also has a political consciousness. The Rebels fighting against the Empire is essentially the "everyman" fighting against the corrupted government. Especially with the current state of things, the government has always taken criticism from the citizens. The government is big and powerful, and often it feels as though we just have to sit back and take whatever they decide to dish out. But, like Luke, Leia, Han Solo, and the rest of the Rebel Alliance, we do have power. Binding together and standing up for what is right is one of the most amazing things a group of people can do. Even the little things can make a difference in morality, and encourage us to never give up.

Star Wars also deals a lot with faith in oneself, in the form of the Force. Luke cannot defeat the Death Star with the computer, but when he closes his eyes and takes that leap of faith, he is triumphant! It isn't until we believe in ourselves that we can accomplish anything. If you believe you can do it, then you can, regardless if anyone else believes you can. As Yoda said "Do or do not; there is no try."

Star Wars is a legacy to film and fandom. No other series has been admired, parodied, or referenced in other films as much as Star Wars films have. I could list pages of projects that have taken inspiration from the Star Wars franchise (Spaceballs, anyone? Or how about FanBoys?), endless arguments of Star Wars vs. Star Trek, and hundreds of thousands of people out there who share the hero's name that have constantly heard the line "Luke, I am your father" throughout their lives.

Thank you, George Lucas, for making it cool to be a nerd. And to all my readers out there, may the Force be with you!




Movies to Go: 79

The Last Picture Show

Title: The Last Picture Show (1971)
Director: Peter Bogdanovich
Starring: Timothy Bottoms, Jeff Bridges, Cybill Shepherd, Cloris Leachman, Ben Johnson
Rank: 95

I really enjoyed watching The Last Picture Show. It's a black and white feature, made in the seventies but set in the fifties, about a small town in Texas. The people in the town grow, learn, and collide with each other throughout their lives. It's a coming of age story about two best friends, as they go from boyhood into manhood together.

There's always a point in our lives where we feel it is the official end of our childhood and the beginning of adulthood. Most people have that one defining moment when they feel they have become an adult, marking an official close to their adolescence. For Sonny and Duane (Timothy Bottoms and Jeff Bridges), that time comes when they watch the final showing of a second-run movie in the town's tiny cinema. Watching the last picture show (where the title comes from) in the cinema before it closes forever marks the close of their teenage years and their entry into manhood and the next phase of life.

The story is full of awkward sex scenes, most have the character's intention of trying to use sex as a sign of maturity. The group of boys, lead more often than not by Duane, tries to lose their virginity and conquer different sexual feats. Even Jacy (played by Cybill Shepherd in her film debut) tries to grow up using sexuality. She is the most desirable girl in the school, and she knows it. She wants to lose her virginity to Duane just so she can sleep with another (older) man, but something goes wrong with Duane and he is unable to perform. Jacy lies to her friends and tells her that the sex was the most indescribable experience she's ever had, making them envy her. It is not uncommon for teenage girls and boys to use sexuality as a vehicle to make them seem more grown up. Through experience I can tell you that it isn't the sex that makes a person mature, though. Maturity comes through developing yourself as a person and treating others in the best way you know how.

Part of learning and growing comes from colliding with other people in our lives. In the film, everyone knew each other and was involved in one another's lives. Like Miss Mosley said, "A person can't sneeze in this town without someone offering them a handkerchief." There are no secrets in a small town. Everyone knows about the different shenanigans of the boys, everyone knows about Sonny and Ruth's affair, everyone knows about the sexual promiscuity of Jacy. The people of the town conflict in what they want, and they clash with each other often. If we all had the same desires, views, opinions, and beliefs, life would be extremely boring and offer little opportunity for personal evolutions. When we meet someone who disagrees with us, then it makes us think, and making us think helps to form new ideas and new opinions. Meeting someone who has ideals that conflict with ours can be a very positive thing, so next time someone disagrees with you, listen to them! This doesn't mean that you have to change your ideals to match theirs, but it means you should have a respect for what they are saying, and see if you can understand their reasoning. You might be surprised on the things you can learn.

In the end of the film, Duane and Sonny both reach manhood, better because of the experiences they have lived through. People never have to stop learning and growing, as long as they are alive. Just because we feel a certain way today doesn't mean we will feel the same in ten years, five years, or even one year from now. It all comes down to how open-minded we allow ourselves to be. I, for one, hope I never stop learning and growing up, because I know there is still so much more out there that I have yet to experience.



Movies to Go: 88

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

Title: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)
Director: Milos Forman
Starring: Jack Nicholson, Will Sampson, Louise Fletcher
Rank: 33

Before this project, I had never seen One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, but I am glad that I have seen it now. Having never read the book either, I knew next to nothing about the story or the characters, but it was a nice experience being able to send time in their world (and also nice to be able to escape back to mine).

Jack Nicholson plays R.P. McMurphy, a man who fakes mental illness to get out of working. He is sent to a mental facility where he forms a comradeship with the other patients and causes chaos for the nurses and attendants.

The main point of the story seems to be fighting against establishment: While in the mental asylum, McMurphy bonds many of the other patients together and fights against the nursing staff, being defiant at every chance he gets. He causes trouble, does some dangerous things, and is always willing to take a self-imposed dare when he knows it'll upset the nurses. Most people have an inner voice that makes them want to defy authority (though some people's inner voices are louder than others) and live by their own rules. Whether it is parents, a boss, or the government, there is always a part of a person that wants to rebel and do things their own way. It seems only natural to want to rebel against one thing or another, even if it is just rebelling against a trend or boycotting a fast food restaurant. It makes me wonder if we were even made to conform and be told what to do or if it is something we have imposed on ourselves as a society over time.

The other interesting point of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is the setting of the mental asylum and the characters who live in it. Each of them has their own little quirk; something that makes them unique. I have yet to meet someone who is completely "normal" and does not have some strange little feature about themselves. This doesn't have to mean that they should be in a mental facility, it just means that they are human. For example, I have an irrational fear of the garbage disposal in the sink. I cannot turn on the garbage disposal if no one else is home, and here's the (strange) reasoning: If there is something down there, like a spoon or fork or a piece of glass, then if I turn it on it's going to shoot up into my neck, and since I'm home alone no one will be there to save me from bleeding to death. I can't stick my hand down there to check, because I'm certain that the moment my fist is completely down there the garbage disposal will turn on by itself and rip my hand to shreds. So every time I absolutely need to turn on the garbage disposal when I'm home along, I have to get out a pot and hold it over the hole before turning it on to protect myself.

When a person's quirk comes together with a natural tendancy to want to rebel, the results can be amazingly interesting. In McMurphy's case, (SPOILER!) he ends up being overtaken by the "establishment" of the mental asylum, but the things he does inspired another patient faking mental illness, known as Chief, to escape and start living his life. (end SPOILER) Inspiring others to go for the right thing, no matter how crazy it may seem, can be even more satisfying than getting it yourself.

Alright, extra credit homework: post a comment telling about a quirk that you have. We all get a little strange sometimes, right?

Trivia:
• Before they were as famous stars as they are today, Danny DeVito and Christopher Lloyd both had supporting roles in this film as patients at the psychiatric hospital.
• Many of the extras in the hospital scenes were actual mental patients.


Movies to Go: 89

Network

Title: Network (1976)
Director: Sidney Lumet
Starring: Faye Dunaway, William Holden, Peter Finch, Robert Duvall
Rank: 64

There is a great debate on whether people are naturally good and turn evil, or are inherently bad and must over come it to become pleasant and kind. In Network, all of the characters seem to have an easy enough time doing evil deeds. Extra-marital affairs, cheating others for profit, and even murder, all because of television ratings.

It is interesting to see the lengths people will go to gain something for themselves, whether they want power, money, fame, or all three of them. Some people will do anything for success, without regard for the feelings and well-being of others. At one point or another, everyone gets selfish and does things that aren't the most honorable to benefit themselves. It is tempting to do mischievous things to get what we want, and people willing to do those things are not in short supply. Especially with the economy in the state it is right now, there are people who are doing some pretty sleazy things for money, scamming defenseless people who still have trust in humanity.

Lying, cheating, stealing, and all those other sinful doings are, sadly, not uncommon in this world. We tend to not trust others until we get to know them because of personal experiences and stories we hear from others and on the news. It is hard to know who to trust and who not to trust, especially since it is so easy to lie these days- people can become anyone on the internet. (How do you know I am really a 23-year-old woman living in Southern California? For all you really know, I could be a 97-year-old man living in Scandinavia, or even a purple horse who has been given fingers to type and the ability to speak English from a old wizard who owed him a favor. You never really know!)

In Network, everyone speaks with such an eloquent quality and in educated language, even when the scene is intense. There is a scene in which Max Schumacher (played by Holden) tells his wife (played by Beatrice Straight) that he is having an affair. Mrs. Schumacher gives this speech to him, ever so eloquently, and the final line is this: "I'm your wife, damn it. And, if you can't work up a winter passion for me, the least I require is respect and allegiance. I hurt. Don't you understand that? I hurt badly." If I had just found out my husband was cheating on me, I would use much harsher words towards him than "winter passion" and "respect and allegiance." This use of vivid language makes it that much easier for people to do deceptive things. Hitler, for example, was a very good speaker and very convincing of his points, even though the things he did were absolutely appalling. We must be cautious of falling victim to people like this, because it is these people who can sway the most followers and do the most damage.

It often astonishes me to hear about the deceitful things that people do to each other. Sometimes it is hard not to completely lose faith in humanity when we see stories like Network or watch the evening news, but there are still plenty of good people out there. Unfortunately, they don't always get as much attention as the ones who do dirty deeds. Perhaps we need to shift our focus and praise more of the good and leave out a little more of the bad. Think positive, be positive.

Trivia: (source: IMDb)
•Won 4 Oscars (1977): Best Screenplay (Paddy Chayefsky), Best Actress in a Leading Role (Faye Dunaway), Best Actor in a Leading Role (Peter Finch), and Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Beatrice Straight).
•Peter Finch became the first actor to receive an award in an acting category posthumously.



Movies to Go: 92

~*~Be sure to check out the things that are coming in February, and VOTE to let me know what you want to see! Go here.~*~

Jaws

Title: Jaws (1975)
Director: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw, Richard Dreyfuss
Rank: 56

Jaws Theme Song sound bite  Jaws sound bites

Fear. We all experience fear. What makes Jaws so scary is the fact that the antagonist of the film isn't actually doing anything wrong, and since it is acting upon its instincts there is no reasoning with it. If you're swimming nearby and it wants to eat you, you're going to be eaten! There is no begging a shark when they attack, no pleading for mercy, or hoping that it might be a vegetarian. The shark is only doing what it needs to survive, and eating the human swimmers is no different than a giraffe eating leaves off a tree. Except with the shark, it is devastating to the families and loved ones of its victims, whereas few people will grieve over the leaves the giraffe eats. Jaws is on AFI's list because it is so good at playing into fear.

Every person fears at least one thing. Sometimes our fears can be paralyzing and make us act irrationally. Chief Brody (played by Roy Scheider) fears the ocean, and refuses to go in the water or on a boat if he has any other option. When a twenty-five foots shark comes swimming into town, killing any of the leisurely swimmers it can get its jaws on, Chief Brody must take action. With the town council and the mayor working to keep the beaches open with the intention of safeguarding the town's revenue, Brody must take matters into his own hands. Brody faces so many of his own fears while fighting the shark alongside Matt Hooper (Dreyfuss) and Quint (Shaw). It is something that many people admire but seldom have to do- face their greatest fear and overcome it just as Brody did. It doesn't necessarily have to be the fear of a man-eating shark, snakes, or spiders, but it can also be a fear of failure.

The fear of failure is one of the most common fears (next to the fear of public speaking and the fear of dying), and understandably so when you look at it from the surface level. "Failure" is such an ugly word, and the definition (borrowed from dictionary.com) is "a person or thing that proves unsuccessful." No one wants to fail, which is why so many people tend to settle rather than take the risk of failing. It is so easy to want to settle in a career of being a desk-jockey, working the 9-5 hours, doing the busywork the boss gives you, rather than pursue those no-limit dreams we once had as a kid. (There is nothing wrong with a desk job, I only pick on it because I am not made to do it. There is no way I could work at a desk for the rest of my life, but that doesn't mean it isn't perfect for someone else.) I know when I was a kid there were so many things I dreamed of doing- being a famous comedian, being a famous singer, being a famous actress, becoming the CEO of the Disney Company- but over the years the dreams became smaller and much more "realistic." It made me sad, though, that I was denying my true passions and settling for something "easy" in comparison to those fabulous dreams I had when I was younger, and I have reverted back to pursuing one of those teenhood dreams, finally realizing what my passion in life is and ready to be the best I can be. Big dreams take big work, and failure is sure to come, but if you learn something from it and get back up, then it really isn't a failure. It can be hard taking risks- a risk is something that does not guarantee success, and there is always a chance of a failure- but taking risks and persevering through the tough times will all be worth it in the end. I know that I am not cut out to be a desk-jockey: I need change, I need challenge. What I want to do is going to take a lot of work, a lot of time and patience, and a lot of perseverance. I am worried that I will not make it, but I have to take the risk. Pursuing my dream-career is like Brody attacking the Great White shark: there is so much to fear, but it must be done to get the desired outcome. I remember this quote that has always stuck with me: "Courage is not a lack of fear, but action in spite of that fear."

There are several other factors that make Jaws such a great movie, and such a wonderful thriller. Music, of course, is one of those factors. (Another film with music by John Williams, my favorite film composer!) It plays into the fear of the menacing shark, and just hearing the theme song can bring back the memories of watching this movie. Jaws also brings out the fear of the unknown and the unseen- if we cannot see it, we tend to fear it more. Due to the animatronic shark not being so great, most of the shots of it are close up and only of bits and pieces, but it works so well. It makes the imagination go wild with dread. Combine all of these elements to create an amazing consternation within the viewer.

I happen to be afraid of sharks, and I am lucky that the weather is too cold to go swimming because every time I watch this film I can't bring myself to go in the water for a while after. Thanks to an overactive imagination, every time I see a shadow move in the pool after watching Jaws I make a hasty dash for the shallow end!

So tell me- what is your "Great White shark" fear that is holding you back from what you really want?

Trivia: (from IMDb.com)
•When Quint gets a call on the radio while on the Orca, the voice on the radio is Steven Spielberg.
•During filming of Jaws, the animatronic shark was nicknamed "Bruce," although Spielberg sometimes called it "The Great White Turd" when it would malfunction.

Movies to Go: 95

Rocky

Title: Rocky (1976)
Director: John G. Avildsen
Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Carl Weathers, Burgess Meredith
Rank: 57

Tonight's film was a treat for me, because this was the first time I had ever seen Rocky. Of course, I have seen the shot where Rocky is on the top of the steps in Philadelphia, raising his arms, jumping around, with Bill Conti's "Gonna Fly Now" playing, along with many of the spoofs of it there are out there. (Take a peek at the film version here.)

It is not hard to guess why Rocky made it on to AFI's "100 Years 100 Movies" list. Written by and starring Sylvester Stallone, this film is about inspiration. Rocky comes from nowhere- he is no one special, living nowhere special, doing nothing special. As luck would have it, he is picked to fight in the championship fight against heavyweight champion Apollo Creed. (Creed only picked Rocky to fight because he liked the name the "Italian Stallion.") This is a dream come true for Rocky, and he wants nothing more than to go all the way in the fight.

Even though he doesn't win, Rocky does succeed. He lasts through the entire fight, the winner determined by points instead of a knockout. Rocky is ecstatic about the fact that he gets this opportunity, and completely satisfied with the outcome. The story of it is what everyone hopes for- we all have that "Mount Everest" that we want to achieve, whether it is becoming a record-setting athlete, discovering the cure to a disease, raising kids, becoming a world famous actor, or getting a chance to fight the champion. Most people have a dream, something they want to accomplish in their life, the one thing they want to be remembered for above everything else. It doesn't have to be something has big as becoming the CEO to a worldwide company, but it is something that will define us for who we are. Rocky was the underdog- no one expected him to make it, but he did, defeating the odds. We all believe ourselves to be the underdog at some point or another, and when those times come we have the choice to either let it break us or put in all we've got to overpower it. The only limits we have are the ones we place on ourselves.

The amazing thing about dreams is that it is never too late to have a dream, nor is it ever too late to pursue a dream. Rocky is thirty years old when he is given the chance to fight Apollo, having spent more than half his life thinking about this dream but never doing anything about it. When the opportunity presents itself, he takes it and trains as hard as he can, letting the fight take over his life and consume his every thought. He conquers his "Mount Everest" in the fact that he was able to withstand the entire fight and go the distance. To Rocky, winning wasn't the objective, it was withstanding the battle.

Rocky, however, had luck on his side. It was by pure coincidence (and that catchy name) that he was chosen to be the contender in the big fight. Not all of us will have that luck, and we often have to make our own opportunities. In most cases, there is no luck- it is all about persistence. Like the Japanese proverb says "Fall down seven times, get up eight." Any dream takes hard work and perseverance to be welded into a reality, and there will be times when you fall. It may feel like a failure, but as long as you stand back up then it is only a bump in the road. Besides, if you learn something from it, then it really isn't a failure at all.

We all have a dream or two, and nothing is impossible. (Walt Disney once said "If you can dream it, you can do it.") Dreams take work, though, but they are worth all the blood, sweat, tears, and time that go into them. It is never too late to make YOUR dream come true. We only have one life to live, and as Mickey Goodmill said: "You ain't gonna get a second chance."

Movies to Go: 98