Sullivan's Travels

Title: Sullivan's Travels (1941)
Director: Preston Sturges
Starring: Joel McCrea, Veronica Lake
Rank: 61

It's amazing the things a person can learn just from observing others. "Take a walk in another man's shoes" is a common phrase, but not something commonly practiced these days. Sullivan's Travels is about a director, John Sullivan, who wants to make a dramatic film about the lives of poor people. His investors, however, think this is a terrible idea: What does wealthy Sullivan know about the life of the poor and hobos?

Wanting to make an exceptional movie, Sullivan goes in disguise as a hobo to try to gain insight for his film. His first attempts to blend in are frivolous, and don't yield much understanding for Sullivan. He does, through a case of mistaken identity, end up living life as a hobo in chains for three years. When he is finally returned to his luscious life in Hollywood, he has a new appreciation for life, a genuine understanding of the hardships of a life on the street, and a realization that he doesn't want to make a drama about the hobo life. Instead, he wants to make a comedy: while on the streets, he observed first hand how laughter takes away the stressfulness of any situation, and knows that he wants to make a comedy to lighten the spirits of the less-fortunate as a sign of gratitude for all they taught him.

Laughter is, indeed, the best medicine. Scientifically proven to reduce stress, increase mood, and is even heart-healthy! (Source: Laughter is the Best Medicine) Sullivan learned through his experiences that when a person is in a discouraging situation, it is better to make them lighten up with humor rather than reaffirm their sorrowful circumstances. The film even opens with a dedication to humorous people:
To the memory of those who made us laugh: the motley mountebanks, the clowns, the buffoons, in all times and in all nations, whose efforts have lightened our burden a little, this picture is affectionately dedicated.

But more importantly than just learning the value of laughter, Sullivan learns what life is like through the eyes of another. All of us have our hardships in life, and all of us have the good points about life, too. Whatever the situation is, there's always someone who has a situation we would consider worse than our own. It takes a great deal of intelligence to learn through the observation of others rather than continuously making our own mistakes, and this holds true with learning about sorrow. Life is beautiful, but has complications. Life isn't easy (and if it was, it would certainly be boring and uneventful), but we can learn to appreciate the positive things in our lives rather than dwelling on the negative.

Sullivan's Travels touches on the benefits of showing charity and kindness to others. While Sullivan spends time as a tramp, people show him mercy at times. Some people give him food, sometimes it's as simple as just not turning him into the cops or letting him sleep in a place for the night. When he returns to his normal life, he pays the favors forward, giving $5 (which was a lot more back then than it is today) to all the hobos on the street. He even gives $100 to a man who gave him food when Sullivan had no way to pay for it. A gift of kindness, given without anything expected in return, is the purest form of love. Just remember this: even simple gestures of help can make a big difference. Giving to others is one of the most satisfying things a person can do. If the tables were turned, wouldn't you hope there would be someone out there willing to look past your situation and give you a little bit of a break?


Movies to Go: 81

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.~*~

Raiders of the Lost Ark

Title: Raiders of the Lost Ark (also sometimes known as Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark) (1981)
Director: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Harrison Ford, Karen Allen
Rank: 66

Raiders of the Lost Ark is the ultimate adventure, and I'm pretty sure that is why it is on AFI's list. It has everything: a sexy hero, beautiful and exotic settings, religious legends brought into reality, amazing music, fun dialog, and a terrible enemy.

Set in 1936, Raiders uses Nazis as the enemy. Nazis symbolize an unyielding evil and there are few people who would sympathize with a Nazi or anyone who follows Hitler. They are portrayed as mindless shells of men who are not quite human, have no consciousness of humanity, and are like programmed droids set to do der Fuhrer's bidding. When Indiana Jones fights the Nazis, we feel as though we are right there with him, giving evil a swift kick in the ass.

Spielberg does a fantastic job with this film. His use of shadows is brilliant, almost as though the shadows themselves are their own character. And the music! John Williams, who also composed for Spielberg on Jurassic Park, Jaws, and many other of Spielberg's films as well as composing for the Star Wars series and many other great musical works, has made for the Indiana Jones series some of the most memorable music in Hollywood's history. (He also happens to be my favorite film composer.)

I do believe that Raiders of the Lost Ark is the ultimate adventure, one that I can escape into easily any time I watch the film. The only thing that scares me are the snakes. "Snakes. Why did it have to be snakes?"

Trivia:
•Currently in the works is Indiana Jones 5, and as of now the official title has yet to be released.

Movies to Go: 97

P.S.- Sorry for the delay in posting. I was without internet connection for four days. Looks like you will get a two-fer today because I watched the next movie last night and will hopefully have the post up this afternoon.