John Cassavetes 1950’s & 1960’s

Shadows (1959)

B&W – 87m. / 81m
Aspect Ratio: 1.37:1 – Fullscreen
Writer – Dir.: John Cassavetes. Pro.: Seymour Cassel.
Starring: John Cassavetes, Seymour Cassel, Bobby Darin and Gena Rowlands.

An improvised look at interracial relationships in Beat–Era (1950’s) New York City. Largely improvised and then written later by Cassavetes and his acting class students. While there is a loosely structured story in place, it is more performance driven. Commendable but contrived. Daring for its time but tame by today’s standards. Please be aware that the big named stars are not credited here. John Cassavete’s directorial debut.

Rated: [PG]
Part of The Criterion Collection. Available on Blu – ray, DVD & Digital Copy

Johnny Staccato: The Complete Series (1959 – 1960)

B&W – 804m
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 – Fullscreen
One Dir.: John Cassavetes

Starring: John Cassavetes, Eduardo Ciannelli, John Williams, Shirley Knight, Elizabeth Montgomery, Gena Rowlands, Dean Stockwell, Geraldine Brooks, Cloris Leachman, Mary Tyler Moore, Paul Stewart, Nita Talbot, Martin Landau, Michael Landon, Elizabeth Patterson, Tom Reese, John Marley, Sig Ruman, Harry Tyler, Susan Oliver, June Foray and Steve Allen.

A private detective who likes to play Jazz Piano in his spare time solves murder mysteries, prevents bombs going off, etc. An intelligent show that had great music and acting… Sadly, Cassavetes burned out on the show and canned it after one season. Thankfully the episodes still survive!

Available on DVD.

Too Late Blues (1961)

B&W – 103m
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 – Widescreen / 1.78:1 – Widescreen (Blu–ray, DVD & Digital Copy)
Writer – Dir.: John Cassavetes
Starring: Bobby Darin, Stella Stevens, Seymour Cassel, John Cassavetes and Don Siegel.

A poisonous love affair between a self-righteous musician and a female singer starts and continues. Is it helping or hurting their careers? Troublesome film is far from a walk in the park emotionally but fine performances are given and that must be commended. A little more plot would have helped too. This may feel claustrophobic for some given the structure of two or three people in a scene at a time during the dramatic moments. Darin does his best impression of Cassavetes in the film.

Available on Blu–ray, DVD & Digital Copy.

A Child Is Waiting (1963)

B&W – 104m
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1 – Widescreen
Dir.: John Cassavetes. Pro.: Stanley Kramer
Starring: Burt Lancaster, Judy Garland, Gena Rowlands, Steven Hill, Paul Stewart, Lawrence Tierney, John Marley, Bill Mumy, Elizabeth Wilson and John Cassavetes.

A psychiatrist brings in a new teacher at an asylum for the mentally retarded and she starts to form attachments. Meanwhile one kid in the asylum forms a bond with her and starts to come out of his shell. A masterfully done tale of humanity, also serves as a historical document in the development of how people with Autism / Asperger’s Syndrome were lumped in with the retarded and how they all were treated. Cassavetes wanted to focus more on the kids because he started to view them as interesting characters. Kramer kicked him out of the editing process and did a bit of re-shooting to bring the film to that balance that it is now. As much as Kramer shifted the focus of the film masterfully to the middle ground of how the adults at the asylum act with their charges, Cassavetes captured the children in an accepting light. A must watch film for anyone with Autism Level 1 / Asperger’s Syndrome and their parents; not to mention people in disability services, Vocational Rehab and anyone interested in mental health. Some of this may be hard to watch for some, but it is well worth it in the end.

Out Of Print on VHS but Available on Blu–ray, DVD & Digital Copy

Faces (1968)

B&W – 130m
Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1 – Widescreen
A.K.A.: The Dynosaurs
Writer – Dir.: John Cassavetes
Starring: John Marley, Gena Rowlands, Seymour Cassel and Anne Shirley. 

Be sure to check out the 18 minute alternate opening on the Criterion Collection DVD and / or Blu–ray.

Former husband and wife respectively enter into relationships with younger partners as they try to find romance in the new pairings. A broad story is masterfully handled by Cassavetes and the cast. A must watch for the performances!

Trivia: Steven Spielberg became friendly with Cassavetes and served as a production assistant for two weeks on this film. This was after Cassavetes allowed Spielberg to direct him for a day. Steve Buscemi has said that this is his favorite film. Woody Allen and Robert Altman said that this film inspired some of their films. The original cut of this film ran for around six hours. That cut no longer exists but the script for it is available in book form. There are several different versions of this film.

Rated: [R]
Part of The Criterion Collection.
Available on Blu–ray, DVD & Digital Copy.

The Last Word (2017)

The Last Word (2017)

C. – 108m
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 – Widescreen
A.K.A.: In Memoriam
Starring: Shirley MacLaine, Amanda Seyfried, Philip Baker Hall, Thomas Sadoski and Anne Heche.

A old and retired business woman who is a control freak wants to write her own obituary. She hires a local writer to do the task and put together something that is reflective of her in her opinion. Along the way, an unlikely friendship forms. There is more plot and emotion here than meets the eye, which is a nice surprise. The cast is in top form and the material is elevated because of it, not that the material wasn’t good to start with. An agreeable film to view. 

Rated: [R] – Language
Available on Blu–ray DVD & Digital Copy.

Churchill (2017) & Darkest Hour (2017)

Movie Poster for Churchill (2017)

Churchill (2017)

C. – 105m
Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1 – Widescreen
A.K.A.: Churchill: The Untold Story Of D–Day

Starring: Brian Cox, Miranda Richardson, John Slattery, Richard Durden, Martin Landau, Ella Purnell. 96 hours before the World War II invasion of Normandy, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill struggles with his existing status, which appears to be rapidly marginalized. Cox and the rest of the cast are in fantastic form here. One cannot look away for fear of missing any number of nuances that enrich every screen performance. Wonderful cinematography, direction and script help make this a winner for the ages. A MUST WATCH! This reviewer would like to see the film get some award nominations!

Trivia on the film: This is one of Martin Landau’s final films, though he is not credited in it and his credit on IMBD.com was quickly removed upon his death in July 2017 at age 89. Also, this was the first of two Winston Churchill films from 2017. The other was Darkest Hour (2017), with Gary Oldman as Winston Churchill. A similar occurrence happened in 2005 when two films were made about Truman Capote: Capote (2005) and Infamous (2006), though the latter film was released the next year to avoid confusion with it’s unrelated predecessor. It occurred again in 2012 when two films were made about Alfred Hitchcock: Hitchcock (2012) and The Girl (2012). Two similarly themed story films were made in 2015: Danny Collins (2015) with Al Pacino and Ricki And The Flash (2015) With Meryl Streep, Kevin Kline; written by Diablo Cody and directed by Jonathan Demme. This film, Churchill (2017) and Darkest Hour (2017) are the fourth such occurrence. 

Rated: [PG] – Thematic Elements, Brief War Images, Historical Smoking Throughout, & Some Language. Note: Although the film is rated PG, viewers may not that Brian Cox as Winston Churchill yells the, “F Word,” while knocking his breakfast off the table in one scene. The start of the word is audible but the voice track is quickly cut while the sound effects are boosted for good measure. This may prove objectionable to some. Judge for yourself.

Available on Blu–ray, DVD & Digital Copy.   

Darkest Hour (2017)

C. – 125m
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 – Widescreen
Starring: Lily James, Gary Oldman and Kristin Scott Thomas.

Sir Winston Churchill arrives in office to find himself in a rough place, have to see about a peace treaty with the Nazis or rally his country to send the troops to battle them. Strong acting is the film’s major asset. However the makeup job given to Gary Oldman is similar to the one given to Sir Anthony Hopkins in Hitchcock (2012). In short, you can tell it is the actor under the makeup. Most people this reviewer has talked to about the film, or have read reviews by about the film say that, “Gary Oldman is unrecognizable under the makeup.” This reviewer never escaped the knowledge that it was Gary Oldman under the makeup. Oldman is a more than capable actor and is never less than stellar with his performance here. However, this film suffers from being the second Winston Churchill film of 2017. While it is the better known of the two, mostly due to Oldman’s presence, it is also the lesser of the two in the writing for a lack of stirring speeches. Still, there is enough to like here for general viewers and this reviewer will reiterate the point: Gary Oldman is never less than stellar in his performance.   

Trivia: Sir John Hurt was supposed to play Neville Chamberlain in this film. Chamberlain was the Prime Minister who was on his way out due to dying from cancer. When Hurt was cast he too was dying of cancer. At the time of his death he never was able to make a script reading or shoot a scene. The film is still dedicated to him though since it was his final cinematic project.

Gary Oldman won a Golden Globe for Best Actor – Motion Picture – Drama for his performance as Sir Winston Churchill.

Rated: [PG–13] – Some Thematic Material

Available on Blu–ray, DVD & Digital Copy