The Legacy (1978).

Review #2589: The Legacy.

Cast: 

Katharine Ross (Maggie Walsh), Sam Elliott (Pete Danner), Roger Daltrey (Clive Jackson), John Standing (Jason Mountolive), Ian Hogg (Harry), Margaret Tyzack (Nurse Adams), Charles Gray (Karl Liebnecht), Lee Montague (Jacques Grandier), Hildegard Neil (Barbara Kirstenburg), and Marianne Broome (Maria Gabrieli) Directed by Richard Marquand (#115 - Return of the Jedi)

Review: 

Sure, why not a co-production between the States and the United Kingdom for an original (i.e. one that actually isn't based on a book) horror movie? Apparently, Hammer mainstay Jimmy Sangster wrote the original script before further work was done by Patrick Tilley and Paul Wheeler. At the helm to direct for the first time was Richard Marquand. Born in Wales as the son of a politician, he started out as a TV/documentary director in the early 1960s. Marquand ultimately directed a total of seven films (most notably Return of the Jedi*) before his sudden death at the age of 49 in 1987. For whatever reason, the movie was released first in the UK in September 1978 and then an American release...in September 1979 (got to love a poster that actually advertises the "best-selling" book of the movie right then and there). With a budget of over $2.5 million, the movie did make some money with audiences, even if cast members weren't too fond of it; Anne Coates later stated that despite being convinced to do the film by Marquand, she felt he "clearly didn't know what he was doing at all", while Sam Elliott once called the film "fifteen years behind its time". Regardless of all the quibbles, it found a steady life on TV and home video.

With a plot that might as well have been cribbed from Rosemary's Baby (1968), The Omen (1976) and any movie involving old dark houses (with a bit of Ten Little Indians present just for the hell of it), you may get at least some entertainment from just ridiculously it all comes together in such an ersatz experience. You might be wondering, what could possibly be the "legacy" in the plot? Well, it involves six people all being invited to a rambling country estate in where else but jolly old England where odd butlers and spooky cats lurk within a few casual revelations involving, well, birthright and the craft. Somehow, within the powers of "witchcraft", escape or getting a ring off one's finger is basically impossible and somehow, a whole bunch of people start dying because, yes, six living heirs actually translates to "the Devil does in fact have takesies-backsies". It falls to Ross to try and sell the shock of not only being stuck in a strange new place (what, it's the English*) and I wish I could say she sells it, but no, it just feels like she is more on a bland trip of "oh I guess I'm going a bit nutty, that'll flush out", but I guess you could say the chemistry between her and Elliott* is curious. It just feels like a series of mild inconveniences, and sometimes I wish it was more about Elliott and his wiseass attitude towards the ridiculousness of this whole thing (imagine being told that your woman looks like someone in a painting while people are randomly dying and *then* you get stuck in a warp where you can't drive away). You wish there was more from Daltrey (as best known from his work with the Who*) or with Gray before they inevitably kick the bucket, which probably sticks out more; one dies through choking on a chicken bone and the other catches fire in a manner that makes sure the house is left totally unscathed. There just isn't a big enough ham or real villainous threat (Standing is barely present in a bed) to actually generate anything besides chuckles with seeing unsavory people getting offed. There are some pretty shots and fine gore, but it really does feel like a movie warped out of time without the energy to match. Even the ending feels too casual to actually work - imagine seeing what you've seen, climax and all and it just ends on more ring-giving. As a whole, it's a goofy little movie that doesn't exactly conjure up anything besides a few gore scenes and some offbeat conclusions to jump through by the time it concludes its tale of death and despair. It's the kind of movie you stumble onto and wonder, where the hell did the time go in all of the chuckles for such a mediocre time.

Overall, I give it 6 out of 10 stars.

Song of the day!

*A damn good movie, as I'm always prone to reminding people.

*Look man, willingly getting on a plane doesn't sound like my cup of-oh hell, throw the tea out.

*Incidentally, Elliott and Ross eventually married each other, so at least someone got a happy ending.

*The Who are neat, that's the note.

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

Review #1289: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

Cast: 
Paul Newman (Butch Cassidy), Robert Redford (the Sundance Kid), Katharine Ross (Etta Place), Strother Martin (Percy Garris), Henry Jones (Bike Salesman), Jeff Corey (Sheriff Bledsoe), George Furth (Woodcock), Cloris Leachman (Agnes), and Ted Cassidy (Harvey Logan) Directed by George Roy Hill (#962 - A Little Romance and #1178 - Slap Shot)

Review: 
It never proves to be a bad idea to do watch a Western, especially when you have a dynamite trio of actors and a capable director willing to have some fun with a genre as familiar as this one. The 1960s certainly could turn a film genre on its head a bit, as was the case with The Wild Bunch - which was a violent shocking take on the genre released the same year. Really the best representation of this film and its vision of a Western could be the scene involving the sheriff and his attempts at rounding people up to apprehend the two leads, which leads to a salesman trying to push bicycles as the new way to get around instead of horses. William Goldman was inspired by the exploits of the real-life duo of robbers in part because of the fact that they had a second act (running off to Bolivia after their pursuit by the "superposse"); he wrote it as a screenplay between 1965-66, but it initially did not receive interest in part because of the departure to South America by the characters, and numerous actors rejected being the stars such as Steve McQueen, Warren Beatty, and Jack Lemmon. In any case, adapting an Old West legend into its own little tale isn't exactly a new thing, but this is a film that is fairly clever in its approach, being good-natured with where it wants to go without pushing its audience too hard in any one direction, having a bit of fun alongside other moments that make this a worthy Western for anyone. Both Newman and Redford are fun to be around with, with the former having plenty of charm and a sense of humor, which sticks out in most scenes, such as him riding a bicycle with Ross while "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" (which ended up winning an Academy Award for Best Original Song for its writers, Burt Bacharach and Hal David) plays in the background. Redford is just as dynamic when it comes to garnering a sardonic moment in a role that helped boost him to full-fledged stardom - for good reason. Ross proves interesting as well, making for a fine spark within a trio that holds the ship well. There isn't a big bad like one sees with other Westerns, but the film doesn't really need one to really drive things, where little moments with others work just as fine in giving the film something to tell an interesting yarn that doesn't need all the facts to be a capable Western. The 110 minute run-time proves alright, with its surrounding first and latter halves holding a bit more steady than its middle involving the departure to Bolivia. The action does work out pretty nicely, including one amusing moment with a train and its clerk. It stands out well with its good sense of humor and timing, a pleaser for the crowds that stands just as tall today as it did a half century ago.

Overall, I give it 8 out of 10 stars.

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Movie Night: The Graduate.

Review #550: The Graduate.

Cast
Anne Bancroft (Mrs. Robinson), Dustin Hoffman (Benjamin Braddock), Katharine Ross (Elaine Robinson), William Daniels (Mr. Braddock), Murray Hamilton (Mr. Robinson), and Elizabeth Wilson (Mrs. Braddock) Directed by Mike Nichols (#175 - Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?)

Review
The Graduate is a cornerstone of the 1960's, a representation of the good and the bad of that era, a movie timelessly stuck in that era. But is the movie itself as great as some like to call it? Not quite. While it is a well made movie, the movie has one sad flaw that still would've happened with or without Hoffman: The flaw is Braddock himself. It is hard to care about this character, about what he does, or in this case, doesn't. Mrs. Robinson is both a timeless character and the best character to watch in the movie because her story is more interesting to watch, she's a character who basically represents someone who settled for someone she didn't love, and how it's too late for her, stuck in a loveless marriage, and that's where Ben enters the picture. He...is hard to care about due to his insecurities, the fact he stalks a girl all the way to college...and the fact his "I don't know what to do" is not exactly compelling as compared to Bancroft's character. Are the actors any good? Yea, they are. They are perfectly cast in their roles, and they work well together, even the supporting actors. The ending to the movie is both ironic yet poignant, with these two one-date characters together, not knowing of their future, and also stuck, much like Bancroft. Is this a classic? It could be argued that it is a classic, it certainly is entertaining at times (Especially with that soundtrack by Simon & Garfunkel), and the actors are good. It all depends on what you want, which I hope isn't plastics.

EDITORIAL: I'd like to note that this is the 550th review, which wasn't given the whole Countdown like other landmark reviews. You might be wondering why. I simply didn't care enough to want to do the whole Countdown stuff again, not after all I tried to do with the Metropolis (#500) stuff. I haven't had as much energy to care about doing countdowns, though my energy for this show is somewhat there, I feel like I'm doing this more for myself then for others, like I'm talking to an empty audience, and the lack of care for a Countdown was just my laziness. Am I taking a break from reviewing? No, though it wouldn't hurt to try and stop and think about why I do this show. It's not like I've been bogged down with little to review, I actually do have a backlog of films I want to watch and review, I just don't feel like these reviews have had much interest from anyone other then just me. Am I right, or am I just slightly delusional after watching a depressing film such as The Graduate? Is this just for my own enjoyment, or is do any of you readers enjoy these reviews? I'm not considering ending this show, I just feel that I wanted to ask this question, a little musing of mine. If you actually do read this and care, I'd like to see a comment or two, just so my musing proves incorrect.

Overall, I give it 8 out of 10 stars.