Fabulously funny, edgily dark, ‘Big Lebowski’ is out on Blu-ray

August 16, 2011 by

The Big Lebowski/1998/Universal/117 min.

Post a comment on any story this month and you’ll be entered into a draw to win this Blu-ray release from Universal.

By Michael Wilmington

Jeff Bridges is matchless as The Dude.

“The Big Lebowski,” that class-by-itself, goofball masterpiece by Joel and Ethan Coen is a fabulously funny and edgily dark comic movie tribute to the time-wasters, layabouts and oddballs of the world. Especially the ones in Los Angeles, a city that the Coens catch here with devilish bite and angelic wit.

It’s as sharp and dead-on a picture of LA as you’ll see ever: of its rotten upper-crust and its laidback subculture, and especially of its well-lit bowling lanes.

Funny as hell, it’s a goddamn ode to all those guys who are too off-the edge to work out some halfway normal existence – embodied here in star Jeff Bridges, that man among men and dude among dudes Jeff Lebowski – who indeed prefers the name “The Dude.”

The Dude is … well, what can we say? He’s the Dude! He’s Santa Monica Boulevard on a sunny day; he’s the Farmer’s Market at sunrise; he’s Hollywood Boulevard at 10 p.m.

“The Big Lebowski” tells the story of this ’70s guy in a ’90s world. It’s also a great neo noir, a sort of thriller that plunges the Dude into a Raymond Chandler-style detective story, with the Dude as an impromptu detective who can’t really detect much, but gives it a try anyway.

Accompanying the Dude are his two bowling buddies, wired-tight Vietnam vet and Jewish convert Walter Sobchak (John Goodman) and quiet ex-surfin’ Donny Karabatsos (Steve Buscemi). In the tangled plot, The Dude is mistaken for another, much richer Jeff Lebowski (David Huddleston), a phony philanthropist. Phillip Seymour Hoffman is the other Lebowski’s shit-eating grin of a secretary. Julianne Moore is his artsy daughter and a sort of femme fatale, Maude Lebowski.

Julianne Moore

What a show. The writing is razor sharp and so is the filmmaking. Roger Deakins shot it immaculately, and the sound track, supervised by T-Bone Burnett, is fantastic – ranging from Mozart and Korngold to Debbie Reynolds singing “Tammy” to Dean Martin singing “Standing on the Corner” and Nina Simone singing “I Got It Bad and That Ain’t Good,” to Booker T. and the M. G.s to Townes Van Zandt covering that great underperformed Rolling Stones classic “Dead Flowers.”

As for Jeff Bridges … well, Jeff Bridges was born to play the Dude. The other actors are super, sometimes great, especially Goodman. But Bridges is beyond great, beyond wonderful, beyond Mombasa. He‘s the Dude. His Dudeness. Take it easy, man. But take it.

Extras: Documentaries; Featurettes; Jeff Bridges photos.

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FNF’s Eddie Muller talks to Dennis Lehane this Thursday

August 15, 2011 by

Dennis Lehane

The Film Noir Foundation and the Litquake Literary Festival will present “Dennis Lehane in Conversation with Eddie Muller” Thursday, Aug. 18, at San Francisco’s Herbst Theatre. Novelist Lehane’s body of work includes “Mystic River,” “Gone, Baby, Gone,” and “Shutter Island,” all adapted into excellent neo-noir films.

Litquake invites FNF members to attend the event at a special discount — $10 for advance tickets, a $2 savings. Enter the code “FRIENDS” in the City Box Office ticket system. For event details and more on the festival, visit the Litquake site.

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Crime comedy ‘30 Minutes or Less’ fails to deliver

August 12, 2011 by

30 Minutes or Less/2011/Columbia Pictures/83 min.

Asking for a refund at a movie theater is an old joke. But it’s funnier than most of the material in “30 Minutes or Less,” by director Ruben Fleischer.

The premise has potential – a feckless pizza delivery guy (Jesse Eisenberg) is coerced into robbing a bank by two yahoos (Danny McBride and Nick Swardson) who need to raise cash to pay a hitman (Michael Peña). Pizza guy ropes his straight-arrow best friend (Aziz Ansari) into helping him.

There’s a smart, pretty girl involved (Dilshad Vadsaria). There’s a deadline and a ticking bomb. Worlds could collide, tension could build, funny lines could pop out of the mouths of authentically drawn characters.

Early on, it’s clear that none of the above is going to happen. Though the cast makes an effort (especially Ansari and Peña), the weak script by Michael Diliberti makes no sense, the flat direction induces yawns and cringes in equal measure, and the increasingly desperate hodgepodge of gags in the hopes that something will stick is downright tedious.

Having been a fan of Fleischer’s “Zombieland” from 2009 (written by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick), I was looking forward to “30 Minutes or Less.” I like Eisenberg and respect his talent. I’m from Michigan (the film is set in Grand Rapids). I wanted to like this movie!

As it turned out, though, I couldn’t shake the feeling that “30 Minutes” was a project by a group of high school kids. Even then, you might get some good laughs appealing to your juvenile side. But my inner child quickly curled up for a nap and the three boys in the next row might as well have been taking an exam, so thick was their silence throughout the flick.

“30 Minutes or Less” was 83 minutes I wish I’d spent some other way.

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Noir City: Chicago starts Friday at the Music Box

August 11, 2011 by

Chicago’s Music Box Theatre will host the third annual Noir City: Chicago starting Friday and running through Aug. 18. Presented by the Film Noir Foundation, the fest features 16 noirs, all in 35 mm.

Opening night is a double feature: 1947’s “High Wall” by director Curtis Bernhardt, starring Robert Taylor and Audrey Totter, and “The Dark Mirror” (1946, Robert Siodmak) in which Olivia de Havilland plays twin sisters, one of whom is deranged. Shocker!

Other highlights include: “Sorry Wrong Number” (1948, Anatole Litvak) and “The Glass Key” (1942, Stuart Heisler) as well as lesser-known films like “Loophole” (1954, Harold D. Schuster) and “The Hunted” (1948, Jack Bernhard), recently saved from extinction by the foundation.

Authors Alan K. Rode and Foster Hirsch will be on hand to discuss these classic noirs.

Having worked at the Chicago Tribune for many years before heading to the West Coast, I always remember this sage editing adage: “If your mother says she loves you, you’d better doublecheck.”

Speaking of checking, you can see the full Noir City: Chicago 3 lineup here.

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Betterfly site puts a new slant on search

August 11, 2011 by

I recently learned about Betterfly, a site that lets you find people, such as makeup artists and stylists, who provide professional services.

The site excludes companies and aims to connect you with an actual human as opposed to a business. For example, you might hear glowing praise for a salon in your area, but not know which particular stylist is likely best for you (perhaps you have curly, fine hair #$&%@! and have a touch of difficulty taming it).

On Betterfly, you can refine your search based on more than 20 factors such as availability, friends’ recommendations, verified reviews and value. It’s free for clients to use the service, according to the company.

There is no approval process or cost to become a Betterfly service provider, or “betterist,” and set up a customized page. In addition to outlining qualifications, services, locations, special offers and payment policies, pages display reviews from clients. A client must be verified by the provider in order to write a review. Once verified, the client may review anonymously or under his or her own name. Service providers cannot delete or hide any reviews given by a verified client.

Joshua Schwadron launched Betterfly two years ago in New York, when he was 28. He obtained his startup money by winning $125,000 from the reality show “Fear Factor” in 2003.

Was being a contestant on the show good preparation for founding the site? Says Schwadron: “Being on ‘Fear Factor’ and running a startup share a lot of similarities. In some ways, running a startup is worse because there is always a constant fear of something not going right or Google announcing they are getting into your space. At least on ‘Fear Factor’ you know who you’re competing against and when you’ve won.”

I’m impressed that he sat on the cash for a while and didn’t blow it on, say, a gigantic-screen TV, an enormous sofa and a bad-ass DVD library.

x

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Lancôme’s Bi-Facil is quick, clean and efficient

August 10, 2011 by

Bi-Facil tackles stubborn makeup.

One of my vanity-table staples is Lancôme’s Bi-Facil Double-Action Eye Makeup Remover, $26 for 4.2 ounces. I’ve used it for more than 10 years and have not found anything that outperforms.  Bi-Facil dissolves eye makeup (even waterproof) in a flash and, while moisturizing, doesn’t leave a heavy or oily residue.

It doesn’t seem like that would be a particularly tall order, but I have tried other brands (drugstore and department store) thinking I could save a few dollars. Not so much. Other products were ineffective at thorough removal and I found myself tugging at the underye skin in order to complete the job.

Lancôme’s site refers to a bi-phase formula. The lipid phase lifts off eye makeup, while the water phase contains emollients to refresh and condition skin. Lancôme also notes that Bi-Facil is ophthalmologist-tested for safety, making it ideal for sensitive skin and contact lens wearers.

Another plus: A little goes a long way, so a bottle will last several months.

Product Source: From my own collection; I did not receive product or compensation from Lancôme. Photo from Lancôme.

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Film noir’s feline stars: The cat in ‘The Long Goodbye’

August 9, 2011 by

More on the most famous kitties in film noir …

The Cat in “The Long Goodbye” 1973

Name: Chauncey Scratchet

Character Name: Hungry Cat

Bio: Chauncey Scratchet, a.k.a. the Hungry Cat in 1973’s “The Long Goodbye,” is pivotal to the story. He is ravenous and if you ignore a such a cat, well, There. Will. Be. Trouble. As in scratched faces and bloody limbs. Or utter abandonment.

Scratchet opens the movie, mewing for food from his sleeping master, private eye Philip Marlowe (Elliott Gould). Director Robert Altman lets his camera linger on the ginger-haired tabby prowling around Marlowe’s messy apartment.

Robert Altman wisely gave Chauncey Scratchet complete freedom to interpret his role.

It’s 3:00 a.m. and Marlowe has neglected to provide for his companion. So, the groggy gumshoe yawns, scratches his head and lights a cigarette, then heads to the supermarket to get the goods. Next door, Marlowe’s sexy, partygirl neighbors catch him before he leaves and ask him to bring back some brownie mix so next morning they can wake and bake. It’s 1973, after all.

At the store, Marlowe nabs the mix but fails to procure a can of Hungry Cat’s coveted Coury brand (they’re out of it). Marlowe tries to pass off some other, inferior, food, but his pet isn’t desperate enough to eat it. Instead, the cat takes off, in a departure both dramatic and understated, and we never see him again. For the rest of the flick, Marlowe pines away for his furry friend, whining about it to anyone he can.

Ironically, Chauncey Scratchet had such a good experience filming “The Long Goodbye” that he never made another movie. It was his first major role and director Altman let him have complete freedom in interpreting his character. Scratchet discovered that this approach was the exception, not the rule.

Rather than compromise on creative matters, Scratchet gave up film acting and turned to photography, quickly rising to the top of his profession and, through his Hollywood connections, shooting prominent actors, artists and musicians of the decade.

Though no longer involved in movies, he did make guest appearances on “Kojak” and “Columbo” as a special favor to pals Telly Savalas and Peter Falk. He was also friends with Keith Richards and was said to have inspired the song “Before They Make Me Run,” from the 1978 album “Some Girls.”

Currently enjoying his seventh life, Scratchet holds one-cat shows in New York, Paris, London and Rome.

Image from http://catsinsinks.com

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Love it or hate it, ‘Bellflower’ is a major achievement

August 6, 2011 by

Michael Wilmington

By Michael Wilmington

Bellflower/2011/Coatwolf Productions/106 min.

“Bellflower” – a Sundance sensation reportedly shot for only $17,000 by first-time writer/director/co-star/co-editor Evan Glodell – introduces us to a couple of Valley dudes, Woodrow (Glodell) and Aiden (Tyler Dawson) who are obsessed with “Mad Max,” the coming apocalypse, muscle cars, WMDs and two women, Milly and Courtney (Jessie Wiseman and Rebekah Brandes). They all meet up at a barroom cricket-eating contest, where Milly wins. They dally awhile. Then “Bellflower” pulls us down into ink-black, psycho-macho, neo-noir pathology.

At first it looks as if it’s going to be a drama about twentysomethings on the fringe, with a lot of bar scenes, four-letter talk and onscreen sex. Then it descends into the same road warrior-ish violent fantasies as those self-absorbed, fantasizing dudes.

I didn’t like it all that much, or as much as a lot of other critics. I thought it was entertaining but a little light on real depth or truth or imagination. But I’ve got to admit, “Bellflower” is an incredible achievement for a Z-budget indie.

Glodell and his cinematographer, Joel Hodge, get a really strong visual style; they shoot their Valley scenes with a custom-built digital camera that makes everything look smeary and hot and dirty. The actors simultaneously play their scenes sort of Cassavetes-real and B-Movie-overblown, and there’s a scary, edgy feel to it all, that makes you genuinely uneasy and uncomfortable.

In the first part of “Bellflower” (the name of a street where the guys live), the main story is a love triangle/quadrangle and a hookup. Woodrow loves Milly, who cheats on him with Mike (co-editor Vincent Grashaw), and so the distraught Woodrow takes up with Courtney, who’s the crush of Aiden. [Read more…]

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Free stuff: Win ‘The Big Lebowski’ Blu-ray limited edition

August 6, 2011 by

The winner of the July reader giveaway has been selected. For August, I am giving away a copy of Universal’s new Blu-ray release of “The Big Lebowski,” the much-loved 1998 neo noir by Joel and Ethan Coen, and starring Jeff Bridges as the Dude. I’ll run a review on Aug. 16, the official release date. For info on upcoming fan events, visit Lebowski Fest.

To enter the August giveaway, just leave a comment on any FNB post from Aug. 1-31. The winner will be randomly selected at the end of the month and announced in early September. Include your email address in your comment so that I can notify you if you win. Your email will not be shared. Good luck!

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Marilyn Monroe remembered in West Los Angeles

August 5, 2011 by

Marilyn Monroe, shot by Milton Greene

In honor of the 49th anniversary of Marilyn Monroe’s death, about 75 people gathered today at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery for a memorial service, followed by a reception at the Andrew Weiss Gallery in Beverly Hills. Born June 1, 1926, Marilyn was 36 when she died.

On Friday, Aug. 26, the gallery will host a cocktail reception and book signing of psychiatrist Carole Lieberman’s book, Bad Girls: Why Men Love Them & How Good Girls Can Learn Their Secrets. At the event, Dr. Lieberman will “put Marilyn on the couch” and discuss whether the iconic actress was a bad girl or just misunderstood. The reception and signing will run from 6-8:30 p.m.; the gallery is at 179 S. Beverly Drive, south of Wilshire Boulevard.

Lieberman’s promotional material features the following quotation from Marilyn: “Being a sex symbol is a heavy load to carry, especially when one is tired, hurt and bewildered.”

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