I begin my look at Wes Anderson's body of work with his debut feature, "Bottle Rocket". In 1992, four years before its evolution into a full length film, Anderson shot "Bottle Rocket" as a 12 minute short that basically covered the first quarter of the movie. Same characters and actors and similar bits of dialogue. The movie version of "Bottle Rocket" redoes those scenes a little sharper, and it's evident from this early piece of work that Anderson was able to handle all aspects of a shoot. As his first film, there are many differences from the rest of output. The overall quirkiness is down a whole ton and the color palette that is strewn among his movies from "Rushmore" on is missing here. Same with the Futura font that labels scene breaks in his later films.
As a product of its time, the mid 90's, "Bottle Rocket" holds up exceedingly well. Shot at a time where every college graduate with a greater than average interest in film and a movie camera was trying to make his or her own picture and sending it to Sundance, "Bottle Rocket" isn't dated and is shockingly good for a debut. It's the least "Wes Andersony" of Andersons films which leads me to believe that it would be the best film for the average moviegoer to relate to.
Owen Wilson and Luke Wilson are the two main leads, both in their acting debuts. The short has their actual film debut, so if you want to see those two actors at their youngest, check it out. To me, their is no perceivable difference in their performances from the short to the film. That said, both are amazing in this and have arguably never been better, Owen especially. Owen is Dignan, a wannabe thief who tries to drag his friend Anthony (Luke) along with him. The criminal element of this film for the most part is treated harmlessly. They pull off a bookstore robbery and then go "on the lam" for a few days to a motel with their other friend Bob (Robert Musgrave), their getaway driver. There, Anthony falls in love with their room's housekeeper. Eventually they all end up back in their small Texas town to start over again. James Caan appears as Dignan's idol, a local businessman who's an actual successful criminal. Caan enlists the three men to pull of a heist for him which ends up being the climax of the movie. The plot, like all Anderson movies is less important than the character development.
Owen Wilson has made a career playing cocky know-it-all control freaks, but none have had any close to the depth Dignan has here. Owen plays against his real life brother in many scenes that have the feeling of being improvised, they're so natural. He doesn't feel forced, and his charisma shows even here at his most inexperienced. With his short, army haircut he doesn't look like a movie star and it's easier to take him seriously. He's funny, but the more scenes he has, the more you're able to understand what drives him, what motivates him and although he has flaws, the character is fully realized by the end. A character like Dignan is a major factor in lifting this above the features Hollywood was producing in 1996. At no point does anything he or Anthony does feel cliche or done just to move the plot along. We follow the characters and if the movie drags, Anderson assures us that eventually things will pick up again. Nothing is force fed. Also, Owen co-wrote the movie with Anderson which is almost definitely the reason for Wes Anderson movies being the showcase for his best acting work.
The presence of the Wilson brothers is the main way to tell this is a Wes Anderson movie. Other than the two of them, it just seems like a hidden treasure, a movie that didn't get enough press despite it's awesomness and was left to rot on blockbuster shelves. Luckily, Anderson followed this up with Rushmore and other directors and actors took notice of Owen and Luke and proceeded to cast them in numerous projects following the release of this movie. Martin Scorsese named "Bottle Rocket" as one of his favorite movies of the 1990's and proclaimed Wes Anderson as the "next Scorsese."
Next up; Rushmore
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Monday, January 11, 2010
Wes Anderson
I have a somewhat eclectic taste in movies, at least I seem to think so. Although I do love many older films, there are also dozens that leave me feeling bored. At the same time, there is an effortless feel (probably due to the impact of having so many theatre actors in Hollywood back then) that I find so enjoyable. Most of the newer movies I love have a nostalgic feel to them and seem to exist in their own worlds.
Anyway, my first sense of continuity for this blog will be a rundown of Wes Anderson's six films (Bottle Rocket, Rushmore, Royal Tennenbaums, Life Aquatic, Darjeeling Limited, and Fantastic Mr. Fox) over the next few days or so. I be doing more theme write ups for frequently. I'm starting with Anderson because I find all his films interesting and want to rewatch them again. Will start with Bottle Rocket late tonight or early tomorrow.
Anyway, my first sense of continuity for this blog will be a rundown of Wes Anderson's six films (Bottle Rocket, Rushmore, Royal Tennenbaums, Life Aquatic, Darjeeling Limited, and Fantastic Mr. Fox) over the next few days or so. I be doing more theme write ups for frequently. I'm starting with Anderson because I find all his films interesting and want to rewatch them again. Will start with Bottle Rocket late tonight or early tomorrow.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
On The Waterfront
First, a small note; I will not be censoring myself about spoilers, just writing whatever comes to mind so a "spoiler warning" for anything I write will have to be implied. Also I will be writing these like I write school essays, on autopilot, so they could end up being very long or very short.
I have always been wary about watching "On The Waterfront". I am well aware of its status as a great movie, having won the Best Picture Oscar in 1954, Brando's performance has gone down in history as iconic and the "I coulda been a contender..." scene has been quoted by almost everyone. The cast other than Brando is filled with luminaries like Karl Malden, Lee J. Cobb, Rod Steiger, and Eva Marie Saint, as well as numerous names from the NY stage of that era. However, for years the concept of longshore union corruption kept me from seeing it. I just had no interest at all in that story area. Well, Netflix has had it available for the "Watch Instantly" feature for months now and I figured it was time to bite the bullet and check off another of the great ones off my list.
Well, I can't say I was surprised in the least...It was definitely a great movie and all the major actors pulled off the great performances typical of actors of that era. Nevertheless, it didn't quite break through the upper echelon into my top movie tier. The plot is incredibly cut and dry, especially when stretched for 105 minutes. Lee J. Cobb is in charge of one of the unions for longshoremen in New York (probably near Manhattan since MSG and the Polo Grounds are referenced). He's corrupt and takes in a ton of money. Rod Steiger is his righthand man with the nickname "The Gent" because he's educated, which is pretty awesome. Steiger who also played Jud Fry in the movie version of "Oklahoma" and was the original Chief Gillepsie in "In The Heat of the Night" before Archie Bunker took over for the TV show is unrecogizable here. He's a far cry from the crazy southern redneck roles I'd seen him in before. Brando is Steiger's brother, a former boxer who blew his career by throwing fights for Cobb and Steiger when he was younger. He's still somewhat young, but with his boxing potential washed up, he spends his time doing odd jobs for Cobb like making sure snitches get tossed off buildings. He also likes to hang out on top of his roof with pigeons like that guy from "Hey Arnold" (one of my favorite episodes).
So, Brando witnesses a future snitch get rubbed out, but becomes attracted to the victims younger sister Eva Marie Saint (North By Northwest). So they start hanging out and she knows he's involved with the corrupt union responsible for her brother's death, but is still shocked when he admits to her that he was the one who set her brother up. Karl Malden looking shockingly young at 42 is the priest who likes to drink and fight and tries to rally all the workers together to stand up to Cobb's corruption. He has some great scenes and an awesome monologue trying to convince the ridiculously scared workers to grow some, but at the end I was questioning his motives because he always seemed to have a smile on his face at the most inoppurtune times. Like, Malden tells Brando to tell Saint of his guilt in her brother's death and she freaks out and runs away, Malden watching from a distance turns around to the camera has a little grin on his face, almost like he set Brando up....hmm.
Brando is at his most Brandoist and I mean that in a good way. He's ridiculously awesome and having grown up hearing people do marble mouthed Brando impressions, I just can't reconcile the two together. He makes what he's doing so easy and Terry Malloy is a far more interesting character than he should be because of it. Malloy is constantly talked about as being dumb which Brando definitely pulls off, but he's also able to underplay his emotions to the point that when he does go off about something, it means more. Lee J. Cobb is very similar to his character from 12 Angry Men here, just with more of a swagger. I wish I could have lived in a world where actors like Cobb, Brando, Steiger, and Malden were regularly on Broadway. Fred Gwynne from the Munsters shows up as one of Cobb's lackeys and I can't imagine how he got roles for the decade before the Munsters because he looks like Frankenstein even when he's just suppose to be playing a tall guy.
Anyway, as this was my first time watching this, I enjoyed it, but I can't see this having much replay value other than the performances. And while Eva Marie Saint is very good in this, like much better than most actresses today, the scenes with her and Brando got very boring. I'm not much for the romance and they paled in comparison to everytime the big four were onscreen. Steiger in particular only had 3 or 4 scenes and stole them in my eyes everytime. He was like Robert Duvall in "The Godfather" in that way in my opinion. By not being a great big character he was able to stand out and draw some attention.
Oh and one more thing, other than the union corruption, this movie doesn't make dock work look all that bad. You get to hang out with your buds and unload crates, make some money, and if you're on Lee J. Cobb's side you get to fill your pockets with a ton of cash. Everyone from your neighborhood would go down and unload some irish whisky, then go drink. Everything looks better in black & white, but it's too bad things aren't as simple as they were back then, and I know I don't really need to elaborate on that.
Not sure what will be next....
Let me also throw out a recommendation for "The Hollies Sing Dylan" album that I've been listening to constantly for a year or more. I know people usually frown on Dylan covers (other than Hendrix), but this album is awesome and their versions of "Blowin In The Wind", "Just Like A Woman" and "My Back Pages" are better than any other in my opinion. British Invasion rules all.
I have always been wary about watching "On The Waterfront". I am well aware of its status as a great movie, having won the Best Picture Oscar in 1954, Brando's performance has gone down in history as iconic and the "I coulda been a contender..." scene has been quoted by almost everyone. The cast other than Brando is filled with luminaries like Karl Malden, Lee J. Cobb, Rod Steiger, and Eva Marie Saint, as well as numerous names from the NY stage of that era. However, for years the concept of longshore union corruption kept me from seeing it. I just had no interest at all in that story area. Well, Netflix has had it available for the "Watch Instantly" feature for months now and I figured it was time to bite the bullet and check off another of the great ones off my list.
Well, I can't say I was surprised in the least...It was definitely a great movie and all the major actors pulled off the great performances typical of actors of that era. Nevertheless, it didn't quite break through the upper echelon into my top movie tier. The plot is incredibly cut and dry, especially when stretched for 105 minutes. Lee J. Cobb is in charge of one of the unions for longshoremen in New York (probably near Manhattan since MSG and the Polo Grounds are referenced). He's corrupt and takes in a ton of money. Rod Steiger is his righthand man with the nickname "The Gent" because he's educated, which is pretty awesome. Steiger who also played Jud Fry in the movie version of "Oklahoma" and was the original Chief Gillepsie in "In The Heat of the Night" before Archie Bunker took over for the TV show is unrecogizable here. He's a far cry from the crazy southern redneck roles I'd seen him in before. Brando is Steiger's brother, a former boxer who blew his career by throwing fights for Cobb and Steiger when he was younger. He's still somewhat young, but with his boxing potential washed up, he spends his time doing odd jobs for Cobb like making sure snitches get tossed off buildings. He also likes to hang out on top of his roof with pigeons like that guy from "Hey Arnold" (one of my favorite episodes).
So, Brando witnesses a future snitch get rubbed out, but becomes attracted to the victims younger sister Eva Marie Saint (North By Northwest). So they start hanging out and she knows he's involved with the corrupt union responsible for her brother's death, but is still shocked when he admits to her that he was the one who set her brother up. Karl Malden looking shockingly young at 42 is the priest who likes to drink and fight and tries to rally all the workers together to stand up to Cobb's corruption. He has some great scenes and an awesome monologue trying to convince the ridiculously scared workers to grow some, but at the end I was questioning his motives because he always seemed to have a smile on his face at the most inoppurtune times. Like, Malden tells Brando to tell Saint of his guilt in her brother's death and she freaks out and runs away, Malden watching from a distance turns around to the camera has a little grin on his face, almost like he set Brando up....hmm.
Brando is at his most Brandoist and I mean that in a good way. He's ridiculously awesome and having grown up hearing people do marble mouthed Brando impressions, I just can't reconcile the two together. He makes what he's doing so easy and Terry Malloy is a far more interesting character than he should be because of it. Malloy is constantly talked about as being dumb which Brando definitely pulls off, but he's also able to underplay his emotions to the point that when he does go off about something, it means more. Lee J. Cobb is very similar to his character from 12 Angry Men here, just with more of a swagger. I wish I could have lived in a world where actors like Cobb, Brando, Steiger, and Malden were regularly on Broadway. Fred Gwynne from the Munsters shows up as one of Cobb's lackeys and I can't imagine how he got roles for the decade before the Munsters because he looks like Frankenstein even when he's just suppose to be playing a tall guy.
Anyway, as this was my first time watching this, I enjoyed it, but I can't see this having much replay value other than the performances. And while Eva Marie Saint is very good in this, like much better than most actresses today, the scenes with her and Brando got very boring. I'm not much for the romance and they paled in comparison to everytime the big four were onscreen. Steiger in particular only had 3 or 4 scenes and stole them in my eyes everytime. He was like Robert Duvall in "The Godfather" in that way in my opinion. By not being a great big character he was able to stand out and draw some attention.
Oh and one more thing, other than the union corruption, this movie doesn't make dock work look all that bad. You get to hang out with your buds and unload crates, make some money, and if you're on Lee J. Cobb's side you get to fill your pockets with a ton of cash. Everyone from your neighborhood would go down and unload some irish whisky, then go drink. Everything looks better in black & white, but it's too bad things aren't as simple as they were back then, and I know I don't really need to elaborate on that.
Not sure what will be next....
Let me also throw out a recommendation for "The Hollies Sing Dylan" album that I've been listening to constantly for a year or more. I know people usually frown on Dylan covers (other than Hendrix), but this album is awesome and their versions of "Blowin In The Wind", "Just Like A Woman" and "My Back Pages" are better than any other in my opinion. British Invasion rules all.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Films Are Good
My name is Philip Trostler and I'm an unemployed twenty-four year old "actor" in Los Angeles. I take improv classes at the Upright Citizens Brigade theatre, go to the gym, and read. I also try to watch at least one movie every few days. My buddy Mike suggested I keep a blog about what I watch and despite my general apathy toward doing such a thing, I do think it would be good to help me improve as a write for the future.
There won't really be a format besides me posting my thoughts on the movies I see. To give a sample of my taste, my favorite films include "Billy Liar", "National Lampoon's Animal House", "Pleasantville", "The Good Shepherd", "In Bruges", "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly", and "Dead Poets Society".
I'll be back soon with thoughts on a good movie.
There won't really be a format besides me posting my thoughts on the movies I see. To give a sample of my taste, my favorite films include "Billy Liar", "National Lampoon's Animal House", "Pleasantville", "The Good Shepherd", "In Bruges", "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly", and "Dead Poets Society".
I'll be back soon with thoughts on a good movie.
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