Tag Archives: Gary Busey

1992 Films, Best Feature- Independent Spirit Award Winners, Comedy, Dark Comedy, Drama, Independent, Independent Drama, Los Angeles, Satire, Top 250 Films

The Player-1992

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The Player-1992

Director Robert Altman

Starring Tim Robbins, Greta Scacchi

Top 250 Films #181

Scott’s Review #601

Reviewed January 11, 2017

Grade: A

The Player (1992) ranks up there with other Robert Altman classics such as Gosford Park (2001), Nashville (1975), and Short Cuts (1993).

The film is an excellent piece of Hollywood satire and centers on a jaded movie executive, played by Tim Robbins, who does an incredible job in the role.

Robbins plays Griffin Mill, a man with no scruples. Feeling usurped by a younger executive, played by Peter Gallagher, as well as receiving death threats, he goes on the hunt for the person he feels responsible for, which leads to murder.

The audience is unsure whether to love or hate Mill, thanks to Robbin’s performance. He is snarky, but also vulnerable and a tad sympathetic.

The film contains a slew of real Hollywood celebrities (Cher, Malcolm McDowell, Bruce Willis) playing themselves and is largely improvised (as many of Altman’s films are).

Whoopi Goldberg and Lyle Lovett star as odd police detectives.

The plot is nothing new, but it’s the realism and direction that make this movie a must-see, especially for Robert Altman fans.

The Player (1992) is a hidden gem.

Oscar Nominations: Best Director-Robert Altman, Best Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published, Best Film Editing

Independent Spirit Award Nominations: 1 win-Best Feature (won)

1997 Films, Cerebral, Los Angeles, Thriller, Top 250 Films

Lost Highway-1997

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Lost Highway-1997

Director David Lynch

Starring Bill Pullman, Patricia Arquette

Top 250 Films #211

Scott’s Review #868

Reviewed February 17, 2019

Grade: A-

David Lynch, forever known for his odd and mind-boggling productions, released what might be his most bizarre offering, Lost Highway (1997).

Dreamlike and downright hallucinogenic, the film is impossible to dissect and is open to endless interpretation.

Characters morph into younger or different versions of themselves, or even into different characters entirely, making the film best experienced rather than overanalyzed.

The most enjoyment comes from the fabulous atmospheric elements.

Lost Highway is set in Los Angeles, where we meet saxophonist Fred Madison (Bill Pullman), a nightclub employee who lives with his glamorous wife, Renee (Patricia Arquette), somewhere in the Hollywood Hills.

The couple begins receiving envelopes containing VHS tapes of footage of their house, followed by more invasive tapes of them being filmed while sleeping in their bedroom.

Spooked, they enlist the help of a pair of incompetent detectives.

The events begin to grow more complex with the introduction of a menacing mystery man (Robert Blake) and sequences involving a dismembered Renee, and Fred’s subsequent incarceration for her murder.

Fred suddenly morphs into a young auto mechanic named Pete Dayton (Balthazar Getty), who is released into his parents’ care while being followed by the two detectives.

Pete embarks on an affair with Alice Wakefield, a mirror image of Renee, who is the mistress of powerful Mr. Eddy (Robert Loggia). Pete and Alice plan to escape together, leaving their troubled lives behind.

Any attempt to make more sense of the story than outlined above is fruitless, as a torrent of questions could be raised. The obvious ones are why does Fred turn into Pete (looking completely different), and why does Renee turn into Alice (looking similar)?

What do random scenes of a burning desert cabin mean? What does the bizarre and hazy lesbian sequence with Marilyn Manson have to do with anything?

Discerning the logic and attempting to unravel the mystery will lead to frustration.

The best advice is to immerse yourself in the film and let it manifest in your mind. The terms “dreamlike” and “hallucinating” are often used to describe films, but they are perfect adjectives for Lost Highway.

The stories do run parallel, so the challenge is not following each of them but rather understanding how they connect. The stories also merge in a circular pattern with a rhythmic effect and a satisfying ambiance that lured me immeasurably.

My favorite characters are Alice and Pete, largely because of the actors who portray them. Not appearing until the second half, Getty and Arquette infuse their roles with passion and energy.

I immediately rooted for them as a couple, as their tender and smoldering chemistry was immediately felt. Arquette blazes as a sexy temptress and Getty as the handsome and earnest man submitting to her prowess.

Eagle-eyed viewers may notice comparisons to Russ Meyer’s devilish sexploitation film Supervixens (1975).

The most notable are the dual character representations, the auto mechanic occupation, the locales (more than a few Los Angeles roads seem identical), and various sequences featuring a weightlifter, a gas station drive-up, or other eerily similar scenes.

Whether there is a direct correlation between the films is unknown, but it’s fun to observe.

The musical score and soundtrack are high points, adding both mystique and aggression through the featured hard rock songs. Marilyn Manson’s “I Put a Spell on You”, Rammstein’s “Heirate Mich”, and The Smashing Pumpkins “Eye” are used in important scenes.

The soundtrack release was a huge success on modern rock radio, achieving Gold record sales status.

At the time of Lost Highway’s release, the film was not well-regarded by critics and was dismissed as not making much sense.

In the decades following, the film has garnered more acclaim and, as with a fine wine, has aged well. The beautiful cinematic tone, creative design, and images have become more revered over time.

For a perplexing and cerebral experience, look no further than Lost Highway (1997), a delicious companion piece to the Lynch masterpiece, Mulholland Drive (2001).

1976 Films, Best Picture-Comedy or Musical Golden Globe Winners, Drama, Musical, Musical Drama, Romantic Drama

A Star Is Born-1976

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A Star Is Born-1976

Director Frank Pierson

Starring Barbra Streisand, Kris Kristofferson

Scott’s Review #1,276

Reviewed July 13, 2022

Grade: B

Four incarnations of A Star Is Born: 1937, 1954, 1976, and 2018.

Strangely enough, the most recent film starring Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga is worlds above the others, though I haven’t seen the 1937 version yet.

The fourth time is rarely the charm in film remakes.

This review, however, focuses largely on the 1976 film starring Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson.

A hit movie at the time, yet despised by some, the film is perfectly fine, though it bears multiple rewatchings and is inferior to the 2018 film.

There is no question about that.

Amazingly, it was nominated for four Academy Awards and deservedly won for Best Song. The other nominations are generous.

Watching A Star Is Born circa 2022, the 1976 version suffers from a dated tone, mostly because of the jaw-droppingly hideous perm hairdo Streisand wears.

Did somebody think it was flattering in 1976?

The chemistry between Streisand and Kristofferson starts tepid but intensifies as the film plods along.

The ending is underwhelming, and I expected more emotional pizzazz than I got, leaving me with a almost ‘so what’ reaction to a devastating turn of events.

Until that is, Barbra sings her heart out in one unbroken, gut-wrenching shot of seven or eight minutes.

For those unfamiliar, the story surrounds John Norman Howard (Kristofferson), a troubled rock star on the decline, frequently indulging in excessive drug use and drinking and trying to write hit records.

He drunkenly wanders into a club one night and watches aspiring singer Esther Hoffman (Streisand) perform, and is instantly smitten. The two begin dating, and soon John lets Esther take the spotlight during his concerts.

However, even as Esther finds fame and success with her singing, John continues his downward spiral.

Let’s face it. The main draw is who is playing the lead roles in a film like A Star Is Born. To make a love story work, it needs sizzling chemistry so the audience is invested in the romance.

Streisand commands the center stage, and her singing is the selling point.

Otherwise, Ms. Streisand suffers another bout of miscasting as she did in 1969’s Hello, Dolly. She’s too talented and established to be believable as an aspiring singer.

Her singing saves the film.

The gorgeous song “Evergreen” is quite a powerful moment and a great strength. Without it, the film would have felt lacking and mediocre.

The tune raises the overall experience a notch.

The chemistry is merely the warm-up act. It’s ho-hum until a smoldering bathtub scene occurs where John and Esther soap each other down and fall madly between the sheets for a night of passion.

It’s Streisand’s sexiest scene, and the romance takes off.

Back to Streisand’s vocals, the scene is preceded by a gorgeous songwriting sequence at the piano, as John and Esther craft a new song. As they collaborate, a connection and bond form between the characters.

Those are the romantic highlights.

Otherwise, the scene in which John becomes infatuated with Esther lacks appeal, since he is drinking and arguing with another patron and barely has time to notice her.

This thankfully changed in the 2018 version, when John is mesmerized by the rising talent.

Additionally, when John invites Esther to his concert and she watches from backstage, nothing happens. In the 2018 version, he drags her out to perform with him, and it’s a moment. 

Some films are best reviewed on their own merits, but what great fun to compare renditions of the same film, because why not?

The supporting characters have little to do except for an impressive turn by Gary Busey as John’s drug-pushing manager.

There is little reason to watch A Star Is Born (1976) more than once, or at most twice, to confirm that the film falls a bit flat.

It’s not terrible, but hardly memorable unless the desire is to giggle over an incredibly bad 1970s hairstyle by one of the greatest divas.

Then, move on to the outstanding Cooper/Gaga 2018 version.

Oscar Nominations: 1 win-Best Cinematography, Best Original Score, Best Original Song-“Evergreen” (won), Best Sound

Golden Globe Nominations: 5 wins-Best Picture-Comedy or Musical (won), Best Actor-Comedy or Musical-Kris Kristofferson (won), Best Actress-Comedy or Musical-Barbra Streisand (won), Best Original Score (won), Best Original Song-“Evergreen” (won)