Retro review: A View to a Kill--satire at its finest!!!

 I recently decided to throw in A View to a Kill on Blu-ray, since I picked up the Bond 50 boxed set with all of the films. It was barely watchable to say the least. I'm being generous.

I'm not sure what the heck the Bond producers at the time (Cubby Broccoli, and Micheal G. Wilson) were thinking by allowing a geriatric looking Roger Moore come back for one last round as 007, but they're damn lucky it didn't completely backfire on them. This film could have easily been the end of Bond had it bombed financially, and boy it should have bombed in my opinion. There's simply no way to take this entry seriously when Roger Moore was 57 years old, and not only was he not convincing enough to believe he was doing the physical scenes as James Bond, but he looked like he should have been playing the lead Bond girl's father, not a potential love interest! The film plays like it's a satire of itself, and more than makes a big joke out of the character Ian Fleming created decades before. I can't imagine had Ian Fleming was alive to see this film, he'd have been the least bit happy with the direction it took.

The real crime? This film had all the elements needed to make an outstandingly cool Bond film, but was wasted on such an over the hill actor in Roger Moore. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed Roger Moore as Bond, particularly when he didn't look like he was pushing 60, but his being in A View to a Kill prevented it from being what it could have been. Having said that, Christopher Walken did a great job playing the lead villain, Max Zorin, and Grace Jones did a nice job as the villain's sidekick, Mayday. In the end, it was wasted simply because Moore wasn't believable as an agent with a License to Kill on screen. The script needed to be altered to eliminate the campy jokes, and over the top humor, along with recasting 007 at the time. Had that been done, it would have been a respectable Bond film. Another head scratcher, the casting of an even older sidekick for Roger Moore's James Bond character, Sir Goddrey Tibbet, played by then way over the hill Patrick Macnee just threw believability out the window with this picture. Several of the scenes early on, when Bond and Tibbet are infiltrating one of Zorin's facilities is silly at best. When the only good thing about a film is its theme song (A View to a Kill, Duran Duran), that's when you know it has major issues across the board.

It now makes perfect sense why with the following film, The Living Daylights, the producers were more than happy to allow then newly cast Bond, Timothy Dalton, to make the character of 007 a serious, no nonsense 00 agent. There was even talk that it was Roger Moore (at the time of A View to a Kills release) who resigned from the role, and for his own reasons, but come on, can you imagine him coming back for yet another film, 2 years later? I know I can't. A View to a Kill really was like The Naked Gun franchise merging with the Bond universe, only in the worst way possible.

Nuff said...

Moonrise Kingdom: Varying degrees of nostalgia..

 If you've never seen a Wes Anderson film before, brace yourself, you just may not enjoy it. I'm going to go out on a limb and say you better be good friends with the intellectual side of your brain. You need to be able to appreciate the small things in his movies, particularly with the main characters involved. There's definitely a dry humor at work not only in this film but his previous films, and if you can dig in to such wit, I'm sure you'll thoroughly enjoy the film.

Having said that, this is an intriguing film all around, regardless of the notes it may or may not hit on with humor. I also feel like it's the kind of film you must see more than a few times to pick up on all the subtle nuances that are on the screen. To sum up the plot, a boy named Sam, who is apart of a boy-scout platoon, goes missing and all in the name of falling in love with a local girl. The visuals and aura are what make this film work for me, along with some very convincing acting all around. There's also added charm by setting this film in the 60's, and getting to see the characters in an environment where one is not picking up their Iphone every 40 seconds to see if another character in the film messaged them. You may even find yourself getting nostalgic for a time when we all didn't have quite as many distractions and were able to be in the moment with those around us; much like you'll see with the characters of this film.

The acting is solid all-around. Ed Norton plays the boy scout platoon leader, Scout Master Ward. Bill Murray plays the father of Suzy, who flees with Sam. Bruce Willis plays the cop in this local New England town, named Captain Sharp, and I must mention the ageless Bob Balaban, who narrates the film at different points in the beginning and end. I'm beginning to think he (Balaban) never ages.
Last but not least, the film would never have worked if not for the acting chops of the two young lovers, played by Kara Hayward, and Jared Gilman. There's some key moments in the first leg of the film where they're isolated together, by a lake, and their chemistry works. It's just that simple.

Overall, if you want a nice escape into a world that not only doesn't exist anymore being that it's the 2000s, but also because it's a world that only Wes Anderson could create in his films, give this one a try.

Nuff said

E.T.: Still a gem 30 years later....

 I remember watching this film as a kid but never truly grasping the themes of this classic: Friendship/Companionship/Loyalty, etc. But the simple magic presented on the screen of seeing this young kid who befriends a being from another planet was enough to keep me entertained from start to finish. And then when I turned 21, it was re-released in theaters just about everywhere in the US. I remember going to see it with a close friend, a fellow "dude" if you will, and being completely caught off guard at just how sad the ending was. It hits you right in the gut, that this child who has bonded to a being from another world, is about to lose a friend. Add to it, the absolutely majestic and emotional John Williams soundtrack, and you have the perfect recipe to make an entire theater weep like it's a funeral. It's simply one of those films that reminds you it's OK to think like a kid, and become nostalgic for the imagination your childhood was filled with.

I'm going to simplify the plot for all of you. An alien is left stranded on earth by his fellow alien pals, the government takes an interest in these E.T.'s, all the while a younger kid named Elliot allows his new alien pal to hang out and take shelter at his mom's house. Like any plot that needs to move forward, conflict arises, but in the form of the government wanting to capture E.T. The ending? Not going to spoil it for those of you who for some insane reason haven't seen this classic. Overall this story should remind all of us what it means to go to bat for a true friend, and the great lengths we sometimes have to go to ensure you take care of those who matter most in your life. Somehow director Steven Spielberg captures this theme the best I've ever seen captured in a film. What's ironic is that it's not dealing with a human to human friendship, it's with a human and non-human friendship story arc.

Watching it nearly ten years later on Blu-ray it's become apparent to me that nothing has changed. It's still a tear-jerker, and still tackles the themes of friendship and loyalty without losing the same punch it packed years ago. Even better, it looks brilliant on Blu-ray. If it can look epic while projected onto a white wall, about 90" size, I can't imagine how crystal clear it's going to look on your TV. Oh, and it doesn't hurt it sounds like it was recorded yesterday. Great cinematography, great soundtrack, well acted, well directed, and still holds up some 30 years after its initial release.

All around, if you haven't seen this film, go get it! But be warned in advance, don't be so sure it won't strike a cord emotionally, it's been known to make grown men cry like school girls!

Nuff said....