Ask 411 Movies for 3.26.07: The Column that Bes All it Can Be!
Posted by Leonard Hayhurst on 03.26.2007
The Marine, William Shatner, David Koechner, Run Lola Run, Andy Richter’s new show and racing for the checkered flag
Hey, I hate to go back to yelling, but could YOU GUYS PLEASE SEND SOME DAMN QUESTIONS!
Calvert DeForest, aka Larry "Bud" Melman passed away last Monday after a long illness. He was 85. DeForest was known as a special reporter for David Letterman's various late night shows for twenty years.
NETFLIX MOVIE OF THE WEEK: THE MARINE
This is the type of fun, mindless action film they don't make anymore. Wait a minute…yes they do, they just release them to straight to DVD, which this movie should have been. Cena makes an ok action lead and is helped out by having Robert Patrick and Kelly Carlson do all the heavy lifting for him. There are trace elements of a good balls to the wall action flick there, but the staging and direction is clichéd and repetitive. How many times do we have to see Cena engulfed in a slow-mo explosion? Having watched both WWE films now I feel their major problem is that they are not shelling out the money for at least competent directors and screenwriters. The Marine just needed a script doctor and a director with a couple features under his belt to be vastly improved. We talked about unrated films a few weeks ago and there is absolutely nothing in the unrated version which would have altered PG-13 rating the theatrical release received. Too bad, because Carlson is smoking hot.
Last week I was able to interview David Koechner in promotion of his Naked Trucker and T-Bones cd. He was a really fun guy to talk to and I think he appreciated me wanting to conduct a serious interview with him and not just expecting him to crack jokes. Below from YouTube we have Koechner playing the Bush administration Blame Czar.
I reviewed the Comedy Central Roast of William Shatner. Their roasts are starting to wear thin on me, because they're all the same. Shatner was a great roast choice though. Him singing "Rocketman" is the funniest thing ever, but that video has more than made the rounds. So instead thrill to the Shat warbling Harry Chapin's "Taxi" from the "Dinah Shore Show."
Q: I watched Run Lola Run awhile back. I liked it, but it wasn't as good as I was lead to believe. The thing is, I know I heard about it somewhere, but I'm not sure where. As a mainstream moviegoer, where might I have heard about this at?
Who is the guy that plays Andy Richter's mentor on his new TV show?
-Craig
A: You were most likely first exposed to Run Lola Run on VH-1's "I Love the Nineties" in which it was previewed for the year 1998. However, the film has snuck into other areas of popular culture. "The Simpsons" episode Trilogy of Error is based on the film with Lisa running through Springfield. An episode of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" also features a Lola type running character. It's theorized that early episodes of "Alias" in the style and look of the lead character played by Jennifer Garner was inspired by Lola. This question comes from my friend Craig and knowing him I know he would also like to know that there is an animated Star Wars spoof called Run Leia Run. For those unfamiliar with the German film, a woman named Lola must help her boyfriend Manni scored $10,000 marks in twenty minutes for the criminal he works for. The film then shows three different realities, where a slight change in seconds results in different outcomes.
Andy Richter's mentor on "Andy Barker, PI" is character actor Harve Presnell. Ben Piper will be happy to know that he was born in Modesto, California. He's 73. Presnell mainly did stage work, starring as Rhett Butler in "Scarlett" and as Daddy Warbucks in "Annie" and the sequel "Annie Warbucks." He made a few films, including singing "They Call the Wind Mariah" in the infamous Paint Your Wagon. His career in film didn't get off the ground until 1997 when he played William H. Macy's father-in-law in Fargo. Other films of his since then include Saving Private Ryan, Flags of Our Fathers, The Chamber, Face/Off, Patch Adams, The Legend of Bagger Vance, Mr. Deeds and a recurring role on "The Pretender."
Last week we looked at basketball films. This week let's take a gander at movies about racecar driving.
Grand Prix (1966): James Garner plays a racecar driver dropped by his sponsor after a horrific crash in Monaco that injured his teammate Scott Stoddard (Brian Bedford). Garner then starts racing for the rival Japanese team and romancing Scott's estranged wife (Jessica Walter). Other drivers are also highlighted and Eva Marie Saint plays an American journalist writing on it all. Garner did his own driving and beat many professional drivers in races between takes. On the flipside, Yves Montand was spooked by a wreck early in filming and a rig was created to pull his car at over 130 mph. Steve McQueen was the original choice for the lead, but he did go on to make…
Le Mans (1970): McQueen plays one of the drivers participating in the 1970 24 hours of Le Mans. McQueen was a real life race enthusiast and placed second in the 12 hours of Sebring earlier that year to Mario Andretti. The producers refused to let McQueen race for real, but his personal car did take part. Ferrari refused to work with the filmmakers because a Porsche wins the race in the movie. All Ferraris were borrowed from a private collector. John Sturges was the original director, but was replaced with Lee H. Katzin due to conflicts with McQueen.
Speedway (1968): Steve Grayson (Elvis Presley) is a racecar driver saddled with back taxes due to the poor handling of manager Kenny (Bill Bixby). They are assigned Susan (Nancy Sinatra) to monitor their efforts to win races and collect the needed money. The movie was originally conceived as a vehicle for Sonny and Cher. All the songs are forgettable, but "He's Your Uncle, Not Your Dad" about the long arm of Uncle Sam in you back pocket is a favorite of mine. Elvis also played a racer in Viva Las Vegas.
Winning (1969): Frank Capua (Paul Newman) is a top racecar driver who ignores his wife (Joanne Woodward) to work on his cars and race. This drives her into the arms of his rival Lou Erding (Robert Wagner). This film led to Newman's lifelong love of racing.
Greased Lightening (1977): Richard Pryor plays real life black racing champion Wendell Scott, who honed his craft hustling moonshine and driving a cab. Pam Grier is his wife, Cleavon Little plays his crew chief and Beau Bridges is a rival driver who champions Scott against racist drivers and track owners in the south.
Heart Like a Wheel (1983): Beau Bridges basically plays the same character here, only this time the lead is Bonnie Bedelia as a female drag racer. Bedelia beat out soap vixen Susan Lucci and Jamie Lee Curtis for the part.
Stroker Ace (1983): Stroker Ace (Burt Reynolds) is a star NASCAR driver who has burned through a host of sponsors thanks to his irreverent attitude toward them. This is despite the best efforts of his humble crew chief Lugs (Jim Nabors). They finally get signed by Clyde Torkel (Ned Beatty) and his chain of chicken restaurants. Torkel assigns the virginal Ms. Feeney (Loni Anderson) to monitor them. Torkel humiliates Stroker and drives him like a slave all the time thanks to their ironclad contract. Stroker sets up an elaborate plan to free himself of Torkel during the last race of the season. Many drivers of the period appear in the film including Harry Gant who in real life was driving a car owned by Reynolds and director Hal Needham. Famously, Reynolds turned down the part of Garrett Breedlove in Terms of Endearment that won an Oscar for Jack Nicholson.
Days of Thunder (1990): Cole Trickle (Tom Cruise) is a hotshot out of nowhere given a chance on the NASCAR circuit thanks to owner Tim Daland (Randy Quaid). He's paired with veteran crew chief Harry Hogge (Robert Duvall). Trickle has some early success, but frequently butts heads with another young hotshot in Russ Wheeler (Cary Elwes). Trickle is hospitalized after a crash and fall for his doctor (Nicole Kidman). Kidman and Cruise fell in love in real life and he left his then spouse Mimi Rogers for her. Even if they're all beards, you can't say Tom hasn't had some great ones. The film is loosely based on driver Tim Richmond and his crew chief Harry Hyde. Bobby Hamilton jumpstarted his own NASCAR career by doubling for Cruise in actual races and running well enough to a spot with Hendricks Motor Sports, who provided cars for the film.
Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2006): Ricky Bobby (Will Ferrell) is a star NASCAR driver thanks to his buddy Cal Naughton, Jr. (John C Reilly) pushing him to so many victories. However, Bobby's supremacy and confidence is shook when he is challenged by a newcomer (Sasha Baron Cohen) from French Formula 1 racing.
"I will take your mother out to a nice seafood dinner and NEVER call her again!"
