[NOTE:
Sunday, November 29, 10:09 am
I wrote this post three, maybe four months ago, and then decided I should write more, but never did. Gee, not following through on something? That's a surprise (insert irritated growl). And because the 30 Day Film Challenge is (arguably) chronological, not publishing this post has held me up in terms of posting more entries in the series, supposedly. I'm a predictable lame-head.
Anyway, with 2020 locked in to finally winding down and eventually moving on calendar-wise - I mean, we had Election Day, Thanksgiving and Black Friday - I'm hoping to wrap this series of posts up in the next month.]
A version of this post was originally posted on Facebook on May 27, 2020.
DAY 2: "A film you like that starts with the first letter of your name."
When I first posted this on Facebook, I wrote:
I was going to say TAKE THE MONEY AND RUN by Woody Allen, which I love, but I decided to go with THE TAKING OF PELHAM ONE TWO THREE (1974) because there was more nostalgia linked with it.
I loved this movie and I remember seeing it at the Riviera Theatre in North Tonawanda when it first came out. Although, I think we paid only a buck to get in, so it might've been when it was making the second run circuit, but still 1974. I remember us walking out of the theater talking about the film, including the great David Shire score. Loved Walter Matthau in it, and thinking about him makes me want to check out these other Matthau crime dramas from the 70s I've heard about but never saw: THE LAUGHING POLICEMAN and CHARLEY VARRICK, both from 1973.
Wow. That was it?
So, I'm going to add to it (Yeah, what else is new?).
I remember TAKING OF PELHAM ONE TWO THREE was very entertaining. Suspenseful, funny, and solid performances from the entire cost, especially Walter Matthau and Robert Shaw, also Martin Balsam and I remember Jerry Stiller and his one line: "Even great men have to pee." The other cool thing I recall about PELHAM ONE TWO THREE is the New York character of the piece. It just has a certain attitude that adds to the entertainment.
On a side note, when I first started thinking back about PELHAM, I realized I was confusing the filmographies of Joseph Sargent with some of Joe Johnston's movies. Sargent passed away in 2014 and was Johnston's senior by 15 years.
Joe Johnston directed HONEY I SHRUNK THE KIDS, THE ROCKETEER, JUMANJI, JURASSIC PARK 3, CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER and also, HIDALGO, which I don't think did too much at the box office, but I caught it on cable and found it very enjoyable.
Director Joseph Sargent had a career in both TV movies and feature films, but most of his accolades came with his television work. He directed TRIBES (with Darren MacGavin and Jan-Michael Vincent) and AMBER WAVES (with Dennis Weaver, Kurt Russell, and Mare Winningham) and I remember them both, especially TRIBES. He won an Emmy for THE MARCUS-NELSON MURDERS which was the pilot for KOJAK starring Telly Savalas. Sargent also directed COLOSSUS: THE FORBIN PROJECT, which I recall enjoying on TV decades ago, WHITE LIGHTNING with Burt Reynolds and NIGHTMARES, a horror anthology I've never seen. But, he's also infamous for directing JAWS 4: THE REVENGE, which I also haven't seen but I know it has a pretty universal reputation for being awful. From what I hear, the basic premise is the shark has a personal vendetta against the Brody family, or it comes across that way in the film. After directing JAWS 4, all the films he did were for television.
Whatever. THE TAKING OF PELHAM ONE TWO THREE is excellent. I'll definitely have to revisit it. Maybe I'll make it part of a Walter Matthau marathon and check out some of the actor's other stuff. Ooh, perhaps I'll do a mix of things I haven't seen, like those two crime films I mentioned above, and maybe re-visit some of his comedies I saw years (and years) ago, like A NEW LEAF, or THE BAD NEWS BEARS. In fact, I was just thinking about BAD NEWS BEARS today because I just finished watching BUGSY MALONE for the first time and it made me think of other movies with child actors. Anyway, sitting through a Walter Matthau marathon shouldn't be a hard task, 'cause I do like him.
PS. Speaking of BUGSY MALONE (1976), I never saw it, and I haven't thought about it in years, but the recent death of director Alan Parker was the sad reminder. So, motivated by his obituary and filmography, I checked BUGSY MALONE out on Amazon Prime. It was fun and fascinating watching this strange concept film - child actors playing normally adult roles and the genre is 40s era gangsters and musicals. And re: film marathons, watching BUGSY MALONE is hopefully the first in checking out a number of Parker's diverse resume, especially BIRDY, PINK FLOYD:THE WALL, MIDNIGHT EXPRESS, FAME and MISSISSIPPI BURNING. Anyway, I hope to post some thoughts on BUGSY, too. NOTE: Of course, don't hold your breath... although stranger things have happened.
On a side note, when I first started thinking back about PELHAM, I realized I was confusing the filmographies of Joseph Sargent with some of Joe Johnston's movies. Sargent passed away in 2014 and was Johnston's senior by 15 years.
Joe Johnston directed HONEY I SHRUNK THE KIDS, THE ROCKETEER, JUMANJI, JURASSIC PARK 3, CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER and also, HIDALGO, which I don't think did too much at the box office, but I caught it on cable and found it very enjoyable.
Director Joseph Sargent had a career in both TV movies and feature films, but most of his accolades came with his television work. He directed TRIBES (with Darren MacGavin and Jan-Michael Vincent) and AMBER WAVES (with Dennis Weaver, Kurt Russell, and Mare Winningham) and I remember them both, especially TRIBES. He won an Emmy for THE MARCUS-NELSON MURDERS which was the pilot for KOJAK starring Telly Savalas. Sargent also directed COLOSSUS: THE FORBIN PROJECT, which I recall enjoying on TV decades ago, WHITE LIGHTNING with Burt Reynolds and NIGHTMARES, a horror anthology I've never seen. But, he's also infamous for directing JAWS 4: THE REVENGE, which I also haven't seen but I know it has a pretty universal reputation for being awful. From what I hear, the basic premise is the shark has a personal vendetta against the Brody family, or it comes across that way in the film. After directing JAWS 4, all the films he did were for television.
Whatever. THE TAKING OF PELHAM ONE TWO THREE is excellent. I'll definitely have to revisit it. Maybe I'll make it part of a Walter Matthau marathon and check out some of the actor's other stuff. Ooh, perhaps I'll do a mix of things I haven't seen, like those two crime films I mentioned above, and maybe re-visit some of his comedies I saw years (and years) ago, like A NEW LEAF, or THE BAD NEWS BEARS. In fact, I was just thinking about BAD NEWS BEARS today because I just finished watching BUGSY MALONE for the first time and it made me think of other movies with child actors. Anyway, sitting through a Walter Matthau marathon shouldn't be a hard task, 'cause I do like him.
PS. Speaking of BUGSY MALONE (1976), I never saw it, and I haven't thought about it in years, but the recent death of director Alan Parker was the sad reminder. So, motivated by his obituary and filmography, I checked BUGSY MALONE out on Amazon Prime. It was fun and fascinating watching this strange concept film - child actors playing normally adult roles and the genre is 40s era gangsters and musicals. And re: film marathons, watching BUGSY MALONE is hopefully the first in checking out a number of Parker's diverse resume, especially BIRDY, PINK FLOYD:THE WALL, MIDNIGHT EXPRESS, FAME and MISSISSIPPI BURNING. Anyway, I hope to post some thoughts on BUGSY, too. NOTE: Of course, don't hold your breath... although stranger things have happened.
