September 14th, 2008

dead-gay-son

i'm cherry

hile taking a short break in a truckstop yesterday I was perusing the DVD shelf when I came upon the title Hudson Hawk "Special Edition". Granted, Bruce Willis is one of the most famous, bankable movie actors on the planet, but a special edition for Hudson Hawk is like putting a steaming pile of horse shit on a your best china and garnishing it with parsley. What's next, the 2-disc Director's Cut of Dude, Where's My Car? Then again, maybe I'm a little sensitive to things like this. Sony Pictures can finance a special edition release for an atrocity like Hudson Hawk while Paramount scrapped plans for any release whatsoever of the third and final season my beloved The Adventures of Pete and Pete, after releasing the first two seasons on DVD. Then again, is there really any justice in a world where a band like UB40 could chart singles in the U.S. Top 40 six times?

I wanted to see Grindhouse in its theatrical run but didn't get the chance. Last night I watched Rodriguez's contribution, Planet Terror. First I want to say that his "Coming Attractions" trailer for Machete with Danny Trejo was made of awesome. Concerning the feature, his send-up of 70s genre movies was hilarious and often ingenious. I didn't know they made gallon-sized blood squibs. I can't help but wonder if Rodriguez upstages Tarantino as he nearly did in Four Rooms. I guess I'll find out when I watch Death Proof later today.

Robert Rodriguez is probably one of the most interesting film makers in the business. His in-house, DIY aesthetic and low-budget sensibilities makes him the cinematic equivalent of a punk rock band. Having gone all-digital, he's a one-man movie studio, creating his own special effects and scores. I almost never make the effort to re-watch movies on DVD with the director's commentary but I always do with Rodriguez films. If you've never seen his cinematic debut, El Mariachi, you should, just to see how good a film can be on the astonishing budget of $7,000. It was the film that spawned his so-called "Mexico trilogy" which also included Desperado and Once Upon A Time In Mexico.

Let's have some fun. You think of one, and only one, movie that you think I need to see that I might not have seen. Now, I've seen a good deal of movies but at the same time, you'd be surprised at the movies I haven't seen. For example, I've only seen Citizen Kane and Casablanca within the past couple of years, and I've never seen Gone With The Wind in it's entirety. If I've seen your suggestion, I'll tell you my opinion of it and you'll be charged with thinking of something else and we'll continue in this manner until we find something. In turn, I'll recommend something for you, most likely an older movie or something a bit off the mainstream path. Everybody can peruse the various comment threads and see these recommendations and opinions and maybe find something interesting to watch. My goal will be to watch all of your recommendations and at some point in the future, come back to the comment where you suggested it and tell you what I thought of it.

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