270 - Sister Act (Patreon Selects)

All January we'll be doing a series we call Patreon Selects with episodes chosen by members of our sponsor-level tier on Patreon (and they'll be sharing their Oscar origin stories too)! First up is 1992's megasmash musical comedy Sister Act! Originally designed as a showcase for Bette Midler, the film became a starring vehicle for Whoopi Goldberg hot off of her Oscar win for Ghost. With Whoopi as an on-the-run lounge singer who hides out in a convent and turns the church's choir into a sensation, the film won the affection of audiences but not an Academy with a tricky relationship with comedy.

This episode, we talk about Whoopi's career from theatre breakthrough to movie star to Oscar host. We also talk about Dame Maggie Smith's two Oscar wins, the career of writer Paul Rudnick (who took his name off the film), and the divine Mary Wickes.

Topics also include Hook, Nuns Having Fun, and the MTV Movie Awards.

Links:

The 1992 Academy Awards

Vulture Movies Fantasy League

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The wedding singer, 1998

The Wedding Singer (1998) Frank Coraci

July 31st 2022

The Tubi Tuesdays Podcast Episode 137 – Ready To Rumble (2000)

The Tubi Tuesdays Podcast Episode 137 – Ready To Rumble (2000)

The Tubi Tuesdays Podcast Episode 137 Ready To Rumble (2000) Kollin’s Pick Download HERE https://supermarcey.files.wordpress.com/2024/03/the-tubi-tuesdays-podcast-episode-137-ready-to-rumble-2000.mp3 Movie Starts Playing At: 00:07:03 Welcome to our podcast series from The Super Network and Pop4D called Tubi Tuesdays Podcast! This podcast series is focused on discovering and doing…

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Hollywood and Elm Part 7 - Freddy's Nightmares (1988-1990)

In today's review, the T.V. screen becomes the perfect arena for nightmareish dreamscapes. As I attempt a #positive review of the late 80s T.V. anthology Freddy's Nightmares #LoriPetty #BradPitt #KyleChandler #GeorgeLazenby #LarParkLincoln #DickMiller

Our dreams can be the best entertainment, a pseudo-coherent narrative, inspired by the events of the day, the food you ate, or whatever else is plaguing your mind. The realm of Freddy Krueger showed its potential on the big screen, but for the longest time, his home antics were only reserved for V.H.S. In 1988, the success of the franchise inspired a creepy T.V. anthology. One that broadcasted…

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Memoirs Of An Invisible Man (1992)

Memoirs Of An Invisible Man by #JohnCarpenter starring #ChevyChase and #DarylHannah, "It’s a shame the film isn’t better considering that it has a lot of great elements being thrown into the mix",

JOHN CARPENTER Bil’s rating (out of 5): BBB.5 USA/France, 1992. Warner Bros., Canal+, New Regency Productions, Alcor Films, Cornelius Productions. Screenplay by Robert Collector, Dana Olsen, William Goldman, based on the book H.F. Saint. Cinematography by William A. Fraker. Produced by Bruce Bodner, Dan Kolsrud. Music by Shirley Walker. Production Design by Lawrence G. Paull. Costume Design by…

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Wedding Crashers (2005)

Wedding Crashers shouldn’t work, particularly all these years later when society’s attitudes have changed so much… but it does. This is a problematic film for many reasons but when a comedy makes you laugh hard, all those issues don't seem nearly as important.

John Beckwith (Owen Wilson) and Jeremy Grey (Vince Vaughn) have a hobby: “crashing” wedding parties. Passing themselves off as distant relatives, they go in, make the grandparents laugh, entertain the kids with balloon animals, deliver heartwarming toasts and wind up in bed with a new woman every time. When John falls for Claire (Rachel McAdams), he insists he and his bud accept her father’s invitation to visit for the weekend. Jeremy accepts but this means confronting Claire’s obsessive sister Gloria (Isla Fisher).

Our protagonists are a couple of bros who go to weddings and lie to women to get into their beds but there’s more to them than this shallow exterior. If all John and Jeremy wanted was sex, there would be easier ways to go about it. At their core, these friends love to party and excel at it. Although they are intruders, they make themselves fit in and people are glad to have them on their big day. Clearly, John and Claire have a connection. Too bad she’s already got a boyfriend (Bradley Cooper as Sack). Even if she didn’t, how is he going to get out of all those stories he’s fed her earlier? As for Jeremy, he’s bitten off more than he can chew with Gloria. If you're hung on the idea of them being creeps, consider that this film is all about them getting their comeuppance, growing up and seeing the error of their ways.

Wedding Crashers has all the elements of the R-Rated comedy genre it helped spring back to life. The jerk boyfriend whose relationship with the love interest seems impossible but is necessary for the plot to happen, for example. There’s more to a movie than whether or not it reinvents the wheel. In a comedy, the most important thing is how funny it is, and this film is full of laughs. Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn play off each other so well you swear they’ve been doing it for years. When this adventure begins to drive a wedge between them, you care. Isla Fisher is equally funny, in a no-holds-barred-she’d-be-scary-if-she-weren’t-so-hot kinda way. She and Vaughn have many great moments together, as do Rachel McAdams and Wilson. The chemistry between our romantic leads is there (demented as it may be sometimes), which ensures a coating of sweetness above the many raunchy moments.

That said, several scenes have not aged well. In fact, even the premise hasn't held up. The predatory gay stereotype played by Keir O'Donnell is deeply uncomfortable. At one point, Jeremy is raped by the woman he will eventually fall in love with, which is a pretty big "yikes!". Even with all of the scenes proving John and Jeremy love weddings... you would never see this film made today, for good reason. In a way, the memorable scenes give this great re-watch value or maybe this is the kind of film that's best left in the past.

I admire Wedding Crashers for going all the way with its characters (check out Claire's foul-mouthed grandma, played by Ellen Albertini Dow) and for successfully juggling its different tones. Maybe Wedding Crashers is the kind of movie you secretly like. Don't worry, I won't tell anyone. (On DVD, November 26, 2017)

Ellen Albertini Dow.

025. The Wedding Singer (1998) - dir. Frank Coraci 31.01.2021 - 7/10

PODCAST: 116 - 54

1998 was a brief moment in time of Studio 54 nostalgia, thanks in part to this week’s film. Starring Mike Myers chasing prestige in a dramatic role as clubowner Steve Rubell, 54 took an inside look at the notorious, celeb-packed New York City nightclub from the eyes of a fictional bartender played by Ryan Phillippe. But no amount of modern day stars could transcend the film’s poor reviews and box office, leaving Myers’ awards hopes forgotten before the season ultimately started.

One of the many films retooled by Harvey Scissorhands, the film suffered extensive reshoots and resulted in a final film that removed its queer content and failed to capture what made this disco such a cultural flashpoint. This episode, we discuss the differences between the theatrical version and the director’s cut, along with the 1998 Best Supporting Actor race that resulted in a surprise win for James Coburn and the period’s other cases for comic actors going dramatic.

Topics also include rapping grandma Ellen Albertini Dow, the impact of Phillippe’s onscreen butt flashings, and Behind the Music.

Links:

The 1998 Oscar nominations

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Wedding Crashers (USA, 2005)

- I’m gonna leave. - You can’t go. - Watch me. Watch me take this back down the road. - Look, if you leave, Gloria is gonna freak out and throw a shit fit and it’s gonna go into crisis lockdown mode here at the house. - I don’t give a baker’s fuck. I just had my own sock duct-taped into my mouth last night. - Woa, what? - Yeah, the sock that I wear around all day, playing football in, pouring sweat in was shoved into my mouth, and then was duct tape over it. - Let’s talk about it. I’m a good listener. - I’m not in a place I can discuss what happened. Okay? I felt like Jodie Foster in “The Accused” last night. I’m gonna go home, see Dr. Finkelstein and I’m gonna tell him we got a whole new bag of issues. We can’t forget about Mom for a while. 

Wedding Crashers, David Dobkin (2005)