Living for the Cinema

Thirty years ago, this high-concept action thriller loosely described as "Die Hard on a Bus" surprisingly took the world by storm.  It was directed by Jan De Bont (Twister) and stars Keanu Reeves with an uncharacteristically short haircut (for him) as Jack, a young up-and-coming LAPD cop learning the ropes from his more veteran partner Harry played by Jeff Daniels.  Together they get roped into a high-rise hostage situation set on an elevator rigged with explosives and after they rescue said hostages, thing just crazier from there!  The perpetrator (Dennis Hopper) of this bombing which went awry then ropes them into his next plot....this time with just as many hostages but for even more money.  

And THIS time, he has a rigged a bus to explode.....while it traverses the crowded streets of LA....and it will only explode IF the bus drives BELOW 50 MP. :o Enter Annie (Sandra Bullock) who happens to be on this bus.....and then ends up driving the bus as well....Jack gets on the bus to help her and together, they keep finding inventive ways to keep the bus moving around traffic-filled Los Angeles.  And chaos ensues....and a love story possibly?  What results is one of the more beloved action films of the '90's and only one question remains:

WHAT DO YOU DO?  WHAT DO YOU DO? 

Host & Editor: Geoff Gershon
Producer: Marlene Gershon 

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Welcome to the Living for the Max series.  Over the past 45 years, there has been no other film franchise QUITE as inventive nor as consistently exciting as The Mad Max Saga….four films mostly chronicling the post-apocalyptic adventures of lone wolf Max Roxatansky played three times by Mel Gibson and most recently by Tom Hardy.  As each film has been directed by Australian cinematic genius George Miller, they have each reflected his unique vision while also being HUGELY influential on pop culture, more specifically the action genre.  So needless to say, new ones don’t come around very often and when they do….it MORE than qualifies as a cinematic EVENT.  Therefore over the next several months, I will be revisiting EACH entry of this beloved franchise every month leading up to the U.S. release of Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga on May 24!  

Well the time has come, the latest installment of this beloved franchise has finally arrived nine years after the previous one.  Once again directed by George Miller but this time starring Anya Taylor-Joy (playing a younger version of the title role, taking over from Charlize Theron in the last one) and Chris Hemsworth as a new villain, the demented....Dementus. ;) This time around, we are being told the origin story of Furiosa kicking off with her earlier years as a young girl (Alayla Brown) living in the "Green Place" who is then kidnapped by some marauders who report to Dementus - she also sadly loses her brave mother (Charlee Fraser) in the process as well.   And what results is an epic revenge tale set once again in the post-apocalyptic Wasteland of Australia. where we also revisit settings and characters from previous entries.  Let's find out if one of the most highly anticipated franchise films of recent years lives up to the hype....

Host & Editor: Geoff Gershon
Producer: Marlene Gershon 

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"The Magic Is Back!"

That was the official tagline in the marketing for this highly anticipated sequel to '87's Lethal Weapon when it was first being released just under thirty-five years ago.   We were rejoining the story of two very different Los Angeles cops who became friends at the end of the previous film....wild-haired, suicidal widower Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson) and slowly retiring family man Roger Murtagh (Danny Glover).  At a time when the buddy cop action film was a fairly common staple in movie theaters, the first one had received almost universal praise for the performances of these two actors and their undeniable chemistry.  So this time around, they're true buddies but they also have new enemies to deal with.....a cabal of South African diplomats who are also running a brutal drug trade on the West Coast, lead by Arjen (Joss Ackland) and Pieter (Derrick O'Connor).  And beyond that, they have a new government witness to babysit....Leo Goetz played by Oscar-winner Joe Pesci....could these two new threads intertwine?  Let's find out if the magic DID in fact return in this highly successful action sequel once again directed by the late, great Richard Donner.

Host & Editor: Geoff Gershon
Producer: Marlene Gershon 

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COPPOLA WEEK continues!  Fifty years ago sandwiched between his two multiple Oscar-winning masterpieces of The Godfather and The Godfather Part II, Francis Ford Coppola finally had studio support to write and direct this passion project which he had been working on since the mid '60's.  The story focuses on Harry - a surveillance expert played by Oscar-winner Gene Hackman - who has recorded a mysterious tape of a couple he was assigned to "bug" and hears something concerning on it which sets the plot in motion.  The story delves deeply into Harry's mindset as he eventually finds himself in danger....but from whom?  This now iconic paranoia thriller was nominated for three Oscars including Best Picture and features a stacked cast surrounding Hackman including Cindy Williams, John Cazale, Robert Duvall, Frederic Forest, Teri Garr, and a pretty young Harrison Ford.

Host & Editor: Geoff Gershon
Producer: Marlene Gershon 

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In time for its upcoming 45th Anniversary, Memorial Day AND the recent resurgence of its Oscar-winning director screening his long-developed passion project (Megalopolis....hopefully coming out later this year), what better time to revisit a film which itself was a long-gestating passion project for Francis Ford Coppola?  All of the crazy stories behind its troubled projection have seemingly been remembered as much as the film itself but make no mistake, this Vietnam/Cambodia-set war drama still packs a punch with several memorable sequences including.....one All-Timer scored to Wagner's "Ride of the Valkyries?" :o Martin Sheen leads a positively stacked cast including Robert Duvall, Dennis Hopper, Laurence Fishburne, Harrison Ford, and a highly memorable turn from Marlon Brando.  Let's kick off our Fourth Season (!) with a journey up the Nung River.....

Host & Editor: Geoff Gershon
Producer: Marlene Gershon 

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It's time to return of the most beloved and longest running franchises in cinema, the ongoing chronicles of an alternative timeline in Earth's history when humanity destroyed itself and the apes took over our planet, originally starting with the 1968 classic Planet of the Apes starring Charlton Heston.  Coming out seven years after the last entry (War of the Planet of the Apes) which closed out a highly popular and acclaimed trilogy films focusing on the primate protagonist known as Caesar, this story kicks off several generations after that character's passing.  The planet is now in fact ruled by apes but several factions have formed including a mild-mannered tribe which raises eagles - this tribe includes our new protagonist Noa (Owen Teague).  His village is attacked by a marauding gang of more technologically advanced primates lead by the ambitious Proximus Caesar (Kevin Durand) and what results is a challenging journey for Noa to find both his family AND is place in the world.  Directed by Wes Ball (The Maze Runner Trilogy) and also co-starring Freya Allen, it's time to see once again if....
Apes Together STRONG!

Host & Editor: Geoff Gershon
Producer: Marlene Gershon 

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What happens when you combine the directing trio (Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, Jerry Zucker) behind the spoof smash Airplane , the on-screen debut of one of the beloved movie stars of his generation (Val Kilmer), one of the most acclaimed actors/movie stars of HIS generation (Omar Shariff), satire focusing on World War II spy dramas, musical numbers satirizing Elvis road comedies, one underwater Western saloon fight, AND one extended sequence playing on misperceptions of the Swedish language?? 

The result is one genuinely wacky comedy which came out just under forty years ago and there has been nothing like it since then.  Also co-starring Lucy Gutteridge, Peter Cushing, and Michael Gough, it's time to go skeet surfing OR straighten the rug.....OR to shop at Macy's? :o  

Host & Editor: Geoff Gershon
Producer: Marlene Gershon 

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Based on the beloved 1980's TV show starring Lee Majors, this romantic action comedy tells the story of a veteran stuntman Colt (Ryan Gosling), his director Jody (Emily Blunt), and ALL of the craziness which is occurring on and off the set of a major Hollywood production named where the main Tom Ryder (Aaron Taylor Johnson) is apparently missing.  Directed by former stuntman David Leitch (Atomic Blonde, Bullet Train), this movie is very much a love letter to stunt performers....with lots of other stuff thrown in....including inspired karaoke! :)  

Host & Editor: Geoff Gershon
Producer: Marlene Gershon 

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If you're director Steven Spielberg and producer George Lucas, and you have been tasked with developing a sequel to one of the most beloved and highest grossing action adventures (Raiders of the Lost Ark) of all time, what do you do for a follow-up?  Well in this case, you go broader, sillier, and DEFINITELY creepier! :o And apparently, you piss off millions of parents who were ok taking their children to see faces melting off on-screen for the previous one but draw the line at seeing some one rip the beating heart out of a man's chest! :o 

What resulted was the PG-13 rating and one of the highest grossing blockbusters of the '80's.....which was also savagely criticized for its high levels of violence and (somewhat justifiably) the cultural insensitivity of several of its characters and its overall setting.  And one HELL of a ride featuring several memorable action set pieces and at least ONE beloved side character (Short Round played by future Oscar-winner Ke Huy Quan).  So on the verge of its 40th anniversary, how does this movie hold up?  Let's find out as Harrison Ford is back as the titular hero along with several new cast-members including Amrish Puri, Roshan Seth, and Kate Capshaw.  

Host & Editor: Geoff Gershon
Producer: Marlene Gershon 

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From Oscar-nominated Italian director Luca Guadagnino (Call Me By Your Name) comes a erotically charged drama about....tennis.  At its core is a love triangle among three aspiring professional tennis players played by Zendaya, Josh O'Connor, and Mike Faist.  We follow all three characters over a thirteen year period as they struggle through both their athletic careers and their relationships to each other.   And playing throughout all of this is high-energy electronic music from Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross....what else could you need?? :) 

Host & Editor: Geoff Gershon
Producer: Marlene Gershon 

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