Two Geeks and a GIT Classic Movie Reviews

Episode 150: It's a return to horror, with arguably the scariest films from two decades! First up, it's the William Friedkin directed film, based on a story and screenplay by William Peter Blatty, that took the subject of possession in a completely different direction, 1973's "The Exorcist!" Starring Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Lee J. Cobb, Kitty Winn, Jack MacGowran, Jason Miller, William O'Malley, and Linda Blair. This movie follows 12-year-old Regan MacNeil, daughter of actress Chris MacNeil, as she is beset by what is first believed to be a form of severe mental illness, then a brain disease of some sort, but ends up being diagnosed as a case of demonic possession. Two priests, one old and dedicated, one young and unsure, come to the aid of this family in crisis and attempt to save not only the little girl's life, but her very soul. Nominated for eight oscars including Best Picture, Best Actress, and Best Director, the film would garner two: Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Sound. Regardless, it is THE film many cite as the scariest movie they've ever seen!

Our second look at the cinematic depictions of Roald Dahl books takes to the year 1971, and perhaps the finest performance of Gene Wilder's career in "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory!" Directed by Mel Stuart, with Dahl writing the screenplay himself, and co-starring Jack Albertson, Peter Ostrum, Julie Dawn Cole, Denise Nickerson, Paris Themmen, and Michael Bollner, this is what people mean when they say a film is a "classic!" From beginning to end, this is, as the song in the film suggests, pure imagination on-screen. Plus, the background information and inside stories make the viewing even that much more interesting! Plus, the trio explain what "Halloween in May" films they'll be viewing for the next pairing!

Take the spy-story genius of Ian Fleming, father of James Bond, and combine it with the dark children's fantasy of Roald Dahl, and what do you get? 1968's classic "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang," directed by Ken Hughes and starring Dick Van Dyke, Sally Ann Howe, Lionel Jeffries, Gert Frobe, Anna Quayle, Benny Hill, Robert Helpmann, Heather Ripley, and Adrian Hall! This beloved, yet uneven, children's classic has entertained young people for several decades. Seen as an adult, however, there are layers to it that children would never pick up on. It does, however, have songs and dance numbers to rival, perhaps even surpass, Mary Poppins! If you have children, or know children, or have even just heard of children, find some and show them this movie! You'll become their new favorite person!

Our second episode celebrating writer "auteur" Aaron Sorkin moves ahead almost two decades for one of his most famous adapted screenplays, one that raised eyebrows across the world when it was released, 2010's "The Social Network." This time directed by David Fincher, Sorkin adapted the novel by Ben Mezrich, and tells the story of the founding of Facebook and the man behind the site's success, Mark Zuckerberg, played to perfection by Jesse Eisenberg. The film also stars Mara Rooney, Andrew Garfield, Armie Hammer, Max Minghella, Justin Timberlake, Rashida Jones, and Dakota Johnson, with yet another cameo by Sorkin himself! A riveting, if not wholly accurate, telling of the Facebook story netted Sorkin a Best Adapted Screenplay award, and also garnered a Best Original Music Score Oscar for first-timers Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross. Plus, find out what two family classics the geeks will be reviewing for their next two episodes!

For this pairing, the trio are turning to one of the few writers who can be considered an "auteur": Aaron Sorkin. First up, the break-out hit film, based on his Broadway play, 1992's "A Few Good Men." Directed by master filmsmith Rob Reiner and written by Sorkin (with a little help from "The Princess Bride" scribe William Goldman), the film follows the trial of two marines charged with the death of a fellow marine. Lt. Daniel Kaffee (Tom Cruise), with the help of Lt. Cdr. JoAnne Galloway (Demi Moore) and Lt. Sam Weinberg (Kevin Pollak) must find out what actually happened, and how a squad-based reprimand known as a "code red" plays into the case. Co-starring Jack Nicholson as Col. Nathan R. Jessep (he was nominated for in the Best Supporting Actor category for this role), Kiefer Sutherland as 2nd Lt. Jonathan Kendrick, J.T. Walsh as Lt. Col. Matthew Markinson, and Kevin Bacon as Capt. Jack Ross, the film features cameo appearances from Christopher Guest, Noah Wyle, Cuba Gooding Jr., Josh Malina, and Aaron Sorkin himself! This film established Sorkin as a writer to contend with, and ultimately resulted in several films and four critically-acclaimed television series!

Second on the list of films about the career of teaching comes Wes Anderson's quirky and heartfelt film with the oddest love triangle in, perhaps, all of cinema, 1998's "Rushmore." Directed by Anderson, co-written with Owen Wilson, and starring Jason Schwartzman (in his first appearance), the incomparable Bill Murray, Olivia Williams, Seymour Cassel, Brian Cox, Mason Gamble, and Sara Tanaka, this movie tells the story of Max Fischer, an overly-intelligent prep-school student who falls for one of his teachers at the same time a would-be mentor and friend does also. The film is full of what would become trademark Anderson techniques, and winds its way through its tale with well-crafted aplomb until it reaches an ending that feels completely right for the story it's been telling! Plus, the Geeks and G.I.T. reveal which writer, absolutely beloved of one of the Geeks, the next two films will be from!

The trio are talking about their day-jobs for this pairing, as they sample two films about the vocation of teaching! This episode looks at one of the definitive films from the 80s about the perils of a job in education: Administrators, unions, peers, and students! 1984's "Teachers" is a sometimes serious and sometimes hilarious look at what it's like to try to teach high school. Directed by Arthur Hiller, written by W. R. McKinney, and starring Nick Nolte, JoBeth Williams, Judd Hirsch, Ralph Macchio, Allen Garfield, Lee Grant, Richard Mulligan, Royal Dano, William Schallert, Laura Dern, Crispin Glover, and Morgan Freeman, this film will have you laughing one minute and falling suddenly silent the next, but it's a loved favorite of all three reviewers, and a must-see for anyone who is, or knows, a teacher!

The second film in our Sci-Fi Comedy/Parody Films pairing is one that brings a unique blend of pathos to its comedy, so much so that by film's end, you care about the characters and actually want them to succeed, which isn't always the case in a comedy. Starring Tim Allen, Sigourney Weaver, Alan Rickman, Tony Shalhoub, Sam Rockwell, and Daryl "Chill" Mitchell as the crew of the TV program "Galaxy Quest," in their latter years, long after the program's been cancelled, this film is something of a love-letter to fans and the conventions they patronize. Enter Enrico Colantoni, Patrick Breen, Missile Pyle (in her first feature film role), and Jed Rees as the Thermians who seek out the help of the actors they believe to be real heroes, to help fight Sarris (played brilliantly by Robin Sachs). The actors-turned-heroes must find a way to become their characters for real and triumph over the bad guy, but not without the help of some of their biggest fans, led by Justin Long (in HIS first feature film role). It's a comedy, it's a love story, it's a sci-fi adventure, and somehow it succeeds on all three fronts! Plus, the trio disclose how their day jobs influenced the pick of the next pairing coming up!

This pairing is Sci-Fi Comedy/Parody Films, and we're starting with one from the master, Mel Brooks, and his send-up of the Sci-Fi genre (and Star Wars in particular), 1987's Spaceballs! Starring Bill Pullman, John Candy, Rick Moranis, Daphne Zuniga, Dick Van Patten, George Wyner, Joan Rivers, and (of course), Mel Brooks, this film is an oddity in that it would actually work as a decent adventure film if you took the comedy out, but leaving the comedy in makes it a masterpiece! Borrowing from Star Wars, Star Trek, Alien, and countless other sci-fi classics, it makes fun of them all in a way that doesn't demean or lessen the originals! It's so tender and clearly affectionate in its fun-poking that George Lucas blessed the film with assistance and even a little footage donation!

Legendary Hollywood director Blake Edwards gives us our second film for our "Race Around the World" pairing with 1965's epic race-comecy, "The Great Race!" Directed by Edwards, and written by Arthur A. Ross and Edwards, this film follows The Great Lesley (Tony Curtis), a hero all in white, who proposes to stage, and win, a race from New York westward to Paris! Accompanied by his driver and mechanic Hezekiah (Keenen Wynn), he is continually crossed by two different types of opponents. The first, in what may be his greatest comedy role ever, is the evil Professor Fate, played with perfect wit and abandon by Jack Lemmon, who is accompanied by his henchman Maximillian (Peter Falk). The other opponent, however, proves to be equally distracting: A suffragette newspaper reporter who has entered the race to report on it from within, one Maggie DuBois (Natalie Wood). Will Lesley win? If not, who is the cause? A great road comedy, as great as its name implies! Plus, Buddy, Chad, and Jeff reveal which two Sci-Fi comedies will be their next pairing!