Category: Movies You Might Have Missed

“Paul Williams Still Alive” (Missed Movies)

Paul Williams Still Alive If you grew up in the 1970s, you could not have missed singer-songwriter-actor-showman Paul Williams. He was everywhere. Williams wrote songs like “We’ve Only Just Begun,” the Oscar-winning “Evergreen” (co-written with Barbra Streisand), the theme to Love Boat, and the Muppet classic “Rainbow Connection.” He also wrote one of the first 45 rpm singles I bought as a kid, Three Dog Night’s “Just an Old Fashioned Love Song.” He appeared in movies like Smokey and The Bandit (1977) and Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973).

Additionally, Paul Williams was a regular on Johnny Carson’s late night show and appeared on many other TV shows like The Muppets. And, just as suddenly as he came into our lives and dominated TV, movies, and radio, he disappeared.

Director Stephen Kessler was a big fan of Williams as a child, and like many of us decades later, wondered what had happened to Williams and assumed he was dead. So he tracked down the singer, who was still touring in small venues, and began a documentary, Paul Williams Still Alive (2011).

The movie is not a straight-up documentary about the career of Paul Williams, as Kessler ends up being a part of the story of the film. Surprisingly for someone who was everywhere in popular culture at one time, Williams does not seem to embrace being in what is in some ways a modern reality show, with cameras following him every place he goes.

Williams is also somewhat resistant to analyzing his own life in front of the camera, putting off Kessler’s attempts to get Williams to discuss his feelings about how drugs affected his career. So we have lots of shots of Williams being slightly annoyed at the camera and Kessler’s digging.

Instead of deep introspection from Willimas, Kessler shows his own feelings about traveling with Williams in the Philippines (Kessler is scared, while Williams seems to soldier through every adversity). And Kessler tries to provoke a response from Williams by getting him to watch a talk show where Williams was obviously high.

How much you enjoy the film may depend on how you appreciate the focus on the director-subject relationship. It makes the movie a little less traditional and might engage some viewers more than a straight-up documentary. I appreciated the other part of the film that told us more about Paul Williams, his career, and his current life. But I must admit that it was the combination of the two film styles that told me other things about Paul Williams, such as the way he still perseveres and his refreshing desire to avoid revealing everything about himself.

While Williams rejects the opportunity for self-analysis, you still get to see what happened to one of the big icons of the 1970s and learn a little about the man indirectly. If you ever wondered what happened to Paul Williams, Paul Williams Still Alive is worth your time.

Other Reviews Because Why Should You Trust Me? Rotten Tomatoes reveals that critics liked Paul Williams Still Alive more than general audience members, giving the film a 97% critics rating and a 79% audience rating. Donald Liebenson at the Chicago Sun-Times found the movie interesting but was annoyed by the way the director inserted himself into the story. Meanwhile, Sodajerker has an audio interview with Paul Williams where Williams discusses his career and the documentary.

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    Searching for Sugar Man (Missed Movies)

    Rodriguez Best DocumentarySearching for Sugar Man, which recently won the 2012 Oscar for Best Documentary, is one of those films where the less you know about it, the more you will enjoy the film. I was one of those who was unfamiliar with musician Rodriguez and watched the film Searching for Sugar Man based only on a general sense about the content of the film. So during the movie, I was engrossed in the story and felt like I was discovering a long-lost epic tale of a legendary musician.

    Searching for Sugar Man is about the search for Sixto Rodriguez, a singer-songwriter who released two albums in the early 1970s and then disappeared into obscurity after his music failed to find an audience, even though many talented producers and others thought Rodriguez was even better than Bob Dylan. The story might have ended there, but his music did find an audience in South Africa, where many people, suffering during the apartheid years, found a special connection with Rodriguez’s music. There are various theories about how his albums ended up in South Africa, but the one thing for certain is that many South Africans put him on a level with other famous international artists like The Rolling Stones.

    Searching for Sugar Man begins with the legend of Rodriguez and his disappearance, and then it follows several fans in South Africa who search to find out what happened to Rodriguez. Using old photos and new interviews, the film explores the power of music and myth. To reveal any more about the movie would ruin your enjoyment of the film. The trailer even reveals too much, so here are a couple of songs by Rodriguez to whet your appetite. Now go watch the film. (But if you must watch the trailer, it is here.)

    “I Wonder”

    “Cause”

    Perhaps Chimesfreedom will revisit Rodriguez’s music more in the future, but for now watch the movie first so you can enjoy the mystery and the discoveries in the film.

    What did you think of Searching for Sugar Man? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Rocket Science (Missed Movies)

    rocket science One is tempted to compare Rocket Science (2007) to other quirky adolescent comedies like Rushmore (1998) and Napoleon Dynamite (2004). Rocket Science writer-director Jeffrey Blitz does appear influenced by Rushmore, using music that would not feel out of place in that movie, and he features a young hero, played by Reece Thompson, who looks a bit like Jason Schwartzman, the star of Rushmore. But Rocket Science is its own movie and one worth seeking out.

    Rocket Science tells the story of the 15-year-old Hal Hefner (Thompson), who has a bad stutter but joins the high school debate team to be near the team’s star, played by Anna Kendrick, who has gone on to star in other films like Up in the Air (2009). It took me awhile before I warmed to Rocket Science, but the film slowly draws you in. Despite featuring some cliche’s of this genre, like “the obnoxious brother,” the movie does not go for easy or predictable resolutions.

    At the 2007 Sundance Film Festival, Blitz won the Dramatic Directing Award, and the movie garnered some attention but not as much as other similar movies. I am tempted to say, “if you liked Rushmore, you’ll like Rocket Science,” but actually, if you go in looking for something like Director Wes Anderson’s Rushmore you will probably be disappointed.

    But if you are looking for a different kind of coming-of-age film that maintains a fair amount of realism, this film that is based in part on Blitz’s own adolescence is worth the rental. And at least for now, the full film is on YouTube, while the trailer is below.

    Other Reviews Because Why Should You Trust Me?: Rotten Tomatoes gives Rocket Science an 84% Critics Rating and a 71% Audience Rating. (Rushmore has a similar Critics Rating at 87% but a much higher audience rating at 91%.) Margaret Pomeranz from Australia’s At the Movies said the film is “wryly funny in parts, poignant, interesting, frustrating, but never less than really engaging.” On the other hand, David Cornelius at DVDTalk praises the cast but said the film “toss[es] us attention-grabbing nuttiness that never once feels earned, or needed, or true.”

    {Missed Movies is our continuing series on good films you might have missed because they did not receive the recognition they deserved when released.}

    What did you think of Rocket Science? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Apocalypto: Mad Max Meets Rambo (Missed Movies)

    Apocalypto Amazon Blu-Ray When Mel Gibson announced he was going to follow up his hit The Passion of the Christ (2004) with unknown actors in a film set in the Mayan kingdom in the early 1500s using the Yucatec Maya language with subtitles, many thought he was crazy (besides other reasons that people think he is crazy). But Apocalypto (2006) is not a dry history lesson but the type of exciting action yarn one might expect from Gibson, despite its unusual setting.

    The film begins in a peaceful village and you are immediately drawn to the characters despite the language barrier. Among the characters, we are introduced to the young warrior Jaguar Paw (Rudy Youngblood) and his pregnant wife, Seven (Dalia Hernandez). But soon, things are disrupted when warriors from the center of the civilization arrive to destroy the village, attack the women, and take the men back to the temple in the city for sacrifice. As Jaguar Paw becomes separated from his wife after hiding her and his son, we wonder if he will be able to escape the captors led by Zero Wolf (Raoul Trujillo) to be able to return to rescue her.

    The film has some similarities to Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ and Braveheart (1995) in that they all follow a movie tradition of having the hero suffer brutality so that the audience wishes for some type of vengeance against the tormentors. And there are scenes of blood and brutality. But the film that Apocalypto most reminded me of was First Blood (1982), the original Rambo movie. Like that Sylvester Stalone film, the hero here is captured and we watch as he tries to escape, survive, and defeat his pursuers.

    Of course, nowadays any film attached to Mel Gibson suffers because of his controversial behavior away from the screen, and the film likely suffered at the box office because of its connection to Gibson. Questions about the film’s accuracy in portraying an ancient civilization also caused some controversy. But as a film, Apocalypto has much going for it, as recognized by other actors and directors like Robert Duvall and Quentin Tarantino.

    Conclusion?: If you avoided Apocalypto when it was released because a film about Mayans in another language sounded boring, and if you like action adventure films, you should give the film a chance. It might be worth reading the subtitles to see an entertaining and exciting action film.

    Other Reviews Because Why Should You Listen to Me?: Critics at Rotten Tomatoes combine to give Apocalypto a 65% rating, but audience members enjoyed the action yarn more, giving the film a 79% rating. On ReelViews, James Berardinelli gave Apocalypto 3-1/2 stars (out of four) and concluded that “it’s unlike any other movie to reach theaters this year and, because it is as visual an experience as it is visceral.” By contrast, Rob Gonsalves at eFilmCritic.com pans the film, calling it “a skimpy action flick.”

    {Missed Movies is our continuing series on good films you might have missed because they did not receive the recognition they deserved when released.}

    What do you think of Apocalypto? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Ambiguous Morality With Casey Affleck (Missed Movies)

    This edition of “Movies You Might Have Missed” features two 2007 films starring Casey Affleck where his character makes a complicated moral choice near the end of the films. Did his characters make the correct choices?

    jesse james coward robert ford The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007): This unusual Western, like its title, is a bit long, but the epic meditation on the Western myth, outlaws, and heroes is worth your patience. Brad Pitt does an excellent job as Jesse James and Sam Rockwell is great as always, but it is Casey Affleck as Robert Ford that forms the heart of the film. With some wonderful documentary narration by Hugh Ross, the movie is also filmed beautifully by director Andrew Dominik. Affleck portrays Ford as a complicated character who worships the celebrity James and then has to make the ultimate decision about killing his idol. The short coda of the film, which covers the time period after James’s death, is one of the most beautiful endings of any Western in cinema.

    Gone Baby Gone Gone Baby Gone (2007): One one level, Gone Baby Gone is a crime mystery. Casey Affleck’s character and his girlfriend, played by Michelle Monaghan, are hired to find a missing little girl by her aunt. But it is not your run-of-the-mill crime drama, as one might guess after learning that the film is based on a book by by Dennis Lehane, the author of Mystic River and Shutter Island. Casey’s brother Ben Affleck stays behind the camera as director and expertly conveys the character of the Boston neighborhood while weaving a morality tale of sorts. The mystery of the little girl takes some twists and turns, but ultimately, as in The Assassination of Jesse James, it ends with Casey Affleck having to make a choice and then pay the consequences for that choice. Gone Baby Gone is one of those quiet gems that draws you in and sneaks up on you. I recently re-watched the movie and liked it even better the second time. If you have not seen it, watch it for your first time.

    The year 2007 was a big one for Casey Affleck with these two outstanding films, as well as appearing in Ocean’s Thirteen. He has not matched that year so far, and did not have another starring role until The Killer Inside Me in 2010. But he has several films in post-production and pre-production now, so we can look forward to some upcoming Casey Affleck movies, even if it will be difficult for him to match The Assassination of Jesse James and Gone Baby Gone.

    Other Reviews Because Why Should You Trust Me?: Rotten Tomatoes gives a 75% critics rating and a 73% audience rating to The Assassination of Jesse James. Meanwhile, the Tomatometer gives Gone Baby Gone a 94% critics rating and an 84% audience rating.

    {Missed Movies is our continuing series on good films you might have missed because they did not receive the recognition they deserved when released.}

    What do you think of these Casey Affleck films? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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