Matthew Broderick reprised his role from the 1980s classic film Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986) in a commercial for Honda. Reportedly, a version of the commercial will appear during the Super Bowl, but the extended commercial has just been released on the Internet, called “Matthew Broderick’s Day Off.”
There are a number of references to the film in the commercial. How many can you see? Some references are obvious while others are less obvious, like the name of Broderick’s agent, Walter Linder, which was listed above the name of Abe Froman (the Sausage King of Chicago) in the reservation book in the fancy restaurant in the film.
Each mascot from this year’s Super Bowl teams has a sprawling epic film, so let’s see if the movies can help us predict the future National Football League champion. In one corner, for the New England Patriots, there is The Patriot (2000), starring Mel Gibson and Heath Ledger. In the other corner, for the New York Giants, there is Giant (1956), starring Rock Hudson, Elizabeth Taylor, James Dean, and Dennis Hopper. Like the two football teams and their quarterbacks, the male lead in each film has an interesting storyline in real life as well as on the field or screen. But who will emerge victorious?
The Patriot covers one man’s family through the American Revolution, as Mel Gibson plays a reluctant fighter who leads a rag-tag group of patriots. The film follows the usual Mel Gibson movie pattern with one of his loved ones getting killed, Mel getting mad, and Mel killing a lot of people (Braveheart, Mad Max). Although the film has its detractors (a 62% critic Rotten Tomatoes rating) claiming the movie glosses over the slavery issue and it makes the British into sort of 1700’s evil Nazi-type characters, it is a fun action move with exciting battle scenes (an 80% audience Rotten Tomatoes rating).
Giant, a movie that traces the ups and downs of the fictional Benedict family in Texas, also has its detractors claiming the epic is overlong. Still, the film, which is based on a novel by Edna Ferber, has great actors and it was the last time James Dean appeared in a leading role. In trying to capture a scope as big as Texas, the movie features several classic scenes, such as one where James Dean marches across the land his troubled character inherited, and another classic scene is where Rock Hudson’s bigoted character stands up for a family of Mexican immigrants in a diner as the jukebox plays “The Eyes of Texas Are Upon You.” While our twenty-first century eyes may recognize some problems with portraying a white man as the rescuer, the fact that Hudson faced discrimination in his real life adds another layer to the scene.
Using our movies to predict the Super Bowl, who wins? With a 95% critic rating and 85% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes, Giant is the winner in the battle of the movies. Going by the audience ratings of The Patriot (80%) vs. Giant (85%), the New York Giants will beat the New England Patriots by five points, which seems a little more believable than the film critics’ prediction of a 33-point romp for the Giants (95% to 62%).
Like the New England and New York teams, both films have their imperfections but are fun to watch. If the football game this weekend gets boring, you could do worse than popping in one of these movies.
What do you think of The Patriot or Giant? Leave your two cents in the comments.
On a cold day on this date of January 26 in 1945 in France during a World War II battle, Audie Murphy earned the Medal of Honor when he engaged in a single-handed battle with Germans. His heroic actions would save many of his fellow soldiers, and it eventually garnered Murphy attention from Jimmy Cagney and Hollywood, helping launch a film career.
Murphy’s Act of Heroism
In the January 1945 battle, Murphy saw his unit reduced from 128 men to 19. So, he ordered the remaining men to fall back while he fought the Germans by himself for a period. He eventually climbed up on an abandoned tank and used its machine gun to enable his comrades to return and organize a counter-attack.
The counter-attack won back the town of Holtzwihr, France for the Allies. When he later was asked why he took on an entire company of German infantry, Murphy explained “They were killing my friends.”
After the decorations led to a profile in Life magazine, Hollywood came calling. The attention eventually led to a film based on Murphy’s war service.
The movie was called To Hell and Back (1955). And it starred . . . Audie Murphy.
Upon seeing a trailer for the exploits of a war hero with the war hero playing himself based on a co-written autobiography, one might conclude that Murphy had a big ego and thought of himself as a great hero. But Murphy originally did not want to play himself.
The film is largely a tribute to Murphy’s fallen comrades. The movie highlights the deaths of the fallen, including the dead soldiers haunting Murphy’s award ceremony.
My favorite film with Murphy is Destry (1954), a remake of the also good Destry Rides Again (1939), which starred Jimmy Stewart. He also appeared in a number of television shows, including a Western, Whispering Smith (1961).
Murphy’s War Experience
Murphy was humble about his exploits and realistic about war, as shown by this 1963 radio interview. In the interview, he explains that the highlight of the war for him was the day he heard the war was over.
Murphy also became a hero when he helped veterans of the conflicts in Korea and Vietnam by breaking taboos to speak about his own post-war struggles. He was open about his personal battles, including post-traumatic stress syndrome and addiction to sleeping pills.
You may see how unassuming he is in this clip from the TV show What’s My Line?, recorded before To Hell and Back hit theaters.
Murphy the Songwriter
It was not until I started writing this post that I discovered that Murphy also co-wrote a number of country songs. His songs were recorded by singers such as Dean Martin and Porter Wagoner.
Below is one of Murphy’s biggest hits, “When the Wind Blows in Chicago,” sung here by Roy Clark.
Murphy’s Death and Confusion About His Age
Murphy died in a plane crash on May 28, 1971. His widow, Pam Murphy, continued to work for veterans until she died in 2010.
Audie Murphy had been 21 when he risked his life and earned the Medal of Honor. When he died, he was only 45, although many sources like Wikipedia and even his tombstone in Arlington National Cemetery claim he was 46.
The age confusion was created because this honorable and talented man did lie once. Several months after his mother died, with some help from his sister, the teenaged Murphy falsified his birth certificate. He lied so he could serve his country when he was only seventeen. What is your favorite Audie Murphy film? Leave your two cents in the comments.
Today is National Pie Day. The holiday was created by the National Pie Council. You may learn more about pies on the council’s website, with facts like: “Pie has been around since the ancient Egyptians,” early crusts were not edible, and most early American pies were meat pies.
I do not understand why pies need representation, but the holiday is a good excuse for some Three Stooges paying tribute to the Egyptian pie founders. [2024 Update: Unfortunately, the video is no longer available.]
Consider the movie poster on the right as well as the name of the movie. You can tell that a horse is going to play a big part in the movie, as is a war. Animal movies and war movies usually mean one thing: this movie is designed to tug at your heartstrings and maybe make you cry. Throw in that the movie was directed by Steven Spielberg, and you already know whether or not you are going to like this movie without me saying anything. So, if you think you will like a movie about a horse with war scenes, then go buy your ticket.
That said, for those of you still reading, I will add a little more to say that I enjoyed the movie and it lived up to my expectations as someone who likes both animal movies and war movies. Although the film seems a little formulaic and predictable at times, the film gradually draws you into the story.
It is difficult to build a story around an animal where the animal changes hands among different owners. The people we care about continue to change, and that we do not have two hours with any character besides the horse. But War Horse does a good job of keeping your interest as the horse travels through different owners in different situations, and it is all tied together as we also periodically follow the original owner (Jeremy Irvine in his first film role) through the movie’s conclusion. The structure of the film reminded me of Anthony Mann’s excellent western, Winchester ’73 (1950), a Jimmy Stewart movie that followed a rifle through various hands. That movie used the device effectively, and Spielberg does so here too.
If I had one complaint about the movie it would be that it is hard to believe that in a war where more than 8 million horses died there were so many decent people appearing as often as they did throughout the movie. Such portrayals may reflect that War Horse started off as a children’s novel by Michael Morpurgo, who unlike the film told the story from the horse’s point of view. At the same time, I do not mind that Spielberg often comes along with a film to challenge my cynical view of the world.
Finally, I also enjoyed the film because there are too few movies about World War I. The paltry pickings may be because World War I is so far in the past without a clear storyline (unlike World War II) and because American audiences may be less interested in a war that occurred off American shores (as compared to the Civil War). It is a shame that movie makers have not delved more into the Great War. Spielberg does a good job with the war scenes to capture the horrors of trench warfare and the horrendous battle conditions of this war that straddled old and new technologies, using both horses and tanks. The film also works in a nod to one of the most amazing stories of the real war.
Still, there are some good DVDs to rent if you wish to watch more about World War I. There are a few good documentaries on World War I available on DVD, including The Complete Story: World War I and World War I in Color (both available on Netflix as well as at the Amazon links). Some other classic films of the war include Sergeant York (1941) with Gary Cooper, Paths of Glory(1957) with Kirk Douglas, Lawrence of Arabia (1962) with Peter O’Toole, All Quiet on the Western Front (1931), and Joyeux Noel (2005). Now we can add War Horse to the list.
The story is also a play on Broadway, which Saturday Night Live re-imagined (but unfortunately the video is no long available).
Bonus Reviews Because Why Should You Listen to Me? Currently, Rotten Tomatoes has a critic rating and audience rating both at 77% for War Horse. Film & Felt did not like the film, concluding that the movie “hammers you over the head with sap.” By contrast, QNetwork.com liked the film, giving it 3.5 stars and calling War Horse, “an ambitious, anthological portrait of both the devastation of war and the potential for human decency.”
What did you think of War Horse? Leave your two cents in the comments.
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(both available on Netflix as well as at the Amazon links). Some other classic films of the war include 