The Films of Clint Eastwood
Listed as Actor only except where noted


Revenge of the Creature Lab Technician (uncredited 55)

Francis in the Navy Jonesey (55)

Lady Godiva First Saxon (uncredited 55)

Tarantula Jet Squadron Leader (uncredited 55)

Never Say Goodbye Will (uncredited 56)

Star in the Dust Tom, ranch hand (uncredited 56)

Away All Boats Marine/Medic (uncredited 56)

The First Traveling Saleslady Lt. Jack Rice, Roughrider (56)

Escapade in Japan Dumbo Pilot (uncredited 57)

Lafayette Escadrille George Moseley (58)

Ambush at Cimarron Pass Keith Williams (58)

Rawhide Rowdy Yates (TV series 59 - 66)

A Fistful of Dollars Joe (uncredited writer 64/U.S. 67)*****

For a Few Dollars More Monco (65/U.S. 67) ****1/2

The Witches Charlie (65/U.S. 79)

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly Joe (66/U.S. 68)*****

Hang 'Em High Marshal Jed Cooper (68) ****

Coogan's Bluff Deputy Sheriff Walt Coogan (68) ****

Where Eagles Dare Lt. Morris Schaffer (68) ****

Paint Your Wagon Sylvester 'Pardner' Newel (69) ***1/2

Two Mules for Sister Sara Hogan (70) ****

Kelly's Heroes Pvt. Kelly (70) ****

The Beguiled Cpl. John McBurney (71) *****

Play Misty for Me David 'Dave' Garver (also directed 71) ****1/2

Dirty Harry Insp. 'Dirty' Harry Callahan (71) *****

Joe Kidd Joe Kidd (72) ***

High Plains Drifter The Stranger (also directed 73) ****1/2

Breezy (directed only 73) ****

Magnum Force Insp. 'Dirty' Harry Callahan (73) ****

Thunderbolt and Lightfoot Thunderbolt (74) ****

The Eiger Sanction Dr. Jonathan Hemlock (also directed 75)
****

The Outlaw Josey Wales Josey Wales (also directed 76) ****1/2

The Enforcer Insp. 'Dirty' Harry Callahan (76) ****

The Gauntlet Ben Shockley (also directed 77) ****1/2

Every Which Way But Loose Philo Beddoe (78) ****

Escape from Alcatraz Frank Morris (79) ****1/2

Bronco Billy Bronco Billy McCoy (songs and also directed 80) ****1/2

Any Which Way You Can Philo Beddoe (80) ***1/2

Firefox Mitchell Gant (produced and also directed 82) ****

Honkytonk Man Red Stovall (produced and also directed 82) ****

Sudden Impact Insp. 'Dirty' Harry Callahan (produced and also directed 83) ****1/2

Tightrope Wes Block (also produced 84)
*****

City Heat Lieutenant Speer (songs 84) ***1/2

Pale Rider Preacher (85) ****

Amazing Stories - episode "Vanessa in the Garden" (directed only 85)

Heartbreak Ridge Gunnery Sgt. Tom 'Gunny' Highway (songs and also produced and directed 86) ****

The Dead Pool Insp. 'Dirty' Harry Callahan (88) ****

Bird (produced directed only 88) *****

Pink Cadillac Tommy Nowak (89) ***1/2

Thelonious Monk: Straight, No Chaser (executive producer only 89) *****

White Hunter Black Heart John Wilson (produced and also directed 90) ****1/2

The Rookie Nick Pulovski (also directed 90) ****

Unforgiven William 'Bill' Munny (uncredited "Claudia's theme" produced and also directed 92) Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Director *****

In the Line of Fire Secret Service Agent Frank Horrigan (93) ****1/2

A Perfect World Chief Red Garnett (produced and also directed 93) ****1/2

The Bridges of Madison County Robert Kincaid (score and also produced and directed 95) ****1/2

The Stars Fell on Henrietta (producer only 95)

Absolute Power Luther Whitney (score and also produced and directed 97) ****

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (produced and directed only 97) ****

Monterey Jazz Festival: 40 Legendary Years (voice and producer 98)

True Crime Steve Everett (songs and also produced and directed 99) ****

Space Cowboys Dr. Frank Corvin (score and also produced and directed 00) ****

Blood Work Terry McCaleb (also produced and directed 02) ***1/2

The Blues - episode "Piano Blues" (directed only 03)

Mystic River (score and produced and directed only 03) *****

Million Dollar Baby Frankie Dunn (also produced and directed 04)

Flags of Our Fathers (announced 06)

Clinton Eastwood Jr. (6' 4"/1.93 m) was born on May 31, 1930 at St. Francis Hospital in San Francisco, the son of a steel worker. He weighed 11 lbs 6 oz at birth and is of a mixed heritage that includes Dutch, Scottish, Irish and English blood. He wore the same poncho, without ever having washed it, in all three of his "Man With No Name" Westerns for director (and mentor) Sergio Leone. He got his first acting role in Rawhide while visiting a friend at the CBS lot when a studio exec spotted him because he "looked like a cowboy." He was going to play the villain, Two-Face, on the 1966 Batman Tv series, but the show was canceled before the project began. He received an honorary Cesar award in Paris, France for his body of work (98), was the 2000 recipient of John F. Kennedy Center Honors and accepted the Career Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival (00). But more than all of this, he was mentioned in the theme song of the 1980s TV hit "The Fall Guy". But in all seriousness, he is perhaps one of only a handful of Hollywood stars that have endured the test of time and like the old saying goes: just keeps gettin' better. He is constantly challenging himself professionally and artistically to tell stories that not only provide meaning for people's lives, but also entertain in the process (the triumphant Mystic River 03, is the proof of that). There is a reason that actors clear whole schedules and cancel projects just to work with him. It is said that he runs the "calmest" set of any film-maker in the history of the business. Part of this is due to his daily practice of meditation (which he picked up in the mid-seventies) and the rest because he has chosen over the years to surround himself with the same group of craftsmen that not only respect his vision, but encourage him to improvise on it (like any great jazz musician would do): Bruce Surtees (cinematographer), Lalo Schifrin (composer), Robert Daley (producer), Ferris Webster (editor), Jerry Fielding (composer), Joel Cox (editor), Buddy Van Horn (director), James Fargo (director), Ted Post (director), Fritz Manes (producer), Steve Dorff (composer), Lennie Niehaus (composer), Henry Bumstead (production designer), Jack N. Green (cinematographer), Phyllis Huffman (casting), Deborah Hopper (costume designer), Tom Stern (cinematographer)...

Eastwood with Dirty Harry director Don Siegel and "Man With No Name" trilogy director Sergio Leone (he dedicated his film Unforgiven to these two men)
He got the name of his long-running production company, Malpaso, from the name of a creek that ran through his property at Carmel - it means "bad step" in Spanish. Although his personal life often times comes under fire (his treatment of sexuality and violence in film in addition to his many children from several different women: 7 "recognized" off-spring) I still feel that his true nature is always projected into every aspect of one of his films. He is one of my all-time personal favorite movie stars and film-makers (in every capacity) and a true living legend. While not all of his films are for everyone (especially the late seventies to early eighties), any Eastwood film is a good place to start. I have indicated my personal rankings for most of his films listed above, but must single out The Gauntlet, Bronco Billy and Tightrope as three of his most under-rated and sadly neglected works. All of his films run on a similar internal logic. An Eastwood film doesn't necessarily take place in the "real world." His characters are usually more than just simple extentions of his own persona - watch The Bridges of Madison County and Unforgiven if you don't think he can act. And there is usually something rewarding in the way most of his films wrap up (even the complex and demanding Mystic River). I look forward to any film with his name associated to it and put him in the same league with maverick film-makers John Huston, Sergio Leone, Sam Peckinpah, Don Siegel (another long-time friend and mentor) and only a handful of others who have defined the modern cinema that we know today. While his body of work and indomitable screen presence will continue to be his legacy, it's safe to say that his best work may still be ahead of him. I know one thing, as long as I have not shuffled off this mortal coil - I'll be there each time the words Malpaso and Clint Eastwood role across the screen.



"I like the libertarian view, which is to leave everyone alone. Even as a kid, I was annoyed by people who wanted to tell everyone how to live." - Clint Eastwood

Bring The Pain

Well, the reviews are finally starting to trickle in and so far, I've heard nothing but praise for the film and especially for Eastwood's directing. No shit. What do these people think that Mystic River (03) was some kind of fluke? In any case, while it is not being called as "great" a film as Mystic (hard act to follow) it is being judged far above lesser (yet still enjoyable) Eastwood projects like Bloodwork (02). I think this one will go the distance. You can count on Morgan Freeman recieving his long overdue Oscar for this one (Supporting Actor only I'm afraid) in addition to the multitude of nominations I'm sure it will get. Swank will probably not go home with a statue, but I still would not be surprised if she gets the nom. Since he's never won in the category, it would be fantastic if Clint finally got another acting nod (following his bitter defeat in the category in 1992 to Al Pacino for Scent of a Woman over his career-capping performance in Unforgiven) but I will not be the least bit offended if he only gets a Best Director nom. Peter Jackson, you should have shared it last year! In any case, I cannot wait to see the film in theaters and I am counting the rounds, er-minutes until it comes out...swinging (sorry).


Up next for Eastwood: Flags of Our Fathers based on the book by James Bradley. A massive under-taking (probably his biggest production of all time) that's being produced by none other than Steven Spielberg. This one just gives me chills. I tried reading the universally popular book but couldn't get into it. It's about the Battle of Iwo Jima in WWII where a combined total of nearly 50,000 Japanese and American troops died during the winter of 1945. The author's father was one of the men who raised the flag on the flank of Mount Suribachi. No actors have been announced yet, but there are some meaty roles to be played here. I do not think that Clint himself will star - he will need to conserve all of his energy for directing, since the project begins filming next year with a tentative release date of 2006.


Eastwood as Gunnery Sgt. Tom 'Gunny' Highway in the under-rated Heartbreak Ridge (86)
Oh man, this is gonna be a big one. It's an incredibly personal story, despite the huge back-drop, but it's also a perfect vehicle for Eastwood (having already played the most kick-ass hard-case Marine there ever was - see caption above). I think out of them all - this one has the most potential to be the one they remember him for. It's also being adapted by Paul Haggis, the man who wrote the screenplay for (and co-produced) Million Dollar Baby. With nothing else slated so far between the release of Baby and the start of production for Fathers, is it just possible that Clint may have another Western left in him? Charlie Rose asked him the same question in a taped interview about a year ago only he stated it a little differently, he asked: one more left in him...as if Clint may finally be getting too old to make movies anymore. Of course, in classic Eastwood fashion, he shot him a look that reduced one of my favorite interviewers and journalists to a quivering pile of Brooks Brothers patterns. He then went on to indicate that anything's possible. Unforgiven 2? "Duck" I says...

Little Bill Daggett:(opening the book) "Meaning the duck himself, I guess."
Beauchamp: (correcting him a second time) "Duke."
Little Bill Daggett: (after a long hard stare) "Duck, I says..."
- Gene Hackman and Saul Rubinek in Unforgiven (92)

Cute - but worth it?

It is a Spielberg movie afterall. Despite the pre-concieved opinions about it - good or bad - it simply proved one thing to me: Steven Spielberg can make a "movie" out of anything. Most of the questions I had about this film were never answered in it's modest 2 hour length. I don't know why Spielberg made it, except that he probably was looking to do something "small" before he gets ready to invade the earth with Tom Cruise (War of the Worlds). There wasn't any one particular element that was outstanding in The Terminal (04). The acting (for the most part) was effective but not superlative. The writing wasn't particularly moving either. There were some allusions to other Spielberg films, but not enough to blow the whistle or write them all down - the most actually came from Minority Report (02) believe it or not (especially with the viewing monitors and the way the terminal itself was set-up, it reminded me of the mall scenes from his earlier film). There were parts where I was manipulated into feeling sad or sorry for some of the characters (once again, Spielberg parades in his cast of victims) but the tragedy was bitter-sweet. It is a comedy after all. It's also Spielberg-lite. Not exactly something you put on for a smile (or to meditate on life). I do not think that I will ever want to watch it again. That's not to say that it's a bad film - it is not. It simply isn't one thing or the other. It's not entirely a comedy or drama. It's also not entirely a Hanks film - which I had guessed it would be. I had my suspicions that Hanks would be Oscar-worthy in it - he was only slightly swaggering into Golden Globe territory. He is a professional, and it's good to watch him work. But I only cared about his character so much - the rest was just Tom Hanks doing the patented Hanks things in a few well placed spots for comedic relief. I'll tell you what, I needed some serious Zeta-Jones relief about 1/2 way through this film. It's probably the closest she has ever come to playing a slightly "real person" with human emotion - but like all of the characters in the film - the writing just didn't get behind them (or into them). It's really just a collection of character sketches quilted together to form an almost intriguing ensemble. I like some of the individual performances: Diego Luna, Zoe Saldana (in an interesting Trekkie nod) and especially Barry Shabaka Henley, but as a whole, the cast merely ended up looking like amusing window dressing. It is an amusing film. Maybe a little too amusing. If they would have gone for straight drama - it would have been too heavy. It might actually have had a message. At first I thought Spielberg may have pulled something off by casting Hanks as the "foreign" protaganist: he almost made the character and his conflict completely accessible to a wide audience because we can sympathize blindly with him as an actor. But then this very revelation became a crutch, because after all, we were merely watching Tom Hanks, only doing an accent. The accent is okay. It was not as good as Robin William's Eastern European accent for Paul Mazursky's under-rated Moscow On the Hudson (84).

The Terminal was also not as good a picture as this either. Mazursky's film is very similar in theme and function (they are both about displaced foreigners in New York City who learn that survival is more than fending for yourself - and what's up with the jazz thing in both films? It makes sense with William's character), except it handles the jolt from comedy to tragedy more successfully - mainly because Moscow was a drama that had some comedy in it - Terminal is a comedy with a little drama thrown in. I also couldn't help thinking how much better Williams would have been in the Hanks/Viktor Navorski role. But then it would have been obvious (Moscow on the Hudson returns). Kumar Pallana was memorable but not phenominal. Chi McBride had virtually no part out of the three main male supporting characters - he's also a little over-rated (I'm pretty sure that this was the role Bernie Mac passed on - way to go Mr. Mac, turning down a Spielberg film due to "scheduling conflicts!"). So, to sum it up - if you missed this one - no big woop. It was entertaining in that magical fairytale Spielberg way. It is very much a fairytale. Hanks was good - not great (although the quarter-spitting scene is classic Hanks) and the rest of the cast were passable when perhaps we needed exceptional. Stanley Tucci actually surprised me. He really is a great actor. While not in Supporting Actor Oscar territory here (nothing about this film deserves a nomination) he proved to me once and for all that he can make the most of any part - no matter how poorly or under-written it is. The script should have been better. I didn't have a problem with the ending as some people I know did - I was just thankful the film was a reasonable length - one thing's for sure, it was moderately well paced. Roger Ebert was quoted on the "Limited Edition" DVD cover in a blurb basically kissing Spielberg's ass until his lips were blue. Screw him. The film did not deserve such praise. It is honest (if not a boat-load manipulative) - that's the most I can say in it's overall defense. I'd like to think that Ebert was responding to some of the more inspired and delicate humor in the film (the way Navorski trades information for food with a co-worker is probably one of the best scenes in the entire film) but there was too much missed opportunity here. A scene near the end when Navorski is almost elevated to "legendary" status with the food-workers in the terminal was almost right, but I think they were going for a full-blown Western-moment (where were his spurs?) that only John William's competent music hinted at (when he wasn't ripping off his own brilliant score from Catch Me If You Can). I also understand now why they couldn't portray a "real" country in the film. The saddest realization of all is, despite being essentially honest - nothing about the film (the characters, the story, the emotion, refugees, government bureaucracy, the war) was real. I knew I was watching a fairytale when the character who is Stanley Tucci's Government boss is ready to retire, tells his replacement that "sometimes you have to bend the rules" and care about "the people." Fairytale, or an insult to our intelligence? It should have been less cute and more funny - if "comedy" was really what they were going for. Spielberg should have only listed his name once at the end credits. We know who he is by now. So, how does this all fit into the Spielberg cannon? I'll tell you one thing, it confirms Catch Me If You Can's (02)greatness. It also makes me think of A.I. (Artificial Intelligence, 01) for some reason. Both were confusing, yet interesting failures. The only difference is - The Terminal makes sense - it's just another quirky feel-good comedy from that wacky team who brought us Saving Private Ryan (98). Seriously, it's worth a rent maybe, unless you're a Spielberg completist, which up until now - I thought I was.

Stop me before I see it

Tom Hanks in Steven Spielberg's The Terminal (04)
I have been trying to get a handle on this movie for quite some time. I have heard every criticism there is about it, from a re-working of Spielberg's own E.T. - to a parody of Zemeckis' Cast Away (also with Hanks). So, what is the verdict? The DVD is released today (in two versions no less) - so I will be picking it up and watching it soon. I can say that my early prediction is that it looks bad. I don't know what the hell it's about. Yes, I've read all the plot-outlines and story descriptions - but I frankly want to know why Spielberg would choose to make this movie. This one reaks of "interesting mess." The photo above makes about the same realistic and cultural sense as the passenger dynamics of the bus in the movie Speed (94). But this is a Spielberg/Hanks movie, remember? It doesn't have to make sense - it just has to entertain. I thought they raised the bar with collaborations like Saving Private Ryan (98) and Catch Me If You Can (02). The Terminal looks like it's a theme-heavy character study with too much of an emphasis on forced-quirkiness. "People make the world go 'round" yadda-yadda-yadda. I have never been a fan of Catherine Zeta-Jones. She makes me want to pull out all my old high-school drama videos and re-evaluate how humiliating I thought I was in them (next to her, Kathy Najimy looks Oscar-worthy - and who cares if she has one already, hell - even Julia Roberts has an Oscar, doesn't that just lower the standard a little?). I think the best performance she ever gave was in The Phantom (96). Stanley Tucci also has a tendancy to annoy the hell out of me, Big Night (96) and Joe Gould's Secret (00) aside. He was also phenominal in the cable film Conspiracy (01). But here we have him in the unsympathetic role of the bureaucratic airport official. Joy. Didn't anyone see Atom Egoyan's Ararat (02) where Christopher Plummer played essentially the same role, but with about 385 shades of complexity to it? Not to mention that film was not afraid to hide what it was really about - no countries or languages had to be made up. And how the hell did Spielberg get his grubby little Knighted hands on Kumar Pallana (Wes Anderson regular: Bottle Rocket 96, Rushmore 98 and The Royal Tenenbaums 01)? Well, I guess anybody can be bought. It kinda pisses me off that most "middle-of-the-road" audiences are going to be watching this film and wondering who that "funny little foreign guy" was? Maybe they'll wonder the same thing about the lead actor of the movie.

I love Hanks. He is probably the main reason I want to see the film, but I have just one problem with his character (aside from him looking like a re-hash of his doe-eyed innocent character from Big, 88): his Viktor Navorski (from a made-up country to protect whom I'm not sure) was based on a real life Iranian refugee, Merhan Nasseri. In 1988, he landed at Charles de Gaulle Airport near Paris after being denied entry into England because his passport and United Nations refugee certificate had been stolen. French authorities would not let him leave the airport, and there he stayed, in Terminal One, a stateless person with nowhere else to go. This is essentially the plot of Spielberg's The Terminal. So why then did he not have the courage as a film-maker to portray the events as historical, and not fiction? Why not make the "true story" with an Iranian actor in the lead role - instead of santitize everything for a largely American audience and in a sense, water the whole thing down? Wouldn't that have led to his greatest artistic and political statement since Schindler's List (93)? Are there not enough Iranian actors in the world that Tom Hanks couldn't have sat this one out for Sir Spielberg? Okay, okay - I'm not bashing the movie, I haven't even seen it yet. But these are just my thoughts, and they will no doubt have an impact on how I view the finished product. The hard thing about making a "comedy" like this is, if you're too cute about it - it wont work, and if you're too earnest about the political themes - it wont work either. This same story was already made into a French comedy in 1993 called, Tombés du ciel, starring the wonderful Jean Rochefort in the Hanks/Nasseri role. At least these film-makers had the good sense to make his charcter a French Canadian, instead of an unditermined "brown person." I hope Spielberg can pull this off. I'm sure that Hanks can - he could play Jimmy Durante as a wooden puppet in pantomime and win an Oscar for it (deservedly). In any case, I'm just not expecting much - so hopefully I will not be let down (too much). Also, in case you were wondering, the brilliant Iranian actor Homayon Ershadi, from Abbas Kiarostami's unforgettable Taste of Cherry (97) would have been a perfect choice to play the real life Merhan Nasseri. But I guess he just doesn't have the box office draw of the guy who starred as Kip 'Buffy' Wilson on Bosom Buddies (80 - 82). I also read somewhere how Spielberg (with complete creative control of course) tried his best to keep the blatant corporate advertising to a bare minimum in the film - so as not to distract from the story. What does he want, a fucking medal? Nobel peace prize? Saint-hood? I better stop, I know he reads this blog daily and I wouldn't want to give him any more ideas. Oh well, the world's a sick place.

Architect, and sometimes actor, Homayon Ershadi - I guess he was just too busy (or unavailable) when they made The Terminal...
Here's the real life Merhan Nasseri (below left)

Uncanny, isn't it?

Wilma on my mind

I have always had a crush on Erin Gray ever since I can remember. She played Col. Wilma Deering in the theatrical pilot and Buck Rogers in the 25th Century television series which ran from 1979 - 1981. For those of you unfamiliar with this incarnation of Buck Rogers, just know that it was one of the most fun and original sci/fi series to ever run on television (the only other show to come close was Battlestar Galactica 78). This was back when TV episodes were actually produced like "mini-movies." The same can be said now of certain cable programs (The Sopranos, Deadwood) but back then, it actually meant something to sit in your living room and watch a show like Buck Rogers. Okay, now that I've got that out of the way, back to Erin Gray. Her Wilma Deering may have been my first introduction to spandex - a fabric that I have since learned to love and admire on certain members of the opposite sex. I don't know why, but there has always been a connection in my mind between the Buck Rogers series and the Solid Gold (80 - 88) variety show. Maybe it's because both shows displayed an unbelievable amount of skin and cleavage. I also credit Lynda Carter as Wonder Woman (76 - 79), Catherine Bach as Daisy Duke (The Dukes of Hazzard 79 - 85), Solid Gold Dancer, Darcel Wynne and Olivia Newton-John for most of the male gender of my generation's sexual awakening. Erin Gray went on to play Kate Summers Stratton on the TV show Silver Spoons (82 - 87) but she will always be Wilma in my mind.



Buck Rogers trivia (from imdb): "Props from series Battlestar Galactica were used in this series. When the series started, it was not a certainty that Erin Gray would sign on to reprise her movie role of Wilma Deering. As a result, Buck has a few different female sidekicks in early episodes, notably Juanin Clay as Major Marla Landers in the episode "Vegas In Space." Clay was intended as a possible replacement for Erin Gray, until it was decided Gray would continue in the series (thank God). The "original" Buck Rogers of the 1930s (from Buck Rogers, 39) Buster Crabbe, made a guest appearance as Brigadier Gordon in the episode "Planet of the Slave Girls" (he was most famous, of course, for playing the title role in Flash Gordon, 36, and its sequels). In the episode "A Dream of Jennifer" when Buck is in the space port, there's a PA call for Captain Christopher Pike - the captain of the Star Trek (65) TV pilot. The show's theme tune, "Suspension", originally had lyrics, but these were only heard in the pilot. Throughout most of the first season, Erin Gray plays Wilma as a blonde. Near the end of the first season, and for the remainder of the series, she was allowed to return to her normal brunette hair color. Mel Blanc was briefly replaced by Felix Silla as the voice of Twiki at the start of the second season. After protests from fans, he returned to the role for the final episodes."

The complete (or as complete as it's probably ever going to get) DVD box set of Buck Rogers in the 25th Century has finally been released (including the theatrical pilot film). Pick it up, even if you're not a fan of Gil Gerard, Hawk, Twiki or spandex. Plus, you even get to see Henry Silva and Jack Palance (together at last) in the pilot movie! It was truly an original and campy series. One of a kind. Did you know that in addition to starting out her career as a model, Erin Gray is also a longtime enthusiast regarding martial arts, and is an instructor of Tai Chi and Qi Gong (Chi Kung) at UCLA. She was also a finalist for the role of Capt. Janeway on the "Star Trek: Voyager" (95) series. Measurements: 36B-24-35 1/2 (Source: Celebrity Sleuth magazine). Sorry, I had to throw that last bit in there!

"Far beyond this world I've known, far beyond my time
What kind of world am I going to find
Will it be real or just all in my mind
What am I, who am I, what will I be
Where am I going and what will I see"
- Suspension
Sung by Kipp Lennon
Lyrics and Music by Glen A Larson
Buck Rogers Soundtrack produced by Stu Phillips

Incidentally, check out Gil Gerard (Buck Rogers) now:

He looks like he could play Marlon Brando in a made-for-TV-movie, or Elvis (the final hours)...

good cop/bad cop

There is a film being released on DVD (in region 1) at the end of December called, Stander (03). It was directed by Bronwen Hughes (Harriet the Spy, 96, Forces of Nature, 99) and it starred a pre-Punisher (04) Thomas Jane in the true story of Andre Stander, a South African police officer turned bank robber. This is just the type of film that Steve McQueen would have turned into celluloid history if it had been thrown his way twenty-five years ago. I'm not saying that Jane is a neuvo-McQueen (far from it) but could this have been the break-through role that Jane needed prior to his big Hollywood starring role in The Punisher earlier this year? Audiences were not that familiar with Jane (oddly going by "Tom") when he took up the role that Dolf Lundgren made famous (just kidding) as Frank Castle (The Punisher). The same thing could be said about Eric Bana when he donned the green (CGI) skin to play Bruce Banner/Hulk in Ang Lee's flawed masterpiece Hulk (03). Just prior to that starring role, Bana had already amazed the industry in two smaller but career-defining performances: Black Hawk Down (01) and Chopper (00).

Eric Bana as Mark Brandon 'Chopper' Read (Renaissance Man), in the unforgettable, Chopper directed by Andrew Dominik
Chopper was the one that turned me on to the Aussie actor long before Marvel got their greasy hands on him. I'll admit it, Bana was not completely right for the role of the Hulk, and the same could be said of Jane in Punisher - but Jane could have still benefitted from a film like Stander having been the spring-board for his "leading man" career. In short - he could have had something to fall back on. This is not to say that it is his fault. Afterall, Stander was made before The Punisher. For whatever reason, Columbia TriStar chose not to release Stander after it was completed. For lack of a better term, it was shelved. Why? How do you market a film about a South African homicide/robbery police captain who became one of the most notorious bank robbers in his country? Good question. I suppose you don't market it to a wide audience. You have faith in the home video market and DVD sales. After-all, it is my belief that most video consumers are far wiser than the average cinema-goer. That is how I came across Bana's Chopper (which has a similar theme about a real-life criminal) because it was sitting on a retailer's shelf just waiting to be purchased. Also, the topic of South Africa and apartheid is a touchy one. This story concerns the title character, Stander, who suffers a crisis of conscience due to his involvement in apartheid.

From imdb: "After participating in the brutal killing in a riot in the line of duty, Stander decided to defy the very system he was part of, and set off on an audacious crime spree; robbing banks during his lunch hour then returning to the scene of the crime to lead the investigation. Finally, caught by the same police force he worked with, he was jailed and, subsequently befriended Allan Heyl and Lee McCall. After a daring jailbreak, the 'Stander Gang' committed a large number of robberies, which grew increasingly bold over time. In the eyes of the public, their blatant disregard for authority made them South Africa's most popular anti-heroes. In reality, however, Stander and his gang were the most wanted men in the country." From 1983 - 1984 the "Stander gang" (Stander, Heyl & McCall) rob as many as four banks a day. If that's not a "McQueen" movie, I don't know what is! Too bad McQueen passed away (in 1980) before these events took place. In any case, I am certain that if the film starred Russell Crowe, or Brad Pitt (who would have made a good Andre Stander) , it would have gotten wide release and would not have been headed to straight-to-video land. But that's okay with me. I will purchase Stander when it comes out in a few weeks - having not even seen it. My instincts tell me that this will more than likely become the cult item that Chopper was elevated to. Not only does Jane look remarkably like the real Andre Stander, he is honestly a good actor. Actually, most people were not disappointed with his performance in The Punisher. I personally loved Jane in Boogie Nights (97) and 61* (01) as Mickey Mantle for which he should have won every award handed out that year.

He was also noteworthy in these smaller (yet some remarkable) independent films: Thursday (98), The Velocity of Gary (98), Zack and Reba (1998), Molly (99), Under Suspicion (00), Original Sin (01) as well as having small yet effective or secondary roles in: The Thin Red Line (98), Deep Blue Sea (99), Magnolia (99), The Sweetest Thing (02) and Dreamcatcher (03). So, as you can see, Jane is a man whose been around for quite a while. But is he ready for the big time (starring roles), or to put it another way, can he carry a whole film? I'm not so sure after The Punisher, but I was severly impressed by him in 61*. Stander may just be the film that gets him the most publicity of all - once they finally release it. There have been other films made about apartheid, namely: the classic Cry, the Beloved Country (51) and it's inferior yet still engrossing re-make in 1995 (with the late Richard Harris), as well as The Power of One (92) and the under-rated and nearly forgotten Sidney Poitier/Michael Caine film, The Wilby Conspiracy (75).

The cast of The Wilby Conspiracy (left to right): Sidney Poitier, Michael Caine, Prunella Gee and (the great) Nicol Williamson
It is also interesting to note that Poitier and Caine later made the television film, Mandela and de Klerk (97) about the same issues in The Wilby Conspiracy (which was ironically the first film to really portray the horrors of the system of apartheid). Stander on the other hand may have less to do with being an "action" film, as some would have us belive - and more to do with social injustice and human nature. A thinking man's action movie? With an anti-hero to boot? Get outta town...

P.W.C.

For those of you still wondering who that "guy" is at the top left and (now) at the bottom of this blog, holding the severed head, it is actor Peter Cushing (Peter Wilton Cushing, born May 26, 1913 Kenley, Surrey, England, UK - died August 11, 1994 Canterbury, Kent, England, UK). He helped make the name, Hammer Films a house-hold name (world-wide) with his now legendary appearances in The Curse of Frankenstein (57, as Baron Victor Frankenstein), Dracula (Horror of Dracula, 58 as Doctor Van Helsing) and The Hound of the Baskervilles (59, as Sherlock Holmes) to name but a few. He went on to define the term "gothic horror" for nearly 20 years, as he continued to star in films for not only Hammer Studios, but also for Amicus Productions (Dr. Terror's House of Horrors 65, Tales from the Crypt 72, And Now the Screaming Starts! 73). His long-running professional (and personal) relationship with veteren actor and (living) legend in his own right, Christopher Lee, served as one of the greatest pairings in movie history. They appeared together in 22 films including the under-rated, The Creeping Flesh (73), and Horror Express (73). But perhaps he is best known to most of the world as the nefarious Grand Moff Tarkin, in the original Star Wars (77). Cushing's life was never the same after the death of his beloved wife, Helen Beck in 1971. He continued working for many years afterwards (and withdrew famously from the Hammer film Blood from the Mummy's Tomb 71, due to Helen's death) but many of his close friends and co-workers thought that a part of him may have died with his one and only true love, Helen.


It has been said that he was one of the most gracious, respectful and gentle human beings to ever walk the earth. I suppose that is why I respect and admire him so much as an actor and as a man - his authentic grace comes through in every role that he ever played - be it hero or villain. One of my all-time favorite Cushing films is The Abominable Snowman (57, aka The Abominable Snowman of the Himalayas). He first turned down the role of Dr. Sam Loomis in Halloween (78) that eventually went to Donald Pleasence after also being turned down by Christopher Lee. Another odd fact was that horror icon (and another frequent Cushing co-star) Vincent Price and Christopher Lee were both born on the same day: May 27th - and Cushing was born the day before on May 26th. He was never Knighted, but in 1989, he was made an Officer of the British Empire in recognition of his contributions to the acting profession in Britain and world-wide. He was dubbed "The Gentle-Man of Horror" and to this day remains a cult icon. There is alot more that should be said (and has) about Cushing, but to truly experience him is to watch any one of the 91 films and dozens of odd television programs he filmed in his lifetime. Most of the films are on DVD (in region 1) and the rest are coming out steadily every year. This tells me that more people may finally be catching on to his work. I can't tell you the secret to watching a Hammer or Amicus film - like anything else, there are the brilliant ones, the good ones and most certainly the shit sandwiches - but regardless of who is getting their head cut off, stake rammed through their heart or body burned alive - I always feel better after watching a Cushing film. He didn't just do "horror" films (and some of his early work including The End of the Affair 55, and Alexander the Great 56, is quite brilliant) but I think this quote, from the man himself, just about sums it up:

"Who wants to see me as 'Hamlet'? Very few. But millions want to see me as Frankenstein so that's the one I do...If I played Hamlet, they'd call it a horror film."

portrait of Peter Cushing as Arthur Edward Grimsdyke from the segment "Poetic Justice", from the Freddie Francis film, Tales from the Crypt (Amicus, 72)

Favorite Peter Cushing Anecdote (from imdb): "The costume boots they gave Cushing for Star Wars (77) were too small and hurt his feet. Cushing told George Lucas this, and asked if he could wear slippers instead. Lucas agreed, and shot Cushing from the waist up for nearly all his scenes to compensate for Cushing's slippers."

Christopher Lee on Peter Cushing (from starwars.com):

Did you talk to Peter Cushing about acting in Star Wars?

"Oh, yes I did. I remember when it came out, I wrote him a letter saying, 'What on earth is a Grand Moff? And why is he called Tarkin?' He wrote back and said, 'I have no idea!'"

Were you and Cushing close off camera as well?

"Very. He meant a great deal to me in my life, not just as an actor but as a person. We were very close friends, and I still miss him very much. That will be one very important reason why I will be so happy to do this picture. Because I will be following him."

Governor Tarkin: "There. See, Lord Vader, she can be reasonable. Continue with the operation. You may fire when ready."

Dr. Gillian Taylor: "Do you guys like Italian?"

Kirk: "Yes."
Spock: "No."
Kirk: "Yes."
Spock: "No."
Kirk: "I love Italian,"
[looks at Spock]
Kirk: "And so do you."
Spock: "Yes."

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (86)
This (long over-due) post is dedicated to Frankenblog, for designing this site and for inspiring me to share my passion for film with others. Check out the new graphic at the bottom of this blog...