Brief Movie Reviews

While in my Bishkek hotel room I saw several movies:


1. “Fort Yuma”- an unintentionally humorous movie from 1955 starring Peter Graves and other Caucasians with heavy makeup to make them look like American Indians. The story plods, the acting is incredibly poor, but the scenery is beautiful.

2. “Kings of the Sun”- a story about the Mayas starring George Chakiris. Richard Basehart was also in the movie. He wore this massive gray wig that was silly. The plot was a Reader’s Digest version of the Mayan Kingdom. This was another 1950s movie with bad acting and inaccurate history.

3. “Tom Jones”- (from Wikipedia: Tom Jones is a 1963 British comedy film. It is an adaptation of Henry Fielding's classic novel The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling (1749), starring Albert Finney as the titular hero. It was one of the most critically acclaimed and popular comedies of its time,] winning four Academy Awards. The film was directed by Tony Richardson and the screenplay was adapted by playwright John Osborne. The film is notable for its unusual comic style: the opening sequence is performed in the style of a silent movie, and characters sometimes break the fourth wall by looking directly into the camera and addressing the audience.)

“Tom Jones” is a movie about the rascal and rake written by Fielding. This movie was an instant classic in the late 1960s and remains a wonderful story that is bawdy and tender. A very young Albert Finney played Tom and the beautiful Susannah York played his amour, Sophie Weston. An almost unrecognizable David Warner played the foppish Mr. Blifil, another suitor of Sophie. Joan Greenwood played Lady Bellaston, an older seductress, who enticed Tom into her boudoir. This movie is truly great. The only misstep for me was the leitmotif for Tom. It was too loud and intrusive, even when trying to be subtle. This is a small quibble with a classic movie.

4. “Lovely, Still- this is a small 2006 movie starring Martin Landau and Ellen Burstyn. It’s the story of everlasting love and devotion in the face of failing memory. Landau was superb as the husband who was meeting anew his wife of many years and his son as a result of his deteriorating mental state. This is a touching sentimental movie. This movie was filmed in Omaha and its neighborhoods looked stunning, decked out in snow and holiday decorations. I recommend this movie.

Bright Eyes: Make a Plan to Love Me (from Lovely, Still):
I heard you're scheming new pyramids
Another big idea to get you rich
Make a plan to love me sometime soon
You said you had your foot in the door
You buy and then you sell, you buy some more
Make a plan to love me sometime soon
Life is too short
Death doesn't ask
It don't owe you that
Some things you lose
You don't get back
So just know what you have
And make a plan to love me sometime soon
First you want to ride off into the sun
Then you want to shoot straight to the moon
Make a plan to love me sometime soon
When you are young the world is a ferris wheel
I know we will grow old it is lovely, still
Make a plan to love me sometime soon
Life is too short
To be a fool
I don't owe you that
Do what you feel
Whatever is cool
But I just have to ask
Will you make a plan to love me?
Will you make a plan to love me?
Will you make a plan to love me sometime soon?


Ok- i am a romantic at heart.