Jenny and Millie have a Schvitz and Make a List, Part 2

New Year's greetings you! Millie and I certainly hope you all enjoyed Jenny and Millie have a Schvitz and Make a List, Part 1, though we were both a little surprised at the general lack of contention. Perhaps I should let Herb know to read it, then we'll get some real dissent huh? Or maybe Part 1 will incite some strong opinions . . . we hope so!

If this is your first visit to our blog, this list contains films that span the decades, not merely those released in 2008. The following films are our very favorites that had never been viewed before 2008 - oh, we're giddy just thinking about them!

Having just reread post-posting let me make one recommendation for optimal surprise: these winners are not spaced too far from one another, so I suggest scrolling down oh-so-slightly so that the next on the list is a surprise rather than merely overflow from an overzealous scroll.

Now without any further ado dearest reader - Part 1!!

5.) Bringing Up Baby (1938), dir. Howard Hawks


The first time I ever saw Bringing Up Baby, in May of this year (I've since purchased and rewatched the film), was at the Berlin Film Museum on an original reel in a mostly empty theatre with one of my oldest, dearest friends. It remains, without question, one of my most cherished viewing experiences. This 1938 Howard Hawks comedy, a staple on all-time romcom lists, stars the positively magnetic pairing of Katherine Hepburn and Cary Grant. Before I'd seen the film I felt certain it was a sort of Baby Boom for the early screen - a well meaning couple trying out parenting with a friend's baby for the weekend and then shenanigan city sets loose. Turns out it's about a flighty heiress (Hepburn) who's just inherited an adorable jaguar named Baby and the soft spoken, often confused paleontologist (Grant) who helps her bring it to the country. Bringing Up Baby helped define screwball comedy with its delightful sight gags and irrepressible humor, but as I say it helped define, not deter, and is much smarter and wittier than most of its followers. The chemistry between Hepburn and Grant is divine and they are both simply wonderful to look at! Plus there's a cute jaguar! Tell me I've hooked you. A thoroughly enjoyable film that most definitely stands time's ol' test, Bringing Up Baby is worth your screening!

Starring: Katherine Hepburn, Cary Grant, May Robson, Fritz Feld
Distributor: RKO Radio Pictures


4.) Short Cuts (1993), dir. Robert Altman


I've been a Robert Altman fan ever since those salad days back in college. My freshman year I was enrolled in a student taught film class, with hundreds of others, and we all gathered to watch The Player. I wasn't officially hooked until watching Nashville some months later and to this day can't believe I let Short Cuts slip through my fingers for so long! True to a common Altman thread, Short Cuts is the story of many, many stories, some intersecting, some not and stars a bevy of talents, such as Lily Tomlin, Jack Lemmon, Julienne Moore (completely naked), Francis McDormand (also naked), Madeline Stowe (you may have guessed it - naked), Matthew Modine, Fred Ward, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Chris Penn, Robert Downy, Jr, Andie McDowell, Lily Taylor, and, oh yes, Tom Waits. What I so adore about Altman is his masterful grasp on the "slice of life" genre and this film is no exception, in fact, it may even be the rule in his cannon, though it's a later work. As I mentioned before with Down by Law, while Millie and I appreciate a tender romcom, we experience intense cinematic satisfaction with the anti-catharsis films, and Short Cuts delivers in spades. Love, betrayal, sex, violence, friendship, lies, the family dog - it's all here. Oh, and check out the Criterion cover, isn't that stunning?

Starring: Lily Tomlin, Jack Lemmon, Julienne Moore, Madeline Stowe, Matthew Modine, Fred Ward, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Chris Penn, Robert Downy, Jr, Andie McDowell, Lily Taylor, Tom Waits, Bruce Davison, Ann Archer, Tim Robbins, Francis McDormand, Peter Gallagher, Lyle Lovett, Huey Lewis
Distributor: Fine Line Features

3.) La Haine (1995), dir. Mathieu Kassovitz


It was only in the last few moments dearest reader that La Haine, filmicly and thematically one of the finest films in the top three, fell from its previously imagined number one spot. When you scan down to see number one (hold out, suspense is so delicious!) you will find it can't outrank La Haine in precision or intensity. I say this to not only justify my top selection, but to reiterate that La Haine, although #3, is one of the best films I have ever seen. Hate centers around three friends Vinz, Hubert, and Said caught up in fierce race riots, poverty, boredom, and the teenage propensity to define oneself in relation to them all, in the projects outside of Paris. They await news from the hospital about a close friend that was seriously injured, one of them vowing to kill if he dies, and through the course of 24 hours we follow one full day, with all its boredoms and excitments, in the life of these teens. Brilliantly shot in black and white, magnificently timed, and convincingly acted, La Haine is a potent exploration of the relationship between socioeconomic standing and poverty, friendship, life, death, you know, all the heavies. For a bit more in depth discussion, check out this previous post. It's one of the few films this year that literally took my breath away and left me speechless for days. If that's not top three talk then I'm not sure what is - seeeeeeee it!

Starring: Vincent Cassel, Hubert Kounde, Said Taghmaoui
Distributor: MKL Distribution (France), Gramercy Pictures (USA)


2.) Synecdoche, New York (2008), dir. Charlie Kaufman


This may sound terribly backward, but I was actually surprised that this film made my list at first, let alone at so coveted a spot. I mean, I don't understand it, I didn't really like any of the characters, and immediately after seeing it I lolled along in a stupor to my car and burst into uncontrollable tears. Plus it made everyone's top ten list this year, and while you'd think that'd mark it unquestionably true blue, it made me a little suspicious . . . but the truth is, this film is a complete, undeniable triumph. It's a post modern elegy to death, love, life, relationships, and art unlike any attempted before. I can't in good conscious say too much because, again, I don't fully comprehend this film, but know enough to think it is the most original made this year and perhaps the most unique I've ever seen. Any film that elicits such a strong reaction surely can't be overlooked when creating a best of list now can it? Stellar cast, disturbing, impeccable screenplay, and great direction from first timer Kaufman, please, please see this film. Though I do recommend a strong unicorn chaser afterwards. And maybe some yoga.

Starring: Philip Seymour Hoffman, Catherine Keener, Michelle Williams, Hope Davis, Samantha Morton, Emily Watson, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Diane Wiest
Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics


1.) Wall - E (2008), dir. Andrew Stanton


Well here it is everyone - the hands-down, bees knees, cat's meow in the Jenny Millie year - Wall-E, Pixar's post-apocalyptic animated environmentalist feature about consumerism and too much soda! Now perhaps you're saying, 'Jenny, really? I mean how can a cartoon compete with Kaufman's existential layer cake?' Ladies and gentlemen, let me remind you "They were chosen not merely for excellence in film technique, direction, acting, and all that typical bruh-ha-ha, but also on pure enjoyability and closeness to heart." Wall-E is sublime. The romantic in me fell in love with this kindly little collector, a robot left over on Earth some seven hundred years after everyone has left, with nothing for company but the treasures he finds in the mountains of trash its his job to compact. Oh, and an charming little cockroach. One day an angelic, smooth surfaced robot named EVA lands on Earth and the two begin a friendship that leads all the way up to space and back! Not only does the film have the sweetness (not saccharine, just right) that any lovable children's film should (eeeeeeevvvvaaahhhhh), but the significance and intelligence to push it way past cute kid's movie into superb social commentary movie. It's a bold move for Disney: no dialogue for the first 35 or so minutes and a (literally) heavy message about consumption, global warming, the fast food industry (that Disney no doubt licensed toys to) - it'd almost be anti-American if it weren't so darn set on making sure this next generation turns the soon-to-be-devastatingly-manipulated tide. It was not only my most romantic movie going experience this year, but the most uplifting and encouraging. It's a film in the spirit of two of our most cherished stories: The Lorax and Delicatessen. Andrew Stanton, my hat goes off to you. I simply can't wait to see what you're up to next!

Starring: Ben Burtt, Jeff Garlin, Fred Willard, Kathy Najimy, John Ratzenberger, Sigourney Weaver
Distributor: Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment

With that I bid you all a very happy, healthy New Year and look forward to all our adventures in 2009!

Jenny and Millie have a Schvitz and Make a List, Part 1

Well I hope you all enjoyed the Runner-Up List for 2008, but if you haven't had a chance to visit yet please do and then jet right back as now we're delving into the real heavy hitters - our favorite films from 2008!

If this is your first visit to Millie (welcome!) you should know that this "best of" list is not limited to films released in 2008, but includes any and all movies that are new to us this year, though our choices actually span nine decades. They were chosen not merely for excellence in film technique, direction, acting, and all that typical bruh-ha-ha, but also on pure enjoyability and closeness to heart. Now, without any further ado from us ladies, we give you the first part of our Best New To Us Movies of 2008!

10.) Orphans of the Storm (1921), dir. D.W. Griffith


Back in April I became fascinated with Lillian Gish's image and was fortunate enough to see Orphans of the Storm, D.W. Griffith's epic French Revolution romance starring both Lillian (the dramatist) and her sister Dorothy (the comedian). For those of you unfamiliar with the Gishes, they were extremely popular, successful silent film actresses. Lillian, known for her enormous, pool-like eyes, pioneered "natural" acting in a burgeoning film industry, parting drastically from the ill-timed blinking and overstated gesturing made famous by earlier film stars and former stage actors used to more grandiose movements. Never before had such tenderness been brought to the newly silver screen and Orphans bears witness to Gish's incredible adeptness with this skill. The film focuses on Henriette and Louise, an orphan, who are raised together in the poor French countryside. When Louise goes blind, Henriette takes her into Paris to receive aid, but instead they are met with kidnapping, confusion, and all the opulence and danger one can imagine during the Revolution and subsequent Reign of Terror. Griffith's film, aided in no small part by the talented, captivating Gishes, is extremely engaging and moves its audience along swiftly, but without rush. Silent films seem a lost art on most younger audiences, even on some filmies I know, but I urge all of you to try this one out. Watch it with an open mind to the medium and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Starring: Lillian Gish, Dorothy Gish, Joseph Schildkraut
Distributor: United Artists


9.) The Abyss (1989), dir. James Cameron

For some reason, unbeknownst even to myself, I thought The Abyss was a horror film about an giant octopus, dated and cheesy, and that there was no need for me to watch it, despite overwhelming, inexplicable praise and the constant assurance from fellow nerds that I would in fact love this movie. Well, to all of you over the years pushing it on me, I'm sorry I hadn't listened sooner. Cameron's underwater, suspense masterpiece expertly handles the tension created in confined, submerged space, while simultaneously creating an allusive alien figure and intriguing science fiction plot with an incredibly rewarding outcome. It's a politically minded thriller that is subtle, crafty, and constantly entertaining. To boot? Ed Harris is his typical, committed, awesome self and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio not only delivers a courageous, believably strong protagonist, but is terribly easy on the eyes. If you liked Wall.E, E.T, or Aliens, and haven't seen The Abyss, then we highly recommend you see it in 2009!

Starring: Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Michael Biehn
Distributor: Fox Films


8.) The Conversation (1974), dir. Francis Ford Coppola


Two years after The Godfather won unprecedented international success, and five years before stunning the world with (quite possibly his masterpiece) Apocalypse Now, Francis Ford Coppola tackled the invasive world of wire tapping with his 1974 critical triumph The Conversation. A mesmerizing Gene Hackman plays Harry Caul, a skilled for hire tapper that asks no questions, but executes his job with professional precision and soon realizes that his talents may have been used in murdering his mark. Before we know it, the protagonist and audience are caught in a dizzying world of mistrust and surveillance, proposing the terrifying thought that we are constantly under watch. We don't know who or where, but eyes are always on us, ears always to us, and records made of each and every move. Hackman's character progression is superb and Coppola's screenplay and direction sublime. I'm sure in film circles The Conversation is in no way lost, despite its less prominent place in wider ranging lists. An excellent exploration, The Conversation is simply not to be missed. Still need a reason? How about a very young, very supple Harrison Ford?

Starring: Gene Hackman, John Cazale, Cindy Williams, Teri Garr, Harrison Ford
Distributor: Paramount Pictures


7.) Days of Heaven (1978), dir. Terrence Malick


I was first introduced to Illinois born aesthete Terrence Malick with The New World and The Thin Red Line, two of the most exquisite films I have ever seen. This year I had the extreme privilege of seeing Malick's Days of Heaven, about Libby and Bill, two city dwelling gamblers who head south for work at the turn of the nineteenth century and end up working on a wheat farm. The thing I relish most about Malick's films is his painstakingly tender attention to atmosphere and beauty. The chosen photo is an excellent example, for here we have a film about love, power, poverty, revenge, all of it, but also wheat - Malick never forsakes the small for the bigger picture, he cares as much for character developements as the delicate irregularities in a blade of grass. In fact, these minute details inform the more recognizable aspects: character, plot, etc. If you've never seen a Malick film, then you're in for a very special treat, and we truly hope you enjoy the film that came twenty years before A New World, with nothing in between. Days of Heaven is a memorable cinematic experience, I'm misty just recalling it! Also, young Richard Gere and Sam Shepard are magnificent.

Credit here must be paid to Tanner who recommend all three films, thank you!

Starring: Richard Gere, Sam Shepard, Brooke Adams
Distributor: Paramount Pictures


6.) Down by Law (1986), dir. Jim Jarmusch


Rounding out the first part of our countdown in none other than Jim Jarmusch's 1986 gem Down by Law. Due to a nasty bout of fatigue during this most recent holiday season I hadn't yet told you about my Down by Law experience. I wanted to tell you then that this movie, from the long opening shot of a hearse to the passing pictures of tenements and apartments in sleepy New Orleans, made me grin like a drunk schoolgirl! A big, silly grin that would pop up without my even knowing, like a little girl watching Belle in her yellow gown take the ballroom for the first time, I would smile. Smile because this film is simply so expert, so original, and so thoroughly enjoyable. Epically shot and beautifully rendered in black and white by cinematographer Robert Muller (Dead Man, Barfly, Ghost Dog, 24 Hour Party People, and Repo Man), perfectly cast with Roberto Benigni, Lounge Lizards' leader John Lurie, and the one and only Tom Waits, this film about three criminals who plan an escape reeks of hip and cool and yet maintains a respectable modesty. Plus I love a movie that doesn't distunguish between a clear start and end, rather the "beginning" and "end" are merely someplace within a long tale, we simply see a portion of the story. Not terribly carthartic, but undeniably satisfying, Down by Law is a must-see!

Starring: Tom Waits, John Lurie, Roberto Benigni
Distributor: Island Pictures

The Speedy Joggers Ascend, 2008

Readers, dear readers, how I have missed you! Perhaps you've been checking in everyday for a must-have Millie fix (I certainly can't fault you that we say with a wink), but I've been so busy retailing away that posting is simply not a regular activity.

Let's begin with the listing shall we? Given that December still boasts nine days and I have at least a couple movies on the horizon, I simply cannot begin the Top Ten (perhaps eleven . . .) Countdown, but I can bring to light some exceptional films that just didn't make the cut. This is not to say they are not wonderful in their own right, they most certainly are the cat's meow, just not the bee knee's, you dig?

Let me remind you that not all of my Best of 2008, runner-up or official selection, have been released in 2008, but may simply be new to me this year. Also, as all of the following films are all in the same category, they are in no particular order. At the end you'll also find some honorable mentions, as I simply saw too many noteworthy films this year to have them all pass quietly through the listing season (and Millie and I simply love to compartmentalize, quite satisfying indeed . . . ) Enjoy friends!

Mamma Mia (2008)


Alright darlings, let's start with one that did come out this year! Mamma Mia, the film based on the best selling musical based on the music of seventies disco icons ABBA, was by far, hands down, no questions asked, the most fun I had at the movies all year. Well actually, come to think of it, it might be the most fun I've had at the movies EVER!


What you need to enjoy this movie: ample suspension of disbelief and an open mind.

What you'll get in return: Oscar award winner Meryl Streep flitting around the screen (having the time of her life it looks like, unwearied by a demanding role), adorable-as-ever Colin Firth, Stellan Skarsgard (the mathematician from Good Will Hunting and one hip, hip' Swed), and Pierce Brosnan belting and dancing, Broadway diva Christine Baranski as a lovable drunk, gorge shots of Greece that warm you instantly this chilly winter, irreverent, wacky, but absurdly well executed dance sequences, and oh yes, did I mention "Super Trouper", "Dancing Queen", 'Lay All Your Love on Me", "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)", "Take a Chance on Me", "SOS", and a tear-jerking "The Winner Takes It All"?

Streep and Brosnan share an intimate slash ridiculously over-the-top awesome duet

If you allow it to be, this movie is pure giddy fun and promises to leave a big grin all over your pleased face. Even if you tell no one, see this movie!

The Queen (2006)


It's too bad I couldn't root heartily for Steven Frear's 2006 masterpiece The Queen when it was up for a slew of Oscars that year, because I most certainly would have! For some reason the content sounded unappealing to me: Queen Elizabeth II's reaction to Princess Diana's death - how positively thrilling. But our capable director knows this, he knows how unattractive and bland the royal family appear, so he casts one of the most versatile, forceful actresses of the day (the irrepressible Helen Mirren) and shows us just how human these monarchs really are and even some method to the proper madness. Engaging from start to finish, a truly Oscar winning performance from Mirren (she earns it readers), and the charming Michael Sheen, who plays Tony Blair and not only holds his own against Mirren, but enamors the audience himself, make this film an indisputable success. Bravo I say.

The Queen with Prince Philip (James Cromwell)

Scene of distinction: I will say only this - the stag.

A Woman Under the Influence (1974)


Jay, please don't be too upset with me that this film, which is truly exceptional, has not made my top of tops. I will be the first to admit that it is finer, in execution, style, and concept, than some you will see next week, but the former criteria is not the same one I used in compiling my list, and so you find it here. But A Woman Under the Influence certainly is marvelous!


For those of you who missed the post, venture forth to read my initial reactions, but know that John Cassavetes' unapologetically realistic film about a housewife's descent into abuse and insanity marks a pinnacle in American cinema rarely attained since. Gena Rowlands defines "powerhouse performance" as Mabel Longhetti, a woman you want to cradle and cower from simultaneously - her work alone would is worth seeing this film, but add in Peter Falk's fiery performance, and Cassavetes brilliant screen play and camera work and you're left with absolutely no excuse. Make no illusions, this film is not easy to watch, but rewarding, I promise. So does Jay I imagine . . .

In Bruges (2008)


As a fan of playwright and first time film director Martin McDonagh, I was poised to like In Bruges, but as it happens I actually loved it! The film focuses on two hitmen (Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson) who have botched one job and are sent to Belguim, to beautiful, historic, boring Bruges, while awaiting orders from their boss (Ralph Fiennes). It's at times violent, others serene, but always smart as a whip and unexpectedly funny. Superb acting all around (yes, Farrell is actually fantastic. I would chock it up to his being directed by another Scot but he knocked my socks off earlier this year in Woody Allen's Cassandra's Dream, the kid's got chops), an incredibly intelligent screenplay, and oh, the best of the best, it's unrelentingly entertaining. A sleeper success, In Bruges should be put to the top of your must see list!

Might I also recommend reading McDonagh's The Beauty Queen of Lenane if you want proof that the theatre, my dear readers, is not dead, but alive and deliciously depressing. And one more aside, of all the runner's up on this list, In Bruges was the last to be taken from the countdown list, a very tough choice indeed . . .

and lastly . . .

Freaks (1932)


Tod Browning's pre-code, cult classic is simply not to be missed. The director cast real "freaks" in his film about a tightrope walker and her muscle man boyfriend's evil plot to marry and murder a dwarf and take all of his money. When the plot is discovered by the true circus freaks, they enact a dreadful revenge that repulsed audiences and banned the film in Britain for 30 years. An unquestionably vital piece of film history, Freaks posseses a rare quality nearly impossible to recreate in modern cinema. Read on for more Freaks praise!

the famous birthday party scene

And lastly, the Honorable Mentions, excellent films from throughout the year that while not our absolute favorites are remarkable nonetheless and deserve your viewing!

Stardust (2007), dir. Matthew Vaughn

Say Anything (1989), dir. Cameron Crowe
found this along the way, good for a chuckle

Margot at the Wedding (2007), dir. Noah Baumbach

The Thin Red Line (1998), dir. Terrence Malick

Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008), dir. Woody Allen

Secretary (2002), dir. Steven Shainberg

Barfly (1987), dir. Barbet Schroeder

La Vie en Rose (2007), dir. Olivier Dahan

The Last Unicorn (1982), dirs. Jules Bass and Arthur Rankin, Jr.

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (2008), dir. Mark Herman

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005), dir. Shane Black

The Philadelphia Story (1940), dir. George Cukor

The Last Unicorn (1982)

Hello you! As you read this entry - be it shortly after my posting it or even months later - somewhere in my lighter heart I am dancing barefoot through a magical forest, among the bears and bunnies, with voluminous golden hair flowing about my face. This treasured place, this mossy haven, now and forever resides within my Jenny Millie heart, for having seen the Jules Bass/Arthur Rankin 1982 animated classic The Last Unicorn (which is helpful, because between writing those lines and this one I saw Synedoche, New York and have never felt a stronger need to believe in unicorns). Starring Mia Farrow, Alan Arkin, Jeff Bridges, Angela Lansbury, and Christopher Lee (who was also in the German language version incidentally, how cool is that?), The Last Unicorn should not be missed, but instead watched over and over again!

The Basics: The last unicorn (an ethereal Farrow) sets out to find and save her kin, who have all been rounded up and sent into the sea by the evil, lonely King Haggard (Lee) and his minion, the vicious Red Bull. She's aided in her quest by the well intended, marginally competent wizard Schmendrick (Arkin) and a smart mouthed chambermaid. Together, they find the unicorns and bring them all home to magical safety!

I'm trying to think of precisely when this piece of full on cinematic awesomeness first hooked me. Was it the parallel to the famous The Hunt of the Unicorn Tapestries in the title sequence (which I had the sincere pleasure of seeing at The Cloisters in New York recently)?

their shot

my shot

Or maybe reader it occurred when America started singing the theme song (please visit this link)? Or perhaps the visit from the irreverent, prophetic, Lewis Carroll loving butterfly who stated so poetically "[unicorn] your name is a golden bell hung in my heart" (isn't that simply lovely)? Perhaps the peg-legged, one eyed, talking pirate cat who loves riddles as much as tummy cuddles?

No reader, as I think on it, it was instantly. Right when the black opens to color, and the enchanted trees in a most magical forest cross in front of each other, moving aside like painted props in a stage play, to reveal a gentle waterfall and rolling valley. Then we see some hunters, and in their wake, the silhouette of the most beautiful unicorn, her mane flowing gracefully, effortlessly, and the signature horn prominent and powerful even in shadow . Yes, the beginning, when the hunter's describe this magnificent myth, who protects "a forest where snow never falls and it is always spring." Where snow never falls and it is always spring? It is truly magical!


Based on Peter S. Beagle's beloved 1968 book of the same name, The Last Unicorn had quite a following long before the film was released in 1982. It has sold over 5 million copies and been translated into 20 languages. Oh the universality of intuitive, wise children's stories . . . anywho, what was I saying? Oh yes, this film is amazing. Farrow's unicorn is positively awe-inspiring. Her voice, breathy but strong, other worldy even, made me feel like a little girl watching one of the most beautiful animals ever to roam, instead of a 26 year old curled up under three blankets with her laptop. Add in Arkin's irresistible Schemndrick, Lansbury's inspired Mommy Fortuna (a powerful witch who traps the unicorn) and Lee's sadistic King Haggard and The Last Unicorn becomes an instantly classic fairy tale of the most magical, most delightful proportions. I'm giddy just thinking about it!

Of all the movies that Tanner has recommended to me, and there have been dozens of excellent ones, this is by far the most wonderful. Thank you, thank you so much. In our discussion afterward we got to talking about the film's adult content.


In the tradition of poignant, relevant fairy tales, this film has its share of underbelly imagery, mature content, and even a little bit of nudity. This is only natural, for the most enduring children's stories are passed down by the adults who believe in their validity and truth, right? The joy these stories bring to us as children in some ways becomes a sweet topping to the reinforcement we get when re-watching or rereading them as adults, when we more fully discover the significance and insight that can only be understood long past childhood. You'd like an example? Take Schmendrink's assessment: "there are no happy endings because nothing ends." Quite a bit to comprehend as a child, but an incredibly valuable lesson that we could all use reminding of (that includes you Mr. Kaufman!)

And if you still need further proof of this movie's awesome glory, I suggest you take a look at just a fraction of the FanArt it has inspired:






And then there was this woman. I'm actually speechless.


Millie's bees to knees meter (1 bee = blah, 10 bees = hoo-rah): 9.5

You're Never Too Old . .

Hello you! Millie and I would like to extend sincere apologies for the nasty space in between entries, but managing an adorable mom and pop shop during the holidays makes for tired ladies at the end of the evening. Sometimes the thought of watching a film is exhausting even, how awful, can you imagine? If you can, then I expect you'll accept our apology.

With heavy lids and a bit too much self judgment, I tried in vain to give you all the best Down By Law review this shop girl could, but I was simply not doing justice to such a fine film (I loved it by the by). But that Millie you know, she's so smart and so slick, so she thought up a lie and she thought it up quick! "There's a light in this brain that won't light on one side, so we're taking it up to the sleep shop my dears, we'll fix it up there, and bring it down here . . . "

I thought, perhaps, if you've stopped by Millie then you're looking for a little escape on that computer of yours. What better distraction than 25 minutes of Christmas, perhaps, meaning a little but more? Happy Holidays to you!


Roast Beast is a feast I can't stand in the least!

A three-decker sauerkraut and toadstool sandwich with arsenic sauce . . .

He did hear a sound rising up through the snow, it started in low, then it started to grow

A Complete List of Viewings for 2008

Dear readers it is that time of year when snow softly covers the ground, when silver bells are ringing, when Who's begin the roast beast preparations, and film critics pour out the lists. Lists upon lists beside lists topped off with a just few more lists. And fear not dear reader! I certainly will have at least one Top Ten of 2008 for you. Most folks will tell you their Top Ten picks for 2008 alone, but we've seen far too many wonderful films to limit them to the 365 days contained within this release year, so I shall share with you my best of the best, old and new. To wet your appetite, and let the guessing game begin, here is a complete list of every single movie I've watched in 2008 (up until you're reading this of course and last minute listees can certainly sneak on, I have two or three to watch this weekend alone). Enjoy!

Notes on the format:
An italicized film is one that I have seen before.
A film with an * is one I watched multiple times throughout the year.
Films coloured in the holiday spirit were released in 2008.

12 Monkeys - 3 Women - 30 Days of Night - 300 - A Clockwork Orange - A History of Violence - A Hole in One - A Night at the Opera - A Place in the Sun - A Woman Under the Influence - Ace Ventura 2: When Nature Calls - All of Me - American Dreamz - Anchorman - Animal Crackers - Atonement - Bamboolzed - Barfly - Beowulf - Big Business - Billy Liar - Bladerunner - Burn After Reading - Bringing Up Baby* - Broken Flowers - Cabin Boy - Cassandra's Dream - Chaplin - Cloverfield - Days of Heaven - Definitely, Maybe - Delicatessen* - Down By Law - Eagle Vs. Shark - Eastern Promises - Elizabeth - Everyone Says I Love You - Evil Under the Sun - Fantasia - Far From Heaven - Fire Walk with Me - Flatliners - Freaks - Funny Face - Harry Potter: The Order of the Phoenix - Hamlet 2 - Happy-Go-Lucky - Harold and Maude - High Fidelity - Hot Fuzz - Husbands and Wives - In Bruges - Indiana Jones: The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull - Interiors - Into the Wild - Iron Man - Juno - King Kong (2005) - Kiss Kiss Bang Bang - La Haine - La Vie En Rose - Let The Right One In - LOTR: Fellowship of the Ring*, Two Towers*, Return of the King* - Manhattan - Margot at the Wedding - Le Divorce - Lost in Translation - Mad Money - Made of Honor - Mamma Mia! - Marie Antoinette (2006) - Mary Pickford: A Life on Film - Meet the Fockers - Miller's Crossing - Mrs. Miniver - Napolean Dynamite - Nanny McPhee - Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist - No Country for Old Men* - No Man of Her Own - Now and Then - Orphans of the Storm - Pineapple Express - Predator 2 - Rachel Getting Married - Raising Arizona - Real Genuis - Rocket Science - Run Fat Boy Run - Say Anything - Secretary - September - Sex, Lies, and Videotape - Sex and the City - Short Cuts - Showgirls - Slingbacks and Syrup - Slither - Soapdish - Stardust - Stardust Memories - Steel Magnolias - Step Brothers - Sunset Boulevard - Sunshine - The Abyss - The Baxter - The Boy in the Striped Pajamas - The Conversation - The Darjeeling Limited - The Dark Knight - The Hudsucker Proxy - The Incredibles - The Letter - The Long Goodbye -The Machinist - The Maltese Falcon - The Mirror Crack'd - The Orphanage - The Painted Veil - The Philadelphia Story - The Proposition - The Purple Rose of Cairo - The Queen - The Red Violin - The Talented Mr. Ripley - The Ten - The Thin Red Line - The Truman Show - The Wedding Singer - The Wind That Shakes the Barley - The Women (2008) - There Will Be Blood - Throne of Blood - Transsiberian - Tropic Thunder - Unforgiven - Vicki Christina Barcelona - W. - Wall.E - Wild at Heart - Winter Passing - Zoolander

Happy Birthday Judi, John, and John

Three very special talents all share this day, the 9th of December, as their day of birth. I say we give a sincere Millie wishes to the following screen icons. Maybe you can share with us some of your favorite movie memories of these fine folk . . .

Dame Judi Dench, b. 1934 - Happy Birthdame!

Career highlights include: member of The Royal Shakespeare Company (joined 1961), numerous plays including leading roles in The Cherry Orchard (1961), Measure for Measure (1962), Cabaret (1968), Macbeth (1976), and films such as A Room with a View (1985), Mrs. Brown (1997), Elizabeth (1998), and Iris (2001). Proud recipient of 30 awards and 54 nominations for acting.


John Cassavetes, b. 1929, d. 1989: Happy Birthday wherever you are!


Career highlights include: his acclaimed role as Johnny Staccato on ABC (1959), Shadows (1959), Faces (1968), Husbands (1970), A Woman Under the Influence (1974), and The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (1976). Jay, care to add anything?


John Malkovich, b. 1953 - Happy Bald Birthday to you!


Career highlights include: member of The Steppenwolf Theatre Company (1976), Places in the Heart (1984), The Glass Menagerie (1987), Dangerous Liaisons (1988), Of Mice and Men (1992), In the Line of Fire (1993), Being John Malkovich (1999), Shadow of the Vampire (2000) . . . Con Air? Interesting fact, he is an "ardent supporter of the death penalty"

Billy Liar (1963)

Despite the fact that my "must see" list is longer than Santa's "must give" this time of year, I sometimes wander around the "movies you'll heart" on Netflix just to get something completely off the radar (I do want you to have some surprises after all!). Classics boasts my highest recommendations (which comes as no surprise to many of you I imagine) and there I came across Billy Liar, a British film with the (glorified) debut of one of Hollywood's most enigmatic actresses: Julie Christie. Plus there was a darling little bustier on the cover art - I simply couldn't resist!

The Basics: William Fisher (Tom Courtenay), who lives in a dreary English city some four hours outside of London with his nagging parents and ornery grandmother, works an unstimulating job for a funeral furniture provider, and is engaged to two women he would rather have nothing to do with. His escapism comes in the form of a vivid imagination, leading him into battle, the aristocracy, and a great deal of stagnancy in his actual life. When all roads converge, Billy must determine if what he dreams and imagines is what he actually desires.

In 2004, Total Film magazine named Billy Liar the 12th best British Film of all time, and at first I had a really difficult time understanding why. It's by no means awful, in fact, theoretically and somewhat actually, there's a lot making this film quite remarkable, but more to the point, it's, well, kind of boring. Then I wrote the review and realized - 'Jenny, this film is actually much more clever than you give it credit' - and while I didn't pick that up when watching it, that little temptress retrospect has reared her insightful head!

Billy Liar belongs to the British New Wave, which, sadly, I know very little about, though I can tell you it was referred to as "kitchen sink drama" - meaning the use actual locations instead of studios and gritty realism instead of lofty melodrama. Billy Liar certainly meets this criteria - the mise-en-scene is of course noteworthy because it's the actual street corner, office building, city square, birds, cranes (not the birds, I mentioned them earlier), cars, taxis, everything - there is no doubt as to where and when this film takes place, which plays an instrumental role in understanding the simultaneous simplicity and complexity of the characters. It's a time capsule, and not the way that Look Who's Talking is a time warp to the late 80's, but more like Harold and Maude with mid 70's San Francisco, we have a lost city that no longer exists, an age that no longer exists, and yet each respective environment creates the essential backdrop for a timeless story.

One great success of the film is its treatment of suburban mundanity. The characters are bound by duty to a linear life of what's expected. It's terribly sad, which in some ways you can sense they realize, and yet it's inescapable, for the young dreamer Billy, and his aging grandmother, it is the same with them, and will be the same until the end of days. This heaviness, for me, was not readily apparent until the film's end, which leaves a sweet taste in the mouth's of those seeking substance from a piece that had seemingly been robbing them of it for nearly an hour. Looking back, Billy Liar was feeding me the entire time.


What complicates my liking of this film is that which ensures its enduring popularity: too much Billy Fisher and not enough Julie Christie. I'm sure that Tom Courtenay is a fine actor, he's certainly handsome, which Billy requires in order to charm the people he's constantly lying to, but the character is pompous, irrational, and frustrating. In the opening scene, when Billy imagines himself as soldier, king, and colonel in the imaginary war he's won, I rooted for him, thinking, wow, what an clever fellow, so free spirited. But as the film progresses we learn that his imagination allows him to cheat on people, to hurt them, make fools of them, and he remains childish, immature, and ignorant. Quite frankly, he's a louse and while the story needs him to be so that we get our satisfying ending, I think Courtenay, or the script, (the film is based on a stage play where a young Albert Finney played Billy, Courtenay was his understudy) pushes the envelope a little too far. But some may argue it is precisely what the film needs to triumph.


For her part, Christie is as Netflix described her: luminous. From the moment we see her the film is treated to an energy and lightness it lacked before. She is silver screen royalty and given the bleak nature of the rest of the film, this is made all the more obvious.

All in all readers, here's what I give it. But for a more in depth, scholarly opinion, check this out.

Millie's bees to knees meter (1 bee = blah, 10 bees = hoo-rah): 6.75

A Woman Under the Influence (1974)

Every Sunday evening I have the extreme pleasure of visiting with two of my favorite cinephiles, Jay and Jaime-Lynn, the Taylor-Blanchards. Over a home cooked meal in their super comfy home, we take in favorites, canonical films we've yet to see, and lighthearted unicorn chasers to round it all out. The catalyst behind the whole shebang was actually the films of John Cassavetes, although until this Sunday past we'd yet to watch one. Jay is more than a fan - he's an informed, sincere admirer and from these types I most certainly take movie suggestions. So let's begin, as Jay did, with A Woman Under the Influence.

The Basics: Gena Rowlands owns her role as Mabel Longhetti, a suburban housewife and mother of three who struggles, along with her hardworking, albeit aggressive husband (played volcanically by Peter Falk), with her degeneration into alcoholism and mental illness.

Never having seen a Cassavetes film, I wasn't quite prepared for this particular type of realism - precisely and painstakingly executed, but no less severly slice of life. In fact, no film I've ever seen achieves as successfully the (often misused) "slice of life" label like this one. Let's take a favorite "realistic" director of mine for comparison, Robert Altman. Unlike most of Altman's films, considered "more" realistic by their multiple threads and overlapping dialogue, A Woman Under the Influence reads almost like a turn of the 20th century play with contemporary content. It's as though we're sitting in the middle of this living room, this actual home, and are privy, somehow, almost magically, to how the story will play out. Similar to Altman, the middle of the story is our beginning and a slightly further down the line, but by no means "the end", is where we leave off, adding, of course, to the story's seeming nonfictionness.

I dislike the term "heightened sense of realism" in reference to this film because it seems, well, so much more high brow than the film itself. Heightened to me speaks more to Tim Roth's disturbing incest picture The War Zone or Vincent Gallo's cool, dry Buffalo '66. This achingly real world exists within a film, so of course it's stylistic (with close-ups on a non-speaking character while dialogue continues in the same room or bursts of emotional, tone setting music cut abruptly because they aren't literally playing in the scene, for example), but absolutely nothing is overstated. It's bare, clean, and in it's two and a half hours adds absolutely no excess but gives its audience all the information they need to fully flesh the characters and story. The intelligently executed nuances, paired with Cassavettes undeniable intimacy with interpersonal relationships, isolationism, and the absurdity of American suberbanism, create a unique cinematic experience that is, somehow, very much like something you've seen before.


Of course, in any successful film, each artist must expertly render their part, and Rowlands and Falk are no exception. I learned through Cassavetes enthusiast Jay that the director and Rowlands were married for decades, including during the making of this film, and it's very clear in her portrayl of Mabel that she completely understands what her husband was attempting to accomplish. Some people argue that mad is the easiest to play, but I contend it's the hardest to render authentic (can you tell that I have seen some pretty painful Ophelia's in my life?). Rowlands is an extremely intuitive, astute actor, playing perfectly a woman trapped - unable to mother properly but profoundly loving with her children, loyal to her husband but unbeknownst to her also cheating on him, seemingly sane and rational in her own mind but quite the opposite in ours.

Falk's excellent performance bring up some of the film's difficult and most interesting questions: what does it mean to be "insane"? How can behavior that is socially acceptable, but nontheless irrational mean you're not '"crazy"? This query, what is really means to be insane and how we deal with it, whether committed or not, is proposed with no melodrama or heavy handedness.

Thank you Jay, I certainly look forward to more of this exceptional director's films.

Millie's bees to knees meter (1 bee = blah, 10 bees = hoo=rah): 9