Picture me as the kid in the back of the class, the one with horn-rimmed glasses, a Tin-Tin hairdo, wearing a shirt dyed with a color not found in nature, wearinf high-water pants.
Raising hand timidly:
"Sirs, I really like 'Avatar 2' a whole bunch. And it made me cry when that donkey choked on the fat guy's finger."
I would be immediately pantsed and made to walk home in nothing but my poo-poo undies. (Thank you, Madeline Kahn.)
My wife and I saw Cameron's latest in an empty theater in early afternoon We felt like studio executives. We were absolutely transported for 2 1/2 hours away from all our worries. I had the same feeling as when I was 7 years old and saw "Forbidden Planet". Sometimes you don't wanna think too hard. Thank you, James. 2 billion well-spent.
Let me put my pants back on...ahh, that's better. (Changed my undies too. I thought it was just gas when I made a quiet test-toot in class. I gambled & lost) Loved "Banshees...", very dark, and hilarious. Made me think of the joke "Irish Alzheimer's is when you forget everything but the grudges.."; "Tár"...glad I play rock music. Blanchett was amazing but I cannot empathize with predatory characters. "All Quiet..."...I kinda like the original better but, hey, I'm a film dork. "Elvis"; loved Tom Hanks! Saw the comeback special live years ago; if Elvis had sung "Here Comes Santa Claus"...good lord. Austin was OK. "Everything Everywhere..."...I've been sober for several years now. I think I would have enjoyed the film more before I foreswore the use of mind-altering substances. So far, I have been unable to get through it but will try again.. Liked "The Fabelmans", especially Seth Rogen playing a womanizing beast. Credibly. Haven't seen the other fims but look forward to "Women Talking". "Top Gun Redux"....didn't like the first one and it doesn't look like the present-day noisy testosterone-fest will...ahem "Take my Breath Away" either. "Triangle of Sadness" looks like "The Menu" lite.
OK. Returning to the back of the class. Always happy to see Mr. Kusumoto in Don Rickles mode. And Kirby; you know we all love you.
Greg Douglass
PS-This is completely random, but I STILL think the movie "Chicago" blows goats.
Sent: Tuesday, March 14, 2023 at 1:36 AM
From: "David Kusumoto" <davidmkusum...@hotmail.com>
To: MoPo-L@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU
Subject: Re: [MOPO] Oscar reminisce and some fun things
From: "David Kusumoto" <davidmkusum...@hotmail.com>
To: MoPo-L@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU
Subject: Re: [MOPO] Oscar reminisce and some fun things
Hello Kirb, my pal in Austin. So you assert with great conviction - that BANSHEES is the greatest movie of the year. Let me express the following in a tone that displays great modesty, humility and restraint:
YOU, SIR - ARE HIGH ON METH AND ALL KNOWN HALLUCINOGENS ON PLANET EARTH!
The only thing I liked in that movie was the donkey, who should have been feted with an Oscar. He/it deserved an Oscar more than Gleeson and Farrell. TÁR was the best written film of the year even though it took forever to get going. Blanchett plays another bitchy character but she was magnificent. Alas, the Academy is not allowed to vote for actors who play predators hence she was never gonna win. Everything Everywhere gave me multiple headaches and had multiple false endings. Voters felt good about their choices and loved the speeches - but by next year it will be 2022's version of 2008's "Slumdog Millionaire."
Finally, declaring your love for 1963's Cleopatra is so typical, a bloated 24-sh*t (oh I mean "24-sheet") of a movie featuring wooden, "declarative" dialogue that bankrupted 20th Century Fox so badly - that Julie Andrews had to ditch her umbrella from Mary Poppins early - and rescue the studio by delivering the Sound of Music. Finally - Tom Jones was a "trendy" Best Pic in '63 and oddly feels anachronistic / dated - DESPITE a story that's set in 18th century England. Give me Barry Lyndon anyday. So there. -d. (All in fun!)
From: Kirby McDaniel <ki...@movieart.com>
Sent: Sunday, March 12, 2023 8:29 AM
To: David Kusumoto <davidmkusum...@hotmail.com>; MOPO <mopo-l@listserv.american.edu>
Subject: Re: [MOPO] Oscar reminisce and some fun things
Hi, David and Mopolistas:
I saw your assessment of the BP Oscar nominations on some Facebook Page or another, and your assessment of THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN is as wet as the state of California! It's my fave of pictures that I've seen - TOP GUN, WESTERN FRONT (brilliant, and a dark horse), TAR (yes, I know it has an accent~)(brilliant) and EVERYTHING ANYWHERE ALL THE TIME SIMULTANEOUSLY, SYNCRONOUSLY INTERMINABLY ALL AT F CKING ONCE! (I did sorta like it and I want one of those rotating donuts). But not AVATAR. Cameron is looking at the other nominees and thinking to himself "I'm still the King of the World."
INISHERIN is the blackest of black comedies, beautifully photographed. Colin Ferrell should win the Oscar, but probably won't. (Austin Butler, fine in his role, is far too pretty for his own good, and Kurt Russell was a better Elvis.) Brendan Gleason's role is NOT a supporting role, and Barry Keoghan performance, along with Jamie Lee Curtis, gets the Kirby McDaniel Award for Performance of the Year. And that's a coveted award that doesn't get given out willy-nilly.
I always watch the Oscars, and I will this year too. I'm still heartbroken that CLEOPATRA didn't win Best Picture, but I love TOM JONES. So there.
One final note on the Oscars: they all WANT ONE.
Kirby McDaniel
Movieart.com
On Mar 11, 2023, at 10:21 PM, David Kusumoto <davidmkusum...@hotmail.com> wrote:
Nice pics! I still have pics of my poster collection when it was at its peak and have posted them before on MoPo. Interesting that you have figurines. I could never get into collecting those because they gather dust - although of course now - given the price of original '77 Star Wars stuff, I wish I had. My wife has a collection of no-value Funko Pop Star Wars figurines but they're in book cases with glass doors on 'em to keep 'em clean.
As far as the Oscars - I've managed to see almost every show on TV since early 1965 when Mary Poppins and My Fair Lady went up against each other for calendar year 1964. I was in Europe when Silence of the Lambs won in 1992 despite being released in early 1991. I still don't know how a grisly movie like that - as good as it is - could sweep the top prizes like it did. As far as the show Sunday night - I now only watch the end when the top awards are given out. (It's why I missed last year's "slap" that overshadowed "CODA" winning Best Picture.)
I've seen all 10 films nominated for Best Pic but none are masterpieces and the only one I felt was provocative / intriguing was Tar - but even it took a long time to get going. Every year or every couple of years I post a round-up of impressions about the Best Pic nominees and every year I keep saying I'm going to stop because a Best Picture nomination used to mean something back in my day. It doesn't anymore. I did buy the one-sheet to The Fabelmans from Dale Dilts before the film came out. But the movie was a disappointment. - d.
Oscar round-up link: https://bit.ly/3FgLcrp
Sent: Saturday, March 11, 2023 8:28 AM
Subject: Oscar reminisce and some fun things
For most of my life, teenage years and forward, I've watched the Oscars. That's about 56 years worth. During high school, I had a click of friends who were interested in watching and discussing movies. I went to a parochial school and while there was some money for the chess club and the debate club, Administration was not very pro the " movie club ". One of the things my friends and I always tried to do was watch the five movies nominated for best picture, debate their merits and then watch the Oscars. Actually watching the Oscars called for some sacrifice as they always occurred during midterm exams usually on a Sunday, ending late. There was always an exam on Monday. Thinking back now there are highlights we are all likely to remember. The slap, the streak, the refusals Brando and Scott. I also remember a lively group discussion about Hoffman in Midnight Cowboy loss to Wayne in True Grit. The discussion centered if Voight being nominated for the same movie/ award might have been a factor. Love to hear any remembrances from MoPo members they might like to share. Fast forward recently, with there now being 10 nominees, I’m lucky if I've seen half of them. This year I've seen five; All Quiet, Top Gun Maverick, EEAA0, Elvis and Tar
Would imagine most of us spend some time during the week thinking about movies and movie posters. Every time I walk into my kitchen I'm thinking Tarantino. If you're wondering why that is please see the link. I think you'll understand… I really should get out more.
Prompted by someones posts on MoPo's 28th birthday string I really remember liking those "what's on your walls" . So I took some pics of mine. In my former house
a lot of the wall space was dedicated to movie posters, currently only about 10%. I had framed a large number of posters and while that was pretty expensive, as my wall space is now diminished it's nice being able to swap out posters every couple of weeks. I have a number of figurines/statues on shelves attached to the wall and I also took some individual pictures of some of the ones that I really like. The pics will be a little fuzzy but I’m sure the posters will be recognizable to you. The link is from my website which hasn’t been updated for years but I keep it going and use it for links.
Lastly, with a focus on posters, some of you might be familiar with a couple of books written by Bill Givens called Film Flubs memorable movie mistakes. He wrote two of them a few years apart. I had the first one, but no longer do, however something caught my eye in the book and I photographed it. Two posters issued for The Longest Day..the second one I assume for a re-release..the studio kept the same poster substituting the heads of the stars..think Wayne, Fonda and Mitchum..not sure of the fourth..Anyone know of other examples?
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