Get Low

I have seen several excellent independent films this year (LA MISSION; BLACK, WHITE, AND BLUES), and GET LOW is one of them. This film is worthy of Academy Award recognition. The screenplay is very good and there is a stellar cast: Robert Duvall, Bill Murray, Sissy Spacek, Bill Cobbs, Lucas Black, and Gerald McRaney.

Duvall plays a hermit who wants to attend his own funeral. The local pastor (McRaney) balks at the idea of presiding over such an "event," but the funeral home director, played brilliantly by Murray, needs the business and is prepared to help. Beyond this, the story offers a major internal conflict for Duvall's character that a pastor friend (Cobbs) wants him to share so he can let go and move on and an external conflict involving Spacek's character. These conflicts provide more layers to the hermit concept.

For more information about GET LOW visit http://www.sonyclassics.com/getlow.

Meatballs

I recently watched the movie MEATBALLS on The Movie Channel. It had been many years since I saw the 1979 classic comedy, starring Bill Murray in his feature film debut, and I still laughed a lot. The movie was so well done and hilarious.

MEATBALLS has inspired three sequels and several comedy movies with a summer camp setting. The setting is certainly a highlight. The music makes it clear with the children’s choir singing, “Are you ready for the summer. . .”

Bill Murray was working on television’s Saturday Night Live when he was cast in this movie. His performance was excellent, and while watching I was quickly reminded how much I enjoyed him playing these types of roles. His character, “Tripper,” was very funny, even silly, but Murray made him likable. I especially liked how he helped “Rudy,” played by Chris Makepeace, feel accepted. “Rudy” was a kid ready to leave camp because the other kids made fun of him, making him feel like an outsider.

My favorite scene in MEATBALLS is when “Tripper” lets the campers and counselors know that since they were defeated on the first day of the Olympiad against Camp Mohawk, “it just doesn’t matter if we win or if we lose.” He quickly gets everyone to clap and chant “it just doesn’t matter!” It’s funny and in a special way very inspirational for everyone at Camp North Star.

Watching this movie today, there is one more thing that is funny, which was not funny in 1979, and that is the music. It is very 70’s! I am a product of the 70’s so I am not making fun of the music. It just sounds funny listening to the soundtrack and remembering things about the songs. For example, during the social the song Makin’ It by David Naughton is playing. Do you remember him performing that song on Solid Gold or maybe American Bandstand? I think I do, and I also remember Makin’ It being a popular hit on the Billboard charts and in roller skating rinks! Sing along: “Makin’ it. . .I’ve got the chance I’m taken it. . .no more, no more fakin’ it. . .this time in life I’m makin’ it. . .whoa, whoa, whoa. . .” If you want to hear the song, go to the following Web site: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pyn2HnvKcjw.

Lastly, there is apparently a remake in the works. I am not sure what to think about it. Today we should probably be used to movies being remade because it has become so common. I guess movies made in the past are so good and/or well-liked that they have to be either imitated or remade.