'Bamboozled' holds up better than I expected it to

For a while, it felt like Bamboozled was the last great Spike Lee movie. There were occasional flare-ups of his old genius -- think 2006's Inside Man -- but it really wasn't until his Oscar-nominated BlacKkKlansman that he seemed to fully hit his stride again.

In some ways, Bamboozled contains all the excesses and eccentricities that plagued much of his later work.

And as much as it meant to me when I first saw it, I was worried that it would be a painful re-watch when I got my new Criterion blu ray of the film.

I'm happy to say that it still feels very fresh and funny. It's about a subtle as a heart attack and the violent turn of the last act undermines the strong satirical tone that is the movie's strength -- but it's a delightfully provocative movie, which draws it's inspiration from other classic media critiques like Network (which it openly cribs from) and A Face in the Crowd.

The premise is a howler. Damon Wayans (affecting an annoying, over the top accent) plays a self-hating black TV executive who pitches a revival of blackface and minstrel shows to his ignorant boss (played hilariously by Michael Rappaport) in order to get out of a contract and instead gets caught up in a hit cultural phenomenon.

Lee says he had Mel Brooks' The Producers in mind when he conceived the plot, although Wayans' motivations never feel fully convincing. In a way, the set-up doesn't matter, what's most compelling is the way in which Lee demonstrates how we are all often guilty in indulging hatred, especially when we think it's at someone else's expense.

There's a wonderful moment early in the film when the blackfaced stars of Wayans' show (played by Tommy Morrison and Savion Glover) first appear on a stage to perform their racist routines. The audience (which is diverse) initial sits silently, in shock.

But slowly some of the black audience members start to laugh and applaud and when white audience members see this, they feel they have a license to guffaw wth impunity.

According to Lee, those were the real reactions during the shooting of the movie, which is fascinating. The movie, ironically predated the meteoric and controversial rise of Tyler Perry, and was instead a response to the tone deaf comedies of the now defunct WB and UPN networks. Some of those references may be dated now but the spirit of that kind of commercial product certainly remains.

We are still debating representation and the trauma that hateful images can provoke but twenty years ago it felt like Lee was ripping a band-aid off int he most in your face way possible. Strangely enough, blackface continues to pop up as a divisive topic as politicians on both sides of the aisle have been pilloried for indulging in it and careless commentators like Megyn Kelly have paid a price for defending it.

Lee is more sophisticated in his take than some might suspect. While he conveys how dehumanizing blackface is, he doesn't deny the inherent talent and skill of the black performers who donned it. Nor does he set up any unassailable heroic character in the film. Jada Pinkett Smith, who plays Wayans' loyal assistant and Davidson come the close to being voices of reason, but only after they both actively participated in a nakedly racist enterprise for profit.

Meanwhile, Lee includes a savagely funny takedown of aggressively pro black culture within the community through a subplot involving Mos Def as the leader of a hip-hop collective with poorly a defined political agenda. This film is a great reminder of what a naturally funny and charismatic actor Mos Def was and can be. It'd be nice to see him return to acting.

The film itself feels very loose and experimental. It's largely shot on early digital cameras, which sometimes gives it an almost documentary like feel. Other times it has very cinematic flourishes that call attention to themselves, like his hilariously silly ad breaks for a fictional malt liquor called The Bomb and a parody of Tommy Hillfiger which doesn't pull any punches.

The movie is a bit of a mess. But it's a reminder of what an original voice Lee can be and is further evidence that his he is one of the most criminally under-appreciated directors of all time.

Say what you will about him and his undeniably uneven filmography, but he consistently interrogates issues and characters that are simply missing from most mainstream entertainment. We need voices like his, even if we don't always feel comfortable with what he's telling us.

'Birth of the Cool' does Miles Davis justice

I'm admittedly late to it, but if you are looking for an interesting watch amid the quarantine chaos that so many of us are living with right now I'd recommend the Miles Davis documentary The Birth of the Cool on Netflix (or give The Irishman a whirl, it's a masterpiece and you have the time now!).

I'm an enormous Miles Davis fan -- but I imagine even if you're not there will be a lot to appreciate here in this warts and all biography. The director, Stanley Nelson, has previously made an in depth doc on the Black Panther movement, which was similarly thorough and sophisticated.

Davis has always been one of the most fascinating, mercurial figures in music history and his story seems to cry out for the cinematic touch. Unfortunately, the one major attempt so far, Don Cheadle's Miles Ahead, was pretty forgettable.

He has so many different periods and looks and love affairs and mood swings... it's hard to pinpoint what the ideal story to tell in a narrative movie, especially since -- like so many iconic artists -- he too had a brutal descent into drug abuse, the kind of detour which has ruined many a biopic.

With The Birth of the Cool, Nelson is able to take the long, traditional view, starting with Davis' birth in East St. Louis through his final, feeble appearance at a jazz festival.

Not only is the music throughout phenomenal, but it gave me a brand new insight into Davis' process that I never had -- for instance, I learned for the first time that most of my favorite compositions of his were apparently improvisations. My mind was blown.

The talking heads are often first hand witnesses and not particularly intrusive and a narrator mimicking Davis' signature raspy whisper of a voice to narrate the proceedings. I assume the excerpts come from Davis' scorcher of an autobiography.

I read that book in college and found Davis to be a proud, arrogant and colorful character who clearly had a lot of beef with his contemporaries and with some contemporary music. You definitely don't walk away thinking he is a nice guy, and you won't feel that way after The Birth of the Cool either.

Still, it puts Davis in context as the remarkable crossover artists in music history. There simply isn't anyone attempt the kind of genre fusion he attempted in the back half of his life. And although the music he created is not for everyone's tastes and horrified jazz purists, it's certainly original.

So was Davis.

From 'Sin City' to 'Sneakers': Movies that could be TV shows

It's weird to be writing about movies at a time when they are disappearing right before our eyes. They're getting pulled and postponed. Some are even halting shooting. And I am more or less afraid to leave my apartment.

It's going to feel like The Omega Man pretty soon.

I have found solace however, in my far too extensive at home movie collection. All day I've been binging documentaries, comedies, dramas and the random Charles Bronson '80s dreck -- why -- because they're some of my greatest guilty pleasures.

Since there is not much new to discuss -- I figured I'd addressed a random topic that just 'popped' in there.: What are movies that could have made good TV shows?

Well, funny I should ask myself... These are just off the top of my head...

CopLand - The premise of this melodrama -- it's about a town outside NYC dominated by cops and their families -- is so full of potential, I could see a long-running HBO series out of it. The film works in spite of the fact that it as a very overstuffed narrative on the strengths of it's performances, especially Sylvester Stallone's. But a series would give all the side characters and side stories time to breathe.

Fletch - I mean this is one my favorite movies, so I can never get enough of it. For years there has been talk of rebooting it, first with an older Chevy Chase and later people as good as Jason Sudekis and bad as Zach Braff in the lead. But now Deadpool is sort of taking that slot as the movies' favorite smart aleck, so why not the small screen? I have no idea who you'd cast though. There really isn't a comedy star right now who fits the profile.

Sin City - I think if this were to ever be revisited it'd be hard to better replicate the visual style of Frank Miller's noir series than the Robert Rodriguez films. but I could also see a less faithful adaptation being really interesting -- sort of like HBO's recent exploration of The Watchmen. and yet I don't know if the disappointing Sin City sequel has left a permanent distaste for this franchise.

School Daze - Spike Lee's ambitious musical/drama about life at a HBCU is full of potential plotlines and issues to explore -- just the movie's portrayal of colorism and intra-black prejudice alone would be a stellar hour of television.I was not a fan of Lee's TV version of She's Gotta Have It and I might to see a pair of fresh eyes on this material since it's been a very long time since 1988.

Firestarter - I know this Stephen King adaptation is kind of a mess but there are a lot of interesting little scenes and moments that really work and the overall concept of a girl with powers on the run from a shadowy organization -- is fun. Now that effects are better, this is material that could really be revitalized.

Pulp Fiction - It's a perfect stand alone film -- I wouldn't mess with these characters pe se, but you can expand this universe to tell other lurid crime stories with a similar aesthetic. It could be an almost Twilight Zone type situation. If Tarantino really does prematurely retire, I would love to see him get involved with something episodic or serialized like this. I suspect his style could adapt very well to TV.

Sneakers -I love this quirky gang who get paid to break into security systems -- how has this cult hit never been revisited. It would need a fresh new cast but I'd love to maintain the same dynamics (ex-radical and his merry misfits). Again, modern technology can really kick this up a notch and it would just be fun to watch, what more can I say...

Will we ever go to the movies again?

It's a melodramatic question, I know. Clearly, one day, with no help from the current occupant of the White House, we are going to whip the coronavirus, but in the short term (and maybe even the long term) it's going to upend most of our lives.

Besides keeping millions of people home from work, and potentially thousands will lose their jobs. Nearly every professional sport -- the bedrock of American entertainment and culture -- has been sidelined and this year at the movies will never be the same.

The first pillar to fall was the highly anticipated new James Bond film -- No Time to Die -- was pushed from April to November. Then the latest Fast & Furious movie -- F9 -- pulled up stakes and moved to 2021! The latest shocker is that A Quiet Place part II, which was due out later this month, is being shelved indefinitely.

That film, which was a surefire blockbuster and essential to be seen on a big screen with an audience, will surely see the light of day at some point, but since its studio reportedly already blew much of its advertising budget, the movie will have to really over-perform to make up for the costs of this delay.

All of this makes sense -- if the movie Outbreak taught us anything, it's that movie theaters can be a hotbed for spreading germs. But I love going to the theater so this disruption has impacted me more than others -- I know, boo hoo -- and so this really has brought this crisis home for me.

It's been almost ten years since the tragedy in Aurora made us all painfully aware that we are all sitting ducks for potential mass shooters whenever we chose to see a movies in a theater. I now always check my exits and strategize how I would shield my wife from gunfire whenever I go t a crowded theater. This may be melodramatic, but these are the times we're living in.

It's hard to tell yet how all these tentpole movie delays are going to effect the industry. I am sure the makers of Bad Boys for Life (the unexpected biggest blockbuster of the year to date) are thrilled that their run at the box office took place before this crisis hit. This is also clearly going to be a boon to streaming services, which have already proven to be the biggest threat to the traditional industry since the advent of VHS and television before that.

Last year, Netflix demonstrated that it will continue to be a major player in the awards season for the foreseeable future with critically acclaimed films like The Irishman, Marriage Story and Dolemite Is My Name. Now, they will have, for the lack of a better phrase, a captive audience as millions of people work from home and self quarantine.

I for one plan to dip into my own movie collection and enjoy some titles that I've meaning to revisit for a long time.

And the movies should eventually be fine. Not unlike sports, they are the most resilient form of entertainment we have. And as popular as streaming may be, nothing beats a zeitgeist-y blockbuster that is packing theaters. I just hope we can do that again -- safely -- soon!

RIP Max von Sydow: His remarkable career will never get old

I was just recently joking around with a friend about actors who seems like they have been 'old forever' -- Donald Sutherland came to mind. So did Robert Duvall. The dean of that type though just might have been acclaimed Swedish actor Max von Sydow, who passed away at age 90 today.

Max von Sydow has looked like a wise old man for decades -- and it doesn't help that one of his more iconic roles came when he was a younger man in old age make-up.

He had an astoundingly durable career -- starring in Ingmar Bergman dramas in the 50s and appearing in The Force Awakens just five years ago.

I will always remember his booming, emotional voice -- one that always made him a credible and charismatic heavy -- even well into old age.

The Seventh Seal

Probably like most Americans, I first became aware of von Sydow because of his titular role in the 1973 classic The Exorcist. He actually doesn't have all that much screen time, but when he arrives on the scene it's the one and only time you think the demon villain of the movie can be defeated.

Director William Friedkin passed on the chance to cast a bigger name in that role, and there plenty of great age appropriate options at the time, but his good instinct was tap von Sydow, who was largely known only to hip filmgoers familiar with Bergman's filmography.

Had von Sydow only had his work with Bergman to show for himself he still would have had an iconic career.

His chess match with death in the spiritual and stunning The Seventh Seal, is not just one of the best known Bergman moments, but its a piece of cinematic history.

And despite his reputation as an incredibly serious actor -- von Sydow wasn't above slumming it in silly movies like Strange Brew and Flash Gordon. He also frequently popped up  as the villain in thrillers like Three Days of the Condor and Minority Report.

And he was always there, unlike some great actors who prematurely retired (I'm looking at you Gene Hackman) he kept at it and continued to say relevant with the projects he chose like Game of Thrones, giving his career a distinguished longevity.

Hopefully, fans of all the big budget spectacles he appeared in later in life will be keen to re-examine his work with Bergman, his early Hollywood roles in the 1970s and curios like the small put pivotal role he plays in Hannah and Her Sisters, one of the best movies directed by he who shall not be named.

Flashback 2000: My top 10 favorite movies from 20 years ago

It's really hard for me to believe that the year 2000 was twenty years ago. It was a real milestone year for me -- it's the year I graduated from high school and started college. It my first time voting, too. I still think I was coming into my own in terms having good taste.

For example, I remember thinking Gone in Sixty Seconds was good at the time.

It was a fantastic year for director Steven Soderbergh, who was able to score an incredible and rare two Best Director nods for Erin Brockovich and Traffic. Michael Douglas was killing in 2000, two of his best films make my list. It was also a solid year for mainstream popcorn fare like Remember the Titans (which didn't make this list but remains undeniably rewatchable).

Of course, it was the year before 9/11 -- so it was sort of the last gasp of a mush simpler time in retrospect. A lot hasn't aged well -- this year launched the increasingly tiresome Meet the Parents franchise -- but there are quite a few titles that still hold a special place in my heart. And they are...

10)  Unbreakable - It's probably the understatement of the century to say that director M Night Shyamalan has had an uneven filmmaking career. In fact, he may have peaked with this solid hit follow-up to his blockbuster The Sixth Sense. A truly original, grounded premise about a man who's a superhero but doesn't know it (a subdued Bruce Willis) connecting with a man who is a supervillain and knows it (Samuel L. Jackson). Great tension and mood throughout, with far less of the clunky dialogue that destroyed many of the director's later works.

9) Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon - The rare foreign film that became an industry altering cross-over success. It's peerless wirework inspired a lot of lesser imitators, but it's hard to deny the power and beauty of this film's elaborate action sequences or the emotional power of its drama (featuring Chow Yun-Fat and Michelle Yeoh in soulful leading roles). This is a movie I haven't revisited in years -- but it sticks in my mind as an immersive, impressive feat of period filmmaking from director Ang Lee.

8)  Y Tu Mama Tambien - One of the sexiest movies ever made -- Gael Garcia Bernal was all the rage within my freshman class at college -- and a testament to the range of director Alfonso Cauron (Gravity, Roma). A lively road trip movie about an older woman who is facing an imminent death paired up with two young men who have their whole lives ahead of them. The sexuality is frank and fearless and the storytelling is sublime.

Nurse Betty

7) Shaft - The late John Singleton's wildly underrated reboot of the classic blaxploitation private eye series was a terrific vehicle for Samuel L. Jackson (who was also, come to think of it, having a banner year). I can't speak to the most recent entry -- which was a flop commercially and critically. But this film boasted two terrific, colorful bad guys (Christian Bale as a Donald Trump Jr-esque creep, and Jeffery Wright as a fierce Puerto Rican criminal kingpin) to go toe to toe with Jackson's suave hero. Funny and surprisingly authentic, this may be Singleton's best commercial movie.

6) Bamboozled - Spike Lee's provocative and tonally jarring satire of the state of black TV and movies was savage and arguably ahead of its time (Madea movies made their debut in 2000). He assembles a fantastic cast (including tap dancing sensation Savion Glover) to skewer everyone who still trafficked in black stereotypes in media. Ironically, its surreal subplot about blackface making a comeback has turned out to be more prescient than anyone could have predicted.

5) American Psycho - A coming out part for Christian Bale's unique brand of uber-committed acting -- this bananas black comedy probably deserved to be seen more widely than it did upon its first release. The film nails the novel's satire of a certain kind of Wall Street bro, while maintaining enough or the horror show aspects of the story as well. I'd be very curious how this film would play were it released now, post-MeToo, but at least 20 years ago, this was a real shock to the system.

4) Wonder Boys - Like a warm blanket, this gentle and heartwarming character study about a past-his-prime novelist turned college professor (a perhaps never better Michael Douglas) and the people who weave in and out of his life is full of simple pleasures and endearing belly laughs. It works because of its specificity -- it really feels like one of the true authentic 'college' movies -- and the fact that it wears its heart on its sleeve. They don't really make movies like this anymore, and that's a shame.

3) O Brother Where Art Thou? - One of the Coen brothers' most accessible and enjoyable efforts features George Clooney having a ball as the leader of a trio of not-so-bright escaped convicts (John Turturro and Tim Blake Nelson fill out the gang) on an odyssey (inspired by the legendary Greek tale). A visual stunner, with a soundtrack so infectious it would up taking the Grammys by storm. A sleeper hit that is just a quirky joy from start to finish.

2) Traffic - An incredibly accomplished and thoughtful look at the drug war from several different vantage points. Soderbergh beautifully uses different color stocks and styles to tell three very different narratives, while juggling what would become one of his trademark all-star casts. Benicio Del Toro (who won the Oscar) is the standout with his remarkable performance as one of the only honest cops at the border. An unassailably smart and exciting film about a topic that could have been dry and depressing.

1) Nurse Betty - I have always had a strong personal connection with this black comedy and its themes of fantasy sometimes supplanting our reality. Director Neil LaBute, who track record is rocky at best, nailed this absurdist story about a soap opera fan who becomes convinced she's a character on the show following a traumatic event. Renee Zellweger is incredible, as is a totally against type Morgan Freeman. A far more sophisticated film than it might initially appear to be with some unforgettable violence and pathos.

PAST TOP 10 FAVORITE LISTS
1974 #1 movie - The Godfather Part II
1975 #1 movie - Nashville
1976 #1 movie - Taxi Driver
1977 #1 movie - Star Wars
1978 #1 movie - The Deer Hunter
1979 #1 movie - The Jerk
1984 #1 movie - Ghostbusters
1985 #1 movie - Fletch
1986 #1 movie - Blue Velvet
1987 #1 movie - The Untouchables
1988 #1 movie - Coming to America
1989 #1 movie - Batman
1994 #1 movie - Pulp Fiction
1995 #1 movie - Heat
1996 #1 movie - Fargo
1997 #1 movie - Boogie Nights
1998 #1 movie - The Big Lebowski
1999 #1 movie - Eyes Wide Shut
2004 #1 movie - Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
2005 #1 movie - A History of Violence
2006 #1 movie - Casino Royale
2007 #1 movie - There Will Be Blood
2008 #1 movie - The Wrestler
2009 #1 movie - Inglourious Basterds
2010 #1 movie - The Social Network

'Outbreak' and the impact of coronavirus at the movies

Last night I revisited the hit airborne disease thriller Outbreak, which was suddenly streaming on Netflix presumably because of renewed interest thanks to the frightening coronavirus pandemic. I've read that Steven Soderbergh's all-star sleeper 2011 hit Contagion is also a streaming sensation right now.

The 1995 movie is an interesting curio, it's probably the last time Dustin Hoffman was draw as a traditional leading man in a man of action role that he's unusual choice for. If memory serves, the role was originally conceived for Harrison Ford, which makes a lot more sense when you see the film.

It's an effective movie -- it gets bogged down with a blah subplot about Hoffman and leading lady Rene Russo's troubled marriage and a last act that feels repetitive and a little silly, but it's certainly a memorable, visceral look at the impact of a runaway deadly infectious disease.

There's one scene in particular from the film that I'll always. An incredibly sick,  infected individual (for some reason) goes to a crowded movie. The camera follows the germs emanating from his mouth as they fan out of the crowd, presumably infecting several people in the room.

Now that we are all living under the shadow of coronavirus, we're used to flinching every time we hear someone cough or sneeze, and the movies are already starting to feel the heat from the disease.

The new Bond film -- No Time to Die -- which was scheduled to open on April 10 has been pushed all the way to November, in part because there is real concern that the film would underperform, especially in the crucial international market.

The latest Mission: Impossible film had to temporarily shut down production over fears of coronavirus, too. Meanwhile, the SXSW festival has been canceled entirely and the fate of the legendary Cannes film festival is up in the air.

A cynical read on what's happening is that it'll be a boon to Netflix and other streaming services which have been getting increasingly ambitious with their feature films as of late.

And yet, I love and don't want to miss enjoying the communal experience a film with an audience in a theater. The Invisible Man was a hoot and a terrific film across the board, but I wonder how enjoyable it would have been if I didn't see it with an audience that was as spooked and excited as I was by what was on screen.

If this pandemic becomes as destructive as it's expected to be this could wind up being a very dreary year for the movie business if not for the movies themselves -- which is a real shame because people could use escapism right now, from election anxiety, economic uncertainly, environmental changes and so much more.

Of course safety is more important than any movie -- and hopefully people who are ill will have the good sense to avoid a crowded theater, especially when there is so much quality at our finger tips at home. And in the meantime, I'm going to have to be a lot more selective when I buy a ticket, because I might be walking into a danger zone.