Review: The Hustler (1961)

* * * 1/2
Director: Robert Rossen
Starring: Paul Newman, Piper Laurie, George C. Scott, Jackie Gleason

Though he bristles when another character calls him a "loser," Eddie (or "Fast Eddie") Felson seems allergic to victory. The only reason he ever seems to be winning is so that he can find a way to lose, pushing and pushing and pushing his luck until it finally runs out and all the gains he's made have disappeared. Paul Newman was already a star by the time he starred in The Hustler, but Eddie Felson is, in many ways, the quintessential Paul Newman role - roguish, troubled, slightly hardened, and overall irresistible; no wonder he played it twice (winning an Oscar for the sequel, The Color of Money, 25 years later). Now 54 years old, The Hustler isn't one of those ageless films that still feels as fresh and revolutionary as it did on its first release, but it is nevertheless one that has aged well enough that it still feels dynamic and alive.

Canadian Film Review: The Changeling (1980)

* * *
Director: Peter Medak
Starring: George C. Scott, Melvyn Douglas

Word of advice: if you're living in a house where all the fawcetts start running on their own, the piano can play itself, and a creepy old lady tells you that the house "doesn't want people," just leave. Just pack a bag and go. Don't become determined to get to the bottom of it and definitely do not break open the secret locked room. No good will come of it.

The Changeling starts as high melodrama (to wit: the hero stands on one side of a highway using the telephone booth, watching his wife and daughter play in the snow on the other side; cut to a shot of a semi barrelling down the road in one direction; cut to a car coming from the other direction starting to skid; cut to the hero, realizing what's about to happen but getting stuck in the phone booth; the wife and daughter clutch each other and scream; the semi sounds its horn... you get the idea) but quickly settles into a first rate ghost story. In it, George C. Scott plays John Russell, a composer who packs up and moves to Seattle following the death of his wife and daughter, and rents a cavernous mansion through the historical preservation society. Why does one man need all this room? Because big houses are scarier than little ones.

Strange things begin happening and when he starts asking questions, he gets the feeling that something is being covered up. He finds a hidden pad-locked door and breaks it open, giving him access to the attic which it appears was once a bedroom. There's a music box in there and when he opens it he finds that it plays the exact same melody that he himself just composed the other day. He brings in experts in the field to conduct a seance and listening to the recording of the event afterwards, hears the ghostly voice answering the medium's questions. Putting all the pieces together he discovers a horrific crime that leads back to the powerful Senator Joe Carmichael (Melvyn Douglas), whose family once owned the house. Carmichael thinks he's being blackmailed, leading Russell to wonder just how much the Senator knows and just how far he's willing to go to cover it up.

The Changeling is cleverly and tightly constructed (though it must be said that the title kind of gives away a major plot twist) film that succeeds at creating a really creepy atmosphere and some genuine scares. The sight of a woman being chased through a house by an empty, old timey wheelchair should probably seem cheesy, but the film is so well made that it's actually pretty terrifying. This isn't a blood and guts kind of horror movie (though there's a little blood) or even one where something is always jumping out from behind corners. Director Peter Medak creates such an intensenly ominous mood that you're on edge even when nothing is happening.

If the film has a flaw it's in the way that Russell relates to the events happening around him. As played by Scott, he's a very commanding character and as such, whether he's being confronted by the ghostly happenings in the house or by the flesh and blood human beings who want to keep him quiet, he never acts as if he believes he's in any danger. This element of the character, while perfectly believable from the guy who played George Patton, nevertheless has the effect of undercutting the overall mood of the film. Part of the reason why scary movies are scary is because we're put in a position to relate to the protagonist and when they're scared, we're scared. If the protagonist isn't scared and acts like there's nothing to be afraid of, it works to remove us from the experience of what's happening on screen and reminds us that it's all just make believe. It's not that Scott's performance isn't good, because it is, it's just that it kind of works against everything else the film is trying to do.

Countdown To Oscar: Patton

* * * *
Best Picture, 1970

Director: Franklin J. Schaffner
Starring: George C. Scott, Karl Malden

My knowledge of the factual George Patton is pretty scant, so I wasn’t really sure what to expect from a film based on his WWII exploits. I had steeled myself for a jingoistic ode to American greatness and during the film’s prologue – which consists of Patton’s famous speech in front of the giant American flag – I was sure that that was what I was going to get, but I was in for a surprise. Patton has all the makings of a big, noisy epic and though it lives up to that in certain respects, it also manages to be an intimate and thoughtful character study of a man determined to make himself a legend.

One of the few things I went into this film knowing about Patton was that he had a great sense of theatricality and an appreciation for the symmetry of history. He is presented in the film as a man who looks backwards in order to go forward, who wants his invasion of Italy to recall the invasion of the Greeks centuries before, who laments the ungentlemanly way that wars are now fought. He writes poetry, he stops along the way to appreciate the ruins of ancient civilizations, and he loves the ceremonial aspect of warfare, particularly the parades which denote triumph. He is a patriot, yes, but not blindly. He is essentially an American second and a soldier first and he loves nothing more than good soldiering regardless of what side it comes from.

The structure of Patton, which runs nearly 3 hours and covers an amazing number of events, consists of a big rise, a big fall, a resurrection and then a quiet denouement. In the first act, Patton is triumphant, pummeling the Nazis in North Africa and then leading his forces through Sicily to beat his rival, British General Montgomery, to Messina. Shortly thereafter, however, he discovers that his skill as a soldier is no match for his lack of finesse as a politician and he finds himself being censured time and again for various mistakes and facing the very real threat of being sent home before the end of the war. Patton swallows his pride, he controls his temper, he follows the orders he’s given and longs for the glory which seems just within his reach if only he can be allowed to make a grab for it. He finally gets his chance and smashes through the Nazis and into Germany but, triumph in war in the 20th century is not like the triumph that Roman conquerors knew and it is with a degree of sadness that Patton accomplishes his goal and fades quietly into history.

As played by George C. Scott (who won and famously refused the Best Actor Oscar for his efforts), Patton is a man of many flaws who is, nevertheless, rather admirable. He is skilled at what he does, though occasionally blinded by his desire to be a star and take his place amongst the great warriors of history. So enamored is he with the idea of history that he sometimes seems to forget that real men are dying in order for him to make a splash as a leader, and even when this fact is pointed out to him, he still insists on pressing on, certain that his way is the right way. At the same time, however, he openly acknowledges that he’s a prima donna and that when it comes to the political side of things, he’s his own worst enemy. He knows how flawed he is but believes that he’s destined for greatness and his struggle to contain himself so that he can achieve those great things is what makes him such a compelling character.

The story covers a great deal of ground but is well paced and never drags. I don’t know that it necessarily needs the handful of scenes which take place behind enemy lines and show the Nazi officers discussing and admiring Patton, but the inclusion of these scenes certainly doesn’t feel like an indulgence on the part of director Franklin J. Schaffner. Throughout the film Schaffner demonstrates a commendable command of the subject and never lets the larger-than-life protagonist run the film off the rails.