December 2008 Archives

Yes, there have been a thousand parodies of "A Christmas Carol," but one I had never heard of was a movie that came out last fall for about a nanosecond, the gentle satire "An American Carol." From the director of lampoons such as "Naked Gun: The Final Insult" this movie humorously , though not always brilliantly, blends Hollywood, politiics , terrorists, and a certain brand of patriotism, which makes it my must-see DVD pick of the week.

"An American Carol" is also my vote for one of the most overlooked movies of the year. I believe there aren't enough movies that parody Michael Moore as a film director/ Scrooge who realizes the error of his point of view and saves the world from terrorists while attending a Trace Adkins concert. (If that last sentence didn't make you grin just a smidge, then you should just rent "When Harry Met Sally" for New Year's instead.)

When I decided to do a list of top 10 Jewish movie characters, I got to #4 and then stopped. Jews and pop culture are my thing...why could I only come up with four, with one of them being Yentl?? You could also award a slot to Sir Ben Kingsley, your go-to for Jews. His portrayals of Jewish characters make a lasting impact onscreen, from "Schindler's List" to "Lucky Number Slevin." Still, 10 memorable characters?

I turned to my Facebook friends for help in jogging my memory.  They recommended many characters I hadn't thought of in movies I haven't seen: Masha in "Enemies: A Love Story," Harry Lime in "The Third Man," Arnold Friedman in "Capturing the Friedmans," and Vin Diesel's character in "Knockaround Guys."

Then came the cult faves: Eric Shoenstein in "Animal House," Baby Houseman in "Dirty Dancing," Feivel Mousekewitz in "American Tail," Virgil Starkwell in "Take the Money and Run" (but oddly, no votes for Alvy Singer from "Annie Hall"), and Tevye from "Fiddler on the Roof." Ben Stiller's character in "Keeping the Faith" gets a nod from one friend who says, "I would have loved to have a rabbi like him!"

"Does Dr. Zoidberg from 'Futurama' count?" one fanboy asks, while another inquires about Magneto and Kitty Pryde from the "X-Men" series. If we include television, then "Dr. Joel Fleischman of 'Northern Exposure,'" says one person. "Jesus, from the 'Last Temptation of Christ,'" says notherafriend who always tries to select the most controversial choice.

After much consideration, here's the final list. Feel free to disagree vociferously and say who you would have picked instead.

1. Mordechai Jefferson Hammer from "The Hebrew Hammer" (Adam Goldberg) - He gets the #1 position for being the most frequently referenced character in the myriad answers provided by mi amigos de Facebook. Also, it's funny that the actor's name is almost as Jewish as the character he plays, even though Goldberg is not Jewish.

Okay, I promise (maybe) that this is my last post (or, one of my last posts) about "Twilight" for 2008. (Of course, as you know, 2008 ends Wednesday night, bringing a whole near year of possibilities...)

I couldn't resist mentioning this little factoid that I saw in the article, "Twilight Was Bigger than Dark Knight?!" on E! Online, which states the following:

With a $167.3 million overall domestic take as of Sunday, per Box Office Mojo, "Twilight" made more than four times its reported $37 million production budget--the best rate of return on any film in the 2008 Top 10, including "The Dark Knight."

"The Dark Night" technically made more money ($185 million budget with a $530.8 million domestic take), but "Twilight" did better in terms of investment for profit. "Twilight" was even #8 on the list of Top 10 Grossing Films of 2008.

Hurray for vampires, Edward, and Bella!

"Slumdog Millionaire" has certainly made it to many end-of-the-year top 10 movie lists and even here at Idol Chatter there has been heaps of praise for its inspirational storyline. 

So, when I finally braved yet another snowstorm to go see it, I was not only disappointed in the film, but I also realized I was now going to seem like a heartless Scrooge for criticizing thie numerous flaws of this movie.  While the premise is somewhat clever, the story is not entirely successful as a romantic drama, a social commentary, or even a root-for-the-underdog melodrama.

The American Film Institute recently named its Top 100 Most Inspiring Films of All Time. I wish there was an Academy Award for the Most Inspiring Film of each year.

Here are 14 of my favorite inspiring films of all time, in order of release date. (See here also for my list of Top 10 Most Inspiring Films of 2008.)

1. Casablanca (1942) - The best kind of inspiring film: it didn't seem like it was trying to be one. That is, until the tragic hero becomes the pathetic anti-hero and then becomes the redemptive hero!

2. It's a Wonderful Life (1946) - Hard to top this classic. I'm glad it only plays around Christmastime--I can't help but get misty at every viewing.

3. The Sting (1973) - Okay, to some it's a gentle comedy about con men in a prior time, but to me it was a buddy flick that showed the power of being buddies, loyalty, doing what you're good at, and the stakes of getting caught. It kept me out of a lot of trouble, too!