One of the things I've noticed while reading the national reviews of "The Firm" is that critics are taking note of the terrific performance by Wilford Brimley, who, of course, lives right here in the Beehive State.
But in mentioning that he was successfully cast against type, each and every critic has made a comparison to Brimley's TV commercials for Quaker Oats . . . you know, those ads where he says, "It's the right thing to do."And that's understandable, I guess - except that each and every one has also overlooked Brimley's wonderful body of film work, which seems a serious slight. After all, he is really cast against type because he usually plays warm, grandfatherly characters in movies!
Have they already forgotten Brimley's rooted and realistic performances - which were real highlights - in "The China Syndrome," "Tender Mercies," "The Natural," "Country" and others? Not to mention his leading roles in the two "Cocoon" movies.
But if you really want to see Brimley at his best, hightail it to
your local video store and rent "Absence of Malice" and "The Stone Boy," two very fine all-star movies in which he handily steals the show.
In this day and age when character actors are not as valued as they once were, let's hope "The Firm" brings Brimley some more juicy film roles.
- GARY & MICK (Gary Zane and Mick Mackay), the morning guys on FM radio's Variety 98.7, asked their listeners the other day to "name the movie that best describes your love life."
They got some pretty funny answers:
- One of the best was a woman who said she had been through several divorces. She suggested "Rocky" - and its four sequels.
- Another woman said she was waiting for the "Last Action Hero."
- Someone suggested Shawn Bradley's girlfriend could be "Attack of the 50-Foot Woman."
- One guy said his relationship was "King Kong vs. Godzilla."
- "Alien," "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly," "What's Love Got to Do With It" and "Night of the Living Dead" were popular choices.
- Another said, "Under Siege."
- And Gary's was "Sleeper."
- But my favorite was "Home Alone."
- ONE OF THE movie cliches I find myself constantly complaining about these days - one of those "things I'd like to never see again" - is the inevitable scene where a man, usually (but not always) a villain, gets hit or kicked between the legs.
And it's become such a common part of movies these days that when it doesn't happen, I'm surprised.
The films that employ this violent act as a comic device are uncountable - the most recent being "Son-in-Law," "Dennis the Menace" and "Last Action Hero."
Generally, the result is benign - the victim grimaces broadly for the camera but then returns to the film's action immediately thereafter.
The first couple of times I saw this in a movie, I probably laughed like the rest of the audience. But nowadays it happens so often that I simply sigh, roll my eyes and knock a star or two off of my rating.
Oddly enough, as if to address the issue, a new film in town is plotted almost entirely around this very act of violence.
What sets this film apart, aside from the fact that the act itself is not played for laughs - and is never shown, as the movie begins immediately afterward - is the physical result of the act. The victim is in great pain, visits a doctor and finds himself bedridden for a time.
Then, his pregnant wife spends the rest of the movie attempting to gain some form of justice for what has happened to her husband.
Well, it's about time. Now maybe this idiotic cliche will at last be put to rest.
On the other hand, since it's not a big-budget Hollywood picture that will be seen by a huge audience, maybe it won't.
The film is "The Story of Qiu Ju," playing at the Tower Theater. And, of course, it's from China.
You didn't think an American film would get serious about an issue like this, did you?
- SO, WHAT'S WITH movies that no longer begin with articles.
Why is it "Last Action Hero," instead of "The Last Action Hero"?
And why is it "Son-in-Law," instead of "The Son-in-Law"?
With this odd trend, I'm surprised the new Tom Cruise movie isn't simply titled "Firm."
- QUOTE OF THE WEEK: Wilford Brimley:
"I'm never the leading man. I never get the girl. And I never get to take my shirt off. I started by playing fathers to guys who were 25 years older than I was."
- QUOTE OF THE WEEK II: Sydney Pollack, director of "The Firm" and other hits, who had his biggest flop with "Havana" a couple of years ago:
"I didn't do anything differently in `Havana' than I did in `Out of Africa' or `Tootsie.' I tell you, if I had to make `Havana' all over again - whatever its mistakes - I would have made them all over again."