TIMOTHY HUTTON & SEAN PENN 'THE FALCON AND THE SHOWMAN'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-AQBvAnYV-54Yh9OoDGIL7ybsv0hIuWp_M0wATdw2f4LK5M20b2KafvQs5ABrw1N75VifoPfLnVBplYxXN_2HgF6cHa7eDsNnGzIsmH6AgQeSSkCOQrBlp-nnk0c42MU2PSyeNMK2ny30K05QMTFaA5LwComPHBaPw8ch8X-ZAZPpv97DLbPoezhElG6L/s1310/1111.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="706" data-original-width="1310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-AQBvAnYV-54Yh9OoDGIL7ybsv0hIuWp_M0wATdw2f4LK5M20b2KafvQs5ABrw1N75VifoPfLnVBplYxXN_2HgF6cHa7eDsNnGzIsmH6AgQeSSkCOQrBlp-nnk0c42MU2PSyeNMK2ny30K05QMTFaA5LwComPHBaPw8ch8X-ZAZPpv97DLbPoezhElG6L/s16000/1111.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Sean Penn in THE FALCON AND THE SNOWMAN Year: 1983 Rating: ***1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>In THE FALCON AND THE SNOWMAN, about two young California-born former-Alter-boy rich kids who wound up selling secret documents to the Russians, Timothy Hutton — who won an Oscar for ORDINARY PEOPLE — had the chance to play the role of a lifetime since Christopher Boyce, working within the CIA before his capture, had already broken out of jail and robbed 17 banks before the source biography/novel became a motion picture...</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>But instead of playing Boyce as the sneakily charming sociopath he really was, director John Schlesinger reveals him as a starry-eyed pacifist while his TAPS co-star Sean Penn, as drug dealing partner Andrew Lee Daulton, not only does the real work but (practically alone) ignites the most suspenseful scenes...</p><span></span>

biopic, chris makepeace, dorian harewood, eighties, sean penn, thriller, timothy hutton

TIMOTHY HUTTON & SEAN PENN 'THE FALCON AND THE SHOWMAN'

Sean Penn in THE FALCON AND THE SNOWMAN Year: 1983 Rating: ***1/2 In THE FALCON AND THE SNOWMAN, about two young California-born former-Alte...

TIMOTHY HUTTON WITH SEAN PENN AND TOM CRUISE IN 'TAPS'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVEw-AtfQVEwxvY2k0TUv9spY6y-KFbW3wV9ZgeUDSBfMAQkcTNIB0O3_Vnp-pmbG2a7FTbD5pcr4RREIpsoHHpYAjwo03nU1dNhDyOD795vqsH5XyDd22qUUu_RykJDJvS73mA31Iwkiag5CECKejPCoL4fNSt_2PUzA_JLXaYf3skFQeEcS_GqQQgFSA/s2272/1%204.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1260" data-original-width="2272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVEw-AtfQVEwxvY2k0TUv9spY6y-KFbW3wV9ZgeUDSBfMAQkcTNIB0O3_Vnp-pmbG2a7FTbD5pcr4RREIpsoHHpYAjwo03nU1dNhDyOD795vqsH5XyDd22qUUu_RykJDJvS73mA31Iwkiag5CECKejPCoL4fNSt_2PUzA_JLXaYf3skFQeEcS_GqQQgFSA/s16000/1%204.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Sean Penn and Giancarlo Esposito in TAPS Year: 1981 Rating: ****</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Harold Becker's TAPS is perhaps the only movie where Tom Cruise isn't cheered at the end... in fact  he's downright despised for what he causes, underlining how well this involving, thoroughly compelling yet somewhat farfetched military-academy drama fleshes out the characters, and there are many... but four really matter...</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Cruise is the extreme military-minded David Shawn, fervently following orders of Timothy Hutton's Brian Moreland, whose initial catapulting mentor is first-billed George C. Scott, sharing first-act experience-filled monologues about the honorary tradition of the central location: an academy that's soon to be turned into condominiums...<br></p><p><span></span></p>

action, eighties, evan handler, gary mccleery, george c. scott, giancarlo esposito, harold becker, john p. navin jr., military academy, ronny cox, sean penn, teen, thriller, timothy hutton, tom cruise

TIMOTHY HUTTON WITH SEAN PENN AND TOM CRUISE IN 'TAPS'

Sean Penn and Giancarlo Esposito in TAPS Year: 1981 Rating: **** Harold Becker's TAPS is perhaps the only movie where Tom Cruise isn...

SMOKING THROUGH A YEAR OF 'FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMONT HIGH'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgutVLa6X_oHDkCqFwWl8utOidJnWitVUHkavNGbMxuxmME2OFppKW73Mt42DDrNa6r70hW93GEdMpUhh-WS5mQgG2nms-Jivlt5ZIkvnpPIHyyHohd79o3qepRt5gfcQoHRAMSAVyHbVI9aSmwy_Ov-kARco4BCa-bZxnGUn9O410OBhzH6T_KWYJ4TkFz/s1118/362282388_1772987636463738_1630293739962888312_n.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="582" data-original-width="1118" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgutVLa6X_oHDkCqFwWl8utOidJnWitVUHkavNGbMxuxmME2OFppKW73Mt42DDrNa6r70hW93GEdMpUhh-WS5mQgG2nms-Jivlt5ZIkvnpPIHyyHohd79o3qepRt5gfcQoHRAMSAVyHbVI9aSmwy_Ov-kARco4BCa-bZxnGUn9O410OBhzH6T_KWYJ4TkFz/s16000/362282388_1772987636463738_1630293739962888312_n.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Sean Penn flanked by Anthony Edwards & Eric Stoltz in FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMONT HIGH Year: 1982 Rates: ****1/2</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>The 1982 Cult Classic FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMONT HIGH only sporadically features first-billed, poster-laden Sean Penn as now-legendary surfer/stoner Jeff Spicoli since Amy Heckerling's year-at-school movie based on Cameron Crowe's year-at-school novel's mostly about Jennifer Jason Leigh as freshman Stacy Hamilton, along with Judge Reinhold as her extremely likeable older brother senior Brad Hamilton... </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>And on almost equal footing are two thankless roles by young unknown character-actors <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2010/03/robert-romanus-fast-times-at-ridgemont.html">Robert Romanus</a> as confidently manipulative ticket-scalper Mike Damone and his geeky sidekick in Brian Backer's Mark "Rat" Ratner...</p><p><span></span></p>

brian backer, eighties, high school, jennifer jason leigh, judge reinhold, phoebe cates, robert romanus, scott thomson, sean penn, sex comedy, tom petty

SMOKING THROUGH A YEAR OF 'FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMONT HIGH'

Sean Penn flanked by Anthony Edwards & Eric Stoltz in FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMONT HIGH Year: 1982 Rates: ****1/2 The 1982 Cult Classic FAST ...

SEAN PENN WITH ESAI MORALES IN RICK ROSENTHAL'S 'BAD BOYS'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoatKSNqK0GU1SrP-MUVQSYVdo53hSNa5Ss1SHlp_XzxGRbIsQtI3ZVfPKCZBx-D7VHP33xigqvqSgT37JnGZwgVb9KaqRoDGI4cq4Xiw4PQPDSU7Av_-gde3vV3bBh0Ax2jdHRG8x0iEyyAIxZBmMoETepPt43TTQIPPCbN350taniJ_tRoq9m58zZsHn/s2434/moreblue%202.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1514" data-original-width="2434" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoatKSNqK0GU1SrP-MUVQSYVdo53hSNa5Ss1SHlp_XzxGRbIsQtI3ZVfPKCZBx-D7VHP33xigqvqSgT37JnGZwgVb9KaqRoDGI4cq4Xiw4PQPDSU7Av_-gde3vV3bBh0Ax2jdHRG8x0iEyyAIxZBmMoETepPt43TTQIPPCbN350taniJ_tRoq9m58zZsHn/s16000/moreblue%202.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Sean Penn from the soundtrack cover of Rick Rosenthal's BAD BOYS Year: 1983 Rating: *****</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>In 1983, between playing a poignantly-logical, well-read military academy student in TAPS; a fan-favorite, classic-quote-spouting stoner in <a href="http://www.cultfilmfreaks.com/2021/11/fast-times.html">FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMONT HIGH</a>; and a rambling, high-strung, coke-dealing spy in THE FALCON AND THE SNOWMAN, director Rick Rothenthal provided Sean Penn his greatest, most authentic performance in BAD BOYS where ironically, driven by an intensely defiant glare, he hardly speaks at all...</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>As the first act takes place in the crime-ridden night-streets involving a Spanish vs black gang's big-money drug-deal as O'Brien and naive pal Alan Ruck attempt snaking the spoils, leading to the death of the little brother of Esai Morales's Paco Moreno, who intensely bookends the movie's revenge-driven main antagonist spot and yet, during the primary lockup scenes in a severe youth reformatory straight from the previous decade's gritty and uncompromising, steadicam-gliding, rock/funk-blasting exploitation era, it's Clancy Brown and Robert Lee Rush as violent/raping versions of high school bullies that terrorized 1980's cinema...</p><span></span>

action, alan ruck, ally sheedy, clancy brown, cult, eighties, exploitation, jason gedrick, prison, reni santoni, rich rothenthal, sean penn

SEAN PENN WITH ESAI MORALES IN RICK ROSENTHAL'S 'BAD BOYS'

Sean Penn from the soundtrack cover of Rick Rosenthal's BAD BOYS Year: 1983 Rating: ***** In 1983, between playing a poignantly-logical,...

SEAN PENN DIRECTS VIGGO MORTENSEN IN 'THE INDIAN RUNNER'

<p></p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirHNpD96Jo2YLx8mSKzZ6SGbveUJbylpPHbj0460JA5Zg1DiaNytShQl7X9NHiHvbn8jyaG8-snmGPfOhu3EwokYWJyVooL-iK7MacLS1ZdSwRg6Ig-z0WomwsLjsctoJ5QduvkPsNE9J6ALoZJMdqNlL7qwOjlZlfbhU3DB5m6NZ8wMQpvnRQaeXQY9V-/s1962/Screen%20Shot%202023-07-14%20at%203.55.44%20PM.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="984" data-original-width="1962" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirHNpD96Jo2YLx8mSKzZ6SGbveUJbylpPHbj0460JA5Zg1DiaNytShQl7X9NHiHvbn8jyaG8-snmGPfOhu3EwokYWJyVooL-iK7MacLS1ZdSwRg6Ig-z0WomwsLjsctoJ5QduvkPsNE9J6ALoZJMdqNlL7qwOjlZlfbhU3DB5m6NZ8wMQpvnRQaeXQY9V-/s16000/Screen%20Shot%202023-07-14%20at%203.55.44%20PM.jpeg"></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Title: THE INDIAN RUNNER Year: 1993 Rating: ****</u></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Sean Penn wrote and directed THE INDIAN RUNNER about two brothers that couldn't be more different: the central lead is David Morse as Joe Roberts, a humble cop in a small town the movie's set, deliberately outshined by the focal point for both the audience and Joe himself...  </p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>Enter Viggo Mortensen as the scene-stealing ex-con rebel Frank, visually a perfect-looking Marlboro Man with a sleazy antagonistic voice, he's one of those harsh, uncompromising born-losers that hurts everyone and everything, making RUNNER his own character-driven tragedy that, during the Vietnam war, also makes him a jilted returning-veteran: although the time-period aspect seems a bit forced and unnecessary...</p><p><span></span></p>

charles bronson, david morse, dennis hopper, drama, jordan rhodes, melodrama, nineties, patricia arquette, sean penn, vietnam, viggo mortensen

SEAN PENN DIRECTS VIGGO MORTENSEN IN 'THE INDIAN RUNNER'

Title: THE INDIAN RUNNER Year: 1993 Rating: **** Sean Penn wrote and directed THE INDIAN RUNNER about two brothers that couldn't be more...

PENN STUCK IN STONE'S DESERT NOIR U-TURN

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8yikfXySkgtUv-WtUs9bdzx-FVUniKuDlEn7fZzn6Msccn0ZM3RLODuJtQBQiBtGul9knj_bla3TCNI38dzZcPyt6mn92mKlJNyEeZIx6edbLMSFMTT3nsttimgb1xXP5-snjlkjuA0g/s1600/3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8yikfXySkgtUv-WtUs9bdzx-FVUniKuDlEn7fZzn6Msccn0ZM3RLODuJtQBQiBtGul9knj_bla3TCNI38dzZcPyt6mn92mKlJNyEeZIx6edbLMSFMTT3nsttimgb1xXP5-snjlkjuA0g/s1600/3.jpg"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Sean Penn phones in Oliver Stone's mindtrip neo noir excursion within a small town purgatory Year Released: 1997</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> "If I were a bird," says Jennifer Lopez's lovely U-TURN ingenue, "I'd fly to Disney World, Florida." This as she walks slowly up towards a cliff as Sean Penn, falling in love or perhaps, already having fallen, is right behind her, beforehand given a task to, basically, make the word <i>fallen</i> literal. "I've never been there," she finishes. And with dialogue like this, it's Oliver Stone that needs pushing...<br>

billy bob thorton, claire danes, jennifer lopez, joaquin phoenix, jon voight, julie hagerty, neo noir, nick nolte, nineties, oliver stone, sean penn

PENN STUCK IN STONE'S DESERT NOIR U-TURN

Sean Penn phones in Oliver Stone's mindtrip neo noir excursion within a small town purgatory Year Released: 1997 "If I were a b...

THE FALCON AND THE SNOWMAN

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdaqUuoOaXR0zjYpE08TDLXKs0FjyZgIUZBMyh3ib5VW14333Ps-4LYTNjjCyM8HRMb0yRSXyBDTPR6YLT50TelbKOJB7q_2diRez9kYs38PNsl7ZKTKTxKzY09_ceqU_DluqrmFSLiUY/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdaqUuoOaXR0zjYpE08TDLXKs0FjyZgIUZBMyh3ib5VW14333Ps-4LYTNjjCyM8HRMb0yRSXyBDTPR6YLT50TelbKOJB7q_2diRez9kYs38PNsl7ZKTKTxKzY09_ceqU_DluqrmFSLiUY/s1600/1.jpg"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>FALCON AND THE SNOWMAN turns Timothy Hutton & Sean Penn's spoiled traitors into demi gods... but good</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> It takes Hollywood to make two spies ragged, endearing heroes: one a drug dealer and one who has an entire second book (mentioned later) based on his escapades after escaping from jail after his capture as an American turned Russian spy in the first book/movie, THE FALCON AND THE SNOWMAN starring young TAPS veterans Timothy Hutton and Sean Penn as Christopher Boyce and Daulton Lee; the first a monastery dropout whose father worked security for the FBI (Pat Hingle) and the second a mobile drug dealer, both born with silver spoons blinding their logic, vision, and, depending on your politics, reason.<br>

biography, eighties, politics, sean penn, spy, timothy hutton

THE FALCON AND THE SNOWMAN

FALCON AND THE SNOWMAN turns Timothy Hutton & Sean Penn's spoiled traitors into demi gods... but good It takes Hollywood to make...

SEAN PENN STARRING IN THE GUNMAN

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFLT7sl_aDLORrpUDrbtzyaqgBxVMfEKd9XFFzFAgO5MFRnlV6XC6FJd206bmjFLSQIbu7K63WqnsXVE4Lifm-aeiZEVa21bSFxpfPOuc7u_mL1YX5bUCC46Whpt9eu92czsq6BegpV1o/s1600/The-Gunman-Poster-Sean-Penn.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFLT7sl_aDLORrpUDrbtzyaqgBxVMfEKd9XFFzFAgO5MFRnlV6XC6FJd206bmjFLSQIbu7K63WqnsXVE4Lifm-aeiZEVa21bSFxpfPOuc7u_mL1YX5bUCC46Whpt9eu92czsq6BegpV1o/s400/The-Gunman-Poster-Sean-Penn.jpg" width="247" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2015 rating: **</td></tr> </tbody></table> Seems odd Sean Penn would want to go high-octane mainstream on us. Or that the TAKEN director would gamble this particularly risky leading man for a weekend action thriller. But the opening credits may shed some light on the matter since Penn co-scripted (based on a novel) and produced THE GUNMAN… Could it be that Pierre Morel was Sean's personal choice to direct a familiar story about a resilient American professional, working overseas, turned straight and (most likely) hunted by the people he worked for? <br /> <br /> To fit within Penn’s personal niche, there’s a backdrop of politics having to do with aiding an impoverished nation; idealist by day, killing machine by night. And yet Penn’s Terrier (not his dog, that’s his name) is only half into the job. One quick scene shows the titular assassin taking out a prime figurehead in the Congo, where his otherwise vicious heart genuinely bleeds for the cause and, most important, he has a beautiful local girlfriend, which makes it harder to vanish after the job's done – leading to an attempt on his life followed by several action sequences highlighting our man’s ability to get out of any painted corner: Meanwhile, Steamy bedroom sequences exploit Penn’s muscular build, contrasting to a thoroughly aged, map-lined face with enough visible mileage for the gritty occupation to seem believable, and his former cohorts... lovably tough Ray Winstone aside... are so Capitalist-crooked and predictably double-crossing, it’s no wonder he wanted out in the first place. But the big problem is: we never venture far enough into that much-discussed sordid past for the desperation of the present time to mean anything.

2015, action, javier bardem, sean penn

SEAN PENN STARRING IN THE GUNMAN

year: 2015 rating: ** Seems odd Sean Penn would want to go high-octane mainstream on us. Or that the TAKEN director would gamble this pa...

FAST TIME TAPS AT THE KILLING OF RANDY WEBSTER

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3nnlo42_fCAdMoAX359IR15r84QFLEGEUkSDy1w3OUCtUVMmAzEtij1GQu4gzDOg9JT07pnFQdyYjByoA4IjwFHaznYN_yk8ve0WkiSy2WS6ryxWYhqsQiSLmqX6kTSOyOWNzD9LOqNc/s1600/3749794-l.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3nnlo42_fCAdMoAX359IR15r84QFLEGEUkSDy1w3OUCtUVMmAzEtij1GQu4gzDOg9JT07pnFQdyYjByoA4IjwFHaznYN_yk8ve0WkiSy2WS6ryxWYhqsQiSLmqX6kTSOyOWNzD9LOqNc/s320/3749794-l.jpg" width="273" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1981 rating: ***</td></tr> </tbody></table> THE KILLING OF RANDY WEBSTER<b> </b>is an obscure television movie featuring three budding talents who would, one year later, be found having FAST TIMES AT RIDGEMONT HIGH…<br /> <br /> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6f_kDP761rNCTO0SuaNEJMFEOWOIJPDYnXO_Rw40KDPg9sRFRuBBjdkUiCMROwAfEbjpYLVl01LdPu_dm6OtAh0ztTZZbsMPIskCS-_3h3I9xGQrbnNI3eK-bH6k809Tij5s7UOVape0/s1600/seanpenn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6f_kDP761rNCTO0SuaNEJMFEOWOIJPDYnXO_Rw40KDPg9sRFRuBBjdkUiCMROwAfEbjpYLVl01LdPu_dm6OtAh0ztTZZbsMPIskCS-_3h3I9xGQrbnNI3eK-bH6k809Tij5s7UOVape0/s1600/seanpenn.jpg" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fast Times Duo</td></tr> </tbody></table> That being Sean Penn, who plays Don, the title character’s best friend, who, like Penn’s character in RACING WITH THE MOON, is on the ecstatic verge of joining the military…<br /> <br /> And Jennifer Jason Leigh as the brooding, semi love interest and Anthony Edwards as another of Randy’s pals, only more rebellious… In fact, Edwards’ Tommy was there the night Randy Webster, a troubled teen who desperately yearns for his father’s attention, steals a brand new van by driving through the showroom glass – all while a groovy rock track blares triumphantly, bringing us back to the early 1980's, still reminiscent of the freewheeling 70's. <br /> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> The first half of RANDY WEBSTER is the most entertaining – before centering entirely on Hal Holbrook’s John Webster, Randy’s grumpy father, who hadn’t a nice word for the troubled, wayward teen: not even when his son signs up for the Navy to follow in dad's footsteps. The chemistry between Holbrook and Randy himself, played by Gary McCleery, is fitfully non-existent: Holbrook's love for his only child would blossom after the untimely death.<br /> <br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPUgVnz8eDQG813m1cvH0qaFyxyYCwqbAskraseP68yd5UPyTVRPLHt7Szc6XFaSJVtTrFh4E8l8nPlvk6c4z2shVMaaG0a1RS4tgOpmeuzZ_BdspP66qeO6L2HxDTHFczn59Sjz80yfQ/s1600/r3.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="154" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPUgVnz8eDQG813m1cvH0qaFyxyYCwqbAskraseP68yd5UPyTVRPLHt7Szc6XFaSJVtTrFh4E8l8nPlvk6c4z2shVMaaG0a1RS4tgOpmeuzZ_BdspP66qeO6L2HxDTHFczn59Sjz80yfQ/s200/r3.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jennifer Jason Leigh</td></tr> </tbody></table> McCleery was the local smack-talking, dance-crashing “townie” in TAPS (which also starred Sean Penn, and the second movie in which McCleery’s character is shot by an authority figure, catapulting each storyline)... He plays Randy with the kind of intense energy that pleads to be remembered...<br /> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <br /> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjccHbaj0nWkOKv4ZZyZAJZTK2QGB4wCOpn0SG4HobuJQsSVZfpAOvJczC0gO-bd9TIH3MMQcbByOx6CrPTgZT99rtFEllmYi_S5KMvXO9r45VH9XKrrYOI6dcLSTRtKOfLLUybgEKvhGU/s1600/r5.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="149" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjccHbaj0nWkOKv4ZZyZAJZTK2QGB4wCOpn0SG4HobuJQsSVZfpAOvJczC0gO-bd9TIH3MMQcbByOx6CrPTgZT99rtFEllmYi_S5KMvXO9r45VH9XKrrYOI6dcLSTRtKOfLLUybgEKvhGU/s200/r5.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sean Penn</td></tr> </tbody></table> After all, this is a movie about an eventual slaying that, initially reported as defensive by the Houston police department, winds up, as Holbrook’s John investigates further, being yet another “shoot first, ask questions later” situation, supposedly common in this particular Texas area: And here’s where a story full of youthful promise and energy becomes somewhat of an agenda piece, meandering in and out of cold police stations and stuffy courtrooms. That’s not saying the true-life tale doesn’t hold up, but the drive and purpose, like the real Randy Webster, leaves us far too soon: With all the rock music, reckless rebellion and those FAST TIMES actors surrounding our edgy focal point, we really missed out on a party: perhaps if Randy stayed with us a little while longer, the posthumous investigation would mean a lot more to those beyond the family.<br /> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIDc5WQ3P5iPNn3tl4ZOm9JQqy2T7MFpkmN9Cnh8zQ_UJyWAHsSGOJLCFbN3NF0Asg8fbcdNQB_44qoSrsy9ioKMwxu0CkyPKlqaqsHgR5HD7ZqeByGGc5a_XaJtZKI-6IeGmbICxfvWc/s1600/taps.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="356" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIDc5WQ3P5iPNn3tl4ZOm9JQqy2T7MFpkmN9Cnh8zQ_UJyWAHsSGOJLCFbN3NF0Asg8fbcdNQB_44qoSrsy9ioKMwxu0CkyPKlqaqsHgR5HD7ZqeByGGc5a_XaJtZKI-6IeGmbICxfvWc/s1600/taps.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gary McCleery's local townie mouthing-off in TAPS</td></tr> </tbody></table> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYeTQ87ioGxLjVo6Juhg0Or-dImnW1WqGFnfTJXswTSYoFC8SSMO2MWMuCAv49oRSChyyr5gS8HltJ96HyExhD8cAoqkn_foDXg7adzXJFxtxtSTj379jniTeld3w5sXJpv8aB2x9bGPI/s1600/r6.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYeTQ87ioGxLjVo6Juhg0Or-dImnW1WqGFnfTJXswTSYoFC8SSMO2MWMuCAv49oRSChyyr5gS8HltJ96HyExhD8cAoqkn_foDXg7adzXJFxtxtSTj379jniTeld3w5sXJpv8aB2x9bGPI/s1600/r6.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gary McCleery as the title character in THE KILLING OF RANDY WEBSTER</td></tr> </tbody></table> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibjJ7eV77o90V24C0Q5TyNTIN5xnbNyFGT1-r8y390AdD9lc-zHJZgaTh2Dia_8z7765MAMtXb1ZlhsUBgN80WxBToGcyJTfo9wn01wH59mOSgp3H8aVsGWxQZb4fAzVRxUzWINaWmYUc/s1600/r4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="466" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibjJ7eV77o90V24C0Q5TyNTIN5xnbNyFGT1-r8y390AdD9lc-zHJZgaTh2Dia_8z7765MAMtXb1ZlhsUBgN80WxBToGcyJTfo9wn01wH59mOSgp3H8aVsGWxQZb4fAzVRxUzWINaWmYUc/s1600/r4.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gary McCleery with future RIDGEMONT HIGH pupils Jennifer Jason Leigh and Sean Penn</td></tr> </tbody></table> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div>

chris mulkey, dixie carter, eighties, gary mccleery, hal holbrook, james whitmore jr, jennifer jason leigh, sean penn, tv movie

FAST TIME TAPS AT THE KILLING OF RANDY WEBSTER

1981 rating: *** THE KILLING OF RANDY WEBSTER is an obscure television movie featuring three budding talents who would, one year later,...

THE SECRET LIFE OF WALTER MITTY WITH BEN STILLER

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitjtUryLrxngKSVUa62Ep0aWgcBlkCBRVg3rNc9qXIAjeKdPvMtgh0irao8eahCjIFQ28xCzeXzleUny3ExSUAsA_qm7mqVbwQNtTF6OY2PUmHOgTGe4aeeW9l6h5IDOIuOx5mDc7KJxY/s1600/secret-life-of-walter-mitty-ben-stiller-585x323.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitjtUryLrxngKSVUa62Ep0aWgcBlkCBRVg3rNc9qXIAjeKdPvMtgh0irao8eahCjIFQ28xCzeXzleUny3ExSUAsA_qm7mqVbwQNtTF6OY2PUmHOgTGe4aeeW9l6h5IDOIuOx5mDc7KJxY/s200/secret-life-of-walter-mitty-ben-stiller-585x323.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2013 rating: **1/2</td></tr> </tbody></table> The secret of Walter Mitty’s life is that he daydreams a lot: From walking out of snowy photographs as an intrepid mountain climber, to beating up his new "boss" in an elevator, to comic-book-battling the same bearded weenie in the streets of New York, Walter always lets his imagination get the best of him: You can say it defines his entire character. With more cerebral experiences than actual ones, he even has trouble filling out a dating website resume.<br /> <br /> Based on a short story and rebooted from a classic Danny Kaye film, THE SECRET LIFE OF WALTER MITTY stars actor/director Ben Stiller in the title role: a passive man whose daydreams keep him distracted until something real happens. Working for the soon defunct LIFE magazine, a negative to what’s to be the last cover is lost… So right as we’re getting to know the man through his creative reveries, Walter cuts loose on a real adventure. To find the missing picture he treks in search of Sean Penn’s Sean O’Connell, an intrepid globe-trotting LIFE photographer, and winds up in both Greenland and Iceland: battling sharks, riding a skateboard down a gorgeous mountain road, and much too easily connecting (via cell phone) to his <i>dream</i> girl. Not only is the original theme a thing of the past, it’s difficult to tell what’s real, what's in his mind or, at this point, if that device even matters.<br /> <br /> It’s fine to make a big budget arthouse film about discovering one self through an existential journey, but why did those daydreams happen at all? During the second half of MITTY, his wild imagination became something looked back on in melancholy shame, and yet Walter’s secret life was the best thing he had going. 

2013, ben stiller, kristen wiig, sean penn

THE SECRET LIFE OF WALTER MITTY WITH BEN STILLER

year: 2013 rating: **1/2 The secret of Walter Mitty’s life is that he daydreams a lot: From walking out of snowy photographs as an intre...

SEAN PENN FINDS THE CURE IN THIS MUST BE THE PLACE

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl-6WOUR-8WFakfCag0q9ipBLy1OeJeAhHlDdD5rjKZtcWVcS_hP_pzriSw7bqfcLSseCtGZHJNfW4Vu1d7YiIIhnO6Bcp4iabMDBOLtRsoP-Rym5F5fJv0pPUU9n9tkN7tz11J8UfE_cF/s1600/place1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="350" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl-6WOUR-8WFakfCag0q9ipBLy1OeJeAhHlDdD5rjKZtcWVcS_hP_pzriSw7bqfcLSseCtGZHJNfW4Vu1d7YiIIhnO6Bcp4iabMDBOLtRsoP-Rym5F5fJv0pPUU9n9tkN7tz11J8UfE_cF/s640/place1.png" width="640" ya="true" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2011 cast: Sean Penn, Judd Hirsch, Frances McDormand, Joyce Van Patten rating: ***1/2</td></tr> </tbody></table> In case you’re wondering, Sean Penn isn’t playing Robert Smith from THE CURE, but he sure as heck looks like him – an obviously intentional nod. With long black hair, flour white makeup and the countenance of a shocked deer in drag, Penn’s gothic, melancholy Cheyenne is a has-been alternative rock star who, living in Dublin with his wife… more like a mother, older sister and nurse rolled into one… is taking it very easy in his sluggish semi retirement.<br /> <div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"> <br /></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"> Penn's voice takes a little getting used to: Sounding like a cross between a medicated Michael J. Pollard and comedian Emo Philips (or simply imagine a brain damaged man child) while resembling a black sheep version of Dustin Hoffman in TOOTSIE, he doesn't seem like a real person. But maybe this was intentional to separate him from the other residents including Cheyenne’s pretty Goth girl/friend, whom he’s trying to set up with a naïve, not very hip young man.</div> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwVS_q0ZXO0CO1_zRuLqYknXUPeVsoQLZSltUNVELZW8wUb0NrICTxv2WopNkhUIpPBjzvL6Q0QPieJDbCcXKQYjl8D-vrZEKPz_X8MDePmRreasB964cLtS-TB2TNhQvAKOlp4MWr68bM/s1600/place2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="340" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwVS_q0ZXO0CO1_zRuLqYknXUPeVsoQLZSltUNVELZW8wUb0NrICTxv2WopNkhUIpPBjzvL6Q0QPieJDbCcXKQYjl8D-vrZEKPz_X8MDePmRreasB964cLtS-TB2TNhQvAKOlp4MWr68bM/s640/place2.png" width="640" ya="true" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wandering the lonely towns of America</td></tr> </tbody></table> <div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"> These first-act characters are interesting, and the Dublin scenes have the mellow, involving pace of a foreign film – but soon we’re transferred to America where THIS MUST BE THE PLACE becomes an ABOUT SCHMIDT (or in this case, ABOUT SMITH) style road movie where Cheyenne, recieving documents from his recently departed father... who was in a concentration camp in Germany during World War 2... embarks on a quest (that dad never completed) to find a Nazi living somewhere in the Midwest.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"> <br /></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"> Cheyenne's tranformation from a tongue-tied, jaded rock star – at odds with his own shadow – into a makeshift detective figuring out where the Nazi is located, brings Penn’s performance up a few notches. He also begins playing with people’s minds, subliminally in a Columbo fashion, adding a quirky sense of subtle, earthy humor to his prior mannequin countenance.</div> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5jSlkfAqoVNwmfLPqylVnmzg4v5qiPqGWO3JGWR633GmFmr1FudF_TjBEflltA4pdsrinc5rmCtSDppQVTN2pURow3EaA7vP5ED7oF6mdiIUFNThGJc7t8VIhk0jyj5Te7mi7cCmQdnf-/s1600/Picture+5.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="362" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5jSlkfAqoVNwmfLPqylVnmzg4v5qiPqGWO3JGWR633GmFmr1FudF_TjBEflltA4pdsrinc5rmCtSDppQVTN2pURow3EaA7vP5ED7oF6mdiIUFNThGJc7t8VIhk0jyj5Te7mi7cCmQdnf-/s640/Picture+5.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sean Penn and Harry Dean Stanton</td></tr> </tbody></table> <div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"> Unfortunately, scenes with the Nazi’s oblivious daughter and her overweight son slows down the pace: we end up forgetting about that search, which is ultimately anticlimactic during the third act when Cheyenne teams with an experienced Nazi Hunter played comfortably by Judd Hirsch.</div> <div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"> <br /></div> <div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"> A very pleasurable movie with creative direction and a few nice songs by the likes of Iggy Pop and of course David Byrne, whose breezy TALKING HEADS tune (also used predominantly in Oliver Stone’s WALL STREET) is what this underrated dark horse indie's named after.</div> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding-bottom: 6px; padding-left: 6px; padding-right: 6px; padding-top: 6px; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRa0iqemG99wcV1UbNMId8_pH8JEn5xaw0Gly0gnYqE4ZPS4vi5y7mUlxqLaBj0ynkKnkJ6h_y3FBRJoGTn95wYkhoijzp-8TdrEFSOvt8RBbVzX50LfDX_QSRyZW2luP0GouPBE1Gm7gE/s1600/Picture+3.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="364" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRa0iqemG99wcV1UbNMId8_pH8JEn5xaw0Gly0gnYqE4ZPS4vi5y7mUlxqLaBj0ynkKnkJ6h_y3FBRJoGTn95wYkhoijzp-8TdrEFSOvt8RBbVzX50LfDX_QSRyZW2luP0GouPBE1Gm7gE/s640/Picture+3.png" style="cursor: move;" width="640" /></a></div> </td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px; padding-top: 4px; text-align: center;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"> <a href="http://movies.netflix.com/WiMovie/70181626?strkid=486337602_1_0&trkid=222336&movieid=70181626">AVAILABLE TO RENT OR STREAM ON NETFLIX</a></div> </td></tr> </tbody></table>

frances mcdormand, harry dean stanton, indie, joyce van patten, judd hirsch, road movie, sean penn

SEAN PENN FINDS THE CURE IN THIS MUST BE THE PLACE

year: 2011 cast: Sean Penn, Judd Hirsch, Frances McDormand, Joyce Van Patten rating: ***1/2 In case you’re wondering, Sean Penn isn’t pl...

SEAN PENN WITH NICOLAS CAGE IN 'RACING WITH THE MOON'

<p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOy4STai9mkl9Ir8a-01OiUIbp6IVGz0EM3eM0Dxr6AQVO2cUffiTkEq12edG8ogkRe0TiNxmDogiumI-YiLgqIu7y1Ihn_Xxbb5TYoiovQkOBMzOPw4Dw8iQBKWEA13vWMm_-a6CavNBBEVHVraz_SQHocGGPiW2oHeIcZJQ587Aam19qxq0f-ax1du3N/s854/RM0.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="479" data-original-width="854" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOy4STai9mkl9Ir8a-01OiUIbp6IVGz0EM3eM0Dxr6AQVO2cUffiTkEq12edG8ogkRe0TiNxmDogiumI-YiLgqIu7y1Ihn_Xxbb5TYoiovQkOBMzOPw4Dw8iQBKWEA13vWMm_-a6CavNBBEVHVraz_SQHocGGPiW2oHeIcZJQ587Aam19qxq0f-ax1du3N/s16000/RM0.jpeg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 1984 cast: Sean Penn, Elizabeth McGovern, Nicolas Cage rating: ***</td></tr></tbody></table><p>From the very beginning, as Sean Penn’s Henry “Hopper” Nash breaks out of a classical piano piece into a racy show tune – ticking off his uptight music teacher during a private lesson – we know he’s a rebel.<br /> <br /> Set in 1942, America's in the throes of the Second World War. Hopper and his pal Nicky, played with fiery charisma by Nicolas Cage, are high school seniors and in a month will both go overseas. RACING WITH THE MOON centers around that month yet too little time’s spent with the friends, both working hard at a bowling alley.<br /> </p><p></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUkx8Cj03b1LnzPB2N2Kpaqu7S6SBzYmn6SHOsdqwYXszcdarcbWwGMFOSNZh9iPYlJAqFRO98OYHlqdERUKuGv2VwZZAG04o3s8bY8kv2hdLboRE3cQ_FuM0nO1JIbNu8PL6qRWjyonc2SGOUwzQjRHRt100bpsWt-WizX9QjkGkgBlqmHAuQpaKggajg/s805/RM5.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="439" data-original-width="805" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUkx8Cj03b1LnzPB2N2Kpaqu7S6SBzYmn6SHOsdqwYXszcdarcbWwGMFOSNZh9iPYlJAqFRO98OYHlqdERUKuGv2VwZZAG04o3s8bY8kv2hdLboRE3cQ_FuM0nO1JIbNu8PL6qRWjyonc2SGOUwzQjRHRt100bpsWt-WizX9QjkGkgBlqmHAuQpaKggajg/s16000/RM5.jpeg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bob Maroff breaks up Sean Penn and Crispin Glover</td></tr></tbody></table><p>In the days before pins were loaded mechanically, the working class pals sweat hard for their paycheck despite harassment from local rich kids. And then something catches Hopper's attention: the mesmerizing blue eyes of Elizabeth McGovern’s Caddie Winger, a… or who seems to be a… upper class “Gatsby Girl” that Hopper spends most of his time chasing and eventually falling in love with.<br /> <br /> Although Penn and McGovern have good chemistry, and their love story, set in the backdrop of the gorgeous California coastline, is the kind of nostalgia liken to old windswept romances, there’s not much to their relationship other than hormones masked as something deeper.<br /> </p><p> </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMC4EZKJ5aR0uFfEqMHG2A9r6511xP4iBXcIZ3Bl0CG8s7l_9IrRvZL6VlwCEu4Nw6N4eQ2Jnr419bm52sGL8PV05s1OaeCO_10-P3ynO0CPZRXMMZVW3FScMVWcIXGqk8Hq7Dj92zabuevguRJKVs5bwjQSYZqu8uHbTVdowtjMrTV6DNXSl3t9l_UTEc/s837/RM6.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="468" data-original-width="837" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMC4EZKJ5aR0uFfEqMHG2A9r6511xP4iBXcIZ3Bl0CG8s7l_9IrRvZL6VlwCEu4Nw6N4eQ2Jnr419bm52sGL8PV05s1OaeCO_10-P3ynO0CPZRXMMZVW3FScMVWcIXGqk8Hq7Dj92zabuevguRJKVs5bwjQSYZqu8uHbTVdowtjMrTV6DNXSl3t9l_UTEc/s16000/RM6.jpeg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sean Penn and Elizabeth McGovern</td></tr></tbody></table><p>It’s during sporadic breaks, when Hopper and Nicky chase after moving trains, or try hustling tough Navy guys at pool, that we’re not only entertained but the impending war seems that much more palpable.<br /> <br /> And although the pace is slowed by a melodramatic subplot involving Nicky’s girlfriend’s abortion and other distractions, here's a film that successfully takes you back into another time and place.</p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWojEEdJWmSpeRIftIWzwFc3TNm49JbqxR7sExIn46EEWSP5eajclNg6L1SJ5yQ6NXTy-IvkO3MTiVQ34tU3n7n6i_6OphEp5eVZTTzd75fM1mtVp_6D6dCXXOnnDyVxlKfCIScw3p61TGM7taSBGDODJDU38OZjCPC3hy-SS4FW3uF4Z_VR_53g_pWf-Y/s819/RM10.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="819" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWojEEdJWmSpeRIftIWzwFc3TNm49JbqxR7sExIn46EEWSP5eajclNg6L1SJ5yQ6NXTy-IvkO3MTiVQ34tU3n7n6i_6OphEp5eVZTTzd75fM1mtVp_6D6dCXXOnnDyVxlKfCIScw3p61TGM7taSBGDODJDU38OZjCPC3hy-SS4FW3uF4Z_VR_53g_pWf-Y/s16000/RM10.jpeg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nicolas Cage and Michael Talbott in RACING WITH THE MOON<br /></td></tr></tbody></table> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzlIju5elzxNOnsZYeNRCpa8ZZBP0KnWJL8wHlpF3ogZTdI_HJmBaPxproqRy5-GTJyb5mKEvUaU0wAjUT_mmR66znY2ssX2uNP1-q_WbS4N6JdpGDZIrvqsKuppnzd7D2YyAIwmO-HYK0Z20_qwYDj7m8L4z77xBg015KSvQzu9KywH73kxDWGfdCFQ-o/s841/RM3.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="457" data-original-width="841" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzlIju5elzxNOnsZYeNRCpa8ZZBP0KnWJL8wHlpF3ogZTdI_HJmBaPxproqRy5-GTJyb5mKEvUaU0wAjUT_mmR66znY2ssX2uNP1-q_WbS4N6JdpGDZIrvqsKuppnzd7D2YyAIwmO-HYK0Z20_qwYDj7m8L4z77xBg015KSvQzu9KywH73kxDWGfdCFQ-o/s16000/RM3.jpeg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nicolas Cage in RACING WITH THE MOON</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1vHl3M5e0_TVrt3XS7JtLbFvK5b6HPmXjeYuMdtMcc_WYaXwCvx9uBRPUapSs6uJAamq30acpIx1parRx7w1Ce9l2nlsr8UzGzwDeP8NGTe5TGSvefJ9DQnTRbMv3yXPDerjLwDfpE7zPFOmdy26YsoUI3ClnnXZ_dzZa2hv9sf0Kr7K29fA7KBo475NG/s766/RM4.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="467" data-original-width="766" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1vHl3M5e0_TVrt3XS7JtLbFvK5b6HPmXjeYuMdtMcc_WYaXwCvx9uBRPUapSs6uJAamq30acpIx1parRx7w1Ce9l2nlsr8UzGzwDeP8NGTe5TGSvefJ9DQnTRbMv3yXPDerjLwDfpE7zPFOmdy26YsoUI3ClnnXZ_dzZa2hv9sf0Kr7K29fA7KBo475NG/s16000/RM4.jpeg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Crispin Glover in RACING WITH THE MOON</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSpzJ3qVMJQnsExG7RXf2AcJm9MhaK401vX9iFwdvsi1INBWAEAF9YlssHnLqccbHilPVkR0LcJAyK5Y_UGOYWwYbKTCkResCu8SyxrtcBEyYjqTIsSjiK5_h0lUK0XLqczcFNbRCCibTer3Z98NI8Oh4rg_dNqMkQiS5ip4RVwWWuzRqU6nf1InnRKV0K/s854/RM7.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="854" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSpzJ3qVMJQnsExG7RXf2AcJm9MhaK401vX9iFwdvsi1INBWAEAF9YlssHnLqccbHilPVkR0LcJAyK5Y_UGOYWwYbKTCkResCu8SyxrtcBEyYjqTIsSjiK5_h0lUK0XLqczcFNbRCCibTer3Z98NI8Oh4rg_dNqMkQiS5ip4RVwWWuzRqU6nf1InnRKV0K/s16000/RM7.jpeg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Elizabeth McGovern in RACING WITH THE MOON</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGLCyxtgJvNeIzhnj4FSULvLxs9Cp1LkyuP5kvFN12r81vRGfhiEv3N9L81TMggk19ZNzi_-ksgBGAjSIgvJmj0zqJxa_XzTB6QscqG4dTWEBfUUXpyVzaPlSE_8WmjCGyOFbM_z5N4ftH46uKLOCmSFQrW9lnOo7NNnkW4W9ZnZjaFdJG2i0ed9kZH-5u/s830/RM11.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="463" data-original-width="830" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGLCyxtgJvNeIzhnj4FSULvLxs9Cp1LkyuP5kvFN12r81vRGfhiEv3N9L81TMggk19ZNzi_-ksgBGAjSIgvJmj0zqJxa_XzTB6QscqG4dTWEBfUUXpyVzaPlSE_8WmjCGyOFbM_z5N4ftH46uKLOCmSFQrW9lnOo7NNnkW4W9ZnZjaFdJG2i0ed9kZH-5u/s16000/RM11.jpeg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Michael Madsen in RACING WITH THE MOON</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN70qEsEts8GCxMDr1cjYaIHhyphenhyphenhmxz0Pwc_JXL-6RQ03d1gCpl-KhZyWZPBGAW_GpMZjlUStjs2fcOOQlrBhPSk0byciDNC6DWI_9sYR21uUPjiTtKyH8R9k3JTCIezRc5mPIWxKyE88y7G0PvVUn53s43Zv64gE1lIR3WsYznle1gXNV05ZdfTKxMPb1X/s854/RM9-1.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="479" data-original-width="854" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN70qEsEts8GCxMDr1cjYaIHhyphenhyphenhmxz0Pwc_JXL-6RQ03d1gCpl-KhZyWZPBGAW_GpMZjlUStjs2fcOOQlrBhPSk0byciDNC6DWI_9sYR21uUPjiTtKyH8R9k3JTCIezRc5mPIWxKyE88y7G0PvVUn53s43Zv64gE1lIR3WsYznle1gXNV05ZdfTKxMPb1X/s16000/RM9-1.jpeg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nicolas Cage and Sean Penn in RACING WITH THE MOON</td></tr></tbody></table><br />

bob maroff, crispin glover, eighties, elizabeth mcgovern, michael madsen, michael talbott, nicolas cage, romance, sean penn, war

SEAN PENN WITH NICOLAS CAGE IN 'RACING WITH THE MOON'

year: 1984 cast: Sean Penn, Elizabeth McGovern, Nicolas Cage rating: *** From the very beginning, as Sean Penn’s Henry “Hopper” Nash breaks ...

GANGSTER SQUAD

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJDYQsK4OukHqQ3uUuAY1FdgnoKIqeQpBdsiEkULMw0CLcV2eLNJMhzcbNQhbqMSwZYL3lP7RysaC4aTDmAAAbCRbDu_pHOj1UgN1CFf_yQkRe4MSCub3QX1rhofXiOArcztZkkPJQqhk/s1600/gangster+squad+james+m.+tate+reviews.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="372" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJDYQsK4OukHqQ3uUuAY1FdgnoKIqeQpBdsiEkULMw0CLcV2eLNJMhzcbNQhbqMSwZYL3lP7RysaC4aTDmAAAbCRbDu_pHOj1UgN1CFf_yQkRe4MSCub3QX1rhofXiOArcztZkkPJQqhk/s640/gangster+squad+james+m.+tate+reviews.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>year:</b> 2013 <b>cast:</b> Josh Brolin, Sean Penn, Ryan Gosling, Robert Patrick<b> rating:</b> ***1/2</td></tr> </tbody></table> Testosterone-fueled and bloody basic, GANGSTER SQUAD holds few punches. Centering on Josh Brolin’s square-jawed/hard nosed Sgt. John O’Hara in post-war Los Angeles, this is a mindlessly involving romp that borrows more from Westerns than old school crime flicks. <br /> <br /> O’Hara’s band of rouge lawman wind up screwing with Mickey Cohen’s seedy rule of L.A. by attacking his casinos, not busting them; burning the cash instead of taking it home. The best scenes have the Squad in action, vandalizing Cohen’s operation like a gang of schoolyard punks given permission to wreak havoc, without limits.     <br /> <br /> Sean Penn does an okay job as the cutthroat crime boss Mickey Cohen, although his reactionary scenes mostly consist of vein-popping tantrums, seeming more like someone’s grumpy father than an infamous kingpin. Any capable actor could have pulled off the part, but Penn – perhaps channeling pal Robert De Niro’s Capone from THE UNTOUCHABLES – has a good time no matter.  <br /> <br /> It’s really Brolin’s ride but he’s not alone. Ryan Gosling’s Jerry Wooters is a mellow lady’s man who falls for Cohen’s moll played by Emma Stone. Their love scenes and dialog together mean nothing – in fact when the bullets aren’t flying, any of the character development… including O'Hara and his worried pregnant wife… is paper thin and ultimately pointless: Which would be a hindrance in a movie that doesn’t celebrate non-stop action with such addictive gusto. <br /> <br /> With Robert Patrick on board as a gritty dead eye veteran partnered up with Michael Pena’s semi comic relief – and others including Giovanni Ribisi as a family man/technical guru, this is a roller coaster ride where the good guys play bad and have a literal blast doing it. <br /> <br /> Just don’t expect anything but fluff – fueled by Tommy Guns and perpetual explosions – and you’ll do all right.

2013, action, gangster, josh brolin, nick nolte, robert patrick, ryan gosling, sean penn

GANGSTER SQUAD

year: 2013 cast: Josh Brolin, Sean Penn, Ryan Gosling, Robert Patrick rating: ***1/2 Testosterone-fueled and bloody basic, GANGSTER ...

INTO THE WILD

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0v-7tL0rXNV0Px3_-CY7eiBeLOzOqHprJ0cqQd2KBz8uv_QkQe_MzfcNonO2-ycfrPk3gzH0uXDC6CCOZJSUeUBXvjkhyphenhyphenjsWgIzNQyfy9f0djHhkxmEOQOfhj6eINwZslv0EH19Tdnfk6/s1600/into+the+wild.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0v-7tL0rXNV0Px3_-CY7eiBeLOzOqHprJ0cqQd2KBz8uv_QkQe_MzfcNonO2-ycfrPk3gzH0uXDC6CCOZJSUeUBXvjkhyphenhyphenjsWgIzNQyfy9f0djHhkxmEOQOfhj6eINwZslv0EH19Tdnfk6/s1600/into+the+wild.jpg" /></a></div><b>title:</b> INTO THE WILD<br /> <b>year: </b>2007<br /> <b>cast: </b>Emile Hirsch<br /> <b>rating:</b> ***1/2<br /> <br /> The best directed movie from actor/auteur Sean Penn since 1991’s underrated THE INDIAN RUNNER, this is a visually gorgeous travelogue showing the sites of America though the yearning eyes of Christopher McCandless, a suburban college graduate turned intrepid idealist who ditches everything – giving his law school funds to charity – for a trip to Alaska for what he considers the ultimate freedom. Eventually, without a car or money, McCandless meets a hippie couple; a charming tractor driver; and a dear old man with a tragic past. Each character serves as a peripheral warning for McCandless that his ill-prepared trek might not be very safe, and even those not familiar with the true story can assume it's a one way ticket. From riding a kayak through the Colorado River to climbing gorgeous mountaintops, director Penn shows more style than struggle for the main character, whose journey is mostly aesthetic and, backed by original music by Eddie Vedder, dwells in a glossy documentary style giving the isolated journey a much too rosy outlook. Except scenes in the “present” as McCandless resides in a junked “Magic Bus” in the middle of nowhere, Alaska, and eventually runs out of food and sanity. With a determined scruffy puppy countenance, Emile Hirsch balances dedicated traveler and naive optimist decently enough. With mistakes equaling accomplishments, he's never shown too perfectly despite the heavy-handed narration by his sister, who subliminally compares him to the ever-quotable philosophers instead of a normal guy on an abnormal quest. His obstacles include skinning a moose before flies take over; getting stuck in Mexico; and the temptation to sleep with a sixteen year old Kristen Stewart. Running at a breezy two and a half hours, this is a trip worth taking – and although there’s a clear anti Capitalist message throughout, the film, made by a politically polarizing celebrity, is never one-dimensional or one-sided. Anyone yearning to escape from the drudgery of city life into the “wonders of nature” will enjoy this quest. There’s a lot to experience with enough time for everything to matter.

biopic, drama, road trip, sean penn, zeroes

INTO THE WILD

title: INTO THE WILD year: 2007 cast: Emile Hirsch rating: ***1/2 The best directed movie from actor/auteur Sean Penn since 1991’s un...