In 1971, An American Family, considered by many to be the first reality show, aired on PBS. This film is a spoof on that concept. Albert Brooks, as a version of himself, is intent on filming the activities of an ordinary American family of four, headed by Charles Grodin, 24 hours a day for an entire year. Rather quickly this intrusion into the family’s lives disintegrates whatever bonds the family originally had and the project itself implodes. It’s an amusingly quaint view of what reality shows could potentially come told from the naïve views of someone who couldn’t even comprehend how intrusive, outlandish, and ubiquitous they would become.  

Directed by and starring the late great Sidney Poitier, here he is a widowed American doctor vacationing in London with his daughter. There he meets beautiful, but mysterious Ester Anderson who it turns out is the niece of an African ambassador. The two fall in love, but there are a number of complications to get in the way of their happiness. It reminds me a lot of Autumn in New York, except it’s actually good. The leads are both appealing characters and they have fantastic chemistry with each other. I love the 1970s costume design and touches of ambiguous, generic ‘African’ culture. The only weak point is the child actor, but they unfortunately often are.  

When the woman who has hitched a ride with him is murdered, detective Mike Hammer, played by Ralph Meeker, decides to investigate with the help of his girlfriend/secretary Maxine Cooper. The pair soon find themselves mixed in a conspiracy involving top secret governmental experiments. I enjoy the settings, especially Hammer’s swinging bachelor pad and various Los Angeles locales such as Angels Flight. I always like a good MacGuffin, here in the form of a hot suitcase that leads to an explosive ending. The film is notable for featuring the debut of an unrecognizable to me Cloris Leachman. What I didn’t like in the film was the entire character of Hammer. I’ve never read any of the Mickey Spillane books, but the detective here is a hyper-masculine wreck who treats women and friends like easily discarded trash.  

An early telling of the Island of Dr. Moreau, shipwrecked Richard Arlen is stranded on the island with the good doctor, played by Charles Laughton, and a menagerie of creatures of questionable genesis. Laughton’s performance is wonderfully over the top and smarmy. He takes great delight in introducing his guest to his experiments, particularly the panther woman Kathleen Burke. While the production has a thoroughly 1930s feel, it’s definitely an elevation of the form from the make-up of the hybrids to the elaborate set designs. Overall, it’s a pretty good version of the story that was likely very influential in the future renditions.     

Private investigator Mickey Rourke is hired by Robert De Niro to track down a man who owes him a debt. Rourke’s investigation soon leads him from New York to New Orleans, finding the man’s teenaged daughter Lisa Bonet and a supernatural conspiracy people want to keep hidden. There’s some silliness in its telling (De Niro’s 5 inch fingernails being one), but I really enjoyed the performances and the tale as it was being spun. What really sold me though was the climax. The tension palpably swirls around Rourke as he is spun to the solution to his query, the answer more coming for him than him finding it himself.    

After his partner hands over an assignment to guard stripper Halle Berry, former Secret Service agent turned Private Investigator Bruce Willis finds himself enmeshed in a conspiracy involving sports gambling. Along the way he teams up with Berry’s boyfriend and disgraced football star Damon Wayans. Wayans and Willis surprisingly have incredible chemistry together. The movie works best when they are allowed to just buddy up and riff off each other. I would enjoy seeing them buddy up together again. Unfortunately the movie often gets in the way of that. I’ll also give it points for Taylor Negron as a baddie. It’s a role different than any other I’ve seen him in and he shines.    

In an economically depressed area of Southern Ohio, Jessica Barden has recently been accepted into the college of her choice but most engage in more and more dangerous endeavors in hopes to pay for her future schooling. I was interested in this film because I’ve spent a lot of time in the area where it was set and filmed. That setting is presented well; the film evocatively captures the dark, cold, never-endingness of Midwestern winters. Unfortunately the camera work as a whole was rather distracting, not even bother with annoying shaky cam but graduating to full on swinging back and forth mode. The cast overall worked quite well and felt like believable people from the community, except for the main character. She came off as pouty and privileged instead of tough and resourceful. Though many actors pull it off, I’m not surprised she isn’t American.