Rookie of the Year

Directed by Daniel Stern and written by Sam Harper, Rookie of the Year is the story of a young boy who would pitch for the Chicago Cubs after getting his arm injured as it’s later healed with tightened tendons that gives him incredible pitching powers. It’s a film that plays into a boy wanting to be good in baseball where an injury would give his right arm something special as he would get to live his dream but also learn about the price of fame. Starring Thomas Ian Nicholas, Gary Busey, Amy Morton, Bruce Altman, Albert Hall, Dan Hedaya, Eddie Bracken, Daniel Stern, and John Candy. Rookie of the Year is a delightful film from Daniel Stern.

What happens to a boy when he gets injured during a little league game where his right arm is healed with tighten tendons that allows him to pitch at great speed where he would pitch for the Chicago Cubs? That is pretty much the premise of the film as it revolves around a 12-year old boy who just wants to be good at baseball but he’s never really had the chance to play until one day where he fills in and things go wrong when he slips on a ball and breaks his arm. Once his arm is healed, he learns that his tendons have tightened more than it should which allows him to exert great force where he would unknowingly throw a ball back from the outfield bleachers to home plate as he would get this attention from Cubs management. There, Henry Rowengartner (Thomas Ian Nicholas) would start out as a relief pitcher for the Cubs as he would be mentored by his hero in the aging starting pitcher Chet “Rocket” Steadman (Gary Busey) as he would also learn the dark side of being famous.

The film’s screenplay by Sam Harper doesn’t just showcase a boy living his dream to play in the major league but also be forced to grow up faster than he should when it comes to being used to sell things that he has no clue about. Especially when he’s being exploited by his mother’s boyfriend Jack Bradfield (Bruce Altman) as well as Cubs general manager Larry “Fish” Fisher (Dan Hedaya) as the latter is looking to take over the Cubs altogether from his uncle Bob Carson (Eddie Bracken). It is there that Henry learns about these things as it prevents him from being with his friends and just being a kid while Steadman, whose career is on the way out, tells him about not just his own bitterness about the game but also what happens when the gift that Henry is bestowed upon goes away. While there is an element of seriousness that plays into the world of baseball, Harper does at least maintain a sense of innocence as well as some humor into the world of baseball such as how Henry manages to enjoy the game.

Daniel Stern’s direction is quite simple as he shoots the film on location in Chicago and other nearby cities including Wrigley Field and Comiskey Park in Chicago as Dodger Stadium. Much of Stern’s compositions are simple as well as stylish that includes some low angle shots, close-ups, and medium shots to reveal what goes on in the field and at the dugout. Some of it is played for laughs as it involves Stern’s character Phil Brickma who is this eccentric pitching coach. Yet, Stern does maintain a balance of comedy and light-drama as it plays into a boy coming of age as a major league pitcher as he copes with not just fame but its demands where he would make a very adult decision. Stern’s approach to the story not only succeeds in making it accessible for a young audience but also in not talking them down with heavy-handed ideas about fame and money. All of which plays into the joy of playing baseball as its climax is set during a division playoff. Overall, Stern creates a very fun and engaging film about a young boy who lives the dream in pitching for the Chicago Cubs.

Cinematographer Jack N. Green does excellent work with the film‘s cinematography as it‘s very simple for the daytime exterior scenes while being straightforward for the interior scenes and some scenes set at night. Editors Donn Cambern and Raja Gosnell do nice work with the editing as it‘s straightforward with a few montages and some rhythmic cuts for the film‘s humor. Production designer Steven J. Jordan, with set decorator Leslie Bloom and art director William Arnold, does brilliant work with the home that Henry and his mom live in as well as the Cubs locker room.

Costume designer Jay Hurley does terrific work as most of the clothes are casual along with some design of the baseball uniforms. Visual effects supervisor Erik Henry does fine work with the minimal visual effects which often revolves around the fastball that Henry throws. Sound editor Stephen Hunter Flick does superb work with the sound from the sound of the crowd at the ball game to the sound effects of the fastball. The film’s music by Bill Conti is amazing for its orchestral score as it is filled with soaring string arrangements with elements of guitar wails to play into the thrill of sports as the soundtrack features elements of rock and pop music.

The casting by Linda Lowy is incredible as it features notable small roles from Colombe Jacobsen as Henry’s crush Becky, W. Earl Brown as the Cubs catcher Frick, Ross Lehman as Henry’s doctor, Tom Milanovich as the notorious Mets hitter Heddo, and cameo appearances from Barry Bonds, Bobby Bonilla, and Pedro Guerrero as themselves. Patrick LaBrecque and Robert Hy Gorman are terrific in their respective roles as Henry’s friends George and Clark who try to cope with Henry’s sudden fame which George gets jealous of. Daniel Stern is hilarious as the pitching coach Phil Brickma as he often causes some trouble to others or to himself. Albert Hall is excellent as the Cubs manager Sal Martinella who always mispronounces Henry’s surname while Dan Hedaya is superb as the Cubs general manager Fisher who would exploit Henry in the hopes of making money and become the Cubs’ new owner.  Bruce Altman is fantastic as Mary’s boyfriend Jack who would become Henry’s manager and later try to get him all sorts of things to make money much to Henry’s disgust. 

John Candy is great in one of his final performances as Cubs announcer Cliff Murdoch as Candy brings a lot of funny comments throughout the film.  Amy Morton is amazing as Henry’s mom Mary as someone who makes sure that Henry doesn’t lose himself to the trappings of fame as she becomes suspicious of Jack’s work as she becomes close with Steadman. Gary Busey is brilliant as Chet Steadman as an aging pitcher who is asked to mentor Henry as he copes with not just his fading career but also the fact that he’s not as good as he once was as he tells Henry about what to expect when that gift is gone. Finally, there’s Thomas Ian Nicholas in a marvelous performance as Henry Rowengartner as a 12-year old kid who just wants to be good at baseball where an injury to his arm gives him unlikely throwing power as he copes with being in the major leagues and its demands as Nicholas adds a maturity to his role that makes the character very likeable.

Rookie of the Year is a remarkable film from Daniel Stern. Armed with a great cast and an engaging story about the idea of being in the major leagues, it’s a film that is very accessible for families as well as offer something compelling for baseball fans. In the end, Rookie of the Year is a fantastic film from Daniel Stern.

© thevoid99 2015

National Lampoon's Vacation

(In Memory of Harold Ramis 1944-2014)

Directed by Harold Ramis and written by John Hughes, National Lampoon’s Vacation is the story of a family who travel cross-country from Chicago to California to go to the famed amusement park known as Walley World where everything goes from bad-to-worse during the journey. Based on a short story by John Hughes with additional contributions from Ramis and Chevy Chase who plays the lead role of Clark W. Griswold. The film is an unusual comedy that explores a family’s ill-fated journey where they have to deal with misdirection, a troubled station wagon, hick relatives, a very mean aunt, and a hot lady driving a Ferrari. Also starring Beverly D’Angelo, Anthony Michael Hall, Dana Barron, Imogene Coca, Randy Quaid, Christie Brinkley, and John Candy. National Lampoon’s Vacation is truly one of the greatest comedies ever created.

Family vacations is a chance for parents and their children to enjoy time with one another and do things like go to Disneyland or Universal Studios theme parks. What Clark W. Griswold and his family want to do is to go the happiest play in the world in Walley World and meet the mascot Marty Moose by traveling from Chicago to Los Angeles. By going cross-country on a very troubled station wagon, a lot goes wrong along the way as it would play to some of the series of misfortunes that occurs in the film. All of which involves a lot of laughs and all sorts of crazy shit for Clark, his wife Ellen (Beverly D. Angelo), son Rusty (Anthony Michael Hall), and daughter Audrey (Dana Barron). Add the very bitchy Aunt Edna (Imogene Coca) who joins them during a stop in Kansas to drop her off to Phoenix.

John Hughes’ screenplay is based on his own real life experience about his own ill-fated trip to Disneyland where it all plays to all of the unfortunate things that can go wrong in a cross-country road trip through America. Throughout all of this ordeal, there is this strange optimism that is prevalent in Clark Griswold as he wants his family to experience a kind of journey that every American family has done. Even as he deals with all sorts of bad shit and a hot blonde (Christie Brinkley) driving a red Ferrari 308 GTS who tempts him from leaving his family. Yet, there’s Ellen who is the most grounded person of the family as she tries to remain realistic and deal with the chaos on the road as she even makes Clark visit her cousin Catherine (Miriam Flynn) and Catherine’s oddball husband Eddie (Randy Quaid). One aspect of the script that works isn’t its use of language but also in some of the dialogue that is largely improvised and full of wit that just adds to the brilliance of the film.

Harold Ramis’ direction is pretty simple in terms of the compositions and scenes he creates where he’s not doing anything flashy or go for something that is visually-astonishing. Instead, Ramis just create something that does feel like a road film where it’s shot on various locations in the U.S. with some wide shots and medium shots of the locations. By going into different locations in the U.S. from Chicago to Los Angeles, it adds to the sense of unpredictability to the film as well as some of its humor that feels loose and natural. Even in some of the moments that involve Clark being wooed by the hot lady during a picnic or the moment he finds himself in the ghetto of St. Louis and asks for directions unaware that his hubcaps are being stolen. It would eventually lead to the Griswolds finally going to Walley World as it is a climax that pays off and more. Overall, Ramis crafts a very entertaining and heartfelt comedy about a family road trip to Walley World.

Cinematographer Victor J. Kemper does excellent work with the cinematography from the vibrant look of the daytime interior/exterior settings to the simple lighting schemes for some of the film‘s nighttime scenes. Editor Pembroke J. Herring does nice work with the editing as it‘s very straightforward while using some slow-motion moments to play into some of the funnier moments like a homage to Chariots of Fire. Production designer Jack T. Collis and set decorator Joe D. Mitchell do terrific work with some of the set pieces from the different hotels and homes the Griswolds stay at to the look of Walley World.

Sound editors Bub Asman, Robert G. Henderson, and Alan Robert Murray do superb work with the sound in some of the sound effects that is created in the film. The film’s music by Ralph Burns is wonderful for its light-hearted orchestral score that plays to the film’s humor while its soundtrack features songs by June Pointer, Vanity 6, Nicollete Larson, the Fleetwoods, the Ramones, and a couple of original songs by Lindsey Buckingham including the theme song Holiday Road.

The casting by Susan Arnold and Phyllis Huffman is fantastic for the ensemble that is created as well as cameo appearances from Eugene Levy as a shady car salesman, John Diehl and Mickey Jones as a couple of sleazy mechanics, James Keach as a motorcycle cop, Brian Doyle-Murray as the Kamp Komfort clerk, and Eddie Bracken as Walley World founder Roy Walley. Other notable small roles include John P. Navin Jr. and a young Jane Krakowski as Rusty and Audrey’s cousins, John Candy in a hilarious performance as a Walley World security guard, and Christie Brinkley as the hot blonde in a Ferrari. Miriam Flynn is very good as the very kind cousin Catherine while Randy Quaid is a total hoot as the inbred cousin Eddie. Imogene Coca is great as the very mean and cold Aunt Edna who always take shots at Clark and make him do all sorts of shit while having no problem eating a sandwich drenched in dog piss.

Dana Barron and Anthony Michael Hall are amazing in their respective roles as Audrey and Rusty Griswold as two teens trying to deal with the chaos of the vacation as well as trying to get anything from pot to booze to cope while doing some funny things along the way. Beverly D’Angelo is great as Ellen Griswold as the realist of the family who tries to handle everything that is happening while being the voice of reason as she also has some funny lines. Finally, there’s Chevy Chase in an iconic performance as Clark W. Griswold as this very optimistic father who tries to give his family the greatest vacation ever no matter how bad things are as he says all sorts of funny things and so some funny shit as it’s definitely a performance for the ages.

National Lampoon’s Vacation is an outstanding film from Harold Ramis and screenwriter John Hughes. Thanks to a great cast and its theme on family along with a witty approach to the road film. It’s not just a film that stands as a touchstone of classic 80s comedies but also a film that has something for everyone as it’s a family film and a low-brow comedy rolled up into one. In the end, National Lampoon’s Vacation is tremendous film from the late Harold Ramis.

Harold Ramis Films: (Caddyshack) - (Club Paradise) - (Groundhog Day) - (Stuart Saves His Family) - (Multiplicity) - (Analyze This) - (Bedazzled) - (Analyze That) - (The Ice Harvest) - (Year One)

© thevoid99 2014

Spaceballs

Directed by Mel Brooks and written by Brooks, Ronny Graham, and Thomas Meehan, Spaceballs is a spoof film about a mercenary and his half-man/half-dog who save a princess and her robot from the clutches of an evil henchman. The film makes fun of the Star Wars franchise as well as sci-fi films of the past including the world of advertisement and home video releases. Starring Mel Brooks, John Candy, Rick Moranis, Bill Pullman, Daphne Zuniga, the voice of Joan Rivers, George Wyner, and Dick Van Patten. Spaceballs is a hilarious and entertaining comedy from Mel Brooks.

After wasting all of the air in his home planet, President Skroob (Mel Brooks) devise a plan to take out all of the fresh air from Planet Druidia with the help of his henchman Dark Helmet (Rick Moranis). In Druidia, King Roland (Dick Van Patten) is celebrating the wedding of his daughter Princess Vespa (Daphne Zuniga) to a man named Prince Valium (Jim J. Bullock). Yet, Vespa runs away with her robot droid Dot Matrix (the voice of Joan Rivers) as Skroob and Helmet decide to kidnap her so that Roland can give them fresh air. With Vespa in danger, King Roland asks mercenary Lone Starr (Bill Pullman) to rescue Vespa. Starr asks for a million space-bucks in return so he and his half-man/half-dog friend Barf (John Candy) can pay their debt towards space criminal Pizza the Hutt (the voice of Dom DeLuise).

After jamming Helmet’s radar system, Lone Starr is able to retrieve Vespa, Dot, and their luggage as they try to evade Helmet’s ship through hyperspace. Helmet and his assistant Col. Sandurz (George Wyner) try to do the same but only pass them as Lone Starr’s Winnebago spaceship crash lands into a planet where they would meet wise master of the Schwartz in Yogurt (Mel Brooks). After teaching Lone Starr the Schwartz, Yogurt also learns the contents of Lone Starr’s medallion which he won’t reveal until later. After Vespa and Dot are captured by Helmet, Lone Starr and Barf go to Planet Spaceball to save them as Skroob is able to get the code to open Druidia’s planet shield. Lone Starr and Barf arrive to Planet Spaceball to save Vespa and Dot as they decide to stop Skroob and Helmet with help from the Schwartz.

The film is essentially a Star Wars parody where it doesn’t try to take itself too seriously as Darth Vader is re-created as a nerdy guy wearing a big black helmet. Luke Skywalker and Han Solo become this mercenary who travels in a space Winnebago with his half-man/half-dog friend while is willing to do anything for a shit-load of money. While there’s a lot of humor that allows Mel Brooks and his co-writers to make fun of Star Wars as well as other sci-fi franchises. There’s also an element of wit as Brooks allows himself to make fun of the world of the home video market in a scene where Helmet and Col. Sandurz track down Lone Starr by watching a video cassette of the actual movie they’re in while it’s still in the making.

It’s part of Brooks’ genius to satirize the film industry at a time when the home video market was becoming big. Another element of satire Brooks gets to point fingers at is the world of merchandising. The scene where Lone Starr, Vespa, and the gang learn about what Yogurt does. Yogurt reveals that he’s selling loads of products where the real money for the movie is made. Spaceballs the t-shirt, Spaceballs the coloring book. Spaceballs the flamethrower! (Kids love that!) It’s Brooks allowing himself to point fingers at the silliness of mass-marketing in films while doing it in a very comical manner.

Brooks’ direction is truly whimsical from the way he opens the film with this very long and exaggerated take on the big Spaceballs spaceship that Dark Helmet rides in. While the direction is quite straightforward for a sci-fi spoof, Brooks is able to create amazing timing for the comedy while not being afraid to go extremely silly. The fact that he often breaks down the fourth wall at times just adds to the hilarity. With these amazing compositions of the space scenes that is filled with lots of great visual effects and miniatures. Brooks creates a truly fun and imaginative sci-fi comedy spoof that does more than just entertain.

Cinematographer Nick McLean does an excellent with the film‘s photography from the very sunny yet stylish desert scenes to the wondrous interior lighting of the spaceships and Yogurt‘s cave. Editor Conrad Buff IV does a nice job with the editing by creating rhythmic cuts for some of the film‘s action sequences including some stylish cuts for the comedic moments. Production designer Terence Marsh, along with set decorator John Franco Jr. and art director Harold Michelson do great work with the set pieces created such as the Spaceballs ship interiors as well as the look of the Winnebago and Yogurt‘s cave.

The costumes by Donfeld are quite spectacular from the look of Lord Helmet‘s uniform including his big helmet that is also given a desert look to the wedding dress of Princess Vespa. Visual effects supervisor Peter Donen does an incredible job with the film‘s visual effects from the Schwartz-sabers and laser fire to the miniature spaceships made for some of exterior space shots. Sound designers Gary Rydstrom and Randy Thom do a fantastic job with the sound work from the sounds of the Schwartz-sabers and laser fire to .

The film’s score by John Morris is wonderful for the soaring orchestral pieces that is filled with bombastic string and percussion arrangements. The soundtrack includes a title song sung by the Spinners along with cuts by Maurice Jarre, Bon Jovi, the Pointer Sisters, Berlin, and Van Halen to play up the humor of the film.

The casting by David Rubin and Bill Shepard is terrific for the ensemble that is created as it includes appearances from Brenda Strong as a nurse, Stephen Tobolowsky as a guard captain, co-screenwriter Ronny Graham as a minister, Leslie Bevis as the interruptive Commanderette Zircon, Lorene Yarnell as the body of Dot Matrix, Jim J. Bullock as the narcoleptic Prince Valium, Michael Winslow as a sound effects-driven radar technician, Sandy Helberg as a deranged surgeon, a voice cameo from Michael York as creatures from another planet, and a hilarious cameo from John Hurt reprising his Kane role from Alien. Voice work from Dom DeLuise as Pizza the Hutt and Joan Rivers as Dot Matrix are very funny with the latter sporting some very funny one-liners. George Wyner is very good as the well-meaning Colonel Sandurz who tries to help Dark Helmet but either does the wrong things or ends up being smarter than his superior.

Dick Van Patten is also good as the regal King Roland who is desperate to save his daughter while revealing one of the stupidest code numbers ever. Daphne Zuniga is wonderful as the snobby Princess Vespa who tries to maintain her prestige while proving to be a total badass with a laser machine gun. Bill Pullman is great as the very scruffy yet no-holds-barred Lone Starr who becomes an unlikely hero. John Candy is hilarious as Barf, the half-man/half-dog who assists Lone Starr while saying some very funny lines. Rick Moranis is excellent as the villainous Dark Helmet as he often reveals his face to say smarmy one-liners while proving to be a very offbeat villain. Mel Brooks is fantastic in the dual role of the greedy yet neurotic President Skroob as well as the wise yet humorous wise creature Yogurt.

Spaceballs is truly one of the funniest spoofs ever created from the mind of Mel Brooks. The film is definitely one of Brooks’ most witty and very entertaining films as well as being something that is still funny through repeated viewings. Notably as it is filled with hilarious one-liners and moments that just keep people laughing while being a great homage to Star Wars and other sci-fi franchises. In the end, Spaceballs is a brilliant film from Mel Brooks that will make anyone wish for Spaceballs 2: The Search for More Money.

Mel Brooks Films: The Producers - (Twelve Chairs) - Blazing Saddles - Young Frankenstein - (Silent Movie) - High Anxiety - (History of the World, Part I) - (Life Stinks) - Robin Hood: Men in Tights - (Dracula: Dead and Loving It)

© thevoid99 2012

Heavy Metal

In Honor of National Metal Day

Directed by Gerald Potterton and screenplay by Daniel Goldberg and Len Blum, Heavy Metal is a collection of animated short films that revolves around a young girl who is frightened by an orb by telling her a collection of stories filled with fantasy and horror. The film is based on various stories written for the Heavy Metal magazine as it revolves into various stories that takes animated films away from the idea of family feature films to much darker and more racy material. With a voice cast that includes John Candy, Harold Ramis, Roger Bumpass, Richard Romanus, August Schellenberg, and Eugene Levy. Heavy Metal is a stylish yet surreal animated film from Gerald Potterton.

An astronaut named Grimaldi (Don Francks) arrives home to see his daughter (Caroline Semple) as he shows her a green orb. Suddenly, the orb lights up and kills Grimaldi as it reveals itself to be the Loc-Nar (Percy Rodriguez) who tells the young girl various different stories before he can destroy her. The first involves a cab driver (Richard Romanus) who accidentally saves a young woman (Susan Roman) from treacherous aliens who want the Loc-Nar orb. Meanwhile, a nerdy teen named Dan (John Candy) gets a version of the Loc-Nar orb as he’s transported into another world as he becomes a buff man named Den who finds himself battling two forces over the Loc-Nar orb.

At a space station, the Loc-Nar arrives at a space station for the trial of a disgraced space captain named Sternn (Eugene Levy) where a witness named Hanover Fiste (Roger Bumpass) finds the Loc-Nar orb as trouble ensues. The Loc-Nar later encounters a B-17 plane in battle as a pilot (George Taouliatos) notices that his crew are dead and the orb has made them into zombies. Meanwhile, a scientist (Roger Bumpass) arrives at the Pentagon to discuss the mysterious events on Earth as he and a buxom secretary (Alice Playten) are taken by a mysterious spacecraft run by a horny robot (John Candy) and two coke-sniffing aliens (Eugene Levy and Harold Ramis). The Loc-Nar then tells the last story about a Taarakian warrior named Taarna who seeks revenge against the death of her people.

The film is about a mysterious yet deadly orb that terrifies a young girl as she is told various different stories about the journey it took before he arrived in this house. During the course of the film, the Loc-Nar orb would tell dark stories of the journey he takes to the people who encounters. Among them is a lowly cab driver in a futuristic yet decayed New York City who encounters the daughter of a scientist who has the orb as he has to deal with aliens that want the orb as it’s told in a film-noir style. Other stories include a nerdy kid that becomes a badass dude who gets to have sex with two hot chicks, a comedic story about a disgraced captain whose plan to cheat in his trial backfires by someone the orb, and a story about a robot and two stoned aliens who take a buxom woman as the robot has sex with her.

A lot of the stories told in the film involves lots of racy nudity and crass humor that isn’t for everyone’s taste but it’s part of the world that director Gerald Potterton manages to create based on this very graphic yet stylish magazine inspired by heavy metal culture. Through these different segments, the narrative does manage to hold together because it is all tied to this orb. There’s elements of fantasy, sci-fi, and horror that goes into this film as Potterton’s approach to the direction is to keep these sequences together and make sure they’re connected to one another. The animation for many of these segments are all very different as some are cartoonish like the Sternn and robot/two aliens segments while some mix things up for more racy material with a bit of surreal yet gnarly visual animation backdrops. The overall work is truly mesmerizing but also engaging in what is truly an entertaining animated film.

Editors Ian Llande, Mick Manning, and Gerald Trip do a great job with editing to play up to the rhythm of some of the segments as well as making sure each segment can get a smooth transition from one to the other. Production designer Michael C. Gross does a nice job with the set backgrounds created for a majority of the segments in the film while art director Pat Gavin does a lot of the work on the Den segment. Sound editor Peter Thillaye does a wonderful job with the sound to help enhance some of the action that goes on in the stories.

The film’s major technical highlight is the music as it features a bombastic score by Elmer Bernstein that is very adventurous and thrilling as it plays up to a lot of the action sequences of the film. The soundtrack is a wonderful mix of hard rock and metal as it features music from acts like Riggs, Sammy Hagar, Don Felder, Donald Fagen, Journey, Stevie Nicks, Cheap Trick, Devo, Black Sabbath, Blue Oyster Cult, Grand Funk Railroad, Trust, and Nazareth. The overall score and soundtrack is truly a must-have for fans of hard rock.

The cast for the film consists largely of Canadian actors, some of which were from the SCTV show as voices by its regulars like John Candy, Eugene Levy, and Harold Ramis all provide the right humor to the various characters they play along with additional voice work from Jackie Burroughs, August Schellenberg, John Vernon, Joe Flahtery, and revered voice actor Roger Bumpass.

Heavy Metal is a phenomenal yet exhilarating animated film by Gerald Potterton. It is a film that is proof that animated films don’t have to be squeaky clean to be entertain while delving into various genres to excite those that live for sci-fi and fantasy. Particularly for any young teenage boy that wants to naked breasts shown in animated film as this film has everything that a teenage boy wants in a film. In the end, Heavy Metal is an awesome film that has lots of great action, cool scenery, trippy visuals, and most of all, major boobage.

© thevoid99 2011