Films That Matter
Safety First
Like a severe and utterly serious version of Stanley Kubrick’s 1964 satirical dark comedy Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, you would think that Fail Safe would have been the original release in theatres that was then later spoofed, yet that is not the case. Released approximately six months later in the same year, as you might imagine, it led to very poor returns at the box office – dare I say it (as the film deals with this subject matter)... it was a bomb! Despite that, over time, it has become a bonafide classic. Based upon Eugene Burdick’s 1962 novel of the same name and directed by Sidney Lumet (Dog Day Afternoon), he introduces us to our main players by way of little vignettes.
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Star Pick with Sean Astin
I Love L.A. . . . ConfidentialL.A. ConfidentialSeptember 13, 2016A few months back, I was fortunate enough to speak with Sean Astin. For those of you who have been living under a rock for the past three decades, Astin has starred in a plethora of memorable classics. With his mother being the late Patty Duke (Oscar winner – The Miracle Worker), he had large shoes to fill. Starting off with a bang, Astin, in his early teenage years, took on the role of Mikey in Richard Donner’s 1985 fantasy flick The Goonies. Following this, he has continued making wonderful motion pictures, including 1993's Rudy, 1998's Bulworth, as well as playing the beloved role of Samwise Gamgee in Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy. He also showed off his comedic talents in 2004's 50 First Dates and 2006's Click. He has also conquered the television world, portraying Lynn McGill in ‘Day 5’ of 24 (a very strong season), as well as Jim Kent in Guillermo del Toro’s The Strain.
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Star Pick with Felix Silla
Great Things Come in Small PackagesHigh NoonSeptember 6, 2016While at Trekonderoga on August 13th, 2016, the Ticonderoga, NY, comic con that is all things Star Trek (including the brilliant recreation of the original Starship Enterprise) , I was lucky enough to be able to interview several interesting actors – one of whom was Felix Silla, a man who has left an indelible yet oft hidden mark on the television and film industry over his five plus decades of work. Before I begin, I would like to thank the Trekonderoga staff for setting me up in such a wonderful (noise free) room for my interviews, with a beautiful background of the hilly, forested Adirondacks that frame the excellent three day event. The man behind the mask (or hair), was born in Italy in 1937, eventually making his way to the United States on November 24th, 1955, where the trained circus performer toured with the iconic Ringling Bros. circus (for seven years) and the Barnum & Bailey Show. Using his 3' 11" versatile frame to his advantage, he eventually made his way into show business in the early 1960s, taking on a plethora of intriguing roles. His big break came when he was cast as Cousin Itt on the original Addams Family television series in 1965.
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A Rabbit and a Gent Walk Into a Bar…
HarveySeptember 4, 2016If a stage play is to be successful, it needs to rely on the strength of two very important aspects – its actors and sharp dialogue. The one thing that I have come to notice when watching an adaptation of a play is that the dialogue that transitions over to the big screen is almost always beautifully written, unbelievably witty and surprisingly eloquent. There is perhaps no better example of this than the 1950 classic Harvey. Mary Chase adapts her own Pulitzer Prize winning play (with some help from Oscar Brodley), bringing with her Jimmy Stewart and Josephine Hull, two actors who had already tackled the material on the stage. Stewart plays Elwood P. Dowd, a kindly and charming gentleman who comes from a well-to-do family. He has a lovely demeanor, but is thought to drink too much (he does spend most of his days frequenting bars) . . . and also just happens to be friends with an invisible, six foot three and a half inch tall rabbit named Harvey.
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Star Pick with Steve Coulter
Cool Pick for Dog Days of SummerDog Day AfternoonAugust 30, 2016Back in April of 2016, I sat down with actor Steve Coulter (twice). He was one of the special guests attending the Cornwall and Area Pop Expo (CAPE). The character actor, who has had a plethora of interesting roles over his career, is perhaps best remembered as the kind hearted, intellectual Reg Monroe (the mastermind behind the walled compound of Alexandria) on the ever popular series The Walking Dead. He has also had a recurring role as Amishman Elijah Bowman on the standout Cinemax series Banshee. On the film front, he has worked with horror maestro James Wan an impressive five times, including as Father Gordon in The Conjuring and its sequel, as well as playing Carl in Insidious: Chapter’s 2 and 3. He also portrayed Roger, a lawyer, in one of my favourites – Mr. Brooks. Mr. Coulter was gracious enough to be interviewed twice, once as part of a local Cogeco special, while on day two of CAPE, we chatted all things Banshee. Check out both meetings below to hear some great stories from all the things mentioned above, as well as his favourite film.
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Star Pick with John 'Moose' Wensink
Paint Your Wagon; An Oddly Entertaining MusicalPaint Your WagonAugust 23, 2016Back in September 2013, former heavyweight tough guy for the Boston Bruins, John ‘Moose’ Wensink, was roasted in Cornwall to raise money for the Children's Treatment Centre. Following the event, I interviewed the former NHLer. When asked what his favourite film of all-time was, he quickly proclaimed Paint Your Wagon. When asked why, he simply replied, "Why not?" This article, with a few changes added, is the same that was published back on December 17th, 2014. I recently golfed with Wensink at Upper Canada Golf Course in Morrisburg, Ontario (on July 22nd, 2016), and he was gracious enough to expand on the interview we did back in 2013. You can see the video interview down below, where the man takes us through his storied career and expands on his love of Paint Your Wagon.
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Prison Break, McQueen Style
PapillonAugust 21, 2016There are certain actors that have the ‘cool’ factor. Not the easiest thing to define, there is just something about their larger than life personas that attract us to them. One such actor is Steve McQueen. It seems that each role he chose further expanded his reign as a cool cat, with films like The Great Escape and Bullitt helping fuse together his characters with the real person – creating an image of a man’s man whose tall lean frame drove muscle cars through San Francisco during the week while escaping from Nazi concentration camps on the weekend. Another motion picture that epitomizes his persona is the 1973 prison drama Papillon. Based on the autobiography by French convict Henri Charrière, director Franklin J. Schaffner (Patton/Planet of the Apes) takes us on an epic ride as Charrière, whose moniker is Papillon (McQueen), as he has a vivid tattoo of a butterfly that can be found on the middle of his chest, is placed on a ship departing from France.
