Rooster Cogburn (1975) 55/100 - I hadn't seen this film since way back in the late seventies and I really couldn't remember the plot, so it was like I never watched it before. Now I'm kind of wishing that I never had in the first place. Painfully slow and a lazy screenplay which really just lifts wholesale segments of Hepburn's earlier film, The African Queen. And just as in that film, her character's holier than thou ramblings are especially grating after a while. I knew I was in trouble when I realized that the best performance halfway through the film was being put forth by Anthony Zerbe, a character actor well known for being a gluttonous scenery chewer. In fact, his is the only performance that I liked in the whole film. Wayne is cartoonish in this second rendering of the famous role which helped him win his only Academy Award of his career. The main villain is played almost with a toss away style by Richard Jordan, an actor whom I usually enjoy. Sad that he's kind of dialing it in. For Wayne's sake, I'm glad that he made The Shootist, the following year, because it would have been sad to end his long and iconic career with this turkey.
Teal = Masterpiece Dark Green = Classic or someday will be Lime Green = A good, entertaining film Orange = Average Red = Cinemuck Brown = The color of crap, which this film is
Bava proves himself to be a master of all genres by taking on the Western and for the most part, does so very well. As Akira Kurosawa did with Seven Samurai, this is Western at heart even though it's about Vikings. Unfortunately, whereas Kurosawa could claim to have possibly rescued the genre, this is far less important, aping the style of Leone's Fistful of Dollars (1964) a little too close in the newly coined "Spaghetti" Western, and using Shane (1953) as a too obvious template.
It's an interesting mix and the fact it works at all should be applauded and it is very enjoyable, if sadly predictable if you know Shane. The rugged acting and straightforward bare dialogue matches the colourful cinematography, and it really is pure Leone (even the music has a Morricone edge), so if you like those films, you'll know what to expect. To be honest, I always found Shane a bit weak so I didn't mind seeing it filtered through the more passionate Spaghetti style and thank goodness we didn't have the kid whining at the end! No matter how unoriginal his sources, Bava knows how to handle a set-piece or two with good solid knockabout action and a bar brawls to rival John Wayne's. Achim picked up on the colour style as well and it's a very good point as the colours match the mood, as does the style over all. He really is very good at changing the pace and some moments are sinister while others are bright and almost comedic.
It may sound like I'm being too critical of his copycat approach to this film, but it's worth bearing in mind the way the industry worked at the time. Directors didn't always have complete freedom to forge new paths and sometimes were just for hire. Indeed, Bava was apparently drafted into this at the last moment and had to deal with what looked like a complete rip-off of The Vikings (1958), complete with a blonde haired hero (Cameron Mitchell instead of Kirk Douglas). He rewrote it in just a few days, so perhaps was rather shrewd in picking genres and stories that were financially proven. And making the leap from wishy-washy melodramatic Shane to hard-boiled death-ridden Leone was certainly unpredictable!
VOY 4.07 Scientific Method Writer: Lisa Klink (Screenwriter), Sherry Klein (Original Material By), Harry Doc. Kloor (Original Material By) Director: David Livingston Cast: Kate Mulgrew (Captain Kathryn Janeway), Robert Beltran (Chakotay), Roxann Dawson (B'Elanna Torres), Robert Duncan McNeill (Tom Paris), Ethan Phillips (Neelix), Robert Picardo (The Doctor), Tim Russ (Tuvok), Jeri Ryan (Seven of Nine), Garrett Wang (Harry Kim), Rosemary Forsyth (Alzen), Annette Helde (Takar)
Aliens make scientific experiments on the crew without their knowledge. Janeway is even grumpier than usual. Chakotay and Neelix mutate which makes a fun talk between those two about their new disabilites. Tom and B'Elanna act like hormonal teenager and use every chance they get to make out during their duty shifts.
P/T moments: Some making out scenes, followed by chewing out by the captain. May favorite P/T scene in this episode is the one where they discuss how they should enter the briefing room.
The final scene offers a possible explanation why the sudden change of their relationship a few episodes back.
From now on the P/T relationship takes a back seat for the next three seasons. They are still P/T moments, but I will skip straight to season 7 where we finally get again some great P/T episodes.
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May 18, 2024, 11:12:19 PM
