The Comic Critic Reviews "Kelly's Heroes"

Kelly’s Heroes was a successful movie despite the studio’s meddling. It was meant to be a vehicle for Clint Eastwood to increase his growing stardom. Indeed, his star would continue to rise with a series of successful films that would leave a trail of iconic characters and oft-quoted lines. But Kelly’s Heroes didn’t spotlight Eastwood as well as it could have. For one thing, a fair portion of the script was either thrown out or ended on the cutting room floor. For another, all of the other actors did a terrific job with their characters and kept stealing scenes. Eastwood ends up playing straight man Abbott to every other actor’s Costello. The magic of Kelly’s Heroes is that this level field amongst the actors created a sense of camaraderie that radiated off the screen. You end up empathizing with this band of shysters, thieves, and hooligans. Even after editing, enough war commentary was still left in the story to make it relevant to an audience still in the throes of dealing with the impact of the Vietnam War. Kelly’s Heroes was warmly received by an audience enjoying a wave of WWII films. War movies seldom have an enduring charm, but this one does. You’ve got some great acting portraying unique characters, very good writing, non-CGI battle scenes, and a soundtrack that you will be humming for a few days. It’s well worth a viewing.

The Return of Stickmna #1587

There is no news story for this strip. My New Year Resolution is to be less of a @#$%. I'm less than a week into the New Year and I'm already finding it to be a challenge. I used to think I was a nice guy. Now I'm thinking that maybe I've been a bit of a @#$% and should make an effort to be less of a @#$%. But, it's hard. Especially when ____________.

The Return of Stickman #1586

The news story that inspired this strip was pretty straight forward. I man is at a gym working out on a treadmill. A truck crashes through the wall and hits him. It's one of those stories that writes itself.

The Comic Critic Reviews "Harold and Maude"

For others, Harold and Maude is a dark comedy, but for me it’s a perfect romance movie. A truly great romance movie is more than two people falling in love. Romance is more than sweet gestures and kind words. Romance is about delving into the world, exploring it, and then sharing that exploration with the one you love. In Harold and Maude, Harold is delving into the only world he knows of, full of isolation and loneliness. Many find these states of being comparable to death because both isolation and loneliness are defined by an absence, and death is the ultimate absence. The sadness and grief that follows in death’s wake are overwhelming tortuous emotions. The juxtaposition of absence occurring with death to the overwhelming emotions of grief is a source of confusion for Harold, and in his travels to clear this confusion he meets Maude. Maude is a great explorer of the world. We glean that she’s seen her share of horrors. Her outlook on life makes no time for sadness, loneliness, or grief. She doesn’t conquer them so much as disregard them as meaningless to following the spirit of life. She finds joy in every moment. She is a force of nature. Harold and Maude is the perfect romance because it’s two people sharing with each other their discoveries of the world with love and understanding. The humor is wonderfully dark. It’s extremely easy to see the writer’s commenting on America’s involvement in the Vietnam War and drawing parallels to the story. Keep that in mind and the already rich minefield of wonderful surprises Harold and Maude has in store for you will become even more entertaining.

The Comic Critic Reviews "The Robe" from 1953

The Robe is a better movie than you would expect. The story is actually about a man dealing with the shame and guilt of being lost in a life without true moral direction. His redemption is when he finds his true path. In the story of The Robe, many viewers miss the hero’s redemption through Jesus as an allegory. Now, that is what I call strong script writing. The advent of television lured people away from theaters. The studio no doubt wanted to hit a large demographic with its new, exciting presentation technique, the height to width ratio nearly twice as wide as a television screen: CinemaScope! I think that’s why The Robe was the first CinemaScope release instead of How to Marry a Millionaire, which completed filming in CinemaScope first. The studio was right. The Robe did well at the box office. Here’s an interesting bit of trivia: The Robe was also filmed in the standard “Academy” format for theaters that had yet to be fitted with the new technology. This required separate film takes and set preparations for many scenes. So, there are actually two versions of The Robe circulating out there with different looks and dialog. Odds are that you have only seen the Academy version as that size format fits televisions. Look for a DVD widescreen version of The Robe, and see Richard Burton strut his stuff like you’ve never seen it before.

The Return of Stickman #1585

This strip was inspired by yesterday's strip. There is no accuracy to it because it's 'fictional.'

The Comic Critic Reviews "River of No Return"

River of No Return did well at the box office when it was released in 1954. This western has a relatively simple script and might have blended in well with average western fare if it weren’t for two things. The first was the scenery. Director Otto Preminger and Cameraman Joseph LaShelle took full advantage of Cinemascope to capture the grandeur of national parks as mesmerizing settings for the story. Also beautiful on the screen was the leading lady, Marilyn Monroe. Her role as a saloon singer served as useful excuse to have her fill the screen. To extend her screen time, Preminger has her sing several musical numbers. When Marilyn or the gorgeous buttes of Idaho aren’t depicted on screen, we have Robert Mitchum tangling with scoundrels, Indians, and mountain lions. There’s not a lot of depth to or explanation of these characters. No reasons are given for the Indian and mountain lion attacks other than the assumption that’s what Indians and mountain lions do. As a result, those scenes lack strength and are forgotten as quickly as a childhood game. There is more chemistry between Marilyn and the boy, played by Tommy Rettig, than there is between Monroe and Mitchum. Had there been more of a spark, River of No Return might rank higher in its status as a classic Western.