Armchair Commentary

MOD of the Week: "The Tall T" and "Ten Little Indians"

At first blush, director Budd Boetticher's The Tall T (1957; Sony Choice Collection) plays like a conventional Western - rancher Randolph Scott (in his second and best of seven celebrated collaborations with Boetticher) is held hostage along with newlyweds Maureen O'Sullivan and John Hubbard by outlaw Richard Boone and his gang (Henry Silva and Skip Homeier). But when O'Sullivan is revealed as the heir to a family fortune, the conflict enters noirish psychological waters, with Scott and Boone revealed as less antagonists than flip sides to the same coin and Hubbard as a craven opportunist more than happy to trade his bride to save his own skin. Adapted by Burt Kennedy from Elmore Leonard's short story "The Captive," The Tall T is a tense, exceptionally gritty Western-thriller hybrid that presages the moral complexity of latter-day revisionist efforts like The Wild Bunch and Unforgiven.

Meanwhile, Warner Archives has reissued Ten Little Indians (1965), which was previously released as a pressed Warner Bros. disc in 2006. Though it doesn't hold a candle to Rene Clair's And Then There Were
None (1945), this version of the Agatha Christie mystery about guests to a remote retreat preyed upon by an unseen killer, produced by the notorious Harry Alan Towers and directed by George Pollack (who helmed the Miss Marple films with Margaret Rutherford) is fizzy fun, thanks to an eclectic cast of suspects that includes two Bond Girls - Shirley Eaton and Daliah Lavi - Brit film vets Dennis Price, Leo Genn and Stanley Holloway and Americans Hugh O'Brien and Fabian (as well as the unmistakable voice of an uncredited Christopher Lee), many of whom would go on to work for Towers on his more exploitative efforts with prolific cult director Jess Franco. The disc includes the William Castle-esque "Whodunnit Break," which interrupted the film during its theatrical run to give audiences a chance to guess the identity of the killer. Towers would remake the film in 1989 with an even more offbeat cast, including Donald Pleasance, Frank Stallone and Herbert Lom. -- Paul Gaita

Gear Jammers and Night Riders: 10 Great Car Chase Movies Before "Drive"

With its blend of high-octane car action and an indie-friendly cast that includes Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan, Albert Brooks, Bryan Cranston and Ron Perlman, the thriller Drive, which opens September 16, appears to pay homage to the great auto-oriented action and suspense films of the 1970s, where top actors like Steve McQueen, Gene Hackman and Peter Fonda vented their frustration over the decade's turmoil from behind the wheel of some heavy-duty horsepower. No Michael Bay histrionics or Fast and Furious drift here - just four wheels, an open road and plenty of attitude.

Following are some of the best and most ballsy car chase films from that decade, as well as a few from the 1980s and 1990s that took their MPH to heart.

Bullitt (1968) Steve McQueen's Inspector Frank Bullitt and his '68 V8 Ford Mustang are pursued by a 440 Dodge Charger through San Francisco's highly vertical Mission District in the landmark 9-minute chase scene from Peter Yates' police thriller. McQueen did about 10% of his own driving in the film, leaving the rest to veteran stunt drivers Bud Ekins (who executed McQueen's barbed wire fence jump in The Great Escape, 1963) and McQueen's usual stunt double, Loren James. The Bullitt Mustang was revived by Ford in 2008 to celebrate the film's 40th anniversary.

The French Connection (1971) Gene Hackman's tough cop Popeye Doyle pits his 1971 Pontiac Le Mans against New York's BMT West Line train in a frenzied attempt to stop hitman Marcel Bozzuffi after a botched attempt on Doyle's life. An astonishing display of cinematic bravura, director William Friedkin puts the viewer in the driver's seat (well, the back seat, where he shot over stunt driver Bill Hickman's shoulder while wrapped in a mattress for protection) or on the Pontiac's front bumper to provide one of the movies' greatest adrenaline rushes.

Made-for-TV Terrors: The ORIGINAL "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" and other '70s Small Screen Shockers

 On October 10, 1973, TV audiences who tuned to ABC were transfixed by a hair-raising supernatural thriller about a young newlywed (Kim Darby, True Grit) plagued by unseen fores in her new home. The feature, Don't Be Afraid of the Dark, earned a reputation as one of the most terrifying productions ever made for television, and had a profound effect on many that saw it in the four decades after its initial network broadcast - including director Guillermo Del Toro (Hellboy), who recently produced a big-screen remake, starring Katie Holmes and Guy Pearce, that opens on August 26. 

Del Toro's remake serves as a great reminder that the 1970s were an exceptional period for horror features on the small screen. The success of such critically acclaimed and highly rated efforts as Steven Spielberg's Duel (1971), Dan Curtis' The Night Stalker (1972) and Dark, directed by John Newland (of One Step Beyond fame) paved the way for dozens of genre titles, some of which compared favorably to the Hollywood releases of the period. Following are 10 of the best '70s-era TV-movie horror films, all available on DVD, and all providing the perfect degree of chills for hot summer viewing. It should be mentioned that the original Don't Be Afraid of the Dark has also been issued in a newly remastered special edition disc.

Note: the omission of some outstanding TV-movie terror titles, including Steven Spielberg's Something Evil (1972), A Cold Night's Death (1972) and the Gene Roddenberry-produced Spectre (1973)- both starring the late Robert Culp - and Curtis Harrington's The Dead Don't Die, is due to their unavailability on legitimate DVD.

Can't Recall Being this Totally Excited

For a lot of guys in my age bracket Paul Verhoeven's Total Recall is a seminal movie. If you were an Arnold (pronounced Aahh-nuld) fan (go ahead and admit it, it was a different time), Total Recall was the zenith of his awesomeness. And my dad took me to see it when I was too young for an R rated movie. It came after Commando, Predator, The Running Man & Twins. It was the right movie at the right time for any action/adventure loving movie goer. Total Recall was full of humor, memorable quotes and for the era, great sci-fi design and special effects. It seemed like such a BIG movie and for at least this one movie geek, it would became one of the most referenced films ever.

So now, of course, the upcoming "re-imagining" Total Recall (2012) directed by Len Wiseman (of Underworld fame) is making me feel like a kid again. Scanning the google looking for updates or new photos, hoping for an Arnold cameo, anything to feed my excitement. Anyways.....this time around we've got Colin Farrell in the Arnie role. Which, I can get on board with. He's versatile and sometimes brilliant as is evident in the far too unwatched In Bruges. Then the cast really gets good. Kate Beckinsale in the Sharon Stone role, AWESOME! Jessica Biel as Melina, SWEET!! And to top it all off Bryan Cranston as Cohagen. AWESOMELY SWEET!!! Oh wait, as if that wasn't good enough, how bout' they throw in a little Bill Nighy, John Cho and some Ethan Hawke. MIND BLOWN!! One more bonus, Shia LaBeouf is not in it. Just a powerhouse group! What's next, Robocop with Daniel Craig? We can dream.

It's OK if you're smiling right now thinking of some mindless action fun. Let yourself go back to that place when you were younger and going to the movies was so much more exciting. We didn't need no stinkin' 3D! We just needed absurd fight scenes and enough of the F word to make us feel a little bit dangerous while we watched. Thanks Paul Verhoeven, thanks Arnie and now thank you Len Wiseman and Columbia Pictures for bringing back this classic. Yeah, I said it, c-l-a-s-s-i-c.

First Trailer: "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo"

Watch it now!

Arthur, Straight Up: Movies and Alcohol

The new reboot of Arthur, starring Russell Brand as a lovable man-child billionaire playboy with a rather serious drinking problem also presents a rather serious problem in its comedic premise that the 30-year-old original starring Dudley Moore did not. As a piece of bright, shiny entertainment, Arthur 2011 is perfectly fine, but the subject of alcoholism kind of grates as an issue that's easy to make light of. Arthur 1981 didn't really have the same problem, partly because Dudley Moore did such a fine and funny happy-drunk act, and partly because as a societal issue alcoholism wasn't quite as much of a stumbling block. The new version doesn't always know how to handle this rather important plot point, and it gets in the way more often than not. Russell Brand has made no secret of his past as an addict and alcoholic who has found life afresh in recovery. He knows whereof he pretends, but his drunken act is rather more of a silly aside in the movie's grander scheme than anything else.

Drinking, drunks, and the subject of alcoholism on screen has had a long and varied history even before Dudley Moore's Arthur drove his limousine down the streets of New York sloshed to the gills (God help a movie studio that would portray such a thing as a comedic event today). The subject has been addressed head-on, obliquely, or as a plot point that is either inherent or tangential to character or story. As a tribute to the two Arthurs and Dudley Moore's overly theatrical drunk act -- hardly anyone has ever done it better -- what follows is a brief sampling of a few movies that, in no particular order, have tackled the issue of drink with humor, delicacy, offhandedness or the most profound gravity.

When a Man Loves a Woman (1994): Playing it completely straight, Al Franken stepped out of Stuart Smalley mode to address the reality of addiction as co-writer of this affecting portrait of a couple whose marriage slams into the very real wreckage caused by her alcoholism. There's nothing funny about the heavy duty drinking that consumes Meg Ryan and almost destroys her enabling husband Andy Garcia in a way that's just as serious. There's a happy ending, but not before some harrowing vignettes that proves Franken understands that the reality of addiction is no laughing matter.

The Upside of Anger (2005): Drink is not exactly the subject of this flawed, yet funny and poignant romantic yarn about an upscale suburban mom (Joan Allen) whose husband picks up and leaves, but it's in the background of every scene and influences a lot of the characters' motivations. Allen's four grown-ish daughters are foils caught between her rage (often alcohol-fueled) and the growing attentions of the washed-up pro baseball player who lives next door (Kevin Costner). He's also a fairly constant tippler, though he prefers talboys to her high-end vodka, and the story does indeed lob some cautionary hardballs about the dangers of mixing drink with love, comedy, and romance.

Drunks (1995): Real-life recovering alcoholic Richard Lewis leads a stellar cast in Gary Lennon's adaptation of his play, Blackout about a night in the life of a group of drunks doing their thing at an AA meeting in a seedy pre-Disneyfied Times Square church basement. Lewis, completely out of stand-up comic mode and into serious method acting territory is the riveting soul of an often scarily realistic portrayal of the way it really is for alcoholics in, out, or on the verge of recovery. Addiction isn't funny at all for these bunch of soul-baring drunks which include the likes of Sam Rockwell, Amanda Plummer, Kevin Corrigan, Parker Posey, Dianne Wiest, Faye Dunaway, and Spalding Gray.

Barfly (1987): Director Barbet Schroeder had great fun in tackling the work of famed literary drunkard Charles Bukowski in this loose adaptation of his autobiographical writings. Mickey Rourke plays the Bukowski stand-in in prime, pre-self parody Mickey Rourke form as a disgusting, loathsome, yet sometimes loveable habitue of the seediest Los Angeles dives ever captured on film. He's unrepentant and has fun -- between bouts of sickness and a sobering down-and-out lifestyle in which Faye Dunaway is his alcoholic cohort -- giving the barflies around him a kind of romantic charm. Barfly is famous among many for the oft-quoted line mumbled by a background character: "What's a guy gotta do to get a drink around here!?"

Bad Santa (2003): Billy Bob Thornton's turn as a the most disgusting, despicable, foul-mouthed seasonal Santa who ever allowed a child to approach him is a classic of offensive cinema and perhaps one of the funniest performances ever. Never seen not guzzling down a bucket of booze or barfing it back up, his portrayal of a terminal drunkard and all around jerk who hooks with up for the holidays to do the Santa act, then sticks around to clean out the safe is astonishing for being so funny in the face of the utter lack of fun he ever seems to have. He spews his lines like bile, showing the dark side of drink -- but with the darkest, funniest sides of comedy held closely in tow.

The Lost Weekend (1945): This cautionary tale brought the issue of alcoholism to the masses in a big way for audiences in 1945 and also brought Oscars to star Ray Milland and director Billy Wilder (it also won for best picture and best screenplay). Milland's character summarizes the best and worst of what alcohol does to the life of the drinker and all those around him in a remarkable soliloquy delivered barside, then showed the audiences the horrors of withdrawal in a memorable scene that has him strapped to a bed in the psych ward. The film still makes a huge impact today for the realistic way it portrays the depths of deceit and despair an alcoholic will plumb before -- or if -- he chooses to accept help.

Harvey (1950): This classic from the Jimmy Stewart oeuvre may be closes to the original version Arthur for the way it portrays a happy-go-lucky drunk who never really encounters many problems from his alcoholism. As Elwood P. Dowd, Stewart spends his days happily soused at the bar, charmed to meet anyone in his path and charming everyone he meets in return. Its sweet, slightly sad story may be a cautionary tale, but with his six-foot-tall invisible rabbit friend Harvey always in tow, Elwood never had much to worry about, and neither did the audience.

Leaving Las Vegas (1995): Crushingly sad, yet somehow hopeful in its denouement, Leaving Las Vegas won Nicolas Cage an Oscar for his performance as a man who purposefully sets out to drink himself to death. It is not a pretty picture of the destruction alcohol causes, though its message and tender romantic undertone is as sentimental as it is heartbreaking. Cage scarily reproduces the euphoria, depression, and horrible physical toll alcohol exacts on the human mind, body and spirit.

My Favorite Year (1982): As an homage to early live television -- specifically a tribute to Sid Caesar's Your Show of Shows, which is the thinly veiled backdrop setting -- My Favorite Year is a sweet and funny coming of age story about a young man trying to keep tabs on an old drunkard. Peter O'Toole played an Erroll Flynn-type aging heartthrob who agrees to appear on a new-fangled '50s TV comedy variety show without understanding what the concept "live" really means. The fact that he's a constant boozer to begin with doesn't help, but at least he's a happy, high-functioning drunk. His performance won him an Oscar nomination and a place in the happy-drinker hall of fame.

Days of Wine and Roses (1962): Jack Lemmon and Lee Remick both got Oscar nominations as a husband and wife who start their drinking careers innocently and with understandable nonchalance. But the booze overtakes them in harrowing ways that are portrayed with great drama and stark realism. It ends badly for them both, even though one of them successfully comes out the other side of the wreckage their drinking has caused each other and all those around them. The movie is also notable as the first to portray the organization of Alcoholics Anonymous as it actually existed, and the basics of how it works in saving the lives of those who choose to embrace it.

The Best Movies & TV of 2011... So Far

We took votes, we debated those votes, we butted heads. But in the end, all that's left standing is the Amazon.com Movies & TV editors' picks for the Best of 2011... So Far on DVD, Blu-ray, and Instant Video. (Applies to titles released between Jan. 1 and Apr. 30, 2011). Here's a peek at some of our picks:

Tangled (No. 9 for DVD, No. 6 for Blu-ray): Not everyone expected to be delighted by this hilarious take on Rapunzel, but thanks to great comic timing (courtesy of a horse and an oft-used cast-iron pan) and perfectly cast Mandy Moore as the voice of the captured princess who yearns to know what's outside her sheltered world/tower, Tangled became an indelible part of the Disney lore.

Mad Men: Season Four (No. 3 for DVD, No. 5 for Blu-ray): If there's a year this show deserves the Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series, it's this season. Jumping off from the previous season's game-changer, the AMC series has reinvigorated itself, and Jon Hamm does his finest acting yet as a man who sinks to his lowest of lows (yet) and makes baby steps toward respecting himself again. (Don't miss the standout episode of the season, "The Suitcase")

Inside Job (No. 8 for DVD): For anyone who knows nothing about economics or real estate, this a documentary that aims to spell out exactly how the financial crisis happened and who's to blame. For anyone who understands economics or real estate, it's like a horror film you can't believe is real.

Piranha 3D (No. 18 in Blu-ray): We're not all highbrow on this list (clearly). Alejandre Aja's remake of the Roger Corman B-movie made the list not just for its Blu-ray 3D effects (much to the chagrin of James Cameron, who decried that films like these are "not what we should be doing" with 3D) but because what it does--deliver cheesetastic gore to the max without pretending to be anything else--it does well.

and finally, our No. 1 pick on DVD and Blu-ray:

The Social Network: We over here think this film deserved Best Picture (Fincher, you wuz robbed!), but no one can argue is that its DVD and Blu-ray features are a Best in Class on how to use your medium. (Not that we considered The King's Speech small beans either; it also made the top 5 in DVD). But between the strength of the film itself; its commentaries by the cast, writer Aaron Sorkin, and director David Fincher; and its feature-length documentary (not to be missed, it's a must for all film buffs); this is the Best DVD or Blu-ray to come out in 2011... So far.

See the rest of our Top 25 on DVD and our Top 25 on Blu-ray, as well as the Top 10 on Instant Video. What are your picks? --Ellen

Once Upon a Twisted Fairy Tales

Retelling classic fairy tales is nothing new in literature or at the cinema. Sometimes it's a modern twist, other times the tale shows the story from another character's perspective. However the story is mixed-and-matched, the recent release of Beastly -- a modern update of Beauty and the Beast -- and Red Riding Hood, plus the announcement of a new Snow White starring Julia Roberts, Kristen Stewart, and Charlize Theron, prove these twisted tales are all the rage. Here are a few of our favorite new takes on old stories, but beware, these fairy tales aren't for the kids! Warning: spoilers ahead.

 

Snow White – A Tale of Terror (1997)

Based on: Snow White and the Seven Dwarves

The tale: Lady Claudia, an evil stepmother (as they often seem to be in fairy tales) tries to have her stepdaughter, Lilli, killed. But the attempt fails when Lilli escapes, hiding in the woods. She's found, and grudgingly given refuge, by seven outcast miners. Using her mother's mirror, Lady Claudia (Sigourney Weaver, who earned an Emmy Award® nomination for her role), discovers Lilli is still alive, and, much like the familiar tale, she disguises herself as an ugly old woman and delivers that fateful, deadly apple to Lilli. Though Lilli succumbs to the poison apple, she is saved and ultimately confronts her stepmother, finally destroying the magic mirror with a knife.

How it's twisted: The title says it all. Perhaps even darker than the original Grimm brothers' tale, this gothic interpretation replaces the dwarves with the miners, who do not exactly welcome Lilli into their home. But it seems the character of Lady Claudia truly imbues the darkest nature of this adaptation. She takes evil to elevated levels, going so far as to seduce Lilli's fiancé, attempts the resurrection of her stillborn son, and scares her brother -- the man responsible for Lilli's attempted murder -- into committing suicide, and that's just what we can list here!

 

Beauty and the Beast (1946)

Based on: Beauty and the Beast

The tale: Widely considered one of the finest fantasy films, even today, the French La Belle et la Bête tells the story most of us are familiar with: Belle offers to take her father's place as the Beast's prisoner after he takes a rose from the Beast's garden. Over time, Belle comes to look past the Beast's -- who is actually a cursed, handsome prince -- outwardly grotesque appearance, and sees him for the man behind the monster.

How it's twisted: Unlike some adaptations, this stunning black and white film actually stays very close to the original fairy tale by Leprince de Beaumont. However, director Jean Cocteau focused on the more adult, emotional aspects of the relationship between Belle and her princely Beast, envisioning a dark, though dreamy and romantic, environment. 

 

Freeway (1996)

Based on: Little Red Riding Hood

The tale: Vanessa (Reese Witherspoon), an illiterate teenager sets off to her grandmother's house … after her mother is arrested for prostitution. Before leaving, she stops to see her boyfriend, who gives her a gun to sell once she gets to her final destination. When her car breaks down along the highway, Bob Wolverton (Kiefer Sutherland) stops and offers to take her to her grandmother's house. Unknown to Vanessa, Bob is a serial killer. until he confesses and attacks her. She shoots him, and finds herself arrested, the police unconvinced of her story. She escapes from prison during transfer and finally makes her way to her grandmother's house, only to discover Bob has killed her grandmother.

How it's twisted: Though it may seem like it on the surface, this isn't a film that sets out purely to titillate. The original “Little Red Riding Hood” was a tale of warning to adolescent girls, and, while the themes of sex and violence are taken to amped up levels in this modern retelling, in many ways, it offers up the same warnings.

 

Into the Woods (1991)

Based on: Pretty much all of them

The tale: A group of characters venture into the woods, each seeking something they believe will improve their lives: Cinderella wants to go to the ball, but is prevented by her evil stepmother and stepsisters; Jack seeks to find a better life after his friend Milky-White the cow is sold by his wealth-hungry mother; the baker and his wife long for a child, but the witch next door claims she's cursed them, something that can only be broken with a potion made from “the cow as white as milk, the cape as red as blood, the hair as yellow as corn, the slipper as pure as gold.”

How it's twisted: With a veritable who's who fairy tale names comprising the characters of this story, no one and nothing is sacred. Based on Steven Sondheim's Tony Award® winning lyrics and score, and played by much of the original Broadway cast, this imagined world has Cinderella, Rapunzel, Little Red Riding Hood, Jack, and many more living side-by-side as neighbors. Witty dialogue and comedic displays counterbalance the dark undertones of the characters' search for that which each desires. While each ultimately gets what they wish for, the tale doesn't end with the traditionally expected happily ever after.

 

Alice (2009)

Based on: Alice in Wonderland

The story: Set almost 150 years after the original book, Alice (Catarina Scorsone), a woman in her 20s, finds herself literally in another world after her new boyfriend is kidnapped. She follows the van that snatched him off the street and falls through a looking glass. Captured with numerous other humans from her world, Alice manages to escape and ends up in the company of Hatter, a man who knows his way through the underworld of Wonderland. As she tries to get back home, Alice and Hatter seek to set things right, and manage to topple to towers of cards and casinos and free the humans who'd been abducted.

How it's twisted: Time has also passed in Wonderland, and not kindly. The previously skewed world of mad tea parties and off-with-your-head croquette games has morphed into a near-dystopian land of playing card-buildings and casinos, all under the cruel rule of a heartless monarch. Though many familiar characters are present -- The Queen of Hearts (Kathy Bates), The Mad Hatter -- The White Rabbit is now a secret organization that works for the queen, abducting humans and forcing them to play in the casinos so their emotions can be stolen and used as a drug. One familiar concept from the original remains: Alice in a blue dress.

 

Tin Man (2007)

Based on: The Wizard of Oz

The tale: Though initially this mini-series seems to be merely a modern retelling, with Oz similarly updated, it becomes clear that time has passed in both worlds, and DG (Zooey Deschanel) is more than just a waitress tired of her Kansas life. Actually placed on Earth to hide, and placed in the foster care of two androids playing the part of her guardians. When the ruler of Oz finds DG and sends her soldiers through a tornado to kill her, DG escapes through the storm and finds herself in Oz. When DG learns that she was once a citizen of Oz, she sets out to learn what she can about herself and her family.

How it's twisted: How do you count the ways? Aside from some similar names, very little in this tale lines up with the original story by Frank L. Baum. But that doesn't make it any less enjoyable as it reveals its own path along the -- now crumbling -- yellow brick road. Oz is O.Z., the Outer Zone, a near police-state ruled by the sorceress Azkadellia. Wyatt Cain (Neil McDonough) is a Tin Man, a law enforcement officer, encased in a tin suit for disobeying Azkadellia. He and DG join forces with Glitch (Alan Cumming), a man who's had half of his brain removed, and Raw, a “viewer” (similar to a psychic) who's people have been enslaved by Azkadellia. The final kicker is learning that DG is not Dorothy Gale, per se, but the many-great granddaughter of the “Gray Gale,” the original Dorothy of Baum's books, and the first person to “slip” between the worlds.

 

The Company of Wolves (1985) 

Based on: Little Red Riding Hood

The tale: Taking a more gothic flourish -- with a dash of horror -- to the classic story of a little girl lost in the woods. Rosaleen, a young woman entering puberty, goes to bed and dreams her sister is killed by wolves. While her parents mourn, she is sent to live with her grandmother (Angela Lansbury), who knits a red cape for her granddaughter and tells her tales steeped with morals and warnings. Years later, Roseleen returns home and finds herself dealing with the advances of an amorous local boy. As per the tale, Rosaleen goes to visit her grandmother, complete with a basket of baked goods, and encounters an attractive huntsman along the way. But he's more than he appears.

How it's twisted: This tale unfolds within Rosaleen's dreams, yes, but it's more than just fairy tales taking place in a young girl's mind. The wolves are werewolves, as is the huntsman who challenges her in the woods of her dreams. Like the original version of Little Red Riding Hood, the Big Bad Wolf kills the grandmother and Little Red (Rosaleen) fights back, wounding the wolf/huntsman. He reverts to wolf form, injured but not dead. And Rosaleen, feeling pity for him, pets him tenderly. Rosaleen herself becomes a wolf and, to escape the other villagers. Much like the original Little Red Riding Hood, this is a tale steeped with awakening sexuality, but ending with both male and female characters in wolf form.

 

Faerie Tale Theatre (1982 - 1987)

Based on: Pretty much all of them

The tale: A series of classic fairy and folk tales hosted by Shelley Duvall and acted by an enviable cast of Hollywood elite (Robin Williams, Liza Minnelli, Matthew Broderick, Mick Jagger, Eric Idle, and Susan Sarandon, just to name a few) take on 26 beloved stories.

How it's twisted: Perhaps lighter fare compared to some of the other adaptations listed above, this series is no less enjoyable, if nothing else for the cast of characters who joined Shelley Duvall.   

 

The following movies may not be adaptations of existing fairy tales, but they embrace the true spirit of storytelling, and we just couldn't leave them off the list.

The Fall

MirrorMask

Pan's Labyrinth

The Princess Bride

 

 

These are our twisted fairy tale favorites … what are your yours? --Jill Corddry

 

Ultimate Car Chases in the Movies

With the release of Drive Angry, we got to thinking about car chases and how they get our adrenaline going. These days, it seems any action movie worth your popcorn has one, and sometimes that car chase (or chases, if you're lucky!) is the best part of the movie. Done correctly, a rollicking pursuit down a busy highway or along a narrow, winding road can redeem even a stinker. We're not commenting on the rest of the movie, though, just the car chase. The below movies are the ones that get our hearts pumping.

 

Goldfinger (1964) and Quantum of Solace (2008)

It's too hard to pick just one James Bond car chase, so in honor of his double-0 status, we're giving you a Sean Connery/Daniel Craig doubleheader. Goldfinger has all the Bond classics: gorgeous foreign locales, check. Bad guys, check. A damsel (in a Mustang, no less) in distress, check. What more could a secret agent want? How about a fast car, loaded with gadgets: like an ejector seat! There's a lot to enjoy, but we love it because it introduces the Aston Martin. And Bond just isn't Bond without it. Flash forward 40 years and today's 007 is perhaps no longer as suave (or womanizing), but the newly gritty spy still has the cool car with the cooler toys. Quantum of Solace opens with a literal bang as Bond abuses his Aston Martin trying to get away, leading the bad guys through a tunnel and a construction site. Driving under hot pursuit has never looked so good.  

 

   

 

Bullitt (1968)

Heavy with testosterone, this classic features muscle car versus muscle car as Bullitt's (Steve McQueen) '68 Ford Mustang chases two hit men in a '68 Dodge Charger. A good portion of the scene is shown from the cars' POV, making you feel like you're in the back seat, hanging on for dear life, as both cars put their engines (and suspensions) through the ultimate test on San Francisco's hills. The rumbling growls of their cars will make you want to watch this movie (or at least the chase scenes) over and over again.

 

 

 

The Italian Job (1969, 2003)

When the original came out, no one had seen anything like the chase sequence, one that encompasses almost the entire second half of the movie. Loaded down with gold bars, three Mini Coopers speed through (yes through!) a Turin marketplace, down multiple staircases, go up and over a gaps in the road, and face off against two Jaguars and a bus, all in what was otherwise a simple heist flick. That scene set the standard for all pursuits that dared follow. Better yet, the 2003 remake didn't disappoint. Using thoroughly modern, souped-up Mini Coopers, hacker technology, and even more outrageous stunts, our hearts raced as we found ourselves rooting for the thieves. Again.

 

Gone in 60 Seconds (1974, 2000)

In the 1974 version, an African drug lord pays a group of car thieves to steal a list of very specific cars -- including a 1973 Ford Mustang Mach 1 -- they go on a frantic overnight spree, resulting in almost 100 crashes in a mere 97 minutes; almost half of the entire movie is made of up hot cars in hotter escape scenes. Admittedly most people think of the Nicholas Cage version, though, and, while the remake has a certain heat of its own (mostly in the form of a badass Angelina Jolie), and does pay homage to the original with a classic Mustang named Eleanor, the chase scenes just don't possess the same gritty realism. In this case, the original leaves the remake behind in a squeal of burning rubber.

 

Death Race 2000 (1975)

Outrageously themed cars, often possessing more dimensionality than the characters, take the winner's circle here. In a post-Apocalyptic America, a transcontinental race is the new national past time … making most of this movie one giant car chase. No one -- other drivers, spectators, pedestrians -- are safe from this literally deadly cross-country race, where you either finish first or die trying.

 

 

The Blues Brothers (1980)

Funny isn't usually associated with cars in chase, but the Blues Brothers somehow manage to accomplish both hilarious and edge-of-the-seat crazy as Elwood and Jake Blues make one of the speediest visits to a mall ever seen. Never mind the unbelievable amount of destruction as the brothers are chased by the cops, it's the calm conversation they maintain that'll rev your funny bone. When the film was released, it held the world record for the most cars destroyed (most of the 60 police cars purchased by the filmmakers) in one movie, a record that held until it was surpassed … by its own sequel, Blues Brothers 2000.

 

 

 

Ronin (1998)

Some high-speed car chases have you literally cheering in your seat, while others leave you cringing. Ronin gives you both simultaneously. Multiple times. It's almost impossible not to gasp with glee as various cars race through the streets of Paris, ending up the wrong way down the highway … and it's equally hard to watch the utter annihilation of more than one high-end Porsche and Mercedes. But of all the chases in the otherwise rambling movie, the one scene everyone remembers is the Audi S8, as Robert DeNiro, Jean Reno, and Sean Bean flee from a seriously underpowered French police car. This movie get further props for not using any CGI.

 

The Bourne Identity (2002)

Each of the Bourne movies has at least one mind-blowing chase scene (and not necessarily in a car), but the first of the series continues to be the one that astounds us the most. Featuring yet another classic Mini Cooper, Jason Bourne -- the ultimate trained assassin with amnesia -- races through the narrow streets of Paris with an unwilling passenger (and the car's rightful owner). The tiny car turns on a dime in the hands of Bourne as he takes it down stairs, on the sidewalk, the wrong way on one-way streets, and causes more than a few accidents, all while fleeing the Paris police.

 

 

 

Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005)

Minis are featured in more than one chase scene on our list, and this movie is no different … except the mini in this case is actually a minivan! Never has the stereotypical soccer mom vehicle seemed cooler than it does in this flick, possibly because it's driven by married spies played by Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt. They speed down the freeway in a minivan, pursued by three, bullet-proof Mercedes, arguing the entire time, as “Making Love out of Nothing at All,” by Air Supply plays on the car's stereo. The scene has all the things that make a classic chase: attractive actors, the mid-drive seat change, all culminating in a massive explosion. And while there are more than a few high-octane scenes throughout the entire movie, the sight of the battered minivan is one to remember.

 

Freeway Chase
Mr. & Mrs. Smith at MOVIECLIPS.com

 

Special TV offer! There are far too many awesome car chases on television to list here, but, as a bonus, here are three of our favorites:

Magnum P.I.'s Ferrari vs. GTO in a parking garage.

 

 

Starsky and Hutch take off after the bad guys in their Ford Grand Torrino.

 

 

MacGyver in a Mini! Need we say more?

 

 

We know we couldn't list them all! Which of your favorite car chases (from either the movies or television) did we leave off? --Jill Corddry

Extraordinary Teens Before "Number Four"

When it comes to depicting the emotional and physical upheaval that is becoming a teenager, the movies have usually relied on dramas and comedies to tell that story. But aren't the fantasy, science fiction and horror genres equally well equipped to show the trials and tribulations of teenage-dom? After all, don't the intense physical and chemical changes that run riot through teens' bodies sound like nothing less than a science experiment gone completely amuck? Comic book fantasies like Superman, Spider-Man and Smallville have all equated the growth from adolescent to teen with new-minted superheroes discovering and learning to control their powers, and scores of sci-fi and horror films have revolved around teens with unearthly abilities.

The latest in this list is I Am Number Four, starring Alex Pettyfer as one of nine alien children on the run from extraterrestrial hunters. It joins a long list of films about extraordinary youngsters, some of which we've listed here for your perusal.

(Please note: you'll note the absence of such notable films as Children of the Damned, The Last Mimzy and the Harry Potter franchise. For the purposes of this list, we're focusing on films about teens only.)

The Tomorrow People (1973) Well-loved British TV series about a group of children who develop a vast array of psionic abilities as they blossom into teens; their arrival represents the next stage of human evolution - the "homo superior," which David Bowie later referenced in his song "Oh! You Pretty Things."  

Carrie (1976) Sissy Spacek's sheltered high schooler dispatches her tormentors (including John Travolta and Nancy Allen) through devastating acts of telekinesis in Brian De Palma's still-terrifying adaptation of Stephen King's early novel. De Palma revisited the idea of young people with powerful psychic abilities in The Fury (1978).