March 12 - The Linda McCartney Story

Today’s movie is a biography with a scene that happens today, March 12. I hope you will enjoy this film and watch it tonight.

THE LINDA MCCARTNEY STORY                 

We begin at a retrospective of Linda McCartney’s photos of celebrities in New York in 1993. When someone comments that she is lucky to have a husband who knew all these famous people, Linda replies that she didn’t know Paul when she took most of the pictures.  Linda Eastman worked at Town & Country magazine and gets assigned to photograph the Rolling Stones when they first came to the USA on tour. She starts photographing rock and roll bands, including the Doors. Linda has affairs with both Mick Jagger and Jim Morrison.   She goes to work for Rolling Stone magazine and is hired to do the photos for a book about rock music. She goes to London where she meets Paul at a club in Soho. She returns to New York, but a year later John and Paul come to New York to launch Apple records and Paul meets Linda again. He invites her to LA where they consummate their relationship.   Back in 1993 Chrissie Hynde encourages Linda to get a mammogram to investigate a lump in her breast which turns out to be cancer. In the fall of 1968 Linda moves in with Paul at his house in England. Meanwhile tensions are rising within the Beatles between Paul and John. Paul and Linda live together incognito for a time in New York. After a little coaxing, Paul convinces divorcee Linda to marry him on March 12, 1969 [43:35 to 44:51]. The Beatles fight as the other three want “Bruce Grossman” as their manager, while Paul wants Linda’s attorney father and brother to run things. Linda and Paul have a daughter, Mary. The Beatles dissolve and Paul has to sue the others to get out of a contract where Grossman gets 20% of Paul’s future output. Linda undergoes aggressive treatment for her cancer. After the Beatles breakup Paul slips into depression. After the birth of their daughter Stella, Paul forms the band Wings with non-musician Linda as a member. In spite of criticism, she eventually improves enough to manage on stage. Then Paul is arrested for trying to smuggle pot into Japan. He is very lucky to only be expelled from the country after ten days. Linda’s cancer worsens and she dies in 1998.  

A rather light weight biopic. While interesting this movie doesn’t really get deep down into her soul. However, it is still an interesting film and I recommend it. 

Fab: An Intimate Life of Paul McCartney by Howard Sounes (De Capo Press, Cambridge, Ma., 2010) at pages 245-247 and the film at 43:36 give the wedding date

Director - Armand Mastroianni

Screenplay - Christine Berardo

Runtime – 1 hour 30 minutes

Released - May 21, 2000

Cast: Elizabeth Mitchell(Linda McCartney), Gary Bakewell(Paul McCartney), David Lewis (Danny Field), Nicole Oliver(Felicia), Tim Piper(John Lennon), Matthew Harrison (Mick Jagger), Aaron Grain(Jim Morrison), George Segal(Lee Eastman).

Copyright by Ivan Walters 2014.

 

March 11 - The Fighter

Today’s movie is a sports drama with a scene that happens today March 11.  I hope you will enjoy this film and watch it tonight.  

THE FIGHTER       

Dicky Eklund is a boxer from Lowell, Massachusetts who once when the distance with ‘Sugar Ray’ Leonard years ago and is now filming a documentary about his comeback. His younger half-brother Micky Ward, is also a boxer, managed by his mother and trained by Dickey, who has become a crack addict. When his opponent becomes ill his Mother substitutes a heavier fighter so Micky can still fight and get a purse. Micky gets beaten up and loses the bout. Micky begins a relationship with Charlene Fleming, a former college athlete who now works as a bartender. Micky gets an offer to be paid to train in Las Vegas. Dickey says he can match the offer. Dickey tries to do this by having his girlfriend pose as a hooker then he will impersonate a cop and take the John’s money. Instead Dickey is arrested by the real cops, as is Micky when he tries to intervene. Micky is released but Dickey is sentenced to jail time.  The documentary airs and the family is horrified to discover it is called Crack in America and is about how drugs ruined Dickey’s career. Dickey starts to try and turn his life around in jail. Micky’s father George Ward offers to train him on the condition neither his mother nor Dickey are involved in any way. Micky wins some fights and is offered a bout against an up-and-coming young boxer. Micky visits Dickey in jail and listens dispassionately to the advice Dickey gives him. However in the fight after being pummeled for most of the fight, Micky takes Dickey’s advice and KO’s his opponent. When Dickey gets out of jail he is told by Dickey he can’t be involved any more. This causes a huge fight within the family and with Charlene, but finally everybody puts their differences aside to support Micky. On March 11, 2000[1:39:54 to 1:50:08] Mickey travels to London to face Shea Neary for the Light Welterweight title bout. After absorbing punishment for eight rounds, Micky turns on Neary and wins with a TKO.

An exciting film. The boxing scenes appear very realistic. This is a tough, gritty and realistic film.

http://boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?human_id=3603&cat=boxer gives the date of this bout.

Producers - David Hoberman, Todd Lieberman, Ryan Kavanaugh, Mark Wahlberg, Dorothy Aufiero and Paul Tamasy

Director - David O. Russell

Awards – This movie won the Best Supporting Actor (Bale) and Best Supporting Actress (Leo) Oscars. It was also nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actress(Adams), Best Original Screenplay and Best Film Editing at the 83^rd Academy Awards. 

Screenplay - Scott Silver, Paul Tamasy and Eric Johnson

Released – December 10, 2010

Runtime – 1 hour 55 minutes      

Starring –

Mark Wahlberg as Micky Ward

Christian Bale as Dicky Eklund

Amy Adams as Charlene Fleming

Melissa Leo as Alice Ward

Jack McGee as George Ward

Frank Renzulli as Sal Lanano

Mickey O'Keefe as himself

Erica McDermott as Cindy "Tar" Eklund

Sugar Ray Leonard as himself

Caitlin Dwyer as Kasie Ward

Bianca Hunter as Cathy "Pork" Eklund

Copyright by Ivan Walters 2014. 

March 10 - Tai-pan

Today’s movie is a historical drama with a scene that happens today, March 10. I hope you will enjoy this film and watch it tonight.

TAI-PAN                  

On March 10, 1839 at the European settlement in Canton, Lin, a commissioner from the Chinese imperial court arrives and summons Dirk Struan, the unofficial leader (tai-pan) of the Europeans to meet him. Lin says that all opium in the possession of the Europeans is to be surrendered and burned. [00:32 to 9:58] The Chinese had refused to accept anything but silver in payment for tea and silk, until the Europeans discovered they would accept the illegal drug opium. The opium is surrendered and burned, which leads to a war the British win and use to annex Hong Kong. Dirk’s son Culum arrives from Europe. Struan’s business rival Tyler Brock tells Struan he has bought up £1.2 million of Struan’s debt that is immediately due. This causes everyone else to withhold credit, so he can’t buy goods to export. Struan learns Mary Sinclair, an acquaintance, is the lover of the Chinese merchant Jin-qua, who lends Struan a fortune in silver in return for being Struan’s indispensable agent with the Chinese for ten years. Struan gets the silver to Hong Kong and pays off Brock. Struan has a ball to celebrate the establishment of Hong Kong. May-may, Struan’s mistress has a European dress and wants to go, but Struan pretends to be upset with her, and the fact that she stoically bears his (apparently) unjustified wrath gives her great ‘face’ among the Chinese. At the ball Culum is attracted to Tess, daughter of Tyler Brock, in a match secretly supported by her mother, who sees it as a peacemaking move.  May-may gets pregnant. Tyler Brock proposes Culum and Tess get married in a year, during which he hopes to exert a controlling influence over Culum. Struan sends Culum off to Macao, specifically telling him he’s putting the ship’s captain under his orders. Culum takes Tess along and orders the captain to marry them. May-may gets malaria, loses the baby and almost dies until Struan spends huge sums to find a cure. When Brock’s son Gorth confronts him about the wedding of his sister, Dirk kills him. Struan and Brock fight without result as a typhoon approaches. Struan and May-may are killed in the storm and Culum takes over.

An interesting political/personal drama. The film is better than its reviews, although it does help if you’ve read the novel this is based on first. Would have been better as a mini-series, as too much of the detail had to be cut for time reasons. 

Date given in film at 00:42

Director - Daryl Duke                                          

                                                                        

Runtime - 2 hours 7 minutes                         

                                                                      

Released - November 7, 1986                      

                                                                      

Cast –

Bryan Brown as Dirk Struan

Joan Chen as May-May

John Stanton as Tyler Brock

Kyra Sedgwick as Tess Brock

Tim Guinee as Culum Struan

Russell Wong as Gordon Chen

Copyright by Ivan Walters 2014.

March 9 - The Four Feathers (1978)

Today’s movie is an action/adventure film with a scene that happens on March 9.  I hope you will enjoy this film and watch it tonight.

THE FOUR FEATHERS            

Harry Faversham, a sensitive boy grows up in Victorian England listening to his father and his army friends recount tales of heroism and courage. Harry grows up and joins the army. However, after he gets engaged to the beautiful Ethne Eustace he resigns his commission in spite of rumors that there will be a war in Egypt. During their engagement ball, the regimental officers get telegrams recalling them for immediate transport to Egypt, but Faversham burns them so he can feign ignorance of the recall and still resign. The other officers learn of this and Jack Durrance, Thomas Willoughby and William Trench send Faversham the white feather of cowardice. When Harry tells Ethne that he burned the telegrams, she gives him a white feather also and breaks their engagement. She turns her attentions to Jack Durrance. Harry undergoes a period of deep introspection in which he even considers suicide. He travels to Egypt on his own and seeks out Abou Fatma> Faversham gets Abou to agree to let him act as a scout for the British army, disguised as an Arab. The army camps in the desert at Tamai and that night the Dervish army surrounds the camp. Abou rides to get reinforcements, while Harry rides to warn the camp. In spite of this the camp is overrun and only few men led by Durrance escape. Durrance is blinded by a powder flash during close combat, but is saved by Harry. Durrance takes back his feather and Harry asks him to take the feather to Ethne. Trench is captured. While in the hospital Durrance gets a letter from Ethne agreeing to marry him. Durrance returns to England and tries to convince Ethne to end her engagement to him, a blind man. Back in Egypt Harry saves Willoughby from an assassination attempt.  Willoughby takes his feather back and gives it to Ethne.   Harry arranges to be arrested and thrown into jail with Trench. With Abou’s help Harry and Trench escape. On March 9, 188_ [1:23:44 to  1:31:26] Durrance tells Ethne he is going to Germany for treatment that may fully restore his sight and he ends their engagement. Trench returns and gives Ethne his white feather. She races to their meeting spot where she and Harry are reconciled.  

A decent adventure film. This version follows the book very closely. Goes into more detail about Harry’s psychological struggle after he got the feathers.

Date of dispatch describing Trench’s return to Cairo is given as March 2 at 1:24:19. The dispatch is described as “a week old” at 1:25:19.

Producer – Norman Rosemont

Director - Don Sharp

Awards – The film was nominated for the Outstanding Achievement in Costume Design for a Drama Special at the 30^th Primetime Emmy Awards.

Screenplay - A.E.W. Mason and Gerald Di Pego

Runtime – 1 hour 40 minutes

Released – January 1, 1978

Starring –

Beau Bridges as  Harry Faversham

Robert Powell as  Jack Durrance

Simon Ward as  William Trench

Jane Seymour as  Ethne Eustace

Harry Andrews as  Gen. Faversham

Richard Johnson as Abou Fatma

David Robb as  Thomas Willoughby

Richard Beale as  Wembol (valet)

Robin Bailey as  Col. Eustace

John Hallam as  Sergeant Major

Julian Barnes as  Lt. Bradley

Mary Maude as  Mrs. Faversham

Frank Gatliff as Old major

Robert Flemyng as Old colonel

Robert James as John (the butler)

Copyright by Ivan Walters 2014.

March 8 - Ironclads

Today’s movie is a historical war melodrama with a scene that happens on March 8. I hope you will enjoy this film and watch it tonight.

IRONCLADS                     

At the start of the Civil War the US Navy tries to destroy the Gosport Navy yard at Norfolk, Virginia. They succeed in destroying most of the base but a sailor, Leslie Hanson sabotages blowing up the dry dock. The Confederate Navy tows the damaged USS Merrimac into the dry dock and begins converting it into an armored ship. Hanson says he stopped the explosion because it would have killed friends he had made in Gosport during the previous two years. This excuse is not accepted and he is to be executed, but he is offered the chance to travel with a Yankee lady spy Betty Stuart to Virginia and get the technical specs on the new Confederate ironclad.  He agrees and crosses the lines with her to Virginia. Harmon later is able to attend a test of the armor on CSS Virginia (the Confederate ironclad created from the hull of the Merrimac), but learns the test is misinformation and that the real armor is very effective in defending against cannon fire. Betty uses her mother’s slave Opel and Opel’s husband Cletus, who works at the Navy yard as agents and couriers. John Ericsson convinces the US government to adopt his design for an armored ship with a rotating turret. Betty falls in love with Catesby Jones, a Confederate naval officer and agrees to marry him. She orders Hanson to return North with the information that the North will have to use more powerful cannon charges against the Virginia.  After Betty learns Jones has been assigned to the Virginia she tries to stop Hanson from going north, but in the end she decides to let him go. On March 8, 1862 [36:42 to 1:10:52] the Virginia is launched. Betty tells Jones what she has learned about the USS Monitor and that the Virginia needs more armor. He deduces that she and Hanson are Yankee spies. The Virginia is immediately sent into battle before the Monitor can arrive and Betty is arrested as a spy. The USS Congress fires on the Virginia to no effect. The Virginia turns and sinks the USS Cumberland and then fires on the Congress, which surrenders. When Yankee shore batteries fire on the Virginia, the Confederates burn the  Congress. When the captain is injured Jones assumes command of the Virginia. Betty learns that she was arrested because of a letter found on Opel when returning from the North, but the letter is not sufficient to create more than suspicion, as Jones did not tell his superiors Betty was a spy.  The Virginia leaves the USS Minnesota stuck on a sandbar, as the Virginia can’t approach or she will run aground herself.  Lt. Gilford, who arrested Betty, tries to get Betty to confess, but she refuses. Hanson, who was on the Minnesota, becomes the Monitors pilot as soon as it arrives at the battle scene in the middle of the night. At dawn the two ships sail straight for each other. The Virginia gets stuck and then tries to ram the Monitor. When the Monitor tries to ram the Virginia, a shot blinds the Monitor’s captain and the ship withdraws to shallow water. The Virginia then returns to its base. North and South argue about who won the battle. Betty and Opel are released, since Jones reported Betty had transmitted misinformation to the North. However, Jones ends his relationship with Betty and advises her to go north. Two months later the Virginia was scuttled and at the end of the year the Monitor was sunk in a storm.         

A decent historical melodrama. Weaves in a fictional story in with the facts. Alters the facts somewhat, but still creates an interesting and compelling storyline.

A History of the Confederate Navy by Raimondo Luraghi (Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD, 1996) at pages 139-143 and the film at 43:06 give this date. 

Producers - David A. Rosemont and Norman Rosemont

Director - Delbert Mann

Awards – This film was nominated Outstanding Achievement in Special Visual Effects, Outstanding Costume Design for a Miniseries or Special, Outstanding Sound Editing for a Miniseries or Special and Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Drama Miniseries or a Special at the 43^rd Primetime Emmy Awards.

Screenplay - Harold Gast

Runtime – 1 hour 34 minutes

Released = March 11, 1991

Starring –

Virginia Madsen as Betty Stuart

Alex Hyde-White as Catesby Jones

Reed Diamond as Leslie Hanson

Philip Casnoff as Lt. Guilford

E.G. Marshall as Commander Joseph Smith

Fritz Weaver as John Ericsson

Copyright by Ivan Walters 2014.

March 7 - Five Fingers

Today’s movie is an espionage thriller with a scene that happens on March 7. I hope you will enjoy this film and watch it tonight.

FIVE FINGERS                  

Count Franz Von Papen, the German ambassador to neutral Turkey in 1944 turns down an offer by a destitute Polish Countess Anna Staviska to become a paid spy for Germany. That same night a man approaches Moyzisch, an attaché at the German embassy and offers to supply top-secret British documents for £20,000. We see that the man, Ulysses Diello, is the valet of the British ambassador to Turkey, Sir Frederic Taylor. On March 7, 1944 [21:16 to 39:16] Diello delivers the first roll of microfilm to Moyzisch. He is paid and told his code name is “Cicero”. Diello visits Countess Anna Staviska, as he used to work for her deceased husband and asks her to help him by depositing the money in the bank, as he does not want to draw attention to himself. The German High Command after reviewing the documents thinks they are too good to be real and must be a British plant. However they agree to several transactions where they pay Cicero £15,000 per roll of film. The Germans send an officer, Colonel von Richter, to Turkey to investigate. Meanwhile Sir Frederic learns from the Turks that he has a security leak and London sends Colin Travers to investigate. Richter asks Cicero to get info about Operation Overlord and he agrees in return for £40,000. Travers has an alarm put on Sir Frederic’s safe. Diello thinks the British are getting suspicious of him and decides to leave for Brazil with his ill-gotten gains and the Countess. However, the Countess takes the cash and flies to Switzerland by herself and writes a letter to Sir Frederic denouncing Diello as a German spy. Diello decides to get the Overlord documents. He disables the alarm by turning off the electricity. He photos the Overlord documents and steals Countess Straviska’s unopened letter. He replaces the documents, but sets off the alarm as a maid had restored the electricity in order to vacuum. Diello runs away before he can be arrested. Diello has upped his price to £100,000, which he gets at an Istanbul restaurant in exchange for the film. Travers has trailed Diello there and offers to protect Diello from the Germans, who now want him dead since they have the film. Travers wants to know what Cicero gave to the Germans. Diello pretends to agree, but then bolts and escapes both the British and German agents who are looking for him. The Countess had also written to the German ambassador telling him Diello was a British agent, so the Germans think the documents he had provided with the real details about Overlord are plants and ignore them. In Brazil, Diello is arrested when the British pounds he got from the German turn out to be counterfeit.

A fascinating true story. Mason plays Diello as a smug, superior type who outsmarets the British and the Germans, but is taken in by a woman. A highly entertaining film. 

The date is given in the film at 15:47

Producer - Otto Lang

Director - Joseph L. Mankiewicz

Awards - The film was nominated for the Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay  

                 Oscars at the 25^th Academy Awards.

Screenplay - Michael Wilson

Runtime –  1 hour 48 minutes

Released - February 22, 1952

Cast –

James Mason as Ulysses Diello / Cicero

Danielle Darrieux as Countess Anna Staviska

Michael Rennie as Colin Travers

Walter Hampden as Sir Frederic Taylor

Oskar Karlweis as Moyzisch

Herbert Berghof as Colonel von Richter

John Wengraf as Count Franz Von Papen

Ben Astar as Siebert

Roger Plowden as McFadden  

Copyright by Ivan Walters 2014.

March 6 - The Accused

Today’s movie is a courtroom drama with a scene on March 6. I hope you will enjoy this film and watch it tonight.

THE ACCUSED                  

On March 6, 1983 Sarah Tobias is gang-raped in a bar, while drunken patrons cheer the rapists on. [00:28 to 15:32 and 1:20:00 to 1:33:54] The prosecutor assigned to the case is persuaded to let them plead guilty to a lesser charge that could get them out of jail in a year. The victim becomes enraged about this. When the victim is hospitalized after ramming the truck of one of the witnesses, who had propositioned her, the prosecutor decides to charge those who cheered on the rapists with criminal solicitation. At trial they are convicted.

        

            A brutally honest film. Almost painful in its portrayal of events. One of those films you really don’t want to see, but should.

The Providence Journal, November 1, 1999 a story called “Big Dan’s rape case” by Paul Edward Parker gives the date of the real life assault on which the film is based

Director - Jonathan Kaplan

Awards - Jodie Foster won the Oscar for Best Actress

Running Time - 1 hour 51 minutes

Released - October 14, 1988

Starring -         

Kelly McGillis as A. D.A. Kathryn Murphy

Jodie Foster as Sarah Tobias

Bernie Coulson as Ken Joyce

Leo Rossi as Cliff "Scorpion" Albrect

Ann Hearn as Sally Fraser

Carmen Argenziano as D. A. Paul Rudolph

Steve Antin as Bob Joiner

Tom O'Brien as Larry

Peter Van Norden as Attorney Paulsen

Terry David Mulligan as Lieutenant Duncan

Woody Brown as Danny

Scott Paulin as Attorney Ben Wainwright

Copyright by Ivan Walters 2014.