Prime Time: Mannequin (1987)

I used to love Mannequin. I'm not ashamed to say it. I could happily rewatch it many times over one weekend. I was young. I was more innocent. I was stupid. Watching it nowadays, after a verrrrrrrry long gap, it soon becomes clear that Mannequin is a bit rubbish. There are still some things to like about it, but you really have to sift through a lot of dirt to find the tiniest little grains of gold.

Andrew McCarthy is Jonathan Switcher, a young man who ends up being unable to hold down a job. He's not being lazy or unrealistic, oh no. He's just an artist, and he needs to do something that helps to fulfil his artistic soul. This is frustrating for his girlfriend, Roxie (Carole Davis). Things change, however, when Switcher saves Claire Timkin (Estelle Getty) from a falling sign outside a department store. It's basically her department store, and she offers Switcher a job. He starts off as a stockroom worker, but eventually meets a mannequin (Emmy, played by Kim Cattrall) that comes alive at night and helps him become a celebrated window dresser. This pleases the flamboyant Hollywood (Meshach Taylor), but displeases the greasy and gurning Richards (James Spader). It also displeases B. J. Wert (Stephen Vinovich), the owner of a rival department store who was ready to buy his ailing competitor at a bargain price.

It's unsurprising to see that this was actually the first theatrical feature for director Michael Gottlieb, who also co-wrote the screenplay with fellow newbie Edward Rugoff. It's a bit more surprising to note the few punchlines that still work though. For example, there's the typical '80s horndog (Armand, played by Christopher Maher) who thinks he is about to have his dreams come true at one point . . . only for his night to fall a bit flat. He may then immediately seek to blame someone else, but it's good to see this being the end of a series of "gags" that were all based on his constant harassment of a woman he wanted to sleep with. Then there are the moments of physical comedy supplied by G. W. Bailey, playing a security guard not a million miles removed from the character her portrayed in the Police Academy movies. Mind you, the gags that work are still not good enough to distract you from the fact that Emmy was "made" by Switcher (a mannequin he worked on for a long time before inevitably being fired), and does everything she can in order to support him and improve his life. She resorts to her unmoving mannequin state when anyone else is around, and seems content to be kept in stasis in between nights she can spend with our leading man.

McCarthy is, just like this movie, someone I used to like a lot in the 1980s. I still like some of his performances, but he's unable to do enough here to make his character as appealing as he should be. He has a few character quirks (drives a motorbike, wears trainers with his trousers, etc.), but there's nothing about him that feels truly special. Cattrall, on the other hand, is wonderful, and does her best in a role that surely didn't seem as good on the page. Her character works so well because of the combination of beauty, energy, and fun that Cattrall tends to carry into everything. Taylor isn't very good, but he definitely makes an impression, and the third act allows him to show how supportive and open-minded good friends should be with one another. Getty is perfectly fine, Davis does well, even if she just has to be the girlfriend who is viewed with disdain for, ummmmm, being successful and responsible, and Vinovich is a decent enough big bad boss ordering his minions to use dirty tricks. It's Spader and Bailey who stand out though, the former giving a performance up there with the greasiest and smarmiest of the decade, which is really seeing something. Replace his character with Jeffrey Combs from The Frighteners and you don't change the film much, that is how entertainingly over the top he plays it. Bailey is helped by the fact that he's accompanied by a, hmmm, "beloved" dog for most of his screentime, but he's an enjoyably inept menace throughout, even if, or perhaps because, his performance doesn't well with the tone of the rest of the movie.

You get a bit of "My Girl" on the soundtrack, and "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now" (performed by Starship) plays over the end credits, but the other songs featured here are very forgettable, even when used for the expected montage moments. The department store setting is shot impressively for a few decent scenes, but a lot of the film feels thrown together, without any thought for real texture or plausibility (e.g. the apartment that McCarthy seems to live quite comfortably in, despite his poor record when it comes to employment). Can you ignore all of the ridiculousness to find some enjoyment here? I think so, especially if you're a fan of Cattrall. It's difficult though, and weird to watch this nowadays and think of it being a decent box office success (it certainly did well enough to help Starship have a hit song on their hands). Still . . . I can't hate it. And I could probably rewatch it, if forced. Although how knows if I will still be thinking that way when I finally get around to watching the sequel.

6/10

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Mubi Monday: Secretary (2002)

Sex. It's hard to deny that the world could be a better, happier place if so many people weren't so uptight about sex, whether that leads to them trying to move sex workers further and further to the edges of society, where they are more likely to be abused and harmed, or spending the vast majority of their time concerning themselves about the contents of someone else's underpants. And then you have the people who either judge others for their likes and dislikes, or spend a lot of their time unhappy because they haven't actively discussed some sexual preferences that give them more satisfaction than what some may call "vanilla" sex.

Secretary is about someone discovering themselves with the help of someone else, it's about a shared love of a certain lifestyle, or small choices made when the lifestyle allows, and it's a film that gets more right about the mindset of those involved than any of the few mainstream movies that have tried to venture into this territory (and it's ironic that James Spader plays a character named Mr. Grey).

Maggie Gyllenhaal plays a young woman named Lee who starts the movie by leaving an institution that has clearly been trying to help her with her mental health. Lee goes through some training to be a secretary, and then ends up in the employment of Mr. Grey (Spader). Things start off fairly standard, but one or two moments lead to both employer and employee exploring, and enjoying, a closer relationship that allows them to explore their shared kinks.

Based on a short story by Mary Gaitskill, which was adapted by director Steven Shainberg and writer Erin Cressida Wilson, Secretary is constantly walking a tightrope that it admirably never slips on. That's not to say it does everything perfectly, but it keeps moving without giving a second thought to any minor wobbles or near-misses. And the more troublesome elements, including the mental health background of Lee before she finds something that truly satisfies her while it scratches an itch she didn't realise was there, aren't so troublesome when you consider that a) a lot of people DO find themselves suffering mentally before they allow themselves to more fully explore something that easily makes them happier, and b) while Gyllenhaal is shown as submissive, to use one of the labels she is given, the script takes care to show that what is going on is communicated subtly between the two in ways that make it consensual, and also shows that submissives have just as much, if not more, control in any effective sexual dynamic.

Both of the leads are as good as you'd expect, with Gyllenhaal making a strong impression early on in her career while Spader does the kind of kinky SOB he's played effortlessly for decades (even in roles that didn't say anything about his character . . . he always played them like a kinky SOB). Lesley Ann Warren and Stephen McHattie are fine in their small supporting roles, the parents who are concerned about their daughter, but also don't necessarily know what's best for her, and Jeremy Davies is very sweet as Peter, a young man who may want to have a relationship with Lee, but may not be the right person to manage to scratch that constant little itch.

Although Secretary may seem, on the surface, as if it is designed to appeal to a very specific viewer demographic, that's not the case. You just need to adjust your perspective slightly. The script and direction work together to make everything clear, with wit and the nice subtleties of the character interactions helping everything along, and what you have is ultimately an offbeat, but still quite sweet, romantic film for those who don't really like romantic films.

And if none of it makes any sense to you, maybe read up further on kinks and fetishes, without judging others or eagerly dismissing it as evil filth. At the very least, you might read some unusual anecdotes from some very cool people.

9/10

You can buy the movie here.
Americans can get a shiny disc here.

Pretty In Pink (1986)

Despite not being able to remember the whole of Pretty In Pink, I was always a fan. I expect that a lot of people my age have fond memories of all of the teen films penned by John Hughes that were bestowed upon us throughout the 1980s. And this remains one of the more cherished titles.

It's all about a young woman named Andie (Molly Ringwald), who spends her time resenting the fact that she lives in the poor part of town, being wooed by the very persistent Duckie (Jon Cryer), and working in a record store with her older friend (Iona, played by Annie Potts). She's also hit on now and again by James Spader AKA the guy who was always the creepiest one in any movie high school, and finds herself the unexpected object of Andrew McCarthy's affections. He's a rich kid though, so neither of them are sure that it can really work between them.

Directed by Howard Deutch, featuring a collection of lively pop hits (with one or two classics slotted in between the contemporary tunes), and with a cast that features everyone mentioned above PLUS the great Harry Dean Stanton (playing Andie's father, and one of the great, sweetest, movie dads, for my money), Pretty In Pink has plenty to enjoy. The appeal is obvious, if you're watching this in the mindset of a teenager.

But watching it through the current world filter, a time of #metoo and #timesup, and it's hard not to view this as problematic, at best.

Andie basically spends most of the runtime being stalked, mainly by Duckie, but also by Steff (Spader), and by Blane (McCarthy, although he is less creepy and more adorable than the other two). It's good that the motivation for Steff is so obviously nasty - he just wants her because he can't get her - but not so good that Duckie was playing someone that viewers are supposed to root for. He's a complete asshole, and sums up the worst behaviour in boys who get upset about being stuck in "the friend zone" (the quotation marks are to emphasise that the phrase is bullshit anyway).

Think about it. You may have enjoyed watching the antics of Duckie the first time you saw this film. You may have laughed on numerous occasions. But he hangs around Andie as often as he can, be it at school, at her work, even outside the club she visits that he can't get into (while he chats to a doorman, played by Andrew Dice Clay). He calls her repeatedly. One scene shows Andie rolling her eyes as she deletes messages that have been received only minutes apart. He sets off the bloody alarm at her work, more than once, just to get some time with her. And that's before we even mention the conversation he has with Andie's father about his intentions, his total asshole turn when Andie gets to spend time with a boy she's attracted to, and his big moment of miming along to Try A Little Tenderness.

Oh, and that moment isn't quite how you remember it either. It's a lot of fun, and Cryer gives his all in the performance, but the sheer bravado of it all is seriously undercut by Ringwald looking on and realising that this guy is going to have his heart broken if he seriously thinks his persistence will pay off.

So many thoughts were battling in my mind while I watched the film this time around, thoughts that I don't think ever bothered the teenage me. Did Hughes intend things to have such a sinister undercurrent? Are our teen years just that fraught with danger (because, without excusing the behaviour, there's some hope in considering that these ARE girls and boys being shown here, as opposed to women and men)? Why did I never before realise that Gina Gershon was in this? Was the record shop named Trax just to emphasise that Andie lived on the wrong side of the tracks? Why did the 1980s never give us a comedy caper pairing up Annie Potts and Cyndi Lauper as two sisters out for shenanigans?

And why, despite the MAJOR flaws here, did I still smile and enjoy the end of this film? Characters are given a shot at redemption. I'm not sure if that makes up for a lot of their past behaviour, but it goes some way to making the preceding events that bit more palatable. Which maybe sums up how everyone feels as they look forward to life beyond high school.

6/10

Pick it up with a couple of better movies here.
American readers can pick it up here.

Noir November: Bad Influence (1990)

"It's only a matter of time... get in bed with the devil... sooner or later you have to fuck!"

Bad Influence is your standard neo-noir/psychosexual thriller movie. One suave young man is caught under the spell of a gorgeous creature, starts to act out of turn, is transformed, and finds himself going down a very dark path. It just so happens that the man being transformes is James Spader, and the gorgeous creature bewitching him is Rob Lowe. Yes, Rob Lowe is, essentially, a femme fatale in this slick, enjoyable thriller from the very start of the 1990s.

Spader plays Michael, a young man who is just about keeping everything together. He has a good job, but it's one that sees him constantly being usurped by his main colleague (Tony Maggio). He has a lovely fiance (Marcia Cross), despite not being sure about the whole marriage thing. And he has a brother (Christian Clemenson) who keeps turning up whenever he needs helped. Basically, Michael is a bit of a doormat. That all starts to change when he meets Alex (Lowe), a young man who goes through life intent on breaking rules and doing whatever he feels like. As the two seem to grow closer, Alex decides to help Michael out. He just doesn't let Michael know in advance, and his methods are far from traditional. It's hard to imagine the two being able to stay friends. It's even harder to imagine Alex not being allowed to do whatever he wants any more.

Written by David Koepp and directed by Curtis Hanson, this remains a daft, glossy product of its time. I'm not going to pretend that it's an incisive, deep, intricate piece of work, that's not what it aims to be, but I will say that it sketches out everything nicely enough, has some fun taking potshots at the kind of people and lifestyles that would be so brilliantly targeted in American Psycho, and isn't afraid to get darker and darker on the way to a satisfying final act.

Spader does his slightly nervy act again, growing in confidence as the movie plays out, and he's as good at it as ever. Lowe gets to have the most fun, however, as he uses his perfect, handsome face to hide the cold, calculating mind of a dangerous sociopath. Cross does well in a pretty thankless role, Maggio is an enjoyable douchebag, Lisa Zane is an attractive woman who ends up caught up with Michael and Alex at a very unfortunate time, and Clemenson is fine in a role full of easy tics and beats.

It's almost completely predictable from start to finish, but sometimes that's the fun with movies that set out to simply entertain us. Watching how things unfold (and, don't get me wrong, there ARE one or two surprises) is no less enjoyable just because we know the main plot points that will crop up. Will you remember Bad Influence years after you watch it, and will it become a steadfast favourite? That's unlikely. You will, however, enjoy the movie while it's on, and perhaps even revisit it further down the line. Maybe.

7/10

http://www.amazon.com/Bad-Influence-Masquerade-Rob-Lowe/dp/B008FYZHDI/ref=sr_1_2?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1415402397&sr=1-2&keywords=bad+influence

'tis my regular book advert again.

The UK version can be bought here - http://www.amazon.co.uk/TJs-Ramshackle-Movie-Guide-Reviews-ebook/dp/B00J9PLT6Q/ref=sr_1_3?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1395945647&sr=1-3&keywords=movie+guide

And American folks can buy it here - http://www.amazon.com/TJs-Ramshackle-Movie-Guide-Reviews-ebook/dp/B00J9PLT6Q/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1395945752&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=TJs+ramshackle+mov

As much as I love the rest of the world, I can't keep up with all of the different links in different territories, but trust me when I say that it should be there on your local Amazon.

Stargate (1994)

My fellow Flickfeaster, Tue, recently rewatched Stargate and this reminded me that it was available for my viewing pleasure. Despite trying to make my way chronologically through the filmography of Kurt Russell I felt that I owed it to myself to watch this movie ASAP and see how it held up years after I first saw it.

Back in 1994 when Stargate was first released it was a surprise hit. Nobody could have envisioned that the film would spawn a number of popular TV shows and build further upon the mythologies mentioned. Yet here we are almost 20 years later and most people have at least heard of Stargate in some form or another.

Revisiting the movie is a strange, but rewarding, experience. I remember being underwhelmed when I first saw the film at the time of release. That's entirely my own fault. I was young and I saw a sci-fi/action movie that didn't have quite enough sci-fi spectacle and far from a satisfying amount of action. Watched again nowadays, however, I have to admire the focus on brains over brawn and the way in which the film comments on the downside of soldiers who blindly follow anyone giving the orders. A little knowledge goes a long way, as the film shows.

Directed by Roland Emmerich (who co-wrote the movie with Dean Devlin), this is an interesting precursor to the sci-fi and disaster movies that they would give audiences in their future careers. These guys have been responsible for a number of films that have thrown as much as possible onscreen (including Independence Day, Godzilla and The Day After Tomorrow) while also continuing to use heroes who save the day with their smarts as opposed to just muscle and weapons.

The story goes as follows - a bunch of smart folks and army folks are gathered around a large stone thingummybob, that becomes known as the Stargate (of course), and don't know how to make it work until the supersmart Dr. Daniel Jackson (James Spader) deciphers the symbology and sets things in motion. A team, led by Col O'Neil (Kurt Russell), is then sent through the Stargate, ending up on a faraway planet not unlike the ancient Egypt of Earth. They eventually find signs of life there, people who are kept ignorant and ready to do the bidding of the might Ra (Jaye Davidson). Perhaps an uprising is needed.

Stargate has everything in place to provide a perfect slice of entertainment. It's relatively smart (certainly in the core idea and the way things are tied together), the script gets everything over easily without feeling too clumsy, the cast and the characters are slightly more complex than usual for this type of fare and the SFX work holds up reasonably well. In fact, the overall design of the movie is excellent.

Spader is an excellent lead here, his character is slightly eccentric, believable in his intelligence and more full of awe at the sights around him than fear. Kurt Russell, seen at the start of the movie in an unkempt and suicidal state, is superb as the main soldier given his mission for a very specific reason. Then we have the androgynous Jaye Davidson giving another superb turn as Ra. The supporting cast includes Alexis Cruz, John Diehl, Mili Avital, Djimon Hounsou (billed as just Djimon), Erick Avari and Viveca Lindfors with every person doing what's required of them. You may not know their names but their characters are made real for the duration of the film and that's what counts.

The music by David Arnold fits nicely with the visuals and nothing here lets the movie down. I do think that many aspects could have been improved slightly - some better editing/pacing with one or two more action beats would have been nice, for example - but Stargate remains a very enjoyable and interesting film for sci-fi fans.

7/10

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