Movies
Dreary drama about three generations of uninteresting men trying to get a handle on their lives. It's not what you call a very subtle film and whatever drama there is, is handled with the grace of a sledgehammer. The final nail is the wooden performances, which make it even harder to sit through. Hud is living with the dad and nephew on a ranch. When he hears the cattle may be infected he wants to sell the herd off as quickly as possible, but Hud's father wants to set a good example for his younger nephew, and he decides to destroy the animals. Hud doesn't agree with this decision. Hud isn't a very pleasant character, and Newman had all the trouble in the world trying to channel that into a solid performance. The setting is dire (the black-and-white cinematography doesn't help), the drama is crude and the pacing is slow. Kudos for trying to make a more realistic Western I guess, but that doesn't make it a good film.Read all
A film championed by the AFI, which usually means it's going to be excessively cheesy and overly American. And sure enough, Norma Rae is an absolute disaster of a film. Take some generic social critique, and add a lead who, despite her own well-being, takes it up for the little man, and you have Cinema (capital intended). Norma Rae works in a textile factory. It's the only industry in the US that isn't unionized yet, but the workers don't want to ruffle any feathers as the companies are their primary source of income. Reuben is a man of the union, and he convinces Norma that she has to stand up for herself unless she wants to be exploited for the rest of her life. The performances weren't great, the presentation was dire and the plot is little more than a billboard sign that unions are great. It's one of those films that probably bears some national importance, but it's hard to see why anyone outside the US should care about this film. Certainly not because of its cinematic qualities.Read all