SATURDAY SCOOPS
Flicks that matter
By Jack Garner
Gannett News Service
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| Janet Leigh picked the wrong motel to spend the night in Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho," a movie that paved the way for a huge wave of low-budget horror films. |
So, sidestep the "new releases" section at Blockbuster. Get to know a film that matters.
Here's an arbitrary handful of such movies from the last half-century: films that broke traditions or launched trends that continue today.
"On the Waterfront," 1954, starring Marlon Brando; Elia Kazan directed.
- What it is: A powerhouse drama about a former boxer (Brando) who decides to go straight and testify about the crimes and brutality of the mob that runs the docks.
- Why it matters: Brando's performance is arguably the most important in film. The film introduced method acting, a style then handed down to Robert DeNiro, Meryl Streep and Russell Crowe, among others.
"Seven Samurai," 1954, starring Toshiro Mifune, directed by Akira Kurosawa.
- What it is: A robust adventure in which samurai warriors in medieval Japan defend a village.
- Why it matters: A foreign filmmaker distills the techniques of American masters and applies them to his own culture; he, in turn, influences younger American filmmakers (in Kurosawa's case, they included George Lucas). This film launched the idea of the group as hero, seen in later films such as "The Magnificent Seven" and "The Dirty Dozen."
"The Night of the Hunter," 1955, starring Robert Mitchum, directed by Charles Laughton.
- What it is: An amazing blend of folk fable, horror story, biblical allegory and more. Mitchum is a bogus preacher who marries widows, whom he kills for their money. The film is famous for the "LOVE" and "HATE" tattooed on Mitchum's knuckles.
- Why it matters: One of the most original in Hollywood's history, the film inspired future risk-takers.
"Psycho," 1960, starring Anthony Hopkins and Janet Leigh for director Alfred Hitchcock.
- What it is: The granddaddy of all slasher flicks.
- Why it matters: Hitchcock paved the way for the huge wave of low-budget horror flicks that followed.
Bonnie and Clyde," 1967, starring Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway, directed by Arthur Penn.
- What it is: A rambunctious, irreverent look at the life of two famous Depression-era bank robbers and their gang.
- Why it matters: The film initially confused critics and viewers because of its intentionally mixed messages about the nature of criminals. They intrigue you, you even like them — but they're murderers and robbers. The film set a trend for violence on screen.
"The French Connection," 1971, starring Gene Hackman and Roy Scheider for director William Friedkin.
- What it is: A taut, gritty urban police thriller about French and American dope dealers. The highlight is a breathless chase between a car and an elevated train.
- Why it matters: The film launched the police procedural — action films in urban settings. Such films have largely replaced Westerns as action hits.
"Jaws," 1975, starring Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss, directed by Steven Spielberg.
- What it is: A smash-hit thriller about a marauding shark.
- Why it matters: It launched Spielberg and his talent for popcorn thrills into the public consciousness, and launched the concept of the summer blockbuster.
"Do the Right Thing," 1989, starring Danny Aiello and his director Spike Lee.
- What it is: A depiction of urban unrest as seen in a 24-hour period on one street in Brooklyn in the heat of summer.
- Why it matters: Perhaps for the first time, an outraged but artistic black voice had full command of the mainstream movie screen.
Not just a color but a concept
Although khaki works all week in Hawai'i, we often think of it as a weekend look. So what is khaki — a color, a garment or a fabric?
Webster's Dictionary offers all three as definitions: 1: a light yellowish brown, 2a: a khaki-colored cloth, usually made of cotton or wool and used especially for military uniforms, 2b: a garment of this cloth — usually used in pl. — khaki adj.
Cotton Inc., in its "Lifestyle Monitor," cites a few khaki facts:
Legend has it that in the 1840s, British officer Sir Harry Burnett Lumsden instructed his troops to dye their imperial white uniforms with tea and coffee to make them less visible to Afghan rebels in the deserts of northwest India. The color became so popular that, by the end of the 19th century, it was adopted officially by the British and U.S. armies for uniforms.
Today, the word (in Urdu it means dusty) is used both as a color and a style of trouser. Khaki is a beige-to-yellow military color and the garment is usually a men's army style trouser made of cotton twill.
Famous people who wore khakis: Ernest Hemingway, Marilyn Monroe, Katharine Hepburn, Pablo Picasso and Indiana Jones.
Ride plantation train to Pineapple Junction
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| The Pineapple Express chuffs across central Oahu's red-dirt landscape on a journey into the heart of pineapple land. The two-mile, 20-minute journey takes visitors to areas unseen by the public, including acres of diversified agriculture on a train that cruises at a leisurely pace. |
The two-mile, 20-minute journey takes visitors to areas unseen by the public, including diversified farms — all on a train that cruises at 8 mph.
Train tours begin at 9 a.m. daily; the last tour returns to the station at 5:20 p.m. Tickets are $7.50 general, $5.50 for kids 4-12; free for keiki younger than 4 when accompanied by adults.
The plantation, at 64-1550 Kamehameha Highway, is outside Wahiawa and on the way to the North Shore. You can't miss it. And it's a great break from all that driving; the signature DoleWhip is a tasty icy treat, too.
Hey, if you're heading that way anyway, just keep on going and join your neighbors on the North Shore at the annual JN Chevrolet Hale'iwa Sea Spree. Hours are noon-midnight Saturday and noon-10 p.m. Sunday. Expect lots of entertainment, eating contests and a carnival midway at Hale'iwa Beach Park. Admission is free; the irresistible shave ice along the way is not. 637-4305.
Yes, we know Halloween just happened and you haven't even thought about that Thanksgiving turkey yet, but the season of giving is yearlong, or should be, anyway.
With that in mind, dig deep into your wallet and your heart, and bring an unwrapped toy to the Toys for Tots drive, which begins 11 a.m.-2 p.m. today at Pearlridge Center, Uptown at Center Court. The shopping center will even throw in a free ticket for its Pearlridge Express Holiday Train with each donation (the rides are Nov. 23 through Dec. 31).
There's entertainment, too, with Halau Hula Olana, Ellsworth Simeona and Kapena.
Last year, the Toys for Tots campaign, sponsored by the Marine Corps, distributed more than 65,000 toys to 33,000 kids throughout the Islands. 488-0981.
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He's Jason Olive, who, along with many of his teammates, set girls' hearts aflutter at the Special Events Arena (now called the Stan Sheriff) each game night. The older women just admired his athletic ability. Right!
Want to read more about the heartthrob? Check out Monday's Island Life section. (Sorry, ladies: He's engaged.)
