Author: thehorsesheadblog

#423) A Time for Burning (1966)

Directed by William C. Jersey and Barbara Connell

Class of 2005

The Plot: It’s 1966 and racial tensions are running high in Omaha, Nebraska. Reverend L. William Youngdahl, the newly appointed minister of Augustana Lutheran Church, proposes that his all-white congregation reach out to the African-American Lutheran community in a series of integrated meetings. Thanks to the cinema verite approach of William C. Jersey and Barbara Connell, we witness the pushback Youngdahl receives from his congregation, who all support civil rights, but would rather not deal with it in their own church. Also on hand is a very vocal African-American community (including future politician Ernie Chambers) who aren’t too keen on helping the white community clean up their own mess.

Why It Matters: The NFR salutes the film’s cinematography (“some of the best observational ‘fly on the wall’ footage ever filmed”) and cribs from Fred Friendly’s praise of “the best civil rights film ever made”. There’s also a detailed essay by AMPAS documentary curator Ed Carter.

But Does It Really?: I definitely appreciated “A Time for Burning” more than I enjoyed watching it. While the film is an hour of mostly white people talking around their own prejudice, the film avoids the extremes of most civil rights documentaries. There are no cross-burning klan members or empowering activists to be seen, just ordinary people trying to make sense of the changing political world around them. There are more entertaining documents of this era out there, but “A Time for Burning” offers a more realistic approach with its share of current-day parallels. A pass for “A Time for Burning” and its NFR inclusion.

Everybody Gets One: Bill Jersey was commissioned by Lutheran Film Associates to create a film that would help church members understand and deal with the social issues of the day. Jersey choose Omaha’s ongoing racial tensions because he wanted to show America that civil rights issues existed not just in the south, but in America’s heartland. Barbara Connell was hired as Bill Jersey’s secretary, but Jersey recognized her potential as a filmmaker and brought her along for the shoot. “Burning” was Connell’s first film.

Seriously, Oscars?: After being broadcast on the soon-to-be-extinct NET station, “A Time for Burning” had a brief theatrical run, and was nominated for a Best Documentary Oscar. The winner that year – “The Anderson Platoon” – tackled another important social issue of the day: the Vietnam War.

Other notes

• It’s never good when your city is so well known for its civil disorder it has its own Wikipedia page. Shortly after filming of “Burning”, two separate race riots occurred in Omaha during the summer of 1966. “Burning” captures a city just before it reaches the boiling point.
• The black barber who appears throughout the movie is Ernie Chambers. His steadfast refusal to let the white citizens off the hook is your first tip that this isn’t going to be your feel-good-in-hindsight take on civil rights. In 1970, Chambers was elected Senator to the Nebraska State Legislature, and is the longest serving state senator in Nebraska history.
• The unavoidable problem with this movie is that it’s all talk, no action. Yes, what is being discussed is important, but it’s hard to engage with a movie that is several scenes of people talking around the issue. The fact that there was ultimately no action that came from these talks makes the viewing experience even more frustrating.
• Also not helping: the film’s white protagonists look and sound like the salesmen from “Salesman”.
• I purposefully don’t do a lot of research before viewing these films, so that I can just be in the moment with the film. Imagine my surprise when not only does Augustana Lutheran fail to integrate, but Reverend Youngdahl is asked to resign! The ending is spent with the remaining congregation justifying their decision not to meet with Calvin Memorial Baptist. Only church member Ray Christensen stands by the reverend after his resignation. When told that the African-American community’s day will come, Christensen prophetically asks, “How many days are left?”

Legacy

• Sadly, Barbara Connell died in a car accident in 1972; “Burning” was her only film as a director.
• Bill Jersey continues to make documentaries to this day. Past subjects have included former Chief Justice Earl Warren, the legacy of Jim Crow laws, and fellow NFR movie “Amadeus”.

• Although Pastor Youngdahl’s initial efforts failed, Augustana Lutheran created a similar outreach program in 1968 with Project Embrace. Over 50 years later, the program and the church are still going.

#422) Clash of the Wolves (1925)

OR “The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin”

Directed by Noel M. Smith

Written by Charles Logue

Class of 2004

The Plot: The citizens of an old west town place a bounty on a pack of wolves that terrorize their cattle, especially the pack’s leader Lobo (Rin Tin Tin). When Lobo gets a cactus thorn in his paw, he is rescued by borax prospector Dave Weston (Charles Farrell) and the two immediately bond. But rival prospector/claim jumper William Horton (Pat Hartigan) plans to take Dave’s claim, as well as his girlfriend May Barstowe (June Marlowe). Can Lobo be tamed in time to truly be man’s best friend?

Why It Matters: The NFR calls Rin Tin Tin’s Hollywood origins “one of the greatest stories in film history” and gives a very generic summary of the plot. There’s also an essay by Rin Tin Tin biographer Susan Orlean. And if that name sounds familiar, it’s the same Susan Orlean who wrote “The Orchid Thief” and was played by Meryl Streep in “Adaptation”.

But Does It Really?: Oh sure. “Clash” is on this list to represent Rin Tin Tin, the dog star of the silent era, and forerunner to Lassie. Besides, there aren’t a lot of movies on this list that center around animals, and “Clash” is a quick, harmless, fun adventure with Hollywood’s favorite German shepherd. A pass for “Clash of the Wolves”.

Everybody Gets One: While serving with the US Air Service in WWI, Lee Duncan rescued a German shepherd and her five puppies during the Battle of Saint-Mihiel in September 1918. He kept two of the puppies and named then Rin Tin Tin and Nanette, after two good luck charms that French children often gave to American soldiers. By the early 1920s, Duncan had taught Rin Tin Tin a wide variety of tricks (including leaping great distances) and was determined to get the dog into show business. Rin Tin Tin made his film debut in 1922’s “The Man from Hell’s River” and became a star in 1923 with “Where the North Begins”. Over the next decade, Rin Tin Tin made 27 films and two serials. His films were so successful he even rescued the struggling Warner Bros. Studios from bankruptcy.

Seriously, Oscars?: “Clash” predates the Oscars by two years, but Rin Tin Tin has a curious Oscar connection. For years there was a rumor (perpetuated in Susan Orlean’s book) that when the ballots were tabulated for the first Oscars in 1928, Rin Tin Tin received the most votes for Best Actor. The Academy, embarrassed by the prospect of giving this prestigious new award to a dog, opted to name runner-up Emil Jannings the winner instead. A 2017 article by Academy member Bruce Davis finally puts this rumor to rest. Although Jack Warner nominated the dog as a joke, his was the only vote for Rin Tin Tin.

Other notes

• We have another title debate: Some sources call the film “The Clash of the Wolves”, while others omit the “The”. When in doubt, I go with the film itself, where the title is simply “Clash of the Wolves”.
• Wow, that’s an epic opening. We start with a forest fire, followed by a very cinematic entrance from Lobo as the fire silhouettes his iconic profile.
• As evident by the film’s somewhat clunky editing, Rin Tin Tin is taking offscreen directions from Lee Duncan. But then again, isn’t that what all silent movie actors were doing?
• Shoutout to the entire human cast, saddled with the thankless job of playing supporting roles to a dog. Charles Farrell was two years away from starring alongside a real person (Janet Gaynor) in “7^th Heaven”, while June Marlowe was a few years shy of playing Mrs. Crabtree in the “Our Gang” shorts.
• Even by silent movie standards, Charles “Heinie” Conklin is a bit over-the-top as comic relief Alkali Bill. Turns out Conklin has bit parts in several NFR films: he was cast by Chaplin in both “The Gold Rush” and “Modern Times”, and appears in such early sound classics as “All Quiet on the Western Front”.
• As in many of Rin Tin Tin’s films, the German shepherd is cast as a half-dog, half-wolf. According to Susan Orlean, the rest of Lobo’s pack were played by “an assortment of German shepherds, huskies, coyotes, and wolves.”
• These actions sequences are pretty tough on Rin Tin Tin. We’re still 55 years away from PETA; hopefully someone’s looking out for his wellbeing.
• Speaking of, I presume Warner Bros. had a stunt department at the time, but whoever’s getting attacked by Lobo, I hope they’re wearing padding.
• The nice thing about dog movies is that they age far better than normal. Dogs don’t really change much over the years, so their stories have a bit more universality to them. Rin Tin Tin was also aided by starring in silent films, whose dialogue and story could be easily translated to different languages around the world.
• Sadly, not a lot of old timey phraseology in this film’s intertitles, except for “making love”, used here in its original context meaning to woo or be amorous with. It adds some confusion to such lines as “Have you ever seen this tenderfoot making love to my daughter?”
• Yeah you can definitely see the string manipulating Rin Tin Tin’s tail. Also be on the lookout for a fake paw that he presses against a window at one dramatic moment.
• These filmmakers knew the secret to successful moviemaking: no matter what, end your film with a shot of adorable puppies. I had some issues with the movie but look at those cute puppies!

Legacy

• Rin Tin Tin died in 1932 at the age of 98 (in dog years). Rin Tin Tin Jr. continued his father’s legacy in a series of films throughout the ‘30s. Future generations of Rin Tin Tin would play the part in such endeavors as television and yes, even radio.

• The current Rin Tin Tin is a 12^th generation descendent of the original dog, and makes public appearances ranging from pet owenership awareness to tributes to the original Rin Tin Tin.

• “Clash of the Wolves” is one of only six Rin Tin Tin films still known to exist. Although “Clash” was never lost, the only available print for many years was a 16mm version used for television. A 35mm print was discovered in South Africa in 2003, and made the NFR one year later.

#421) Medium Cool (1969)

OR “I Witness News”

Directed & Written by Haskell Wexler

Class of 2003

The Plot: “Medium Cool” is noted cinematographer Haskell Wexler’s attempt to make sense of the turbulent life of 1960s America. Cameraman John Cassellis (Robert Forster) and soundman Gus (Peter Bonerz) document some of the more intense sights and sounds of 1968 Chicago, from political protests to the violent police force. While seemingly desensitized to the deteriorating world around him, John maintains his humanity when he begins a relationship with West Virginia transplant and single mother Eileen (Verna Bloom). All of this comes to a head when John takes a gig filming the Democratic National Convention, which I’m sure will go great for everybody.

Why It Matters: The NFR praises the film “for melding fictional and non-fictional content in a documentarylike style” and calls Wexler “one of the most influential and celebrated cinematographers in the business”.

But Does It Really?: I…guess? Haskell Wexler is an important figure in cinematography, and his film highlights are already NFR inductees (“In the Heat of the Night” and “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest”, to name just two). I can give “Medium Cool” a pass as a chance to see what happens when Wexler has full control over a movie, as well as for the film’s unique take on current events, including an extreme, first-hand perspective of the 1968 Democratic Convention.

Everybody Gets One: Robert Forster is one of those character actors who turned in a lifetime of great work, but rarely got recognition. “Medium Cool” was one of Forster’s earliest films, and one of the few in which he was the lead. Forster’s ensuing career involved the B-role in a few A-pictures (“The Black Hole”), and the A-role in several B-pictures (“Alligator”). It wasn’t until Quentin Tarantino cast him in “Jackie Brown” that Forster received more high-profile projects, and an Oscar nod to boot!

Wow, That’s Dated: The film’s coverage of current events helps cement its 1968 setting. Also dated: people actually answering their door when a stranger knocks.

Title Track: “Medium Cool” derives its name from media theorist Marshall McLuhan, who considered television a “cool” medium, as it required more involvement from the consumer (For comparison, film – a “hot” medium – is purely visual, and therefore only engages one of the senses). But then again, I know nothing of McLuhan’s work. How I got to write a blog about anything is totally amazing.

Seriously, Oscars?: “Medium Cool” received zero Oscar nominations, though it did receive a few nods from the National Society of Film Critics, and Wexler received a DGA nomination. For the record, Haskell Wexler received five Oscar nominations throughout his career, and won for two films: “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” and “Bound for Glory”.

Other notes

• Wexler had originally planned to adapt Jack Couffer’s novel “The Concrete Wilderness” to film, but his initial draft strayed so far from the novel he opted instead to write an original screenplay. “Medium Cool” was Wexler’s first narrative feature as both writer and director.
• This all being said, of course Wexler wrote a movie about a cameraman who’s a rugged, Robert Forster type.
• Peter Bonerz is best remembered for playing Dr. Jerry Robinson on “The Bob Newhart Show”, and had a second career as a TV director, most notably helming over 90 episodes of “Murphy Brown”.
• “Who wants to see anyone talking peace, unless they’re talking loud?” Ain’t that the fucking truth.

• Haskell Wexler wrote the script in such a way that any sequence in which John and Gus cover a news event could utilize actual news events occurring during filming. Among the events chronicled in this film are demonstrations by Vietnam War protesters, the rise of the Black Panthers, citizens campaigning for Robert Kennedy’s presidential election, and the assassination of Martin Luther King.

• I realized during this viewing that I’m not too familiar with Robert Forster’s work (though I remember liking him in “Jackie Brown”). He’s a (for lack of a better word) cool central figure, and it’s easy to follow him throughout this film’s episodes.
• “Medium Cool” holds the distinction of originally receiving an “X” rating from the newly formed MPAA (this was before that rating was permanently associated with porno). The X rating was due to language and several sequences of full frontal nudity. Paramount successfully got the film re-rated to an R, but that’s still a lot of Robert Forster that I can never unsee.
• If you only know Verna Bloom as the Dean’s wife from “Animal House”, you owe it to yourself to watch her in this movie. It’s a refreshing contrast seeing her as a warm, emotionally complex woman. I suspect her brand of southern comfort became less in-demand once Sissy Spacek became a thing.
• Harold raises pigeons? Who is he, Franz Liebkind? Or Bert from “Sesame Street”?
• This movie has a fun “Before-they-were-famous” appearance by Peter Boyle as a local gun clinic manager. He was one year away from his breakout performance in “Joe”, and five years away from “Young Frankenstein”.
• Also very ‘60s: an extended performance by the Mothers of Invention, who also provided the film’s soundtrack.

• The film’s third act takes place at Chicago’s tumultuous 1968 Democratic National Convention. Wexler claimed at the time that the script was written before the convention, and that the ensuing riots could not be anticipated. This, however, contradicts public announcements from various protest groups saying they were planning to disrupt the convention. Regardless, the events provide a stirring climax to “Medium Cool”, with the crowd’s chant “the whole world is watching” proving an eerily appropriate message for the film.

• “Look out, Haskell, it’s real!“

Legacy

• Haskell Wexler only directed two other narrative feature films: 1985’s “Latino”, and something called “Bus II”. Wexler continued his film career primarily as a cinematographer, but did direct a handful of documentary shorts as well.

• Though not as well-remembered today as its contemporaries “Easy Rider” or “Midnight Cowboy”, “Medium Cool” often gets mentioned as one of the essential titles of 1969 to usher in New Hollywood and its more realistic film sensibilities.

#420) Fuji (1974)

OR “Train of Thought”

Directed by Robert Breer

Class of 2002

The Plot: Armed with his 16mm camera and a ton of paper, animator Robert Breer rotoscopes his train ride in Japan that overlooks Mount Fuji. Instead of realistic animation, Breer opts for something more abstract, focusing on the minimum of lines and colors it takes to convey his trip. Punctuated by a real life train recording, “Fuji” distills the illusion of movement in film, and highlights what experimental animation is capable of.

Why It Matters: The NFR gives a rundown of Breer and how “Fuji” came to be. The write-up also cribs from avant-garde expert Amos Vogelm who called the film “poetic, rhythmic, [and] riveting”.

But Does It Really?: Oh sure. Robert Breer is just as deserving of NFR recognition as any of the other experimental filmmakers/animators on this list. And as a bonus, I always enjoy when an NFR movie takes me somewhere outside the United States. An appreciative pass for “Fuji” and Robert Breer.

Everybody Gets One: Robert Breer started off as an engineering major at Stanford, but turned to painting while in Paris in the early 1950s. Around the same time, Breer experimented with making stop-motion films based on his paintings. The film medium allowed Breer the freedom to continue tweaking with a piece, unlike the “rigid” absolute of painting. Breer was experimenting with rotoscoping when he visited Expo ‘70 in Osaka, Japan, and filmed his train ride near Mount Fuji.

Seriously, Oscars?: No Oscar love for “Fuji”. Best Animated Short that year went to “Closed Mondays”, a stop-motion short from the people that would one day bring you the California Raisins. None of Breer’s shorts ever received Oscar attention.

As is often the case with more experimental animation, my notes are irrelevant, so instead let’s play “Things I Thought I Saw in ‘Fuji’”:

• Mount Fuji
• A train
• People
• Birds

…oh. This one’s pretty straightforward, actually.

Legacy

• Robert Breer continued making films (and teaching film and animation at Cooper Union) up until his retirement in the early 2000s. Breer died in 2011 at the age of 84.
• As for Mount Fuji, it’s still going strong as the highest peak in Japan. An active volcano, Fuji last erupted in the early 1700s, which means we’re probably due for another one, right?

#419) America America (1963)

OR “My Big Fat Greek Emigration”

Directed & Written by Elia Kazan

Class of 2001

The Plot: Based on the true story of Elia Kazan’s family, “America America” chronicles a young man’s journey from his oppressed Greek family living under the Ottoman Empire to his arrival in America. Shortly after the Armenian genocide of the late 1890s, Stavros Topouzoglou (Stathis Giallelis) is entrusted with his family’s fortune to travel to Constantinople and work for his cousin (Harry Davis). Stavros, however, secretly wishes to go to America and send for his family once he’s made enough money. Kazan paints a portrait of the sacrifices every immigrant makes to live in the land of opportunity, or, as many of the Greeks referred to it, America America.

Why It Matters: The NFR cites the film as Kazan’s “personal favorite”, and gives a shoutout to cinematographer Haskell Wexler and art director Gene Callahan.

But Does It Really?: “America America” isn’t Elia Kazan’s greatest film, nor his most memorable, but it is definitely his most personal. Not only does Kazan as a filmmaker get to explore his own roots, but he does so on a grand scale, from the on-location shooting to the detailed authenticity of the costumes and sets. You could never make this kind of movie without a director of Kazan’s clout, and the results, while a bit tedious at times, is still an impressive, admirable feat. A respectful pass for “America America” and its NFR inclusion.

Everybody Gets One: After months of trying to find a young unknown actor to play Stavros (including a young unknown Peter Falk!), Elia Kazan tried a new approach: he went to Athens, visited the office of director Daniel Bourla, and singled out an apprentice sweeping Bourla’s office floor. The apprentice was Stathis Giallellis, who, despite speaking virtually no English, possessed the “desperation” Kazan was looking for in Stavros. Kazan brought Giallellis to New York, spent a month coaching him in acting and English, and eventually gave him the lead after his successful audition reading a scene from “Golden Boy”.

Wow, That’s Dated: While some of the cast (primarily Stathis Giallelis) are Greek or of Greek descent, others are definitely not.  Frank Wolff is of German descent, John Marley is Russian-Jewish, and Estelle Hemsley is African-American. I’ll repeat that last part: Kazan cast an African-American woman in his Greek movie and thought no one would notice.

Seriously, Oscars?: A critical hit upon release, “America America” received four Academy Award nominations. The film lost Picture and Director to the night’s big winner “Tom Jones”, and Original Screenplay to fellow NFR entry “How the West Was Won”. “America America” did, however, win the Oscar for Art Direction.

Other notes

• “America America” is based on Kazan’s family, specifically the tribulations of his uncle, Avraam Elia. Kazan was born in Constantinople in 1909, roughly 10 years after the events of this movie, and immigrated to America circa 1917. To prepare for the film, Kazan interviewed his parents to ensure accuracy in his portrayal of the family. Kazan was so determined to make this film, he resigned as director of the Acting Studio to focus entirely on production.
• I wonder how much the foreign film craze of the late ‘50s/early ‘60s had on influencing this movie. After the Foreign Language Oscar was officially made a category in 1956, there was a definite uptick in foreign films getting wider American releases, among them the 1960 Greek film “Never on Sunday”. This all must have made “America America” an easier sell to Warner Bros.
• The movie’s big claim to fame is that it was shot almost entirely on location in Turkey and Greece. It definitely helps with the overall scope of the movie. A handful of scenes were shot in California, most notably the Sierra Nevada Mountains near Bishop.

• Perhaps it’s the on-location shooting, but everyone in this movie is dubbed all the time. Was the sound equipment loaded onto the wrong plane?
• Shoutout to Estelle Hemsley, the African-American actress who, and I can’t stress this enough, is cast as a Greek woman in this movie. Fun Fact: She was also in “The Leech Woman”!
• Obviously, a movie like this is going to be episodic, but man does the Abdul plot line go on forever. We get it, he’s conning Stavros. Move on please. I actually applauded when they finally killed him off.
• As the author of a film blog named after the horse’s head scene in “The Godfather”, I am required by law to point out any movie that features John Marley. Here, Marley plays Garabet, the man Stavros meets while living on the streets who tells him about “small money” and “big money”. Marley’s naturally craggy features blend in with the surroundings of Constantinople.
• In this movie Paul Mann plays Aleko Sinnikoglou, who arranges for the main character to marry his daughter. You know him best for his performance in “Fiddler on the Roof” as Lazar Wolf, who arranges to marry the main character’s daughter. What an oddly specific type Mann excelled at playing.
• Side note: Paul Mann looks a lot like Robert Altman, doesn’t he?
• I must say Stathis Giallelis is very good in this. His Stavros goes from youthful optimism to older cynicism in a naturally subtle way. I suspect this is how Giallelis missed out on an Oscar nomination: it’s too subtle, you can’t “see” the acting.
• This is another movie where I didn’t take a lot of notes; I was just watching the movie and seeing where it took me. I was willing to forgive the film’s slower moments because it is apparent throughout that “America America” is Kazan’s passion project.
• Kazan pulls an Orson Welles and narrates the end credits, giving shoutouts to his main crew members, as well as the cast.

Legacy

• Allegedly, “America America” was part one of a trilogy Kazan planned on making. As best I can tell neither of those two remaining parts were ever written or filmed, though Kazan’s next feature – 1969’s “The Arrangement” – also center on a Greek-American character. Kazan even uses footage from “America America” to show his main character coming to America.

• Kazan’s film career was near an end by the mid-60s, and he only made a few more films, most notably the 1976 adaptation of “The Last Tycoon” with Robert De Niro.