The Horse's Head

#195) Luxo Jr. (1986)

OR “What If Desk Lamps Had Feelings?”

Directed & Written by John Lasseter

Class of 2014

The Plot: Ohhhhh, that’s where the lamp and the ball come from!

Why It Matters: The NFR calls the short “charming” and that Lasseter and animator Bill Reeves “manage to bring to joyous life these two inanimate objects and to infuse them both with personality and charm”.

But Does It Really?: Oh sure. It was revolutionary in its day, and it’s the Pixar logo for crying out loud! It’s cute, it’s short, it’s historically significant, what’s not to like?

Everybody Gets One: Almost every credited member of the film’s crew is either still with Pixar, or at least stuck around for fellow NFR entries “Tin Toy” and “Toy Story”. The one exception is Paul Heckbert, credited here as “Additional Modeler”. He would go on to teach Robotics at Carnegie Mellon University (known for their Robotics department) and was a software consultant at Duke University. Carnegie Mellon lists a lot of his stats in what is possibly the least impressive webpage ever.

Wow, That’s Dated: Early CG, but you knew that one already.

Seriously, Oscars?: A breakthrough among the animation community, “Luxo Jr.” was nominated for Best Animated Short in 1986, the first computer animated short to do so. They lost to some Belgian thing called “A Greek Tragedy”. It’s fine, if you like that 2D junk. Lasseter and Reeves would win the Oscar two years later with “Tin Toy”.

Other notes

• The whole driving force behind this film was to show that Pixar could stand by itself as a company. Prior to 1986, Pixar was a division of the special effects company Industrial Light and Magic. In February 1986 Steve Jobs (yep, that one) invested $5 million into Pixar becoming its own corporation. George Lucas, still financially strapped from his divorce, took the money and sold off Pixar. Six months and countless man-hours later, “Luxo Jr.” premiered at the SIGGRAPH conference to great acclaim amongst the CG geeks in attendance.
• Lasseter has said that the hardest aspect to animate was Luxo’s cord. It’s the only part of the film that sticks out; the cord movement looks a little too much like stop-motion.

Legacy

• “Luxo Jr.” didn’t quite put Pixar on the map, but it got their name out there. It would be another decade of shorts until “Toy Story” made them a force to be reckoned with.

• In addition to being the logo for Pixar Animation, Luxo Jr. and his famous yellow ball make brief appearances in many a Pixar film.

• Before Pixar found worldwide success, Luxo made appearances in a handful of shorts featured on “Sesame Street”.

• Though he never gets the media attention Lasseter does, Bill Reeves is still with Pixar as one of their technical directors.
• This film is responsible for the strong run of Pixar shorts that precede their features. My favorite continues to be “Geri’s Game”.

• There was an animatronic Luxo at Disney Studios for a while.

• The Luxo ASA company seems to be amused by “artistic renditions” of their product, although they did sue Pixar in 2009 when they learned Pixar was planning to sell Luxo Jr. lamps with the Blu-ray release of “Up”. Pixar stepped down.
• What’s John Lasseter up to these days? Let me just do a search for…oh dear.

#194) Wild Boys of the Road (1933)

OR “The Boxcar Children”

Directed by William Wellman

Written by Earl Baldwin. Based on the story “Desperate Youth” by Daniel Ahern.

Class of 2013

No trailer, but here is a dramatic clip. Truly, these are the most wild boys of the road.

The Plot: In the midst of the Great Depression, a quarter of a million children were on the streets; abandoned by their families, riding the rails from city to city in search of a job. “Wild Boys of the Road” is a dramatic recreation of this time. After their parents lose their jobs, friends Eddie and Tommy (Frankie Darro and Edwin Phillips), jump on a train bound for Chicago in hopes of work. Joining them is Sally (Dorothy Coonan), a tomboy who hopes to reside with her aunt (Minna Gombell). There are setbacks, personal struggles, and cops around every corner in this stark, dangerous tale.

Why It Matters: The NFR praises Wellman and the cast, and calls the film an “exemplary model of the gritty ‘social conscience’ dramas popularized by Warner Bros. in the early 1930s.” There’s also a thorough essay by film studies Professor Gwendolyn Audrey Foster.

But Does It Really?: I must say this film grew on me. Films that are 100 percent a reflection of their time either age very well or not at all. I’m happy to say this film is the former. “Wild Boys” showcases a small section of the Great Depression in an honest, realistic way and holds your interest the whole time. It never gets mentioned among the classics, but it is definitely worth a viewing and I’m glad the NFR brought it to my attention.

Shout Outs: Most of the incidental music heard throughout is from “Gold Diggers of 1933”. The film Eddie runs into at the end is “Footlight Parade”. Like this film, both “Gold Diggers” and “Footlight” were Warner Bros. releases. Turns out synergy is almost as old as the movies themselves!

Everybody Gets One: Earl Baldwin was under contract as a screenwriter for Warner Bros., and “Wild Boys of the Road” was just another assignment. He switched over to United Artists later in his career, penning the script for the Abbott & Costello vehicle “Africa Screams”.

Wow, That’s Dated: The entire thing – but in a good way.

Title Track: No exact matches, but Sally tells her Aunt Carrie that she “picked up these boys on the road”. Close-ish.

Seriously, Oscars?: Nothing. It must have been too real for the Academy. William Wellman would soon become an Oscar favorite, receiving three nominations for directing and a win for the screenplay of the original 1937 “A Star is Born”.

Other notes

• This Sophomore Frolic is giving me some “Andy Hardy” flashbacks.
• Ah yes, back in the days when you could lift a car!
• This strikes me as a “TCM, 4am on a Wednesday” kind of movie.
• That’s Charley Grapewin (aka Uncle Henry) as the junk dealer. Life was tough after the twister.
• Dad kinda looks like James Cagney (who coincidentally shows up in the “Footlight Parade” clip at the end).
• The scene between Eddie and his dad is very sweet. Well done, everyone.
• I don’t know why Eddie and Tommy didn’t just tell their folks they were going to a Grammar Rodeo.
• Eddie, your nosebleed looks like you have a Hitler moustache.
• Another Sterling Holloway sighting! He was 28 when he filmed this. Seems a little out of place amongst the mostly teenage cast.
• Did Sterling just call milk “cow juice”? I’ll have to remember that one.
• Why is everyone making fun of Sally’s squint smile?
• Another phrase I want to hang on to is “Railroad Dicks”.
• A young woman in her bra. How scandalously Pre-Code of this film.
• Speaking of Pre-Code, that’s an uncredited Ward Bond as the railroad worker who rapes Lola. It’s done off-camera, and no one says the actual word or a synonym, but you are fully aware of what happened.
• I’m pretty sure that’s the actual kids jumping out of the moving train. So much for child labor laws.
• Traveling by montage is the fastest way to get across country.
• The ending lays on the message pretty thick (and Wellman was allegedly against it), but it helps encapsulate the feelings of the eras. Besides, you can’t be too dour with a National Recovery Act poster right behind you.
• Apparently Alan Hale Jr. is in this film somewhere. Some sources say he is “one of the boys” whose role was deleted from the final cut, others say his photo is the one seen on the judge’s desk at the end. Further research is needed, little buddy.

Legacy

• Dorothy Coonan retired from films not too long after this picture’s release to marry her director, William Wellman. She made occasional appearances in his subsequent work. Although Wellman had been married three times prior (all of them brief unions), he and Coonan were married for 40 years, and had seven kids together!
• Sadly, Eddie resorted to a life of crime after this. Under the alias “Lampwick”, his last known whereabouts were at the amusement park Pleasure Island.

#193) Anatomy of a Murder (1959)

OR “Serial – ‘50s Style”

Directed by Otto Preminger

Written by Wendell Mayes. Based on the novel by Robert Traver (aka John D. Voelker).

Class of 2012

The Plot: In a story ripped from the headlines, Michigan lawyer Paul Biegler (James Stewart) takes on a controversial case pertaining to Lt. Frederick Manion (Ben Gazzara) murdering a local innkeeper who allegedly beat and raped Manion’s wife Laura (Lee Remick). Biegler opts for the temporary insanity defense, but D.A. Mitch Lodwick (Brooks West) knows all of Biegler’s tricks, and hires the Attorney General’s prosecutor Claude Dancer (George C. Scott) to aid with the case. Presided over by visiting Judge Weaver (Joseph N. Welch), this trial not only shocked the Upper Peninsula, but also moviegoers with its candid language regarding rape and assault.

Why It Matters: The NFR calls it a “gripping” film with “daring dialogue and edgy pacing”. The write-up goes on to praise Preminger, the cast, composer Duke Ellington, and title designer Saul Bass. You know a movie is good when even the opening credits earn high marks.

But Does It Really?: I did not anticipate just how much I enjoyed this film. “Anatomy of a Murder” has earned its reputation as one of the greatest courtroom dramas ever. The case itself has so many shades of gray that you never know who to trust, and Preminger showcases all of it in an immensely entertaining and compelling way. It’s 160 minutes, but I was enthralled the whole time. The entire cast is top-notch: Jimmy Stewart is giving arguably a career-best performance (yeah, I said it), old pros like Arthur O’Connell and Eve Arden help ground the film, and newcomers George C. Scott, Ben Gazzara, and Lee Remick more than hold their own against the veterans. “Anatomy of a Murder” tends to get lost in the shuffle of great films (It took almost 25 years of eligibility to make the NFR), but it still feels fresh and exciting almost 60 years later, and will keep you guessing right up to the verdict.

Wow, That’s Dated: This kind of frank discussion about rape and assault is nowhere near as shocking as it was in 1959. Though I will argue that this film can still surprise viewers because you don’t expect Jimmy Stewart to ever say the word “sperm”.

Seriously, Oscars?: “Anatomy of a Murder” received seven Oscar nominations, including Best Picture. But the Academy was going through their “epic” phase, and the historic “Ben-Hur” sweep completely shut out “Anatomy”. Not even nominated were director Otto Preminger and composer Duke Ellington (although he did win the very first Grammy for Best Score Soundtrack). Noteworthy among the film’s losses is George C. Scott in the Best Supporting Actor category. A first time nominee (for only his second film), this defeat may have led to Scott’s future refusal of nominations and wins from the Academy.

Other notes

• John D. Voelker was an actual attorney in Michigan. His novel (and this film) closely follows an actual case he worked on in 1952. To add to the realism, this film shot entirely on location in Big Bay, Michigan. In some instances, scenes were shot at or near the actual scene of the crime.
• A 1958 Hollywood Reporter article noted that Gregory Peck was considered for the lead role. Hmmm, Gregory Peck playing a small-town lawyer who becomes the defense attorney of a major case involving rape. I don’t know…
• I will join the masses that love Saul Bass’ opening title sequence. It’s simple, effective, tells you everything you need to know, and the Duke Ellington jazz score takes it up a notch.

• The camera movements tend to be a bit shaky during an early scene in Biegler’s office. I know they were filming in John Voelker’s actual office, but were there speed bumps on the carpet or something?
• In addition to composing the score, Duke Ellington has a cameo as “Pie-Eye” (Any relation to “Hog-Eye”?).
• Joseph Welch was a real life lawyer who is best known for asking Senator McCarthy “Have you no sense of decency?” I don’t know how or why he caught the acting bug, but I’m glad he did.
• Among this film’s daring taboos: Arthur O’Connell may be the first person to belch on screen.
• The role of the prosecuting attorney turned out to be the most difficult to cast. The first choice was injured and the second choice left to do a play. Ultimately cast in the part was Brooks West, Eve Arden’s husband.
• That’s Howard McNear (aka Floyd the Barber) as one of the doctors brought in as a witness. I just heard Floyd the Barber say “sperm” too!
• George C. Scott has a brilliant low-key theatricality to his role. Claude is an attorney who knows exactly when and how to strike. It’s a fascinating performance, and I’d be pissed too if I didn’t win an Oscar for it.
• Among the (then) controversial words this film uses are: “rape” “contraception”, “orgasms”, “bitch”, and the phrase “army slut”. That last one is now the name of a show on ABC.
• The film’s final and greatest masterstroke is that we’re never quite sure if Manion is innocent or guilty. Like the jury, we’re given all the facts and can come to our own conclusions. Kudos to Ben Gazzara and Lee Remick for playing it so cryptically (and so real) that my loyalties kept shifting.

Legacy

• The film’s largest legacy is its victory in the fight against film censorship. The National Catholic Legion of Decency had some reservations about a movie with such obscene verbiage in the dialogue. The Production Code Association, however, approved the film for distribution because the language was used in proper legal context and did not promote such vulgarities. This was the first of many cracks that would lead to the dissolve of the Hays Code in the mid-1960s.
• John D. Voelker was able to retire on the royalties received from the novel and the film. He continued writing, including a book about his favorite hobby, “Anatomy of a Fisherman”.
• The band Great Lakes Myth Society composed this bizarre little ditty about the making of the film called “Marquette County 1959”.

• “Panties, panties, panties, panties…”

#192) A Cure for Pokeritis (1912)

OR “Bunny’s Stake Is Missing”

Directed by Laurence Trimble

Class of 2011

The Plot: Bunny Sharpe (John Bunny) has a gambling problem, and when his wife (Flora Finch) pleads with him to stop, he vows never to play poker with the boys again. Later, his wife finds out that he’s still going to his weekly poker games in the guise of a fraternal meeting. She gets her cousin Freddie (Harry T. Morey) and his bible study group to infiltrate the club dressed as police officers. Hilarity ensues.

Why It Matters: The NFR gives the film its historical significance, and then devotes a lot of the write-up to a New York Times editorial calling for film preservation after Bunny’s death in 1915. Yeah, we get it; it’s prescient. An essay by go-to silent film expert Steve Massa provides more insight into Bunny and Finch, but is weirdly cut off at the end.

But Does It Really?: Oh sure. It’s not a masterpiece or a laugh riot, but it’s one of the rare surviving pieces of film depicting one of America’s earliest silent comedy duos.

Everybody Gets One: John Bunny and Flora Finch will show up elsewhere on this list, but this film is their only moment in the spotlight. Both were stage actors who made the transition to film with Vitagraph in the early 1910s. Despite their alleged dislike for each other, their films together (affectionately known as “Bunnyfinches”) were Vitagraph’s most popular shorts.

Wow, That’s Dated: Mainly the immoral stigma of poker playing.

Other notes

• Wow, John Bunny is 90% face. He looks like if Winston Churchill got stung by a bee.
• Flora is so lucky that online poker isn’t a thing yet.
• When did we stop using “Geo” as a nickname for George?
• Could the Keystone Kops sue these guys?
• A group of men dressed as police officers come into a room of unescorted ladies. This is so close to being a bachelorette party.
• Wait that’s it? That is a long, confusing final shot.

Legacy

• After John Bunny’s death in 1915, the film was re-released as “A Sure Cure for Pokeritis”. Although there were many who predicted that future generations would love the “Bunnyfinches”, these films fell into obscurity, with many of them presumed lost.
• Flora Finch found some success in the sound era in small supporting roles. She appears in the Laurel & Hardy film “Way Out West” and fellow NFR entry “The Women”.
• Scientists have yet to find a cure for pokeritis. They have, however, been able to confine the symptoms to what experts refer to as “Poker Face”.

#191) Saturday Night Fever (1977)

OR “Misogyny: The Motion Picture”

Directed by John Badham

Written by Norman Wexler. Based on the story “Tribal Rites of the New Saturday Night” by Nik Cohn.

Class of 2010

The Plot: Young hothead Brooklynite Tony Manero (John Travolta) lives with his dysfunctional family and works a dead-end job. He spends his weeks waiting for Saturday, when he goes to the local discotheque and is the undisputed king of the dance floor. One Saturday he sees an impressive dancer named Stephanie (Karen Lynn Gorney) and eventually convinces her to be his dance partner in an upcoming dance contest. They clash instantly and constantly, but Tony keeps at it because Stephanie represents what he wants, a life better than his current one and a chance out of Brooklyn.

Why It Matters: The NFR highlights Travolta and the Bee Gees, and states that the “crossover between music and movies set the pace for many films to follow.”

But Does It Really?: I saw this movie for the first time a few years back, and hated it. Watching it again…I still don’t care for it. There’s some good work going on here, but the film’s characters (especially their attitudes towards women) are repulsive and indefensible. I completely understand that this film is capturing a specific time for a specific subculture, so I guess I just hate this specific subculture. Ultimately this film is about a young man coming into his own and trying to leave this life behind, but they layer on the more reprehensible aspects of his life real thick. I guess you just had to be there. Regardless, there’s a well-crafted film under all of this crap, and the historical impact alone is worthy of recognition. The film warrants inclusion on this list, but as I’ve said before, Disco (and everything it stands for) Sucks.

Shout Outs: Tony has posters of “Rocky” and “Enter the Dragon” in his room, goes to a club called “2001 Odyssey”, walks past a marquee advertising “Network”, and makes a “Dog Day Afternoon” reference in his underwear, the kind of tribute the prisoners of Attica had in mind when they rioted.

Everybody Gets One: Almost everyone, most notably the Brothers Gibb, legendary producer/manager Robert Stigwood, actor Donna Pescow, and director John Badham. Fun Fact: John’s brother Mary was Scout in “To Kill a Mockingbird”.

Wow, That’s Dated: Everything. From the aesthetics to the attitudes, everything about this movie is America’s unfortunate disco phase.

Title Song: We get a title song so good they changed the title of the movie.

Seriously, Oscars?: “Saturday Night Fever” received one nomination: Best Actor for breakout star John Travolta. He was a new face with a movie the older Academy members didn’t get, so he lost to veteran Richard Dreyfuss’ more endearing work in “The Goodbye Girl”. But the major controversy that year was that none of the Bee Gees’ music made the cut for Best Song or Best Score. But hey, “You Light Up My Life”, am I right? The Best Song winner the following year – the disco hit “Last Dance” – probably got some help from this oversight.

Other notes

• The opening credits are an excellent set-up to Tony and his world. Take note, “Baby Driver”.
• “You can’t fuck the future.” Wait until they see “The Terminator”.
• It’s difficult watching John Travolta criticize someone’s religious beliefs.
• But seriously, am I supposed to like these guys? The only thing they haven’t done yet is punch an orphan.
• Can you imagine a world where one of the other Sweathogs made it big? Two-time Oscar nominee “Boom-Boom” Washington? Epstein butchering Idina Menzel’s name? Horshack as Robert Shapiro?
• Wow, the Even Stevens mom can dance!
• Current score: NFR films with Gloria Swanson: 1, NFR films with Fran Drescher: 2.
• Damn it Tony stop being so endearing. Your complexity is making me confused, Travolta!
• Laurence Olivier did Polaroid commercials? Man the ‘70s were weird.
• That is a really fast centrifuge Tony and Stephanie have going. Any faster and they’ll time travel…and fuck the future!
• After their rehearsal, Tony and Stephanie walk down Brooklyn’s landmark “ADR Boulevard”.
• What’s that sound I hear? Why it’s Modest Mussorgsky rolling over in his grave.
• And then they start attacking David Bowie. This movie goes too far! To add insult to injury, Stephanie pronounces his last name as “Boo-ie”.
• This film almost does a precursor to the “Manhattan” shot.
• Would you like a healthy sprinkling of homophobia and racism to go with your misogyny? Say when…
• As much as I don’t care for this film, the dance sequences are pretty great. The contest in particular is wonderfully choreographed; they actually managed to make disco dancing look graceful. Where is Lester Wilson’s honorary Oscar for choreography? If it’s good enough for “Oliver!” it’s good enough for this film.
• And then the boys take Annette for a car ride. Aaaaaaand fuck this movie.

Legacy

• Disco was waning by 1977, but this film brought it back even bigger than before.
• John Travolta: Act I
• A sequel that removes everything you liked about the first one and replaces it with two Stallones and something called “Satan’s Alley”.

• Oh god, I forgot there was a stage version. And I guess it’s still touring. Why won’t you die?

• Everyone has spoofed this film’s iconic disco scenes, but we’ll stick with “Airplane!” for now.

• “The Barry Gibb Talk Show”

• This is the reason “Welcome Back, Kotter” jumped the shark.
• The 2004 documentary “Get Down Tonight” features Karen Gorney recreating her climactic dance scene with “Dance Fever” host (and this film’s uncredited dance instructor) Deney Terrio.

• Something called “Saturday Night Glee-ver”

• And of course, “Flashbeagle”!

Listen to This: The prime example of a soundtrack being more popular than its film, the Bee Gees’ “disco masterpiece” was added to the National Recording Registry in 2012. Check out this essay by special guest poster David N. Meyer.