"You'll shoot your eye out, kid."

Seasons Greetings!

Sorry for the recent lapse in blogging. I know my many, numerous, multitudes of readers were probably in a continual state of despair, thinking I had left, never to return. Fear not, brave blog-viewers! I was only in Las Vegas for a week and didn’t have a chance to watch many movies. I promise to make up for it over the holidays.

In fact, I managed to get in a great Christmas classic with some friends this past weekend. A Christmas Story is one of many holiday films I grew up watching. I was actually surprised to learn that several of my friends had never seen it before and it was a real treat to be with them for their first viewing. I’ve said many times that one of my greatest pleasures is to watch a really good film with a really good friend who’s never seen it before. And A Christmas Story is definitely one of those movies that really benefits from being watched with a roomful of friends.

Ralphie is a pretty typical 9-year old, getting ready for Christmas in December, 1940. And there’s nothing he wants more than an Official Red Ryder Carbine-Action 200-shot Range Model Air Rifle. A Christmas Story is told as seen through Ralphie’s eyes, with the adult voice-over giving explanation for this thoughts, plans and ideas. If you’ve ever seen the hit television show ‘The Wonder Years’ then you have an excellent idea of how the film works. In fact, A Christmas Story was the inspiration for The Wonder Years, so if you liked the TV show you’ll almost certainly enjoy the film.

"Let's face it, most of us are scoffers. But moments before
zero hour, it did not pay to take chances."

Originally released in 1983, the film was a low-budget affair based on a collection of short stories, written by screenwriter Jean Sheppard, titled ‘In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash’. It’s essentially a collection of clichés that most of us can identify with, both as children and parents: sticking your tongue to a frozen pole, getting bundled up for the cold weather, getting your mouth washed out with soap. It may not sound that interesting but somehow it comes across as very endearing. And you can’t argue with the fact that this low-budget collection of clichés has since become a Christmas classic in many homes.

The 2-disc Special Edition comes packed with bonus features. I don’t know if they are any good though because I haven’t watched any of them yet. I know, you’re shocked. Add it to my never-ending list of things to watch and report back to you on. The video is presented in a wonderful 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer, with the option to switch to full frame (though no one in their right mind would voluntarily choose that). I thought the picture was pretty good considering the film’s age. But I was also seated at the far edge of the viewing area so I can’t say for certain how pristine the picture may or may not have been. The audio is a bit of a disappointment though. Dolby 1.0 (mono) is the only option. It would have been nice to have some stereo effects for some of the musical bits and some 5.1 surround would have added wonderfully to Ralphie’s many day-dream sequences.

"It's a major award!"

A Christmas Story is a wonderful holiday film that everyone should see at least once. It’s great for the whole family. And it was a real joy to watch it with some good friends. Thanks Shauna, Chris, Amanda, Jason, Joleen, Dave, Barb and Anthony for watching it with me! Same time next year?

A Christmas Story gets 8 leg lamps (out of 10).
Have you been good this year? If so, click here for ‘A Christmas Story’ trivia.

"Just consider me the best cocktail party story you ever met."

I love finding a new, great movie. Especially when it’s a film that you’re not expecting to be great in the first place. I had that experience with The Matador this past weekend. I recall the trailer looked pretty funny and thought it might be interesting to check it out. While scanning the back of the DVD case I noticed that Pierce Brosnan received a Golden Globe nomination for his role in the film. That should have tipped me off that this was more than just a run-of-the-mill comedy. As one IMDB user commented, “The Matador is killer comedy.”

Julian Noble (Brosnan) is an international hitman who lives a globetrotting lifestyle, ‘facilitating’ jobs around the world. Danny Wright (Greg Kinnear) is an unlucky salesman who is running out of hope that anything in life will go his way. Both men are in Mexico on business when they meet each other at a hotel lounge. I know what you’re thinking. The tagline of this film sums it up nicely; a hitman and a salesman walk into a bar…

"I’m a big fan of the “Everybody’s got
to pee” theory of assassination."

What appears to be a simple, little story turns out to be one of the most cleverly written and well-acted films I’ve seen in a long time. And it’s brilliantly funny. The unlikely duo of Noble and Wright is an intriguing and entertaining combination. Each new scene adds another element that continues to draw you in to their lives. If you feel like you’ve got one of the characters pegged and you understand where they are coming from, then the writer has you right where he wants you. And it’s not where you think it is.

This isn’t a caper film or a surprise-ending film, although there are some interesting twists throughout. This is a character film with terrific dialogue and a darn good story. There’s a lot of heart in this movie and it’s easily Brosnan’s best film to date. I loved his character and hated him at the same time. I cheered for him, mourned his losses, laughed at his misfortune and ultimately found myself on the same emotional roller-coaster that Julian Noble himself was going though. If you think you’ve seen every world-class-assassin character there is, think again. Even if you think you can imagine what this particular assassin might be like, think again. Noble is, at first, contemptuous, rude and insulting. The lonely lifestyle of a hired killer has made him abrasive and crude. But there’s more going on underneath all that bravado. You’ve never met anyone like Julian Noble and neither has Danny Wright.

"Oh, so now killing people is a good time?"

One of the many things that makes this film work as well as it does is its honesty. And that honesty comes through Danny Wright (Kinnear). He is the every-man who believes in the general goodness of people and is simply trying to make ends meet. He asks the questions we would ask if we ever met Julian. Danny sees Noble the way we would see him. It draws you into the film and takes a seemingly impossible situation and makes it real. I was nodding my head as much as I was laughing. The Matador is funny and real. I’m not sure how that works, but it does.

I will definitely be picking this one up on DVD. When I get a chance to check out some of the special features, I’ll try to remember to let you know. The picture and sound quality are top-notch. Although it’s mostly dialogue driven, The Matador doesn’t lack in roaring sound effects and music. Everything comes together nicely on this DVD transfer and I haven’t a single complaint.

"I need a break. There’s no retirement
home for assassins is there?
Archery at four? Riflery at five?"

The Matador is another one of those diamond-in-the-rough ‘indie’ films (Stratus Film Co.) that shines. Do yourself a favour and pick this one up. It’s a guaranteed good-time.

The Matador gets 9 Coronas (out of 10).
Click here to facilitate some trivia for ‘The Matador’.

Chapter Title Quiz - Answers!

As promised, here are the answers for the DVD Chapter Title quiz that I posted a couple of weeks ago. Good job to everyone who sent in their guesses. Everyone did very well, which means that either the quiz was too easy or you're all nearly as obsessed with movies as I am. Probably a combination of the two.

If you don't remember your answers and want to know your score, send me an email and I'll let you know how you did. Otherwise you can have a look at the answers below to see how you faired in the DVD Chapter Title Quiz.

No. 1 - Braveheart
No. 2 - Dead Poets Society
No. 3 - Finding Nemo
No. 4 - Raiders of the Lost Ark
No. 5 - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
No. 6 - Napoleon Dynamite
No. 7 - Saving Private Ryan
No. 8 - Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
No. 9 - Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
No. 10 - Monty Python and the Holy Grail
No. 11 - Jurassic Park
No. 12 - Ghostbusters
No. 13 - Ferris Bueller's Day Off
No. 14 - Dances with Wolves
No. 15 - Die Hard

There was a 2-way tie for First Place between Christine Sheppard (my mom) and Anthony Packwood (not my mom). Should I arrange for a tie-breaker quiz? Hmmm...