CMT - The Killer

Back in the late eighties and through most of the nineties, I was an avid comic book reader. I plunged into the Marvel Universe, almost exclusively, and the X-Men franchise was my favorite. That period of history is interesting to note, because there was a trend overwhelming the medium. Iron Man and Spider-Man were old and tired news; so the order of the day was "dark and edgy". 

I'm sure The Dark Knight got a bump during this period, but the Batman had to make room for Wolverine. Punisher had his "War Zone", Angel became Archangel, and X-Force introduced us to Cable and Deadpool. These characters were different from the ones that preceded them; they still saved the day, but they did it without the handcuffs. When the fight was over and the villains were defeated, you didn't know if they would live to change their ways. 

There was excitement and suspense, that you couldn't get with the old guard. These new characters were loose cannons that could go down dark paths. Even though they were exhilarating back then, eventually their run came to end. We found that there was nothing wrong with playing by the rules, and no trend is built to last forever. 

Classic Movie Trailers - The Killer (1989) 

Chow Yun-Fat was called "Ah-Jong" in the subtitled version of "The Killer". In the English-dub, his name is "Johnny" apparently. In either case, a rose is a rose and if you don't like the character, you won't like the movie. Films are hard to watch when you hate the protagonist, and I've found that to be true across multiple genres. 

If you are willing to watch the show to its conclusion, something about Johnny Ah-Jong appeals. What that is will vary between people, but there are some common traits that I'd like to talk about. First off, this movie has plenty of armed conflicts, but the one inside the hitman may be the most compelling. A hopeless murdering cad is boring after a while, but if he's having second thoughts, that's a different story. 

I'm reminded of "Leon: The Professional", which is another tale, along the same lines. When someone is shutdown emotionally, it's fascinating to watch them pull them out of it. However, I would be doing this film a disservice, if I didn't recognize the assassin's allure. A killer's current state is just as captivating as the transition out of it. 

There are a couple of reasons why that is. Ultimately, these guys are antiheroes, and action movies are where they live and breathe. If there's something cathartic that needs to be served, a character like Johnny is the man for the job. He gives us gunplay that's unrestrained, remorseless and even artful.  

If you spend a lot of time watching heroes hold back, eventually you'll get tired of it. Sometimes, we want to see the claws tear into them, especially if they're really bad guys. I don't mean to say that we want blood and gore; we're just looking for some sort of release. If the character has a lightsaber, we want to see it used, and if heads don't roll it's disappointing. We put ourselves in the place of the warrior, and if he stops short of the deathblow, so do we. 

At the same time, we don't want to see it go too far, and that's why the villain is there. He's the everyman without a shred of restraint, decency or morality. So, he's willing to do things we're afraid to think about, making us fear and hate him with a passion. Antagonists are great at getting people invested, and nothing's more satisfying than watching them go down.  

Still, if we're constantly following natural predators, that will get old as well. The traditional good guy is the best of us, and he gives us an example to aspire to. We have a killer instinct, and that's undeniable, but there are better parts of the human psyche. If we go a long time without experiencing benevolence, dissatisfaction and depression sets in.  

Looking at it from a distance, I see a scale, with the hero and villain at opposite ends. The antihero is somewhere in the middle, and he can lean towards one way or the other. In his particular case, there are worse people around him, so there is another target for our ire. That situation lets us root for the killing machine, but we also look forward to his redemption. In that way, Johnny Ah-Jong and his ilk, have very important roles to fill. 

In fact, they all do. You may not have noticed, but Spider-Man needs Hulk, and they both need Doctor Doom. Each of their character types complement the others, so if anyone is missing there's a void to be filled. There will be periods when the killer is more popular, but the pendulum will swing the other way. We are human beings and we are animals, so the stories we tell have to reflect that.

Trailer Here 

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 See "The Killer" on Netflix! 

Next Week: A turn towards comedy, with "Turner & Hooch". 

CMT - Cape Fear

If you're looking for a film with universal acclaim, please stop doing so. If you want a story that has "a little something for everyone", let us know when you find that modern miracle. Demographics were invented for a very good reason. You might entertain a few different groups but you'll never get them all. 

If you're going to tell stories you're going to make decisions. Your decisions will put some people off, no matter what they are. A successful story captures the intended audience, by appealing to a great number within the targeted group. If someone enjoys a property that's not marketed to them, it's a happy bonus, not something to expect. 

Even if your goal is set in stone and well defined, the temptation to change it will always be present. Authors and directors are creative people, and all they want to do is please with their creations. The next "Psycho" and the next "Saw" franchise is right around the corner, and being a part of the next big thing is a captivating dream. I'm sure there are pitfalls, on the way to a huge hit, and changing a story to widen appeal is probably one of them. 

  

Classic Movie Trailers – Cape Fear (1991) 

As an amateur, and someone outside the movie business, I have some pretty radical ideas. First, I'll share the notion that happy endings are overrated. I'm not saying that films should all be downers, but many of them would benefit from a more appropriate conclusion. That's a point of contention which will surely be opposed, and I freely admit that what's suitable is very subjective. 

I'm just pointing out the overabundance of "feel good" moments, that are tacked on to the end of almost every modern film. I understand the financial need to make your customers happy, but I believe they're best served by serving the story itself. If every picture ends on a positive note, they become predictable and plainly artificial.  

I know that people say they want to cheer at the end, but I think the reality is more complicated. We pay the ticket price for a great experience, but no one knows what that is. You can cater to what you think we want to see, but if we're clueless, how do you figure it out? Don't draw a blueprint from fan sites and message boards; you could dance to that tune and fall flat on your face. 

Instead, give us what the fiction calls for; feel the flow of the narrative and judge for yourself. I have to commend Scorsese and the cast of this picture, for delivering a finale that was very well-earned. I won't say whether it was an "upper" or "downer", but I believe it fit the story perfectly. Anything darker would have overdone it, and anything lighter would have seemed out of place.  

It hit that sweet spot, where it could give us what we needed, because we were denied it for a very long time. At the end of the journey, the final act was believable, relieving and satisfying at the same time. The roller-coaster had cruised to a stop, and the proceeding ride was intense enough to allow for that. Part of the reason why "Cape Fear" delivers, is the ability of De Niro to push the envelope. 

Years ago, I wrote an essay inspired by "Taxi Driver". It was the most disturbing thing I'd ever seen. Here, it's the same guy doing it all over again, and I swear that he's more terrifying than Dracula. Robert's scenes with Juliette Lewis and Illeana Davis, were filled with tension and intentionally drawn out. The editor and studio were brave enough, to let the thriller work towards an end that's justified.    

That isn't to say that everyone appreciated it. I have no doubt that some found it to be unbearable. That could mean an overall dislike of the genre, or it could be a reflection of where they are in life. Regardless, analyzing them is probably a mistake, and changing the movie to please them would be a tragic error.  

Art styles are commissioned by a specific kind of consumer, and if you meet their needs you'll alienate others. It's best to make to a product to delight a few, than to mold something which disappoints everyone.  I believe that great success can't be engineered; but if you deliver quality, you have a better chance. 

Think twice, before you close on flowers and sunshine.  Anyone can write a "good" ending, but few can write a great one. "Frankenstein" was a heart-wrenching tragedy, as was the "Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde". Both of those stories are timeless classics, and we don't seem to have the guts to make them anymore. 

       

Trailer Here. 

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@ChannelSeals 

See "Cape Fear" on Netflix ! 

Next Week: "The Killer"! Directed by John Woo.

CMT - Jaws

This movie is like "The Edge" and "Cujo", which are two favorites of mine. What they offer us, are horror stories grounded in our reality. The terror you feel in that particular sub-genre, is altogether different from a fear of the supernatural. If you can classify the monsters into genus and species, they cease to be unknown and become less frightening. 

I'm still willing to bet that all our knowledge and reason, evaporates in close proximity to a predator. Survival instincts override intellect, and mortal danger gives flight to logic. As human beings, we are afraid of numerous things, but most of us are safe from the beasts in the wilderness. It is only through stories like this one, that we get a chance to experience the emotions from our past. 

Classic Movie Trailers – Jaws (1975) 

If you're by a window, I'd like you to take a moment to look out of it. If you're outside, I'd like you to stop reading and scan the space around you. Just take a few minutes to appreciate your environment. Pay attention to what you see, instead of taking it for granted. 

Even though I have no idea where you currently are, I can say that I know something about where you live. If you're reading this text on a computer, laptop, tablet or mobile device, you're probably in what we call a "developed country". That's a more important term than you may realize, and it means a lot more than what they teach us in class. Consider the fact that even if you're miles from anyone else, there are signs of civilization, everywhere you look.  

You could be in a high rise building or a log cabin. You be on farmland, or in a dense, urban area. There are cars or tractors, roads or trails, man-made clearings or clustered buildings. We have altered the landscape wherever we have trod, and overrun any practically habitable space. Species are endangered due to our efforts, to shrink their territory down to nothing at all.  

So now, the animals are in steel cages. The only range they have left, is in your local zoo. We should be thrilled to see deer, jackal and coyote. Anything that poses a greater threat has been run out of town. 

Have you ever had to flee from a bear in your life? Have you ever rushed into your car, to escape the gaze of a lion? We are the apex of apex predators, and we have gained that status by invalidating natural selection. There is nothing mighty about the human mind and body; our claim to fame has always been our wanton destruction.  

Believe me, guns have little to do with our dominance. The chainsaw is a much more terrible weapon. Tanks have claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands, but bulldozers have done a lot worse. When you change the environment you change the odds, and we have skewed everything to benefit ourselves.  

Still, there are pockets of wildlife here and there. Through the kindness of our hearts, we have spared some land for our enemies.  The animal kingdom was a vast and diverse place, but then we lead the fauna to their trail of tears. The Unrecorded War was colder than you may realize; we found that starving them was better than shooting.  

As devastating as our behavior has been, we haven't come close to conquering the globe. You may think that we have dominion over all, but that's because you're looking at the surface. All you have to do is dive a little deeper, to reconnect with dread and uncertainty. There are no roads beneath the waves, and the water brings ruin to our machines.  

When we are submerged, we are still prey. The safety of civilization is back on land. In the instant that we dare to invade the ocean, our prowess and skills are absolutely worthless. I would only go while inside a submarine; anything else is reckless, or attempted suicide. 

If you stop and consider the ultimate result of our efforts, you'll see that we won't win the end game. The sea level rises, right along with the temperature, and it brings natural checks and balances to our race. When every land is an island, our lives are finished, and the jaws of death will be something we've studied and categorized.  

Trailer Here. 

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See "Jaws" on Netflix! 

Next Week: "Cape Fear".