Scene Stealer
Scene Stealer | “The Manchurian Candidate” Marco’s Dream
With The Manchurian Candidate, John Frankenheimer created his masterpiece. Preying on Cold War paranoia, he crafted a film (adapted from Richard Condon’s novel) that presents the mind as the ultimate weapon. Showcasing Frank Sinatra in an outstanding performance as Major Bennett Marco ( for which he won an Oscar), a man fighting against the odds for his country and Laurence Harvey as Raymond Shaw, a man stripped of his true identity to become a Communist pawn. The film is, of course, filled the great performances from Angela Lansbury, Janet Leigh, and Henry Silva, but it is the perfect script by George Axelrod and the craftsmanship of every scene that takes hold of me. Continue on for a breathtaking scene. Read the rest of this entry »
Scene Stealer | Apocalypto “Village Invasion”
Apocalypto's brilliant "Village Invasion" scene
I tend to find scenes in films that get my blood boiling the most intense and effective. Apocalypto’s “village invasion” is one such scene. Continue!
Scene Stealer | Terminator 2 – Final Moments
Well, the election is over and while you may be feeling mixed about the results, or just glad that it’s over, for me the best part of the whole ordeal is simple. California Governor Arnold Swarchenegger will no longer be in the position as of January and can return to the silver screen. You know how you never realize how much you miss something until it’s gone? Such is the case here. Just watch the video below featuring the Governator’s best lines and you’ll surely be feeling the way I do about our missing action hero. Read the rest of this entry »
Scene Stealer | “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” The Departure of Boromir
There has been a lot said recently about Peter Jackson‘s adaptation of The Hobbit. Will it ever happen? Yes. Who will direct? Peter Jackson. Will it film in New Zealand? The world just came in and it is a … Yes. Mr. Will wrote an excellent article chronicling the trials the film has gone through and recommend clicking here to give it a read. Now we all get to wait for three or so years to see the film, but until then I highly recommend re watching The Lord of the Rings Trilogy.
Creating a vast world never looked easier as Peter Jackson dives head first into the epic fantasy trilogy. The Fellowship of the Ring really takes it’s time giving you the feel of the world and allowing you to meet the characters and understand their motives. There are plenty of great characters, but the most interesting and tragic figure of The Fellowship of the Ring (my opinion of course) is Boromir. Read the rest of this entry »
Scene Stealer | “L.A. Confidential” Bud White enters the Interrogation
Russell Crowe and Guy Pearce in L.A. CONFIDENTIAL
This is my first time doing Scene Stealer here at Filmdogs and I wanted to make sure my opening was a killer one. As I was thinking about possible scenes, one popped up immediately. The scene is from the 1997 Curtis Hanson film L.A. Confidential, a masterful crime drama set in post-war Los Angeles about seedy Hollywood and corrupt cops.
Scene Stealer | “Sullivan’s Travels” With a little sex in it…
Veronica Lake and Joel McCrea in Sullivan's Travels.
Lately I’ve been making my way through the filmography of Writer/Director Preston Sturges and have been having a wonderful time. Famous for his taut romantic comedies and rapid fire, if not overlapping dialogue he created some masterpieces of the genre. Some might even say he helped invent it, and they wouldn’t be far off. With movies like The Lady Eve, The Palm Beach Story, and today’s Scene Stealer Sullivan’s Travels, it’s easy to see why many writers look up to him.
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Scene Stealer | “Band of Outsiders” The Madison Dance
If you are a film buff, odds are you are familiar with Jean-Luc Godard. Along with Francois Truffaut, Claude Charbol, and others, Godard was a film critic turned filmmaker and helped to launch the now legendary French New Wave. Best known for Breathless, Godard ushered in a sixties cool consisting of crime and romance. He has directed countless great films such as: the aforementioned Breathless, A Woman is a Woman, Contempt, and Made in U.S.A, but the film that has made a lasting impression on me is Band of Outsiders. Read the rest of this entry »
Scene Stealer | “Grizzly Man” Let’s Have Some Water
Treadwell filling us in on the Grizzly bears.
Werner Herzog‘s documentary Grizzly Man is an amazing look into the mind of man lost in nature. It profiles Timothy Treadwell, an individual who lived among Grizzly bears in Alaska for 13 summers and even thought of himself as one of them. Yet, even Treadwell knew that his days as the self professed “protector” of the bears might come to an end by their claws. The entire film is framed with the impending deaths of both Treadwell and his girlfriend Amie Huguenard by a Grizzly in 2003.
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Scene Stealer | “Gone Baby Gone” Be Wise As Serpents, Yet Innocent As Doves
For me Gone Baby Gone was the arrival of a marvelous filmmaker. A true new voice who had a secret passage way to a world he knew like the back of his hand. The filmmaker is of course actor director Ben Affleck and his world is Boston. Affleck returns to Boston as a filmmaker yet again this Friday with The Town, and reviews are already stating it is one of the best films of the year. Affleck first showed us his love for the city in Good Will Hunting (for, along with Matt Damon, he won an oscar for writing), but it was with Gone Baby Gone that his muse (Boston) truly took hold. Read the rest of this entry »
Scene Stealer | Seven Brides for Seven Brothers “Lonesome Polecat”
I caught the film Seven Brides for Seven Brothers on TCM a few years back, and enjoyed it as much as casual musical fan would. The picture is one of those rock solid entries into it’s genre that is seemingly flawless, but falls just short of being remembered as one of the best. Although it’s amazing it doesn’t get more credit, especially considering the man who directed it, Stanley Donen. If the name doesn’t sound familiar to you it should, considering he helmed films like: Audrey Hepburn’s Funny Face, Gene Kelly’s On the Town, and Cary Grant’s thriller Charade. However, he will always be remembered for directing one of the greatest musicals of all time Singin’ in the Rain.
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