Hello and welcome back to A Month at the Movies, my contribution to the A to Z challenge for 2023.
This year I am copying from a myriad of other A to Z challengers by reprinting the same synopsis about my theme with every letter. You can skip over this part if you want to.
I love movies and have decided to share with you a movie each day that I have enjoyed to one degree or another. With each entry, I'll give a brief synopsis of the film, share a positive and negative review from Rotten Tomatoes ( a website, I didn't use much at all until preparing for the challenge), discuss its resiliency (the theme of the A to Z challenge this year), and other tidbits like whether the film may appear in my top 100 film list, which I have been revamping this year. I think that's enough in the way of introduction, considering you'll be reading it (hopefully) 5 more times this month.
Film: UHF (1989)
Director: Jay Levey
Weird Al's Apartment in UHF By Mountain Mike Johans…, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=47260199
I love parodies. I grew up listening to one of the greatest parodists of all time, Allan Sherman. My Mom and Dad would send out a Christmas Card each year where they would write our family's annual exploits to the tune of a Christmas carol. I myself have written a number of parodies and have posted many in my blog.
I even wrote a parody last Saturday to publicize my S is for Silverado post and put it on my Facebook page.
(Sung to the tune of Desperado by The Eagles)
Silverado, you are in my top eleven.
You star two great Kevin’s
Plus one Glenn, and one Glover
You’re a western
But so much more than your genre
Which is why I’m so fond a
This joy I’ve discovered.
But with no disrespect to Alan Sherman, my parents, or myself, my favorite parodist is Weird Al Yankovic.
When Weird Al first started out he would send his songs to Dr. Demento who would play them on his syndicated radio program. My favorite of which, and my all-time favorite Weird Al Song, is It's Still Billy Joel to Me, performed to the tune of It's Still Rock and Roll to Me by (Wait for it ....) Billy Joel.
I mean Weird Al had the audacity to rip Billy Joel's music while performing Billy Joel's music. I was impressed. In 1989, Weird Al set his sights on television and the movies at the same time by starring in and co-writing UHF a movie about a t.v. channel.
At the time most network television was broadcast on VHF (Very High Frequency) and most independent stations were broadcast on UHF (Ultra High Frequency). While some might argue about the quality of these frequencies. The quality of the programming was generally regarded as infinitely better on VHF.
Positive Tomato - The individual parts may be greater than the sum of the whole, but man, are those parts funny. Austin Trunick - Under The Radar
Negative Tomato - This is the dreariest comedy in many a month, a depressing slog through recycled comic formulas. Roger Ebert - Chicago Sun-Times
If I were to give UHF a 6 or less-word film review it would be: Walter Mitty meets SCTV. The film is essentially a bunch of parodies with a plot sandwiched in between them. The movie begins with a pretty good Raiders parody.
Resiliency: Michael Richards (Kramer from Seinfeld) is the best part of this movie. He plays Stanley Spadowski who shows resiliency after being fired from the best t.v. station in town where he worked as a janitor and ended up getting hired as a janitor at the station Yankovic manages to host a wildly successful children's t.v. program.
Top 100: This movie straddles the fence between so dumb it's funny and so dumb it's dumb. It has many fine moments, but it is nowhere near making my top 100.
A to Z Connection: This is the 2nd film in the challenge about television (Quiz Show).
Hello and welcome back to A Month at the Movies, my contribution to the A to Z challenge for 2023.
This year I am copying from a myriad of other A to Z challengers by reprinting the same synopsis about my theme with every letter. You can skip over this part if you want to.
I love movies and have decided to share with you a movie each day that I have enjoyed to one degree or another. With each entry, I'll give a brief synopsis of the film, share a positive and negative review from Rotten Tomatoes ( a website, I didn't use much at all until preparing for the challenge), discuss its resiliency (the theme of the A to Z challenge this year), and other tidbits like whether the film may appear in my top 100 film list, which I have been revamping this year. I think that's enough in the way of introduction, considering you'll be reading it (hopefully) 6 more times this month.
Film: The Muppet Movie (1979)\
Director: James Frawley
One of our most famous family quotes goes like this. My wife was asked why she didn't like a certain movie. Perhaps it was Princess Pride, perhaps it was something else Her reply was:
"I like movies about real things, like the Muppets."
I don't remember if she was being serious or silly, but there is a degree of seriousness we can find in it. Just like Roger Ebert talks about in the review below, in a way, The Muppets are real.
Positive Tomato: Jolson sang, Barrymore spoke, Garbo laughed, and now Kermit the Frog rides a bicycle... If you can figure out how they were able to show Kermit pedaling across the screen, then you are less a romantic than I am: I prefer to believe he did it himself. Roger Ebert - Chicago Sun-Times
Negative Tomato: while The Muppet Movie is certainly entertaining, the shift to a coherent, linear, feature-length narrative deprives the film the show's brilliantly structured inanity. James Kendrick - Q Network Film Desk
The Muppet Movie is a movie within a movie. We watch the Muppets screening The Muppet Movie, a movie about how The Muppets became rich and famous. For those who grew up watching The Muppet Show, we are familiar with the basic concept, Muppets and humans interacting together in the real world.
Resiliency: In the t.v. show the world was limited to the Muppet Theatre. In the film, The Muppets are in swamps, churches, county fairs, restaurants, bars, and Ghost towns, all on their way to Hollywood. Jim Henson and all the Muppeteers had to show great resiliency in performing and filming. Click here to get an idea of what Henson had to go through to film the opening sequence of the movie.
Kermit at the Smithsonian
Scooter and Steve Martin on The Muppet Show
On The Muppet Show, the Muppets did perform many musical numbers but the majority of these were either pop tunes or standards. The Muppet Movie is a musical and none of the songs existed until Paul Williams wrote them for the movie. If you ever wonder whether the Muppet Movie has any lasting impact, try to imagine a world without Rainbow Connection or Movin' Right Along.
Top 100: I have mentioned before that I basically have 3 favorite movies of all time that are essentiallly in a tie for my favorite film. In the Challenge so far, I have revealed that 2 of these films are It's A Wonderful Life and Ordinary People. The Muppet Movie is the third.
Hello and welcome back to A Month at the Movies, my contribution to the A to Z challenge for 2023.
This year I am copying from a myriad of other A to Z challengers by reprinting the same synopsis about my theme with every letter. You can skip over this part if you want to.
I love movies and have decided to share with you a movie each day that I have enjoyed to one degree or another. With each entry, I'll give a brief synopsis of the film, share a positive and negative review from Rotten Tomatoes ( a website, I didn't use much at all until preparing for the challenge), discuss its resiliency (the theme of the A to Z challenge this year), and other tidbits like whether the film may appear in my top 100 film list, which I have been revamping this year. I think that's enough in the way of introduction, considering you'll be reading it (hopefully) 7 more times this month.
Film: Silverado (1985)
Director: Lawrence Kasdan
Silverado is exactly what a Western should be. In the 80's Westerns were few and far between and when Silverado came around in 1985 it revitalized the genre. The photography is breathtaking, The writing and the acting complement excellent direction and production by Lawrence Kasdan. This trailer gives you an idea of what to expect in this wild western romp of a movie.
Positive Tomato: This is a story, you will agree, that has been told before. What distinguishes Kasdan's telling of it is the style and energy he brings to the project. Roger Ebert - Chicago Sun-Times
Negative Tomato: ...In other words, there's a lot less going on in Silverado than pleases the eye.Gene Siskel - Chicago Tribune
Scott Glenn as Emmett
Kevin Cline as Paden
Danny Glover as Mal
Kevin Costner as Jake
Brian Dennehy as Cobb
John Cleese as Sherriff Langston
The movie is very nuanced. In many ways it plays as a straight western filled with, scenic vistas and plenty of shootouts, saloons, and stampedes. It is both plot driven and character driven and has plenty of humor weaved in throughout the movie. One of my favorite bits that's thrown in just before a jail break sequence is when John Cleese is playing chess with his deputy on the day of a scheduled hanging. He is contemplating his next move, and he just turns the board around so he is now playing his deputy's pieces. Moments like these are unexpected in a movie that's not a comedy but they certainly enhance the picture.
Resilience: At one point in the film, Mal (Danny Glover) finds out from Sherriff Langston (John Cleese) that he can't stay (or be served food or aclohol) in that town because of his race. Mal states "that ain't right." and Langston replies that he decides what is right in his jurisdiction. Later when the 4 heroes are in Silverado they again encounter injustices. The 4 have the resiliency to stand up to "what ain't right" even when they are seemingly standing alone.
Top 100: Silverado is my all time favorite western and has really opened the genre up to me. Thanks to Silverado there are 6 or more Westerns that will make it on to my top 100. Silverado just misses out of my top 10 and is currently ranked at 11.
A To Z Connection: This is the 2nd film in the challenge to star Kevin Kline (Dave).
Hello and welcome back to A Month at the Movies, my contribution to the A to Z challenge for 2023.
This year I am copying from a myriad of other A to Z challengers by reprinting the same synopsis about my theme with every letter. You can skip over this part if you want to.
I love movies and have decided to share with you a movie each day that I have enjoyed to one degree or another. With each entry, I'll give a brief synopsis of the film, share a positive and negative review from Rotten Tomatoes ( a website, I didn't use much at all until preparing for the challenge), discuss its resiliency (the theme of the A to Z challenge this year), and other tidbits like whether the film may appear in my top 100 film list, which I have been revamping this year. I think that's enough in the way of introduction, considering you'll be reading it (hopefully) 8 more times this month.
Positive Tomato: First-time director Bonnie Hunt has taken what could have been an incredibly sappy story and used her sense of comedic timing to fashion a date flick that even the guys might enjoy. Al Brumley - Dallas Morning News
Negative Tomato: This is a melodrama wrapped in a sitcom inside a Hallmark card.Wesley Morris -
This movie works on multiple levels. David Duchovny shows great range of emotions as a man who loves his wife and loses her suddenly. We see him grieve and we watch him dedicate his work to her memory. Minnie Driver shines as someone who gets a heart transplant and gets more than just her life back.
Bonnie Hunt directed, co-wrote and co-stars as Driver's best friend. I think that her direction and the overall quality of her script are key to the films juxtaposition of lighthearted and serious moments without ever feeling like a melodrama. The film is well paced and seemingly every scene contributes to the audiences entertainment.
This is also due to the fine ensemble acting. There are many one or two scene performers who deliver even in their limited roles. Two of the best of these are the "anonymous" zoo benefactor (played by Dick Cusack, the father of John, Joan and Ann) and the Italian Cafe worker. The supporting players are led by Carol O'Connor as Driver's Grandpa. A special mention to the great actors who play O'Connor's friends. In addition, Jim Belushi steals every scene he is in as Hunt's husband.
Resiliency: The resiliency of an organ to be involved in a trauma that can kill it's original owner and be transplanted into another person's body and continue it's purpose.
Top 100: This is definitely one of my 100 favorite movies.
A to Z Connection: This is the 2nd movie with Bonnie Hunt (Dave). This is also the 2nd movie in the challenge to be filmed in Chicago (Ordinary People).
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