I've seen it before

"I never knew the old Vienna before the war."

One of the most memorable phrases I have heard in the history of cinema, a masterpiece and considered one of the greatest films of all time and my favourite film. I will discuss that film some other time but I would like to briefly discuss my early years as a fan of movie cinema up to present.

Once upon a time in the PI a young boy saw a film about an astronaut who was shrunk inside a ship designed to navigate the insides of a rabbit but instead ended up in a human body. The film was Innerspace and it was the first film that I saw in my life. I saw it on VHS after my cousin's wedding they lent us a copy of the said film. I did not understand the dialogue being I was young and a foreigner living in the PI and I did not speak a word of English then but I somehow I did understand what was going on in that film. Martin Short's zany antics as the body occupied by Dennis Quaid's ship and Meg Ryan as the object of affection for both men is the typical Hollywood plot you can expect in the 80's thanks to Spielberg. I hardly remember the film's scenes and the whole plot of the film but the film set me in a course that would put my interest in watching movies, particularly Hollywood films.

The next films that I saw were E.T. (Extra Terrestrial) and The Land Before Time. Both films I hardly remember probably because I did not have a good time watching it. I saw E.T. again on Video when we were in vacation in Samar, there was nothing for us to do in the province and for kids to get preoccupied we would go to the neighbour's sari sari store who also owned a Video rental shop. When the old people in the house did not want to deal with me and my brother they would send us to the neighbour's house to play Nintendo or watch films. It just so happened E.T. was one of the videos they had, I hardly remember the film because me and my brother was preoccupied with playing with the other kids when the film was showing.

The next film we saw was another Spielberg production "The Land Before Time", me and my brother watched it with our mother and aunt's in Greenbelt. This is the film I really remembered because of the emotional content and the message of the film, I guess it's all about growing up and finding yourself in the chaotic world we are in. Anyway my brother cried in the middle part because Littlefoot's mother got murked by the T-Rex.

Back in the 80's nobody was bigger than Eddie Murphy, his face was everywhere and his box office appeal was unquestioned. So a person who was living then and not under a huge rock would have known Eddie was a big deal, the first film I saw was "Coming to America". To me his funniest and best film it showed his versatility and gift of impersonation, never mind that he went further in "The Nutty Professor" series and the insulting "Norbit" but this film is a class on it's own with it's off the wall characters (usually played by Murphy or Arsenio) and the R rated dialogue and scenes that Murphy had perfected and written back when he was still doing standup comedy.

My favourite scene on the movie was of course Randy Watson and his band Sexual Chocolate (ripped off from the usual look of RnB artists of the 80's I think he was a cross of Prince, Rick James and El Debarge) performing "Greatest Love Of All" but with a sexual twist and even shortening the lyrics. Seeing that for the first time I just couldn't stop laughing and I literally was in tears, it even became more funny to  me when I realized it was also Murphy himself who portrayed the character.

The other Murphy movie that I had seen is "The Golden Child", it's probably not as good as "48 hours" but it does have it's moments the most memorable is the begging of the knife that Murphy turned into a hilarious rap scene and the "VIVA NEPAL!" incident in the airport. I miss the old Eddie Murphy who used to be edgy and funny, now he's stuck doing family films and Shrek movies which is a far cry from the fast talking wisecracking maverick that he once was. I just wish he would come back to doing standup again I bet a lot of people would see him do his thing again.

My progression in watching films continued in my early years, Mel Gibson back before he was known as a deranged lunatic today was one of Hollywood's most bankable leading men. I watched a lot of "Lethal Weapon" films that made him popular but the film that made the most impression on me was "The Road Warrior". A film set in post apocalyptic times full of deranged marauders, killers, misfits, anarchists, survivors,  freaks, weirdos and all other kinds of things you would probably prefer not to see in your lifetime. This is a movie so aggressive and violent it would have made "Mad Sam" Peckinpah proud. Seeing that film for the first time made me idolize Mel Gibson's version of man with no name (he really did have a name Max Rockatansky but that was on the first film) and explores the dangers and desperation of survivors in a world turned into a desolate wasteland without rules and boundaries. The fuel tanker chase has got to be one of the most action packed and compelling chases ever filmed (maybe partly inspired by early films like "The General") which culminates (SPOILER ALERT) in the defeat and death of "The Ayatollah of Rock-and-Rollah" and his band of deranged marauders. A classic action film that I love to this day.  

The Road Warrior was just a precursor of my education of films that are often psychological and often violent continuing with films like Brian De Palma's Scarface  and Full Metal Jacket. I saw Scarface for the first time when I was on the 4th grade and the film literally blew my mind, imagine a young kid watching a Cuban refugee move, talk, kill, mock, swear, snort cocaine and blow people away with his "little friend" while building an evil empire that would eventually crumble in his own doing Im sure will give a lasting impression. This was the first film Al Pacino film that I saw and he literally scared me shitless, especially in the interrogation scene in the beginning you feel right away that something is wrong with him talking back to immigration officers with a thick "Cuban Accent", his performance was maybe a little over the top but I wouldn't have it any other way. The dialogue and the performance was explosive and I believe that it was necessary for a film like Scarface to have that when people are getting their heads sawed on the shower with a chainsaw, you have to be ready for whatever comes next for this kind of film. It came to a point that I loved the film so much I was even able to memorize the lines that Tony spoke on every scene because it was so awesome you can help but quote it yourself.  A classic iconic film in every sense. 

When I was in grade school I was scared a lot, I was traumatized by watching Halloween episodes of "Magandang Gabi Bayan" and one of the first war films that I saw that had a psychological twist to it. I think Private Joker who was the central character of the film I think was meant to be a joke by Gustav Hasford the Vietnam vet who wrote the novel it was based on and the best thing to happen to it is to be directed by one of Cinema's greatest director's the legendary Stanley Kubrick. Seeing the film for the first time made me realize there is nothing cool about being able to hold a gun and going to war. You can either get shot to pieces and end up in a duffel bag or go home psychologically scarred for the rest of your life. That is probably why men who come back from war are never the same, I remember during my grandfather's last days he would often have nightmares of Japanese soldiers and he would often scream his lungs out.
This is in my opinion what made Kubrick great, this film is an example of the man's genius because at an early age even though it was not appropriate viewing for a minor he can make you understand the human condition and show you how it affects an individual for the rest of his life.

It's hard to imagine a film that influences you for the rest of your life, up until watching "The Godfather" I did not know much about films that can be considered art. Watching "The Godfather" for me was like opening a door of an art gallery in a back of a dark alley like a film noir of sorts. This is my "Citizen Kane", my "Birth of A Nation", my "Stagecoach". I would not have known those films if not for watching "The Godfather" because it showed me the way how to live my life as I see fit. I will not be dictated by other people's tastes and I will not conform.

Watching "The Godfather" is like watching a soap opera on a higher level of thinking, you cannot make a misstep on the story unless you're not really interested or paying attention. When I saw it for the first time I was hooked right away, I must confess I saw part 2 first when I was in college and I was interested in the flashbacks on the film that featured a young Robert De Niro flex is acting chops, he was sensational and so was Al Pacino, Rober Duvall, Diane Keaton and the rest of the ensemble cast.

I was not satisfied on watching the sequel so when I finally saw the first part I thought my life was complete. Marlon Brando as the old don was as equally brilliant and compelling and also the young up and comers of that time like James Caan, Al Pacino, Robert Duvall, John Cazale, Sterling Hayden, Dianne Keaton etc.

Being of sound mind and intelligence nowadays "The Godfather" is not even on my top list of films anymore, it doesn't even make my Top 10 which is pretty strange considering it used to be my favourite film. I guess it's all a part of growing up and changing tastes, I still consider it one of the greatest films ever made but so was "Citizen Kane" but that film is not even on my favourite list too. I think a great film should not be like what people like but what it makes you feel, I always tease my girlfriend because she made me watch "Transformers" on a movie theatre and I literally felt brain dead for the rest of the viewing. That is why I rarely go to a movie theatre nowadays except if there is a good movie worth watching, I also look at Rottentomatoes.com the ultimate Cinephile's website and lookup movies that have a high rating, if it is above 60% it maybe worth wasting the couple hundred bucks, if its below 50% forget it I'd rather stay at home and watch a western directed by John Ford or Howard Hawks.

To close this entry this blog will be my personal homage to films, actors, directors and film makers of the present and the past whether the opinion will be good, bad or downright ugly. I promise this will be completely unbiased criticism and honest insight of films that have made and will make history. 

Thank you. 

"You can't handle the truth!" ------- Col. Nathan Jessup played by Jack Nicholson in "A Few Good Men"