MIDNIGHT IN PARIS

Well it's the end of Woody Allen as the director of the month and yes I know I didn't cover most of his films but this was just a start and about a year from now or more I will probably have another month dedicated to him. I'm going to end the Month with his most recent Academy award winning film which has also been nominated for Best Picture...


A nostalgic writer (Owen Wilson) goes to Paris with his fiancees family. He doesn't love his fiancee and loves it more in France then in America. At Midnight as he walks the streets of Paris, he's magically taken back to Paris in 1920 where he meets famous French celebrities and a beautiful French woman.

 

Our main character is none other than the character Woody Allen usually plays but since he's too old to play a young man, he'd have to find someone who can nearly bring the same charm as himself, so he got Owen Wilson. Is he good, no he's perfect. His acting, character and delivery is near as great as Woody Allen. He plays the part so well that I can almost swear that he is Woody Allen. Now since the film is a time traveling film, I'm going to review the film in parts of each time period.

2010 FRANCE
 
First off I love the shots of France(epically in the opening), it really makes the city look magical, artistic and welcoming then rude, over the top, sleazy and dare I say stereotypical that we usually get in cinema. The fiancee played by Rachel McAdams is a real bitch and someone I'd marry last. Her parents played by Mimi Kennedy and Kurt Fuller are just as mean as she is and I got some chuckles out of Kurt Fuller. Then we have Paul played by Michael Sheen who is a complete asshole. Other characters like the Museum Guide, the private detective and the girl he meets in modern day Paris are the welcoming characters (Well most of them) and they too are fun and memorable. By the way, the best comedic scene in Modern day Paris is when our character is trying to cover up him seeing another girl. I also love the things he finds from the past that he's seen when he went through time. That's pretty much the present France, now lets follow that old fashioned car and go back in time to...

1920


Remember the techniques and art direction in "Godfather Part 2" for when we see Vito's past? Woody Allen mostly uses the same techniques and style as the second Godfather film and it truly and I mean truly captures the time period it takes place in and the magic of Paris. The love interest played by Marion Cotillard, I love her and feel for her and boy is she gorgeous.She and Wilson also have great chemistry together. The celebrities he encounters such as Jean Cocteau, Alice B. Toklas, Cole Porter, Josephine Baker, Zelda, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí and Luis Buñuel are all well performed,very fun and some come close to acting like the real person. This film really does feel magical. We do visit 1890 which is just as magical as the time periods we've talked about but I won't spoil it for you. Oh and we do see another time period as a joke which I won't ruin for you.

This film feels like I went on a vacation through the eyes of Woody Allen and was magically taken back to the past. It's a really well written, well directed and beautiful movie. One of Woody Allen's best and don't worry I'll review another Allen film every now and then and maybe have another month dedicated to him but for now enjoy and see some of the films I reviewed.

RATING 5/5

MISTER ROBERTS

"Mister Roberts" is a World War 2 comedy drama about the life on a US ship called the "S.S. Reluctant". The film stars William Powell, James Cagney, Jack Lemmon and Henry Fonda as Mister Roberts. There's not really too much of a plot or story, it's just a comedic look on life in the Navy.
 




Henry Fonda as Mister Roberts is a character I loved and rooted for throughout the film. He's not too much of a funny character as Cagney or Lemmon but you still love him. He always thinks of his crew members and you are just as eager as he is, to have him get transferred off the ship. Once he starts falling into Cagney's hands, all the joy you got from him is gone but you still sense that he's going to get even with Cagney. This is a well written character and a fine performance by the great Henry Fonda.



James Cagney as the captain is the films asshole villain and kill joy to all the fun things that are happening. James Cagney does a great job portraying this nasty captain who obsesses over his Palm Tree. While being the guy you want the characters to smack or get even with, he's very funny while at the same time keeping his tough guy approach. He's simply the character that you love to hate.



Then we have Jack Lemmon who's the films comic relief. I love Jack Lemmon and watching him in this film gives me tons of laughs. His character is lazy but he thinks of ways to get back at the captain and lure girls on board. His dialogue is funny, the things he does are insane and on top of it Jack Lemmon won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor and he deserves it. It's truly one of Lemmons best performances.



Finally we have William Powell as the Doctor in his last performance ever. Knowing that it's the "Thin Man's" last performance to a film buff, it makes you feel sad and just like everyone else, I enjoy him whenever he's on screen. I'll admit he's not as funny as Lemmon or Cagney but just like Fonda, he's very likable. This is a good end to his career.



As for the film itself it's not that kind of spectacular comedy I was hoping for. The choice of actors is great and they all do a good job. The humor is funny and has some very memorable scenes. I also enjoy watching the crew peep on girls, get drunk and spend time with our main character. The problem for me is, like "Hot Shots" it doesn't have much of a good or interesting story, it feels kind of bland and there are moments that feel slow and boring too.

The stories not that interesting for a comedy but what makes the film work is the casting, the humor and characters. It's defiantly a good comedy and it's epic seeing all these four great stars together.

RATING 4/5

SLEEPER

Woody Allen plays a health food store operator who has been frozen for 200 years and wakes up in the future. Not only has he got to get use to his new life but he's being chased by the Government since he's considered an alien. Along the way, he meets a eccentric poetess played by Diane Keaton and the two of them are on a mission to rebel against the Government.

 

Woody Allen is performing, directing and writing at his best. Woody Allen brings plenty of slap stick, facial expressions, humor that he's known for (Hates California, Sex and death) and parodies on Sci-Fi films. Some of his best scenes is when he's disguised as a Robot (epically when he's in the Robot factory), when he first wakes up and when he's interacting with future technology. His love interest played by Diane Keaton plays her character from an innocent classy woman to a freedom fighter and she's just as funny as Woody Allen. The chemistry between them is really funny and I love how the two argue and fight throughout the film. By the way, I love her Marlon Brando impression.



Is the film funny, well some of the humor is a bit dated but with that said it still has dozens of funny moments. Scenes like the robots he meets, him fighting a giant goop of pudding, silver metal orgasm-inducing "Orb", the future devices he uses and sees are all really laugh out loud funny. I also love the robot that parody's Hal from "2001: A Space Odyssey" as Woody and Diane try to steal the nose to prevent a dictator from being cloned and yes he is voiced by the same guy who voiced Hal.I also laugh at how much society has changed, for example a guy (Who's probably Jewish) walks in wearing a shirt with a swastika on it and no one finds it racist cause people got over the Holocaust. He also pays homage to silent films and actors by acting and doing stunts like Chaplin, Keaton and Lloyd, it's all fast paced with no talking and we hear old fashion music playing (Which by the way Woody Allen plays the Clarinet for the score). Oh and the future world, well having that dated 70s feel, it still proves you can do a lot without CGI and still have a real looking future.

While feeling a little bit dated, the film is still funny and a laugh out loud Woody Allen film. It's indeed one of his best comedies and one of the Sci-Fi comedies ever made.

RATING 5/5

THE GODFATHER PART 3

 
The Godfather Saga, the two best films ever made and are my number 1 favorite films and film series of all time. What's not to like about these films. The story is epic, tragic, emotional and takes gangster films to a whole new level. The film also has great characters, a wonderful cast of great actors, a beautiful score, memorable scenes, lines and violence, and of course an epic ending. Both films together won 9 Oscars, including Best Picture (For both films) and best actor and supporting actor to Marlon Brando and Robert De Niro for playing Vito Corleone, which in an ironic twist none of the actors were present to except their award. This was a great Saga and defiantly ended the series well. However, in 1990 when Paramount studio was in trouble Coppola made a third Godfather film.

First off, what's there to continue, the last film had a great ending. Michael flashes back to the Corleone Family back in the good old days. We see Sonny before he was killed joking around and losing his temper; we see an up and coming Tom Hagan; Carlo when he was close friends with Sonny; an innocent Connie before she got abused and started acting like a whore; Tessio before he turned into a traitor; Fredo the only one in the family supporting Mike before he gets killed by Michael; and of course Michael as the innocent college kid he was before he became a cold blooded Don. The last scene in the film is Michael sitting in his chair outside his house as the winter slowly approaches again, with a face of both evil and guilt, he's still wearing his wedding ring after he divorced Kay and after the camera slowly and quietly zooms on him, we hear the music and see the credits roll. That's a tragic and great cap to this Saga. The trailer also said that the film is the "Final Chapter" and boy do I wish it was. The Trailer for the third movie shows clips of the first two films and when I saw the 3rd film on TV it shows almost a 10 minute montage of the first two films with alternate shots of Michael sitting alone. When a film or trailer starts out with a long montage of clips from the previous films instead of showing where the film left off or just starting the new story, already you know you're in for a huge disappointment and this film is a disappointment, I give you my review on...


It's 1979 and Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) is in his old age trying to be legitimate, however just when he thought he was out, the Mafia pulls him back in. Michael is also trying to rebuild his relationship with Kay (Diane Keaton). Sonny's illegitimate son Vincent (Andy Garcia) is rising through the ranks to be the next Don, but he's in love with his cousin Mary who's Michale's daughter (Sophia Coppola). Our plot already is very weak and uninteresting. The plot also focuses a lot more on the history of the Vatican, the pope and politics than our tragic character. Oh, and the whole forbidden love between the cousins, I can't believe they decided to go that route. The only part of the plot that interested me is Michael and Kay that's it, but even that was corny and forced.


 Remember how powerful the acting was in the first two films and how you see them as the characters instead of being actors, the acting here is so corny, so over dramatic and so bad that I can't believe that this is the same cast, even the characters suck now. Connie (Talia Shire) is now involved in the family business and helps kill people, that feels very foreign for how sudden of a change it is; Andy Garcia as Sonny's illegitimate son feels like he's from a different movie and on top of it does a poor job hiding his Spanish accent; Richard Bright as Corleone hitman Al Neri shows up very little; Sophia Coppola is the Jar Jar Binks of the film (In other words her acting is so bad that she's one of the many reasons why the film stinks); Al Martino poorly lip syncs a song as the great singer Johnny Fontane; Kay is really bland in this film; and Robert Duvall is not in this film as Tom Hagen, so instead we get a bland replacement legal advisor played by George Hamilton. The only one trying is Al Pacino and granted he has some good scenes, such as his famous line, his scenes with Kay, and moaning at the grave of a friend, but he still comes across as bad as everyone else. Oh, and the make up they put on him is laughable and is hard to take him seriously in that Halloween costume, and to think that this is the same filmmaker who made Marlon Brando look like a frail old man.



We had great enemies who were a great threat to the family but the enemies here are so bland and so nonthreatening that they got nothing compared to Barzini or Roth. Our main villain Don Altobello (Eli Wallach) is so boring and uninteresting that he can put you to sleep. Joey Zasa (Joe Mantegna) is would I like to call the weak version of Sollozzo, he's not threatening or intimidating, he's just there to be a comical asshole. Mosca the assassin and his son who makes donkey noises are probably one of the less threatening assassins you'd ever see; not to mention the fact that this is supposed to be the greatest assassin of all time. As for the other characters like the Archbishop and Don Lucchesi are just plain terrible, boring and forgettable.



What about the action for you gangster fans. While looking cool, it doesn't feel like something you'd see in a "Godfather film" or heck not even in a gangster film either. You got a scene when Vincent takes out two thugs that looks like something you'd see in a Bond flick. A Helicopter that kills the Dons in a meeting which looks like something from a cliched action film. There's a hit during a festival while Vincent is disguised as a cop to get close to his target, which is a bad rehash from the first two films. The hits themselves feel very anti climatic. There's also tons of dumb moments during the deaths. Vincent kills a victim by making a lame pun out of the guy's name; one Don dies by trying to save his lucky coat; and one enemy gets stabbed in the neck by his own glasses. Yes, this all happening in a Godfather film. I sometimes swear that I'm looking at a different film. Speaking of swearing, there's more F bombs and curse words than what the first 2 films had, already it doesn't feel like a Godfather film. I also don't feel like we're in the 70s, it feels like we're in 1990.

WARNING:SPOILERS ON THIS PARAGRAPH!

 
Remember how I talked about the ending to the 2nd film and is personally what I consider is the last film. The ending to this film sucks. The assassin gets killed, but fires twice before dying. One bullet hits Michael and the other bullet hits Mary in the chest. Mary says her last word in a very badly acted death, Michael makes a very weird and over the top sad face before screaming and everyone's crying. We then cut to a short and pointless montage of Michael dancing with the woman he lost as "Intermezzo" plays, and the last scene we see is Michael (In even worse make-up) sitting and dying alone which is very laughable instead of sad.

Overall the film doesn't come near as good as the Saga. However, I do like it's memories and even poor references to the Saga. I like the cinematography and to be honest, I can tell they're at least trying to make a good film, if it does fail. Some Godfather fans seem to love it, while others dismiss it. I dismiss this film and I bet it was only nominated for those Oscars cause it's "The Godfather". Still, this is a film people will either love or hate.

RATING 3/5



As for my rating on the Trilogy. First two gold, but gets a 4/5 because of the 3rd film. Screw the Trilogy and just see the Saga.

HAROLD LLYOD: SAFETY LAST

Harold Lloyd one of the funniest silent actors of all time along with Chaplin and Keaton. He's an iconic actor like the two, does most of his own stunts and is really fun to watch. Best example of his work...




Harold decides to leave his own town and make it big in the city. He has a job but his girl (Mildred Davis) thinks he's making it big and has tons of money and Harold makes her believe that. He figures out a way to make a thousand dollars by luring a crowd to watch a Daredevil climb a building. However, the daredevil is being chased by a cop and Harold has to do it himself.



Harold Lloyd is really straight out hilarious. He's so funny and comical that he steals the whole movie. The scenes with him are all funny, there's a sequence when he's trying to get to work, hiding from the landlord, working in the shop in a crowd full of customers and a scene when he makes his girl think he's the boss of the job where he works at. He even falls a few times and gets right back up as if nothing happened and that's a true comedic performer right there. The music has great timing, goes with every single scene in the film and really sets the tone and mood. Hal Roach's directing gives the film it's comedy and suspense. I love how he opens the film with something we believe is going to be dark, I love the shots of Harold's thoughts coming to life and I laughed at the reflection shot when he's combing his hair and using a customers bald head as a mirror. Oh and by the way "Our Gang" member Mickey Daniels makes a cameo during the "Kick Me" sign joke.


The scene that everyone remembers in this film is when he's climbing the building as he encounters numerous obstacles and is holding the hands of a Clock at one point. The sequence is so funny, so suspenseful and so epic that has you on the edge of your seat at all times. The shots and cinematography make it so realistic and if this were done nowadays we'd get a green screen effect, MAN HAS HOLLYWOOD GOTTEN LAZY! Harold Lloyd does most the stunts for this sequence and it's very impressive of how much he's committed to do this sequence.  The scene when he's holding on the hands of the clock is so memorable, so iconic that it's been homage dozens of times.

 

Jackie Chan has done this stunt in one of his films.



"Hugo" homages this scene.



The title sequence to the Bond film "On Her Majesties Secret Service" has a brief reference to this scene.

My favorite homage and reference to this scene is in...
 

"Back To The Future" when Christopher Lloyd (Last name is Lloyd too) is hanging on the Clock Tower during the climax of the film.

This Harold Lloyd's best and iconic film of all time. If you haven't seen one of his films before, START WITH THIS ONE!

RATING 5/5

THE RACKET

Here's another of one of the first films to be nominated for Best Picture directed by the great Lewis Milestone and produced by Howard Hughes. The film and the play were both banned from Chicago because of it's portrayal of Corrupt Police Force and City Government. The film has been lost for years but luckily TCM found it. The film is...




A Police Captain named McQuigg(Thomas Meighan) is up against powerful bootlegger Nick Scarsi (Louis Wolheim) who has the police and the law of Chicago in his pocket. When Scarsi finds out he can't scare the cop off, he has him transferred to a quiet small police precinct in the suburbs. McQuigg still tries to stop Scarsi by having his little brother in Jail, using reporters, having a night club singer named Helen Hayes(Marie Prevost) to expose the criminal, a witness to testify and he must do it before Scarsi wins the election for his organization. 

 
This film kind of reminds me of the rivalry between Elliot Ness and Al Capone from "The Untouchables". This rivalry between the Cop and the gangster is really good epically when they're on screen together. Our hero is very slick and smart. He doesn't take Nick's crap, he tries and never gives up to find ways to have Nick put away, he sometimes breaks the law like Nick does to get what he wants and always keeps that intimidating smirk on his face. This is one Cop that you can't scare off or even try to shake off. The people he has on his side such as the two comical reporters, the club singer who's poisonous to Nick (Like all woman are to him), the Cop that grabs Nick's little brother and the witness who's Helen's love interest are all great and helpful to McQuigg but like many great heroes, he's the one you're more focused on.

 

Our villain Nick is just as tough and intimidating as McQuigg. He tries to have his goons scare off our hero, he has all the law and politics in Chicago in his pocket when ever he needs to use it, he smuggles liquor and like our hero, he always keeps an intimidating smile even when being threatened. He's also a cold blooded killer, best scene is when he meets the Cop who arrested his brother. His men are not memorable or as interesting as our heroes people but yet all the supporting characters are not really as interesting as the rivalry between our hero and villain. What makes it interesting is their both very powerful people and seeing them fight against each other is like trying to fight fire with fire.

 
The film itself is really well made. The cinematography is brilliant and has really good shots. My favorite scene with the cinematography is the funereal scene as we see the faces of evil looking mobsters and see an ex-ray vision shot of what's underneath their hats. The music is great, it definatly gives the film it's atmosphere. It has a dark sounding score that you'd hear in a Film-Noire, it can sound light and relaxing when the film wants you to relax, I even love how the music takes the role for Helen's singing in the nightclub for this silent picture. I guess the only problem I have is the action feels very anti climatic and for a film about good and evil fighting, there's really not so much gun fighting.

The film is really well made and even though it's sadly not a big named film or something really ground breaking except being banned from Chicago, it's still a good film. The cinematography, the music and story is good but it's the rivalry between our hero and villain that makes the film really good and the film was also one of the first films to be nominated for Best Picture so that at least says something worth watching to a film buff, aside from all the other good things I just mentioned. Overall if you're really into the whole Cop vs Mob Boss story this a good choice, aside from the lack of action.

RATING 4/5

NOSTALGIA CRITIC IS BACK!

On New Years Eve, I posted a tribute to my idol Doug Walker as his character the Nostalgia Critic, well I'm sure you already know he's back and kickin some film butt (Including his own). Does this mean my tribute post is going to be taken down or was it pointless. No, it's going the stay the way it is and still doing the character or not, I guess I was going to write a Tribute to him one way or another. So with that out of the way, I'd like to welcome back a great guy playing a great character. Can't wait to see more of his reviews!

INTERIORS

 Here's a Woody Allen film that's been heavily praised by critics on the Trailer and even Roger Ebert gave it 4 Stars.The films also has been Nominated for 5 Oscars including Best Director. Is it a good film or overrated, well let's take a look at...

 
Three Sisters played by Diane Keaton, Kristin Griffith and Mary Beth Hurt, are fully grown up to become woman and now must suffer and go through a painful Divorcee between their Mother (Geraldine Page) and Father (E. G. Marshall). Their Mother Eve is very emotional about the situation and their Father Arthur already has found a new lover named Pearl (Maureen Stapleton). Yes this is a Woody Allen film it's not a comedy it's his first Drama and Woody is behind the camera the whole time then in front of it.



The characters are nothing incredible or memorable but they are likable and well acted. Diane Keaton, Kristin Griffith and Mary Beth Hurt as the three sisters are really good. Their acting is very subtle and realistic and you just got to love everyone of the three. They also have their own problems and the three are very artistic. Keaton's a writer, Griffith is looking for an artistic outlet and Hurt is an actress. My favorite is Kristin Griffith character because I really felt her stress and emotions out of the trio.Geraldine Page as the Mother, I really felt her pain, emotions and unstable mental illness. Maureen Stapleton as the fiancee is very enjoyable, very likable and is probably the best character in the whole film. The boyfriend Mike played by Sam Waterson is another character who's enjoyable but is also full of the same amount of emotions as the characters. E.G. Marshall as the Father does a good job but he doesn't really amuse as much as the characters I just mentioned.

 
The cinematography really pulls you into this realistic film and makes you feel you're with the characters. The film and cinematography style pays homage to film Director Ingmar Bergman and also dramatically spoofs his film "Cries And Whispers". The film mostly takes place in the beach house on Long Island and the cinematography, the set design and the film makes you feel like your there. The film also doesn't have a score and that alone already makes the film very realistic. There's not even any comedy in this film, I mean there are moments when the characters are laughing but it's treated in an average way. Oh and the ending, one of the saddest endings I ever seen.

This a different turn for Woody Allen but it all works. I don't highly recommend it to guys then I do to woman. Personally I enjoyed it and don't worry there's something for you film fans to enjoy in this film. It's a very realistic film, it's not for everybody, especially those who are use to the Woody Allen comedies but it's still a well made movie.

RATING 3/5

MY TOP 12 FAVORITE DEAN MARTIN SHOW S.E. DVD MOMENTS

Dean Martin, good god do I love him. I love his charm, his voice, his songs, and his humor. He does fine in his movies, but his best performances are on his show, "The Dean Martin Variety Show". Not only was Dean a great host, but he had funny skits, wonderful songs, amazingly talented celebrities, and it was all improvised. He even had his own Roast show, which were always a hoot to watch as well. Since there's been no official seasonal release of his Variety Show, I'm going to pick my favorite moments from each DVD release of the best moments. I'm going to start with the first volume set of DVDs presented by the shows director Greg Garrison and yes, I'll have a list of my favorite roast moments from each Roast special as well. The DVD where I'm picking my favorite moments is the Special Edition.

So here are my...

TOP 12 FAVORITE MOMENTS FROM "THE BEST OF THE DEAN MARTIN VARIETY SHOW: SPECIAL EDITION" DVD

("FAVORITE DEAN MARTIN SHOW S.E DVD. MOMENTS" for short)

Let's get on to number 12...

            DEAN MARTIN AND THE DOLLS

The skit starts out with Deans face singing "Thank Heavens For Little Girls" to a boom mic and the camera slowly pans down to reveal dolls of little girls moving.  The way he sings the song is cute and charming, but when you see the Dolls moving around, they keep falling or coming close to him. Dean never loses his cool and calmly picks up the fallen dolls like a professional while singing and being charming, and he even improvises by saying "I think one of them got my bottle by mistake".  Later on Dean would mock the skit by using live girls to look and move like dolls. He sits on a stool, and as the girls act like the Dolls they would move close to him like the dolls in his previous skit and instead of Dean moving them around, the girls turn their selves around. Dean in disbelief of the skit asks "How come they can touch me, but I can't touch them?".

NUMBER 11

A GAME OF MUSICAL QUESTION MESS UP

In a recurring skit called "Musical Question", the pretty girls would come down the stairs, sing the question on the card and Dean would sing them an answer. At first it starts out smooth, but as the third girl sings, she messes up the words to a song by singing "Mere alcohol doesn't thrill me at all", the girl stops in embarrassment and Dean laughs and tells the audience that "She made a mistake" and is glad it wasn't him. He corrects her by telling her the lyric before the lyric she just sang; humors the girl; and decides to do the whole song all over again just for her. As the girls sing their song again, the girl who messed up got it correct and a proud Dean Martin briefly kisses her on the cheek and beautifully sings her the answer. This was no outtake or blooper this was actually aired live on TV. That was part of the fun on the show, you didn't know what was going to happen or if somebody was going to mess up and when they did, Dean would get a good  laugh, fix the mistake and sometimes redo the whole song or skit.

NUMBER 10

THE SWORDS MAGIC ACT

(NO IMAGE AVAILABLE)

This was a short and brief skit. Dean is put in a box for a magic act by his pretty girls. The girls put the swords in the box, leave them in for 5 seconds, take the swords out and Dean comes out unharmed. However, he gets himself a drink and water starts squirting out of his body. If that's not funny enough, as Dean is talking to the audience water unexpectedly keeps squiring out of him. Dean went through with any over the top non-sense in this unrehearsed show and this short skit defiantly proves it.

NUMBER 9

THE NEW YEARS EVE PARTY 

It's New Years Eve and Dean and Frank Sinatra are invited to a party by their friend Ken (Who'd play the piano on the show) and the parties chaperone is Ken's Mother played by Kay Medford. This skit always gives me a laugh, not just from Dean and Frank, but mostly from Kay Medford because of her acting like a stereotypical mother and is constantly insulting both Dean and Frank that are so mean spirited that it proves you don't need curse words to be funny and insultive. The skit really gets me roaring with laughter when the dates enter. Ken gets a beautiful girl that's taller than him, while Dean and Frank get two ugly dates (One of them being Gladys). The dialogue is funny, the casting's great, and there's a lot of outrageous things going on.

NUMBER 8

JOHNNY CARSON'S HOSPITAL COMPLAINT

One of the best talents to see together on the show (Besides Frank Sinatra) is seeing Dean the king of improv on TV, and Johnny Carson the king of late night on TV, together doing a laugh out loud skit. Yes, they have been together before, but I personally think this is their best moment together. Johnny plays a patient who's complaining to the head of a hospital played by Dean. Johnny tells Dean that he and a patient switched beds, and the next day they were both scheduled for an operation, and Johnny got the operation that the patient was supposed to have and it was a SEX CHANGE. We find out that Johnny's character was once a girl and who is now stuck with being a man. Not only do we hear funny dialogue about a whole new life for her, but we also see Johnny acting all feminine. This skit always gets me laughing and at the end of the skit we meet the husband, which I won't spoil it for you. It's great seeing two legends together and this is the first time I ever saw a doctor wear a tux on the job.

NUMBER 7

DEAN MARTIN AND GOLDIE HAWN

This is the first time Dean and the comedic Goldie Hawn  worked together and already just by watching them together, they make great chemistry. Dean is happy to meet Goldie Hawn and he loves how she pretends to be dumb on TV, but Goldie tells Dean that she really is dumb and that "Dumb is beautiful". She first talks about how the smart people cause all the problems; talks about a national organization runned by dumb people; a march on Washington by tons of dumb people; and proves to the audience that Dean is just as dumb as her. She gives Dean an initiation test with a Dictionary being thrown (By another dummy off screen) and the two begin to sing. This is a very funny and charming skit because as you watch Dean and Goldie giggle, talk and sing throughout the skit, you get the feeling that these two great performers are enjoying each other company and will probably do a lot more skits later on in the show. This is another wonderful chemistry with Dean and a guest star.

NUMBER 6

THE MONTAGE OF DEAN AND HIS GUESTS

This montage shows Dean singing with a couple of guest stars on the show. Even though the performances and songs are mostly cut in this montage, it still shows the fun and joy that the guests had with Dean. The first part of the montage, we see him and The Andrew Sisters walking around in a circle and if you watch Dean, he looks or is acting dizzy and out of breath. Next we see Dean with Ella Fitzgerald and Gordon Macrae singing in great harmony and by looking at their faces, they seem to be enjoying each others company. The next two are my favorite part in this montage. Next we see Dean singing with the great Louis Armstrong and what makes this number great is we see Dean impersonate Louis Armstrong and as he's doing it, Louis laughs very hard and seems to be having a ball. Finally, we see Dean sing with Lena Horne singing "Welcome To My World" and the two of them sing beautifully; we hear a beautiful chorus; Dean holds her hand while singing; and this all makes it a beautiful number and moment. Oh, and look for the boom mic in this number.This montage shows many great performances on the show and shows how much guests love being on the show and even though they're cut short, it still is my 6th Favorite Moment on the DVD and who knows maybe I'll see the full performances on the other DVDs.

NUMBER 5

"MY KIND OF GIRL"

This is just Dean singing his opening number to start the show and this song is one of my all time favorite songs he sings, it's called "My Kind Of Girl". We first see Dean hop down a small flight of stairs and then he starts singing. How do I put his singing, "He sings like an angel sings, he smiles like an angel smiles and his charm, man what a guy. What a cool guy, he's my kind of guy".  This is a song I love to sing when watching this DVD when I was a kid and I still sing it. Oh, and by the way, look for the boom mic and listen for when Dean nearly burps while singing the song.

NUMBER 4

DEAN MARTIN AND GENE KELLY SINGING "HAPPY BLUE SONGS"

 

Dean and Gene are really good friends and seeing them on the show together is not only an amazing duo of truly great entertainers, but also shows the amount of fun and joy they had together. The skit opens with Dean and Gene singing "Blue Songs" together and as they sing "Am I Blue", Dean interrupts the song and tells Gene he's "all choked up" cause his "shorts are on backwards" and wants to sing something "Bouncy" with Gene. Gene suggests to sing "Happy Blue Songs" such as "Blue Skies" and "Bye Bye Blues" which makes Dean sad by mistaking one of the songs titles thinking it was called "Bye Bye Booze" and as you know, Dean loves his liquor. Dean sings the two songs in a medley as Gene dances. It's not only a great look at watching two great friends and entertainers perform together, but it's also the catchy medley, the laugh out loud jokes, and Genes amazing dance moves that make this performance so incredible. This performance is so happy and bouncy that it kisses my blues, bye bye and has "blue skies smilin' at me".

NUMBER 3

DEAN AND FRANK SING "THE OLDEST ESTABLISHED"

This was originally going to be my number 1 favorite moment on the DVD but the moment I have in store as number 1 is a moment that gets funnier and funnier every time I watch it. So what's happening in this moment, it's Frank and Dean singing a classic musical number from "Guys And Dolls" called "The Oldest Established". First off, I love seeing two legends together singing a swinging tune and this was on the shows first episode. However, what really makes this moment stand out is Dean. He's stealing the spotlight with his singing and performing like he's drunk, he even almost trips while he's singing. This is a very rare occasion when someone steals the spotlight from Frank, even Elvis my all time favorite singer wasn't able to steal the spotlight while singing with Sinatra. The only disappointment is they cut out the whole part when they sing about the "Biltmore Garage" and Frank asks if Dean is dizzy. Neither the less it's still a great performance and was on the episode that started it all.

NUMBER 2

THE CLOSET MONTAGE

The show had so many unexpected things happening that the guests nor would Dean himself know what to expect on this unrehearsed show. Best example is the Mystery Closet. During the show Dean would open the closet door and a guest would usually come out of there. If it wasn't a guest, you'd see some random and outrageous things. My favorite has to be when a full Marching Band is marching out the door. The only celebrity we see perform in this montage is Red Skelton mistaking for Dean show as the "Flip Wilson Show" and gives Dean a drink he made. That door is like a box of chocolates or a present, you never know what you're going to get or who's behind door number 1.

AND MY NUMBER 1 FAVORITE MOMENTS FROM "THE BEST OF THE DEAN MARTIN VARIETY SHOW: SPECIAL EDITION" DVD IS...

VICTOR BORGE'S MUSICAL PHONETIC PUNCTUATION
  
This skit always has me laughing hard and at times has me sing along to the songs. Victor Borge teaches Dean how to sing a song with punctuation marks and they both do a medley by singing hit songs by making the punctuation sounds. The noises and hand gestures for the punctuation marks really, really make me cry with laughter. Dean and Victor both seem to be having a ball and Dean nearly spits at Victor a few times while making the noise. All the songs they sing are all classics and hearing them in a new way makes me want to try to sing them that way. Heck, sometimes they miss a lyric, while making the noises. This skit has me roaring with laughs every time I see it; teaches me a new comedic method in singing; and on top of it all, my Grandma loves this skit a lot and she too loves Dean as much as I do.

Those are my top moments of my "Favorite Moments From "The Best Of The Dean Martin Variety Show: Special Edition DVD". Other moments include Dean and Bob Newharts first skit together; Jimmy Stewart doing impressions; a hoedown with Roy Rogers; Jack Benny and his own Ding-A-Lings; and Ann Margret singing a duet with Dean. They are all good skits too, but these are my favorite and yes, the DVD is at least worth a look for fans of Dean and his show. Coming up next I'll be doing another Dean Martin related list and a special thanks post for a special Dean site for supporting my count down when that list is finished.