Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore
Martin Scorsese, 1974 (8*)Best Picture (BAA)
Not only is this another Martin Scorsese winner, it’s also a romantic comedy, albeit with dramatic overtones. Single mother Ellen Burstyn won a Best Actress Oscar for her terrific performance as a single mother struggling to raise a son on a waitress’ salary, while searching for another spouse among slim pickings. Harvey Keitel is terrific in a small part as a boyfriend, a friendship that starts out innocently and turns very frightening as he exerts his alpha male dominance. Look for Jodie Foster (who calls her mom “Ramada Rose”) in a very funny androgynous role as a misbehaving teenager, who befriends Burstyn’s son, played by Alfred Lutter in a quirky, funny performance. Vic Tayback, the gruff diner owner and cook, was the only cast member to keep their role in the tv comedy "Alice", based on the film. Winner of the British Academy Award for the year’s best film. Two Oscars
Quote: You leave this scorpion alone, he’ll leave you alone; you mess with him, he’ll kill you. (Harvey Keitel)
Young Frankenstein
Mel Brooks, 1974, bw (7*)
The other really good Brooks comedy (see The Producers) is this spoof of old horror films, actually shot in black and white to resemble the classics like Frankenstein and Dracula. Gene Wilder is a descendent of the original doctor, and who is a serious scientist ("that's Fronk-in-steen!"), yet he still creates a monster, played by Peter Boyle in his most famous part. Girlfriend Terri Garr and monster bride Madeleine Kahn provide both laughs and cleavage, Marty Feldman provides more as assistant Igor (or Eye-gore, get it?). The "Putting on the Ritz" number is a classic sequence, and this is something every film fan should enjoy.
The other really good Brooks comedy (see The Producers) is this spoof of old horror films, actually shot in black and white to resemble the classics like Frankenstein and Dracula. Gene Wilder is a descendent of the original doctor, and who is a serious scientist ("that's Fronk-in-steen!"), yet he still creates a monster, played by Peter Boyle in his most famous part. Girlfriend Terri Garr and monster bride Madeleine Kahn provide both laughs and cleavage, Marty Feldman provides more as assistant Igor (or Eye-gore, get it?). The "Putting on the Ritz" number is a classic sequence, and this is something every film fan should enjoy.
Amarcord
Dir: Federico Fellini, 1974, Italy (8*) Best Foreign Film (AA)
Probably Fellini’s most accessible film, as he fondly recalls his childhood through cinema, perhaps rose-colored by time and distance, but enjoyable nonetheless. Paints a vivid picture of rural Italy, how one’s life is shaped by religion, family, school, early friends, and adolescent fantasies and dreams. Here, Fellini’s fantasies make a more universal connection.
Chinatown
Dir: Roman Polanski, 1974 (8*) Best Picture (GG)
AFI Top 100
Though not the greatest crime film, certainly a good example of "modern noir". There are some unforgettable scenes here, but overall the plot may drag a little and eventually stretch the viewer's credulity. Jack Nicholson is a 40's style gumshoe detective, who uncovers a plot concerning the city's water supply and possible corruption. (Here in the U.S.? NO!) John Huston is a little over the top in a supporting role, as is Faye Dunaway as his daughter, but the star is Robert Towne's script, which won an Oscar and elevated him to the highest paid screenwriter at the time. One Oscar (11 nominations).
The Conversation
Dir: Francis Ford Coppola, 1974 (10*) Palm d’Or (Cannes)
If not for a film called Godfather II, this film would likely have won best picture itself in 74 (it was nominated), and may arguably be Coppola’s best; it’s certainly his tightest, and did win the grand prize at Cannes. Gene Hackman plays a electronic bugging expert, usually hired to scope out corporate secrets, often requiring ingenious methods to record conversations, like multiple eavesdroppers, some on the move. He unwittingly discovers that perhaps someone who hired him has committed a murder, which he discovers examining conversations he bugged. Saying very much would spoil this excellent, tense crime film with many implications. This is my favorite Gene Hackman performance, and most subtle, that just goes deeper and deeper as it progresses.
The Godfather Part II
Dir: Francis Ford Coppola, 1974 (10*) Best Picture (AA)
AFI Top 100
That rarest of films: a sequel better than the original. This film both continues the original and also precedes it in history with brilliant sequences of a young Corleone in both Italy and America, played by Oscar-winning Robert De Niro speaking Italian. The film loses Brando, but introduces acting professor Lee Strasbourg in a terrific Oscar-nominated part as rival don Hyman Roth, and brings the characters of Al Pacino as new Don, Michael, and John Cazale (as brother Alfredo) to full development. This is a truly riveting story, and a near perfect epic film. The two were put together and re-edited for an 8-hr tv miniseries by Coppola, called "The Godfather Saga", very much worth seeing. 8 Oscars
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