Revival Screenings

We bought a new rack to hold our movie collection this week. This rack holds all of our movies on Blu-ray and DVD. I don't buy as many movies as I used to. Most new movies have become disposable entertainment for me. It used to be I would watch them over and over. Now if I see a new movie once, it's usually enough. I see less artistry in them. If I want to watch a movie again, I have quite a few streaming services available. So collecting movies is not the priority it once was.

Another reason I don't collect as many movies as I used to is because of where I live. In Los Angeles, beloved movies play all the time. Marie and I have known each other for a little over three years. We've seen "Raiders of the Lost Ark" in the theater four times. I wouldn't have that film on Blu-ray if I hadn't won it in a contest. It's always playing here. This week it's playing three times at the New Beverly with "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom". All three "Indiana Jones" films have played within the last year at the Cinerama Dome and next month the trilogy will be playing at the Egyptian. Why would I want to watch a movie at home on my TV when I can see it as intended on the big screen with movie theater sized sound? Yes, I know the video costs less but watching a movie at home rarely has the impact as seeing it in a theater, and you can't put a price on that. At least I can't.

Here's the top row of our Blu-ray collection (minus "Blow Out" which is out on loan). See that copy of "Air Force One"? I got it inexpensively and I've never watched it. But this Wednesday I'm going into Hollywood to see it at the ArcLight. A few spaces down is "ALIEN", a film I love (I'm listening to the score as I type this, as the movie opened 35 years ago today). Marie and I are seeing that sometime next month at the New Beverly. "The Avengers" will be playing at the ArcLight next month as will "Casino Royale". This represents just one month of movies and one shelf of our collection. Since moving here, I've also seen "The Adventures of Robin Hood", "Airplane", "Aliens" (once from James Cameron's own 70mm print!), "Batman Begins", "Caddyshack", and "Carrie" in local revival theaters. I could have seen "Carlito's Way" as well last year, but I had watched the Blu-ray a few days before the screening was announced. You can be sure I would have gone to that otherwise.

With all of the great revival theaters here in LA (The New Beverly, The American Cinematheque, which runs the Aero and the Egyptian, the ArcLight, Cinefamily, the Nuart, and of course the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences), I feel less of a need to own a movie. I know at some point a superior presentation will be driving distance from me and I'll get more enjoyment that way. I know I'm not alone in this thinking. I just learned "Raiders of the Lost Ark" will be playing at the AMC, of all places, next month!

The Man With The Hat Is Back

Today marks 25 years since "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" opened. I remember seeing it and the activity around it like it was yesterday. This was a pivotal film in my movie going life. It opened on a Wednesday, but I didn't make my first attempt to see it until Saturday, May 27. I went to the Echelon Mall with my friend David and his family, but the movie was sold out for the day (remember when that could happen?). Instead we hung around the mall. We went to Sam Goody and I found the soundtrack album on CD. Much like today, I love the music of John Williams, and I bought it without seeing the movie.

That night I listened to the CD many times, one time copying it over to cassette. I may have done that on my first listen, but I can't remember that much detail. I do think it's funny that I used to buy CDs and put them on cassette to listen elsewhere. Now I get CDs and the first thing I do is rip them into my computer. In fact, I rarely even play the CDs. But back to "Last Crusade", as stated I listened to that CD a lot that night. I enjoyed the music but was perplexed by the lack of the "Indiana Jones" theme on it, even though Steven Spielberg said in his note they decided not to use it as much. Still, to a 12 year old kid, I bought the "Indiana Jones" soundtrack, I want the "Indiana Jones" theme! That didn't stop my from listening to this score over and over again.

I remember going out to run errands with my mom that evening and I had that tape with me already and we got a newspaper and I went straight to the movie reviews. "Last Crusade" got three-and-a-half stars. The summary was (and this may be a quote) that it "wasn't as good as 'Raiders of the Lost Ark', but what is"?

I finally got to see "Last Crusade" on Memorial Day, May 29. My mom took David and me to see it in Philadelphia at the AMC Orleans 8. I don't remember much of the actual presentation, but this was the first time I ever saw a movie and I noticed there was music in it that wasn't on the soundtrack album. Where was that great boat fight music in the beginning? Where was that part of the tank fight?

Around this time, I had also been introduced to Criterion Laser Discs by my dad and I was used to letterboxing and I was paying attention to widescreen images for the first time. I remember watching the opening train chase and thinking, "There's no way to show the characters on the opposite sides of the screen without letterboxing".

As for the movie itself, I loved it! While it felt like an apology for the previous film, something I don't think is necessary, there's no denying that as a piece of entertainment it succeeds on almost every level. The pairing of Harrison Ford and Sean Connery was inspired. There's only one person who could be Indiana Jones's father, James Bond! The opening sequence was a lot of fun, even if it once again shows George Lucas's obsession with prequels, and River Phoenix is terrific as young Indy. It's not a perfect film though. Even in 1989, the effects were a step down from the previous two films, and pursuing a religious artifact while battling Nazi's has a familiar ring to it, doesn't it?

The summer of 1989 was a notorious "bloodbath" summer at the movies. "Last Crusade" started it (remember when summer movie season started on Memorial Day weekend?), but also that summer, "Batman", "Star Trek V: The Final Frontier", "Licence to Kill", "Ghostbusters 2", "The Karate Kid 3", "Lethal Weapon 2" and "The Abyss" were all released. "Batman" reigned supreme for most, but for me, my movie was "Last Crusade". I remember being with my summer camp on a trip and we went to the movies. Most of them chose to see "Batman", but a few of us chose to see "Last Crusade". I saw it again a few months later when it was in a second run theater in NJ, The Harwan in Mt. Ephraim (sadly gone now). Even though my dad had sworn off Spielberg movies after "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom", he saw that it was playing at the Harwan and took me to see it.

He also bought a new stereo for me as a Bar Mitzvah gift that summer. He asked me to bring over some CDs to his place when I came to visit him and one of the discs I brought was the "Last Crusade" soundtrack. 25 years later, I still have that Kenwood amplifier and Advent speakers, although they are in different rooms now. Both still work and sound great. In fact, as I'm typing this I'm listening to the "Last Crusade" soundtrack album on those very same loudspeakers!

Since 1989, I've seen "Last Crusade" too many times to count. I'm not even sure which was the best. There was the trilogy showing in 2006 at the Ziegfeld, where beautiful 35mm prints were shown. In 2012 there was a rare 70mm screening at the Egyptian. Recently I saw a digital showing in the Cinerama Dome (photo below).

All three were top presentations. Sadly, I'm told Paramount no longer has 35mm prints to loan out for this movie, so from now on it will all be digital. I'm glad I got to experience this film many times on film.

What are some of your memories of seeing "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade"? Share them in the comments below. Also, if you enjoy this piece, please consider sharing it on your social network of choice. You can also follow me on Google+, twitter and Facebook.

Is It Safe?

This past week I've had a lot of conversations about going to the dentist. I don't know why, but I've seen several posts from people on Facebook about it and have even had several conversations with different people about this. Looking for something to write about, I chose oral hygiene.



Finding a dentist is a pain. Going to one is a pain, too, but it's necessary. You only get one set of teeth, so you should take care of them. For many years, I went to the same dentist in New Jersey, Dr. Carl Byck. He was great. But then he retired. Finding a replacement was something I wasn't motivated to do and for several years I didn't go to the dentist. During this period, I'm sure I had the oil changed in my car regularly. Think about that!

Eventually I think I went to my mom's dentist and all was good. But then I moved away to California and needed to find a dentist. Asking for recommendations didn't really help. No one seems to like their dentist or there's some flaw they tell you about. One had fundamentalist Christian propaganda in the office, ("You can go if that doesn't bother you") or another is way out in Santa Monica. Finding a dentist was a challenge. Again, I didn't go for a few years. My car was running wonderfully, however.

Finally, a friend recommended her dentist and we made a "dental date" and went to the dentist together. This is key. Going to the dentist once is not going to solve all of your dental problems. Here's the secret for going to the dentist regularly. If you like this dentist, and I like mine, Dr. William Weissman, DDS, schedule your next appointment before you leave the office! That's important. Now you're seeing your dentist regularly. Those six months will fly and if it's been awhile since you've seen a dentist things will improve for you.

Now it's not all fun. I like to think I have good habits. First a confession. I don't have any cavities. Neither does my sister. Our parents instilled in us good habits I guess. I won't bore you this time with the details of my brushing habits, but I will say I spend a lot of time on my teeth in the morning and even more in the evening. I have a whole routine. When I go to bed, nothing is going on in my mouth! But when I go to the dentist? First he tells me what a good job I'm doing. (Secret confession, I also go to the dentist regularly to get praise like that.) And then after I feel good being told this, he then goes on to scrape my teeth for 20 minutes. I brush, and floss, and mouthwash regularly to avoid this!



At the end of the visit I feel like a million dollars though. My mouth is clean, I'm reassured that I'm doing the right thing and I know that in six months, I'll be back to do it all over again. It's very simple to have a regular dental routine. If you're already doing this, great! If not, I recommend you start today.