Summer of Sam (1999).

The Scoop:
Spike Lee's take on the Son of Sam killings in New York during 1976 and 1977 is a welcome stretch for him, but ultimately a let-down.

It's an interesting concept -- a study of how the lives of a young Bronx couple, Vinny (John Leguizamo) and Dionna (Mira Sorvino), and their neighbors are affected by David Berkowitz's notorious killing spree, as well as the other noteworthy events in New York during the summer of '77 (including the popularity of disco, the emergence of punk rock, the record-setting heatwave and the great blackout). Lee commits his usual sin of over-reaching here, including so many different plot elements that the film becomes long and tedious. The core story, though, has potential and Leguizamo and Sorvino both give first-rate performances.

To Lee's credit, he tried to move out of his usual urban African-American milieu here. It does not always work to great effect, though, particularly in his treatment of the punk rock scene, which he obviously doesn't quite understand. His biggest flop, though, is the scene in which he tries to get into Berkowitz's head -- resulting in a talking dog on screen. Talk about a misstep.

Still, Lee is the type of visionary director whose missteps are interesting missteps, and be working outside of his comfort zone here he was able to flex his creative muscles for later projects like "25th Hour" and "Miracle at St. Anna" that show more maturity.

Best Line:
For pure camp value, how can you beat a dog chanting, "Kill! Kill! Kill!"?

Side Note:
David Berkowitz is still serving his life term in prison, but has since become a born-again Christian. He now has a personal website to share his ministry.

Companion Viewing:
"NY77: The Coolest Year in Hell" (2007), "Last Days of Disco" (1998) and "Clockers" (1995).

Links:
IMDb.
LazyDork drinking game.

Take a Look:
Just another night in the life of Vinny and Dionna:


"Saturday Night Fever," this ain't:


The fucking short version:


An episode of "Charlie Rose" featuring interviews with Lee and some of the stars:

Shadow of the Vampire (2000).

The Scoop:
Director E. Elias Merhige's and writer Steven Katz's film is a provocative, yet highly fictionalized, account of the creation of the landmark horror classic "Nosferatu."

John Malkovich plays German director F.W. Murnau as a tempermental, single-minded genuis and Willem Dafoe is his mysterious star Max Schreck. The script's conceit is that Schreck was a real vampire, not just an actor lost in his role (as was the case in real life). There are faithful recreations of several of the sequences and settings of "Nosferatu," with many given an extra supernatural twist by the fact of Schreck's vampirism.

All this makes "Shadow of the Vampire" a hard film to categorize -- too fanciful for a biopic and too grounded in reality for a supernatural thriller -- but an enjoyment nonetheless.

There are good performances all around from a cast that includes Udo Kier, Catherine McCormack, Cary Elwes and Eddie Izzard. And extra kudos go to the gang of Pauline Fowler, Jamie Iovine, Amber Sibley, David Stoneman and Julian Murray for their Oscar-nominated makeup job on Dafoe.

Best Line:
"If it's not in frame, it doesn't exist!"

Side Note:
The real life Max Schreck was a veteran German stage actor and although "Nosferatu" was his film debut, he went on to make more than 20 other movies before his all-too-human death by heart attack in 1936, at the age of 57.

Companion Viewing:
"Nosferatu" (1921) and "Gods and Monsters" (1997).

Links:
IMDb.
Official site.
Dave's Other Movie Log.

Take a Look:
The trailer:


Filming the ship sequence:

The Scarlet Empress (1934).

The Scoop:
Directed by Josef von Sternberg and starring Marlene Dietrich, this lavish epic is the pinnacle of their eight-film cinematic partnership.

Based on the diaries of Catherine the Great, "The Scarlet Empress" tells the tale of her hard, brutal rise to power in 18th century Russia, going from being naive Princess Sophie of Prussian to becoming Empress Catherine II. Dietrich is at her best, at turns sexy and ruthless, and the film is a visual treat. Von Sternberg's direction and Bert Glennon's moody cinematography highlight the sumptuous costumes and elaborate, meticulously-designed sets. It all adds up to a worshipful, erotically-charged love letter to one of history's commanding personalities -- which applies as much to Dietrich herself as to Catherine. Von Sterberg conflates the two, which would ordinarily be a problem, but here it becomes one of the film's strengths.

There is plenty of sex, deception and passion on display -- all sorts of things here to please the modern fan. "The Scarlet Empress" is von Sternberg's greatest film, and one of the finest historical dramas of the '30s.

Best Line:
"There is no emperor -- there is only an empress."

Side Note:
Despite the lavish production design, von Sternberg was still budget-conscious. For expensive crowd scenes, he reused footage from Ernst Lubitsch's film "The Patriot" (1928).

Companion Viewing:
"Queen Christina" (1933) and "Elizabeth" (1998).

Links:
IMDb.

Take a Look:
The young impetuous Sophie engages in a little girl talk:


The older Catherine stands up to her husband at a state banquet:

The U.S. vs. John Lennon (2006).

The Scoop:
This wonderful documentary from David Leaf and John Scheinfeld is a must-see. It does more than just detail the FBI's campaign to discredit and deport John Lennon and Yoko Ono in the early '70s; it also examines the issues and personalities of the antiwar movement, displays the horrors of the Vietnam War and gives a loving portrayal of John and Yoko's marriage.

Lennon coupled his intelligence and principle with the pop smarts he learned from the Beatles to propel himself to the front of the antiwar movement and into the orbit of the likes of Bobby Seale, Abbie Hoffman, Ron Kovic and Angela Davis. Along the way he made powerful enemies both in J. Edgar Hoover's FBI and Richard Nixon's White House.

The film presents in-depth interviews with Ono (of course), Seale, Davis, Gore Vidal, G. Gordon Liddy, John Dean, Walter Cronkite, Geraldo Rivera and a host of others. With these, Leaf and Scheinfeld make liberal use of archival interviews with Lennon, especially John and Yoko's appearances on "The Dick Cavett Show", and Lennon's own music.

What emerges is a powerful depiction of a celebrity willing to risk everything to use his fame and influence to try to affect positive change on the world -- as well as the lengths corrupt powerholders will go to protect their own selfish interests and stifle dissent. It's a prescient message for today, as we still await an artist capable of making the same stand.

Best Line:
"Mr. Lennon came to represent life and was admirable. Mr. Nixon and Mr. Bush represent death." -- Gore Vidal

Side Note:
Among the celebrities singing on "Give Peace a Chance" (recorded at John and Yoko's Bed-In in Montreal in 1969) were Tommy Smothers, Timothy Leary, Petula Clark, Allen Ginsberg and Dick Gregory.

Companion Viewing:
"Imagine: John Lennon" (1988) and "The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons From the Life of Robert S. McNamara" (2003).

Links:
IMDb.
Official Site.
Cinematic Intelligence Agency.
Mooviees!

Take a Look:
The trailer that makes it look almost like a Hollywood thriller: