The Movie Journal

Police Academy (1984) When it comes to movies, everyone has a guilty pleasure. Even though they may be bad in its own right, people may enjoy them for whatever reason. One of my big guilty pleasures is 1984’s Police Academy . Yes, I’ll admit that I practically love the movie. It just has a lot of heart and its extremely funny. Some people may find the jokes tasteless, but then I must have a tasteless sense of humor. Oh well! These kinds of brash comedies are prevalent nowadays, but this was a rare kind of movie for 1984 and maybe that is why reviews were not as kind when the film was originally released. The film got its premise when producer Paul Maslansky was in California shooting his big prestige film, The Right Stuff . He noticed these strange-looking people wearing police uniforms. He spoke to the worn-down police sergeant, and it was confirmed that these people (including an out-of-shape woman and an older gentleman past 50) were part of the police academy and al...

Splash (1984) Ron Howard’s Splash is such a charming, likable film. Who can resist the urge to smile when watching this adorable movie. The film is a complete turnaround from Howard’s directorial debut, 1982’s The Night Shift . That particular movie was a hardcore, raunchy R-rated film. Two years later, we get a very sweet film about a Manhattan bachelor falling in love…..with someone out of this world. This movie shows you how versatile Ron Howard is as a director. He made a career of making films in different styles/genres, and this was the start of it. The film has been known for two major things. Firstly, this film is the first one distributed under Touchstone, Walt Disney’s new studio. Disney made a name for themselves over the years by producing films for children. They now wanted to make for adult-friendly fare without tarnishing the legacy of the studio, so that is where they created Touchstone. Splash is the one to bring the studio into the light. Each ...

Footloose (1984) Off the bat, I’ll admit that 1984’s Footloose is pure, thrashy 1980’s silliness. And…..I’m completely down for it. The movie holds dear to my soul because it is a big part of my childhood. My sixth-grade class spent a good portion of the year learning the songs, and our class trip was to see a play based on the hit movie in the lovely town of New Hope, Pennsylvania. The music is legitimately fantastic. Pure 80’s music, but absolutely delightful songs. Who can resist the urge not to start dancing when the title song performed by Kenny Loggins comes on the radio, or Deneice Williams, “Let’s Hear It for the Boy.” These songs actually went on to be nominated for Academy Awards. No matter how preposterous the plot sounds, it’s actually based on a real story. In 1898, the Oklahoma town of Elmore City outlawed dancing. A pastor from a nearby town was quoted saying dancing led to alcohol which would eventually lead to death. The city made national headlines in...

Uncommon Valor (1983) The 1980’s was a decade that produced many films about the Vietnam War and its lasting effects. Some of them are fantastic, some are bad, and others split the line in the middle by being average at best. 1983’s Uncommon Valor is one of those films. While the film is fun to watch and has some brutal action sequences, the film is loaded with clichés. The script, written by Joe Gayton, is predictable and you can see the plot coming from miles away. As I like to put it, this film is basically the last part of The Deer Hunter but slimmed down on a diet. The film is directed by Canadian director Ted Kotcheff. A year prior, Kotcheff directed the Sylvester Stallone-led hit, First Blood . One thing that works in Kotcheff’s favor is he always had a strong sense of male camaraderie in his movies. So, in a film that has male buddies going to save their friend, it makes sense about who directed this film. Per usual, Kotcheff did a solid job behind the camera an...

And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself (2003 TV Movie) And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself is a very solid surprise. I was very fascinated with the story being told, because its one of those that is too good to be true. But yes, the story being told is indeed factual. I was concerned with whether the story will be told the proper way considered it is a television movie. For the most part, those concerns were put to rest. The HBO movie is directed by Bruce Beresford who has some expertise directing cinematic films. Remember Driving Miss Daisy ? The film’s battle sequences are expertly staged and is actually quite bloody. The performances, led by Antonio Banderas, are great. I may have had some issues with the script. I am a history and film snob, so I can notice mistakes from a mile away. There are some glaring factual errors. That said, the film did manage to get the overall essence of the actual story. Pancho Villa is one of the most recognized revolutionaries in modern hi...

Scarface (1983) “Say hello to my little friend!” You know, when I saw Brian De Palma’s gangster epic Scarface for the first time, I hated it. I thought it was a loud, ugly film that is over-the-top in the most gruesome way. As a gangster film, I was also comparing it to The Godfather films which also starred Al Pacino. I guess I did not like that the films are basically the polar opposites within the same genre. Flash forward many years later, I took away my original negative review away because I actually quite liked this film. It became a cult classic and I understand why. The film remains loud and over-the-top, but it’s a gritty, dark, violent, and a more realistic take on the Latino gangster world of the 1980’s. The film was written by renowned filmmaker/screenwriter, Oliver Stone. Stone allegedly was fighting cocaine abuse at the time which actually made him the perfect writer for the film considering everything he was going through at the time. Those famil...

An American in Paris (1951) The 1950’s is known for the bright, colorful MGM musicals that would light up the screen and the faces of the audience. The most well-known is 1952’s Singin in the Rain . But a year earlier, there was a movie that started it all. That movie was An American in Paris . I consider this movie to be one of the most overrated Best Picture winners ever. In its own right, the film is fun and has some great musical numbers. The story, however, is flimsy at best. Is it truly better than A Place in the Sun or A Streetcar Named Desire ? The production design of the film is beyond a 10/10. Vincente Minnelli and his crew took extra care making the film look authentic as possible. The use of Technicolor also gave the film an incredible, dazzling look that I am sure blown away any audience member from that time period. Along with the look of the film, the film itself reach its height during the final 18 minutes- a rich, well-choreographed ballet sequence tha...