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New on DVD: The Great Debaters

post from The Movie Fanatic Feeds on 15 May 2008 08:32:59 AM. © The Movie Fanatic Feeds

Starring: Denzel Washington, Forest Whitaker, Jurnee Smollett, Nate Parker Director: Denzel[...]

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Macon County Line (1974)

post from Dave's Blog About Movies and Such on 15 May 2008 08:15:00 AM. © Dave's Blog About Movies and Such

dir. Richard Compton

"If the lord was going to give the world an enema, right here is where he'd stick the hose."
-Chris Dixon

The character actor's fear of being typecast is so pronounced that it has fueled drug addiction, criminality and other such hilarity among this not so vaunted group. These actors must constantly strive to reinvent themselves lest they lose their lives playing the same character ad infinitum in a gin soaked haze. Particularly susceptible to typecasting is the TV actor. How can a sitcom actor be successful in a thriller, for instance, when the audience wants nothing more than to erupt in paroxysms of Pavlovian laughter when said actor finds himself in another wacky, cliched situation, or spouts whatever hackneyed catchphrase his character has become famous for? Of course, recent years have produced a slew of quality television shows in which actors have been able to display their full range and depth. In the sixties, however, this was not the case. Unashamedly appealing to the lowest common denominator, these shows gave actors, if nothing else, a steady pay check. One notable typecast victim from this period was Max Baer Jr. (referred to henceforth by his God given name, Jethro Bodine).
Eager to escape the shackles of the lovably dimwitted hillbilly type that made him famous, Jethro Bodine decided to write and produce his own damn movie. His desire to make his own picture was also due to the fact that he couldn't find any work in the rapidly changing environment of the New Hollywood of the seventies. The realistic thrillers, sophisticated sex comedies, existential road pictures, revisionist westerns, and racially themed movies of this period simply did not have any place for an actor of Jethro Bodine's standing -- or so it seemed. Determined to show off his range and prove his worth as an actor, Jethro Bodine would helm a movie designed to give his fellow actors and himself the ability to perform the range of emotions generally reserved for junkies and manic-depressives. "You wanna see actin'? I'm gonna act the shit out of this." Thus was born Macon County Line, a low budget drive-in feature that would become an unexpected hit.

Although part of a larger rednexploitation trend, including Walking Tall, White Lightning, and Thunder and Lightning; Macon County Line is quite the odd duck in this group of films. Uncommon for a low budget seventies exploitation flick, this movie is a period piece; albeit of a recent period. It can be unnecessarily costly to fill a film with period detail, but Jethro Bodine was interested in writing not just an interesting story, but one of a certain time and place: Louisiana in the fifties. The setting here is vitally important in defining this movie. Luckily, the rural locale of this film necessitated that the only period artifacts necessary would be the costumes and a few cars.

Throughout the course of the flick, we follow three separate groups: Chris (Alan Vint) and Wayne Dixon (Jesse Vint) - two northern rough and tumble brothers having their last hurrah before joining the military; Jethro Bodine's character, Deputy Reed Morgan - a traditional (i.e. racist) southern small town lawman who will become a relic of the past; and Lon (Timothy Scott) and Elisha (James Gammon) - two sadistic murderers in the middle of a road trip/crime spree. Oh what times they'll have when their worlds collide.

Early on, Macon County Line takes the form of a high energy comedic road movie. As the Dixon boys make their way across the country; they bang hookers, skip out on diner bills, toy with local law enforcement and pick up an underage female hitchhiker, Jenny Scott (Cheryl Waters) -- just good old fashioned American fun. After stopping at a run down service station to fix their car, they run afoul of Deputy Reed. You see, this is a good old fashioned town and the folk here just don't cotton to the sorts of shenanigans that some no good out of towner city folk might cause. No sir, they don't like it one bit. Luckily, ol' Reed sets the Dixon boys straight when he let's them know what's what. It seems that they best be on their way if they know what's good for them. When the Dixons' car dies on the road they decide to find shelter in a nearby barn and stay for the night. Problem is, their car dies right outside of Reed's humble abode.

The Reed story-line has all the folksy charm of an "Andy Griffith Show" episode. Reed spends his time romancing his wife, buying a gun for his ten year old son, Luke (Leif Garrett -- yes that Leif Garrett), and explaining the virtues of segregation to said son -- just good old fashioned American fun. Although the encounter with the Dixon boys ruffled a few of his feathers, it wasn't enough to bring Reed down. You see, he is about to pick up his son from military school so as to bring him hunting. Ain't nothing gonna bring him down -- for now.

In the meantime, the Lon and Elisha storyline has the feel of a suspenseful thriller. These boys are making their way across the country a-robbin' and a-murderin' -- just good old fashioned American fun. This plot-line is the most enigmatic. Aside from a quick flashback of a police beating of Lon, we know next to nothing of these two men. They are less characters than forces of nature, which is unfortunate for Reed's poor wife, Carol (Joan Blackman), who meets an untimely end at the hands of these two thugs.

Now all of the worlds and genres collide. Assuming the Dixon boys, whose car is parked outside of his home, are responsible for the death of his wife, Reed goes apeshit in his attempt to hunt down and kill these fellows. Taking on the feel of a slasher film, the last half hour of this movie is a tense cat and mouse game between the cold-blooded revenge-seeking psychopathic Reed and his clueless prey. And before one has a chance to take it all in, the film climaxes in a brutal and shocking scene of violence.

Who would have known that Jethro Bodine could co-write and produce such an entertaining movie? Not that there weren't hints earlier on of what was to come. There was the storyline on "The Beverly Hillbillies", after all, in which he became a movie producer because he met the qualifications of having both a sixth grade education and an uncle who owned a movie studio. But still, who knew?

As is evidenced by my description of the movie, Macon County Line is quite unstable, tone-wise. It brings to mind such diverse movies as Two Lane Blacktop, American Graffiti, My Cousin Vinny, Walking Tall, and Friday the 13th. That such a seemingly unmarketable film would become a smash hit is a testament to the state of the film industry in the seventies. This was an era in which audiences were much more willing to accept wild experimentation in even the most mainstream fare. I have always been fascinated by movies that manage to effortlessly shift tone and genre midstream. Although usually the result of equal parts unfocused filmmaking, massive amounts of drugs, and dicking around; the tone/genre shifts in this movie are quite purposeful.

More than anything, this movie depicts a changing of the guard. Although the one race related scene in this movie is brief, it is important in understanding Macon County Line. When he witnesses Luke's cordiality toward a few black friends, Reed quietly fumes. Later during their car trip, Reed explains to his son, in the most dulcet tones, that the commingling of races is against the order of things. The impressionable Luke, although confused at first by his papa's request not to associate with the "colored boys", eventually acquiesces to his all-knowing father. It is one of the most quietly devastating scenes put to film. Reed's actions here are far more chilling than the crazed rantings of an obviously psychopathic character such as Jessie Lee Kane.

This movie exposes the crazed racism, paranoia and brutality lurking beneath the thin veneer of good old fashioned "American Values", specifically in the Jim Crow South of the fifties. Scratch the surface of an Andy Taylor and you'll find a Bull Connor. In its depiction of vigilante justice gone horribly wrong, Macon County Line also skewers the machismo of the western myth. After his wife is murdered, the traditional Reed is thrust into a world he doesn't understand and thrashes out at the young, rebellious, out of town "others" that he assumes must be responsible. Whether he wants to admit it or not, Reed's world is about to come to a close.

video details and more

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nty-line-1974.html

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Stephenie Meyer: Ultimate Mom

post from The Movie Fanatic Feeds on 15 May 2008 08:09:23 AM. © The Movie Fanatic Feeds

A Special Tribute to Stephenie Meyer By Kaleb Nation [ Exclusive article for the Twilight Guy Day,[...]

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_stephenie_meyer_tribute/

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Jaman Tries Ad-Supported Streaming

post from CinemaTech on 15 May 2008 08:08:00 AM. © CinemaTech

Jaman, the Silicon Valley movie marketplace geared to indie content, is introducing ad-supported streaming this week. That adds a second revenue stream to Jaman's business model, which was originally built atop selling downloads and rentals of films.

I don't think this is a surrender, indicating that downloads and rentals aren't working for Jaman, but it has undoubtedly been a challenge for the site to get visitors to hand over their credit card information... and ad-supported streaming makes it easier to simply start watching a movie that looks half-way interesting. Jaman will offer 100 ad-supported titles to start with.

Here's the TechCrunch coverage ... and the official press release.

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http://cinematech.blogspot.com/2008/05/jaman-tries-ad-supported-streaming.html

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AMERICAN SUMMER Trailer

post from Rama's SCREEN on 15 May 2008 08:03:59 AM. © Rama's SCREEN

I’ll be flying back to California soon enough but today’s gonna be hella packed. But I’ll be back later on with more updates so hang tight. Meanwhile here’s the trailer for AMERICAN SUMMER, which people say is the American Pie version of Risky Business. But here’s the thing, any movie with Tom Arnold in it, [...]

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http://www.ramasscreen.com/2008/05/15/american-summer-trailer/

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Retro 70s Lunchboxes [Officially Cool]

post from Film School Rejects on 15 May 2008 08:03:00 AM. © Film School Rejects

Fanboy.com found this awesome Flickr set of pictures that feature retro lunchboxes from the 70's and 80's. If you take a look at the Flickr page of edowney9, you can see the entire collection, but I have shown some of my personal favorites below. Its odd to think while some ...

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s.php

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New Huge Poster: THE LOVE GURU

post from Rama's SCREEN on 15 May 2008 08:01:06 AM. © Rama's SCREEN

Via comingsoon.net, here’s a new one sheet hi-res Poster of THE LOVE GURU starring Mike Myers, Vernon Troy, Jessica Alba, and Justin Timberlake and Sir Ben Kingsley. You can check out the new Trailer HEREThe movie opens June 20th, 2008. Click on the image to enlarge

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SON OF RAMBOW

post from DAILY FILM DOSE: A Daily Film Appreciation and Review Blog on 15 May 2008 08:00:00 AM. © DAILY FILM DOSE: A Daily Film Appreciation and Review Blog

Son of Rambow (2007) dir. Garth JenningsStarring: Bill Milner, Will Poulter, Jessica Stevenson, Ed Westwick, Neil Dudgeon, Jules Sitruk**1/2?Son of Rambow? is the latest film in a recent trend of 80?s nostalgia films about that simple, uncomplicated[...]

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http://dailyfilmdose.blogspot.com/2008/05/son-of-rambow.html

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L'INTERIEUR (INSIDE)

post from DAILY FILM DOSE: A Daily Film Appreciation and Review Blog on 15 May 2008 07:35:00 AM. © DAILY FILM DOSE: A Daily Film Appreciation and Review Blog

L?Interieur (Inside) (2008) dir. Alexandre Bustillo, Julien MauryStarring: Beatrice Dalle, Alysson Paradis***1/2On DVD this week is a must-see for horror fans. A gory little French film that has already become a notorious cult hit fueled by its[...]

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http://dailyfilmdose.blogspot.com/2008/04/linterieur.html

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