American Graffiti

-
American Graffiti
Starring Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard, Paul Le Mat, Charles Martin Smith
Directed by George Lucas

Synopsis:
In small town America in 1962, a group of high school friends come together for one final night together before they go their separate ways.  Enjoying the warm California night, they cruise the streets in their classic cars, listen to some of the best music ever created, and encounter love, loss, nostalgia and fears of the future.

Steve (Ron Howard) and his longtime girlfriend Laurie (Cindy Williams) face the prospects of a long-distance relationship.  Curt (Richard Dreyfuss) goes on the search of a mysterious, beautiful woman while dealing with his fears of leaving his friends behind.  John (Paul Le Mat) cruises the strip and picks up Carol (Mackenzie Phillips), a girl way too young for him, and is forced to babysit her as he races against his nemesis Bob Falfa (Harrison Ford).   Terry (Charles Martin Smith), the nerd of the group, gets a car and lies to Debbie (Candy Clark) about who he is and the two embark on a fun-filled night filled with fighting, drinking and love.

Review:
Before "Star Wars," George Lucas was a rather unknown director, who decided to embark on a coming-of-age film.  Casting a rather unknown group of actors, Lucas faced an uphill battle in hopes of getting the film released to the general populous, but it happened and what came out of it was one of the best films ever made, one that's still revered today and holds a 95% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and also garnered five Academy Award nominations (including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Supporting Actress for Candy Clark), and is currently 66 in AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies list.  Any way you look at it, the film is a cinematic masterpiece.

The film doesn't rely on extreme action or over-the-top CGI effects, but tells a rather simplistic story, one that even kids today can relate to.  How would you spend the last night with your friends, before facing the real world?  For these kids, it's a night of wonderful classic cars, amazing music and stories that would last a lifetime.  In the small timeframe after World War II and before the JFK Assassination and Vietnam, the US was a great place to live.  Strangers rode in cars with other strangers, the front doors were unlocked even in the dead of night, and life was a simple, yet wonderful, thing.  "American Graffiti" brings out the best, and delivers it with amazing actors that are now household names, but back then it was seen as a huge gamble, which obviously paid off in spades.

Summary:
A film that withstands the test of time, "American Graffiti" deserves the history it's made, and it's one of those films that shouldn't be missed.

My Rating: A+

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Major Theatrical Releases May 2019

-
Image
Major Theatrical Releases May 2019 After the hype that is "Avengers: Endgame," May offers a massive collection of differing types of movies, enough to entertain everyone. Here are the major theatrical releases for May 2019. **THERE WILL BE NO SPOILERS** **DATES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE**  The Intruder May 3 Dennis Quaid goes from starring the family-friendly "A Dog's Journey" to playing a total psycho in "The Intruder."  When a young couple purchases a home from Quaid's character Charlie, they didn't realize it came with an addition - Charlie himself, who can't seem to let his old home go.  I don't expect any twists or turns in this tale, and this looks like a film better fit for Lifetime than the big screen.  Long Shot May 3 Charlize Theron stars as Charlotte Field, the current Secretary of State and who's running for President.  Seth Rogen stars as Fred Flarsky, a
Read more

Witch

-
Image
Witch Starring Russell Shaw, Ryan Spong, Sarah Alexandra Marks, Fabrizio Santino Directed by Craig Hinde & Marc Zammit Movies about witches are about a dime a dozen, and follow the same formula: typically set in a time period long ago (since now, fortunately, the stigma of witches has been lessened and the religious fervor has diminished), in a small Puritanical town, a girl is accused of witchcraft which spirals the town into a frenzy filled with suspicion, doubt, and murder until the witch is put to religious justice. While that's not necessarily a bad formula (Robert Eggers' "The VVitch" and Mario Bava's "Black Sunday" immediately come to mind), most films fall by the wayside. "Witch" is a small film that, at first glance, seems to follow the mold before completely shattering it in a second act twist that's daring, provocative, and works in a lot of levels, but could've been more pronounced if given a bigger budget. In the small
Read more

Special Review: "Midwest Sessions"

-
Image
Special Review: "Midwest Sessions" Directed by Mario Ricciardi Independent filmmaking is a fascinating concept, wherein the director and everyone involved sets out to make something unique, different, and go against the traditional status quo of what's defined as a "blockbuster." These films aren't usually seen by the masses and won't be included in the top ten highest grossing movies of all time, but they offer something those films don't: a heart and commitment by the people involved to craft something wholly distinctive that tell a story in their own way. Such is "Midwest Sessions," a local film directed by Mario Ricciardi that centers on the city of Youngstown, Ohio, and the captivating people who live there. Told in different vignettes that seem distinct and different from one another but coming together as a whole in the end, it's an engrossing film that utilizes its shoestring budget and gives great performances, decent effects a
Read more