From May 2011. Carlos says, "I love the idea of Koch and Stern going to see Bridesmaids and ending up seeing The Big Bang."
“Hey, Boo: Harper Lee and ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’”
This remarkable documentary is devoted to the Pulitzer Prize novel, “To Kill a Mockingbird,” written by Harper Lee. It is used as a primer in many schools, and over 50 million copies have been sold since its publication in 1960.
Harper was born in Monroeville, Alabama. For a time, Truman Capote lived there as well, and they became childhood friends. After writing her book, Lee went to Kansas with Capote where he wrote “In Cold Blood,” a book about the 1959 murders of the Clutter family. Lee conducted interviews of local residents regarding the slayings. According to Harper’s 99-year-old sister, Alice, who still practices law, Harper and Truman later had a falling out because he was envious of her success. However, Capote wrote to his friends in New York City asking that they look after Harper when she moved there. They did indeed and gave her enough money allowing her to quit her job at an airline and write her book.
Hand in hand with the triumph of her book was the movie of the same name in which the protagonist, Atticus Finch, a lawyer modeled on Harper’s father, was played by Gregory Peck. Those of you who have either read the book or seen the film will recall his remarkable child, Scout, who had adult insights on the human condition, particularly the oppression of blacks.
Harper willingly gave interviews after the publication of her book. She stopped doing so at a later date conveying she did not think she had been treated well by the media. She also declined to be interviewed for this documentary.
“Hey, Boo” is one of the best documentaries I have seen in many years.
“The Big Bang” (-)
I regret having to write about absurd, god-awful movies week after week, but this is another ridiculous film.
When I arrived at the theater on a Friday evening after my Bloomberg radio show, I intended to catch the 8:30 p.m. screening of “Bridesmaids.” Unfortunately, it was sold out, so I decided to see “The Big Bang” since tickets were available and it was about to begin. I had not read any advance reviews of the movie. Big mistake. It is a shambles.
A private investigator, Ned Cruz (Antonio Banderas), is hired by Anton Protopov (Robert Maillet), a giant boxer who has just been released from a life sentence in prison. Anton, referred to as “the Pro,” is searching for Lexie Persimmon (Sienna Guillory), an ex-stripper with whom he corresponded while incarcerated.
The film opens with Ned tied to a chair being interrogated by three men. Through flashbacks we learn of the efforts of a mad scientist, Simon Kestral (Sam Elliott), to build a particle reactor. He hopes to separate atoms and the smallest of nuclear particles and recreate the big bang that created the universe 13 billion years ago. Somehow or other, never really explained, 30 million dollars worth of diamonds are also involved which Protopov received to take a dive in a prizefight with a gangster’s nephew.
As I sat there listening to the narrator, I thought of the old radio stories like Ellery Queen during which a voiceover attempts to keep the audience informed. When listening to the radio, your mind helps create the script and fantasy. Not so with a movie scene where the script is created by the writers and the acting by the performers. In this film, neither script nor acting were adequate.
After seeing the movie I read Stephen Holden’s review in The Times. He sees it much more as a parody and a highbrow effort to bring quantum physics into our lives in what would otherwise be a simple film noir. Ridiculous. The movie puts down film audiences with a pretentiousness that requires a kick in the rear end to all involved. Moviegoers have responded to this picture in the best possible way by staying away. There were only six other people in the theater the night I saw it.
Henry Stern said: “I agree that this movie is among the worst I have ever seen. It was totally contrived, with random violence, periodic cursing and supernatural catastrophe. The first half was a stereotypical private-eye story. Then it morphed into Area 51 science-fiction, with a Howard Hughes type, aided by a gay geek, building a supercollider. Banderas is tied up for most of the film and periodically slugged while he tells his tale, largely in confusing flashbacks. It was strange to see modern technology and special effects used to illustrate such a trite film. The producers must have known while making the movie that it was a bomb, but they kept on with the job. “The Big Bang” lives up to its title, but it happens in a seedy motel room, which is scarcely the universe.”
