March/April 2010
thebigpicture presents Features
Back inCinemas
0 4 | Spotlight
Mamma Mia!:
Cinema's most maniacal
movie matriarchs
24 | Widescreen
Absent Presence:
The synagogue as
cinema by photographer
Wojciech Wilczyk
3 0 | 1000 Words
Lionel Stander:
One actor's bold stand
against the horror of the
Hollywood Blacklist
34 Regulars
0 4 | Reel World
Manchurian candidate
Cast your vote now for one of the following classic films: 1 8 | One Sheet
‘It's a terrible thing to
Don't Look Back
Calamity Jane
hate your mother. But I
didn't always hate her. 3 4 | On Location
Desperately Seeking Susan When I was a child, I
only kind of disliked her.'
Washington D.C.
Zelig 4 4 | Competition
Picture This
The Big Picture ISSN 1759-0922 © 2010 intellect Ltd. Published by Intellect Ltd. The Mill, Parnall Road. Bristol BS16 3JG / www.intellectbooks.com
vote Editorial office Tel. 0117 9589910 / E: info@thebigpicturemagazine.com Publisher Masoud Yazdani Senior Editor & Design Gabriel Solomons Editor Scott Jordan Harris
now! Contributors Jez Conolly, Nicholas Page, Emma Simmonds, Daniel Steadman, Scott Jordan Harris, Tony Nourmand, Alison Elangasinghe, Gabriel Solomons
Special thanks to John Letham, Sara Carlsson and all at Park Circus, Jelena Stanovnik, Michael Pierce at Curzon Cinemas and Gabriel Swartland at City Screen
Please send all email enquiries to: info@thebigpicturemagazine.com / www.thebigpicturemagazine.com l The Big Picture magazine is published six times a year
march/april 2010 3
reel world Google 'a Manchurian Candidate'.
Disconcertingly, the second
result (beneath the film) is
that such insane accusations
are evenly spread across the
political spectrum, Google’s
Similarly, almost every assassin
since the 1960s (Sirhan
Sirhan, slayer of Robert F.
the US and murder in order
to advance the communist
cause, but who never stands
f i l m b e yo n d t h e b o r d e r s o f t h e s c r e e n
an article by hard-line lunatic second suggested search – after Kennedy, most famously) for office, or to Senator Iselin,
David Kupelian characterizing ‘Barack Obama Manchurian has also, at some point, been the vice-presidential candidate
the 2008 US presidential candidate’ – is ‘John McCain described as ‘a Manchurian who benefits from Shaw’s
election as ‘a choice between Manchurian candidate’. As Eric candidate’. But what does unconscious killings but never
a genuine war hero and D. Snider of Film.com writes the term mean? Does the visits Manchuria and is never
a genuine Manchurian (in an article which Google title of John Frankenheimer’s brainwashed? ‘A Manchurian
candidate’. (‘Obama was ranks higher than Kupelian’s film (and, of course, Richard candidate’ is one of the most
programmed for years by his entry) ‘just about everyone Condon’s source novel) refer fascinating phrases ever to leak
atheist, Muslim father [sic], who has run for president has to the character of Raymond from film into international
by the communist sex pervert at some point been called a Shaw, who is programmed English: use it and everyone
Frank Marshall Davis, by con “Manchurian candidate”’. in Manchuria to return to will know what you mean, but
man Tony Rezko, by domestic very few could write a decent
terrorist Bill Ayers… by black definition. [tbp]
is liberation theology screamer
manchurian
barack Jeremiah Wright.’) As evidence
obama
a
c a n d i d at e ? m a n c h u r i a n
wa s
si rh an
si rh an
a
The Manchurian
Candidate (1962)
Dir. John Frankenheimer
John Frankenheimer’s
superlative thriller is a riveting
medley of dastardly political
machinations, romance, betrayal
and brainwashing. Sergeant
Raymond Shaw (Laurence
Harvey) returns from battle in
Korea with a Medal of Honour.
With demonic conviction,
Angela Lansbury plays
Shaw’s mother, Mrs Iselin, a
woman with ‘a tendency to
refer to anyone who disagrees
with anything she says as a
communist’. The power behind
her senator husband, Mrs Iselin
is an arch manipulator and
shrewd political mover and
shaker. When Raymond’s war
comrades – including Major Ben
Marco (Frank Sinatra) – are
plagued by identical nightmares
it transpires that Raymond’s
heroics are but a planted
memory, which conceals a far
more disturbing truth. In one of
the great cinematic reveals, it is
dear mother who steps out from
behind the curtain to announce
herself as the most formidable
force in the film: a mother
willing to use her son to dispatch
the opponents to her ideology.
Mamma
Y
a superlative
Mia!
Whether control freaks, political players,
thriller that's a
riveting medley of
dastardly political
machinations,
nymphomaniacs or even the ungrateful dead, romance, betrayal ➜
these memorable movie mothers exert unholy & brainwashing.
influence over their offspring. emma simmonds
➜
surveys cinema’s most maniacal matriarchs.
Images courtesy of Park Circus Limited
Psycho (1960)
Kobal
Dir. Alfred Hitchcock
left
the unknown threat
pa i n t i n g i n s p i r e d b y c i n e m a
Jersey Boy
Most people reading this will the Romans made Jesus an
be able to recall seeing Titanic ➜
in a crowded cinema in 1997,
but I doubt it had the effect on
many of them that it had on
you. Tell us what happened.
Michael Medina is a painter, poet and teacher – but his My fellow cinemagoers
were coughing and sneezing
Twitter name is @FillmBuffDude. scot t jordan harris throughout the picture. I didn’t
spoke with an artist whose every work is informed by film. enjoy the spread of their germs,
or the film. The following days
Paintings photographed by Jeff Leifer. ➜ saw my body break down.
Breathing was difficult. I was
Don'�
LookBack
Paranoia isn’t pretty – unless it’s represented on
one of these classic movie posters. tony nourmand ,
of the Reel Poster Gallery, examines the images used
to advertise four first-rate paranoia thrillers.
H o l ly w o o d h as a lways to pin down and one that hid educated man of mystery,
liked the classic good-guy- behind layers of conspiracy, Michael Caine’s Harry Palmer
versus-bad-guy tale. The bad secrets and lies. Against such was a truculent, unglamorous
guys invariably embody the a political backdrop, the hero. The use of Harry’s
greatest socio or political fears spy thriller was box-office glasses as a framing device in
of the day, from the drug gold. Alongside the more the film, and on this stunning
lords of the 1920s and the straightforward narratives of rare British poster, serve to
Mafia bosses of the 1930s, the Bond films or Our Man emphasize both this fresh
to the Nazis of the 1940s. In Flint (1966), there were also take on the genre and also
the 1950s and 1960s the bad more complex and intelligent the themes of paranoia, and
guy embodied the threat to films coming out of this genre. of being constantly watched,
democracy posed by the cold The most celebrated of these which pervade the film. ➜
war. This was an altogether remains The Ipcress File (1965).
murkier and harder enemy The Ipcress File was a fresh
examination of espionage. In
place of a debonair, Oxbridge-
18 www.thebigpicturemagazine.com
onesheet paranoia
The threat to
American society was
no longer coming from
the cold war enemy
to the East, but from
within America’s
own government and
leading institutions.
JApAnese alongside explorations of the cultural and industrial origins of key genres. The
cinematic lineage of samurai warriors, yakuza enforcers and atomic monsters
russiAn take their place alongside the politically charged works of the Japanese new
wave, making this a truly unique volume. A printed version of the Directory is
spAnisH / portuguese
* Comment on any of the reviews
* Write your own film or director reviews
Absent
wolsztyn, synagogue poznanska street 17 project. The final collection
of photographs – stark, un-
stylized images that treat the
Presenc�
subject honestly and with
respect – is a timely reminder
of how important it is not just
to remember the past, but
also to act responsibly in the
It’s not often that a movie theatre’s actual physicality present. ➜
The
To a generation of TV viewers put to them by HUAC
he was instantly recognizable members). Propelled by
as Max, craggy chauffeur rampant and hysterical fears
about communism’s increasing
horror
to Jonathan and Jennifer
in the super-cheesy 1980s’ influence in Hollywood, over
series Hart to Hart. When 300 industry personnel were
not grooming the family denied employment because of
their suspected political beliefs
of the
dog, Freeway, Max was to
be heard declaring of his and/or social associations.
employers: ‘When they met Stander was certainly active
– it was moider!’ But over 30 in leftist politics, but never
years earlier Lionel Stander’s officially a member of the
Hollywood
career had taken a sudden communist party. Among his
left turn, and this resulted in many extra-curricular activities,
a fateful appointment before he was an organizer of the
the members of the House Screen Actors Guild (SAG),
Blacklist
of Un-American Activities a member of the Hollywood
Committee (HUAC). Anti-Fascist League and
The HUAC was a a supporter of the activist
congressional committee that Conference of Studio Unions
changed
held hearings on the film and (CSU) in its fight against the
entertainment industries on Mafia-controlled International
numerous occasions between Alliance of Stage Employees.
1938 and 1958. One product Stander had felt the heat
not only
of this McCarthy-era ministry from the HUAC as early as
was the now infamous 1940, when he began to have
Hollywood Blacklist (born difficulty finding work because
on 25 November 1947 when of his outspoken views. Prior to
American
ten writers and directors, this he had enjoyed a successful
soon to become known as ‘the early career, working with
Hollywood Ten’, were cited the likes of Frank Capra and
for contempt of Congress for Preston Sturges.
film,
refusing to answer questions ➜ The HUAC’s struggle to
present concrete examples
of subversion was illustrated
by their citing of Stander
whistling the ‘Internationale’
but also
while waiting for an elevator
in No Time to Marry (Harry
Lachman, 1938). After three
years without work he took At a further hearing in
American
the opportunity to make ten April 1951, actor and known
films between 1943 and 1946, communist sympathizer Marc
when the HUAC was inactive Lawrence named Stander as
because of the war, but its a member of his Hollywood
'Here was a man prepared
society,
resurgence, and establishment communist cell, testifying that
of the blacklist, brought Stander ‘was the guy who
Stander back into radar range to display courage and no introduced me to the party line’.
Upon hearing of this, Stander
of the committee. In a hearing
small measure of theatrical
forever.
dated 21 March 1951, the sued Lawrence for slander, and
actor Larry Parks, one of the
committee’s so-called ‘friendly ability in his disparaging of contacted HUAC chairman
John S. Wood to request an
witnesses’, gave Stander’s name opportunity to appear before the
under questioning. Although no the committee.' committee and swear under oath
further accusation was made that he was not a communist.
Over two years later, on 6
Jez Connolly takes a look at one actor against him during the hearing,
Stander, who had worked May 1953, Stander finally had
who made a stand against it. consistently on television shows his moment in front of the
in the months before Parks’ committee. His appearance
lionel stander ➜ testimony, again fell from marked a turning point in
favour within the industry. the hearings: here was a man ➜
’’
’’
processes, to undermine our even a New Orleans Mardi
very fundamental American Gras king. He didn't return
concepts upon which our entire to Broadway until 1961 and
I love every aspect of motion pictures, and I’m committed to it for life.
'For the rest of the system of jurisprudence exists.'
Stander was, of course,
to film until 1963, in Larry
Moyer’s low-budget beatnik film comment has that same commitment when it comes to
decade Stander worked referring to the HUAC itself. picture The Moving Finger.
’’
writing about motion pictures.
as a stockbroker on Wall
Street, a journeyman
stage actor, a corporate
In an interview (for Tender
Comrades: A Backstory of the
Hollywood Blacklist, by Patrick
McGilligan and Paul Buhle)
conducted just before his death
Around this time he struck
up a working relationship with
Tony Richardson, for whom
he provided numerous stage
performances. In 1966 Roman
’’
— Clint Eastwood film comment connects me to a time when films and filmmakers
actually mattered and were treated as being worthy of serious discussion.
There’s no other cinema magazine remotely like it.
’’
in 1994, Stander explained why Polanski cast Stander in his
he took the brave decision to only starring role, as the thug
spokesman, even a New come out fighting:
'I decided that when I
Dickie in Cul-de-sac, opposite
Françoise Dorléac and Donald
— stEvEn sodE rbErgh
also see... [book] Tender Comrades, A Backstory of the Hollywood Blacklist [tv show] Heart to Heart
32 www.thebigpicturemagazine.com
on location
below
james stewart
t h e p l a c e s t h at m a k e s t h e m o v i e s
washington
below
d.c.
kevin costner
Chigurh is
anton fully intended
Bol�
chigurh's to be the devil
Y
himself: a
chilling, one-
man apocalypse.
Pistol
Y
An assass i n ’s w e a p o n should Chigurh’s customized bolt for its lack of fuss. There’s no
be unobtrusive. It should be pistol. A brutal device intended attempt to make the life of an
plain and easily concealed. to stun farm animals; the assassin seem courageous or
A contraption comprising an body is essentially a highly even trivial: it’s just a gory,
orange, hose-like tube attached pressurized air canister, necessary job. Though Javier
to a 2-foot-tall steel canister operated by a levered trigger Bardem’s career-defining
would appear not to fit this mechanism. Releasing this performance wrings much
description – but reason does concentrated gas (through a of the menace from the
not apply to Anton Chigurh, steel nozzle) perforates the character, he’s only half of a
the monstrous, mop-haired skull whilst leaving a relatively pair of unforgettable killing
madman who stalks the lonely clean wound – intended for machines. Both fascinate us: as
deserts of the Coen brothers’ preventing meat spoilage, but an audience we’re transfixed
No Country for Old Men. equally useful for dispatching by the majesty of this weapon,
Few cinematic murder the unfortunates on a hit watching filled with horror and
weapons are as malevolent, man’s hit list. Chigurh is sickened intrigue. [tbp]
bizarre or effective as fully intended to be the devil
himself: a chilling, one-man
apocalypse. The trail of death
he leaves behind is notable
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i m i tat i o n i s t h e s i n c e r e s t f o r m o f f l at t e r y
(below) taimak as leroy green the last dragon
'In The Last
Dragon the suit is
21
(bottom) uma thurman as beatrice kiddo kill bill (vol.1)
B r u c e L e e i s f i l m ’s m o st
imitated idol. Aside from worn by a young
his renowned influence on
fans, followers and reputable black kung-
Jump
filmmakers, Lee's brilliant
career and early death inspired fu aficionado,
the infamously atrocious
Bruceploitation picture, nicknamed ‘Bruce
a substandard sub-genre
populated with impersonators Leroy’, who is
Suits
with names like Bruce Le,
Bruce Li, Bruce Lo and Lee forced to face
Bruce. Whilst no one has
ever recreated Lee’s onscreen ‘the Shogun of
skills, his onscreen apparel has
proved easier to imitate. Harlem… Sho’nuff’.
Both Lee and his famed yellow
and black jumpsuit appeared in
1978’s Game of Death for only
minutes: the film’s centrepiece
Worn by fans, film stars and – at the pagoda sequence was filmed in
Kill Bill premiere – by Jonathon Ross, 1972 (Lee died the following
year) and the remainder of
Bruce Lee’s Game of Death jumpsuit is the movie was constructed
perhaps cinema’s most influential outfit. around it, with Lee’s role
played by an absurd series
s c o t t j o rdan harris tries it on. of interchangeable stand-ins.
Nevertheless, the segment
was so outstanding, and the
international hunger for Lee
so insatiable, that the jumpsuit
became instantly iconic. It
reappeared, on the back of the
aforementioned mimic Bruce
Le, in the ridiculous rip-off
Enter the Game of Death (1980)
and again in parodic American
martial arts movie The Last
Dragon (1985), in which it is
worn by a young black kung-fu
aficionado, nicknamed ‘Bruce
Leroy’, who is forced to face
‘the Shogun of Harlem…
Sho’nuff ’.
No movie was ever more aware
of the history of the kung-fu
film than Kill Bill (2003/4).
When, in its first volume, Uma
Thurman’s Beatrice Kiddo
arrives in Tokyo hunting Lucy
Liu’s O-Ren Ishii, and fights
her enemy’s entire private
army, there was, of course, only
one outfit Quentin Tarantino
would allow her to wear. [tbp]
go further Enter the Game of Death (1980) / Bruce Lee: A Warrior's Journey (2000)
thebigpicture
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our latest writing on film by our growing
team of ridiculously talented
Deadline for entries: 21 April, 2010 articles contributors, with regular posts
satiating even the most avid of
film-loving appetites.
Braindead (1992) Game of Death (1978) Looking for something less sugary
Dir. Peter Jackson Dir. Robert Clouse
g see page 11 g see page 42
after Easter indulgencies? John
Psycho (1960) The Last Dragon (1985) Frankenheimer's Award-winning 1962 cool
Dir. Alfred Hitchcock Dir. Michael Schultz
cult classic The Manchurian Candidate
g see page 12/13 g see page 43