Is It Time For Cameron Crowe To Say "Aloha" ?

Aloha (2015)

Rated PG-13

Starring Bradley Cooper, Emma Stone, Rachel McAdams, John Krasinski, Danny McBride, Alec Baldwin, Bill Murray, Danielle Rose Russell

Written and Directed by Cameron Crowe

The Story:

Brian (Cooper) a former military contractor that had been left for dead returns to Hawaii to work alongside some former co-workers (McBride & Baldwin) and the former love of his life (McAdams). The Air Force assigns him a liaison (Stone) to keep him out of trouble as they prepare to launch a satellite for a billionaire (Murray). Will Brian have his edge back, or are familiar surroundings going to overwhelm his sense of duty?

I think the only thing I heard about this film was that there were complaints about having Emma Stone portraying someone who is supposed to be part Hawaiian. Apparently complaining about things is the new 21st century pastime.  Then the film pretty much tanked at the box office.

Is it game over for Cameron Crowe as a writer/director?

Not so fast.

This is hardly the worst film of his career. Yet that was seemingly the buzz that surrounded this film. Sorry, but that honor belongs to Elizabethtown (which I've seen) or possibly Vanilla Sky (which I haven't).

This is a fine ensemble cast that does their best with what they are given. It's certainly watchable, and with the amount of comic actors in this film, the humor is subdued as Crowe was not out to make a "comedy" but a slice of real life and capture the humor within.

The best part is near the end between Brian and Grace (Russell) that says so much with no dialogue at all. Heartwarming and tender, it lifts the rest of the movie right up with it.

Final Grade: C+

100 Greatest Movies of All Time...That I Own. # 50 ~ Fast Times at Ridgemont High

So here it is.  50-100 have been settled.  49 more to go.  Hopefully you've enjoyed this trip down memory lane, maybe found a new title or two to give a shot at, or rediscovered a lost classic.

If nothing else, perhaps you've been able to compare my tastes in film to your own, and then you can get the idea that if I like a film, you might also...or vice versa.

Now, in the style of Casey Kasem...

Back to the Countdown!


I'm not sure when I ever saw Fast Times at Ridgemont High.  It had to be well after the original release.  Either way, I've enjoyed it over the years at a look at what High School may have been like in the late 70s/early 80s.

Wow.

Way crazier than what I went through.

And this begins to explain a lot about my brother and sister...

: )

But back to the story.  It's a collection of "a year in the life" of several students whose lives intersect throughout the school year.  From their dealings with each other, their teachers and other various people in their lives, the story moves along and never hits a dull moment.

To describe the plot any further would be impossible, and ruin the film.

But what a storm of potential was released on Hollywood with this film.  It was the first time, or relatively first time for a lot of the cast and crew:

Cameron Crowe: first movie written.
Amy Heckerling: first movie directed.

Sean Penn, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Phoebe Cates and Judge Reinhold, among others, all made one of their first forays on the Silver Screen in this project.

And don't forget Nicolas Cage!  Triple Cage for the Ultimate Win!

Naturally, one of my favorites is Mr. Hand (Ray Walston).  While technically the "villain" of the film, at least in the eyes and grades of Spicoli, you can see that like many teachers, he really does care for his students and wants them to succeed in life, and indeed, his class.

Aloha, Mr. Hand!