MOVIES:
Steven Spielberg once said “the only thing better than seeing movies is
reading about them.”
We agree. This month: This month, a movie
that every child remembers having read: Where the Wild
Things Are!
DVD'S:
Rian Johnson’s sadly underappreciated The Brothers Bloom,
Woody Allen’s grumpy/hysterical Whatever Works and
one last taste of Battlestar Galactica: The Plan.
MUSIC:
Juan Marcos gives a spin to the latest album by Muse, The
Resistance and asks to give Paramore a try.
BOOKS:
Nick Hornby understands what it is to be a fan of something.
We are fans of his newest novel, Juliet, Naked.
FOCUS: Jeanne Lopez Wilson shares a series of
photos with us.
SPOTLIGHT:
“If
one were to think of the greatest dramatic actors in film
history, names such as Marlon Brando, Laurence Olivier and
Robert De Niro may be among those that come up. If thinking
of the great comedic actors, one may consider Chaplin, Cary
Grant, Peter Sellers and so on. But the truth is, hardly any
names would be near the top of both lists.” David
Sayre tells us why Jack Lemmon tops his list of actors.
I never owned a
copy of Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are as a kid, but
I remember reading it in the library. So when it was announced that
Spike Jonze, one of the quirkiest of the newest guard of filmmakers
would be directing the movie, I was as intrigued and excited as any
other film geek. I had a movie pass recently and was debating: An
Education or Wild Things? I decided it would be better to see
Wild Things on the big screen and went for it. The screenplay was
written by Jonze and author Dave Eggers (who has also written a
novelization) and you get the sense of both of them from the very
beginning of the movie as young Max (played by Max Records) runs around
with his dog, builds an igloo and starts a snowball fight with a group
of his older sisters friends. Then the film loses that energy as we
learn that Max is having a difficult time as his divorced mom (Catherine
Keener) is dating (Mark Ruffalo, with one line in the film) and he feels
neglected. After an argument, he runs away and discovers a boat, which
he sails across the ocean to an island populated by monsters. He
befriends a big shaggy monster called Carol (voiced by James Gandolfini),
the wildest monster of the bunch. The monsters believe that Max is their
king and they have great times together, until rivalries begin and
Judith (Catherine O’Hara) feels that Carol is the king’s favorite.
The movie is
very, very cool: weird, but in the best way. However, it also seems
unbalanced. The frenetic opening scene and the scene where Max and
monsters become friends are highlights before long periods of quiet and
melancholy. I left the theatre wishing I had chosen An Education
instead, thinking it would have been more fulfilling. It isn’t that
Where the Wild Things Are was a bad movie. It was just quite
different from what I had expected. Max Records gives an astonishing
performance, one of the truest child performances ever. Keener is just
as perfect as always, in her few scenes you can see that she’s a loving
mother struggling to do her best. She truly breaks your heart. The wild
things are all fun, not just to watch, but to listen to. Lauren Ambrose
as KW projects warmth and manages to bring something incredibly special
to what is essentially a giant puppet. My favorite Wild Thing was
misunderstood Alexander, voiced by Paul Dano. Visually, the movie
astounds with the creatures and their strange, handcrafted world. I know
that when I see it again, I’ll be able to appreciate it more. That’s
usually been the case with Spike Jonzes’s films: They are never quite
what you expect, but always worth watching.
We hear so much
about how mainstream films, in particular comedies, have become dumb
and/or formulaic. So why is it that when a film that is refreshingly
full of pop whiz and bang (bang) arrives, it gets knocked down for being
“too clever” – which is what most of the negative reviews for The
Brothers Bloom essentially said. It frustrates me that a movie so
astoundingly original gets no love at all. I reviewed the film upon its
release earlier this year and after several months, it is still at the
top of my list of favorites for the year. This is why it boggles my mind
that the DVD isn’t widely available yet. For now, it is available only
as a rental in the United States, but can be purchased in Canada.
(Hopefully this isn’t a sign of things to come. One of my favorite
things about the advent of DVDs was the fact that unlike with VHS, you
could buy movies the day they were available on home video rather than
having to wait six months.) However, if you don’t go the amazon.ca
route, you can still rent The Brothers Bloom now or purchase it
in January.
And you really
should. First off, the film itself is a snappy caper film in which a
pair of con artist brothers (Adrien Brody and Mark Ruffalo) become
entangled with a quirky heiress (Rachel Weisz). Secondly, the DVD
features a tremendous amount of deleted scenes, which are all actually
interesting. Robbie Coltrane has an amazing moment as The Curator that
gives you an intriguing insight into his character… or maybe not.
(However, the cut introduction to his character was a great decision.
His first appearance in the finished film is wonderfully done and one of
the movie’s highlights.) Many of the deleted scenes were excised from
the back end of the film and are interesting looks at what it may have
been. Writer/director Rian Johnson’s commentary is one that is actually
interesting and entertaining to listen to and even inspired me to add a
little Bertolucci to my Netflix queue. Despite the frustrating manner of
its release, getting my hands on a copy of The Brothers Bloom
made me very happy. I hope that more people will be able to discover the
film and can’t wait to see what Rian Johnson’s next project (a science
fiction film!) will be.
Seeing the
trailer for the latest Woody Allen film, Whatever Works, filled
me with a sort of dread. Having never seen Larry David’s show Curb
Your Enthusiasm, all I had heard of him was that he’s either
scathingly funny or intensely annoying. The Southern characters played
by Evan Rachel Wood and Patricia Clarkson seemed to be 100%
stereotypical dumb crackers. But seeing it on DVD, I found myself
happily surprised. Mostly. It’s the most Woody Allen Woody Allen
movie in years. (Some of the existential comedy will surely remind fans
of his brilliant books, Side Effects and Without Feathers)
Genius physicist
and misanthrope Boris (played by David) meets young runaway Melody
(Wood), who convinces him to let her stay in his downtown apartment
until she finds a job. Despite the fact that Melody seems like a dim
bulb, she soaks up everything Boris has to teach, much to his surprise.
Eventually, her mother, brilliantly played by Patricia Clarkson, arrives
and is surprised to discover her daughter’s new life.
Boris continually
insults the film’s Southerners, Christians and basically anyone who
isn’t a genius with an IQ of 200. Considering how much of Woody’s films
seem to center around a Woody-like character, one can’t help but wonder
if he’s reached a point where he doesn’t care who he’s insulting with
his sweeping generalizations. Boris is an equal opportunity offender,
just as incisive when talking to his group of friends at the beginning
of the film as he is referring to Melody’s mother as “an aborigine.”
Frankly, I also don’t like the fact that all anyone needs to do is move
to New York, denounce religion and go into therapy to become a happier,
more fulfilled and less sexually oppressed person. Yet, I can’t help but
admit that the movie is funny. Larry David made me laugh out loud
repeatedly and Evan Rachel Wood made me realize that her horrible work
on television’s True Blood is the exception rather than the rule.
No doubt it is the glorious Patricia Clarkson who steals the show
(cliché!). This isn’t the Woody of Match Point or Vicky
Cristina Barcelona and that may disappoint some viewers, but
whatever. It works for me.
Although the
excellent television series Battlestar Galactica is over, fans
have known that we had two things to look forward to: The upcoming
prequel series, Caprica, and the direct to video film, The
Plan. At the beginning of every episode of BSG, we are told
about the Cylons, and that “they have a plan.” This movie is meant to
give us insight to that plan, by showing the events of the series from
the Cylon point of view. Fans of the series will recognize that there
are moments of footage from old episodes interspersed with the new
storylines. Non-fans probably shouldn’t bother because without having
important reference points, The Plan won’t make much sense, not
to mention that if you haven’t seen the show through to the conclusion
it will be (like the rest of this review) full of series spoilers.
Focusing on Dean Stockwell as two of the scheming Ones, the highlights
of The Plan are discovering what Sam Anders was up to on Caprica
before meeting up with Helo & Athena and finding out how the Shelley
Godfrey incarnation of Six escaped after attempting to frame Baltar with
a forged photo in “Six Degrees of Separation.” We get a little more
insight into Boomer’s experience as a sleeper Eight and a lot more
Fours, played by Rick Worthy, someone I’ve always wanted to see more of
since he played a guidance counselor on J.J. Abram’s Felicity.
Not to mention that we finally get to see who approached Caprica Six way
back in the very first episode of the mini-series.
The DVD also has
a commentary by Edward James Olmos, who directed the film and Jane
Espenson, former Buffy writer, who wrote The Plan and is
also the show runner for Caprica, as well as deleted scenes and
featurettes. The Plan is an interesting addition to Battlestar
lore, but isn’t able to reach the great heights of the series itself.
It’s getting
harder and harder to sound different these days. Most bands just get by
sounding like everybody else. A few bands manage to do the unthinkable
by finding an identity in an art form where everything has literally
been done already. This is the hardest thing to do as an artist, to find
a balance between what you are trying to say and how you are trying to
say it. The real talented artists find a way to recycle the best
elements in music and make them their own. Muse is one of these bands;
they have taken the genre of rock and rewritten its boundaries.
You can hear that
their sound is laced with elements from Queen, Depeche Mode, Queens of
the Stone Age, The Beatles, Radiohead, Rachmaninoff, Chopin, Andrew
Lloyd Webber, John Williams and Ennio Morricone. So how is taking bits
and pieces from all of these artists something original? In music
everything has been done, every chord has been played, every progression
has been tried and every instrument has been mastered hundreds of times.
The only constant for creation is in the combinations, there are an
infinite number of combinations but only the very skilled know how to
combine the right ingredients to make something new and great.
To take all of
these amazing bands and find some way to combine them without becoming a
tribute band, while still infusing your own creative input is as close
as we can come to something original in a time where there is little
originality left. Muse is the real deal, both in the studio and live,
this English band delivers the power and energy you would not expect
from a three piece band. I was fortunate to see them open for U2 during
the 360° tour. And I have to say that I enjoyed them more than the big
boys from Ireland. The Resistance is the fifth album from Muse
and the first one to be produced entirely by the band. It’s filled with
all of the great rock elements from their previous albums plus a new
symphonic twist that unites all of the tracks. It has taken five albums
for them to perfect their sound; I can’t wait to se what the future has
in stored for this band.
I’m turning
thirty-two in about a month and although the whole generational thing
might be starting to kick in, I’m trying really hard to be open minded
when it comes to new artists. But let me tell you, it’s hard; most of
the rock bands that formed around the middle of 2000 up to now seem to
have the same sound and formula. Current popular bands like Fall Out
Boy, Kings of Leon, My Chemical Romance, Panic! At the Disco, Yeah Yeah
Yeahs, Kelly Clarkson and Katie Perry don’t really stir anything in me.
Like I said, it could be the generational factor or it could be that
this new wave of pop rock kind of sucks. Not to say that there wasn’t a
fair amount of crap between the mid-90s and mid-2000 but I feel that
there were so many different styles of rock happening at that time that
it kept things interesting.
Of course the
only people to blame for this current trend are the record labels and
radio stations using their skill for over-saturating the market. In
other words if you are a new rock band coming out right now then you
better sound like the next Kings of Leon or Katie Perry, otherwise you
will not be given a chance. So here is the part where I’m being open
minded, recently a friend of mine that is clearly in tune with this
current generation gave me Paramore’s new CD Brand New Eyes and I
have to admit that I like it. Not to say that the elements from some of
the previously mentioned bands aren’t there, but it’s just that these
guys seem to do it better. I’m not sure if it’s the sexy girl singer
Hayley Williams, and her great vocal chops or the songs themselves.
There is clearly a lot of talent there and I think you might agree if
you give them a chance. This is the third album for the Grammy nominated
band from Franklin, Tennessee. And although they are still very young, I
feel that if they manage to stay together long enough Paramore will
become the next big band. All I can say is that this band has planted a
seed of hope and I might just start paying attention to what’s playing
on the radio. NOT!!!
For his newest
novel, Juliet, Naked, Nick Hornby writes once more about
being a fan of music, something that he can do better than anyone. As
the book begins, Duncan and Annie, a British couple in their mid-30s,
travel to America for a tour of important sites to do with a cult
musician called Tucker Crowe. Crowe was a singer/songwriter in the vein
of Dylan, Springsteen or Cohen, who recorded a brilliant album called
Juliet before retiring mysteriously. Duncan (a super-fan who
considers himself a “Crowologist”) and Annie (who really just wanted to
visit America) visit a small club in Minneapolis, where they get photos
of the toilet in which Crowe is said to have made the decision to give
it all up. They go on to California, where Annie decides to sightsee in
San Francisco while Duncan makes a pilgrimage to the home of model/muse
Julie, the inspiration for Juliet. Something happens to make
Duncan step back from the world of Tucker Crowe for a bit. Upon their
return to a small seaside English town, Annie discovers that someone has
mailed Duncan a copy of the demos for the classic album, which is to be
sold to the public as Juliet, Naked. These recordings set into
motion a chain of events that put their relationship at risk, and bring
Tucker Crowe himself into the mix.
There is no one
who can write about being a fan of something, be it music, football or
television shows (Duncan teaches a course on The Sopranos and is
obsessed with The Wire), the way that Nick Hornby, author of
High Fidelity and Fever Pitch can. But he is also a master at
writing very truthfully and very entertainingly about matters of the
heart. Juliet, Naked is no exception. I think it belongs right up
there with Fidelity and About a Boy in his body of work. I
loved that he’s focusing on Annie, a character who isn’t as committed to
Tucker Crowe fandom as Duncan, a woman who has gotten to a point in her
life where she isn’t sure where she’s going, but knows that she can’t
stay where she is. It’s something I can identify with. The story of
Tucker Crowe is just as interesting as Annie and Duncan’s story, filled
with thoughts about creating art and what it means to the people who
like it. I’m a fanboy myself and whenever I get the chance, I do like to
tell artists (be they actors or musicians) how their work has brought me
happiness, or comfort. I inevitably find myself feeling awkward
afterwards, but after some time I feel glad to have said “thank you.” I
would be remiss if I didn’t send that message to Mr. Hornby here: You’ve
written another book for me to enjoy. It entertained me and it gave me
hope. Thank you.
Often when I’m asked who my
favorite actor is, a few names tend to come up: Brando, Peter O’Toole,
Ben Gazzara always enter the argument for the gents. Jennifer Jason
Leigh, Thandie Newton and Laura Linney generally become part of the
conversation, representing the ladies. But by far, the one that
ultimately tops my list, regardless of where I am in life or what types
of movies interest me at any given moment, is Jack Lemmon.
If I were to give a somewhat
clinical answer to the question, based purely on logic, the evaluation
would have to do with both aspects of drama: comedy and tragedy. If one
were to think of the greatest dramatic actors in film history, names
such as Marlon Brando, Laurence Olivier and Robert De Niro may be among
those that come up. If thinking of the great comedic actors, one may
consider Chaplin, Cary Grant, Peter Sellers and so on. But the truth is,
hardly any names would be near the top of both lists. For me, Jack
Lemmon is on both lists. He was Tom Hanks before Tom Hanks, seeming to
have an effortless transition from humor to pathos, in the tradition of
Jimmy Stewart.
But it’s not just the
logical argument that displays Lemmon’s greatness. There is nothing
logical about the reaction Lemmon’s C.C. Baxter has when he realizes
that Shirley MacLaine’s shattered compact mirror means that the girl
he’s in love with is having an affair with his boss in The Apartment.
And there is nothing logical about our reaction to his expression; it is
purely visceral. Emotional response, not logic, is what moves the viewer
when Days of Wine and Roses’ Joe Clay helplessly and deliriously
destroys a greenhouse searching for a bottle of liquor. And logic can’t
explain the explosive laughter that results from Lemmon’s wild
performance in drag for Billy Wilder’s Some Like It Hot.
Jack Lemmon’s professional
career grew consistent in the golden age of television, acting in over
thirty teleplays throughout the 1950s. This led to the inevitable when
Hollywood came calling and Lemmon went under contract with Columbia
Pictures. During his first year working at the studio Lemmon made three
movies, including two pictures in 1954 with Judy Holliday, It Should
Happen to You and Phffft.
On the Glengarry Glen
Ross DVD, Kevin Spacey talks about Lemmon’s routine in a
retrospective for the late actor. Spacey shares that before each take,
Jack Lemmon would always say “Magic Time”. Lemmon’s son Chris talks
about this tradition in the documentary The Odd Couple: A Classic.
Magic Time seems a fitting maxim given the way Lemmon got the role of
Ensign Pulver in John Ford’s Mister Roberts (1955). In a rare
audio commentary for Mister Roberts, Lemmon tells the story of
being asked to audition for a role in John Ford’s 1955 film The Long
Gray Line. “The part aged from thirty to eighty years old”, Lemmon
remembers. “They only tested me as the old man… Ford said ‘Who the hell
was that?’ They told him, ‘that was a kid named Jack Lemmon. He just
finished a picture with Judy Holliday.’ And Ford said, ‘Well I’ll tell
you what. He’s a lousy old man, but he’d be a great Pulver.’ When I
heard that I nearly had a heart attack. Weeks later I wandered onto the
set of Ford’s movie and he walked up to me and said ‘You’re Lemmon
right? I hear you want to play Pulver.’ I said ‘Yeah.’ Ford stuck out
his hand, we shook and he said ‘I’m Ford and you’re Pulver.’ I nearly
died”. That handshake led to Jack Lemmon winning the Best Supporting
Actor Oscar for Mister Roberts.
Adapted from the stage play
by Thomas Heggen and Joshua Logan, Mister Roberts is the touching
comedy about the executive officer aboard a WWII supply ship. Lemmon
plays Ensign Frank Thurlowe Pulver, officer in charge of laundry and
morale aboard the ship. Pulver’s goal is to stay out of trouble and as
far away from combat as possible. If he can go unnoticed and stay in his
bunk for the tenure of his assignment he’s happy. Lemmon has a lot of
fun with the role of Pulver, being charming and funny as the shiftless
officer. But there is great sincerity to his portrayal that reaches its
peak as Pulver reads an alarming letter regarding the crew’s recently
departed, much loved Mister Roberts.
Over the next few years Jack
Lemmon starred in a handful of movies, some hit and some miss, such as
My Sister Eileen (1955), Cowboy and Bell Book and
Candle (both in 1958). In 1959, Lemmon co-starred with Tony Curtis
and Marilyn Monroe in one of the great comedy classics of all-time, a
picture that would also start a long and rewarding collaboration with
one of film’s elite directors, Billy Wilder. The movie was the gender
bending farce, Some Like it Hot. Lemmon and Curtis play musicians
who witness a mob hit and decide to hide out in Florida playing in an
all-girl jazz band. As Jerry/Daphne, Lemmon earns every laugh, running
around in drag with his upright bass, trying to learn how women walk in
heels and accepting a marriage proposal from a millionaire.
The following year Lemmon
and Wilder combined their talents again to make, arguably, the best
picture either would do over the span of their respective, illustrious
careers. 1960’s The Apartment is the story of C.C. Baxter, a hard
working member of the corporate rat race that was indicative of the
American culture during the 1950s and early sixties. Baxter has a
peculiar arrangement with several of the executives of the insurance
company he works for. He frequently lends his apartment to his betters
for their extramarital affairs. Baxter is smitten with one of the
elevator operators in the building, Shirley MacLaine’s Fran Kubelik.
When he realizes that his boss is having an affair with Ms. Kubelik,
Baxter is devastated. Lemmon’s performance is wonderfully understated,
featuring a simplicity that was a trademark of Lemmon’s work. His
portrayal of Baxter is absolutely charming, giving the audience an
everyman to follow with the greatest affection.
Jack Lemmon and Billy Wilder
would continue to work together, making five more films over the next
twenty years: Irma la Douce (1963), The Fortune Cookie
(1966), Avanti! (1972), The Front Page (1974) and Buddy
Buddy (1981).
In 1962, Blake Edwards
directed Lemmon in the film Days of Wine and Roses, where he
plays alcoholic Joe Clay. Lemmon’s performance is powerful and moving as
a man who gets his wife addicted to alcohol and comes to the realization
that they can’t keep living with their drinking problem. The movie is a
stark reality, without romanticism or exploitation and Lemmon’s
performance is brutally honest. He gives us heartbreaking moments as he
falls off the wagon, harrowing moments when he is locked in “the drunk
tank” and vulnerable truth when he admits his problem and works to
overcome it. It is one of Lemmon’s finest performances, a true tour de
force.
Lemmon collaborated with
Edwards again in 1965 with a hysterical dual performance as the maniacal
Professor Fate and the flamboyant Prince Hapnick in The Great Race.
The film was one in a series of comedies including Under the Yum Yum
Tree (1963), Good Neighbor Sam (1964), How to Murder Your
Wife (1965) and culminating in his first pairing with Walter Matthau
in 1966 for The Fortune Cookie.
The Lemmon-Matthau duo would
become one of the greatest on-screen teams ever featured in movies. Most
notably in their collaboration was the 1968 comedy classic The Odd
Couple, based on Neil Simon’s hit Broadway play. Jack Lemmon as
Felix Ungar and Walter Matthau as Oscar Madison are thrown together in a
mismatched domestic situation that finds a way to touch all the nerves
of a bickering marriage. Felix’s wife asks for a divorce and throws him
out. He turns to his closest friend, recently divorced Oscar. Felix is a
compulsive cleaner and Oscar is a complete slob. They get on each
other’s nerves and quarrel and it soon becomes obvious that they have
entered a strange sort of marriage of their own. The movie is one of the
funniest ever made and Lemmon’s chemistry with Matthau makes for comedic
genius.
Like his collaboration with
Wilder, Lemmon found plenty of his highly regarded “magic time” as he
kept working with Matthau over the years and ultimately made eleven
movies with his co-star and best friend. Among these were Kotch
(wherein Lemmon directed Matthau to an Academy Award nomination in
1971), another collaboration with Billy Wilder in 1974’s remake of
The Front Page, and the geriatric comedy, Grumpy Old Men
(1993).
The 1970s saw two more Neil
Simon comedies for Jack Lemmon with The Out of Towners (1970) and
The Prisoner of Second Avenue (1975). Lemmon also made two of his
best dramatic pictures during this decade: 1973’s Save the Tiger
is an unapologetic view of a middle-aged working man trying desperately
to save his job in a recession and recapture the feeling of joy he had
in his youth. Save the Tiger is a portrait of the World War II
generation living in an America whose idealism has turned to cynicism.
Lemmon’s character, Harry Stoner, glides through life like a zombie,
unable to feel anything but apathy and anger. He is so stressed that he
is numb to the world around him. When he’s not plotting to start a fire
in his warehouse to collect the insurance money that will keep his
company afloat, he tries to reminisce about the simplicity of his
pre-war childhood by attempting to remember the lineup for his beloved
1939 Brooklyn Dodgers. Lemmon’s performance is almost frightening
because it is so real and so dense and is a constant reminder of how
ordinary, decent people can sell their integrity under the scrutiny of
intense pressure. For his performance in Save the Tiger, Lemmon
won the Academy Award for Best Actor.
Lemmon plays Jack Godell in
1979’s The China Syndrome. As the supervisor of a nuclear power
plant that had a nearly catastrophic incident, Jack battles with his
moral code when the government tries to cover up the facts. Lemmon’s
character must decide whether to divulge the information to a reporter,
played by Jane Fonda. Like many of his performances, there is a
tremendous intelligence to his portrayal. Lemmon made it look so easy
and because of that many of his roles come to life with the utmost
believability.
I think one of his most
startling performances came in 1982 when he played Ed Horman, the
wealthy father of a writer who has disappeared while living in a Latin
American country torn by revolution, in Costa-Gavras’ Missing.
Lemmon plays a conservatively masculine man who always keeps his
emotions buried deep within the exterior shell. Inside, the man is ready
to burst, but he is so outwardly distant that he refuses to let it show.
He is also a somewhat naïve man when it comes to the plight of others.
Lemmon keeps his emotions at bay so carefully that when he finally lets
them loose it is as touching and human a moment as you will witness in
cinema.
In 1992’s ensemble cast that
included Al Pacino, Alan Arkin, Ed Harris, Kevin Spacey and Alec
Baldwin, Jack Lemmon plays Shelley Levene, a down on his luck salesman
whose livelihood is hanging by a thread in Glengarry Glen Ross.
Lemmon is at his sleaziest in the role, a snake in the weeds, pulling
any trick to make his sale. But beneath the odious salesman persona and
the adrenaline fused bravado is a vulnerability that is piercing, making
Lemmon’s performance a unique and complex one.
Throughout the later years
of Lemmon’s career, he returned to the arena of his earliest successes,
television. In 1987 he starred in an adaptation of Eugene O’Neill’s A
Long Day’s Journey into Night. He co-starred with George C. Scott in
two TV movies: William Friedkin’s 1997 remake of 12 Angry Men and
an adaptation of Inherit the Wind in 1999. That same year he won
an Emmy for the lead role in Tuesdays with Morrie. Lemmon even
lent his voice for an episode of The Simpsons.
Robert Redford’s 2000 film
The Legend of Bagger Vance begins with the words “A little bit of
magic time,” as Jack Lemmon squares up to hit a drive on the golf
course. Lemmon is the narrator of what would be his final film. Jack
Lemmon passed away on June 27, 2001 at the age of 76.
His body of work is as
impressive as any actor could have provided. In comedy or in drama, he
is simply one of the best. Jack Lemmon called acting a “glorious
profession”. That’s certainly true of what the man I like to call my
favorite actor did with his career and along the way Jack Lemmon gave
all of us a lot of magic time.
