Doug Glatt is aging, his physical and fighting form are not at their peak anymore, and he has a kid on the way. This leads him to try to be a responsible adult and get a regular job. Can he stay away from the game and be a responsible father?
The Bootleg Files: The Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon
BOOTLEG FILES 603: “The Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon” (a 1966-2010 annual televised fundraiser for the Muscular Dystrophy Association).
LAST SEEN: Bits and pieces can be found on YouTube and other video sites.
AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: None.
REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: No attempt was made to release the entire telethon broadcasts in their entirety for home entertainment viewing.
CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: None.
For many people, this week’s passing of Jerry Lewis was followed by commentary and articles on his classic films. But for my generation – those who grew up in the 1970s and early 1980s – the emotional connection to Lewis was less about his movies and more about the bizarre, elephantine mayhem that he unleashed annually on the American public over the Labor Day weekend that became known as the “Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon.” Never in the history of fundraising has a greater display of slapstick, vulgarity and pathos been slapped together around the personality of someone who was certainly the most brilliant egomaniac in show business.
Haskell (2017) [HollyShorts 2017]
Three moments from the life of a man who can manipulate time and how his ability is affecting him.
Written and directed by James Allen Smith, Haskell is a small part, or three small parts, of what feels like a much bigger story. The story deals with time and how it affects people, especially the man who can manipulate it and those around him. The story is one that is multi-layered and deals with plenty to become a full length feature easily. The way it’s written does make it feel like it’s a part of something much bigger and perhaps a proof of concept for a feature film. However, it does still work as a short where not everything is explained and the film works with some mysteries not explained.
Death Note (2017)
I’ve been a casual fan and observer of “Death Note” since the mid-aughts and have always been fascinated with its premise and the moral dilemmas it props up for the audience and its characters. It’s almost like “The Box” but with a hit of adrenaline and more complex ideas and philosophies. Director Adam Wingard adapts “Death Note” for a new audience, taking the material from Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata, and adding his own quirks, ideas, and dashes of dark comedy. What we get is a stark, entertaining horror movie that is very much a “Death Note” tale, but one that works in its own rhythm for a broader audience, without alienating the core fan base.
No Roads In (2017) [Oceanside International Film Festival 2017]
No Roads In is a music documentary but also one about how music can transform lives.
Written by Christopher Leeson and directed by Josh Wong, this documentary follows a band as they record an album in an abandoned home in the Canadian Prairies. One of them finds this place while driving and brings the rest back to record a more natural, organic album in terms of sound and how it comes to be. The film follows these men and looks into their lives through interviews and music. The men shown include Adam Naughler, Jon May, Blake Reid, Aaron Young, and Jason Valleau who all work on the album together and have their lives and hopes discussed by themselves and others.
30 Minutes with Laura (2017) [Oceanside International Film Festival 2017]
A man meets with a woman in a restaurant where they get to know each other. As they talk, not everything is as it seems.
Written and directed (and edited) by Juanjo Haro, this short film takes a simple premise and spins it on its head. It builds what looks like a meeting between two lonely people in a restaurant through their conversation into something quite different. About halfway through the film, something happens that greatly affects the plot. As this is an important factor into this film, it shall remain a secret here. The film takes this and works with it, explaining itself in images, something that may not have been needed, but works well nonetheless.
The Bootleg Files: A Free Ride
BOOTLEG FILES 602: “A Free Ride” (the oldest surviving extant pornographic film made in the United States).
LAST SEEN: It can be found on Wikipedia.
AMERICAN HOME VIDEO: It was included in at least once porn anthology and a documentary on erotic cinema.
REASON FOR BOOTLEG STATUS: The difficulties in releasing this type of film back in the day.
CHANCES OF SEEING A COMMERCIAL DVD RELEASE: Eh, you can watch it online for free.
One of the most historically significant films in the development of the American cinema is also one of the most mysterious and obscure. And if you never heard of the silent short film called “A Free Ride,” do not consider yourself ignorant – this is not the kind of film that you will see in a college film appreciation class or in a TCM showcase.