For my third
double-bill, I had to think long and hard about what I would subject my quarry
to. All I knew was that I wanted a geographical theme. Initially, I was bent on
a Scottish sortie, with a brace of the little-seen Orphans (Dir. Peter Mullan, 1998) and Whisky Galore! (Dir. Alexander Mackendrick, 1949). Accidental Hero and Gregory's Girl weren't far behind, Bill Forsyth lovers.
Then it
struck me... "All right, all right, all riiiiiiight." It was time to
resurrect the cinematic tookus of Texas by way of Matthew "two good
films" McConaughey.
Lone Star
(Dir. John Sayles, 1996)
Indie director John Sayle's most cinematic film to date is also one of his most successful. Ostensibly a whodunit with a central love story, Lone Star is an ensemble piece in which a small town sheriff, Sam Deeds (Chris Cooper), must solve the mystery of who murdered the loathsome Charlie Wade (Kris Kristofferson) many moons ago. The suspect: his late father and legendary former sheriff, Buddy Deeds (Matthew McConaughey).
Chris Cooper
is absolutely incredible as Sam; understated, compassionate and riddled with
dad issues. It's not often you get to see a character actor lead a film, and
Cooper gives compelling evidence as to why he's so highly regarded by Hollywood
bigwigs and outsiders. But the real star of the show is director John Sayles.
With ace DP Haskell Wexler in tow, Sayles turns the town of Frontera, Texas,
into a real, living and breathing community. It's so palpable that you feel
like you're there with Sam investigating the murder.
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| Chris Cooper: Either watch Lone Star or spend a night in the cooler - it's your choice. |
The dialogue
is nuanced and often majestic, but sometimes the social commentary -
preoccupied with shared history and the need to remember/forget, figuratively
represented by US/Mexican relations within the community - feels forced and
heavy-handed. However, it's striking how similar the beats of the dialogue are
in HBO’s The Wire, which was
definitely influenced by the socially-conscious films of John Sayles.
How more
people haven't seen this film is a riddle that I'll never be able to solve.
Watch it for the tremendous performances, the scintillating dialogue and an
ending that packs a quietly devastating punch not without hope for a better
future. Nice work, John.
Now watch the Lone Star trailer below:
Dazed and
Confused (Dir. Richard Linklater, 1993)
There's not
much to say about Dazed and Confused
that I haven't said elsewhere (you can read my lovingly-written nostalgia piece here). Linklater's masterpiece is one of the best 'day in the life' films
around, and it's definitely the greatest movie about being a teenager.
Set during
the last day of term in 1976, Dazed and
Confused follows the misadventures of freshman Mitch Kramer (Wiley
Wiggins), senior Randy "Pink" Floyd and a whole host of geeks, cool
kids and jocks from end of school to the early hours of the next morning.
From the
brutal high school hazing to the ensuing debauchery of the beer bust, the film
recreates the highs and lows of teenage life with unerring ease and poignancy
without being mawkish or heavy-handed. Linklater knows that teenagers are
naive, self-indulgent arseholes, but that that they can also be great fun, too.
He also knows how to put together a cracking soundtrack, which is very much of mid-seventies
era (read: slightly embarrassing).
Special
mention must go to the man of the article, Matthew McConaughey. Wooderson is
one of my favourite cinematic slackers, simultaneously cool and creepy as the
older guy determined to keep on livin'...L...I...V...I...N. On the other hand, 'Special' mention goes to Wiley Wiggins who spend most of the time clinching the bridge of his nose as though he's just drank too much milkshake. Bloody kids.
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| Matthew McConaughey, Jason London and Wiley Wiggins: Passing down the baton of cool. |
My
university friends and I (mainly film studies students) used to put Dazed and Confused on before we went out
and it regularly brightened up even the gloomiest of evenings trawling the bars
of Sheffield in the winter. If you don't have any friends, I suggest you get a
big bag of weed and light one up in honour of this genuine cult classic, my friend.
You can watch the Dazed and Confused trailer below:
