Obsession

The wife (Genevieve Bujold) and daughter of a New Orleans real estate developer (Cliff Robertson) are kidnapped the night of their 10 year anniversary and killed in the botched recovery. Sixteen years later in Florence, where the couple initially met, he discovers his wife's dead ringer (Bujold again) and delves into a state of fixation and compulsion. Well-crafted Brian De Palma film, with a melodramatic script by Paul Schrader, is still an egregious Alfred Hitchcock appropriation (Bernard Herrmann score to boot), here a Vertigo reworking with a climactic scene that laughably mimics Dial M for Murder (It would be interesting to do a shot by shot analysis of De Palma and The Master's work just to see how much is actually borrowed). Robertson is excellent as the brooding lead as is John Lithgow as his snaky partner.

*** out of ****

Mishima: A Life In Four Chapters

As celebrated Japanese author Yukio Mishima (Ken Ogata) summons his own private army to meet one of the Emperor's Generals, take him hostage, and address the crowds before committing suppuku, we are shown flashbacks of his early life with the aid of three dramatizations of his own stories for insight. Paul Schrader's Mishima, which he wrote with his brother Leonard and his wife Chieko, is a bizarre, completely unique biopic with an unforgettable central performance by Ogata.

*** 1/2 out of ****

Dog Eat Dog

Three recently released ex-cons, a keyed up murderous psychopath (Willem Dafoe), a muscle bound enforcer (Christopher Matthew Cook), and their ostensible leader (Nicolas Cage), imitate Cleveland cops and rob low level crack dealers before being contracted by the mob to perform a kidnapping. Paul Schrader's Dog Eat Dog, filmed locally with many recognizable east side locations, is a violent, jarring, and intentionally ugly looking film which takes a humorous, metaphysical left turn at the end.

** 1/2 out of ****

Blue Collar

Fed up with their do-nothing, self-satisfied union, a trio of autoworkers (Richard Pryor, Harvey Keitel, Yaphet Kotto) decide to rob the safe in their federation's local offices making off with petty cash and a mysterious ledger purporting backroom misdoings. Now, not only do they find themselves as targets, they also see forces pitting themselves against each other. Paul Schrader's Blue Collar strives for authenticity and realism which is achieved through the help of gritty Detroit location shooting, with even some slipshod, hazy elements of the story adding to the overall effect. Pryor is surprisingly exceptional in the lead, Kotto's performance is offbeat and amusing, and Keitel, though inconsistent, really delivers in the finale.

*** 1/2 out of ****

American Gigolo

A vapid, worldly Beverly Hills male escort (Richard Gere) finds his ordered empty, life spiraling out of control when he forsakes his current madam in favor of freelancing and takes a job from his former pimp where his wealthy client winds up dead and himself unable to secure an alibi. Now, his only hope for redemption may lie with a beautiful politician's wife (and client) (Lauren Hutton) who seems to show genuine feelings of love and affection. Paul Schrader's American Gigolo offers a fairly tasteful presentation of its seedy material and is surprisingly well made and plotted (with obvious thriller elements) with polished direction and even strangely affecting on a certain level. Gere's performance is flat though occasionally effective and believable much of the time. The plot and especially the extremely well handled finale owe a lot to Bresson's Pickpocket.

*** 1/2 out of ****

The Mosquito Coast

A brilliant, principled, irascible and uncompromising inventor relocates his browbeaten family from their New England home to the coastal swamps of Honduras where he plans to lead his own empire which will be based primarily on a gargantuan ice generator of his own creation. Peter Weir's The Mosquito Coast is tremendously, almost slavishly faithful to Paul Theroux's book (which was adapted by Paul Schrader) but tries to cram in way too much in under two hours (glossing over much in the process), loses momentum, and really drags its heals following the Act 2 climax. Ford is excellent in one of his finest roles, fully embodying his complex, larger than life character, and Helen Mirren and River Phoenix are great per usual.

** 1/2 out of ****

Hardcore

When the daughter of a staunchly religious midwestern businessman (George C. Scott) goes missing on a bus trip to California, it is quickly revealed by the aid of a shifty P.I. (Peter Boyle) that she has fallen in with a circle of pornographers, and the shattered father decides to take it in his own hands to find her. Paul Schrader's Hardcore features a powerful performance of melancholic rage from Scott but the movie is continually off-putting (as it should be) and certain elements of the picture seem to work against each other.

*** out of ****

Bringing Out the Dead

From Joe Connelly's novel drawing on real life experiences, Bringing Out the Dead offers a nightmarish glimpse into the life of a burned out paramedic (Nicholas Cage) as he works the weekend night shift in a Hell's Kitchen where any and everything can happen, which has been all the more amplified by a lethal substance which has just infiltrated the local drug market. Working again with screenwriter Paul Schrader,  Martin Scorsese offers a series of amazingly filmed vignettes, highlighted by a riveting soundtrack (featuring Van Morisson, The Rolling Stones, R.E.M., and Frank Sinatra among others), and is anchored by a harrowing, all-in performance from Cage who receives great support from then wife Patricia Arquette, Cliff Curtis as a neighborhood pusher, Nestor Serrano as a worn emergency room doctor, and John Goodman, Ving Rhames, and Tom Sizemore who play Cage's colorful driving partners.

The Last Temptation of Christ

A rage and incertitude plague a very mortal Jesus (Willem Dafoe, ideally cast) as he is challenged by a browbeating Judas (Harvey Keitel) and wrestles with the dilemma of His father's calling, especially during His final hours on the cross, when He is tempted with visions of a life of domestic bliss with Mary Magdalene (Barbara Hershey). Adapted from the inflammatory Nikos Kazantzakis novel by the director's oft-collaborator Paul Schrader, The Last Temptation of Christ was a longtime passion project for Martin Scorsese and one met with no less of a swell of controversy. Seen now, twenty five years after its release, it is difficult to understand these contentions in a film made with the utmost respect and reverence which asks difficult questions and presents a savior who resists when confronted with the ultimate temptation and also offers a highly accessible portrait of Jesus' human side.

Taxi Driver

A damaged, unstable loner (Robert De Niro) takes a job driving a cab at night where the degradations of the sweltering city feeds into his madness. After a brief courtship with a beautiful campaign worker (Cybill Shepherd) is terminated, his obsessions turn towards saving the life of a 12-year-old prostitute (Jodie Foster), an unrelenting mission that will lead to a melee of urban violence. Taxi Driver is an uncommonly good film, deep and layered, which engulfs you in the weathers of a man's soul, a first person account if ever there was one in the history of film. Martin Scorsese, in what I feel to be his magnum opus, and screenwriter Paul Schrader use the city to create a terrifying canvas and De Niro demonstrates just what a consummate actor he is, fully immersing himself in his character's dreadful plight and taking the viewer right along with him. This is the kind of film that does not supply easy answers, forces the audience to think, and gets better each time you endure it.

Raging Bull

Jake La Motta's violent and tempermental nature in the ring would spill over into his personal life causing him to hurt and alienate many of those close to him. Likewise, the insecurities and jealousies would not only destroy his personal life but cause him to implode in the ring as well. Raging Bull tells the story of La Motta's rise in the 1940s with the help of his manager kid brother. Tearing through opponents, he would eventually be crowned champ and marry the young girl of his dreams. Eventually, his greatest opponent would be himself and he would be left alone, broke, and overweight, a pathetitic nightclub act reciting Brando's lines from On The Waterfront to a desolate crowd of drunks. Martin Scorsese tells the tale of this ugly man using beautiful and graceful black and white cinematography from Michael Chapman seamlessly edited by Oscar winner and longtime Scorsese collaborator Thelma Schoonmaker. Working from La Motta's memoirs and a script by Paul Schrader and Mardik Martin, Raging Bull is Martin Scorsese's masterpiece. Robert De Niro, in an Oscar winning role, wonderfully captures all of the horrible aspects and nuances of La Motta in his portrayal of the self-destructive man. Joe Pesci does fine work as his brother Joey and Cathy Moriarity is great as La Motta's envy inspiring bride. Raging Bull is a modern classic, but it is a difficult film as well. Not employing any of the cliches associated with the sports or biopic genres, and presenting tough material that causes the viewer to think, it is a great film on many levels.

Auto Focus

Bob Crane, the star of the TV sitcom Hogan's Heroes, was the victim of an unsolved brutal murder in 1978. Auto Focus follows Crane's life beginning in 1964 when, as the likable family man and California disc jockey was given a breakthrough role as Col. Robert Hogan in the surprise hit. Crane's new found made women more accessible and he began to foster a sex addiction which was even more enhanced through a friendship with an electronics salesman named John Carpenter. Carpenter was able to provide Crane with state of the art video equipment which they used to film their escapades, and as Hogan's Heroes got cancelled, Crane's life would spiral out of control with his obsessions growing until that tragic day at his Scottsdale, Arizona apartment. Though not scripting, director Paul Schrader finds in Bob Crane's life a story of man unable to control his temptations, the type of story he does so well. Greg Kinnear wonderfully embodies Crane, presenting a likable almost phony exterior while also conveying his inner demons. Willem Dafoe is his equal as the latcher on Carpenter who himself grows obsessed with Crane and was the probable culprit in his murder, but was able to walk due to shoddy evidence. Ron Leibman does fine work as well as Crane's agent who tries to help the man and warn him against his scandalous behavior. Auto Focus transcends the celebrity biopic that tells a story of human weakness and obsession, and does so in a captivating fashion.

DVD Extras: There is an excellent documentary in the Special Features called "Murder in Scottsdale" which interviews detectives and attorneys involved in the Bob Crane murder investigation and explains how poor police work and lack of evidence allowed John Carpenter to be acquitted.