And since I'm feeling analytical and investigative, I started to notice patterns ... sure, the robots were only in "Westworld" ... but they all have these partner things going on, particularly the TV shows.
http://www.ccwriter.org
www.allposters.comGood looking WASP-ish cop gets the girls and the dramatic stories (Hutch is turned into a junky, the woman he loves is a prostitute who gets killed after hitting Sylvia Sydney; Crockett's cover is blown by Frank Zappa, the woman he sleeps with is an Interpol mole), while the darker guys get the goofy supporting crap to do. Starsky has girls, sure, and so does Rico ... I think ... maybe in a couple of episodes anyway, but they're not the glamorous ones with the iffy past or the ones that turn the plot. Of course Starsky and Rico get to discover the real story on the girls because they've got to protect their partner. Fahhhhh Hutch couldn't even cover Starsky in that street fight and Crockett ... well, he did climb up that bridge and save the day, but the cost ... ohhhhhhh the emotional cost.
But this is what made "Westworld" so truly wonderful -- good looking partner doesn't save the day. The hero is dark, nebbish Richard Benjamin, the guy that wants a vodka martini at the cowboy bar. That reminds me, I need to put "Love at First Bite" on the Netflix queue.
www.movieactors.com
4 comments:
Hi Hateful... your blog is a bright spot on my computer since I found you through Archival Clothing (I like bikes). I've added "Westworld" to my netflix que, and you may want to add "Paint You Wagon" (Lee Marvin{a master} and Clint Eastwood in a western musical-soooo good.
Oh MAN, what a flashback. We had to watch that in high school English Lit. class -- dear, dear Sister Marie -- and to this day I can't remember why or what it connected to. Maybe it was history class, but still ... it's weird to think that we watched it in lieu of book-learnin' for anything outside of Theater Arts (and even then ... "Today's class is how to lip sync and sing-talk." It's crazy).
I dearly love Lee Marvin. Maybe I'll got put in "The Dirty Dozen" ... that's also got Cassavetes ("STICK 'UM!") and his beautiful head.
and thank you for the compliment. I like bikes too -- one day I'll celebrate the beauty that is La Tour (if I can ... erm ... get the rust off it).
Ya know, though, if I remember correctly, that bitchin' Torino belonged to Starsky. Man...loved that show as a kid. But, nobody on it was cooler than "Huggy Bear." Never really did warm up to Crockett and Tubbs ("Call him Mr. Tubbs!")...groan...sorry...Probably should give em another chance. Rockford and Baretta were more to my taste. They were loner, anit-heros...yep, like me.
You're right about Westworld. But, killing off James Brolin and letting Richard Benjamin save the day gives so much more punch to the plot. The story's essentially a slave revolt. Except the former masters are now the slaves. (A warning?) Or, are we already the slaves to history? Since, instead of trying to gain insight from contemplating the struggles of humanity, we turn it all into a big amusement park so we can act out our murderous fantasies inspired by fanatic despots. The glorified, "Western" warrior culture always leads to death. We need the hero to be a descendant of Semitic/Arab, hard-bitten, long suffering, desert nomads. Those who have survived the worst of what man and God can dish out. In it's way, kind of a subversive film for a big studio release. A big middle finger to the war-mongering, Western imperialists!...Yeah, Baby!...Shit! I just looked it up, and had totally forgotten that it was written and directed by Michael Crichton...Oh well...Never mind.
Anyway, it would still not be anywhere near as subversive as screening Paint Your Wagon for an English Lit class!? I can hear the teacher now..."Hmm...Grapes Of Wrath? Naa, that'll put em to sleep. Hey, what's this, Lee Marvin and Clint Eastwood...SINGING!...Perfect!
Yeah, I don't know ... Catholic school. It was a crazy time. I mean, watching "The Natural" to study King Arthur made some sense ... "Paint Your Wagon" ... no idea.
Post a Comment