Late August, Early September: My recent views, reviews and interviews online

Just in case you missed it:

Instructions Not Included : Judging from remarks on the comment thread for this one, my take on Eugenio Derbez's mawkish dramedy was not a popular one. Hey, what can I say? I'm a critic, not a pollster. Must admit, though: I find it amusing that, whenever I say less than complimentary things about a film made by anyone who isn't a Caucasian male, some people automatically assume I must be a conservative. Or, worse, a Republican. Come to think of it, my less-than-favorable review of Lee Daniels' The Butler generated a similar response.

Furthermore: Didn't think much of either I Declare War or Savannah. On the other hand: I thoroughly enjoyed Blue Jasmine (featuring Cate Blanchett, pictured above) and In a World..., and had an absolute blast talking with the wild and crazy guys who made The World's End. And I highly recommend Herblock: The Black & the White -- a warmly celebratory documentary about the Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist -- as a film well worth tracking down and checking out.

Last but by not means least: Hail and farewell to Elmore Leonard.

Glad to see there's someone else out there who likes Hollywood Ending

There was a long stretch when I feared my favorable review of Woody Allen's Hollywood Ending was every bit an outlier as... well, my review of The Adventures of Pluto Nash. So I was happy to see today that Nick Schager of The Onion's A.V. Club also had some things to say about the flick.

"I'm into leather!"

Sorry, but I just couldn't help thinking of that classic line from Annie Hall when I saw this photo. Pretty stylish, eh? I mean, if you're into the dominatrix look.

Under the influence

Woody Allen insists his work has not influenced other filmmakers. No, really. At the Venice Film Festival, he told reporters: "I don't mean that to sound like false modesty, but I could always feel the influence of my contemporaries — Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola, Robert Altman, Steven Spielberg — but I have never seen my influence on anyone."

Two questions immediately come to mind. First: Which Woody Allen most obviously reflects a Spielbergian influence? Second: Has Woody Allen ever seen... well, gee, I almost don't know where to begin. David Frankel's Miami Rhapsody? Julie Delpy's 2 Days in Paris? Anand Tucker's (and Steve Martin's) Shopgirl? Noah Baumbach's Mr. Jealousy? Ed Burns' Sidewalks of New York? Any freakin' movie ever made by Whit Stillman?

Honoring Groucho

When Groucho Marx died 30 years ago today, his passing was largely overshadowed by continuing coverage of Elvis Presley's utimely demise (which occurred just three days earlier). Indeed, even Time magazine paid scant attention to the comic great's final exit, sparking unhappy responses from Woody Allen and Dick Cavett.

Flash forward three decades, and we find... well, "Elvis has left the building" continues to get more attention than "Hello, I must be going." To partly compensate, I've posted a snippet from Animal Crackers. Not Groucho's best movie, to be sure, but this sequence showcases him at his incomparable (though oft-imitated) best. Excuse me, now, while I have a strange interlude...

Seeing the world through Jerry Orbach's eyes

From the New York Daily News: "[Jerry Orbach] donated his eyes when he died in December 2004, giving sight to two women who needed new corneas. 'I cannot remember a day that went by where he didn't say, "I want to donate my eyes,"' Orbach's widow, Elaine, recalled yesterday...

"Elaine Orbach said one of the actor's corneas went to a woman who needed a nearsighted eye, and the other went to a woman who needed a farsighted one.

"'I wonder if they have an overwhelming desire to watch Law & Order or maybe sing 42nd Street all of a sudden,' she mused."

Hey, maybe they do. Or perhaps they have an urge to look at Woody Allen's Crimes and Misdemeanors, in which Orbach played the criminal brother of a respected ophthalmologist (Martin Landau).