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Feb.10, 1984 Motion picture madness: 1983's best and worst films Sudden Impact Daily Collegian Top 20 By Holzer and Foster The Big Chill The Right Stuff Terms of .Endearment Zelig Never Cry Wolf Local Hero The Ballad of Cregorio Cortez Risky Business Silkwood Educating Rita War Games A Christmas Story Monty Python's The Meaning of Life Lianna Return of the Jedi Flashdance Uncommon Valor The Outsiders Evil Dead Los Angeles Times Top 10 By Sheila Benton Fanny and Alexander Terms of Endearment Sight of the Shooting Stars The Right Stuff Tender Mercies Never Cry Wolf Betrayal Berlin Alexanderplat: Local Hero Heart Like a Wheel San Francisco'Chronicle Top 10 The Ballad of Cregorio Cortez Fanny and Alexander La Nuit de Varenhes Never Cry Wolf Night ofthe Shooting Stars The Right Stuff Silkwood Streamers Terms of Endea, Zelig for the top 20 differ from major film " the films they've seen have nol HeartLikeaWheel.""Star80" and countless foreign films take longer to reach Fn than to major releases like "Terms of Endearment" and "Return ofthe Jedi." Many foreign films named in c top 10 lists have not played Fresno; and may i shown in Fresno unless Ihey manage to sneak their way The Tower's schedule for a couple of days. Besides, aren't there enough major American film works that our reviewers can chose 10 best without naming foreign films as four or five of their favoritics? Unlike what some reviewers (very few are "criticsr) say, film is pop culture entertainment. What films are made for solely artistic reasons? Wc haven't seen any foreign films thai were better lhan American films because they Our choices for the 10 worst films aren't necessarily the 10 worst film made this year, oreven the 10 worst wc saw. What puts films like "Superman III," and "Two of a Kind" onour worst 10 list is the fact that these films should have been good. There was a lot of ink and publicity surrounding them and they turned out to be total losers. Our choices for the best 20 films in I983: •"Testament" is a beautiful film. Jane Alexander gives an unforgettable performance as a mother forced to deal with the realities and hardships of family life after a nuclear catastrophy. Emotionally as destructive as a nuclear blast. Another plus for the film is that it doesn't rely on gross makeup effects or destroyed sets. *"The Big Chill" has eight main characters, products of post-war "baby boom." reunited by the suicide of an old friend. Best ensemble work in a film this year. "Big Chill"also featured a great soundtrack of music from the 1960s and early 70s. •"The Right Stuff is the most fun youll have at the movies in a long lime. The three hourepic based on Tom Wolfe's novel centers itself on America's race for space. Chuck Yeager's conquering of Ihe sound barrier to John Glenn's earth orbit in "Friendship VII," "The Right Stuff" is a filmgoing experience you won't forget. e"Terms of Endearment" is certainly one of the best films of the year, and it should do well when Oscar- nominations are posted later this month. Like the ad campaign reads, "Come to laugh, come to cry, come to terms*—this film is special. • "Zelig" is Woody Allen's masterpiece. The story about a human chameleon isn't sacrificed for the artistic devices employed by Allen and his technical magicians. A tribute to old documentaries. "Zelig" is unique. •"Never Cry Wolf" is a magestic film about a man who gives up life in the big city to tramp up to the Alaskan wilderness for scientific research. His assignment is to study wolves and determine if they are responsible for deaths in the caribou population. "Never Cry Wolf" is sensitive, warm, humorous, and beautifully photograph. •"Local Hero"stars Burt Lancaster as a sjar-gazing oil company executive who sends a co-worker to a small Welch village on a fact-finding mission. "Local Hero" disappeared too quickly from Fresno film screens. •"The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez" is a trial film that thoroughly probes key witnesses, examining all testimony in a case involving a young Mexican acctissed of killing a Texas lawman. Was il cold-blooded murder or self- defense? •"Ritky Business" is the best film geared to the younger teenage market. Amusing, it follows Joel (Tom Cruise) as he turns his parents' house into a brothel for a night. "Risky Business" isn't socially important—it's just good solid entertainment. •"Silkwood,"starring Meryl Streep, Kurt Russell, and Cher, is based on a true ttory about a woman whodied on her way to meet with a reporter to discuss problems in a nuclear plant. The film is successful because it doesn't tamper with the real life counterparts to the individual e"Educating Rita" is a charming little film based on an English stage play. It stars Michael Caine as a tutor who helps a young woman through the difficulties of returning to school. Newcomer Jessica Walters helps make this film a delight to watch. •"WarGames"examines the topical issue of computers and nuclear war. Matthew Brodcrick stars as a young computer wiz who breaks into the NORADcomputerto play want he thinks is just a harmless videogame of geothcrmal nuclear war. •"A Christmas Story" is a charming little film which took everyone in Hollywood by surprise. Howcanafilm boas'ting no big budget or major theatrical star be successful? "A Christmas Slory" did pull audiences in because of the charm in its nostalgia. •"Monty Python's The Meaning of Life" is a special wildly successful farce featuring (hose English crazies, the Monty Python troup. Who will ever forget the singing goldfish, death, or the gross!> funny fat man. leaves her husband and farm!) when she realizes she has been denying her homosexual pain created by ihe situatioi analysis than "Personal Best." •"Return of Ihe Jedi" is the most successful box office film of the year, actually dome better ai the box office than "The Empire Strikes Buck. "The end chapter in the . middle book of Lucas' master planned serialization, "Jedi" didn't leave viewers with anv cliff-hanging ending like "Empire." •"Flashdancc" is energetic lively, and very entertain¬ ing. Itisanolherfilm which is it isn't a personal statemem c and becomes a box-office s purely, entertaining film. •"Uncommon Valor"sne much better lhan w s far better biologically important— political film — but survives . i because it delivers as a Valor e Hat no our top 20 because it icipatcd. "Uncommon in Vietnam. Hackman to a collective force to still held c son is listed as missing in action in gathers his son's war buddies into I reenter Vietnam and rescue America •"The Outsiders" is a film which was made possible ii part by a letter sent to director Francis Ford Coppola from students in a Sanger grammar school. Based on the teen classic by S.E. Hinion. " i he Outsiders" stars Matt •"Evil Dead" is "brilliant trash." With its title, you might expect to hate it, but it's a very scary film. It's about a young camper trapped in a forest with five living Best short subject: Special honors go to Disney Studios for the short "Mickey's Christmas Carol." It is really nice to see Mickey's return to the big screen, even if it's only for 22 It was fairly easy (in comparison) to select the worst 10 films. We could have picked 30 films which we hated if we included films like "Porky's II,""Screwballs,"and "Joy¬ sticks." But we chose to pick w hat are in actuality the 10 biggest disappointments ofthe year: •"The Man Who Loved Women" is definitely type¬ casting of Burt Reynolds. It's a shame this film couldn't have been more interesting. We found ourselves falling asleep half the way through. •"Yentl" is a so-called musical. But in actuality the film is a showcase of Barbra Streisand's talents. No real problem with her overindulgence as writer, director, producer and star; it just would have been a much better film if it had been shorter and had featured someone other than her singing. •"Superman III," starring Richard Pryor, is a huge letdown. If a good script would have been developed for g this sequel, "Superman 111" w ould have been one of the biggest box office films of the century. •"To Be or Not To Be.*" is a remake that never should have been made. Mel Brooks should have let-the original version starring Jack Benny stand alone. He invited comparison to the original when he took on this project. •"Christine " was a waste (.^beautiful (through their apparent ugliness) classic caj L The special effects were ie soundtrack featuring old and new is to watch classic cars destroyed on ie SPCA, the society to protect classic ■ terribly bad movie, complete ughly disgusting set of beer jokes. This film audience members on screen watching a :nce fiction film and starting a riot to get their money back. We were sure that was a self-fulfilling en Impact," while successful at the box office, nspired retread of "Dirty Harry"and "Magnum e ve already seen Harry blow away enough bad • ihought there was hope when Clint Eastwood naking films like "Bronco Billy" and "Honky John Travolta and Oli in the Chi offering 20th Century Fox should have really developed a musical project thai would have followed i' is cursed from the start with a weak from Elizabeth McGovern. As ciite as she is, McGovern hasn't shown us that she can act. In "Ordinary People"and "Ragtime" she played a very one- dimensional character. In "Lovesick" she doesnt show the emononal strength to be a grown her psychiatrist (Dudley Moore). •"Jaws lll-O. Metalstorm, The Man Who Wasn't There.'' and "Amityville 3-D"—al! 3-D films which didnt. do an\ (hing special, unique or new with the process. Why do you think 3-D vanished in the '50s. It's a gimmick that often fails. In all ofthe 3-D films released this year. not one was even slightly well made. So t here they are our top 20, and the worst 10 films of 1983. We hope you try to catch some ofthe top 20 films if given the oportunity. IfyouVei ' selections for the worst 10, we hope you enjoyed them more l han we did. It's no fun wasting money on bad films. Illustrations by Robert Foster
Object Description
Title | 1984_02 The Daily Collegian February 1984 |
Alternative Title | Daily Collegian (California State University, Fresno) |
Publisher | Associated Students of Fresno State, Fresno, Calif. |
Publication Date | 1984 |
Description | Daily (except weedends) during the school year. Microfilm. Palo Alto, Calif.: BMI Library Microfilms, 1986- microfilm reels; 35 mm. Vol.1, no.1 (Feb 8, 1922)- |
Subject | California State University, Fresno -- Periodicals. |
Contributors | Associated Students of Fresno State. |
Coverage | Vol.1 no.1 (Feb 8, 1922)- to present |
Format | Microfilm reels, 35 mm. |
Technical Information | Scanned at 600 dpi; TIFF; Microfilm ScanPro 2000 "E-image data" |
Language | eng |
Description
Title | Feb 10, 1984 Pg. 6-7 |
Alternative Title | Daily Collegian (California State University, Fresno) |
Publisher | Associated Students of Fresno State, Fresno, Calif. |
Publication Date | 1984 |
Description | Daily (except weedends) during the school year. Microfilm. Palo Alto, Calif.: BMI Library Microfilms, 1986- microfilm reels; 35 mm. Vol.1, no.1 (Feb 8, 1922)- |
Subject | California State University, Fresno -- Periodicals. |
Contributors | Associated Students of Fresno State. |
Coverage | Vol.1 no.1 (Feb 8, 1922)- to present |
Format | Microfilm reels, 35 mm. |
Technical Information | Scanned at 600 dpi; TIFF; Microfilm ScanPro 2000 "E-image data" |
Language | eng |
Full-Text-Search | Feb.10, 1984 Motion picture madness: 1983's best and worst films Sudden Impact Daily Collegian Top 20 By Holzer and Foster The Big Chill The Right Stuff Terms of .Endearment Zelig Never Cry Wolf Local Hero The Ballad of Cregorio Cortez Risky Business Silkwood Educating Rita War Games A Christmas Story Monty Python's The Meaning of Life Lianna Return of the Jedi Flashdance Uncommon Valor The Outsiders Evil Dead Los Angeles Times Top 10 By Sheila Benton Fanny and Alexander Terms of Endearment Sight of the Shooting Stars The Right Stuff Tender Mercies Never Cry Wolf Betrayal Berlin Alexanderplat: Local Hero Heart Like a Wheel San Francisco'Chronicle Top 10 The Ballad of Cregorio Cortez Fanny and Alexander La Nuit de Varenhes Never Cry Wolf Night ofthe Shooting Stars The Right Stuff Silkwood Streamers Terms of Endea, Zelig for the top 20 differ from major film " the films they've seen have nol HeartLikeaWheel.""Star80" and countless foreign films take longer to reach Fn than to major releases like "Terms of Endearment" and "Return ofthe Jedi." Many foreign films named in c top 10 lists have not played Fresno; and may i shown in Fresno unless Ihey manage to sneak their way The Tower's schedule for a couple of days. Besides, aren't there enough major American film works that our reviewers can chose 10 best without naming foreign films as four or five of their favoritics? Unlike what some reviewers (very few are "criticsr) say, film is pop culture entertainment. What films are made for solely artistic reasons? Wc haven't seen any foreign films thai were better lhan American films because they Our choices for the 10 worst films aren't necessarily the 10 worst film made this year, oreven the 10 worst wc saw. What puts films like "Superman III," and "Two of a Kind" onour worst 10 list is the fact that these films should have been good. There was a lot of ink and publicity surrounding them and they turned out to be total losers. Our choices for the best 20 films in I983: •"Testament" is a beautiful film. Jane Alexander gives an unforgettable performance as a mother forced to deal with the realities and hardships of family life after a nuclear catastrophy. Emotionally as destructive as a nuclear blast. Another plus for the film is that it doesn't rely on gross makeup effects or destroyed sets. *"The Big Chill" has eight main characters, products of post-war "baby boom." reunited by the suicide of an old friend. Best ensemble work in a film this year. "Big Chill"also featured a great soundtrack of music from the 1960s and early 70s. •"The Right Stuff is the most fun youll have at the movies in a long lime. The three hourepic based on Tom Wolfe's novel centers itself on America's race for space. Chuck Yeager's conquering of Ihe sound barrier to John Glenn's earth orbit in "Friendship VII," "The Right Stuff" is a filmgoing experience you won't forget. e"Terms of Endearment" is certainly one of the best films of the year, and it should do well when Oscar- nominations are posted later this month. Like the ad campaign reads, "Come to laugh, come to cry, come to terms*—this film is special. • "Zelig" is Woody Allen's masterpiece. The story about a human chameleon isn't sacrificed for the artistic devices employed by Allen and his technical magicians. A tribute to old documentaries. "Zelig" is unique. •"Never Cry Wolf" is a magestic film about a man who gives up life in the big city to tramp up to the Alaskan wilderness for scientific research. His assignment is to study wolves and determine if they are responsible for deaths in the caribou population. "Never Cry Wolf" is sensitive, warm, humorous, and beautifully photograph. •"Local Hero"stars Burt Lancaster as a sjar-gazing oil company executive who sends a co-worker to a small Welch village on a fact-finding mission. "Local Hero" disappeared too quickly from Fresno film screens. •"The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez" is a trial film that thoroughly probes key witnesses, examining all testimony in a case involving a young Mexican acctissed of killing a Texas lawman. Was il cold-blooded murder or self- defense? •"Ritky Business" is the best film geared to the younger teenage market. Amusing, it follows Joel (Tom Cruise) as he turns his parents' house into a brothel for a night. "Risky Business" isn't socially important—it's just good solid entertainment. •"Silkwood,"starring Meryl Streep, Kurt Russell, and Cher, is based on a true ttory about a woman whodied on her way to meet with a reporter to discuss problems in a nuclear plant. The film is successful because it doesn't tamper with the real life counterparts to the individual e"Educating Rita" is a charming little film based on an English stage play. It stars Michael Caine as a tutor who helps a young woman through the difficulties of returning to school. Newcomer Jessica Walters helps make this film a delight to watch. •"WarGames"examines the topical issue of computers and nuclear war. Matthew Brodcrick stars as a young computer wiz who breaks into the NORADcomputerto play want he thinks is just a harmless videogame of geothcrmal nuclear war. •"A Christmas Story" is a charming little film which took everyone in Hollywood by surprise. Howcanafilm boas'ting no big budget or major theatrical star be successful? "A Christmas Slory" did pull audiences in because of the charm in its nostalgia. •"Monty Python's The Meaning of Life" is a special wildly successful farce featuring (hose English crazies, the Monty Python troup. Who will ever forget the singing goldfish, death, or the gross!> funny fat man. leaves her husband and farm!) when she realizes she has been denying her homosexual pain created by ihe situatioi analysis than "Personal Best." •"Return of Ihe Jedi" is the most successful box office film of the year, actually dome better ai the box office than "The Empire Strikes Buck. "The end chapter in the . middle book of Lucas' master planned serialization, "Jedi" didn't leave viewers with anv cliff-hanging ending like "Empire." •"Flashdancc" is energetic lively, and very entertain¬ ing. Itisanolherfilm which is it isn't a personal statemem c and becomes a box-office s purely, entertaining film. •"Uncommon Valor"sne much better lhan w s far better biologically important— political film — but survives . i because it delivers as a Valor e Hat no our top 20 because it icipatcd. "Uncommon in Vietnam. Hackman to a collective force to still held c son is listed as missing in action in gathers his son's war buddies into I reenter Vietnam and rescue America •"The Outsiders" is a film which was made possible ii part by a letter sent to director Francis Ford Coppola from students in a Sanger grammar school. Based on the teen classic by S.E. Hinion. " i he Outsiders" stars Matt •"Evil Dead" is "brilliant trash." With its title, you might expect to hate it, but it's a very scary film. It's about a young camper trapped in a forest with five living Best short subject: Special honors go to Disney Studios for the short "Mickey's Christmas Carol." It is really nice to see Mickey's return to the big screen, even if it's only for 22 It was fairly easy (in comparison) to select the worst 10 films. We could have picked 30 films which we hated if we included films like "Porky's II,""Screwballs,"and "Joy¬ sticks." But we chose to pick w hat are in actuality the 10 biggest disappointments ofthe year: •"The Man Who Loved Women" is definitely type¬ casting of Burt Reynolds. It's a shame this film couldn't have been more interesting. We found ourselves falling asleep half the way through. •"Yentl" is a so-called musical. But in actuality the film is a showcase of Barbra Streisand's talents. No real problem with her overindulgence as writer, director, producer and star; it just would have been a much better film if it had been shorter and had featured someone other than her singing. •"Superman III," starring Richard Pryor, is a huge letdown. If a good script would have been developed for g this sequel, "Superman 111" w ould have been one of the biggest box office films of the century. •"To Be or Not To Be.*" is a remake that never should have been made. Mel Brooks should have let-the original version starring Jack Benny stand alone. He invited comparison to the original when he took on this project. •"Christine " was a waste (.^beautiful (through their apparent ugliness) classic caj L The special effects were ie soundtrack featuring old and new is to watch classic cars destroyed on ie SPCA, the society to protect classic ■ terribly bad movie, complete ughly disgusting set of beer jokes. This film audience members on screen watching a :nce fiction film and starting a riot to get their money back. We were sure that was a self-fulfilling en Impact," while successful at the box office, nspired retread of "Dirty Harry"and "Magnum e ve already seen Harry blow away enough bad • ihought there was hope when Clint Eastwood naking films like "Bronco Billy" and "Honky John Travolta and Oli in the Chi offering 20th Century Fox should have really developed a musical project thai would have followed i' is cursed from the start with a weak from Elizabeth McGovern. As ciite as she is, McGovern hasn't shown us that she can act. In "Ordinary People"and "Ragtime" she played a very one- dimensional character. In "Lovesick" she doesnt show the emononal strength to be a grown her psychiatrist (Dudley Moore). •"Jaws lll-O. Metalstorm, The Man Who Wasn't There.'' and "Amityville 3-D"—al! 3-D films which didnt. do an\ (hing special, unique or new with the process. Why do you think 3-D vanished in the '50s. It's a gimmick that often fails. In all ofthe 3-D films released this year. not one was even slightly well made. So t here they are our top 20, and the worst 10 films of 1983. We hope you try to catch some ofthe top 20 films if given the oportunity. IfyouVei ' selections for the worst 10, we hope you enjoyed them more l han we did. It's no fun wasting money on bad films. Illustrations by Robert Foster |