Lance

Alright, given that (a.) most "about me" sections are kind of boring, (b.) i'm told i'm now technically a "screenwriter" and (c.) i've clearly got some time on my hands, I decided to put some of my favorite movie clips in this section.These are all from classic movies and are considered to be among the best scenes ever committed to film…but more than that, there is something in each of them that I identify with…either a character or conflict that I relate to, a struggle that I’ve had or have sympathy for, or maybe something that is just relevant to me for a reason I can’t explain.Below are the clips with some context…forgive the lack of spacing as I can't get it to work in this profile editor...The Searchers (1956) – arguably the greatest Western ever made, and an influence for countless films after it, including Star Wars. John Wayne plays Ethan Edwards, a hardened Confederate Soldier coming home to his family in Texas after the Civil War. Shortly after he returns, his brother, sister-in-law, nephew and niece are murdered in a horrific Comanche raid. His youngest niece, Lucy, is kidnapped by the tribe and taken in as one of their own. Driven by his hatred of Comanches, all other Native Americans, and pretty much everything else, Edwards goes on a 7 year journey to find Lucy and bring her home ... a journey that sees Edwards’ intentions and motives become more and more questionable by the day, and ultimately culminates in a character defining decision.The following scene is one of the great final shots in movie history. It presents an iconic image of a man destined to watch others move on and find happiness while he walks alone, always searching for something indefinable and perhaps unattainable.Casablanca (1942) – if you haven’t seen Casablanca, you’ve certainly heard of it, and whether you know it or not, you’ve probably quoted it. Humphrey Bogart plays Rick Blaine, a tavern owner in the city of Casablanca, Morocco…a city which happens to be the final stop of a long route of escape from the Nazis out of Europe during WWII. Blaine once fought the Nazis underground in Paris until Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman), the woman he loved, broke his heart by leaving him for another man, turning him into a bitter, nihilistic survivalist who cares only for himself and nothing for what is happening in the rest of the world. His world is turned upside down when, years later, she walks into his tavern with “the other man”, looking for transit papers out of Casablanca…items which are rarer and harder to come by than gold, but that Rick has access to and can provide. Complicating things are the fact that the man she is now with is an effective rebel leader against the Nazis, which creates a very interesting moral dilemma for Rick – does he put his feelings aside to help her and ultimately help the world against tyranny? Or does he use this opportunity to get revenge on her for the broken state she left him in?This is far from the best scene in the movie, but I’ve always loved it because it shows him in the midst of a bitter, jaded fit that only love for a woman could cause…Shane (1953) – the root of the classic “man comes to small town to help fight the bad guys” Western. George Stevens’ masterpiece is the type of film that you’re just thankful exists because it is such a gratifying and complete experience. Shane, an ex-gunfighter running from his past, comes upon a small town where he believes he can finally find safe haven from his bloody background. He takes up with a family of farmers, and forms a special bond with the young boy Joey, as well as a forbidden desire for Joey’s mother, a desire that she seems to share. When a group of ranchers hires a particularly cruel gunfighter to come in and run Joey’s family and all the other families off the land that is rightfully theirs, Shane reluctantly returns to his former profession, knowing he is their only hope.This scene, the final one of the film, is one of the most heartbreaking scenes i’ve ever watched. Shane, knowing that he can never find true peace or be with the woman he’s fallen in love with, says goodbye to Joey after saving the town and it’s people.City Lights (1931) – the silent film era is something few people these days care anything about, which is both understandable and tragic. Understandable because the films aren’t in great availability (you can probably count the # of silent films at any Blockbuster Video on one hand) … and let’s face it, why would someone sit down and watch a movie with no talking when they can see the cutting edge of special effects in the theater at any given time? But it’s also tragic, because the days of silent films produced some amazing films that will go unseen by most everyone, and they are films that touch more deeply than all the special effects in the world could ever hope to.My favorite silent film is “City Lights”, a film that was actually made during the sound era, but that Charlie Chaplin refused to add sound to because he believed he could say more about love by showing it than by talking about it endlessly. And surprise, surprise… he was right. Chaplin is considered by many to be a physical comedy actor, but City Lights shows that he was much more than that.Chaplin plays The Tramp, a homeless bum who happens upon a poor blind flower girl one day on the street. He falls in love with her immediately, and befriends her, even though she can only recognize him by the feel of his hands. Upon finding out that there is an operation that may cure her eyesight, The Tramp makes it his life mission to raise the money to get her the operation, nearly risking his life in many comical situations. He raises the money, and she has the operation. But before she ever sees what he looks like, circumstances pull him away from her. Several years later, he finds her again, and the scene below takes it from there…Night of the Hunter (1955) – Night of the Hunter is one of the most underrated films, maybe the most underrated film, of all time. It is making many critics top films lists, and even found it’s way to the AFI’s top 100 most thrilling movies list…so it’s starting to make a comeback. But if you haven’t seen this film, drop whatever you’re doing right now, get your hands on it, and watch it. Don’t argue, just do it.The film tells the story of Harry Powell (Robert Mitchum), a psychotic criminal masquerading as a preacher, murdering and stealing in the name of God. He runs into some luck one day when he gets thrown into jail with a man who has recently stolen a large sum of $ and hidden it with his children before getting arrested, and eventually executed. Upon his release, Powell finds the man’s family, marries their mother, and fully dedicates himself to getting the $, even if it means killing everyone in the house. The scene below picks up after the children have run away from home, hopped in a boat, gone down river, and by chance found refuge with an older Christian woman who represents the complete opposite kind of faith that Powell exhibits. Powell finds them, but the woman does everything she can to fight him off, seeing right through his “preacher” cover. She is right and he is wrong, but she’s in a classic David vs. Goliath situation as she holes up in her house, guarding the children and waiting for the police to come and help.To me this clip epitomizes the struggle between good and evil, and specifically an evil which can often masquerade itself as something good with nothing but the noblest of intentions.The English Patient (1996) – I’m not sure what it is about heartbreak and beauty that seem to go hand in hand, but there is plenty of both in this film. Ralph Fiennes plays Count Lazlo de Almasy, a British mapmaker in Africa during WWII. He falls in love with a woman named Katherine Clifton who is on his mapmaking team … and also happens to be married. They begin a torrid affair, which culminates in her husband finding out, and trying to kill the Count in a very creative way.This clip is such a beautiful tragedy of a man who wants something so badly that he can’t have, even when she’s lying in his arms…Days of Heaven (1978) – Days of Heaven is a very simple story of a love triangle gone wrong, but the story doesn’t even seem to matter. It is one of the most beautifully shot films you could ever hope to see, and perhaps the greatest cinematography ever done in any film. It is the kind of film that is more about the experience and the emotions it invokes than the story it tells, and it has a way of sweeping you up into a place that, while bittersweet, is somewhere you would love to go and watch the sun set just once.This isn’t a clip of an actual scene, but a series of stills against the great Ennio Morricone score that earned him an Oscar nomination.Ikiru (“To Live”) (1952) – in my opinion, the greatest foreign film of all time, directed by a man many to believe to be the greatest director of all time. Akira Kurosawa’s story of a man who finds out he has terminal cancer and the way he spends his final days could have turned into a gloomy, depressing, punch in the stomach…but Kurosawa used grim subject matter to tell one of the most uplifting and touching stories that has ever been told, on film or otherwise.The main character, Kajani Watanabe, is a city official who has done nothing with his life outside of sitting behind a desk and stamping approvals on whatever is put in front of him. Upon learning that he has terminal stomach cancer, Watanabe decides to live and make his life mean something by doing things he’s never done before, culminating in building a badly needed playground for children and families in a poverty-stricken area of the city.Nothing is said in the following scene, only the quiet singing of a triumphant Watanabe sitting in his completed playground, living his final moments with a peace of mind that transcends anything his former self ever thought life could provide.