"Let's get some payback . . . "

Never have I seen such a well-balanced film strike the medium between shoot-em-up flick and anti-war preaching. Stanley Kubrick's "Full Metal Jacket" is a decidedly anti-war film with the presence of countless original absurdities and fantastic battle cinematography.

There are so many memorable lines and easily recalled scenes that "Full Metal Jacket" is a full-fledged classic. I particularly enjoyed my return visit to the abusive domain of one Sgt. Hartman (portrayed masterfully by the man who lived it -- E. Lee Ermey).

The message of this film goes well beyond the simple "war-is-hell" routine to enter the ramifications of combat, training, trench life and the brotherhood of those that fight for their country. I don't think I have ever seen another war movie that tackles so many complex topics without backing into at least some kind of heavy-handed moments. This one is solid through and through.

And if for nothing else, you'll likely enjoy the experience that is Adam Baldwin's character, Animal Mother. I mean, who else was going to go in there after those guys?

"Photos" blog operational

On the right side of this page under "other blogs," there is now a photos page. There aren't very many pics there yet, but more will be added soon . . .

To see the images a little closer, click on them and they will be available in a larger window.

Stay tuned for more.

Think of the possibilities . . . .

I swear the Urban Docent is about more than movies, although it may not seem like it at times.

But I recently obtained the new "Apocalypse Now: The Complete Dossier" two-disc set, which contains tons of extras and commentary from director Francis Ford Coppola.

My recent viewing was my first to see the film start to finish unedited. It's truly a one-of-a-kind cinematic undertaking that I'm sure will never occur again. Listening to Coppola's commentary is like sitting in on a great conversation about what it takes to make a classic. He put so much work and effort into this film -- down to composing all the music with the help of his father -- that nobody could ever reproduce the undertaking.

One of the really interesting revelations is that "Apocalypse Now" could have fallen into the hands of another director entirely -- one George Lucas. Apparently Lucas, Coppola and screenwriter John Milius were all friends in film school. Coppola basically bankrolled the efforts of the other two to keep them collaborating on the film's screenplay with the idea that Lucas would make the picture.

When the time came to begin the film-making process, which took nearly thee years and 1,000,000 feet of exposed negative, Lucas was busy making "Star Wars." And it's a good thing; Lucas' vision was to make "Apocalypse" in a documentary style with a small cast and very little military equipment. In short, it would have really stunk (in all likelihood). The Lucas connection also accounts for Harrison Ford's small role at the beginning of the film.

Another great piece of insight concerned the film's slow-motion napalm helicopter opening. Coppola came to the editing room one Saturday to help fill in when the leading editor had to leave. The director, out of curiosity, grabbed some spare footage sitting in a barrel waiting to be discarded. As he scrolled through the seemingly useless images at a slow pace, he played The Doors track over the sequences . . . and a memorable open was crafted by accident. Real movie-making genius!

This movie -- and the great TV series "Lost" -- inspired me to finish reading Conrad's "Heart of Darkness," which became Coppola's basis for the film more than the original screenplay.

"I always feel like somebody's watching me . . . "

So you're standing around your favorite local shopping or eating establishment when all of the sudden, during one of those extended lulls in the action, you get the strong sensation that someone is watching you. No, they're not just gazing in your general direction; they are looking right at you in particular.

Paranoia? Spider sense? Guilty feelings? Try one or the other of these two ideas on for size.

Apparently the attempt to prevent "loss" (aka theft) in this wacky post-911 world of ours has created a pandemic of surveillance equipment installations almost everywhere. According to this article from BusinessWeek, there are now at least 6,000,000 cameras watching, monitoring, recording and (in some cases) diagnosing behavior through image analysis software. This is in addition to the presence of actual humans tasked with monitoring as well as RFID tags and other electronic measures.

The message from the retail world is clear: "Come, enjoy yourself and spend money. We'll be watching to make sure you do." Thanks, Captain Retail. Now can you lower some of your prices because of all the shoplifters you've nabbed?

In the meantime in the real world, there is a very real chance that you and I have something like a detection mechanism to let us know when unseen eyes are giving us the once-over.

Consider Dr. Rupert Sheldrake and his work indicating that people can detect when an otherwise unknown individual is staring at them. There is even an online experiment section where you can try it out for yourself . . .

70s movie = suck fest 2006

The number-one cinematic bomb in the nation right now is "The Wicker Man" starring Nicolas Cage. If today's movie is as bad as its 1973 namesake starring Christopher Lee, then I can see why.

Ordinarily, I enjoy watching older films of generally any kind (minus sappy love stories) because they have key features that I find entertaining. Many of these films were not worried about having some form of noise -- dialogue, swearing, lousy music -- hitting you every 10 seconds. They were more focused, for the most part, on telling a good story well.

But back in 1973, the world was exposed to a piece of garbage known as "The Wicker Man." And there is very very little to label even remotely entertaining about this thing.

The plot is simple: a cop from the mainland comes to a British isle to investigate a missing child case. The town starts to act wacky as he begins the investigation, and the root of the matter rests in the village's total abject devotion to paganism.

Everything about the 1973 version is predictable and poorly executed. The plot is so easily diagnosed that it's really laughable. And the way all the characters interact is equally painful to see. There is nothing -- NOTHING -- supernatural about the story, and it doesn't make for an interesting glimpse into psychological terror either. It's just garbage through and through . . .

I will not see the 2006 "Wicker Man" if I can possibly avoid it. And I would give the original an F- minus for even attempting to exist.

I think "The Wicker Man" may be bad enough to replace my top-ranked worst films manufactured by humans:

Before there was IMAX . . . .

Decades before anyone even dreamed of IMAX, people were shelling out their hard-earned bucks to see films presented in "Cinerama."

Cinerama was essentially a film-production technique that offered an additional gimmick to get people to come back to theaters following the advent of TV.

Back then, studios correctly realized that there was no hope of truly competing with the "free" entertainment of TV without a new hook. So, inventors were able to take a three-camera recording and projection system devised for military pilot training and use it to make sweeping epics like 1962's "How The West Was Won."

Viewers were able to see their movies on large rounded screens designed to make them feel like they were actually there. And, studios produced the most technologically advanced multi-channel stereo audio tracks to assault the senses. Until that point, there was nothing else like it.

"How The West Was Won" proved a critical, technical and financial success. Audiences saw stunts the likes of which no one had the money or technical knowledge to produce. The 155-minute adventure brought out the who's who of Hollywood for star power and directing abilities. In the end, they had Academy Awards and a nearly two-year theater run to show for it.

But the film also signaled the death of Cinerama. Within a year, an annoying little film entitled "It's A Mad Mad Mad Mad World" was released that accomplished wide, panoramic images similar to Cinerama but on a traditional single screen. Cinerama was over.

However, the storytelling prowess of "How The West Was Won" preserved the film for future generations, and it was eventually carried over to television. TV audiences, however, had to suffer through the annoyance of two lines or seams on either side of the screen as the three images were joined to show the entire scope of the picture. The lines appear on the DVD as well.

Overall, this is a pretty good picture. Some of the acting was a little over the top in the ham department, but it had great stunts and an overall swift pace. And you can't go wrong with the immortal Eli Wallach threatening to murder George Peppard and his family . . .

Closing time (WNTE ver 7.0)

We've had a good run, but all good things must end someday.

And for WNTE, that day is today.

I really enjoyed that I was able to help share the work of others as they spied on the nasty food endeavors of the greater Winston-Salem, N.C., community. But it appears interest in this topic was completely resident with the Urban Docent.

So, please enjoy this final helping of WNTE courtesy of our friends at WFMY News 2:

Peking Kitchen -- Foods uncovered in the freezer . . . several dead cockroaches in the kitchen
El Pollo Rostizado -- The restaurant shouldn't let a cat roam in the storage building
Reno's Pizza and Italian Restaurant -- Restaurant shouldn't store pizza at room temperature under the counter . . . and don't smoke in the kitchen

Thanks for joining in the fun . . . Bon Appetite!!!

Are you all in?

So you think you're one of those independent-minded, Hollywood-hating, mainstream-shunning film buffs, do you?

Well now you're going to get your chance to officially put up or shut up . . .

The fantastic work of the fine folks at Janus Films and those Criterion DVDs we all know and enjoy cannot be lauded enough. They have undertaken the restoration, preservation and distribution of films that would otherwise pass into cinematic oblivion. My hat's off to them.

This is why I was really interested when I learned that they are producing a massive boxset with book detailing the 50-year history of Janus, complete with the following DVD titles:

ALEXANDER NEVSKY / ASHES AND DIAMONDS
L'AVVENTURA / BALLAD OF A SOLDIER / BEAUTY AND THE BEAST
BLACK ORPHEUS / BRIEF ENCOUNTER / THE FALLEN IDOL
FIRES ON THE PLAIN / FISTS IN THE POCKET / FLOATING WEEDS
FORBIDDEN GAMES / THE 400 BLOWS / GRAND ILLUSION
HÄXAN / IKIRU / IVAN THE TERRIBLE (Part II)
THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST / LE JOUR SE LÈVE
JULES AND JIM / KIND HEARTS AND CORONETS
KNIFE IN THE WATER / THE LADY VANISHES
LOVES OF A BLONDE / THE LIFE AND DEATH OF COLONEL BLIMP
M. HULOT'S HOLIDAY / MISS JULIE / PANDORA'S BOX
PÉPÉ LE MOKO / IL POSTO / PYGMALION
RASHOMON RICHARD III / THE RULES OF THE GAME
SEVEN SAMURAI / THE SEVENTH SEAL
THE SPIRIT OF THE BEEHIVE / LA STRADA / SUMMERTIME
THE THIRD MAN / THE 39 STEPS / UGETSU
UMBERTO D. / THE VIRGIN SPRING / VIRIDIANA
THE WAGES OF FEAR / THE WHITE SHEIK
WILD STRAWBERRIES
THREE DOCUMENTARIES: THE GREAT CHASE, THE LOVE GODDESSES AND PAUL ROBESON: TRIBUTE TO AN ARTIST

Where my excitement was somewhat staunched was the link for the pre-order.

Price (before Oct. 24): $650
Suggested retail price: $850

Yikes. I'm sure I would really enjoy the hours of entertainment this set has to offer, but there is no way I can bring myself to pay that much. Even if I could afford it I'm not sure I would do it . .

So if you happen to get this, would you consider loaning it out to a fellow film aficionado?