Forgotten Film Friday: Secondhand Lions

A retrospective by Forrest Humphrey

So I'd like to kick off Robert Duvall month with what might be an odd pick, but hey, its Forgotten Film Friday and this was the movie that introduced me to the actor: Secondhand Lions. Released in 2003, the film is a comedy-drama set in the 1960's where Robert Duvall and Michael Caine play a pair of eccentric old uncles who have to watch their introverted nephew, played by a young Haley Joel Osment, while his ditzy mother goes to school, or so she claims.

What unfolds is a frequently heartwarming and hilarious story where the young boy and old men start their time together aloof but grow closer and closer until by the end, they are as close as family could be. Duvall and Caine play perfectly off each other, as one would expect of two talented actors who have been in the business as long as they have. Duvall in particular is the star here, able to perfectly play a cranky old man slowly softened up by a youngster who desperately needs family, and his character's backstory gives him time to show his dramatic range too in several poignant scenes that might just tug at those heart strings. Caine might take a slight backseat in the film, but he's also excellent, and Osment can be a bit stiff or overplay a scene, but he's young, performs ably and sells his part just fine.

A message in the film a love and didn't appreciate when I first saw it lies in the bond the two men form with their nephew and how they all help each other for the better. Family doesn't end with the immediate, and sometimes you find the love you need in unlikely places. It might be cheesy but its true.

The movie does have a dedicated cult following, and I imagine many may have at least seen the beloved bar fight scene where Duvall hilariously schools a group of young thugs on how to fight when they try and act tough, or the unlikely series of events leading to a lion living in a cornfield. It might be tricky to find but I can't recommend the film enough. `Secondhand Lions` is sweet and wholesome, and it'll have you snickering the whole time too.

Comments

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

A retrospective by Brooks Rich Let's kick off the spooky season with a bona fide classic. I love the horror genre, but not much really scares or creeps me out. Most horror films I just watch and enjoy. However, 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre' is one of those that really gets under my skin, and not just because the Sawyer family are eating people. The way Tobe Hooper shoots the film gives it an almost documentary feel. If you have never seen 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre,' you should probably fix that immediately. Do I need to explain what it's about? A group of '70s kids is driving across Texas in a van and runs afoul of the Sawyer family, including the man himself, Leatherface. It's a classic of the horror genre and one of the pioneers of the '70s and '80s horror boom. The film has a reputation for being sickeningly bloody and violent, but that is not true. It's essentially a bloodless film, which makes it even more horrifying. Most of the violence...

Forgotten Film Friday: Absolute Power

Clint Eastwood stars as Luther Whitney, a jewel thief who works in the Washington DC area. One night while he is stealing from a mansion he is forced to hide in a secret compartment with a two way mirror. From there he observes a sexual rezendevous with the wife of a powerful man and the President of the United States Alan Richmond (Gene Hackman) Suddenly the president gets aggressive and while defending herself the woman is shot to death by two Secret Service agents. Luther manages to get away with a letter opener the woman stabbed the president with. At first Luther plans to flee the country. But when he is disgusted by a statement the president makes, Luther decides to expose the crime. I miss these kind of films. The nineties was a great time for thrillers exactly like this. They are not the flashiest films but they are also not obsessed with big action scenes. It's all plot and character with them. Sure this plot might be a little out there but Eastwood makes it work. He's...

John Candy month: Summer Rental

A retrospective by Brooks Rich Air traffic controller Jack Chester (John Candy) is given paid time off when he nearly causes two airline disasters. He takes his family down to Florida for a vacation. Hijinks ensue because its '80s comedy and Candy ends up challenging a pompous Richard Crenna to a yacht race to close out the summer. This is a movie that has been forgotten to time in the grand scheme of Candy's career. Even with Carl Reiner directing it does have the same name recognition as some of Candy's other works. But I think it's a solid entry in his filmography. He plays a great everyman who we have no problem rooting for. The slobs versus snobs relationship he has with Crenna works like a charm and he genuinely seems like a good father and husband. Candy was always great at playing both the everyman and the aloof goofball. Sometimes he'll even play both. His character of Jack Chester in this is a good example of that. At times Jack is the goofy comic relief...

Cinema Basement

Search This Blog