the shawshank redemption Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Actor James Whitmore, whose career spanned nearly 60 years, died on Friday at his home in Malibu, according to The Hollywood Reporter. He was 87.

Whitmore embodied the role of Brooks Hatlen in Frank Darabont's The Shawshank Redemption (1994) with rueful grace and heartfelt regret. As the longtime librarian, he was a wise and kind friend to the initially floundering Andy (Tim Robbins). But he had absolutely no idea how to live outside the prison walls. This scene (link to a big spoiler if you haven't seen the movie) with just the right touch in the narration by Whitmore as he writes to his buddies, is heartbreaking, and I found it impossible to watch all the way through after hearing the news of his passing.

My personal, sentimental favorite remains Them! (1954), the greatest giant ant movie ever made. Whitmore played a New Mexican police Sergeant who finds a little girl wandering in the desert, and soon finds himself courageously facing down nature gone amuck. He was so friendly and calm, yet authoritative, that I never doubted for a moment that giant ants were a serious threat to mankind.

He was much more fiery in Give 'em Hell, Harry! (1975), for which he was nominated for an Academy Award. The film was an adaptation of a one-man stage play about President Harry S Truman. I was spellbound in the movie theater for 100 minutes, held captive once more by Whitmore's authority, but also by the sparkle in his eyes as his moved brusequely around the stage.

White Dog
Samuel Fuller's follow-up to The Big Red One was shelved by Paramount Pictures before its scheduled release in 1982 because of fears that its premise -- a white dog has been trained to attack black people -- would stir up more controversy than box office. Fuller was understandably outraged; in his autobiography, A Third Face, he wrote: "The studio has used me as a scapegoat for their lack of determination and courage." The film, co-written by Curtis Hanson (LA Confidential), with a score by the legendary Ennio Morricone, later received acclaim when it was released in Europe but never received a home video release in the US and has rarely been seen here. Kristy McNichol plays an actress who adopts the dog; Paul Winfield is as an anthropologist who tries to reverse the training. The Criterion Collection DVD includes a featurette with Hanson, producer Jon Davison, and Fuller's widow, plus a print interview with the dog trainer and essays by J. Hoberman and Armond White. I'm buying, but even if you're not a huge fan of Samuel Fuller, you'd want to check it out. Rent it.

Step Brothers
Combining Will Farrell, John C. Reilly, Richard Jenkins, and Mary Steenburgen under one roof, Step Brothers mines familiar territory with sharp timing and plenty of belly laughs. Mine is, admittedly, a distinctly minority opinion. Available on DVD (single-disc rated, single-disc unrated, two-disc unrated) and Blu-ray, with an audio commentary by Farrell, Reilly, director Adam McKay, and a score by Jon Brion. Other features include deleted scenes and alternate takes, a gag reel, 'making of,' and a couple of gag featurettes. Rent it.

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