Benny & Joon Review

Benny & Joon

Release Date: 30th September 1993 - Australia

Production Companies

Metro Goldwyn Mayer

Roth-Arnold Productions

Genre: Comedy

Rating: PG

Runtime: 98 minutes

Box Office Gross: $23,261,580 (USA)

Plot Summary (Retrieved from DVD Cover of Release)

Joon is a little unbalanced.

Sometimes, without warning,

her sweet nature gives way

to odd behaviour – including

a penchant for setting fires!

She lives with her older

brother Benny, who has

spent his life taking care of

her since their parents died.

One night, while playing a

poker game with unusual

stakes, Joon loses her

hand...and wins Sam, a

whimsical misfit who soon

charms his way into Joon's

heart. Now if they can only

find the perfect mate for

her overprotective brother...

Cast

Aidan Quinn - Benny

Mary Stuart Masterson - Joon

Johnny Depp - Sam

Julianne Moore - Ruthie

Oliver Platt - Eric

C.C.H. Pounder - Dr Garvey

Dan Hedaya - Thomas

Joe Grifasi - Mike

William H. Macy - Randy Burch

Liane Curtis - Claudia

Eileen Ryan - Mrs Smail

Don Hamilton - UPS Man

Waldo Larson - Waldo

Amy Alizabeth Sanford - Young Joon

Brian Keevy - Young Benny

Crew

Director - Jeremiah S. Chechik

Story/Screenplay - Barry Berman

Story - Leslie McNeil

Executive Producer/Unit Production Manager - Bill Badalato

Producers - Susan Arnold

and Donna Roth
Casting Directors - Risa Bramon

Garcia and Heidi Levitt

Production Designer - Neil Spisak

Costume Designer - Aggie Guerard Rodgers

Director of Photography - John Schwartzman

Camera Operator - Mitchell Amundsen

First Assistant Director - K.C. Colwell

Choreographer: Physical Comedy - Dan Kamin
Stunt Coordinator - Noon Orsatti

Fire Effects Coordinator - Allen Hall
Special Effects Coordinator - J.D. Streett

Editor - Carol Littleton

Associate Editor - Raul Davalos

Music - Rachel Portman


Review

BENNY & JOON seemed to have a misleading title because I think it should have been Benny, Sam & Joon. Because the film focuses on these three individuals, two of them are very quirky and fall in love. The other is the older brother, who only wants what he thinks is best for his sister and must learn to let go. It underpins the main storyline of the growing connection between Sam and Joon. There is a strength in the director's message that some things considered strange or out of the ordinary aren't necessarily bad, for example, the pancake scene. I like to point out that how Joon acts in this movie reflects a degree of autism in this character. I think Joon had schizophrenia.

Johnny Depp was versatile and whimsical as he lent his physical comedy routines to good use. He mimics the incredible antics of late silent comedians such as Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton to create the character of Sam. Mary Stuart Masterson portrays Joon as a vulnerable, naive character who wants to control her own life despite her disability. Aidan Quinn is fine as Joon's overprotective brother but doesn't get much exposure due to Johnny Depp's scene-stealing performance.

It was a heartwarming film without being bland or sickly sweet.

Star rating: (7/10) Good Movie

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Vertigo Review

Vertigo


Release Date: 23rd January 1959 - Australia


Production Companies

Alfred J. Hitchcock Productions (Uncredited)

Distribution
Universal Pictures Australia


Genre: Thriller

Rating: PG

Runtime: 120 minutes


Budget: $2,500,000

Box Office Gross: $7,798,146 (Worldwide)


Plot Summary
A former police detective

named John 'Scottie'

Ferguson has developed

acrophobia and takes in
one last case to prevent

an old friend's wife from

killing herself. John finds
himself obsessed with her

as he struggles to face his demons.


Cast
James Stewart - John 'Scottie' Ferguson
Kim Novak - Madeleine Elster/Judy Barton
Barbara Bel Geddes - Midge Wood
Tom Helmore - Gavin Elster
Henry Jones - Coroner

Raymond Bailey - Scottie's Doctor

Ellen McCorby - Manager of
McKittrick Hotel

Konstantin Shayne - Pop Leibel

Lee Patrick - Car Owner Mistaken for Madeleine

Fred Graham - Policeman on Rooftop (Cameo) (Uncredited)

Alfred Hitchcock - Man Walking Past Elster's Office (Cameo) (Uncredited)

Crew
Producer (Uncredited)/

Director - Alfred Hitchcock

Based on the Novel: "D'Entre Les Morts" - Pierre Boileau and Thomas Narcejac

Screenplay - Alec Coppel and Samuel A. Taylor

Contributing Writer - Maxwell Anderson

(Uncredited)

Script Supervisor - Peggy Robertson

(Uncredited)

Associate Producer/Second Unit Director:

San Francisco (Uncredited) - Herbert Coleman

Producers: 1996 Restoration - Robert A. Harris

and James C. Katz (Uncredited)

Technical Advisor - A. Vincent Gerty

(Uncredited)

Art Directors - Henry Bumstead and

Hal Pereira

Set Decorators - Sam Comer and

Frank R. McKelvy

Costumes - Edith Head

Director of Photography - Robert Burks

Directors of Photography: Second Unit -

Loyal Griggs and Irmin Roberts (Uncredited)

Director of Photography: Back Projection

(Uncredited)/Process Photography -

W. Wallace Kelley

Camera Operators - James Knott,

Val O'Malley and Leonard J. South (Uncredited)

Unit Production Managers - Andrew J. Durkus

and C.O. Erickson (Uncredited)

Special Photographic Effects - John P. Fulton

Film Editor - George Tomasini

Titles Designer - Saul Bass

Motion Control Designer: Title Sequence -

John Whitney Sr. (Uncredited)

Sound - George Dutton (Uncredited)

Music - Bernard Herrmann


1959 Academy Awards
Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Color -

Hal Pereira, Henry Bumstead, Sam Comer and

Frank R. McLevy (Nominated)
Best Sound - George Dutton (Nominated)


Review
Many people know Alfred Hitchcock as he was one of Hollywood's legendary directors and known for being the master of suspense. I have not seen his movies, nor did I see his classic TV show. I knew his history and saw the references in numerous TV series and others. I remember reading an article about VERTIGO that surpassed Citizen Kane as the best movie. I finally got to see the film on Netflix. I did notice the influences used in other features, like Jaws. It shows that VERTIGO is an influential film.

Hitchcock has done several movies, but this is no exception. The film has a great storyline and several moments that will shock and thrill you. I liked how the movie's cinematography had those dolly-zoom shots in some scenes. This particular camera angle appeared for the first time in this film to an astonishing effect. The performances from James Stewart and Kim Novak were spot-on. Stewart was the director's go-to guy and was one of Hitchcock's favourites alongside Cary Grant.

VERTIGO was a great movie, but not one of my favourites. Still, I would instantly re-watch this cinematic classic and see the others Hitchcock directed.

Star rating: (8/10) Very Good Movie

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