Sort of a West Coast version of To Kill a Mocking Bird, Snow Falling on Cedars focuses on the Washington State trial of a man of Japanese descent during the early 1950s, when Americans (particularly on the West Coast) were fearful and mistrusting of anything Japanese since World War II. The stage is set pretty clearly and the odds are stacked against him.
Ethan Hawke is the town newspaper editor who struggles with his own bias while covering the case. As a boy he was in love with a girl who became the accused man’s wife but he lost an arm fighting the Japanese in the war. Now he finds himself convinced that the accused is innocent and must work against the town’s racism in order for justice to be upheld.
A bit slow from time to time, this film doesn’t quite have the back-story and side plots that made To Kill a Mocking Bird work, but the rigorous pursuit of justice is worth noting. It also doesn’t help much that the film's cast is made up almost entirely of actors known for their supporting roles. Otherwise, it’s a pretty good underachiever.
One of the greatest comedies of all time and one of Mel Brooks’ greatest films, Blazing Saddles uncompromisingly lampoons the living daylights out of the Western genre.
In order to complete a railroad, a corrupt politician decides to scare a whole town into moving. When gangs and thugs don’t work, they try sending a black sheriff to town and get people to leave based on their unabashed racism. That doesn’t quite work either, as the sheriff is a hit and he gets a zany gunslinger of a partner (Gene Wilder) in defending the town.
Blazing Saddles pretty much covers the entire gamut of all things crude, rude and lewd. Cheap shots are made at all kinds of prejudiced beliefs and the absurdities of Westerns in general. Mel Brooks creates one gut-buster of a comedy that is a must-see, no matter how prudish you may be. Unless you’re a super stick in the mud, you’ll find plenty to laugh at here.
Sort of a West Coast version of To Kill a Mocking Bird, Snow Falling on Cedars focuses on the Washington State trial of a man of Japanese descent during the early 1950s, when Americans (particularly on the West Coast) were fearful and mistrusting of anything Japanese since World War II. The stage is set pretty clearly and the odds are stacked against him.
