The definitive Vietnam War movie, Apocalypse Now still raises the blood pressure and confounds today. From the opening scene of Willard (Martin Sheen) going bloody nuts punching a hotel room mirror to the confusingly brooding Kurtz (Marlon Brando), it’s a long, rough ride. By movie’s end, nearly everyone we’ve met is killed off – mostly for no good reason – and we’re exhausted.

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On the Waterfront introduces a litany of social issues, all during its opening sequence. We watch longshoreman Terry Malloy (Marlon Brando) unwittingly play a part in a co-worker’s murder. A dark bunch of thugs joke about the grisly crime, and the dim Terry struggles to comprehend their amusement. Edie (Eva Marie Saint), the dead worker’s sister, and the parish priest (Karl Malden) discover the crime. Within minutes, we learn the waterfront is a dangerous world with an unspoken order: a corrupt union controls the docks, decides who works and who doesn’t, and takes a cut from every ship entering and leaving the port. Anyone who talks about the union’s corruption to the authorities is labeled a “canary” and bumped off. The intimidated public’s fear is palpable. Men can’t earn a living on their own terms and a select few get rich. The status quo is immorality, greed, and injustice. We know the situation, the stakes, and what certain characters must do to bring some sort of justice to the waterfront. Most of the burden of responsibility falls on Terry’s shoulders.

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Also an older title, I still enjoy re-reading this book from time to time. It’s also by William Poundstone and exposes information about things “they” don’t want you to know. Here’s a short list format summary of some of the topics in this one:

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I’m not sure how I got into yet another Netflix rut, but The Island Of Dr. Moreau is a scary genetic experiment of a flick. It’s similar other “clone” movies I’ve seen recently (The 6th Day, The Island). This 1996 version of an HG Welles story is car-crash bizarre and seriously tested my ability to swallow its science fiction. I can only recommend this strange brew of sci-fi, horror, Apocalypse Now, and The Labyrinth if you’re having a “bad movie” festival, or if such film making horrors make you laugh.

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