Hands On Head And Stomach: 90's LA Cinematography Memories

There is no way around it - time distorts memory. A simple act, once it occurs, starts to warp and bend through that lens of time whether it's occurred within an hour or a few decades from when you try to remember it. Voices lose their resonance. Faces start to blur. The images takes on a strange, smudged-like haze that diffuses light, making it look like a smoggy Los Angeles day. Or, at least, what I imagine a smoggy Los Angeles day, usually from sometime during the '90's, to look like. When I imagine or remember LA, my head decided to have a cinematographer from that decade 'light' the picture in my head. I imagine something like a mix between that Altman movie, The Long Goodbye and that Billy Idol video for LA Woman. Or a movie like the Last Action Hero or Lethal Weapon, where you always get that 'one shot' of the sun setting on the west coast giving off those heat waves. Maybe time has distorted those movies for me - there might not be a 'sunset shot' in those movies, or when I watch them the lighting might not be so....well, so LA. That's what happened to me with Mixed Nuts.

For some reason, I remembered the movie looking like an overcast, smoggy day. Where everything is bright and hazy, with not much color. But I was wrong - it looks just a plain old, normal day. It's when you look closer, you pick out some points of light and patches of color.

The first case of this happening was during the credits. Mind you, its been years since I've seen this movie, long enough to forget who was in it, so I figure its been about a decade or so. I remembered the principle actors and actresses in it - Steve Martin, Madeline Kahn, Julliette Lewis, Adam Sandler - but I'm not sure I remember THEM and their roles or that they were the easiest to pick out from the cast featured on the DVD cover. So, it came as a pleasant shock when I saw two recognizable names in the cast list:

Parker Posey and John Stewart.

YEAH! John Stewart! Daily Show John Stewart! I know, I know - he was an actor and comedian before he picked up the gig from Craig Kilborn, and for the record I did watch the show when Kilborn was hosting. I still think one of the greatest moments on that show was when he and Belinda Carlisle did 'that dance' she used to do when he interviewed her, but I think that's just because I'm a huge Belinda Carlisle fan. Anyways, I was going to see John Stewart in his pre-prime years....and JUST as I was starting to wonder when that was going to happen, quite literally John Stewart rolls on the screen. Yeah, just in case you forgot when this movie was set and filmed - the 90's - they made sure to have every extra or bit part player slap on a pair of roller blades and go at it. Sure enough, not just John Stewart but Parker Posey was on roller blades. And as just as soon as they rolled into my life, they rolled away. The Unstoppable Roller Bladeing Power Couple of Posey/Stewart does show up a few more times in the movie, but it's played for the same gag which is kinda disappointing. Parker Posey has the most of their dialogue, which leaves John Stewart with the Herculean task of delivering such lines as "YEAH!" and "GET 'EM!". You've come a long way, Mr. Stewart.

Back to the movie - as with sticking roller bladers everywhere to remind people that this film is set in the 90's, the soundtrack just pummels you with Christmas music to remind you that this movie is set during Christmas Eve/Christmas. The music is relentless - every second seems to be occupied by a song, with the only lapse in silence coming when it suits the needs of a comedic joke, like when Madeline Kahn abruptly stops in an elevator that is timed just right to sync with a stop in the music. Imagine going to Wal-Mart when they play the holiday music and watching this on a TV while there, and you basically get the same effect - non-stop holiday music in the background. But it's not like there are other visual cues to remind us of the time of the year - Christmas lights are strung in quite a few shots, a Christmas tree takes front and center as a plot device and the lead supporting actor wears a Santa Clause suit for the entire movie. You really can't forget that this takes place during Christmas.

It may seem like I'm coming down on this film, but it does have it's endearing qualities. Madeline Kahn, like everything she does, is just remarkable. Yeah, over the top at times, but that's Madeline Kahn for you - there are even times when it felt like she was having free reign to just improvise during the movie and it was a bit of a relief. The movie also reminded me of a wacky, situational French comedy, like La Cage Aux Folles or a Tati film - lots of fast, visual gags, quick one-liners and a scene with someone riding their bicycle in an apartment/office, which may be just something I associate with French cinema. This makes sense - the movie was based off of a French film. Liev Schreiber is also kinda adorable as a trans-woman. Adam Sandler is also not in the film as much as I thought he would be. He seems tacked on, like the filmmakers knew he was popular at the time, so they threw together a part large enough to warrant him being on marketing material but small enough to not overshadow Steve Martin. His role, basically a pre-Billy Madison man-child that plays silly songs on the ukulele, couldn't have been played by anyone else. Oh! Haley Joel Osment has one line, and that was a bit of a surprise to see him when he's like four years old.

Not the greatest film. Definitely not the worst film. There are better Christmas movies out there, but it's a nice change of pace. If you watch it, watch it to see Madeline Kahn be fantastic.

Now that's done, time to remove Mixed Nuts from the list and randomly draw another number....lets see what we get.....