Neil Young: Heart of Gold Directed by Jonathan Demme 2006/US IMDb page
First viewing/YouTube rental
Neil Young: [singing] I want to live, I want to give, I’ve been a miner, For a heart of gold, It’s these expressions, I never give, That keep me searching, For a heart of gold, And I’m getting old…
Jonathan Demme (Stop Making Sense) gives us another excellent concert film.
This beautiful film was shot during a two-night performance by Neil Young at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium. We also get interviews of Young and the members of his band. Emmylou Harris is one of his backup singers.
How much you like this will depend on how well you like Young’s music. I like his old songs, which thankfully he includes, better than his newer material.
Arthur Written and Directed by Steve Gordon 1981/US IMDb page
Repeat viewing/YouTube rental
Susan: A real woman could stop you from drinking.
Arthur: It’d have to be a real BIG woman.
John Gielgud is still the best part of this problematic comedy.
Arthur (Dudley Moore) is worth $750 million. He leads an irresponsible reckless existence fueled by constant alcohol consumption. One of his hobbies is driving race cars, which like his own car, he drives while he is actually drinking. Unlike most drunks, he is funny when he drinks. His butler Mr. Hobson (Gielgud) has raised him, loves him, but barely tolerates his antics.
One day, Arthur runs into Linda (Liza Minnelli) while she is in the process of shoplifting a tie. They hit it off immediately. Unfortunately, Arthur is engaged to the truly horrible Susan, whom he must marry or be cut off by the family.
Arthur falls in love, for the first time, with Linda. Now he has to decide between money and romance. Or does he? We also get some heartwarming moments by the end.
I didn’t care for this on original release and I didn’t like it much now. Regular readers have heard me spout off about my hatred for “comic drunk” characters and this movie is pretty much only that. Moore is funny. I think he would have been funnier had he merely been an eccentric. The humor provided from the Gielgud character is pretty juvenile but so expertly delivered that one doesn’t mind.
The film won Academy Awards in the categories of Best Supporting Actor and Best Original Song. The film was nominated in the categories of Best Actor and Best Original Screenplay. It was a box office smash.
I’ve been a classic movie fan for many years. My original mission was to see as many movies as I could get my hands on for every year from 1929 to 1970. I have completed that mission.
I then carried on with my chronological journey and and stopped midway through 1978. You can find my reviews of 1934-1978 films and “Top 10” lists for the 1929-1936 and 1944-77 films I saw here. For the past several months I have circled back to view the pre-Code films that were never reviewed here.
I’m a retired Foreign Service Officer living in Indio, California. When I’m not watching movies, I’m probably traveling, watching birds, knitting, or reading.
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