...Or How I Learned To Stop Worrying and Love The Bomb. With less than a week into the year, I've now got three films under my belt. But before I get into the film, I want to tell you about my friend Roy Ovalle. The summer after I graduated high school and before I joined the navy, I got a call from my theatre teacher, Louann, telling me that a small theatre working out of Fort Worth needed some help with a show they were doing. I met with the director, Roy and his wife Violet. They were a couple in their 70's. They were clearly former hippies. I would meet Roy in his shop on Saturdays and help him with the set and eventually served as Stage Manager for the show. I learned a few things about Roy over the months I worked with him. He served in the Air Force in the 60's. He was drafted. He also had a very Gonzo personality. He talked exactly like Tommy Chong. We would always go to Luby's for lunch during our Saturday workdays. He either had a thing for institutionalized food or couldn't refuse Luby's legendary senior citizen discount. The play he was directing was called Gallow's Humor. It was a black comedy in which the actors played several characters and it closed with the song "We'll Meet Again" by the Ink Spots. I kept in touch with him until I left for boot camp. While stationed in Pennsylvania, I would get updates on what Roy and Violet were doing with their theatre company, Pantegleze. Then one day, I got a letter from Violet, telling me Roy had passed on. Even though I hadn't seen him in a few years, I was very sad. For a short time, He served as a good friend and mentor. He would always warn me about joining the military, not quite sure why I would join voluntarily. Last night as I was watching Dr. Strangelove, a dark comedy with Peter Sellers playing three diffrent characters,including an officer in the Air Force. The film had a familiar spirit that I couldn't quite place. Then "We'll Meet Again" closed the film as bombs went off around the world. I became pretty emotional thinking about Roy, wisihing I had spent more time with him. Watching this film for the first time, I imagined what this film must have meant to him. It was clearly an influence on his staging of Gallows Humor. It is moments like this, When a movie can remind you of your past or better understand someone or something, that I am glad I am a film buff. I hope to have more moment like this as the year progresses, and as for Roy, maybe We'll Meet Again.
As for the film itself, here are some thoughts:
-George C. Scott had me cracking up, even more so than Peter Sellers. This performance makes me excited for Patton, which is another film I will be seeing this year.
-This is one of my new favorite military movies. It's right up there with The Last Detail.
-There is only one female in this movie, which is one more than 12 Angry Men. I guess I'll have to wait until Term of Endearment for any ladies on film.
-"Our Profession is Peace" Classic.
-I don't think we would have a President of the United States that looked like that in this day and age. We put too much importance on image.
- All of the Officers in this movie reminds me of actual officers I have known in the Navy
-Overall, This is a hilarious movie that seems pretty ballsy for its time.
Well, That's it for now. More movies to come.
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