"LOST" RETROSPECT: (4.08) "Meet Kevin Johnson"

 

"LOST" RETROSPECT: (4.08) "Meet Kevin Johnson"

Years ago, I had written an ARTICLE about the "LOST" Season Four episode, (4.08) "Meet Kevin Johnson". Instead of discussing the episode itself, my article focused on the media and fandom's reactions to it and especially their reactions to the Michael Dawson character, portrayed by Harold Perrineau. But after my recent rewatch, I decided to focus on the episode itself.

"Meet Kevin Johnson", in my personal opinion, was a very good episode. In fact, I consider it one of the better episodes from the series' fourth season and the second-best one that focused on Michael. Like Season Two's (2.07) "The Other 48 Days" and Season Six's (6.15) "Across the Sea", "Meet Kevin Johnson" featured a continuous flashback - the third longest in the show's history. Yet, screenwriters Elizabeth Sarnoff and Brian K. Vaughan had created something interesting with the episode's narrative. The continuous flashback was book-ended with present day scenes aboard Charles Widmore's freighter, the Kahana and on the island. I found this very original. But more importantly, I believe this episode featured one of Perrineau's best performances in the series, good enough for an Emmy nomination that sadly, never materialized.

My only complaint regarding "Meet Kevin Johnson" focused on its timeline. It had occurred to me that Benjamin Linus, the Others' leader, had sent Tom Friendly to New York City to recruit Michael, between the events of Season Three episodes, (3.13) "The Man from Tallahassee" and (3.19) "The Brig". Not only did I find this time period rather slim for Tom to travel to the United States and return in time for Season Three's last four or five episodes, I found myself wondering how Tom had left the island . . . following John Locke's destruction of the Others' submarine in "The Man from Tallahassee". Hmmm. It also occurred to me that roughly a month had passed between Michael and Walt's departure in the Season Two finale, (2.23-2.24) "Live Together, Die Alone" and Michael's return aboard the Kahana in (3.17) "Catch-22". I cannot help but feel that the episode's timeline may have been sketchy at best.

But I want to discuss something else about "Meet Kevin Johnson". In my previous article about the episode, I had discussed what I felt were the hypocritical reactions to Michael's character in this episode and throughout the series. After viewing "Meet Kevin Johnson", I recognized numerous instances of hypocrisy from the characters. In fact, the level of hypocrisy featured in the episode struck me as amazing.

I had a good deal of issues regarding Ben and Tom's exploitation of Michael’s guilt for killing Ana-Lucia and Libby. I realize both men had wanted to recruit him to help deal with those traveling aboard the Kahana. But every time Michael had brought up the kidnapping of his son Walt Lloyd, both men had failed to express any remorse for it. Tom had responded to Michael's accusation by gaslighting the latter over Ana-Lucia and Libby's deaths. I guess exploiting Michael's guilt was more important to him than acknowledging his own over the kidnapping. I also believe that recruiting Michael to serve as Ben's spy would have been easier for Tom if he had simply acknowledged the kidnapping and expressed remorse for it.

Ben had also gaslighted Michael. First, he had ordered Tom to instruct Michael to kill the Kahana crew. Ben even provided a package for the deed - a bomb - to Michael. Upon meeting the murderous Martin Keamy and his mercenaries, Michael had programmed the bomb to set it off. The bomb proved to be fake. Apparently, Ben wanted to prove to Michael that he was a good guy and incapable of killing others. I found this incredibly hypocritical, considering by this point, Ben already had already murdered his father years ago and God only knows how many others. And why on earth did he order Tom to instruct Michael to kill the Kahana crew in the first place? Why deliver a bomb - namely a fake one - to Michael? What made this whole situation so ironic is that in the end, Ben (with Keamy's help) proved to be the one responsible for the Kahana's destruction, along with the deaths of the remaining Kahana crew and Michael, when he killed Keamy inside the island’s Orchid Station. Hell, it took Ben another six years to finally express any remorse over Walt’s kidnapping.

Then we have Oceanic survivors Sayid Jarrah and James "Sawyer" Ford. Both men had condemned Michael for his actions in late Season Two, when they discovered he was among the Kahana crew. When Ben had informed some of the Oceanic castaways at the Others' abandoned barracks that Michael was serving as his spy aboard the Kahana, Sawyer had accused Michael of killing Libby and Ana-Lucia in order to free Ben and get off the island. Period. Nothing else. Upon discovering Michael's presence aboard the Kahana and that he was serving as Ben's spy, Sayid condemned Michael for being a traitor to the Oceanic castaways, when the latter led Sawyer, Jack Shephard, Hugo "Hurley" Reyes, and Kate Austen into a trap set by the Others in "Live Together, Die Alone". Sayid even turned Michael over to the freighter’s captain.

And yet . . . not once did Sawyer or Sayid ever mention Walt. Not . . . fucking . . . once. I found it odd that Sawyer had forgotten that Michael's actions had stemmed from his desire to rescue Walt from the Others’ clutches. I find this odd and very hypocritical, considering he had called himself killing Tom in retaliation for Walt's kidnapping. What made this reasoning dubious to me is that Sawyer never went after Ben for the kidnapping . . . the very man who had ordered the kidnapping in the first place. As for Sayid . . . he had learned about Naomi Dorrit's lies, witnessed Daniel Faraday's lies and Miles Strume's hostility on the island. Aboard the Kahana, Sayid had witnessed Captain Gault and other crewmen engaged in strange behavior. He also met Keamy and his fellow mercenaries aboard the Kahana. This should have made Sayid more leery of the Kahana crew. Instead, he became outraged over Michael working for Ben and exposed his fellow Oceanic castaway to the Kahana’s captain. He and accused Michael of not only working for Ben, but also for being a traitor to his fellow castaways. It finally occurred to me that ever since Shannon Rutherford's death in early Season Two, Sayid had developed a toxic obsession and hostility toward Ben Linus - which finally spilled over in late Season Five. It also occurred to me that neither Sawyer or Sayid had ever mentioned Walt or the kidnapping. Nor did either of them ever expressed concern or curiosity about his post-island life. Come to think of it, even Michael had his own hypocritical moment, when he accused Ben of being responsible for Ana-Lucia and Libby's deaths. I believe he wanted to blame Ben for driving him into committing his crimes in (2.20) "Two for the Road".

As I had stated earlier, I believe "Meet Kevin Johnson" was a pretty good episode and probably one of the better ones from Season Four of "LOST". I also noticed the episode reeked with hypocrisy - especially from characters like Benjamin Linus, Tom Friendly, Sayid Jarrah and James "Sawyer" Ford. I do not know if anyone else would regard their behavior and comments as hypocritical or view this all as the screenwriters' questionable writing. Oh well . . . I know how I feel.

Favorite "WANDAVISION" (2021) Episodes

 

Below is a list of my favorite episodes from "WANDAVISION", the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU)/Disney Plus limited series. Created by Jac Schaeffer, the series starred Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany as Wanda Maximoff aka Scarlet Witch and Vision:

FAVORITE "WANDAVISION" (2021) EPISODES

1. (1.06) "All-New Halloween Spooktacular!" - Disturbances on Halloween separate Wanda Maximoff aka Scarlet Witch from her synthezoid lover/"husband" Vision, who looks into the anomalous activity in Westview during the late 1990s/early 2000s.

2. (1.04) "We Interrupt This Program" - Following her resurrection during the Blip, S.W.O.R.D. Agent Monica Rambeau is tasked with a special assignment in Westview regarding sentient weapons and goes missing.

3. (1.08) "Previously On" - Another witch in Westview named Agatha Harkness forces Wanda to embark upon a troubling journey, revisiting her past for insight into her present and future.

4. (1.03) "Now in Color" - Wanda's pregnancy affects her powers as she and Vision prepare for an accelerated delivery in the 1970s.

5. (1.09) "The Series Finale" - While Wanda battles Agatha, Vision fights his counterpart, White Vision, who was created by S.W.O.R.D. Meanwhile, the agency's director, Tyler Hayward, launches an attack on Westview.

"BACK TO HANNIBAL: THE RETURN OF TOM SAWYER AND HUCKLEBERRY FINN" (1990) Photo Gallery

 

Below are images from "BACK TO HANNIBAL: THE RETURN OF TOM SAWYER AND HUCKLEBERRY FINN", the 1990 Disney Channel television sequel to Mark Twain's 1876 novel, "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" and his 1885 novel, "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn". Directed by Paul Krasny, the television movie starred Raphael Sbarge and Mitchell Anderson: 

"BACK TO HANNIBAL:  THE RETURN OF TOM SAWYER AND HUCKLEBERRY FINN" (1990) Photo Gallery

"ALICE IN WONDERLAND" (2010) Review

 

"ALICE IN WONDERLAND" (2010) Review

I never understood director Tim Burton’s decision to name his 2010 film, ”ALICE IN WONDERLAND”. I mean . . . why did he do it? His new movie was not another adaptation of Lewis Carroll’s 1865 novel, ”Alice's Adventures in Wonderland”. It was a sequel set thirteen years after the original story. So why use the shortened version of the title from Carroll’s original title?

Many of you might be wondering why I had just made a big deal about this movie’s title. For me, it represented an example of what I consider to be the numerous missteps that prevented me from embracing Burton’s 2010 film. Before I continue, I should confess that I have never been a Tim Burton fan. Never. I can only recall two of his movie that really knocked my socks off – 1994’s ”ED WOOD” and the 2007 Golden Globe nominee, ”SWEENY TODD”. I wish I could include ”ALICE IN WONDERLAND” in that category, but I cannot. The movie simply failed to impress me.

As I had stated earlier, ”ALICE IN WONDERLAND” was a sequel to Carroll’s original story. Thirteen years after her original adventures in Wonderland, Alice Kingsleigh has become a nineteen year-old young woman on the verge of accepting a wedding proposal from one Hamish Ascot, the son of her late father’s partner, Lord Ascot. Unfortunately, Hamish is a shallow and self-absorbed young man with very little character. Salvation arrived during Hamish’s very public marriage proposal, when Alice spotted a familiar figure – the same White Rabbit who had previously lured her to Wonderland – scampering across Lord Ascot’s estate.

History repeated itself when Alice fell down into the rabbit hole. However, she soon discovered that Wonderland (or Underland) had changed during her thirteen years absence. The Red Queen had managed to wreck havoc and assume control over most of Underland, thanks to her new ”champion” - a dragon known as the Jabberwocky. Only the realm of the Red Queen’s sister, the White Queen, has remained beyond the red-haired monarch’s reach. However, that situation threatened to change if the White Queen fails to acquire her own champion. A scroll called “the Oraculum” predicted that Alice will not only be the White Queen’s champion, but she will also defeat the Jabberwocky and end the Red Queen’s reign of terror. But due to her stubborn belief that Underland was and still is nothing but a dream, Alice was reluctant to take up the mantle of the White Queen’s champion.

Judging by the plot I had just described, ”ALICE OF WONDERLAND” should have been an enjoyable movie for me. Granted, Linda Woolverton’s script seemed like a typical ”slay the dragon” storyline that has been used in numerous fantasies. But it still had enough adventure, intrigue and personal angst for me to find it appealing. So, why did it fail to light my fire? Production designer Robert Stromberg created an interesting mixture of Gothic and animated styles for the film’s visuals in both the England and Wonderland sequences. Anthony Almaraz and his team of costume designers created lush and colorful costumes for the cast. And Dariusz Wolski’s photography brought out the best in the movie’s visual styles.

”ALICE IN WONDERLAND” could also boast some first-rate performances from the cast. Johnny Depp gave a wonderfully complicated performance as the Mad Hatter. His Mad Hatter was an interesting mixture of an extroverted personality and pathos, punctuated by bouts of borderline insanity. The Red Queen might possibly be one of Helena Bonham-Carter’s best roles. She struck me as the epitome of childishness, selfishness and cruelty. Crispin was slick, menacing and subtly funny as the Red Queen’s personal henchman, the Knave of Hearts. Anne Hathaway’s delicious portrayal of the White Queen reminded me of a Disney princess on crack. I really enjoyed it. Both Tim Piggott-Smith and Geraldine James (who were both in the 1985 miniseries, ”JEWEL IN THE CROWN”) gave solid performances as Alice’s potential in-laws - the kindly Lord Ascot and his shrewish and bullying wife, Lady Ascot. And Alan Rickman gave voice to the Blue Caterpillar in a deliciously sardonic performance. Despite my positive opinion of most of the film’s technical aspects and performances, it still failed to impress me. Why?

First of all, the movie rested upon the shoulders of Australian actress, Mia Wasikowska as the lead character, Alice Kingsleigh. Before the release of this film, Wasikowska had received critical acclaim for her portrayal of a suicidal teen in HBO’s ”IN TREATMENT”. It seemed a pity that she had failed to be just as impressive as Alice in ”ALICE IN WONDERLAND”. Some people had labeled her performance as ”subtle”. I thought it was ”insipid”. Or perhaps just plain boring. I swear I have never come across such a bland and boring performance in my life. No only did Wasikowska managed to make Alice’s battle against the Jabberwocky seem dull, she still came close to putting me to sleep in her character’s moments of triumph in the movie’s finale. It is a miracle that I eventually became a big fan of hers over the years. Or perhaps her own natural talent in this film had been overshadowed by poor direction.

Tim Burton’s direction of ”ALICE IN WONDERLAND” proved to be just as uninspiring as Wasikowska’s performance. Actually, I found myself thinking of the 1992 movie, ”DEATH BECOMES HER”. I was not comparing the visual effects between the two movies. Or the plots. Meryl Streep had uttered a word in the 1992 movie that perfectly described my opinion of Burton’s direction. Flaccid. "FLA-A-A-A-CI-I-ID!" How did a director with Burton’s reputation managed to take a solid fantasy adventure and make it one of the most boring films in recent Hollywood history is beyond me. His direction lacked any pep. Or spark. I had felt as if I was watching a piece of limp lettuce in action. I even began to wonder if Burton’s dull direction had affected Wasikowska’s performance. Then I remembered that actors like Depp and Bonham-Carter managed to rise above his direction. I might as well dump the blame of Wasikowska’s performance on her shoulders after all.  Fortunately for her, she managed to provide superior  performances in the future . . . in superior productions.  As for Tim Burton . . . what is there to say? His direction had simply disappointed me.

I might as well say something about the movie’s 3-D effects. They were not only disappointing to me, but also a waste of time and the extra cash I had to pay for the movie tickets. I did not care for the 3-D effects in ”AVATAR” and a few other films, but it was an example of technical wizardry in compare to the 3-D photography shown in ”ALICE IN WONDERLAND”. Speaking of ”AVATAR”, I have one last thing to say in regard to 3-D . . . "Damn you, James Cameron!". Seriously. I would like to take the man’s head and bash it through a wall for introducing 3-D to the movie going experience. In the two movies I have seen featuring 3-D effects, I have found them unimpressive. Worse, I had to pay extra for the tickets because movie theaters are more willing to show the 3-D versions of movies like ”ALICE IN WONDERLAND”, instead of the 2-D versions. For the cash.

In short, ”ALICE IN WONDERLAND” had all of the hallmarks of a solid and entertaining movie experience for me. It was the continuation of a classic fantasy adventure. Talented actors like Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham-Carter, Crispin Glover and Anne Hathaway gave first-rate performances. And I must admit that the movie’s production designs and photography gave it a unique visual style.

But all of that could not save a movie hindered by pedestrian 3-D effects, a dull and insipid performance by Mia Wasikowska and an even more insipid direction by Tim Burton. Frankly, I think it is a miracle that this movie managed to become a box-office hit. What is even more ironic is that Burton produced a sequel to this movie, six years later. Unfortunately, "ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS" proved to be a box office flop. And ironically, I found that movie a lot more entertaining.

"LOST" Retrospect: "Oceanic Hypocrisy"

 

"LOST" RETROSPECT: "OCEANIC HYPOCRISY"

Recently, I did a rewatch of the "LOST" Season Four episode, (4.02) "Confirmed Dead". And I had enjoyed it as much as I did during previous viewings. However . . . there was something about Oceanic 815 survivors John Locke and James "Sawyer" Ford that had eluded me during those past viewings.

How can I put this? There seemed to be a great deal of hypocrisy emanating from both Locke and Sawyer in this episode. For example, while questioning Locke's sanity in "Confirmed Dead", Sawyer had pointed out the older man’s murder of Naomi Dorrit, an inhabitant from the newly arrived freighter Kahana, in the Season Three finale, (3.22-3.23) "Through the Looking Glass, Part II". Locke had killed Ms. Dorrit in an effort to prevent her from contacting her associated aboard the Kahana. He had considered them a danger to the island and its inhabitants.

Also, Sawyer had recently committed two murders during late Season Three - Anthony Cooper in (3.19) "The Brig" and Other member Tom Friendly in "Through the Looking Glass". It turned out that Cooper was Locke's father, whom the Others had captured to test Locke for the position of their leader. Unable to kill his father, Locke had discovered from one of the Others, Richard Alpert, that Cooper was also the man who had swindled Sawyer's parents from their money some twenty-eight years earlier. This act had led to Sawyer's father murdering his wife for adultery and committing suicide. Sawyer, who had been eight years-old at the time, spent nearly three decades needlessly vowing revenge. Thanks to the manipulations of both Richard and Locke, Sawyer committed the murder. As for Tom Friendly's murder, Sawyer had killed the man out of pure spite. In the Season Two episode, (2.11) "The Hunting Party", he claimed that Friendly had shot him, when he was aboard Michael Dawson's raft in the Season One finale, (1.23-1.25) "Exodus". In "Through the Looking Glass", he claimed that his murder of Friendly was in retaliation for the kidnapping of 10 year-old Walt Lloyd, Michael's son.

Despite Locke's efforts, Oceanic survivors' leader, Dr. Jack Shephard, managed to contact the Kahana occupants. This led the survivors to split into two groups - those who saw the Kahana as a means to their rescue and those who followed Locke, certain that Ms. Dorrit's associates meant to harm them. Locke led the doubters on a trek to the Others' abandoned compound, on the other side of the island. Sawyer was among them. I know what you are thinking. What does this recap of the late Season Three/early Season Four events have to do with hypocrisy? And why target John Locke and James Ford?

Among those who had decided to follow Locke to the Others' compound out of safety was their leader, Ben Linus. Both Locke and Sawyer already had a personal grudge against the man. Ben had tried to murder Locke in (3.20) "The Man Behind the Curtain" in an effort to prevent the latter from replacing him as the Others' leader. Ben had kept Sawyer, Jack and Kate Austen hostage as a means to receive a much needed operation in early Season Three. When Sawyer had interfered in a slightly hostile conversation between Ben and one of his former followers, the adolescent Karl, the former Others leader made insinuations that Kate (whom Sawyer was attracted to) preferred Jack over the con man. As it later turned out, he was right. In a fit of anger, Sawyer gave Ben a beat down and suggested to Locke they should "execute" - namely kill - Ben, because the latter was being a nuisance. Locke refused, claiming they needed Ben's assistance in dealing with the island's newcomers. But this was not the last of it.

Four of the Kahana's passengers finally arrived on the island via a helicopter and parachutes. One of them proved to be Dr. Charlotte Lewis, a cultural anthropologist. Ben feared that Charlotte might contact the freighter and confirm his exact location to her associates aboard the Kahana. He also feared what the freighter's arrival would mean for the island's other inhabitants. Driven by these fears, Ben tried to kill her by shooting her in the chest with a gun he had stolen from an unsuspecting Karl. At that moment, Locke decided to follow Sawyer's advice. He decided to punish Ben by killing the latter. Sawyer offered to do the job, but Locke decided he must be the one to "clean his own mess". Only Ben’s revelations of his knowledge of Charlotte’s background, the reason the freighter had arrived at the island and his spy aboard the Kahana had saved his life.

Watching all of this unfurl had made me shake my head with amazement every time I had viewed "Confirmed Dead". But it took this last rewatch for me to realize both Locke and Sawyer's hypocrisies. Locke had been willing to execute Ben for attempting to do to Charlotte what he had recently done to Naomi in "Through the Looking Glass" - namely kill someone from the Kahana for his self-preservation and the safety of the island's inhabitants. As for Sawyer . . . he had punched Ben for making insidious comments about Jack and Kate. And he also wanted Ben dead for the attempt on Charlotte’s life. This all reminded me of Sawyer's second reason for murdering Tom Friendly. The con man had claimed he did it for 10 year-old Walt Lloyd’s kidnapping in "Exodus". Yet, Sawyer had never went after Ben for the same reason. And by late Season Three and early Season Four, he knew that Ben was the Others' leader and the one who had ordered Walt's kidnapping. Yet, Sawyer had never went after Ben for that reason.

For years, I never understood why so many "LOST" fans had turned a blind eye to the crimes of most of the Oceanic survivors. Or made excuses for their crimes. I now realize one should consider personal bias toward certain characters as a major reason. But after my rewatch of "Confirmed Dead", I am surprised hardly anyone had noticed the Oceanic castaways' penchant for hypocrisy, including that from John Locke and James Ford in this episode.

"THAT DARN CAT!" (1965) Review

 

"THAT DARN CAT!" (1965) Review

Does anyone know when the Golden Age for the Walt Disney Studios had existed? Initially, I would have selected the decade of the 1960s. But . . . the studio had released too many mediocre or bad movies during that decade for me to stick with this assessment. However, I cannot deny that Disney Studios had also released a good number of superb films during the Sixties. At least two performers - Hayley Mills and Dean Jones - were featured in a handful of them. Both Mills and Jones co-starred in one of those films - 1965's "THAT DARN CAT!".

Based on Gordon and Mildred Gordon's 1963 novel, "Undercover Cat", "THAT DARN CAT!" told the story of a wily Siamese tomcat named "Darn Cat" or "DC" who lives with two sisters, Ingrid and Patricia "Patti" Randall in a Californian suburb. DC's habit of evening wanderings around town usually results in teasing local dogs, leaving muddy paw prints on cars and swiping food. One evening, DC follows a man carrying a grocery bag to the latter's low-rent apartment. The man turned out to be one of two bank robbers - Iggy and Dan - hiding out after committing a daytime heist and kidnapping a bank teller named Margaret Miller. Miss Miller takes an opportunity to switch DC's collar with her wristwatch, with the words "HELP" carved on the back. Upon his return to the Randall household, Patti discovers the watch and realizes that it belongs to Miss Miller. She reports her discovery to the F.B.I. and a doubtful Special Agent Zeke Kelso. Despite his doubts and allergy to cats, Kelso's supervisor Special Agent Newton orders the younger agent to set up a surveillance of DC, in the hopes that the latter will lead them to the kidnapped woman and the bank robbers. And Patti . . . insists upon offering her help.

Not long after viewing "THAT DARN CAT!", I had come across a review of the film that seemed to dismiss it as outdated. Considering the film had been made back in the mid-1960s, I can see how one would regard the film as such. However, I have never been that concerned about a film's original date, as long as I liked the movie. I tried to think of a few complaints about "THAT DARN CAT!". For instance, I was aware that California served as the movie's setting. But where in California? At first, I thought the movie was set in Southern California when one of the robbers mentioned "the Valley". This made sense, considering Patti's boyfriend, Canoe Henderson, was a surfer. Then another character mentioned Fresno and I became confused. Fresno? A city situated in the southern half of California's Central Valley. A habitual surfer like Canoe would have to travel a bit on a daily basis in order to engage in his love of surfing. I also found the idea of Patti's sister, Ingrid, willing to offer herself as a possible girlfriend for their toxic neighbor, Gregory Benson, in order to remain in his carpool, very difficult to swallow. Frankly, I found this minor story arc a bit distasteful, almost bordering on "political incorrectness".

Despite my quibbles about the movie, I genuinely enjoyed "THAT DARN CAT!". Perhaps I should rephrase that. After many years, the movie remained very enjoyable to me and has not lost its bite one bit. Yes, the movie had its share of silly humor - especially during the sequence featuring DC's nighttime adventures, while prowling the streets. The sight of F.B.I. agents following him, while struggling to maintain their distance only contributed to the humor. But not only did the movie feature silly humor, but also a good deal of some pretty sharp wit. Some of the best scenes featured the verbal clashes between the Randalls' neighbors - the nosy Mrs. MacDougall and her sharp-tongued, yet long-suffering husband (the Disney version of Gladys and Abner Kravitz of "BEWITCHED"); DC's clashes with the obnoxious Gregory; Patti's scheme to renew the F.B.I.'s interest in the operation after their initial failure; and especially Special Agent Kelso's struggles to deal with DC and his cat allergy.

Amidst all of the humor, the screenplay written by the Gordons and Bill Walsh never forgotten that "THAT DARN CAT!" was also a crime thriller. Although the movie never showed the bank robbery that kickstarted the film's narrative on screen, it did an excellent job of conveying its after effects not only on DC, Patti and Kelso; but also on the unlucky Miss Miller. Mind you, "THAT DARN CAT!" featured some comedic moments with the two bank robbers - especially in scenes in which they argued with each other, along with Iggy's interactions with DC. However, the movie also included scenes that reminded movie audiences just how dangerous the two robbers were. Iggy struck me as an emotional and slightly unhinged personality, whose temper and penchant for violence could be easily triggered. However, one scene featuring Miss Miller's attempt to attract the police quickly proved that Dan, the older robber, was the pair's true menace.

I never thought I would live to see the day when I found myself impressed by a non-human's performance in a movie. But I must admit that I was more than impressed by the cat who portrayed the contrary DC - namely a cat actor named Syn. The latter not only proved to be quite the scene stealer, but also received the PATSY (Picture Animal Top Star of the Year) for his performance in "THAT DARN CAT!".

However, Syn did not give the only outstanding performance. "THAT DARN CAT!" featured a strong cast that not even a scene-stealing feline could overshadow. Frank Gorshin was a year away from his iconic portrayal of the DC Comics villain, the Riddler, in the "BATMAN". But in this film, he gave both a hilarious, yet terrifying performance as Iggy, the volatile bank robber with a fondness for DC and a hair-trigger temper. Neville Brand's portrayal of the older bank robber, Dan, seemed benign . . . until the actor skillfully conveyed how the older man could could be even more dangerous than Iggy with a subtle, yet powerful menace. That one scene, which featured Miss Miller's attempt to attract the cops with a burning trash can nearly had me on the edge of my seat, thanks to Brand's performance. "THAT DARN CAT!" was the first of five Disney movies Roddy McDowall had made for the studio between 1965 and 1979. He portrayed Gregory Benson, the Randalls' slimy neighbor with a romantic eye for the older sister. I think Gregory proved to be one of the best villains McDowall had ever portrayed, conveying the character's aggressive nature, sense of entitlement, unhealthy attachment to his mother and willingness to exploit Ingrid Randall's need for a carpool in order to romance her. Gregory was a real piece of work and McDowall had portrayed him beautifully.

I do not know whose idea it was to cast British-born Elsa Lancaster and William Demarest as the nosy Mrs. MacDougall and her caustic husband, Mr. MacDougall. They seemed like the last two people I would cast as a suburban middle-aged to elderly married couple. And yet . . . Lancaster and Demarest complimented each other like ducks to water. I would consider their screen teaming as one of those happy accidents. The Disney Studios brought back Ed Wynn, last seen in 1964's "MARY POPPINS", to portray Mr. Hofstedder, the nervous jeweler whom Patti recruits to help her renew the F.B.I.'s interest in the case. Although I found Wynn's performance funny, there were times when I found his portrayal of Mr. Hofstedder's tics a bit overdone. Iris Adrian managed to give a perfectly garish performance as Dan and Iggy's boorish landlady without being over-the-top. I really enjoyed Tom Lowell's hilarious portrayal of Canoe Henderson, Patti's slacker boyfriend, who seemed to center his life around surfing and food. I especially enjoyed those scenes that featured Canoe's fears that Patti may have moved on to the older Zeke Kelso. The movie also featured solid and competent performances from the likes of Grayson Hall, Richard Eastman and Richard Deacon.

My only complaint about Dorothy Provine's performance in "THAT DARN CAT!" is she did not have more scenes. Not only did I really enjoy her portrayal of Ingrid Randall, Patti's sardonic sister, I also enjoyed her screen chemistry with Hayley Mills. Like the pairing of Lancaster and Demarest, the pairing of Provine and Mills as two sisters struck me another happy casting accident, despite one actress being British and the other American. "THAT DARN CAT!" turned out to be Dean Jones' first movie for the Disney Studios for the next twelve years. Needless to say, the actor struck gold in his portrayal of Zeke Kelso, a pragmatic F.B.I. agent who had the misfortune to be allergic cats. Granted, Jones gave a skillful performance as a pragmatic and intelligent law enforcement agent. But his scenes with featuring Kelso's allergic reactions and handling of DC practically had me on the floor, laughing. Where as the 1965 comedy was Jones' first movie for Disney, it was Hayley Mills' last one after five years with the studio . . . at least until another twenty-three years later. Someone had once dismissed Mills' portrayal of Patti Randall as another one of those Disney roles that had the actress prattling on needlessly before coming to the point. A rather superficial assessment of a performance, if you ask me. I thought Mills gave a fabulous performance as the energetic and intelligent Patti, whose boredom with her life led her to become involved in a case regarding a bank robbery and a missing bank teller. This was especially apparent in scenes involving Patti's boredom with her boyfriend's obsession with surfing and the cunning she utilizes to reignite the F.B.I.'s interest in DC and the case. It was a great way for Mills to end her association with Disney.

"THAT DARN CAT!" may have possessed a few issues. Overall, I thought it was an excellent comedy thriller that more than deserved its success at the box office. Even after nearly six decades, it still managed to produce a great deal of laughter and thrills, thanks to a first-rate script written by Gordon and Mildred Gordon, along with Bill Walsh; excellent direction by the always superb Robert Stevenson; and a first-rate cast led by Hayley Mills, Dean Jones and a scene-stealing cat actor named Syn.

"WANDAVISION" (2021) Photo Gallery

 

Below are images from "WANDAVISION", the 2021 Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU)/Disney Plus limited series. Created by Jac Schaeffer, the series starred Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany as Wanda Maximoff aka Scarlet Witch and Vision: 

"WANDAVISION" (2021) Photo Gallery