#nom supporting actor
Melvin and Howard (1980). The story of hard-luck Melvin E. Dummar, who claimed to have received a will naming him an heir to the fortune of Howard Hughes.
There’s a warmth and a charm to this film that tended to make up for some really strange narrataive choices, like having the crux of the story and the titular dynamic play out only really in the last twenty minutes of the film (excluding the opening, of course). I appreciated some of it’s themes, and I definitely appreciated a young Mary Steenburgen tap dancing to The Rolling Stones, but I don’t think overall it really landed in the place it wanted to. 6.5/10.
Being There (1980). After the death of his employer forces him out of the only home he’s ever known, a simpleminded, sheltered gardener becomes an unlikely trusted advisor to a powerful tycoon and an insider in Washington politics.
It’s not often easy to balance innocence and cynicism, and certainly not easy to do it with this level of charm. I don’t know if I liked this movie exactly, but I really appreciated what it did and the deceptively nuanced depiction it offered of how somebody can be corrupted by a world they don’t know how to be a part of. 7.5/10.
The Rose (1978). The tragic life of a self-destructive female rock star who struggles to deal with the constant pressures of her career and the demands of her ruthless business manager.
There are far worse ways to spend two hours than watching Bette Midler chew scenery, and it’s really in that space that this movie - excuse the pun - sings. As a behind the scenes rock musical, it’s pretty much exactly what you’d expect, but Midler really grounds it with her charismatic performance, and she pulls up every actor who works alongside her. 7/10.
The Black Stallion (1979). After being shipwrecked with a magnificent horse off the coast of Africa in the 1940s, a boy bonds with the stallion, and trains him to race after their rescue.
I’ve seen a lot of horse movies for this project, and I do think this is one of the better ones. That’s almost entirely due to the lush and evocative cinematography, which must’ve been spectacular to watch on the big screen! It’s really beautiful stuff. Otherwise, this movie is a pretty conventional horse racing movie with a minor twist in the opening with the boy and the horse being shipwrecked together. It’s worth checking out, especially if you like the genre. 7/10.
