Lazlo Essentials: For The Casual Film Fanatic

Well Mark and I are back from a long Easter weekend, our bellies stuffed with lots of good home cooked food and even more of our kids candy (aren't you supposed to check out the candy you get from the Easter Bunny... you know for razorblades and shit?) You can't be too careful.

Anyway, I originally wanted to start the week off with a BANGO by having a Sci-Fi original movie Monday because a travesty of film making called THOR: Hammer of the Gods was on Saturday night and boy it looked chock full of badness, but whilst out at a good friends 40th Birthday party Saturday night the DVR decided to record two hours of the Create channel instead of Sci-fi. Now the good news is I have a killer recipe for Buffalo wings and coleslaw, the bad news, no review, at least until they repeat the damn thing and i can give it another try. So, to bring us into the new week I present to you... More of the Lazlo Essentials.

#179: How To Murder Your Wife

1965's How To Murder Your Wife starred one of Hollywood's funniest Fall guys Jack Lemmon as newspaper cartoonist Stanley Ford. His popular strip Bash Branagin was the embodiment of action in the 60's, a super spy strip with lots of over the top action and babes who swooned over the hero. Stanley falls in love with a girl who pops out of a cake at a party (Virna Lissi) and in a drunken stupor marries her but regrets it the next day and attempts to break off the marriage. Unfortunately his new wife only speaks Italian so communicating is a problem and when he is finally able to explain the situation to her she refuses to divorce because it goes against the church (This film can obviously never be remade today..)

In his frustration Stanley begins to pour his emotions into his comic strip drawing Bash Branigan murdering his wife and getting away with it. When Stanley's beautiful wife sees the artwork and the grim story it tells, she leaves in tears. Now with the missus missing and a popular comic strip showing how he did it, Stanley is put on trial for murder. The trial scene is hilarious and defiantly NOT for feminists, written by George Axelrod (the Manchurian Candidate, Breakfast at Tiffany's) probably wasn't too concerned with pissing off the women in the audience, hell they could all go see Beach Blanket Bingo..

#40: Excalibur

Lancelot you DICK!

Lazlo's Closet favorite John Boorman (ZARDOZ!) led the charge directing this amazing dreamlike film that still holds up today and is still the best of the Arthurian films, not that there have been many. Yes we know full plate armor was not invented until around 1350 and not even used in Europe until much later than that but we (geeks) are willing to give Excalibur a pass on this and many other items of contention because... well to put it as professionally as possible- it's just freeking awesome. Filled with incredible imagery, this representation of Sir Thomas Malory's: Le Morte d'Arthur seems as epic as the 1,000 page original masterpiece of literature, with the help of incredible acting, amazing cinematography and a powerful soundtrack, Excalibur stays with you as any legend should.

And now Lazlo's Closet's EXCLUSIVE Interview with Arthur Uther Pendragon...and a rather unattractive woman who I do not believe is Lady Guenevere.