wesbed Posted June 21, 2004 Report Share Posted June 21, 2004 (edited) Killer Joe is a funky enough tune that it sounds like the least they could do is let him play more and show Hanks at a table, bopping his head. Or even looking bored while the rest of the crowd is popping its fingers. Something, anything, to show why his character's father might care about jazz or getting these autographs. This illustrates, to me, that jazz really wasn't the point of 'The Terminal.' The subject of jazz and the famous picture was something to loosely build the movie around. Something that was supposed to be 'oh so meaningful' but really wasn't meaningful at all. I thought the importance of jazz was completely understated to a point that the average person would have no clue what the Hanks character went to New York City to get. He might as well have been traveling to NYC to steal a case of Coors beer (such as in 'Smokey and the Bandit'). With or without the jazz theme, and there was VERY little of it, the movie was still quite enjoyable for me. Edited June 21, 2004 by wesbed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jazzbo Posted June 21, 2004 Report Share Posted June 21, 2004 (edited) Yes, jazz was not important to this movie. . . it merely served as a vehicle for Hanks' character to fulfill a promise to his Dad. Can't have too much jazz in a movie if you want it to slam at the box office! Conicidentally I missed the thread on this movie so I didn't know the jazz thing was coming up. When they started alluding to it I thought of the photo in Harlem and sure 'nuff yep there it was. The interesting thing was my wife was very happy that because of ME she knew about that photograph and some of the people in it (okay, she knew MONK! when they showed his promo picture, a nice one), and she was so tickled that she KNEW. She felt HIP. Wild! Edited June 21, 2004 by jazzbo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RDK Posted June 21, 2004 Report Share Posted June 21, 2004 It's too bad Spielberg didn't make the movie about the Tom Hanks character getting through the airport on schedule... Well, if you really want science fiction... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
couw Posted June 21, 2004 Report Share Posted June 21, 2004 it's a jungle out there... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gould Posted June 21, 2004 Report Share Posted June 21, 2004 Yes, jazz was not important to this movie. . . it was merely served as a vehicle for Hanks' character to fulfill a promise to his Dad. Can't have too much jazz in a movie if you want it to slam at the box officE! And yet that article that was posted from the Sunday times mentioned that Spielberg told Benny that he loved his work and his favorite tune was I Remember Clifford. Heck, assuming that was true, take an extra three minutes to establish that the Father's name was Clifford and he always loved the tune, Benny leads off the set with the tune, and Hanks sits at the table while a tear falls. He's remembering his Dad with his favorite tune, AND he's triumphed against adversity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wesbed Posted June 21, 2004 Report Share Posted June 21, 2004 Conicidentally I missed the thread on this movie so I didn't know the jazz thing was coming up. When they started alluding to it I thought of the photo in Harlem and sure 'nuff yep there it was. The interesting thing was my wife was very happy that because of ME she knew about that photograph and some of the people in it (okay, she knew MONK! when they showed his promo picture, a nice one), and she was so tickled that she KNEW. The same thing happened to me. I went to the movie not knowing of its jazz connection. When the picture appeared, my jaw kind of dropped because, well, who else knows of that picture besides me and the people who post on this board? The person I was with, she knew of Monk, etecetera, due to my interest in jazz. It was surreal to go to the movies to see a Speilberg/Hanks thing, just to have it turn, in the end, to a jazz related theme. Suddenly, there's Benny Golson on the big screen. Like, hey, dump Hanks and bring on Coltrane and Miles and Mobley, Horace, Monk, Sonny... I could have purchased a hot dog, some nachos, a Big Gulp Coke and gone another two hours watching the jazz greats on the big screen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jazzbo Posted June 21, 2004 Report Share Posted June 21, 2004 What was it Frank Zappa used to say. . .? "No commercial potential." I think Spielberg thinks he put in just the right amount of jazz in this, not too little not too less. Can't let his appreciation (if genuine) of Golson's work get in the way of business sense! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted June 21, 2004 Report Share Posted June 21, 2004 I could have purchased a hot dog, some nachos, a Big Gulp Coke and gone another two hours watching the jazz greats on the big screen. Just clean up afterwards, ok? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BruceH Posted June 22, 2004 Report Share Posted June 22, 2004 Really, you need to try to go see movies as matinees Bruce! Hardly any are worth 9.50! Maybe none! Tell me about it! I could only shoehorn it into my busy schedule at 5:00 pm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BruceH Posted June 22, 2004 Report Share Posted June 22, 2004 This illustrates, to me, that jazz really wasn't the point of 'The Terminal.' The subject of jazz and the famous picture was something to loosely build the movie around. Something that was supposed to be 'oh so meaningful' but really wasn't meaningful at all. Yep. A jazz macguffin, sure as shootin'. Actually, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Benny Golson in one movie...maybe it was worth it after all. Wes---I like your proposed version. Make the film more about Victor (Hanks) bouncing around NYC, digging the live jazz, getting more of an appreciation of why his father was into it, etc. But I'm afraid that if Spielberg (or anyone) had made THAT film, you could've "had the theater to yourself" anytime of the day, any day of the week. The jazz demographic is tiny, and Spielberg knows it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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