The Picture of Patriotism: Fourth of July Scenes in Movies

A scene from Avalon (1990)

 

by Michael Lyons

 

Whether you enjoy hot dogs in your backyard with a small group of friends or watching fireworks at your local park with hundreds of strangers, we all celebrate the Fourth of July in our own way.

Through the years, movies have done the same. Some films have centered entirely on Independence Day, while others have had a scene or two focused on July Fourth.

All of them make perfect viewing as we head into this holiday weekend. Here are just a few to choose from:

Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)

An Independence Day movie staple, thanks mainly to Turner Classic Movies, and one of the many reasons to #savetcm! James Cagney rightly won an Oscar for his tour-de-force performance in this biopic of George M. Cohan, who was born on the third of July. To make the film just a dash more patriotic, events are changed to bit, to have Cohan born on July 4th, in a wonderfully melodramatic scene, where his father rushes through an Independence Day celebration to see his newborn son.

Then, of course, there's the "Yankee Doodle Dandy" song and dance sequence, one of the best musical numbers in film history, and, while not set on July 4th, brims with the holiday spirit.

 Ben & Me (1953)

A small, often-overlooked gem from Walt Disney and his artists, this featurette tells the tale of Amos, a mouse who assists Benjamin Franklin and the other Founding Fathers in crafting the Declaration of Independence on July 4th of, 1776.

Filled with the Disney Studio's animated creativity, this is a beautiful window into opening one's mind to American history for kids of all ages.

 1776 (1972)

Back to that Fourth of July in 1776, for this film adaptation of the Broadway musical based on the events leading up to the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Filled with thoughtful musical numbers that (while fictionalized) still give one pause to the diligence that went into crafting the document that provides us with all we can enjoy today.

 Jaws (1975)

"You yell 'Barracuda!' everyone says, 'Huh?' 'What?' You yell 'Shark!", we've got a panic on our hands on the Fourth of July."

So says Mayor Vaughn (Murray Hamilton) to Chief Brody (Roy Scheider) in Steven Spielberg's seminal summer blockbuster about a great white shark terrorizing a small New England town.

Ironically, there is a panic on the Fourth of July when the shark attacks, sending swimmers panicking after the mayor refuses to listen to the chief. That July Fourth attack sets one of the most famous film third acts, where the Chief and marine biologist, Matt Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss), board a boat with Captain Quint (Robert Shaw), to hunt down the shark.

 Rollercoaster (1977)

George Segal plays a safety inspector tracking a terrorist, played by Timothy Bottoms, who is planting bombs on amusement park rollercoasters.  Initially shown in theaters using Senssuround, a sound system that would enhance the action on screen and, in this case, make it feel like the audience was riding a rollercoaster.

The film's ending climax takes place at California's Magic Mountain theme park on the Fourth of July, seen here in all of its 70s summer movie goodness.

 Miss Firecracker (1989)

Holly Hunter stars as Carnelle Scott, an unlikely contestant in a Fourth of July beauty contest held in Mississippi.

Based on a popular stage play with a supporting cast that includes Mary Steenburgen, Tim Robbins, Alfre Woodard, and Scott Glenn, this is an oft-overlooked film that provides a nice slice of small-town summer life.

 Born on the Fourth of July (1989)

Not an upbeat July Fourth film, but a powerful one in every way. Tom Cruise is outstanding in the real-life story of Ron Kovic, the Vietnam veteran whose harrowing experience during the war changed him forever.

As the title states, Kovic was born on the Fourth of July. The film depicts the holiday in his small town in two different scenes: one at the beginning of the film, when he is a young boy, and another after he returns home from Vietnam and marches with other veterans in the parade, which is painful to watch.

The scenes depict the innocence lost in the story and how different the holiday can be for so many.

 Avalon (1990)

Director Barry Levinson's semi-autobiographical film follows several generations of a Polish immigrant family living in Baltimore.

The patriarch of the family recalls how he first came to America, arriving on July 4th, 1914, and this beautifully crafted film returns to Independence Day again in the movie as it explores the American dream and how that has changed through the years.

 

Independence Day (1996)

It doesn't feel like the holiday until you've watched Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin's event movie from the summer of '96, where aliens attack (and demolish) Earth over the July Fourth weekend. For completists, the timeline for the film, from initial contact through the battle at the finale, is July 2nd through the 4th.

We’re the Millers (2013)

A well-crafted comedy from director Rawson Marshall Thurber about a smart-aleck pot dealer (Jason Sudeikis) who convinces a stripper (Jennifer Aniston), a runaway (Emma Roberts), and an innocent kid from his neighborhood (Will Poulter) to pose as an All-American family, so that they can smuggle drugs into Mexico.

This cynical, dark comedy is set against the backdrop of the Fourth of July weekend, and with its settings of RVs, campgrounds, and fireworks, this all plays out like a family road trip gone very wrong.

 

As you take a break from the burgers and beers in your backyard, and the booms coming from your neighbor setting off fireworks just a little too close to your house, enjoy one or all of these movies as you enjoy the holiday!

 

Wishing everyone a Safe and Happy Fourth of July!

Looking for more of my articles, podcasts and information about my book, Drawn to Greatness: Disney's Animation Renaissance? Head over to my website: Words From Lyons !

 

 

Dad's Declarations: Wisdom from Classic TV Sitcom Fathers

by Michael Lyons 

Sunday is Father's Day, and like Mom, Dads deserve more than one day, considering all that they do for us.

A big part of what fathers bring to our lives is providing us with wisdom that we can keep near us as a guidepost.

This has also been provided by the dads in some of television's most popular sitcoms. A few years ago, "Screen Saver" looked back at some of them, but there are more. Here are their words in a TV tribute to fathers:

 

Leave it to Beaver

Ward Cleaver (Hugh Beaumont): "A man never gets so old that he forgets how it was being a little boy."

 

The Brady Bunch

Mike Brady (Robert Reed): "Greg, it may be the hip thing to call parents by their first names, but around here, we're still Mom and Dad."

 

Happy Days

Howard (Tom Bosley): "What is it that you did last night?"

Richie (Ron Howard): "Do you wanna hear what really happened or the lie we're gonna tell everyone else?"

Howard: "Start with the lie. It's probably more interesting."

 

Family Ties

Steven (Michael Gross): "Alex, you're a young man. You should be thinking about hopping on a steam trainer and going around the world or putting a pack on your back and heading down to Mexico."

Alex (Michael J. Fox): "The 1960s are over, Dad."

Steven: "Thanks for the tip."

 

Everybody Loves Raymond 

Frank Barone (Peter Boyle): "I don't like games. Follow the rules, pay attention, wait your turn...It's just like work dressed up as play."

Modern Family

Phil Dunphy (Ty Burrell); "Dance until your feet hurt, sing until your lungs hurt, act until your William Hurt."

 

To these TV Dads, we thank them for the wisdom and laughter, and to Dads everywhere, we thank you for wisdom and love.

Happy Father's Day!

 

 Looking for more of my articles, podcasts and information on my book, Drawn to Greatness: Disney's Animation Renaissance, head over to Words From Lyons !

 

Sources: 

poemofquotes.com

bradybunc.fandom.com

quote soup.com

raymondfandom.com

screen rant.com

Raptors, Raves and Reviews: Looking Back at Critical Reaction to "Jurassic Park," Thirty Years Later

 

by Michael Lyons

 

Jurassic Park smashed into the summer of 1993 with the same force as a T-Rex destroying a theme park vehicle. 

Steven Spielberg's blockbuster adaptation of author Michael Crichton's novel was not only a monster hit with audiences but also a game-changer for the movie industry. It helped propel the era of the summer "event" movie (a season Spielberg helped to invent in 1975 with Jaws), scratched the surface of the infinite possibilities of computer-generated imagery, and solidified a film franchise that has endured.

The landmark story of a dinosaur theme park gone wrong continues to enchant audiences. It's sobering to reflect that Jurassic Park, released on June 11, 1993, will celebrate its 30th anniversary this summer. 

All of us who were there that summer eagerly waiting to be among the first to see Jurassic Park in theaters, fondly remember the hype and excitement of that time. But, thirty years later, it's interesting to look back on what the critical reaction was in June of 1993.

Some glowing, some mixed, but all remark on the sense of wonder in the film. In honor of Jurrasic Park's 30th, here are segments of some of the reviews as they appeared when the film was first released:

“In Jurassic Park, adapted from Michael Crichton's 1990 bestseller, the dinosaurs - some benign, some terrifying, all wondrous - tap into the giddiest science-class daydreams you had as a kid. Created through a blend of computer-generated animation and electronically controlled models, they are so marvelous, and Spielberg choreographs their scenes with such wit, tension, and verve that it's easy to overlook the film's obvious weaknesses: a plot that's at once busy and thin, characters you like without caring about, a coy layer of blockbuster self-consciousness. As a flight of fantasy, Jurassic Park lacks the emotional unity of Spielberg’s classics (Jaws, Close Encounters, E.T.), yet it has enough of his innocent, playful virtuosity to send you out of the theater grinning with delight.”

 

-Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly

“If Jurassic Park lacks the emotional hold of E.T., it still forges a bond between the animals and the audience that allows the beauty and terror of Crichton 's vision to come through. Spielberg never turns the dinosaurs into huggable Barneys or B-movie monsters; They retain a primitive dignity. Unlike the book, the film can't discuss findings that suggest dinos were quicker, smarter, and more social than previously believed or more closely related to birds than to reptiles. What talk there is comes off as truncated jargon. But this evidence is reflected gloriously in the visuals and in enough detail to delight the dino-crazed kid in all of us. Jurassic is a grabber for the best reasons: you won't believe your eyes.”

 

 - Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

“Think back to another ambitious special effects picture from Spielberg, Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977). That was a movie about the “idea” of visitors from outer space. It inspired us to think what an awesome thing it would be if earth were visited by living alien beings. You left that movie shaken and a little transformed. It was a movie that had faith in the intelligence and curiosity of its audience.

 

In the 16 years since it was made, however, big-budget Hollywood seems to have lost its confidence that audiences can share big dreams. Jurassic Park throws a lot of dinosaurs at us, and because they look terrific (and indeed they do), we're supposed to be grateful. I have the uneasy feeling that if Spielberg had made Close Encounters today, we would have seen the aliens in the first 10 minutes, and by the halfway mark, they'd be attacking Manhattan with death rays.

 

Because the movie delivers on the bottom line, I'm giving it three stars. You want great dinosaurs, you got great dinosaurs.”

 

 - Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times, and Siskel & Ebert & the Movies

“The brightest stars in this creative constellation are the technicians: when Oscar Day rolls around, there will be no excuses for muddled acceptance speeches. Among those who should start polishing: Stan Winston for the incredible live-action dinosaurs; Industrial Light & Magic’s Dennis Muren for the full-motion dinosaurs, as well as dinosaur supervisor Phil Tippett. Similarly, composer John Williams’ titanic score, with its peels of trumpetry and cinematographer Dean Cundey's mesmerizing lensing, are terrifically gripping.”

 

 - Duane Byrge, The Hollywood Reporter

 

“Steven Spielberg's Jurassic Park is a true movie milestone, presenting awe and fear-inspiring sights never before seen on the screen. The more spectacular of these involve the fierce, lifelike dinosaurs that stalk through the film with astounding ease. Much scarier, however, are those aspects of Jurassic Park that establish it as the overnight flagship of a brand-new entertainment empire. Even while capturing the imagination of its audience, the film lays the groundwork for the theme park rides, sequels, and souvenirs that ensure that the Jurassic Park experience will live on. And on. And on.”

 

 - Janet Maslin, The New York Times

 

 

 

Ms. Maslin's words are prophetic, as Jurassic Park has lived on in those theme park attractions, products, and sequels she predicted.  And fans everywhere are grateful for them all. Jurassic Park brings life to the moviegoing experience and the filmmaking experience. 

As Jeff Goldblum's Ian Malcom famously states, "Life finds a way."

Happy thirtieth anniversary, Jurassic Park!

 

Sources:

 

ew.com

rollingstone.com

rogerebert.com

hollywoodreporter.com

nytimes.com

For more of my articles and podcasts, as well as my book, Drawn to Greatness: Disney's Animation Renaissance, head over to Words From Lyons