Steve Shagan (1927–2015)

An outstanding piece of writing. Taut and prescient, written in 1989, but anticipating the perfidy of Dr. I.Q. Kahn and his intention of making the means of nuclear weaponry available to the Islamic fringe.
Shagan combines a tight plot involving the disparate elemnts of undaunted Nazi rocket scientists, Qaddafi's unrequited hate of Israel, Pakistan's duplicity, U.S. political ambiguity and Israeli relentlessness to weave a riveting thriller.

Lemmon won an Oscar for his portrayal of a WW II vet, now running a clothing business in Los Angeles, undergoing a mid-life crisis. Gilford, in a more serious role than I associate him with, is his partner, who blanches at some of Lemmon's moral lapses for the sake of keeping the business afloat--and, we, presume to keep up his too-expensive lifestyle--house in Beverly Hills, daughter in school in Switzerland, and, most exorbitant of all, A CAR PHONE!! Yes, we are in the very early 70s here, show more and age of the film and its lead character is emphasized by the fact that Lemmon is experiencing flashbacks to Anzio, where he was wounded, and the soundtrack is made up of big band music, most notably Bunny Berrigan's "I Can't Get Started". It's all rather unsettling, and this is far from a great film. The script makes its point about aging and the younger generation perhaps a little too pointedly. But there are some good scenes, such as with the young girl Lemmon picks up on the Sunset script, and the porn theater discussion of arson. Worth watching--but not all that enjoyable. show less

2022 movie #133. 1980. LA detective (Scott) while investigating a murder somehow finds a conspiracy involving a secret Nazi formula for turning coal into gasoline. Very confusing. Brando is an evil oil CEO trying to hide the secret until he can buy up all the US coal reserves.

The story of a "Producers"-like stock scam where unscrupulous movie company execs hire an unstable creative team in an attempt to make a colossal flop about the Spanish Civil War.