A mindless
claptrap loosely structured to 'celebrate' the city of Chicago and several of
the biggest R&B acts of their generation, John Landis' The Blues Brothers (1980) attempts to straddle the chasm between
the traditional light-hearted Hollywood musical/and kick in the crotch comedy
for which the 1970s were deplorably famous, but winds up strapping a pipe bomb
to just about everything instead. The film is the brainchild of Saturday
Night Live alumni Dan Akroyd and John Belushi; the two having played
the brothers Blue on television in several popular skits. Envisioning a more
durable and lengthy piece of entertainment for himself and Belushi to co-star,
Akroyd wrote a 324 page screenplay (his first, and nearly 3 times as long as a
normal screenplay ought to be) before having the manuscript bound to resemble a
copy of the telephone book and submitting it to Landis for consideration.
Evidently, Landis saw something he liked, because he quickly set about pruning
Akroyd's concept into a manageable length.
The premise
for all the musical numbers and rampant destruction that follows is threadbare
at best. Jake Blues (John Belushi) is paroled after serving three years in
prison for armed robbery. His brother Elwood (Dan Akroyd) immediately takes him
for a little tete a tete with 'the penguin': Sister Mary Stigmata (Kathleen
Freeman) who is disappointed by the way 'her boys' have turned out. But now the
orphanage where Elwood and Jake grew up is in very real danger of being taken
over by the city for failing to pay its taxes. (Aside: religious properties are
exempt from taxation. However, at the time the script was being developed
Illinois was considering a bill that would have revoked that exemption).
Jake offers to
knock over a liquor store to get Sister Mary the $5,000 she needs to save the
orphanage. But Elwood reasons a more prudent way to raise money. He and Jake
will reunite with their band and give a benefit concert. To bolster their
confidence the orphanage's custodian, Curtis (Cab Calloway) tells the boys to
visit an Evangelical church run by Rev. Cleophus James (James Brown). The boys
attend and Jake is divinely inspired by the word of God. All, however, does not
go according to plan. Elwood is pulled over by two state troopers (Steven
Williams and Armand Cerami) for running a red light. Discovering that Elwood's
license has expired the police make chase. Elwood drives his car through the
Dixie Square Mall in a 'Smokey and the Bandit' styled chase that ends with the
total annihilation of virtually every store front in the place.
(Aside: the
Dixie Square was an abandoned property set for demolition at the time Landis
and his crew did their own wrecking of its interiors. However, after the filmed
carnage was complete the state of Illinois attempted to sue Universal for the
cost of damages, claiming they had plans to reopen the mall but could no longer
consider it viable or safe.) Elwood takes Jake back to his 'men's club' - a
flophouse. But the next day the entire establishment is nuked by 'a mysterious
woman' (Carrie Fisher). Elwood and Jake survive the building's collapse and
make their way to Ray's Music Express, an emporium presided over by none other
than Ray Charles. They acquire new instruments on credit and hurry off to
collect the remaining members of their band (Murphy Hall, Willie Dunne, Matt
Murphy and Tom Malone).
Matt's ol'
lady, Mrs. Murphy (Aretha Franklin) attempts to discourage her hubby's
participation in the band's reunion by belting out a rendition of 'Think', but
to no avail. Elwood and Jake interrupt a Neo Nazi rally, driving their car into
the crowd and forcing the Nazis to jump into the river, thus incurring the
wrath of the Head Nazi (Henry Gibson) who vows revenge. Next, Elwood, Jake and
the boys make their way to Bob's Country Bunker: a remote western bar where
they crash a Good Ol' Boy's gig. Unfortunately, they drink more than they earn
and the bar owner (Jeff Morris) demands payment. The band flees into the night,
making their way to the Palace Hotel ballroom. Elwood and Jake rally their
friends to promote their appearance and sell out the 5000 seat venue. Their
ambitious promotion works, but it also alerts the police, Bob and the Head Nazi
to Jake and Elwood's whereabouts.
On route to
the Palace, Jake and Elwood run out of gas, forcing the band to go on without
them for the first act. Curtis performs a retro rendition of Minnie the Moocher
and wows the crowd. After a brief flirtation with 'a chic lady' (Twiggy), Jake
and Elwood arrive at the Palace. They perform their trademark song that brings
the audience to a standing ovation. Unfortunately, their arch nemeses are about
to close in. Elwood and Jake escape through a trap door in the stage floor but
are confronted by 'the mysterious lady' who turns out to be Jake's estranged
wife. She has come there to murder the brothers. But at the last possible
moment she allows herself to be very briefly seduced by her ex instead. Elwood
and Jake elude their captors and race back to Chicago.
The extended
chase sequence that brings them to the County Clerk also brings out the police
and the National Guard. Elwood and Jake burst into the Cook County Assessor's
office where their money is taken on behalf of the orphanage by a lowly clerk
(Steven Spielberg). The orphanage has been saved. Unfortunately, someone will
have to atone for all the damages incurred throughout the state. Jake, Elwood
and the band are carted off to prison - presumably for an indefinite stay. The
film concludes with the band performing 'Jailhouse
Rock' to the rest of the inmates.
The Blues Brothers could be considered high camp
with cameos a la the likes of Michael Todd if only the resulting narrative
weren't so fraught with structural inconsistencies that render the movie an
episodic mishmash at best. The premise - raising money to save an orphanage -
is so threadbare it's practically nonexistent after the initial scenes are
played out. What follows is a grossly over-inflated and overproduced series of
clichés – some grossly overwrought in very poor taste. It is rumored that 103
cars were totaled during the lengthy chase sequences that open and close the
film; to say nothing of the many properties either damaged or completely
destroyed along the way.
I must be
getting old, but this sort of thoughtless twaddle doesn't appeal to me anymore.
I'm not entirely certain that it ever did. The musical acts are engaging, I
suppose, but their choreography is more frenetic than fantastic. George Folsey
Jr.'s slapdash editing simply fades to black or cuts away to another angle of
action already covered. He seems incapable of providing a dramatic visual link
or transition between scenes. In the end, The
Blues Brothers isn't so much a tongue-in-cheek 'look who's here' cavalcade of stars - musical and otherwise - as
it proves an exhaustive roller coaster ride that runs out of thrills and
outstays its welcome long before the final fade out.
Universal Home
Video has chosen to include The Blues
Brothers as part of their 100 year celebration. This disc is just a
repackaged version of the Blu-ray already available for more than a year. So if
you already own it, don't buy it again. We get two versions of the film; the
theatrical cut and the 'extended director's cut'. The latter doesn't really add
anything to your viewing experience so much as it simply lengthens a few of the
musical sequences with different angles of the action already covered in the
theatrical cut. The excised portions reinserted into the film have a different
color palette than the rest of the film and appear - at least to my eye -
slightly more waxen and void of film grain than the rest of the movie.
Overall color
fidelity is solid (except during the aforementioned inserts). Flesh tones are
quite natural. Contrast levels are strong. Blacks are deep. Whites are clean.
Age related artefacts are not an issue. A hint of edge enhancement crops up but
nothing that will distract. The visuals are in fine shape and will surely not
disappoint. The DTS audio is unexpectedly aggressive, particularly during the
musical sequences. Heavy on the bass and really robust in its clarity and
separation. Extras include a retro hour long 'making of' documentary and two
brief featurettes: one on transposing the music, the other on remembering John
Belushi.
FILM RATING (out of 5 - 5 being the best)
2
VIDEO/AUDIO
4
EXTRAS
3.5
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