Martha Coolidge
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Filmography
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Connections, in both directions
Beyond the fanciful implication of its original material – a comic book series that I never heard of prior to this undertaking – the movie also finds traces of inspiration from “Real Genius,” an obscure ‘80s comedy that effectively helped launch the career of Val Kilmer.
Baymax belongs to Hiro (Ryan Potter) and Tadashi (Tadashi), a pair of robotics and engi-nerd orphans straight out of Revenge of the Nerds or Real Genius.
The Internship (2013)
Directed by Shawn Levy
influenced by Real Genius (1985)
Characters Plot Themes
In Nick and Billy’s snobs-versus-snobs clash, “The Internship” embeds reliable, if not groundbreaking, ’80s-movie code from “Back to School” and “Real Genius” (complete with its own nod to Lazlo, the bookish recluse from “Genius”).
…underdog comedy redesigned for a new era of corporate synthesis and brand integration, complete with such fixtures as the mysterious geek who figures prominently in the climax (think Real Genius), a sneering villain with an effete British accent, and the nerdy, anxious Asian kid driven to self-harm out of anxiety over disappointing his demanding mother.
Think Bill Murray’s “Stripes” or Tom Hanks’ “Volunteers” meets the nerds vs. the super nerds of “Real Genius.”
I am talking specifically of "Revenge of the Nerds," "Back to School," and (especially) "Real Genius."
Licorice Pizza (2021)
Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson
influenced by Valley Girl (1983)
Visuals Themes
Through it all, the platonic couple’s exploits allow Anderson and company to pinball around the same stomping grounds he featured in “Boogie Nights” and “Magnolia,” this time with a rowdier, more overtly comedic sensibility, reminiscent of L.A.-adjacent cult classics “Valley Girl” and “Fast Times at Ridgemont High.”
Paul Thomas Anderson’s fascination with the Seventies had more in common with the classic Eighties romantic comedy Valley Girl or something of that nature.
Neither a personal memory a la Kenneth Branagh’s Belfast, nor a satire to vapidness like the “Valley Girl” song, Licorice Pizza embraces a distinct culture found in the perimeter of Hollywood where everyday people sometimes cross paths with faces whose fame both permits and promotes outlandish behavior.
In fact, Juno's working-class dad and stepmother -- beautifully played by Simmons and Allison Janney -- may be the coolest parents in movie history, or at least since Frederic Forrest and Colleen Camp in 1983's "Valley Girl" (directed if not scripted by a woman, Martha Coolidge).
Had Val Kilmer's character in Real Genius been played by a smirking pod person, he'd be a lot like Reynolds in Waiting..., a sophomoric hunk of raunch from American Pie producer Chris Moore, who has finally given frat boys their own Barbershop.
Right down to its holiday setting every scene is sprinkled with festive (and patriotic) Christmas lights Iron Man 3 is a slick late-80s throwback, with a bad guy (Guy Pearce) whose mullet and glib smile recall Val Kilmers Chris Knight in Real Genius, except this real genius is bent on domination via manipulating the terrorist market.
Bianca’s first act as a self-aware DUFF is to lash out at her confused best friends, resulting in a social-media-fueled “unfriend-off” that will probably stand the cinematic test of time about as well as Valley Girl’s slang.
Audiences born after 1990 may scratch their heads at the 1980s-movie shout-outs, from Real Genius to Cusack's own Better Off Dead ("I want my $2").
But poor Green (The Dreamers) has absolutely nothing to do but stand at the top of high towers and gaze into the distance through her Valley Girl-inspired makeup.
Nat Faxon and Jim Rash’s appreciation for the Gen-X high points in the genre (“Meatballs,” “Real Genius”) is evident in “Way, Way Back,” as funny and affectionate as a coming-of-age lark can be.
Five years ago, teen science movies were all the rage ("Weird Science," "Real Genius," "My Science Project" and the surprise hit of the bunch, "Back to the Future").
(In fact, you'd have to go back to "Top Secret!" or "Real Genius" to see Kilmer enjoying himself this much.)
Matching him line for line is Kilmer, who renews the flair for comedy he first showed in early films like Top Secret! and Real Genius.
And Val Kilmer hasn't been this cool in comedy since Real Genius.
Mr. Kilmer has a gift for comedy which was proven in the early 80s with two largely over-looked gems, "Top Secret" and "Real Genius".
Kilmer's timing here elevates Black's bad-boy dialogue close to the realm of farce, and for those who remember the actor's '80s comedies like ''Real Genius," this is a long-awaited homecoming.
Plus, director Martha Coolidge and ’80s script-doctor supermen Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel (Oscar-nominated for “Splash”) made uncredited contributions.