Intro.
Can you believe The Blues Brothers is already thirty years old? It was one of those films I had always heard about and seen parodies of as I grew up, but I didn't watch it until college. And then recently, as it hit its big 30 year anniversary, I went to see it at the AFI Silver Theater and it was like seeing it again for the first time. Overview
The film opens with Jake "Joliet" Blues (John Belushi) getting out of prison. His brother Elwood (Dan Aykroyd) picks him up in his new car - an retired police car. Elwood makes Jake keep his promise to go and see the nun (Kathleen Freeman) who ran their orphanage. She is still there and as terrifying as ever, but has some sad news - the county tax assessor told her that unless she can pay them $5000 in 11 days, the county will close the orphanage. After an inspiring sermon from Pastor Cleophus (James Brown) the brothers realize that they are on a mission from God - get the old blues band back together and make enough money from their gigs to pay the back taxes. It isn't easy though, as first they have to convince all the guys to join them (in spite of protests from Aretha Franklin), get their instruments out on a loan (from Ray Charles), and then find some venues (including a great Country bar where they have to perform the theme from "Rawhide"). Meanwhile they manage to get the police after them as well as the Illinois neo-Nazi party. They manage to arrange a huge benefit concert, but have some trouble getting out. It all culminates with one of the funniest chase-scenes in film history, and at the time held the record for the highest number of crashed cars in a movie. Highlights
There is definitely a fun, campy feel to this movie - it manages to be ridiculous without ever becoming cheesy. You can see how it had grown from a simple Saturday Night Live skit. I think a lot of that is due to just how seriously Jake and Elwood take themselves. Jake only removes his sunglasses once, and that is just to convince Carrie Fisher's character to stop trying to kill him. Buildings blow up, cars careen upside-down in parking malls, the entire police force of Chicago is after them, and these guys don't even break a sweat. They're the perfect heroes of modern America - the bad guys trying to do good, even if "doing good" involves a few crimes. Ends justify the means, right? Part of the reason the film has that campy feel because it doesn't quite stick to one genre. It's clearly a comedy and stays one throughout, but it also takes in elements of police (cops-and-robbers) films as well as musicals. But it manages to pull off this genre-version of musical chairs quite well. I think that's because for the music they only wanted to work with the best - all of the guys in the Blues Brothers band are actual musicians (and quite talented ones too!). Plus there are all those great cameos - I mean, Aretha Franklin belting out into song in her diner? Classic!
Overall, this is one of the most legendary of all buddy films. I mean, we don't even know for sure if the two guys are really brothers (they were raised in an orphanage, so we don't know for certain) but it doesn't matter. Their relationship is at the heart of the film - you can't have Elwood without Jake or Jake without Elwood. That was what I took away from this film - not just the fantastic music or ridiculous car crashes, but the brotherhood.
Review
I love this movie. It's not the kind of film I'd normally watch, but it is so well done and so enjoyable, I can't help but love it. I have a feeling you will too, as long as you can just relax and go along for the ride.
