A CASE OF THE MONDAYS

This November, the Drexel Theatre is devoting the month to a director who has never shied away from looking into the dark heart of America. “Oliver Stone: Made in USA” showcases four films from one of the most radical directors to ever achieve mainstream success.

JFK screens on November 4. Described by Stone as a “counter-myth” to the Warren Commission’s investigation into the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy, the film follows District Attorney Jim Garrison (Kevin Costner) as he attempts to unravel a complex political conspiracy, eventually coming to believe Lee Harvey Oswald was a patsy for the United States government. Based on two different non-fiction books about the assassination, Stone created a mammoth epic thriller that dares to question the given story and asks whether those in power can ever truly be trusted, no matter the political party. JFK was nominated for eight Academy Awards, winning two (Best Film Editing, Best Cinematography), and features a sprawling cast that includes Sissy Spacek, Kevin Bacon, Tommy Lee Jones, Gary Oldman, Joe Pesci, Jack Lemmon, Walter Matthau, Ed Asner, Michael Rooker, Laurie Metcalf, and Donald Sutherland.

On November 11, we present Stone’s breakthrough film, Platoon. Based on the director’s own experiences in Vietnam, the picture tells the story of young U.S. Army volunteer Chris Taylor (Charlie Sheen), who is stationed near the Cambodian border. Taylor soon finds himself in the middle of a battle between two sergeants: Elias (Willem Dafoe), a kind soul who encourages Chris to hang onto his humanity, and Barnes (Tom Berenger), a cruel cynic who no longer considers the Vietnamese citizens to be people. Platoon exploded upon release in 1986, grossing $138 million at the box office and nabbing Oscars for Best Picture and Best Director. Forest Whitaker, Keith David, John C. McGinley, Tony Todd, Kevin Dillon, and Johnny Depp co-star.

Born on the Fourth of July screens November 18. Serving as kind of a companion film to Platoon, July is the story of Ron Kovic, the former Marine who returned from Vietnam paralyzed from the chest down and became one of the country’s most notable anti-war activists. Tom Cruise is stellar as Kovic, beautifully charting Kovic’s decade long change from wide-eyed pro-war patriot to heartbroken realist who feels betrayed by his country. Stone won his second Oscar for directing July, while Cruise was nominated for Best Actor. July also stars Willem Dafoe, Kyra Sedgwick, Frank Whaley, Ed Lauter, Stephen Baldwin, Lili Taylor, Tom Sizemore, Tom Berenger, and John C. McGinley.

Closing out the program on November 25 is Stone’s wildly controversial 1994 hit, Natural Born Killers. The director goes for broke, employing psychedelic editing and cinematography as he attacks America’s need to turn real-life death into a media spectacle. Woody Harrelson and Juliette Lewis star as Mickey and Mallory Knox, two small-town lovers who are transformed into media sensations when they slaughter fifty-two people in three weeks. An assortment of characters cross paths with the lovestruck psychos: Tom Sizemore as a ruthless cop whose obsession with capturing the couple hides a lustful fixation on Mallory; Tommy Lee Jones as a swaggering, pompous prison warden who foolishly thinks he can control the gruesome twosome; and Robert Downey Jr. in a hilarious performance as Wayne Gayle, a ridiculous Australian tabloid journalist who sees the lovers as his next ratings bonanza. Decried on its release by politicians Bob Dole and Joe Lieberman, Natural Born Killers proved to be a hit with Gen X’ers who embraced the MTV-style and over-the-top satire.