HIGHLA-L Digest - 4 Feb 2004 to 5 Feb 2004 (#2004-26)
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Thu, 5 Feb 2004 22:00:04 -0500
There are 4 messages totalling 255 lines in this issue.
Topics of the day:
1. Season Two dvd Commentary: The Fighter (4)
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Date: Thu, 5 Feb 2004 10:15:15 -0500
From: kageorge <kageorge@erols.com>
Subject: Season Two dvd Commentary: The Fighter
COMMENTARY: David Abramowitz commented on where they filmed the fight =
scene (the Cannuck (sp?) hockey rink), and that there was a concern =
whether they'd have it put back as a hockey rink in time. He also =
mentioned how fortunate that they had Bruce Weitz as their guest star, =
who had just come off of the award winning "Hill Street Blues". The =
Fighter was a take off on the Cyrano story, about a man who couldn't =
deal with women. He mentioned that using Charlie DeSalvo as Sully's =
teacher in matters of love was "the blind leading the blind."
The bare knuckle fighting scene was particularly brutal, especially for =
the overseas audience. The episode got the series into a lot of trouble, =
making it for a short time the "most violent show in television" because =
they counted each punch of the fight scene as a separate act of =
violence. "We had one small moment of ignominious fame," DA reports.
MacGeorge Sez: Mr. Abramowitz, why are you commenting on location and =
fight scenes??? This was a seminal episode in Highlander, one where the =
show hit its full stride in all its elements of theme and visuals and =
characterization. If there was ever a show about which to have a =
Talmudic discussion, this was it. Shame on you!
OUTTAKES: Anyone who went to Reunion Con will recognize the outtakes on =
this episode, where Gillian Horvath does a voice over for the scene in =
the dojo when Sully asks Duncan to teach him about talking to women, and =
Charlie walks in with a beautiful woman on his arm, who then gives =
Charlie flowers (thereby making Charlie the logical candidate to teach =
Sully what he wants to know). Gillian explains how each shot was made, =
and how each actor then does a "turnaround" shot so they can easily cut =
to another angle. Then they show the final product.
EPISODE: Thomas Sullivan, an Immortal known as Sully, is a fight =
manager, a small feisty Irishman who believes in friendship and loyalty, =
and who has a very hot temper. DM and Charlie visit Sully and his =
fighter (Belcher) after a bout that Belcher had won, and Sully tries to =
convince DM to become an "investor" in Belcher's fight career. Evidence =
of Sully's temper can be seen when first a fight breaks out with the =
defeated boxers manager, then when a sleazy promoter approaches Belcher =
about leaving buying out Belcher's contract with Sully, it is clear =
there is bad blood between Sully and the sleazy manager. As a result of =
the promoter's insults to Sully, DM agrees to buy a 10% interest in =
Belcher's career.
It turns out that Sully has a long history of asking outrageous favors. =
In a long flashback, we see Sully interrupt DM in bed with a giggling =
young woman, to ask him to go three rounds with George Brock, a famous =
heavyweight fighter, because Sully needs the money. DM is very prim and =
proper in his old fashioned suit and offers to loan him the money, but =
that insults Sully, who says he is only interested in a business deal. =
DM continues to say he doesn't fight for money, but when Brock's =
promoter comes out, taunts Sully, and Brock throws a blind punch at DM, =
Duncan gets pissed off and agrees to the fight.
The upshot of it is that DM goes a brutal three rounds, but the fight is =
interrupted right at the bell by the police, and the promoter uses that =
as an excuse to renege on the $1000 prize money. The promoter turns up =
dead, and Sully has the prize money, and DM suspects that Sully killed =
the promoter, but he has no proof and Sully denies it.
Back to the present day, Sully is in love with a waitress at the =
*present day* promoter's sports bar, but every time she approaches he =
gets completely tongue tied. There is a subplot involving the waitress' =
brother, who is played by the same actor who later plays Cory Raines =
(and who played Rychek on XF). It seems he has gambling debts and the =
sleazy promoter bought them up, using them as leverage with Iris, the =
waitress, so that when he uses Iris to try to tempt Sully's fighter to =
dump Sully, it enrages Sully, who ends up in a melee with his own =
fighter.
Sully ends up killing the promoter and his bodyguard, and DM confronts =
him on it. Sully admits it and says the guy needed killing, and that =
he'd do it again, and that DM should ask around and he would find out =
Sully had done the world a favor. At this point, DM is pretty upset at =
Sully, having his fears about his friend proven true - that he =
unhesitatingly killed people (mortals) who he had decided deserved it. =
It appears DM is almost willing to let it pass, though, when he finds =
out that the promoter was a blackmailer and all around bad guy.
Then Belcher sends a letter saying he was leaving Sully's management, =
and DM gets a awful feeling, knowing Sully is adamant about loyalty and =
friendship. He finds Belcher dead, and confronts Sully in the empty =
boxing arena. Sully says all Duncan has to do is look away. "I'm asking =
you this one thing," he says. Except that he's been saying that all =
along, over and over again. He says Belcher betrayed him, cheated him. =
"Oh, you kill everyone that cheats you?" DM demands. "Of course," Sully =
answers.
DM wants to know if he killed Brock's manager, too, and Sully answers, =
"We kill people all the time! It's what we do."
A tense and nicely choreographed fight scene plays out in the arena, and =
they end up in the ring, where Duncan takes Sully's head. Afterwards =
there is a long pause as he waits for the Quickening. He goes to the =
center of the ring and takes his and Sully's swords, crossing them over =
his head, and we see the Q and the lightening strike again and again and =
again, and each time he appears to use the swords to block it, until it =
is finally over. He goes to his knees, then falls forward, finally =
raising up a little to smash his fist into the ring floor with a scream =
of despair.
OPINION: This is one of the great HL episodes, in my opinion, and Bruce =
Weitz playing Sully is a joy to watch. We see the full dilemma of =
Duncan's difficult life. He loves people, and enjoys being around other =
immortals, and seems to really enjoy and easily forgive their foibles, =
even when those foibles involve taking advantage of Duncan's easy =
nature. The flashback scene is intense and terrific. DM is getting =
pummeled and Sully keeps yelling at him to back off, but he never does. =
Finally, at the end of the third round, Brock is tiring and DM moves in, =
dodging and punching, and taking over the momentum of the fight. I =
thought it was interesting that he adhered to the "rules" (such as they =
were) of bare knuckle fighting, even though he could clearly have taken =
the guy out using the many other hand-to-hand combat skills he knew.
Even the small parts were well played, from sweet Iris, to her =
disreputable brother, to the sleazy promoter (I love a good bad guy). =
There were a lot of really nice moments in this show, from Sully kicking =
Duncan under the table during an aborted conversation with Iris, to a =
dark, meaningful look between the sleazy promoter and Duncan, to Iris' =
brother trying unsuccessfully confront the promoter.
And the theme: How difficult it must be to live every day with the =
acceptance that you have to kill to survive - that you're *supposed* to =
kill - and not let it diminish the value of *all* life. Should Duncan =
have let Sully go, knowing he was an unrepentant murderer who was likely =
to do it again to the next person he disagreed with? In a later episode =
we hear Duncan use the quote: "Evil flourishes when good men do =
nothing." Sully had gone from killing "bad guys" to murdering people he =
merely disagreed with, so Duncan refused to "do nothing." He did what =
Immortals do, and then grieved bitterly.
It would have been interesting to see Duncan turn Sully into the police =
instead of fighting him, but then he is caught between mortal and =
Immortal worlds. An Immortal solves a life crisis with another Immortal =
in a battle to the death. As a number of Immortals have said, "It's what =
we do." Yet it is "what they do" that so taints the other parts of their =
lives so that *nothing* is normal.
Great episode.
MacGeorge
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 5 Feb 2004 07:49:33 -0800
From: Stephen Bryce <sibryce@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: Season Two dvd Commentary: The Fighter
> MacGeorge Sez: Mr. Abramowitz, why are you commenting on location and
> fight scenes??? This was a seminal episode in Highlander, one where
> the show hit its full stride in all its elements of theme and visuals
> and characterization. If there was ever a show about which to have a
> Talmudic discussion, this was it. Shame on you!
But it's his episode to comment on, MacGeorge. He can comment on it in
whatever way he likes, because it's his perogotive. It may not be the
best way to do so, I'll grant you that, but quite frankly it isn't that
big of a deal. It's not like you're ever forced to listen to the
commentary track.
Steve
=====
"They say, when you meet the love of your life, time stops, and that's true. What they don't tell you is that when it starts again, it moves extra fast to catch up."
(Ed Bloom [Albert Finney], "Big Fish")
__________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Finance: Get your refund fast by filing online.
http://taxes.yahoo.com/filing.html
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 5 Feb 2004 11:32:31 -0500
From: kageorge <kageorge@erols.com>
Subject: Re: Season Two dvd Commentary: The Fighter
Well, that's all very true, but my point was that he missed out on saying
something interesting and enlightening, chosing the mundane and boring
instead. The object of the commentary is to illuminate and expand on what
we see on the screen. Abramowitz is a very smart guy who *likes* to talk
about Talmudic questions. That he by-passed such an opportunity is a shame.
And note that the title to the post is "commentary" - my own as well as
those of TPTP. If I have an opinion, I'll post it, and no one is forcing
anyone to read that, either.
MacG
----- Original Message -----
From: "Stephen Bryce" <sibryce@yahoo.com>
> > MacGeorge Sez: Mr. Abramowitz, why are you commenting on location and
> > fight scenes??? This was a seminal episode in Highlander, one where
> > the show hit its full stride in all its elements of theme and visuals
> > and characterization. If there was ever a show about which to have a
> > Talmudic discussion, this was it. Shame on you!
>
> But it's his episode to comment on, MacGeorge. He can comment on it in
> whatever way he likes, because it's his perogotive. It may not be the
> best way to do so, I'll grant you that, but quite frankly it isn't that
> big of a deal. It's not like you're ever forced to listen to the
> commentary track.
>
> Steve
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 5 Feb 2004 08:48:11 -0800
From: Stephen Bryce <sibryce@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: Season Two dvd Commentary: The Fighter
> The object of the commentary is to illuminate and expand on
> what we see on the screen.
And the way some directors choose to do that is by just telling
interesting stories of the behind the scenes process, especially those
directors who feel that people should make up their own minds as to
what the story is about.
> And note that the title to the post is "commentary" - my own as well
> as those of TPTP. If I have an opinion, I'll post it, and no one is
> forcing anyone to read that, either.
Fair enough.
Steve
=====
"They say, when you meet the love of your life, time stops, and that's true. What they don't tell you is that when it starts again, it moves extra fast to catch up."
(Ed Bloom [Albert Finney], "Big Fish")
__________________________________
Do you Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Finance: Get your refund fast by filing online.
http://taxes.yahoo.com/filing.html
------------------------------
End of HIGHLA-L Digest - 4 Feb 2004 to 5 Feb 2004 (#2004-26)
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