I am watching Righteous, a cop film starring Pacino and Deniro. If you get a chance check out Wiki on this turkey. Hahahaah

I dunno but watching two sexagenarians amble around threatening to hit and shoot people is kind of fun. I recall Grandpa at 60 + and he was my best friend at that age.

Anyway, watching these old men amble and fumble with lines along with their bloated and sagging faces is a real trip.  And both of them are jumping over stair rails and running (hahahah, well sort of) like banshees and out-clevering all those in their path. The ending is predictable from about 20 minutes into the film, by the way.

The critics had a ball bashing this bombastic mess. And it takes me back to the '95 flick where this dynamic duo starred but never showed up to shoot the same scene. That was a better flick.

But that is not the subject matter of this essay.

I was thinking of two other dogs.

Before getting on line in '08, I languished but spent time at the library besides watching baseball and terrible standard cable fare. But I read more than I thought I did.

I found some old tomes with Bernard Shaw's plays. The books were so old they did not even contain a '36 play I only recently discovered. Anyway one of my favorites was The Devil's Disciple.

It is a fun read and, to me anyway, it is almost as if Shaw is satirizing Dickens while making fun of his own 18th century Brits--which makes sense if you recall that old George was Northern Irish.

The play takes place during the Saratoga Campaign of 1777 at a time when Burgoyne is about to lose his entire army. In real life Burgoyne leaves his 5,000 troops in the hands of the Colonists following this defeat and returns to England; losing his commission and his reputation. I guess this was 'the turning point' of the war. Of course, France makes this a global war about the same time which drags our conflict for another four years. But I digress.

Several times, since I read the play, I had the opportunity to see the 1959 black and white movie starring Olivier as Burgoyne along with Kirk Douglas and Burt Lancaster in the starring roles. As an old fart, this is heaven. This is a masterpiece of cinema. There is so much irony floating around between the play and the making of this movie that I am swimming in a sea of fantasy as I write this drivel.

No one, AND I MEAN NO ONE, plays Shavian roles better than Olivier and I love Sexy Rexy and I love Leslie Howard. The lines just dance out of Olivier's mouth like an endless stream of Tinkerbells.

Oh, and this movie was the dream of Lancaster because he wanted to play the role of Dick Dungeon (who besides Shaw is going to have a character named Dudgeon -a feeling of anger or resentment?). So Burt puts some of his own money in the project and already has Olivier and he has some other grand actor to play the Reverend Anderson. But the other actor pulls out and he talks Douglas into doing it. Of course, Kirk has his own idea and ends up playing Dudgeon.  Oh, and they only have $1.4 million to play with so they have to give up on Technicolor. See, I told ya, even before you view the movie there is irony.

Oh, and the two American Stars are in their forties and in their prime instead of AARPs like Pacino and DeNiro.  Lancaster and Douglas are slim waisted and muscular and athletic with hearty laughs. I get such a kick out of watching them.

THE PLAY

(Kirk) Dudgeon returns to the family farm located in New Hampshire for his daddy's funeral. We are to assume that Dudgeon has been gallivanting around the country side for years, sinning the entire time and adding nothing but vile to his family name. Everybody hates him. His family just despises him and the town folk do not care much for him either. And Dungeon just loves the fact that everybody, including mommy just hates him.

Dudgeon is also anti-British which goes against the family's allegiances.

Kirk is such a great gallivanter. I mean he jumps onto tables and he smokes pipes and Shaw gives him all these great lines to taunt those present at his homecoming.

And Shaw has Dudgeon made the primary devisee to his father's estate under the terms of the will. Mom is out of her mind bitching that it was her dowry that made daddy solvent in the first place. She is so mad that she refuses to live in the family homestead anymore on account of the fact that her son's name will be on the title. (In the play, Dudgeon is such a rat he evicts his own mother from the homestead. hahaha)

How is that for screwing with the Prodigal Son Parable?

"When he came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired men.' So he got up and went to his father.

"But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.

"The son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.'

In this play, the ghost father welcomes back the son who has never confessed his guilt, never asked for forgiveness, never offered his allegiance and never became the dutiful heir.

So while Kirk is dancing on tables and proclaiming himself the disciple of the devil, Burgoyne's troops waltz into this Northeastern burg  attempting to discover 'civilian traitors' giving aid and comfort to the enemy while preparing for the big battle. As a matter of fact the play opens with a good public hanging.

Meanwhile, Lancaster is the town minister and has a wonderful abode which he shares with his 14 year old wife. At least she looks 14 to me.

Somehow the minister and the Devil's Disciple meet and the ruffian is invited to dinner in the minister's home.

Kirk eyes the small Nubile Feast while he dines. Then Lancaster is called to someone's sick bed. He leaves Dudgeon with his wife and Shaw creates much banter between the two while the angel of mercy is away.

Just then the British Soldiers arrive to arrest the minister. This is humorous also in that the crime perpetrated by Lancaster was to bury one of the victims of British Justice against orders issued by Burgoyne's men.

So Dudgeon takes the rap, pretending to be the minister. You know: It's a far, far better thing I have done now than I have ever done.

Reverend Anderson scampers away to join the fight against the Brits since there would be two hung if he attempted to rectify the misidentification of Dudgeon for himself.

The trial is a romp with Olivier kind of auditing the proceedings and there is some clever dialogue between the General and Dudgeon later. Nobody can sentence someone to death better than Oliver. ha

Anderson shows up later just before they hang Dudgeon. This is a funny scene but not intended to be so in the play. Lancaster is dressed like Davy Crocket and attempts to give Burgoyne secret papers demonstrating that his defeat is imminent. And the hanging is aborted.

Anderson suggests Dudgeon should become the minister since he has found his soul and the minister shall become the rebel.

It's all fun.

Shaw is always fun. And Americans play Americans and Brits play the Brits.

Great fun for one and all.