Tag Archives: Tommy Lee Jones

Movie Wisdom – Levon Helm Edition

7 Apr

Last night, I was flipping through the channels and stopped on a movie called In the Electric Mist. Tommy Lee Jones plays a Louisiana detective who is trying to catch a serial killer. Along the way, he runs into some great actors.

John Goodman

Mary Steenburgen

Ned Beatty

It was surprising to see such performers in what I would consider a B Movie. I kept thinking that it was an excuse for a bunch of friends to get together and have fun in New Orleans.

It was also surprising to see a couple of famous musicians in the movie. Namely, Buddy Guy and Levon Helm, who played a ghostly character.

As I watched the movie, I thought about a post that I wrote about Levon Helm. It would be great if you read it. That post is about his music, but it is also about his movies. In the Electric Mist was the last one in which he appeared.

It has been a long time since I wrote a Movie Wisdom post. Now, it is a good time to discover the words of wisdom that can be found in the movies of Levon Helm.Levon Helm

From Coal Miner’s Daughter

I thought “horny” meant cuttin’ up and acting silly!

What we got to do next is figure out what to do next.

From The Right Stuff

No bucks, no Buck Rodgers.

From Shooter

Sometimes to catch a wolf you need to tie the bait to a tree.

From In the Electric Mist

Venal and evil men are destroying the world you were born in.

Don’t compromise your principles or abandon your cause.

There’s two ways of looking at the idea of understanding. One is if you don’t look you never will see. And the other is, if you look a little less you’ll understand a hell of a lot more.

A Blue Jay don’t sit on a Mocking Bird’s nest. The Mocking Bird will whoop the Blue Jay’s ass every time.

Movie Wisdom – Ellen Barkin Edition

13 Aug

At times, movies can offer words for us to live by – bits of wisdom that we would do well to take with us after the credits roll. Throughout the life of this blog, the movies of several performers have been analyzed for such nuggets. These have been Burt Reynolds, Don Knotts, Kevin Costner, Paul Newman, George Peppard, Don Johnson, Jodie Foster and Tommy Lee Jones.

Usually, these take place after I have watched a movie and thought to myself, “Hey, that was a pretty good line.” The other day, I caught the end of one of the all time great movies, The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension, and thought to myself, “Hey, that was a pretty good line.”

Then, I thought about whose career could be analyzed for more words of wisdom. I haven’t seen that many Peter Weller movies, and the rules state that I must have seen a movie to use it. Jeff Goldblum and Christopher Lloyd were options. However, one person has appeared in a couple of movies that I can watch over and over. For that reason, this post explores the wisdom within the movies of Ellen Barkin.Ellen Barkin

From Diner

If you don’t have good dreams you got nightmares.

From Eddie and the Cruisers

There’s nothing can’t be fixed.

From The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension

You can check your anatomy all you want, and even though there may be normal variation, when it comes right down to it, this far inside the head it all looks the same.

Don’t be mean; we don’t have to be mean, cuz, remember, no matter where you go, there you are.

Pictures don’t lie.

History is-a made at night. Character is what you are in the dark.

From The Big Easy

New Orleans is a marvelous environment for coincidence.

From Wild Bill

You ought to know better than to touch another man’s hat.

Whiskey’s good for a man… helps him put things in perspective.

A man that cheats at cards ain’t got no religion.

From Ocean’s Thirteen

The moment you become embarrassed of who you are, you lose yourself.

Movie Wisdom – Tommy Lee Jones Edition

8 Apr

Tonight, my dad and I watched the first part of Lonesome Dove, and it inspired me to add another chapter to the “Movie Wisdom” series. This collection of posts delves into the career of an actor and lists the quotes from their movies that may offer words to live by. For the rules of this endeavor, check out the Burt Reynolds Edition.

This edition examines the films of Tommy Lee Jones.Lonesome Dove

From Lonesome Dove

A man who wouldn’t cheat for a poke don’t want one bad enough.

From JFK

“Treason doth never prosper,” wrote an English poet, “What’s the reason? For if it prosper, none dare call it treason.”

One may smile and smile and be a villain.

Telling the truth can be a scary thing sometimes.

From The Fugitive

Don’t ever argue with the big dog, because the big dog is always right.

From Natural Born Killers

A moment of realization is worth a thousand prayers.

The media is like the weather, only it’s man-made weather.

Nobody can stop fate, nobody can.

You can’t hide from your shadow.

You know, the only thing that kills the demon… is love.

From Cobb

Greatness is overrated.

The desire for glory is not a sin.

From Batman Forever

Broken wings mend in time.

I guess we’re all two people.

A man’s got to go his own way.

From Men in Black

There’s only one way off this planet.

It’s better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.

From No Country for Old Men

You can’t help but compare yourself against the old timers.

This country’s hard on people, you can’t stop what’s coming, it ain’t all waiting on you. That’s vanity.

But I think once you quit hearing “sir” and “ma’am,” the rest is soon to foller.

Well all the time ya spend trying to get back what’s been took from ya, more is going out the door. After a while you just have to try to get a tourniquet on it.

Listeria – Western Actors Edition

24 Oct

I know that this edition of Listeria is coming along soon after the last edition of Listeria, but I went overboard on my last trip to the magazine stand. Besides, this one covers one of my favorite subjects – Western movies. I grew up watching them with my dad, and that experience played a role in my interest in the history of the West.

American Cowboy published a special issue called “Legends of Western Cinema” and listed the 20 greatest Western actors. However, there is one problem that needs to be addressed before I begin. When people think about Westerns, or the history of the West, they think about cowboys first. Some of the greatest Westerns don’t involve cowboys at all. They involve mountain men, Native Americans, cavalry and all sorts of characters. In the real West, not everyone were cowboys. A good way to see this? If there are no cows around, then there are probably no cowboys around.

The rant is over, so here we go with the list. These are the 20 greatest Western actors according to American Cowboy in the order that they have listed. I will list my favorite movie of each and add the actors that I believe should be included.

John Wayne – The Searchers

Gary Cooper – High Noon

James Stewart – The Far Country

Henry Fonda – Once Upon a Time in the West

Clint Eastwood – The Outlaw Josey Wales

Steve McQueen – The Magnificent Seven

Kirk Douglas – There Was a Crooked Man

Robert Duvall – Open Range

Ben Johnson – She Wore a Yellow Ribbon

Lee Marvin – The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

Sam Elliott – Tombstone

Tom Selleck – Quigley Down Under

Charles Bronson – Once Upon a Time in the West

Woody Strode – Sergeant Rutledge

Gregory Peck – The Gunfighter

Paul Newman – Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

Tom Mix – Riders of the Purple Sage

Glenn Ford – 3:10 to Yuma

Tommy Lee Jones – No Country For Old Men

James Garner – Duel at Diablo

That’s the Top 20. I could name a bunch that belong on the list, but I will limit myself to five.

Randolph Scott – Ride the High Country

Kevin Costner – Silverado

Robert Mitchum – Five Card Stud

Robert Redford – Jeremiah Johnson

Richard Widmark – Broken Lance

There is the list. Who else should be included? Who should be omitted? What are your favorite movies? Let me know.