James Hirsen
Tuesday, July 19, 2005

THE LEFT COAST REPORT
A Political Look at Hollywood

John McCain's Staff in Damage Control Over 'Wedding Crashers'

He's a movie star now.

Yes, Arizona senator and aspiring presidential candidate John McCain recently made his cinematic debut in this summer's bawdy romantic comedy "Wedding Crashers."

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The cameo appearance may create a big-screen problem for McCain, though, and it doesn't have anything to do with his Clinton-defending cameo co-star James Carville. It has to do with the flick's thoroughly warranted R rating.

In the movie, Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn portray divorce mediators who crash weddings and seduce bridal attendants.

There's a fast-moving montage in the film, done in the style of a music video, where Vaughn and Wilson's characters are featured in bed with a shifting procession of naked women.

The Los Angeles Times opined that this Hollywood excursion is "perhaps not the most predictable showcase for the film debut of a former presidential candidate who five years ago conducted Senate hearings in which he personally took Hollywood to task for the preponderance of R-rated films."

Regarding McCain's participation in the film, Wilson recently revealed on NBC's "Today" show that he had "cold-called" the senator's office and that McCain's staff was extremely cordial and told him they would have an answer for him within minutes.

In less than an hour Wilson received a call letting him know that McCain had agreed to the part.

Prior to the movie's release McCain was joking about the appearance, but now his staff appears to be engaged in some damage control.

Eileen McMenamin, McCain's communications director, claimed that when the senator accepted the role he understood the film would be rated PG-13.

"The senator has not seen the movie," said McMenamin. "He agreed to do the cameo role for a fee, which he donated to charity."

Although "Wedding Crashers" employs the same style as other sex-laden comedies like "American Pie" and "There's Something About Mary," it does have a couple of elements that help place it on a somewhat higher plane.

It eventually conveys the moral judgment that the coarse behavior in which Vaughn's and Wilson's characters engage is wrong. It even has the screen figures suffering for their transgressions.

And ultimately the movie celebrates the institution of marriage.

The Left Coast Report says it's yet to be seen whether McCain's decision to join the "Wedding Crashers" cast will prove advantageous to a future GOP presidential primary opponent. But, hey, if it is, he can always do "Wedding Crashers 2."

Oliver Stone: Wrong Guy for the Job

With all of the talented directors available, one can only imagine why Paramount CEO Brad Grey would place at the helm of a film on 9/11 the tin foil hat-headed Oliver Stone.

Perhaps Grey did it to make the most of the controversy that will no doubt heat up after folks find out all the stuff Ollie's uttered.

Back in 1987 Stone was given an award by the ACLU. He said the following on that occasion: "Our own country has become a military industrial monolith, as rigid and corrupt as the Soviets.

"This Darth-Vadian Empire of the United States must pay. America has to bleed. I think the corpses have to pile up. I think American boys have to die again. Let the mothers weep and mourn."

You'd think the horrors of 9/11 would have chastened Stone. But sadly, only one month later he called the 9/11 attack a "revolt" against the "six companies who control the world," who "control culture" and who "control ideas."

He was talking about media companies.

Stone added that "the Arabs have a point and will be joined by the people who objected in Seattle." He then characterized the attack as something good, suggesting that "all great changes have come from people or events that were initially misunderstood."

Add these factoids to the mix. Stone focused on civilian slaughter in "Platoon," demonstrated the softer side of Castro in "Looking for Fidel," used Anthony Hopkins to "Hannibal"-ize "Nixon" and transformed Alexander of "Alexander the Great" into a frosted blond, mascara-wearing surfer dude who bores the world into submission.

The Left Coast Report thinks hiring Stone for the 9/11 gig is like asking Tom Cruise to direct a flick on postpartum depression.

Officers Arrest Village People Cop

The 1970s music group the Village People featured four male singers who wore cowboy, construction worker, Native American and policeman costumes, respectively.

Ironically, some real cops just recently arrested policeman character Victor Willis in California.

During the disco act's heyday, Willis co-wrote the group's hit tunes "Macho Man" and "In the Navy."

After a traffic stop, rock cocaine and drug paraphernalia were found in Willis' vehicle, according to the police report.

The report also indicated that Willis didn't have a valid driver's license or identification and initially lied about who he was.

Willis posted $100,000 bail and has a court hearing in August.

The Left Coast Report observes that, on a positive note for Willis, he wasn't charged with impersonating an officer.

Katherine Harris, Madonna and Kabbalah Water

Does a former Florida secretary of state and current congressional representative have something in common with Madonna?

That's the question that MSNBC's Jeannette Walls recently posed.

Katherine Harris was Florida's secretary of state during the 2000 presidential election that Al Gore contested.

Harris now serves in the U.S. House of Representatives and has announced that she plans to run for the U.S. Senate.

Both Harris and Madonna have apparently contemplated the curative possibilities of Kabbalah water.

According to the Orlando Sentinel, Harris was in charge of a program in which diseased trees were "treated with water provided by associates of the trendy Kabbalah Centre."

Unfortunately, the treated trees did not experience the mystical healing that was sought.

The Kabbalah Centre in Beverly Hills sells the aforementioned water in bottles and claims it can cure serious illnesses like cancer.

The program Harris was involved with also included the participation of a rabbi and a cardiologist who worked with researchers to test "Celestial Drops" on diseased orange trees.

The Sentinel indicated that a scientist employed by the state had referred to the use of the water as a "hoax and not based on any credible science."

The scientist also explained that "the traits attributed to so-called Kabbalah water — 'elegant crystalline structures' and 'high energy and low entropy' — are virtually identical to those of Celestial Drops."

Harris told the Forward that she had recommended the procedure because she had been informed that "Israeli scientists" had produced it.

"I deeply value Israeli technology," Harris said.

When asked by the Sentinel whether the liquid was Kabbalah water, one of the suppliers responded, "I can't really give you that information."

The Left Coast Report hears that tree-treating researchers in Florida are looking into the therapeutic properties of another ancient and hallowed H2O that's been used over the centuries. It's called holy water.

Pro-life 'Island'

A life-affirming film from Hollywood that actually made it through the development machinations at DreamWorks is called "The Island," and it's set to open in multiplexes on July 22.

Its real value lies in the thought-provoking issues raised in the story line.

The movie exposes the covert immorality behind today's embryonic stem cell research, which, in reality, is cloning in disguise.

The film is a sci-fi action thriller with an extraordinary cast, convincing futuristic sets and a host of innovative special effects.

Accompanied by a tasteful soundtrack, director Michael Bay ("Armageddon," "Pearl Harbor") has elicited an intense portrayal from Ewan McGregor ("Star Wars: Episodes I, II & III," "Moulin Rouge") and a luminous performance from Scarlett Johansson ("Lost in Translation," "Girl With a Pearl Earring").

McGregor appears as Lincoln Six-Echo, a resident of a stark, highly controlled futuristic facility. Lincoln and his fellow residents long to win a lottery, where the prize is being chosen to leave the austere "institute" and go live on the "island."

In "Matrix"-like manner, Lincoln stumbles upon evidence that his life and surroundings are a lie. He and close friend Jordan Two-Delta (Johansson) break out of the facility and for the first time venture into the outside world.

The bad guy scientists give chase and also give Bay the opportunity to display his prodigious action scene chops.

The respect for the dignity of life shown in the movie has already raised the hackles of some folks in the critic community, including  the Hollywood Reporter's Kirk Honeycutt, who worried that "these filmmakers have, perhaps unwittingly, delivered a film certain to give succor to the religious right"; Variety's Justin Chang, who mused that "Bay ultimately is interested in the science and ethics of cloning only insofar as they provide a backdrop for all the vehicular chaos he's set to unleash. (Ancillary moral: Clones are human, too.)"; and CompuServe's Harvey Karten, who speculated that the film was one President Bush would probably enjoy.

Interestingly, despite the powerful questions that the film raises about embryonic stem cell research, actress Johansson is on record as being in favor of embryonic stem cell research.

"I think that there's a lot of wonderful possibilities erupting," Johansson told Moviehole. "I mean, if they could eliminate diseases like Alzheimer's and polio that would be incredible."

Perhaps Johansson is unaware that adult stem cell research shows far more promise for curing the diseases she mentions than does embryonic research.  And new technology is on the horizon that can harvest the equivalent of embryonic stem cells without the destruction of human life.

The Left Coast Report hopes that maybe after Johansson and others watch the film, and possibly read up on the assets of adult stem cell research and liabilities of embryonic, they'll find out what biotech companies have been up to — the justification of human cloning using the very same rationale the bad guys used in this flick.