MOLLY

I rewatched MOLLY over the weekend...and decided to repost my "review" from 2009 in appreciation.

I've been hearing about MOLLY (1999, directed by John Duigan) from my friends for a few years now, and with Sarah Palin in the news again, I decided maybe it was high time I sat down for a lighthearted romp about a mentally challenged woman. Why not?

The film starts off on a good note with the wonderful Holly Cole song "Onion Girl" - unfortunately things go down hill pretty fast from there.We soon are introduced to Molly McKay (Elisabeth Shue) a profoundly autistic woman of 28 (played by a 36 year old actress) who has the mind of a spoiled brat.Molly has been raised in a nursing facility after her parents were killed in a car accident and her only relative is her older brother.Buck (Aaron Eckhart) wasn't around Molly much since he was selfishly off at school and building a successful career in advertising. Now Buck finds out that the home is closing and he needs a new place for Molly to live.
Oh at this point we are told that Molly, like many autistic people has super hearing!!! Who knew???Through a series of circumstances Molly winds up living with Buck in his spacious Venice, California loft. Let the chaos ensue. Molly is quite skittish and screams in horror at the drop of a hat. Molly and Buck also don't seem to have much in common - he likes modern art and she like to pee in her pants. He likes pizza, she likes peas. Molly is also stubborn as a mule and generally answers every question asked with a resounding "NO!!!"

Also, she's obsessed with organizing her collection of shoes. Okay, so am I.

After Buck tries to drop Molly off at daycare–and is rejected–it becomes "bring your autistic sister to work day". First she presses all the buttons in the elevator with evil glee, pissing off Buck's coworkers.

Then she gets bored waiting for Buck in the reception area.

So after picking off the receptionist's dandruff,

Molly decides to strip down hollering "Molly hot!!!"

and proceeds to walk naked into a meeting with a swimwear client!

Now if Buck was an adman worth his salt, he would have pulled a Darren Stephens and figured out a way to tie Molly's nude romp into the new ad campaign. But sadly he doesn't.

As this isn't enough, as a finale, Molly decides to splash around in a fountain. Molly hot again?
Buck tries desperately to juggle his job with his new burden, but he soon ends up unemployed. This causes resentment to grown between the two siblings. Enter the hunkiest mentally challenged person ever, Sam (Thomas Jane) a former worker at the nursing home and friend to Molly - who is both her guardian angel and interpreter - because he too has a learning disability. Hot.

Sam encourages Buck to be patient with his sister. Molly's neurologist, Dr. Brookes (TV's Jill Hennessy) recommends a controversial new surgical technique that could possibly reverse Molly's mental condition. At first Buck rejects the suggestion, but then agrees to it.
Amazingly, after the procedure, Molly slowly begins to become more "normal". Buck creates a "learning checklist" for her and gradually she learns things for the first time, changing her speaking style and appearing more and more like the Elisabeth Shue we know from other hit films.
Before you know it, Molly gains full use of her cognitive reasoning, is able to have intelligent conversations and begins dancing spontaneously in restaurants.

Buck and Molly start attending baseball games, where she uses her super hearing to listen to the players and then gets into an argument with an obnoxious guy, calling him "retarded."

Molly seems to come alive as she spends more time with her brother. In fact, Molly is falling in love with Buck - and doesn't understand why brothers and sister can't be lovers. We're not sure he understands either.
Becoming more of a free spirit, Molly soon learns how to kiss from TV and decides to try it out on shy Sam. He freaks out a bit and turns to Dr. Brookes for comfort.

Molly misunderstands flies into a jealous rage over this. But things get better when Molly has a real fancy date with Sam. Even though she has transitioned to the mind of an adult, she retains her childlike innocence - like when she thinks that a stage production of Romeo and Juliet is real...and, without resistance from her posse, crawls through the audience and onto the stage during the performance,

slapping Juliet across the face and telling Romeo not to drink the poison!

Later at a fancy dinner, Molly freaks out over live lobsters, questioning why anyone would want to eat them. I'm totally with her on that. Then she decides to revisit her restaurant dance routine and Buck joins her.

Later the siblings look at old family photos and watch home movies. Before you know it, Molly begins working with autistic children and even becomes a lecturer!!! Talk about coming full circle!
Well the circle goes unbroken when things take a turn for the worse for our plucky heroine when, after she falls off a bicycle, we discover that Molly's brain is rejecting the treatment and begins to digress into her former self. Before you know it, she's back to old, autistic Molly. What do do? What do do?I'm not sure what really happened next, but Buck and Molly say goodbye, and then they are on a boat out sailing with Sam and Dr. Brookes. So, Molly goes back to being autistic, but somehow it's a happy ending.

Okay, with all apologies to readers and friends who have mentally challenged relatives, this movie is retarded. First of all, Molly is really annoying and embarrassing and then she's a genius and she's still annoying and embarrassing! No one ever calls her on any of her behavior. Buck just lets her push the elevator buttons, dance in restaurants, crawl through audiences, etc.. Never once does tell tell her "Molly, NO! Stop it - people don't do things like that." He just lets her do whatever she wants, therefore she does the craziest things because she knows she can - and it's a hoot.

I think this movie was supposed to tug at your heartstrings, but it just made me laugh. A lot. So much that I cannot wait to see it again and again. A feel-good movie so laughably awful, you actually end up feeling good. 10 out of 10. Well done, Ms. Shue you have unknowingly created the comic performance of a lifetime. I love the multilayered MOLLY...she's just like an "Onion Girl".

CHANGE OF HABIT

Here's a rerun of a post from 2009, celebrating my first viewing of CHANGE OF HABIT!

CHANGE OF HABIT (1969, directed by William Graham) is a movie I've been aware of my entire life, though for some reason I've never seen until now. Me of all people, who loves movies about nuns!

The film starts off promising with a great typeface super-imposed over our three "brides of Christ".
Elvis Presley gets top billing-but he's not the reason I'm watching this.
Yes - the magnificent Mary Tyler Moore, one year before her hit sitcom debuts.
And who else is in this promising little film?
OMG! Barbara McNair - one of my favorite singers of all time!
And introducing future soap diva Jane Elliot! Through the opening title montage (and Elvis song) we see our three sisters transform from wimple-wearing women to stylish young ladies who arrive in some nameless city ghetto and attract much attention from the locals. The men are turned on and the women are jealous.
Meanwhile, Elvis is having a party , surrounded by all sorts of inner-city folk.
But Elvis is not just a handsome singer–he's a doctor at a free clinic!
The free clinic where Sisters Michelle (Mary), Irene (Barbara) and Barbara (Jane) have been assigned to assist Dr. John Carpenter (Elvis) with his busy practice.

At first he thinks all three are there for abortions! He asks them, "All three of you? Just out of curiosity, was it the same guy?"
You see, Dr. Elvis and the local Amy Winehouse lookalikes must not know that they are nuns. These penguins are on an undercover mission!!!
Their new neighbors include two spinsters who are convinced the trio are hookers. They even point out that one is "black as the ace of spades"! Sister Michelle comments that the ladies may be Catholic, but they are not "Christian". Amen, sister.
The trio try to make the most of things while they wait for their furniture to arrive.
The next day, Sister Michelle helps Dr. Elvis with a patient who stutters. Julio also has a fondness for shiny, sharp objects like scissors. Michelle promises to give him extra attention.
Meanwhile at the apartment, Sister Barbara uses her feminine wiles to get some local men to help her carry the furniture into the apartment.
Back at the clinic, Sister Michelle diagnoses a "deaf" girl as autistic, pissing off Dr. Elvis.
The furniture movers get "touchy" with Sister Barbara, but she is saved from a possible gang rape by a mysterious fat white guy named "The Banker".
Returning to the clinic, Dr. Elvis examines a 17-year old Desiree, who complains of a pain in her "left chest".
After work, Dr. Elvis pays the gals a visit and tries to examine Sister Michelle's left chest while she strums his guitar.
He then corners her in the kitchen and is puzzled by her lack of attraction towards him.
The next day, Amanda the autistic girl is back and Dr. Elvis decides it time to cure her. By holding her and telling her that he loves her while Sister Michelle holds her feet.
This scene goes on for about five, long, painful minutes until the girl is screaming and finally "cured". Who knew?
After the miracle cure, Dr. Elvis tries to cure Sister Michelle of her virginity, but she's not having it. Apparently in real life Mary Tyler Moore also turned down Elvis' advances as well.
Meanwhile, Sister Irene has a confrontation with some other African American characters and she tells them "I musta said a million ‘Hail Marys’ to get out of a neighborhood just like this" and then she uses "the N word"!
The next day, Elvis takes Michelle and Autistic Amanda to the park where he spontaneously performs a tune on the Merry-Go-Round. Oh-this is a musical too? Cool.
Then Elvis plays football with Sister Barbara. Must be nice to have a day off! No autism to cure today?
Aren't they the cutest couple?
Back in the ghetto, Sister Irene witnesses a brutal beating. It is revealed that "The Banker" is the crime boss behind it all!!!
The next day, the trio is called into the parish priest's office and they are read the proverbial riot act for living too much like "normal" people. They now must wear their habits in public. Everyone now shows them honor and respect, even the neighborhood sluts.
Sister Barbara uses her new popularity to start a picket of a local grocer who is over-charging customers.
Sister Michelle at last reveals to Dr. Elvis why she is giving him blue balls.
This is a scene that isn't in the film, but is a great publicity shot.
At the food market, Ed Asner shows up. He's not looking for Mary, he's there to eat a banana and hang out with Dr. Elvis.
The next day, the nuns host a carnival in honor of a Puerto Rican saint. Autistic Amanda makes her puppet say "the N word" to visiting Mother Joseph.
Then, Sister Irene incites a riot–exposing "The Banker" as the cause of all the problems the locals are having!
After Officer Ed Asner breaks up the riot, trampy Desiree thanks Sister Michelle for the dress she gave her, even though she altered the hemline a bit.
Then Sister Barbara tells Sister Michelle that she's leaving the nunhood because she could do so much more to fight social injustice as a regular person.
After they hug goodbye, Sister Michelle undresses for bed in front of an open window, as Julio the stuttering scissor collector watches her. OMG-a stalker plotline!!!
Then Julio manages to get into the apartment and attacks Sister Michelle, beginning to undress her and forces himself onto her!!!
Luckily Dr. Elvis is within earshot and he rescues her...and knocks Julio flat on his crazy raping, stuttering ass. Sister Michelle is traumatized.
Time passes and Dr. Elvis goes to visit Sr. Michelle at the convent where he proposes to her.
She turns him down (just like Mary) and basically tells him, she's already married to Christ. Later at church, Elvis performs a rockin' "Let Us Pray" as Desiree debuts her new, conservative look.
Sister Michelle sits in her pew and ponders. Who will it be...Elvis or Jesus? Elvis or Jesus? Elvis or Jesus?
SPOILER: The movie ends without us knowing what her final decision is. I wonder if they shot multiple endings?
I am so glad I finally saw this ridiculous, cheesy but ultimately great film. First of all, it was RATED G and had two attempted rape scenes, "the N word," the words "faggots" and "bitch" plus all that sexual heat between Elvis and Mary. I wonder what the MPAA was really watching that day? Secondly, it's interesting to see "liberated" nuns battling sexism, racism, poverty, intolerance and fighting for social justice. It was certainly a product of its time, but ahead of its time in many ways. I give it a big holy 10 outta 10 because any movie where Elvis assumes nuns want abortions, cures autism, plays football and breaks out into song is totally awesome in my book. It was worth the wait.