Funny Man is a 1994 British comedy-horror film written and directed by Simon Sprackling. It stars Christopher Lee, Benny Young, Tim James and Pauline Black.
It is an unusual British gambling movie with an element of comedy and horror in it, and it’s a gem in its own right. It’s the Joker in the pack and a tongue in cheek cult movie where payback is one of the main plots.
The Main Story
An obnoxious record producer Max Taylor (Benny Young) wins a haunted house from a mysterious man (Christopher Lee) in a high stakes poker game. Little does he know what awaits him in his new acquisition. Upon moving his family into this spacious mansion equipped with a peculiar house guest, he spins what they call the Wheel of Chance. The wheel of chance is split into four sections. Two sections have “Win” on them, and the other two sections have “Lose” on them. Max spins the wheel, and it lands on the Lose section, which awakens a demon Jester that lives in the soil of the ancestral home.
The Jester is a hideously deformed jester known as THE Funny Man ( Tim James ) with an affinity to horrible puns and demented Monty Python style violence. He goes on a murderous rampage killing Max’s family starting with his wife and children.
After the wife’s killing, he changes his voice to sound like the son luring the wife to her death as he drags the child’s body away telling the audience it’s always good to put the little ones down first. This is the kind of sick humour reflected throughout the movie. However, the film was enjoyable to some, as it received a nomination in 1995 for the International Fantasy Best Film Award.
The Ending
The film ends with Funny Man turning to the cameras and saying “No rest for the wicked.”
Honeymoon in Vegas is a 1992 American love story and comedy directed by Andrew Bergman. It stars James Caan, Sarah Jessica Parker and Nicolas Cage.
The Main Story
Jack Singer ( Nicolas Cage ) is a Private Detective who plans to marry his girlfriend Betsy (Sarah Jessica Parker) at the Bally’s Casino Resort in Las Vegas.
However, Before the wedding, a wealthy professional gambler, Tommy Korman (James Caan), sees Betsy and he notices that she looks the same as his beloved late wife, Donna. He arranges a fixed game of Poker between Jack and another player. Jack gets a straight flush and borrows $65,000 knowing he will win the game.
However, because the game is fixed, the other player gets a higher straight flush and wins the game. Tommy steps in and offers to clear the debt if he can spend a weekend with Betsy.
After getting Tommy to agree to no sex, the desperate couple agrees for Betsy to go with Tommy for the weekend. Jack soon discovers that Tommy has taken Betsy to Hawaii where he has a holiday home.
The film shows Jack desperately trying to get to Hawaii. However, when he gets there, he finds that Tommy has left for Vegas with Betsy. Furthermore, Tommy has convinced Betsy to marry him. However, Betsy decides she cannot go through with the wedding and escapes from Tommy.
Jack frantically tries to get a flight to Las Vegas and eventually gets on a plane with Elvis Impersonators’ sky diving team. However, he has to jump from 3,000 feet to get to Betsy. Luckily he manages to overcome his fear and makes the jump.
The Ending
The movie’s ending shows Jack and Betsy getting married in a small Las Vegas chapel with the Flying Elvises as their guests.
Rain Man is a 1988 American comedy-drama which is a richly rewarding movie leaving players with an unforgettable emotional experience. Barry Levinson directed this gem of a film and has an all-star cast featuring Dustin Hoffman (Raymond Babbitt), Tom Cruise (Charlie Babbitt) and Valeria Golino (Susanna) as the main characters.
The Main Story
Raymond Babbitt was inspired by a real person named Kim Peek, who had a rare condition called savant syndrome, which gave him many talents which included an incredible memory. The story is about a wheeler-dealer (Tom Cruise) who finds out he has been cut out of his father’s will. He finds out that his brother, who is confined to an institution is the sole heir to his father’s fortune. The will was worth $3 million and all Charlie got out of it was his father’s 1949 Buick rainmaster car.
Charlie then abducts his brother to get his hands on the money, and it sees the brothers take off on a cross country to California in the old Buick his father left him. The trip proves to be a profound learning experience. Initially, Charlie has nothing but money on his mind and upon learning his brother can calculate complicated mathematical problems this selfish yuppie uses it to his advantage. He starts visiting gambling venues in Las Vegas where he gets Raymond to counts cards at the Blackjack and Craps tables. It was a very profitable venture, and Raymond wins enough for Charlie to settle all of his debts.
The Ending
By the time they return home Charlie realises he is more interested in caring for Raymond than getting half of the inheritance. It’s a profound theme and highlights the importance of family. Rain Man was the first movie to win both an Academy Award and the Berlin International Film Festivals, Golden Bear award.
