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The Blues Brothers (1980)


Directed by John Landis
Released June 20, 1980
Written by Dan Aykroyd & John Landis

Movie Synopsis Courtesy of IMDB

"Jake Blues, just out from prison, puts together his old band to save the Catholic home where he and brother Elwood were raised."

I am finally able to start writing this blog. The reason I say this is because I forgot how long it is! It is almost three hours long. That's a marathon just to watch the movie. But it is a classic, especially if you are like me and are from Chicago. 

Now let's talk about these boys a little bit. The biggest thing that I find entertaining about this movie is that it has the Les Misérables syndrome. In Les Mis, Jean Valjean is thrown in prison for stealing a loaf of bead for his hungry family. The Blues Brothers are being chased by the cops throughout the movie because Elwood has a suspended license. Yes, they destroy a lot of public property in the process, which I am going to talk about in a minute, but the start of all of this craziness is over a suspended license. Then by the end of the movie the entire Chicago Police department is chasing them and destroying so much public property you would think the police are hunting down mass murders, instead of two musicians. You add in the Cowboy musicians and the Nazis that the Blues Brothers angered and it seems like everyone wants them dead when they really didn't do anything that bad. They are trouble makers and cheats, but it is nothing that bad compared to other people.

Before I talk about the chase scene, I want to talk about the irony of the car for a second. The Blues Brothers are driving in an old police car and they get chased by the police the whole movie. Heck, Elwood picks up his brother from jail in a police car. If that is not irony at its greatest then I don't know what is.

Now to the chase scenes. I know it is a movie and they make everything more dramatic and that they are purposely making a mess, but do any of these people even know how to drive? They go out of their way to crash into stores and buildings, most of it being avoidable. Half the time it is just the front corner or back end of the car that crashes into things. Which means if they had turned the wheel even a little bit more then they would have missed the store or building, which would help them! Crashing into things only slows down the chase and makes it easier for you to get caught or for the police to get their cars stuck. You avoid stuff and you get to drive away faster. It is only to their benefit to avoid hitting things.


 

Also, since this is relevant, it made me sad seeing the Toys R Us store in this shopping mall. This week all Toys R Us stores have officially closed forever and it is sad that in a few years kids won't even know what that store is. 


There is another great piece of irony in this movie, that I find entertaining, and maybe everyone else doesn't catch right away. In the beginning of the movie, the boys go to visit the orphanage that they grew up in, which happens to be run by a nun. Jake, on numerous occasions, refers to her as the penguin because of her nun robes. But did you ever notice how the brothers dress? They dress just like penguins too. They are always in a black suit, with black top hat, black sunglasses, and a white shirt. I guess no matter who raises you, the apples still don't fall far from the tree. 

Speaking of their wardrobe, the hat and sunglasses are an important part of the movie. It is their identity, their staple, which is why they almost never come off. There are only two times this happens, and it is the kind of choice that has to be done with intension. When we first met Jake he doesn't have his hat or his glasses, because he is still in his jail clothes. Which is why the director made the choice to only shoot him from the back. We never see his face or the front of him when he is not dresses in his proper attire. So this time doesn't count because he don't see his face. The only time Jake takes off his sunglasses is when he is pleading with his girl who is trying to kill him. This could be a sign of desperation, that he takes them off in order to give her "puppy dog eyes" or this could be a sign that he does care for her and she is the only one he will look directly in the eyes. I think it is the former and not the latter, but that is up for your own interpretation. Then the only time Elwood takes off his hat is when the car basically dies on the street after the police chase. This act is only seen as the latter of the two options because he was the one who bought that car and loved that car.


The last thing I want to bring up in this movie is the crazy girl! Geez, why are the police not hunting her? She is blowing up buildings with explosives and bazookas. Probably killing some people along the way because those expositions are huge. And girl, I feel her pain, getting left at the alter sounds horrible, but his is a little excessive. Especially, when she should know the kind of person she is trying to marry. Jake is not someone who is the marrying type. So really, this is her own fault for picking a bad guy to marry.

Finally, it would be crazy of me not to end this blog with the staple of the Blues Brothers. Enjoy!





Elwood: "We're on a mission from God."

****

Elwood: "It's 106 miles to Chicago, we got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark...and we're wearing sunglasses."
Jake: "Hit it."


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