Midnight Sting [DVD]

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The setup in Diggstown begins. On one side of the main street in town, Fitz drinks all night and cleans out a local card game, then keeps winning money in billiards bets. Across the street, there’s a small boxing club. We meet John Gillon (Bruce Dern), who manages the club and, according to son Robby (Thomas Wilson Brown), “ is Diggstown.” We will come to learn that’s true; Gillon owns most of the property in town. He gives his fresh-faced teenage son a 1958 Corvette as a present. At least it has recently appeared on ESPN Classic so it would seem that a cult following may be building for this terrific film. I don't think this one lasted three weeks in the theaters around here, but the first time I saw it on cable, I was hooked. Diggstown is not only a hilarious film, but it's also one of the best "sports" movies I've ever seen. Caine congratulates Palmer: "What you did," he says, "couldn't be done." To which Palmer replies, "Now, you motivate me". More military history from that renowned military historian Dermot O’Leary, this week examining the 48 hours before the Battle of the Somme. O’Leary visits a reconstructed trench and meets the descendants of a soldier who survived the carnage. Meanwhile, Lucy Betteridge-Dyson meets a bomb disposal team who are still uncovering shells. PH The Mountbattens: A Scandalous Marriage 9.25pm, Channel 5 A mean-spirited man named John Gillon ( Bruce Dern) owns almost all of Diggstown. He is feared by many but also respected because he is the former manager of Diggstown's pride and joy, the once-famous boxer Charles Macom Diggs, the man for whom the town is named.

Sam Lester (played by Roger Hewlett), who is secretly given a laxative before the fight and eventually runs from the ring. Dern in particular is incredible here, not in an Oscar-winning sort of way — he’s been plenty capable of that throughout his career, of course — but in that B-movie villain way. He knows the movie he’s in, and doesn’t shy away from it at all. The one thing I truly remembered for the decades since I last watched this movie was the way he held his hands while watching the fights ringside, C. Montgomery Burns style: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer The fighters come and go through the ring, but at times it appears the real contest is between Caine and Gillon, as they match wits and execute their ploys against each other. Palmer shows his legendary skill, but each new opponent is diverting and offers something of a special, unexpected challenge. Perhaps one of the best parts of the movie are the witty asides that Woods and Gossett trade between rounds at ringside. Woods also tries to do Bogart with Heather Graham as Emily Forrester, but this takes neither of their character arcs very far. It's obvious he's this veteran and seasoned con man, and she's just a nice girl fresh out of college with no hint of the savvy Lauren Bacall had about her. Any hint of romantic involvement between them somehow simply reeks of jail bait, and besides his underhanded machinations have already gotten her brother killed, no matter how indirectly.

However, what really makes this movie great is that despite knowing how it ends, it still draws you in and makes you laugh, feel empathy when it wants you to and hate who it wants you to. It's successful at this despite the characters and situations being stereotypical: the soulless Dern, his privileged but innocent son, the Italian mafia, the hayseed Southerners (or wherever this is supposed to be set, it was filmed in CA and MT), the corrupt cops, prison guards and warden, et al. And somehow Michael Ritchie makes it all work, no matter how many times you see it. Palmer has one more man to beat, and it’s Minoso Torres (Alex Garcia), the inmate we saw pummel Caine’s friend Wolf in prison at the beginning of the movie. Torres is accompanied by Warden Bates, a friend of Gillon’s. That brings up Diggstown's best man, Hammerhead Hagan, the only fighter ever to actually beat Palmer during their professional careers. He is brought in as a surprise ringer. Gillon moved him in as a county resident just before the bet rules were established, meaning that Hagan can legally fight.

The majority of Michael Ritchie's early films focused on the competitiveness and ruthlessness of a then contemporary United States. Be it "Downhill Racer" (1969), "Bad News Bears" (1976), "Smile" (1975), "The Candidate" (1972) or "Semi Tough" (1977), all his films during this period are explicitly about competition, American institutions and individuals who put their personal goals (and/or profits) before a team, community or group (or vice versa). I've seen this movie several times over the years and it never gets old. Gossett, Platt and Dern are terrific in their respective roles, but Woods takes every scene with his white suit and smarminess. Hagan pounds Palmer to the point that Caine wants to stop the fight in the corner, which Palmer won’t let him do again. The fights up to now had their little moments, but this one is the first one where we see some really cool fight cinematography and choreography; this is a smart production tactic, because it reinforces the idea that this one, compared to the others, is a sincerely dangerous fight for Roy. It’s a war between two professionals who know what they’re doing, not just Palmer doing his best to take down a series of wannabes who hope he’s gotten tired enough to fall. Fight night arrives, starting just after Midnight on a Saturdy. Fitz gets the list of fighters from Buster, while Gillon gives his group their strategies. Each of the first five are given a particular task to execute in combined attempts to weaken Palmer — bust up the eyes, soften the body, etc. — for the first two rounds of their five-round bouts; after two rounds of doing their jobs, they are free to go for the victory and the bonus money that comes with it.When the great-grandson of Queen Victoria married a millionaire heiress in 1922 they became a formidable power couple. But Louis Mountbatten and Edwina Ashley’s union was an open marriage that generated endless society gossip, even if their social clout kept most indiscretions out of the papers. This film revisits the torrid story. Graeme Virtue Capital Jingle Bell Ball 2021 10pm, Sky Max We end with Roy and Caine in the empty gym together, having beaten the odds. They get in a last line each, and then it’s over. Rating: 3.5/5 This article's plot summary may be too long or excessively detailed. Please help improve it by removing unnecessary details and making it more concise. ( August 2021) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message) While still inside, we see Caine meet up with Fitz (Oliver Platt), a con man partner visiting and going over the details of their coming scene in nearby Diggstown. Fitz has some concerns that they’ll have to find a way to rush out of town as soon as it’s done, but Caine just smiles. I don’t know. I mean it’s… I’m trying to inspire you. It’s a Roots kinda thing. It’s a motivation thing.”

A number of rules are set at a meeting between Caine and Gillon’s team. Two of the fighters, teenage Robby Gillon and his friend Billy Hargrove, are allowed to wear headgear. That’s part of a negotiation where Caine agrees to let any man residing in Olivair County on that day, with proof, to take part. Caine fears ringers, and this sets his mind at ease. With the boxing world still on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic across the world, we at Bad Left Hook continue to look for various ways to keep the show going without any actual fights to cover at the moment. We’ve got ourselves a little old Movie Club, a good old fashioned gathering of folks to talk about movies; being specific for this case, boxing movies.Gabriel Caine (James Woods) has just been released from prison. He meets John Gillon (Bruce Dern) who owns Diggstown--a town full of boxers. He bets Caine that he can't find a man who can beat 10 Diggstown boxers in a row. Caine finds boxer Roy Palmer (Louis Gossett Jr.)--but he's 48 and might be too old to do it. We start like most boxing films with a fight. Here its in a prison where Gabriel Kane (an excellent James Woods) is watching on. During the fight a fellow prisoner gives Kane some money and before you know it, Kane is leading the man to a daring prison break, all this happens when the fight takes place and its only here when watching again you realise how pivotal this moment is. Not to spoil it for anyone, its just great how much hidden layers is in this film Their boxer will fight any 10 opponents Gillon puts up against him in a 24-hour period. If he is still standing and victorious after the final man then Fritz and Kane win the bet!- Simple! There are very few movies, including most of my all-time favourites, that I can watch more than once a year without getting bored. In fact, "Diggstown" is the only one I can think of. As other IMDb reviewers have pointed out, not a scene or a line is wasted; the movie pulls you forward. It's as much fun as any good "con" movie, but has a lot more to say than "The Sting" (a film that I love) or any other such that I can think of. If the reason for its relative obscurity is the usual one---the studio held focus groups and decided not to put much advertising money behind the film---then I'm baffled.

Rose and Gio dance up a storm in Strictly Come Dancing. Photograph: Guy Levy/BBC 48 Hours to Victory Shortly after Caine tells Roy what went down with Diggs, Wolf, meant to be released from prison, is found dead in a box on the sidewalk in town. Caine tells Emily that Wolf was the one who found out the truth about Diggs and Gillon, and thus was set up and sent to prison by Gillon. Wolf was to be a full partner in Caine’s plan to take Gillon down, and Emily helps in the planning from there, with Caine making sure Wolf is given a proper sendoff with a beautiful funeral.

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While Fritz gets in trouble at the pool table for being called a hustler, he then insults them further by criticising their local boxing legend. Its here the film develops, Fritz claims he knows a man who is better than their local hero and he will put a wager on that his boxer can fight anyone in this town no matter who, what, or where. When John gets wind of this loudmouth he arrives at the pub and tells Fritz that if he wants to make that bet then he is willing to put up the money. Kane pretending not to know Fritz tells John that he will stump up the cash to set this deal up, John agrees and the bet is set! Meanwhile, Caine sets up his bets with the local town owner John Gillon played by Bruce Dern with southern fried menace and local mobster and loan shark Victor Corsini acting as a silent partner on Caine's behalf. Since Fitz as played by Oliver Platt in a laughably clever pool room scene has already prepped the scam, it behooves Caine now to establish the setting with Gillon for the main event. So the aging Palmer shaves his head and gets ready to rumble. He even gets to meet the man who the town is named after while doing roadwork, the nearly brain dead Charles Macom Diggs. This scene and deaths of Emily Forrester's brother Wolf Forrester and Hambone Busby's brother Slim, give the film it's dark edges, but at its center this movie is a lighthearted exercise in One-upmanship.