Tonight's movie was "The Chairman" (1969), a spy thriller starring Gregory Peck. Before we go any further, I should advise you on the proper pronunciation of Peck's name (and if I have already done this in the past I apologize, but it can't hurt to have a refresher course).
To pronounce "Gregory Peck", simply say it as he himself would. Use a deep stentorian voice if you can conjure one up, and speak the syllables in a sharp but not clipped tone. We're not going for Rod Serling terseness, and in fact you can slightly muddy the paired consonants, such as the "Gr" sound that begins his first name. It's as if those two letters are located way down in his throat as he begins to speak. As for his surname, make sure to give emphasis to the opening "P", but not so much that it pops. Just make it slightly forceful, in that same dark tone.
Can we give it a try? Remember, just try to imagine how Gregory Peck himself would say it.
Gruhreggory Peck. Or perhaps Ghrehg-ury P-eck! (exclamation point added by GP).
You probably know that Frank Zappa once wrote a 20 minute piece entitled "The Adventures Of Greggery Peccary", so it is possible that he too was intrigued with the name. My focus is usually on pronunciation, as you are aware, but now that we have made a practice run, you can take it home to work on and perfect, and I will get on with my movie review.
"The Chairman" is one of those big screen high concept political thrillers that were popular during the Cold War, though the adversary here is the Communist Chinese government rather than the Russians. "The Chairman" of the title refers of Chairman Mao, who is a main character in the story. More on that in a moment. Peck plays a Nobel Prize winning agricultural biologist who is recruited by a creepy General (Arthur Hill) who wears glasses with one frame darkened. He must be missing an eye, though no explanation is given. The General need Peck to go to China because a scientist there has developed a plant enzyme that allows crops to be grown anywhere in any climate. For instance, pineapples now grow in the icy Himalayas. The US Military brass fears that Chairman Mao will use this discovery to win the allegiance of all the underdeveloped countries of the world, by supplying them with food, and thereby establish Chinese Communism as the dominant political force in the world.
Peck is chosen to intercede and to undertake his mission to China because, as a biologist, he is familiar with molecular structures and more importantly, he has in the past worked with the Chinese scientist who has developed the miracle enzyme. They know each other, and as true scientists they have both conducted their careers in the name of bettering the world. But the Chinese scientist is living under the yoke of Chairman Mao, and therein lies the espionage.
Gregory Peck must go to China, meet with Chairman Mao, and convince him to allow Peck to meet with the embattled scientist, who is held in house arrest because he does not believe in Communism.
It's quite a set up and it plays like a James Bond movie in some respects, though mostly without the sexual angle extant throughout the Bond canon. Peck plays a scientist rather than a suave stud, and though he is macho and handsome at 53 in this film, he looks 60 (most actors looked older then due to cigs and booze), and the Sean Connery role does not fit him, though a brief attempt is made in the beginning of the film when he is placed in a Chinese whorehouse.
He hits his stride instead when he is taken to the Imperial Palace to meet Chairman Mao (who, if you recall, you will not make it with anyone anyhow if you go carrying pictures of him).
Chairman Mao is a font of BS Communist Philosophy. He and Peck play a quick match of ping pong, which is classic, and then they sit down to talk business and politics. It is here that the movie earns it's points, as the script becomes a pointed debate about human rights.
'The Chairman" is an obscure movie; I had never heard of it prior to discovering it in the Library database, but it must have had a wide release in 1969. It's got the look of a major studio film. It's got Gregory Peck and a top level supporting cast. It has location shooting to resemble the cities and mountains of China (all done in England, partly at the legendary Pinewood Studios).
It very likely had poor box office returns, which is too bad because - while it is no classic - it has a quirky originality, with the main theme of feeding the world, and sending a scientist to do James Bond's job, and then to have him sit down to argue the merits of Communism versus Capitalism with the shifty and half-sincere Mao Tse Tung, who was really, in real life, a power monger with a capitalist streak for himself, who placed himself above his countrymen and murdered about 45 million of the Chinese people, more than even Joseph Stalin.
I give "The Chairman" one and a half thumbs up. It could have been even better had they not tried to make it into an action movie at the end, with shootouts and explosions that Hollywood so loves.
It is still worth a view for it's quirkiness and head-on denunciation of Communist philosophy and runaway American militarism alike. You aren't gonna find political speeches like these in any movie made nowdays, and that alone is reason to seek out "The Chairman" and meet up with him even though he is full of baloney. ////
That is all I know for tonight, though to Elizabeth - if you are reading - I liked your photo once again on FB. A nice light on the indoor plant by the windowsill while the sun shines after the rain outside. I guess it was taken in Wisconsin because it doesn't look like the city, so maybe you are spending some time back home.
Glad as always that you posted. See you in the morning. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
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