Willie McKee (Sam d’Entrement) has slowed down in his old age and he doesn’t pee as well as he used to, but the one thing that’s still working fine is his memory. It’s been sixty years to the day that his feisty teenage sweetheart Arleen O’Callahan (Jennifer Lynn Jones) pushed him out of her life in favor of her wealthy boss’ son Von Thatcher. Lost love being the powerful beast that it is, it was an event Willie never forgot, even after surviving the beaches of Normandy and enjoying a happy marriage to another woman. Now a widower, Willie’s returning to the hometown he left all those years ago, accompanied by his crotchety best buddy and former commanding officer Vic Fabrizio (Howie Nickerson). Together, the two best pals set off on one last mission together; a drive down memory lane to give Willie a final chance to right the missed opportunity that’s haunted him all these years. We join Willie as he watches flashbacks, like Scrooge with one of the Christmas ghosts, of his brash younger self courting his dream gal, who mischievously calls him “Wily” (David Morwick). As the pieces of the story gradually fall into place, the anticipation and expectations for the momentous reunion build; an event the audience can’t help but cheer and hope for…
Sluggish, predictable, and fairly dripping with clumsy melodrama, “Geezers” is, in all honesty, only a mediocre video. Yet, the damned thing just tries so hard. Besides, writer/director Peter Bohush’s tale is so sweet, if not exactly the most original idea on the planet, that it’s hard not to sigh, sit back and drink it all in. Just don’t drink too much, or you’ll be peeing as often as Vic and Willie.
That’s interesting! I’m also wondering if the DVs now sold in MA have changed since you first made “Geezers,” but who knows. I do know that I took a very wrong turn when compressing in Final Cut! Also, the way Dunkin’ Donuts is these days, you’re way better off in LA, though for the past week it’s been in the early 80s here!
Hi Amy,
We’re both right! Not to get too wonky, but when you “compress” any type of footage it is degraded to one degree or another, regardless of the original format – miniDV, HD, Red One, even film. When you “copy” a miniDV or any digital file, an exact duplicate is made without any quality loss, eg when copying a CD the copy sounds the same because it is, while making a cassette tape from a CD results in a reduced quality copy.
The Geezers that’s online is compressed to reduce the file size for the web, so it doesn’t look as good as the original tapes or FCP proejct. The new version I’m working on will be “up-rezzed” so it will look better than the current online version. But the story, like it or not, will be the same!
I am now, once again, based in Los Angeles. No snow! 8*) But no Dunkin’ Donuts. 8*(
Hi Peter-I’m so glad that to hear from you! In terms of miniDV, bviously you know something I don’t because when I compress on Final Cut, I experience definite loss in quality when I project on the big screen. Of course, I purposely sabotage my footage to resemble ancient film stock, so I’m sure that doesn’t help matters.
In regard to “Geezers,” I love the feeling of documentary in this narrative. I tend to convey this feeling in my work, too and wonder if it’s because of our common roots in investigative journalism. I’m very excited about your upcoming film and want to learn more. BTW, are you still based in MA, or are you now in LA???
Wow I am humbled and grateful for the kind words about Geezers and me from three such notable people. Thanks Amy, John and Mr. Reiner (even if you only stumbled upon Geezers looking for something else.) It means a lot to get praise for Geezers, on which so many people worked so hard to complete.
After all these years I didn’t even know this review was still online! Thanks Mark and FilmThreat.
If anyone is interested, Geezers can be seen in its entirety online at:
http://www.writerdirector.com/index.php/watch-geezers-online
In the years since Geezers was made as one of the first miniDV movies – and the first production of any kind allowed to close down the Massachusetts Turnpike toll booths for filming, and the first to license soundtrack music via the internet – star Howie Nickerson passed away a few years ago sadly. Sam and Cecilia d’Entremont continue to act locally in Massachusetts. I have lost touch with Jennifer Lynn Jones, although I know she was acting in Los Angeles until at least 2008. David Morwick is acting and directing in Los Angeles, and played a part in my upcoming feature film Foolproof Plan (www.foolproof-plan.com), chasing after a car driven by Victoria Bohush, who played the younger Thatcher girl in Geezers.
I am working on an updated high-def version of Geezers, with superior quality and the addition of a previously deleted sequence, and will post it online soon. To clarify what Ms. Handler noted above, there is no generational loss in quality in the “vintage” miniDV format, as it was the first true digital tape recording media and every copy is the same as the original. The updated version of Geezers coming soon will have some shots’ exposure and color corrected from the original master tapes, which I have carefully preserved in a shoebox in my closet.
Geezers is not Birth of A Nation or even Bert Rigby, You’re a Fool (directed by Carl Reiner), but it was the best movie I could make in 6 days on a $900 budget. (I still use the steadycam, lights and reflectors I used making Geezers.)
And if anyone in Hollywood wants to nab my talent for their uses, nab away! My current reel is at: http://www.youtube.com/user/pbohush. In that reel you can catch a glimpse of the improved Geezers and the deleted sequence to be included in the Geezers 2010 version.
Thanks again!
Well, look at this! My old friend, Carl Reiner and I agree on something. Carl is absolutely right. Pete is very talented and long overdue for someone in Hollywood to nab that talent for their uses and ours (the audience’s). He has a natural comic sensibility and grace with the camera that anyone can see and is likely very familiar to Mr. Reiner’s own legendary style.
Yeah, it seems like miniDV was just invented, and is now considered low quality and obsolete. The sheer nature of miniDV knocks the video down several generations, which affects viewing quality. Nevertheless, those of us who use it (including me at times), are still managing to get into great festivals and theaters. I’m a strong supporter of mixing the obsolete and new when it comes to indie filmmaking and many in the field, thankfully agree!
I can’t believe you used “vintage” to describe miniDV, Amy. Technology moves really fast…
Agreed! I also appreciate that it’s not a slickly made video but vintage, mini DV. Of course, I’m a sucker for 16mm, Super 8, and those grainy, flashing silents. There’s a documentary feel to movies made on those mediums that I find very appealing.
I read this review because I thought it was about my friends the Reel Geezers, but then was intrigued about this little movie so I Google searched it and found that I could watch it online. I thought it was brilliant. And not just because I’m an old geezer myself. Very funny and touching. I hope this director keeps at it because he is very talented I must say.