At the Movies

By Arnie Wishnick ‘VERA DRAKE’ Vera Drake is a good person. She visits the sick and invites hungry ones to dinner. She has a loving husband (Phil Davis) who co-owns an auto shop. They have an adult son and daughter (Daniel Mays and Alexandra Kelly). Vera is a domestic, cleaning the homes of the rich. She always has a smile. She also has a secret avocation. She’s been a back-street abortionist for nearly 20 years. It’s London in 1950. It’s a time when abortions are available only to the wealthy. After one young woman nearly dies, Vera is arrested in front of her dumbfounded family who (surprisingly) never suspected anything. When confronted, Vera says, ‘I do it for girls who are frightened and need help. I don’t do it for any money.’ (There is a moment when it’s assumed that Vera may have been in the same situation when she was young.) ‘Vera Drake’ directed by Mike Leigh (‘Secrets and Lies’) leaves no doubt about the dangers of an abortion, but it never debates the issue. Although the movie is at its most interesting before Vera’s arrest and gets rather dull afterwards, nothing but praise can be lauded on the cast and its star Imelda Staunton as Vera. She will definitely fill one spot when the five Oscar-nominated actresses are announced. Vera Drake and Imelda Staunton are two names to remember. Out of 5 Palm Trees, ‘Vera Drake’ gets 3-1/2 Palm Trees. ‘Z CHANNEL: MAGNIFICENT OBSESSION’ Before there was HBO and Showtime there was the Z Channel, the first pay cable station in the U.S., started in 1974. It was designed for the movie fan by a movie fan. Every genre of film from every culture could be found on Z. From ‘Cries and Whispers’ to ‘Star Trek: The Motion Picture’ to ‘Heaven’s Gate’ even to soft porn. It was all available for a very low cost. With an obsessive interest in movies, there was Jerry Harvey, the channel’s programming chief and loose cannon. Unable to cope with mediocrity, Harvey ran everything. He hired; he fired; he ranted; he raved. He was loved a little and hated a lot. (This is what liking movies can do to a fan or movie critic.) And then one day Jerry Harvey left the studio for home and shot his pregnant wife and himself to death. With his passing the station was not the same, and in 1988 it was gone. This fine documentary directed by Zan Cassavetes (daughter of John) features interviews with filmmakers and actors whose careers were helped by being shown on the Z Channel: Robert Altman, Jacqueline Bisset, Henry Jaglom, Jim Jarmusch, Alan Rudolph, Quentin Tarantino and James Woods. ‘Z Channel’ is a movie fan’s delight about a little TV station that could, and its mastermind that just couldn’t. Out of 5 Palm Trees ‘Z Channel’ gets 4 Palm Trees.