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Post by delon on Mar 30, 2019 17:09:20 GMT
Comments/ratings/recommendations/film posters are welcome and much appreciated.
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Post by wmcclain on Mar 30, 2019 17:17:19 GMT
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Post by petrolino on Mar 30, 2019 19:19:05 GMT
'5 x 2' (2004 - Francois Ozon)
Marital drama.
‘Play Hooky’ (2012 - Frank S. Petrilli) Catholic terror in Connecticut. 'Club Lingerie' (2014 – Jared Masters) Go-go horror.
Thanks.
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Post by mikef6 on Mar 30, 2019 19:22:42 GMT
Mystery House / Noel M. Smith (1938). Warner. After a coroner’s jury rules her father’s shooting death a suicide, Gwen Kingery (Anne Nagel) hires P.I. Lance O’Leary (Dick Purcell) to investigate. O’Leary had been suggested by Sarah Keate (Ann Sheridan) who was the nurse to Gwen’s elderly and perpetually angry aunt. Gwen then invites all the guests who had been present at the hunting lodge at the time of her father’s death to return so O’Leary can question them. More murders occur and secrets revealed before O’Leary solves the case. But here’s the thing – this movie is based on a book by American Golden Age mystery writer Mignon G. Eberhart. The book is one of a series of seven featuring amateur detective Nurse Sarah Keate. That’s right. The Ann Sheridan character is the lead in the books but is the sidekick (who discovers a couple of important clues) in the film. I haven’t been able to find a copy of the novel (published in 1930 as The Mystery Of Hunting’s End) but I do know that O’Leary is in the book. I would like to know who really solves the mystery in Eberhart’s original. There is nothing very spectacular about this film, but will entertain classic era mystery followers.  Ann Sheridan and Dick Purcell  Objective, Burma! / Raoul Walsh (1945). Warner. It is often said that WWII was won in Hollywood by John Wayne, but I sometimes think that Wayne should share first place with Errol Flynn who was hero in a half dozen war or fighting the Nazis at home dramas. Reportedly, “Objective, Burma!” was his personal favorite of the six. Flynn plays Capt. Nelson who is assigned the task of parachuting into Japanese held Burma with a platoon of men, knocking out a radar instillation in preparation for an invasion, and then force marching to an abandoned air field to be picked up and flown home. The attack on the radar station goes without hitch but when a company of pursuing Japanese soldiers encounter them at the pick-up point, the U.S. platoon must return to the jungle and make their way across country on foot. At an almost two-hour run time, it does go on a bit long but earnest performances and direction from action vet Raoul Walsh rarely lets the soldiers stop for long in their flight. The rousing score by Franz Waxman was Oscar nominated (but lost to Miklós Rózsa for “Spellbound”). After Flynn, acting honors go to Henry Hull as a war correspondent who makes his first parachute jump accompanying the soldiers. Also in the cast is James Brown (Rin-Tin-Tin TV series). Warner Anderson, Hugh Beaumont, William Prince, and George Tobias. The 1951 Gary Cooper actioner set in the Indian Wars in pre-Civil War Florida, “Distant Drums” (also directed by Raoul Walsh), is usually identified as a remake or re-working of “Objective, Burma!” There are several instances of racial epithets flung at the Japanese that we would find offensive today (esp. a rant from Hull), but not nearly as severe as in films like “Guadalcanal Diary” or “Air Force” (both 1943).  Henry Hull and Errol Flynn  Shock / Alfred L. Werker (1946). 20th Century Fox. This was being produced by Fox’s “B” unit with the always dependable, sometimes very good, director Alfred Werker – forgotten today except by ‘40s film fans – but when studio head Darryl Zanuck saw the first rough cut, he ordered his PR and distributing departments to give it an “A” treatment. The movie was a big hit for Fox. Janet Stewart (Anabel Shaw) is waiting in a hotel room for her husband who is returning from the war. From her balcony she sees a man (Vincent Price) argue with his wife and then club her to death (Vincent Price/in the apartment/with the candlestick). This shock causes her to become catatonic. The hotel doctor wants to bring in a specialist, Dr. Cross, who lives right there in the hotel building. Surprise! Dr. Cross is the man she saw committing murder. Cross has her committed to his own sanitarium where he and his head nurse Elaine (Lynn Bari) – who he wanted to leave his wife for - try to figure out what to do. Dr. Cross is bothered by his conscience but Elaine urges him on to more violence and murder. Fine performance from Price and a good femme fatale turn from Bari. Highly recommended.  The Tattooed Stranger / Edward Montagne (1950). RKO Radio Pictures. This deadpan police procedural – very “Dragnet” or “The Naked City” (1948) – was filmed all around the Burroughs of NYC (mainly the Bronx and Brooklyn) and give some views of mid-century neighborhoods that are now gone under urban renewal. A man walking a dog in central park finds a woman’s body in a car. New York City’s Finest swing into action. Detective Frank Tobin (John Miles), a rookie assigned to the crime lab, gets his transfer to homicide and, partnered with a veteran detective in an early example of the mis-matched cop buddies, begins working on the case. Except for an edgy sequence in the police headquarters basement and a brief chase though the backyards of a Bronx residential block, the directing and editing and all other aspects are pretty routine. The only real shock is suddenly seeing Jack Lord (uncredited in his third film appearance) sitting around the police squad room. He has one line. For leading man John Miles, this was his last movie. He was in about 20 films but credited in only four. This was his only lead role. Recommended for fans of “B” ‘40s crime films. “The Tattooed Stranger” is scheduled to play on TCM’s Noir Alley on July 6, so schedule a calendar alert.  Unchained / Hall Bartlett (1955). Truly a “lost” gem that, as far as I can tell, has never had a home video release in any format. Further, the print I saw is in terrible trouble. This film demands immediate restoration. This docu-drama tells how the California prison experiment started by reformer Kenyon Scudder in Chino worked (Scudder is played by Wayne Morris). There were no guards as such, none of the authorities were armed, prisoners had the freedom to walk around the grounds, live in a barracks facility, and generally be responsible for their own behavior. The movie was filmed on location at the actual facility. Fictional character Steve Davitt (football star Elroy “Crazylegs” Hirsch), serving 1 to 3 years in San Quentin for beating a man who had stolen some money, is chosen to go to Chino. We follow Davitt as he discovers the new prison atmosphere but still cannot control his hair-trigger temper and plans to use the lack of security to escape, even though his wife (Barbara Hale) tries to discourage him. Hirsch does a good job – he has an especially tender moment explaining to his son (Tim Considine) that he is in jail - even though Hirsch is, essential, a non-actor. Hirsch only appeared in four movies. In one of them, “Crazylegs” (1953), he played himself in his own bio-pic. In his last movie, Hirsch was the pilot of an airliner whose passengers are stricken with food poisoning in “Zero Hour.” Davitt’s barracks leader is played by Todd Duncan, who had premiered the role of Porgy in George Gershwin’s “Porgy and Bess” in 1935. Duncan sings the famous “Unchained Melody” song and it is a joy to hear him. Jazz saxophone great Dexter Gordon can be seen in the prison band. Gordon was actually an inmate there during filming (possession of heroin). Scudder’s concept of a new kind of prison (it began in 1941) lasted until the mid-1980s after the “tough on crime” (mainly “tough on minorities”) trend had began and prison populations started to swell. Jerry Paris (nutty neighbor Jerry Helper on The Dick Van Dyke Show) is another prisoner with escape on his mind.  Crazylegs in “Zero Hour” about to ask his young passenger an important question  Todd Duncan singing “Unchained” The clip also shows Jerry Paris sitting with a guy who looks like Kevin Spacey La Douleur (Memoir Of War) / Emmanuel Finkiel (2017). French. Based on the 1985 autobiographical novel by Marguerite Duras, this masterful film is an immersive experience in the mind of a woman trying to survive and save her husband arrested by the Gestapo in Paris during the Nazi occupation during WWII. The story is divided into two parts, each about an hour in length. While seeking information about her husband Robert who had been part of a resistance cell, she meets a French collaborator who recognizes her as the famous writer and who offers her information and promises her his aid in getting her husband fair treatment in return for meeting him for lunch several days a week. He never asks for sex, as she expected he would, so Marguerite begins to suspect that he is using her to get to the other cell members. The second half takes place after the liberation of Paris and the end of the war in Europe when the survivors of Nazi imprisonment begin to return and their families suffer a period of waiting - waiting at home for their loved ones to return from war, a role reserved mostly for woman throughout history. The more the waiting period is stretched, the more torturous it becomes. Toward the end, a new theme emerges: the developing news of the Holocaust and the reluctance of the French to acknowledge or speak about it. On camera for just about every frame is Mélanie Thierry as Marguerite in a deeply felt, lived in performance. She is unforgettable. One caution: this film can easily be described as “deliberately paced.” For some viewers it may be impossibly slow and dull, like when we spend several minutes in a tracking shot as Duras walks down a Paris street while Thierry’s voice-over reads from Duras’ book. I love it, but some may think it indulgent. So be warned. Otherwise, this may be one of the great films of this decade. Highly recommended.  
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Post by OldAussie on Mar 30, 2019 21:19:12 GMT
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Post by politicidal on Mar 30, 2019 23:14:02 GMT
Panic Room (2002) 7/10
Blockers (2018) 5/10
Mary, Queen of Scots (2018) 4/10
Magnet of Doom (1963) 5/10
The Burglars (1971) 6/10
The African Lion (1955) 7/10
..tick...tick...tick.. (1970) 7/10
Iceman (1984) 6/10
Executive Suite (1954) 5/10
The Front-Runner (2018) 5/10
Bohemian Rhapsody (2018) 6/10
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Post by teleadm on Mar 31, 2019 0:45:21 GMT
Well here are my week's joy's:  I realised early that I'm not the right audience for this kind of movies, but it was entertaining, I can't deny that!  Michael Caine at his sleeziest, I liked this movie even if Horocks was a bit hard to understand. Blethyn is the mother of all Hell's, but the movie wouldn't have worked without her, she's cheap and destructive.  Not a comedy, but a drama with comedic moments. as it is in life there are good moments and there are those moments that didn't work at all.  Sorry all fans of this movie! but I didn't get it!  Not bad, but many action scenes were edited for from better movies.  What should I say about a movie this famous! Turgid and boring? It's not! just hang around and the pace changes. Well that was my weak week! Seen two ones that is among 1001 one have to see, I dread the rest! LOL |
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Post by petrolino on Mar 31, 2019 1:19:39 GMT
Well here are my week's joy's: I realised early that I'm not the right audience for this kind of movies, but it was entertaining, I can't deny that! Michael Caine at his sleeziest, I liked this movie even if Horocks was a bit hard to understand. Blethyn is the mother of all Hell's, but the movie wouldn't have worked without her, she's cheap and destructive. Not a comedy, but a drama with comedic moments. as it is in life there are good moments and there are those moments that didn't work at all. Sorry all fans of this movie! but I didn't get it! Not bad, but many action scenes were edited for from better movies. What should I say about a movie this famous! Turgid and boring? It's not! just hang around and the pace changes. Well that was my weak week! Seen two ones that is among 1001 one have to see, I dread the rest! LOL
I didn't enjoy 'Deadpool' at all so I'll skip the sequel.
I think 'Sunrise' is probably my favourite silent movie of all time.
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Post by hitchcockthelegend on Mar 31, 2019 12:02:40 GMT
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Post by claudius on Mar 31, 2019 14:22:10 GMT
DARK SHADOWS (1969) “Episodes 716-720” 50TH ANNIVERSARY Last week, Angelique was summoned back to 1897, and Joan Bennett's Judith inherits Collinwood. This week, it's JANE EYRE, as Katherine Leigh Scott's Governess discovers the house keeps inside a madwoman who is revealed to be Quentin's wife. MPI Video DVD
WUTHERING HEIGHTS (1939) 80TH ANNIVERSARY and UNITED ARTISTS 100TH ANNIVERSARY The most famous film version of Emily Bronte's Gothic Novel (focusing on the first half and skipping the next generation resolution), making a star out of Laurence Olivier. First knew about this film on its broadcast on American Movie Classics back in 1991 (while reading about the stormy behind-the-scenes in Bob Dorian's CLASSIC MOVIES book- Olivier struggling with film style acting, Merle Oberon being a diva, complaining about Olivier's saliva getting on her, the backfire of David Niven's crying scene- a chemical used to stimulate tears got him sneezing instead). HBO Video DVD.
PETER PAN (1960) 30 Years ago on Good Friday 1989, I saw the NBC re-Broadcast of this televised version of the Mary Martin Broadway edition (her third TV version, having done two previous television versions of the play back in the 1950s) of the Barrie play. Goodtimes Video DVD.
A HARD DAYS NIGHT (1964) UNITED ARTISTS 100TH ANNIVERSARY Richard Lester's 'Day in the Life' (no pun intended) portrait of the Beatles. First saw this on American Movie Classics in 1996 as part of its Fourth Film Preservation Festival (the focus this time on musicals, with the only time THE SOUND OF MUSIC appeared on the same channel as OKLAHOMA- the Todd AO version-, THE KING AND I, CAROUSEL, and SOUTH PACIFIC). Criterion BluRay
ZORRO (1958) “The New Commandant” & “The Fox and the Coyote.” ZORRO 100TH ANNIVERSARY Disney DVD.
NARUTO SHIPPUDEN (2016) Episodes 469, 472-74, 477-480, 482-84, 486. Finally, the Anime adaptation of the manga series reaches the canonical conclusion. VIZ Media DVD
THE JEWEL IN THE CROWN (1984) “Pandora’s Box” 35TH ANNIVERSARY PBS Home Video DVD.
GIRL SHY (1924) 95TH ANNIVERSARY Harold Lloyd silent comedy about a would-be writer imagining his womanly conquests (but too afraid to talk to one), climaxing with a race against time chase sequence as he goes GRADUATE to prevent his true love from marrying a bigamist. This is the Jim Parker-scored version that was released on VHS with four other Photoplay-restored Lloyd films (SAFETY LAST, THE KID BROTHER, HOT WATER, and SPEEDY) back in the early 1990s. I first saw this on a Cinemax marathon of these five in 1994. At present, this version is not on DVD. HBO/Thames VHS
FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST (2004) "Words of Farewell" 15TH ANNIVERSARY. OH, this episode...Ever since I saw the dubbed version on Cartoon Network in Spring 2005, I mourned this ep.'s demise of this character (January-March 2006 was the worst...). Funimation DVD.
GREYSTOKE: THE LEGEND OF TARZAN, LORD OF THE APES (1984) 35TH ANNIVERSARY Hugh Hudson's reverent take on the Edgar Rice Burrough's jungle man, without the 'Tarzan...Jane' phonetics but also lacking the adventure quality. First acquainted to this on Nickelodeon, via a 'making of...' series called LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTION, hosted by Leonard Nimoy that showed clips of this film, such as Christopher Lambert's John facing off James Fox's stuffed-shirt (I could be remembering this wrong, but I think Nimoy mispronounced 'Castle Greystoke' as 'Castle Grayskull' which fired my imagination). Warner BluRay.
I LOVE THE 70’S (2003) “1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977” Sequel series of the I LOVE THE 80S Series, returning Mo Rocca, Hal Sparks, Michael Ian Black, Rich Eisen, a (still healthy) Stuart Scott, Donal Logue, and others while introducing Rachel Harris to the series. Viewed on a VHS recording on VH1 in August 2003 (the week before I went to Graduate School).
A DIFFERENT WORLD (1989) “No Means No!” 30TH ANNIVERSARY Freddie almost gets Date-raped, a serious topic as emphasized by the episode's opening message. TV One Broadcast Recording VHS.
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Post by morrisondylanfan on Mar 31, 2019 15:53:22 GMT
Hi Aussie,I hope you are having a good weekend,and how did you find Morgan to be?
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Post by OldAussie on Mar 31, 2019 16:01:16 GMT
Morgan had an interesting set-up but jumped the shark in its 3rd act as every character seemed to make dumb choices. 4/10
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Post by morrisondylanfan on Mar 31, 2019 16:16:20 GMT
Hi all,after two pretty crap weeks things finally got back on track,and I did notes on: Whilst this is one of two unexpected gems of the month (the other being Fantômas (1932)) but chance to quote RLM/Mr. Plinkett's Ghostbusters (2016) Review was too tempting.  "Are you Les Diaboliqueing me?"A Simple Favor (2018) 7 From the 60's inspired opening credits, the skill director Paul Feig displays here makes it a mystery as to why he had done the Ghostbusters remake instead of a more unique item, (not counting the Sony money,or free Cheeeesy Burger-the burgers so cheesy it has extra e's in cheesy.) His first somewhat serious title since 2003's I Am David, Feig & cinematographer John Schwartzman take Feig's brightly lit stylizing for Comedy,and delightfully twist it towards Thriller and the Neo-Noir genres by having the bright lighting and vibrant colours act as a façade to the murky dealings behind the white walls and bright windows. More measured than his comedies due to a lack of improvisation, Feig displays an unexpected eye for turning a corkscrew atmosphere of tension,in Emily's wearing of three piece suits (inspired by Feig's own suits!) giving her an icy masculine edge,and slithering tracking shots following Stephanie search for Emily. For the first 80 minutes in adapting Darcey Bell's novel, Jessica Sharzer keeps the black comedy in mystery Thriller velvet gloves, with Sharzer enticingly pouring out Emily and Stephanie's friendship from laid-back and kooky to venomous snakes snapping at each other. Taking care in laying out the main friendship and the mystery, Sharzer undermines what has been set up with an awkward surge into more advert comedy, which dent the twists from landing a full punch, and sits uneasily next to the revaluations made about Emily. Looking beautiful and deadly when sipping drinks,Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively give sparkling turns,with Lively giving Emily a silky viciousness under the surface, and Kendrick chipping away at Stephanie cheery smile,as Emily asks for a simple favour. French cinema:  Fantômas (1932) 8 Housed the same year as James Whale's The Old Dark House, co-writer/(with Anne Mauclair) director Pal Fejos & cinematographer J. Peverell Marley key the opening 30 minutes as a chilly Old Dark House mystery, spanning expressionism-style high walls slotted round the house, and a excellent sound design filling the rooms with the noise of a rustling wind as Fantomas creeps round the abode. Stepping out of the house, Fejos pays ingenious tribute to the serial origins of the character, as Fantomas uses a recording a of what sounds like a Silent movie score to drown out the screams from his attempt at murder, and choppy, fast edits with sped-up film giving the fight scenes a delightfully pulp edge. Keeping Fantomas until the very end, Fejos and Mauclair's spin on Pierre Souvestre and Marcel Allain's creation with talks in the Old Dark House making the mysterious Fantomas sound mythical, leading to a frantic chase after Inspector Juve learns of a murder victim in the house,and tries to catch the Fantomas.  Boomerang (1976) 6 Putting the opening credits against what turns out to be the final freeze frame, co-writer/(with Alain Delon and Monica Venturini ) directing auteur Jose Giovanni & cinematographer Pierre-William Glenn also bookend the title with dips into the Italian Crime genre, via the opening drug-fuelled murder of a cop being shot in a stylishly hazy first person view, and a closing high-speed break out ending on a slow-motion splint across the border. In the middle of these bookends, Giovanni continues the clinical dissection motif which covers his entire work, with tightly held two-shots unmasking the regret Eddy has for being behind bars, and Jacques regret for having to go back to the old ways. Holding back from gangster thrills, the writers instead drill into the tensely coiled drama of Jacques attempt to hold onto the new life he is trying to create, as a tug of war unfolds between the press uncovering his pass thanks to son Eddy's crime,and Jacques proving to himself that he is not the gangster of old. Looking at the choices placed in front of him,Alain Delon gives an icy turn as Jacques,with Delon digging into Jacques attempt to do things by the book,until his old life boomerangs.  Julien Duvivier's Poil de carotte (1932) 10 Not given their full remastering treatment, Criterion present a transfer that has noticeable spots of dirt, but also has a clean soundtrack and well-paced English subtitles. Whilst Henri Graziani would attempt to clean the tale up with an ill-judged chocolate wrapper appearance for the 1973 remake (also reviewed), writer/directing auteur Julien Duvivier is joined by regular collaborator cinematographer Armand Thirard in continuing to expand Duvivier's recurring motif of exploring the darkest corners of humanity. Keeping the camera at Francois's height, Duvivier stylishly covers "Carrot Top's" surroundings in soot blocking any shards of light from entering the household, and looking upwards to Francois's mum as a almost demonic being. Tugged and shoved around by everyone, Duvivier peels into Francois's psychological state with magnificent overlaps, double-exposures and dissolves drawing the inner conversations Francois is having with himself and the goblins that haunt him to a physical form, leading to a chilling set-piece, where Francois hangs on the edge and looks down into Duvivier's pit. Growing this adaptation of Jules Renard's novel, the screenplay by Duvivier brilliantly makes Francois's life a living hell.kicked from constant bullying from his siblings, to his mother making it clear that he is a unwanted child, by dressing him in shredded rags and having Francois clean up everyone else's mess. Attempting to hold the flicker of light from his dad, Duvivier makes this hold one which is not held with ease, by the abrasive, distant relationship the parents have causing Francois's dad to lose touch with him. Murdered by the Nazis at just 23 years old in 1943 with 14 fellow French Resistance fighters, Robert Lynen gives an incredibly mature debut performance as Francois, whose pain and loss of optimism is captured by Lynen in subtly drained facial expressions. Whilst playing a different tune to the rest of the cast, Catherine Fonteney gives a deliriously theatrical performance which turns Francois's mum into a hissing beast. Later being tortured to death by the Gestapo in 1943, Harry Baur's performance as Francois's dad is one filled with an incredible warmth that brings light to Francois.  Sleepless Night (2011) 7 Rolling out across a night club over one night, co-writer/(with Olivier Douyere and Nicolas Saada) director Frederic Jardin & Clint Eastwood's cinematographer since Blood Work (1997) Tom Stern charge the Thriller atmosphere with hovering panning shots following Vincent in the middle of the cramped partying crowds. In the confine spaces of the back rooms in the club, Jardin and editor Christophe Pinel give the action scenes a chunky crunch, in snappy edits and up-close shots catching Vincent's desperation to wiggle out of each battle,along with a fun use of objects around the place, (such as in the kitchen and the dance room) giving the fights an unpredictable liveliness. Whilst some tracks skip on glaring plot holes, (why does the club hardly have any CCTV?) the writers hit the beats on keeping Vincent's mind-set straight-line towards saving his son, and lining it with snarling gangster dogs and morally lax cops round every corner blocking Vincent from his goal. Rumbling round every inch of the club, Tomer Sisley gives a terrific, adrenaline fuelled performance as Vincent, who Sisley keeps running piecing himself back together after each scrap over an endless night.  OSS 117: Mission for a Killer (1965) 5 For the first hour co-writer/(with Pierre Foucaud and Jean Halain) director Andre Hunebelle's adaptation of Pierre Foucaud's novel is spent in a wandering state, where instead of gradually increasing the stakes, Agent OSS 117 is left to aimlessly travel round with little feeling of increased pressure from boo-hiss Euro Spy baddies.Going down to the jungle for the final, the writers switch from Euro Spy to a more Adventure flavour, with excitement fired up in the Amazon jungle over an uprising on by the locals on the baddies using a plant from the region to create a drug which will let them take over the world. Whilst the Jungle action does get lively, the writers oddly continue making OSS 117 and Sulza feel like side characters,due to it being the locals and the baddies who pull the mission along. Mostly filmed in Rio and backed by Michel Magne's sweet hula hula score, director Hunebelle & cinematographer Marcel Grignon visual bring out the Euro Spy style missing in the script,in lush wide-shots giving Rio a globe-trotting espionage adventure sizzle, with the lair of the baddie surrounded by the jungle giving the flick a pulpy vibrancy. Burning up anyone who takes him on, Hunebelle makes the wonderful fight scene the centre-piece, thanks to the hand to hand combat moves being slickly shot, and left-field weapons coming out of nowhere,including a stand out fight OSS 117 has against a henchmen welding a flame-thrower. Cast after the director ran into him in a Bangkok hotel (!),Frederick Stafford (joined by the alluring glamour of Mylene Demongeot as Sulza) gives a very good debut performance as OSS 117, thanks to Stafford match the Euro Spy cool under danger style with a rough and tumble edge in the action scenes,as OSS 117 takes on a mission for a killer.  La maison des filles perdues (1974) 6 Whilst Jess Franco was not involved in the film,(despite online listings,Franco is not listed in the on-screen credits) the screenplay by co-writer/(with Marius Lesoeur-whose use of the alias A.L. Mariaux is what caused the mix-up,due to Franco using a similar alias) director Pierre Chevalier wears similar psychotronic clothes to Jess, thanks to a long flashback unveiling the women being shipped out as WIP-style sex slaves to a house in the wilderness. Mashing footage shot with "borrowed" footage from Agente Sigma 3 - Missione Goldwather (1967) and backed by a lounge Jazz score from Jess Franco's regular composer Daniel White, director Chevalier & cinematographer Gerard Brisseau whip up lashings of sleaze from the fittie "Lost Dolls" being used by clients, and hilariously badly staged fight scenes where punches hit thin air,in the house of lost dolls.  Boudu Saved from Drowning (1932) 9 Following Boudu to his drowning attempt, co-writer (with Albert Valentin)/directing auteur Jean Renoir pre-dates the French New Wave by decades with long, documentary-style tracking shots of Boudu walking down streets clearly filled with real people (some of whom even look the camera.) Welcoming Boudu into the family home, Renoir uses the clash of class between Boudu and the Lestingois's to give the farce sight-gags an anarchic atmosphere from Boudu wheeling out to each corner of the house and doing inappropriate jokes. Rubbing up against Boudu, Renoir stylishly gazes into the Lestingois's lives with elegant long-shots gazing out of windows to conversations taking place in other rooms,and for the final, Renoir swims towards poetic stylisation which in crawling panning shots sends Boudu sailing as a free spirit. Adapting Rene Fauchois's play, (who at first wanted to disown it,but later approved of the final result) Renoir greets Boudu with a merry satirical bite,from the bourgeoisie Lestingois family attempting to get Boudu to conform to their rules of the game over the image he should present to the outside world. Saving him from drowning, Renoir wonderfully grates down on the Lestingois's warmth towards Boudu, until the mere mention of him makes them twitch with memories of his unkempt attitude. Living a long time in a kind of bohemian house in Noisy-le-Grand, near Paris, Michel Simon gives an astonishing turn as Boudu, whose humour Simon keeps as free-flowing by pushing Boudu's eccentrics right up against the screen,as Boudu finds himself saved from drowning. |
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Post by Lebowskidoo 🦞 on Mar 31, 2019 17:28:05 GMT
6 Below: Miracle on the Mountain (2017), in which Josh Hartnett eats his own frostbitten flesh to survive, yummy!   The Great Scout and Cathouse Thursday (1976) Lee Marvin and Oliver Reed in a raunchy, western comedy. Naturally, I had to watch it. Silly but entertaining.  The Heartbreak Kid (1972) This movie must have been the beginning of the awkward and uncomfortable comedy genre. Charles Grodin falls in love with Cybill Shepherd, on his honeymoon to Jeannie Berlin! So weird but funny. I seem to unintentionally seeing a lot of Cybill Shepherd movies lately, such as this and At Long Last Love (1975), Silver Bears (1977) and Americathon (1979). I sometimes forget what an impressive resume she has. She had a lot of offers after her debut in The Last Picture Show (1971) but she specifically chose this movie.  The Fundamentals of Caring (2016) What I thought was going to be another generic Netflix movie turned out to be a very effecting comedy/drama about a caregiver and a young man in a wheel chair on a road trip. I recommend it!  Gringo (2018) Has a very game cast, David Oyelowo is very good, and Charlize Theron plays a hardcore businesswoman like no one else could. Sharlto Copley, another actor I am unintentionally seeing a lot of lately, is always interesting to watch as well. But it kinda flails a bit, storywise.  Frostbite! (2012) (a.k.a. The Movie Out Here) A Canadian silly 80's style comedy, but there are a few snickers to be had, and a Canadian cast that at least tries. The Movie Out Here as a title makes zero sense unless you are familiar with Kokanee beer (who sponsored the movie) and their ad slogan (The Beer...Out Here). Neither does Frostbite!, the title under which I saw this movie, since there's not even any snow to be seen, which seems odd in a Canadian movie set in the mountains in the winter.   Knock Knock (2015) A remake of Death Game (1977) from director Eli Roth, who must have wanted a change of pace from his usual gore-filled horror movies. Produced by Sondra Locke and costarring Colleen Camp, who played the two girls in Death Game. Keanu Reeves opens his door to Lorenza Izzo (Roth's wife) and Ana de Armas and insanity ensues. Kind of Hitchcockish in a way.  In a Valley of Violence (2016) A western version of John Wick (2014), basically. Ethan Hawke and John Travolta face off in the dusty streets of the old west. Cool opening credits reminiscent of Sergio Leone spaghetti westerns.  Penny Serenade (1941) Not expecting tears during a Cary Grant movie, this one caught me off guard! Irene Dunne is lovely and perfect here as well.  Big Stan (2007) A timid man tries to learn to defend himself before going to prison. Basically the exact same plot as Get Hard (2015), right? Well, this one came first, directed by and starring Rob Schneider. Like the world needed another prison comedy, but this one manages to have some laughs. Great supporting cast: Scott Wilson, M. Emmet Walsh, David Carradine and Henry Gibson.  Snow Cake (2006) The late great awesomeness of Alan Rickman is in full force in this little drama about a man traveling through Canada who stops in a small town and gets mixed up with the locals who include an autistic woman (Sigourney Weaver) and an amorous neighbor of hers (Carrie-Anne Moss). 
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Post by DanaShelbyChancey on Mar 31, 2019 18:00:58 GMT
 It was dull. I watched most of it, but decided to bug out when I felt that I didn't care how it ended, and was losing track of most of the characters. I thought it was going to be juicy dramatic fun. It is just talky, stagy. Not one closeup. The opening sequence was pretty good though. Not all classics are going to thrill everyone. |
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Post by morrisondylanfan on Apr 2, 2019 23:07:01 GMT
The Fundamentals of Caring (2016) What I thought was going to be another generic Netflix movie turned out to be a very effecting comedy/drama about a caregiver and a young man in a wheel chair on a road trip. I recommend it! Really good to read that you enjoyed Caring, Lebowskidoo. I stumbled upon it on Netflix, and found it to be a delightful road movie (with Selena Gomez being far better than I was expecting.) Since you enjoyed Caring, I highly recommend the Netflix film Tallulah (2016)
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Post by hitchcockthelegend on Apr 3, 2019 1:30:33 GMT
Run Silent Run Deep is played dead straight and it works a treat. It has tension unbound and rich characters superbly performed by the stars.
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor is pretty bad, but hardly the devil's spawn.
Not the same Mummy twice, nor thrice for that matter.
Well it's been pretty much universally panned has this third Brendan Fraser led instalment of the new age Mummy series. So lets not beat around the bush here, it's not very good, but it's hardly deserving of the 1/10 ratings it has been given by amateur on line reviewers.
The plot (for what it's worth) sees young Alex O'Connell, now amazingly a grown man in a short space of time, unearth evil old Chinese Emperor Han and his accursed Terracotta Army. Naturally some bonehead is going to bring him back from the dead, and naturally the now retired O'Connell's are forced back into their Mummy fighting ways. Can Rick, Evelyn and poor Jonathan save the day? Will Alex prove his credentials as the offspring of such daring-do parents? Will anybody care come the finale?
Rachael Weisz has (wisely) bailed and into her shoes comes a woeful Maria Bello, with fluctuating accents and zero chemistry with her leading man, Bello has undone the promise shown in World Trade Center & A History Of Violence. Steer clear of action movies dear. Fraser looks bored and can barely muster the energy to deliver the now tired and stilted lines. He admitted once that The Mummy 2 was basically a cheeky remake of the first film, quite what he has to say about this one I await with much interest. John Hannah is merely a bystander and it's probably the easiest money he will ever earn, an utter waste it be. Luke Ford does OK as Alex and Michelle Yeoh, Jet Li (the Emperor) & the beautiful Isabella Leong make do with what the unimaginative script gives them to do.
What saves the film from being a bottom of the barrel feeder is the action quota. Even though the spectre of poor CGI hangs around every corner, the sequences come thick and fast and they at least keep the blood pumping, thus stopping the audience themselves from drifting into a centuries long sleep. There's some good gags too (you will yearn for more of Liam Cunningham), while the choreography for the fights involving the Asian stars is not to be sniffed at. Stephen Sommers left the directors chair for this one, handing over to Rob Cohen, which explains why the film is more concerned with action accelerate over substance. But Sommers, who gave us a genuine genre delight with the first film, has a writing credit and was on production duties for this effort. I trust he now feels saddened by what his franchise has now become. 4/10
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Post by hitchcockthelegend on Apr 3, 2019 2:07:24 GMT
Shock / Alfred L. Werker (1946). 20th Century Fox. This was being produced by Fox’s “B” unit with the always dependable, sometimes very good, director Alfred Werker – forgotten today except by ‘40s film fans – but when studio head Darryl Zanuck saw the first rough cut, he ordered his PR and distributing departments to give it an “A” treatment. The movie was a big hit for Fox. Janet Stewart (Anabel Shaw) is waiting in a hotel room for her husband who is returning from the war. From her balcony she sees a man (Vincent Price) argue with his wife and then club her to death (Vincent Price/in the apartment/with the candlestick). This shock causes her to become catatonic. The hotel doctor wants to bring in a specialist, Dr. Cross, who lives right there in the hotel building. Surprise! Dr. Cross is the man she saw committing murder. Cross has her committed to his own sanitarium where he and his head nurse Elaine (Lynn Bari) – who he wanted to leave his wife for - try to figure out what to do. Dr. Cross is bothered by his conscience but Elaine urges him on to more violence and murder. Fine performance from Price and a good femme fatale turn from Bari. Highly recommended. Unchained / Hall Bartlett (1955). Truly a “lost” gem that, as far as I can tell, has never had a home video release in any format. Further, the print I saw is in terrible trouble. This film demands immediate restoration. This docu-drama tells how the California prison experiment started by reformer Kenyon Scudder in Chino worked (Scudder is played by Wayne Morris). There were no guards as such, none of the authorities were armed, prisoners had the freedom to walk around the grounds, live in a barracks facility, and generally be responsible for their own behavior. The movie was filmed on location at the actual facility. Fictional character Steve Davitt (football star Elroy “Crazylegs” Hirsch), serving 1 to 3 years in San Quentin for beating a man who had stolen some money, is chosen to go to Chino. We follow Davitt as he discovers the new prison atmosphere but still cannot control his hair-trigger temper and plans to use the lack of security to escape, even though his wife (Barbara Hale) tries to discourage him. Hirsch does a good job – he has an especially tender moment explaining to his son (Tim Considine) that he is in jail - even though Hirsch is, essential, a non-actor. Hirsch only appeared in four movies. In one of them, “Crazylegs” (1953), he played himself in his own bio-pic. In his last movie, Hirsch was the pilot of an airliner whose passengers are stricken with food poisoning in “Zero Hour.” Davitt’s barracks leader is played by Todd Duncan, who had premiered the role of Porgy in George Gershwin’s “Porgy and Bess” in 1935. Duncan sings the famous “Unchained Melody” song and it is a joy to hear him. Jazz saxophone great Dexter Gordon can be seen in the prison band. Gordon was actually an inmate there during filming (possession of heroin). Scudder’s concept of a new kind of prison (it began in 1941) lasted until the mid-1980s after the “tough on crime” (mainly “tough on minorities”) trend had began and prison populations started to swell. Jerry Paris (nutty neighbor Jerry Helper on The Dick Van Dyke Show) is another prisoner with escape on his mind. Crazylegs in “Zero Hour” about to ask his young passenger an important question Todd Duncan singing “Unchained” The clip also shows Jerry Paris sitting with a guy who looks like Kevin Spacey Didn't like Shock myself  But like you I thought Price was superb, while there's some nice sequences at the sanitarium that I remember.
Unchained is a new one on me, and I have a right bent for incarceration based movies, thanks for that mike 
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Post by hitchcockthelegend on Apr 3, 2019 2:47:53 GMT
Heat kicks all sort of ass.
You don't live with me, you live among the remains of dead people.
Heat is written and directed by Michael Mann. It stars Robert DeNiro, Al Pacino, Val Kilmer, Jon Voight, Tom Sizemore, Diane Venora, Ashley Judd, Amy Brennerman and Danny Trejo. Music is scored by Elliot Goldenthal and cinematography by Dante Spinoti.
Big time thief Neil McCauley (DeNiro) is after one last major score before he retires, but hot on his tail is Vincent Hannah (Pacino), a cop equally and methodically as driven as he is himself.
In the build up to Heat's release, much was made of it being the first on screen pairing of DeNiro and Pacino. A mouthwatering prospect for sure, it proved to be worth the wait and unfolds as a lesson in restrained acting with two modern greats affording each other the respect that was due. What we didn't realise in the build up to the film's release, was that it would prove to be one of the greatest cops and robbers movies of all time, brought to us by an auteur director whose kink for realism and commitment to research stands him out from much of the modern directing pack.
Rarely does a film come together as one, where all the cogs of the engine are in tune, but Heat is one such picture. From cast performances to visual aesthetics, to screenplay and actual substance of story, Heat is as meticulous as it is thrilling. There are a myriad of characters brilliantly stitched together in one de-glamorised City of Angels, as plot develops, and each character and their crumbling relationships come under inspection, we are witnessing a coarse viewpoint of human nature, where people's lives are ended or defined by their choices. Everywhere you look, here, there are folk cracking under the strain of being exposed to high end crime, dreams, hopes and happiness are unlikely to be achieved, and this is on both sides of the law.
For Heat, Mann fuses the tonal and visual ticks of Manhunter with that of the adrenalin rushes from Last of the Mohicans, with the former gorgeously born out by Spinoti's pin sharp photography, the latter thrillingly realised by Mann's skill at action set pieces. Once again word of mouth about the key heist and shoot out in the film led to high expectation, and again there is no disappointment. L.A. becomes a battle ground, rapid gunfire punctures the air, cars swerve and crash, bodies fall, visually and aurally it drags you to the edge of your seat, an extended action sequence fit to sit with the best of them. The kicker as well is that because Mann has been so detailed in his characterisations, we care about what happens to all parties, we understand motives and means. Which in a film with such a huge support cast is quite an achievement.
There is enough in Heat to fill out a dozen other cops and robbers films, fans of neo-noir and crime films in general are spoilt supreme here. It's not rocket science really, put a group of great actors together, give them an intelligent script to work from and let them be guided by a director who will not sit still, and you get a great film. Heat, the ultimate predator and prey movie, where from beginning to end it refuses to be lazy or cop out, and energy and thought seeps from every frame. 10/10
Heathers, never got its popularity, just doesn't strike any chords with me 
Ulzana's we have already discussed plenty, most on the board know how great we think it is.
Cary Grant is my favourite actor and yet his films are probably the least I have reviewed. So, Bringing Up Baby, 10/10 and that's all I got at the minute...
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Post by OldAussie on Apr 3, 2019 2:53:17 GMT
Heat - on the big screen. Modern movies could learn how to do a proper sound mix from this ripper of a movie. The shoot-outs were LOUD but not a line of dialogue was missed. Son and wife both loved it too - best review from wife - "It didn't seem like 3 hours!"
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And God created Arlene Dahl 
