Kiss Me, Stupid (1964)

When a famous crooner (Dean Martin) drives through a desolate Nevada town, two aspiring songwriters (Ray Walston, Cliff Osmond) concoct a plan that will force him to spend the night and therefore, hopefully, sell him one of their songs. Unfortunately, the singer is an oversexed satyr so Walston sends his pretty wife (Felicia Farr) away for the night and brings in the town's resident tramp (Kim Novak) to pretend to be his wife and "help". Based on the play L'ORA DELLA FANTASIA by Anna Bonacci and directed by Billy Wilder (DOUBLE INDEMNITY). When first released in 1964, Wilder's film caused a bit of a firestorm. Not only was it condemned by the Catholic church but it was greeted with hostile reviews from the critical establishment calling it "long on vulgarity" and "it seems to have scraped its blue humor off the floor of a honky tonk nightclub" among other things. By today's standards, those shocked critics seem rather prissy. In fact, the film is frequently quite funny and its raciness, while still not for the kiddies, refreshingly adult. The fly in the ointment is the uncharismatic Walston (who was a last minute replacement for Peter Sellers) who lacks pizzaz and unfortunately takes up most of the screen time. But Martin is amusing, good naturedly playing a parody of his image and Novak has a sweet Monroe-ish pathos that's very appealing. And if a film score can be called witty, Andre Previn's contribution is that. With Barbara Pepper, Skip Ward, Alice Pearce, Howard McNear and Doro Merande.

Sitting Bull (1954)

A major (Dale Robertson) in the U.S. Cavalry, who is sympathetic to the plight of Native Americans, attempts to intercede in the tense relationship between the Sioux nation and the U.S. cavalry represented by General George C. Custer (Douglas Kennedy) which will eventually erupt into the battle of Little Big Horn. Essentially a low budget "B" western, the film is elevated by the strong compositions in the CinemaScope format by cinematographers Charles Van Enger (ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN) and Victor Herrera. Historically, most of it is fabricated though one admires its sympathetic look at the Indians. Alas, too much time is wasted on the hackneyed romantic triangle (Robertson, Mary Murphy, William Hopper) when the focus should be on the Indian angle. The film is unusual for its time in its portrayal of a black man (Joel Fluellen), an ex-slave who chooses to live with the Indians rather than the white men, in a non stereotypical way. The score is by Raoul Kraushaar, who weaves Max Rich's haunting title song Great Spirit into the score proper. Directed by Sidney Salkow with location shooting in Mexico done by Rene Cardona. With J. Carrol Naish (who's Irish) in the title role, Thomas Browne Henry and Iron Eyes Cody.

Cluny Brown (1946)

A plumber's niece (Jennifer Jones) and a Czech refugee (Charles Boyer) meet briefly when she fixes the drain pipes at the flat of a British aristocrat (Reginald Gardiner). Later they meet again at an English country manor, he as a guest and she as a servant, where they find themselves victims of the English class system. Based on the novel by Margery Sharp, this wickedly witty comedy was the last film completed by the great Ernst Lubitsch (he died while filming THAT LADY IN ERMINE which was completed by Otto Preminger) and it's a great swan song. The famed "Lubitsch touch" is much in evidence and his pointed arrows at the upper English classes (and their servants) find their target every time. Some of the humor is surprisingly racy. When referring to drain pipes, Jones proclaims the joy of "banging", the prissy servants mistake it for something else! Jones is a delight and it's clear from this (and BEAT THE DEVIL) that she missed her calling as a comedienne. Boyer exudes his effortless continental charm and, indeed, the entire cast is perfection. Among them Peter Lawford, Helen Walker (NIGHTMARE ALLEY), Reginald Owen, Richard Haydn, Una O'Connor, Sara Allgood and C. Aubrey Smith.

En Kvinnas Ansikte (aka A Woman's Face) (1938)

Bitter and resentful after a fire disfigured her face as a child, a young woman (Ingrid Bergman) turns to a life of crime by organizing a gang conducting blackmail schemes. When a surgeon (Anders Henrikson), the husband of one of her victims, offers to perform plastic surgery on her in the hope she will reform, she agrees but it won't be that easy. Based on the play IL ETAIT UNE FOIS by Francis De Croisset and directed by Gustaf Molander (INTERMEZZO). This is a tautly conceived character melodrama and the young pre-Hollywood Bergman already displays her formidable talent. She subtly shows the transformation from scarred on the inside to healing on the inside without going all actress-y on us. MGM did a remake in 1941 directed by George Cukor and with Joan Crawford in Bergman's role but that film, while good, isn't as honest as this Swedish version, instead making concessions to audiences by giving it a happier ending among other things like changing the character's motivations. With Tore Svennberg, Georg Rydeberg and Karin Kavli.

The Tree Of Life (2011)

A mother (Jessica Chastain) receives a telegram telling her of her son's death. The father (Brad Pitt) gets the news via telephone. The brother (Sean Penn) is overwhelmed and begins to ponder and reminisce ..... and thus a mystical journey into the nature of God, death, family and our place in the cosmos begins. Very rarely, if we're lucky, while watching a film we sense the presence of greatness almost immediately and posterity be damned. Antonioni's L'AVVENTURA was one, Kubrick's 2001 another. This is a masterpiece. A polarizing one to be sure, like all great films often conjuring up a "love it/hate it" reaction (my filmgoing companion was positively enraged by it!), but a masterwork nonetheless. It's the kind of film where the "hate it" crowd throw accusations like "pretentious", "self indulgent" or "boring" at it. It's much easier to be glib than actually attempt to decipher a profound work of Art and this is coming from someone who is no Terence Malick fanboy. I intensely disliked his DAYS OF HEAVEN and THE NEW WORLD had me bolting my seat halfway through. To call Emmanuel Lubezki's cinematography stunning is to demean it. I don't think the word exists that can do it justice. A great film ... but not for everyone.

Hesher (2011)

A young boy (Devin Brochu) is having difficulty in coming to terms with the death of his mother. His father (Rainn Wilson) has retreated into prescription drugs and his grandmother (Piper Laurie) is addled and not quite all there. Into his life comes a mean spirited slacker (Joseph Gordon Levitt) who, without being asked, invades the family's home and takes over. To call this movie hideous and one of the worst films I've ever had to sit through is an understatement. It's a mass of cliches, indifferently acted and one can imagine director Spencer Susser rubbing his hands behind the camera and saying, "Man, this is going to be such a cool movie!". Well, I suppose it is cool to potheads who preface every statement with "dude" but I suspect the rest of the universe won't be so congenial. Levitt is meant to be a non conformist rebel who rails against society but he only comes across as an annoying pain in the ass. Susser wants his cake and eat it too and in the end Levitt's Hesher, despite his counter culture credentials, spouts the usual cliches as if they were pearls of wisdom. Truly a godawful film, Susser may as well have pissed on his audience, at least it would have been honest. With Natalie Portman and John Carroll Lynch. Yuck!

A Distant Trumpet (1964)

Set in the 1880s, a recent West Point graduate (Troy Donahue) arrives for duty at an isolated fort on the Arizona/Mexico border. The cavalry soldiers are undisciplined and lax and it's up to the new officer to whip the men into shape and attempt to capture or negotiate a surrender with the renegade Apache leader who is raiding the nearby areas. Based on the novel by Paul Horgan novel and directed by Raoul Walsh (HIGH SIERRA). Walsh's main accomplishment here is his superlative use of the wide screen format, in this case Panavision. Visually, the film is quite stunning and the wide screen compositions (William Clothier is the cinematographer) would do David Lean and Freddie Young proud. The film is also notable for its depiction of the Apaches. They aren't sentimentalized but neither does it portray them as blood thirsty savages but a people betrayed who only want to live in peace on their land. Donahue does well enough, it's probably his best film performance, but it's difficult to get around the central miscasting. He just doesn't belong. Suzanne Pleshette and Diane McBain are rivals for Donahue's affection. The stirring score is by Max Steiner. With James Gregory, Kent Smith, William Reynolds and Claude Akins.

The Doctor And The Devils (1985)

A doctor (Timothy Dalton) who teaches at a medical school has no ethics when it comes to the cadavers supplied to him, He insists it's all in the name of science, even when the evidence indicates they have been deliberately murdered by his suppliers (Jonathan Pryce, Stephen Rea) for the money he pays them. Based on the real life exploits of Burke and Hare, almost 32 years passed from the time Dylan Thomas (UNDER MILK WOOD) wrote the screenplay and the film actually came to fruition, this time with screenwriter Ronald Harwood (an Oscar winner for THE PIANIST) updating Thomas's earlier screenplay. Directed by Oscar winning cinematographer (SONS AND LOVERS, GLORY) turned director Freddie Francis, the film is an unpleasant ghoulish affair, not unlike Val Lewton's 1945 THE BODY SNATCHER only more graphic. Still, there's no denying the compelling nature of the subject. The production design by Brian Ackland Snow and Robert W. Laing does a splendid job of recreating early 19th century England squalor (though the actual Burke and Hare murders took place in Scotland). With Julian Sands, Twiggy (quite likable as a cockney whore), Patrick Stewart, Sian Phillips, Beryl Reid, T.P. McKenna and Jennifer Jayne.

Caesar And Cleopatra (1976)

Julius Caesar (Alec Guinness) arrives in Egypt and attempts to settle the dispute over who should rule Egypt, Cleopatra (Genevieve Bujold) or her brother Ptolemy (Jolyon Bates), by having them rule jointly but the ambitious Cleopatra has other ideas. This adaptation of the George Bernard Shaw play lacks the lavishness of the better known 1945 film version. But the lack of pageantry allows more attention to Shaw's text without the distraction of spectacle. The director, James Cellan Jones, lets the story unfold simply so that the political maneuvers are at the forefront. Guinness plays Caesar with an air of resignation rather than power and his chemistry with Bujold is good. Bujold makes for a cunning, sexy Cleopatra with her impish, wicked grin. Though much of Shaw's play has been severely edited, it still makes for a satisfying production. The minimal score is by Michael J. Lewis (THEATER OF BLOOD). With Margaret Courtenay as Ftatateeta, Iain Cuthbertson as Ruffio and Clive Francis as Apollodorus.

I Am A Camera (1955)

An aspiring writer (Laurence Harvey) in 1931 Berlin hooks up with an amoral party girl (Julie Harris recreating her Tony award winning performance) as the rise of Nazism casts its dark shadow over the nation. Based on the play by John Van Druten which, in turn, was based on Christopher Isherwood's GOODBYE TO BERLIN and later morphed again into the stage and film musical CABARET. Directed by Henry Cornelius (GENEVIEVE), this version is lighter and frothier. The bubbly Harris plays Sally Bowles as more of a junior Auntie Mame and while delightful, she's saddled with the enervated Harvey who has most of the screen time. While quite daring for its time (it was condemned by the Catholic church's Legion Of Decency), director Henry Cornelius can't quite find the sparkle in the material. The play was a critical success but the film version, saddled with the censorship restrictions of the day, was critically dismissed for the most part. Malcolm Arnold did the score and Oscar winning Guy Green (Lean's GREAT EXPECTATIONS) is responsible for the cinematography. With Shelley Winters and Anton Diffring in the Jewish heiress and the gigolo subplot and Ron Randell, who overdoes the vulgar nouveau riche American bit. With Patrick McGoohan and Lea Seidl.

Jungle Book (1942)

Set in India, a small child wanders from the village and gets lost. But he is adopted by a wolf family and raised as their own. When he grows up to be a youth (Sabu), he accidentally stumbles onto the village of his birth where his birth mother (Rosemary DeCamp) takes him in and teaches him the way of man but his heart is still with the jungle. This handsome, Technicolor adventure based on Rudyard Kipling's short stories is still the best of all the film versions. A family affair: directed by Zoltan Korda and produced by Alexander Korda with art direction by Vincent Korda, it's an enjoyable adventure yarn that should please both young and old. Vincent Korda's art direction is superb. Though filmed on a studio sound stage, his lush overgrown jungle somehow feels authentic unlike other jungle movies filmed on Hollywood sound stages. Sabu is perfectly cast (along with BLACK NARCISSUS, it's his best film work) with a sweetness and charm that doesn't show up much in all those Maria Montez films he did at Universal. The gorgeous score by Miklos Rozsa is a classic on its own. With Joseph Calleia (who bookends the film as the narrator) as the duplicitous Buldeo, John Qualen, Frank Puglia and Faith Brook.

For Your Eyes Only (1981)

The 12th entry in the 007 franchise finds James Bond (Roger Moore) attempting to track down a transmitter that coordinates the Royal Navy's submarines. He joins forces with a Greek beauty (Carole Bouquet), who is avenging the death of her parents, since the missing transmitter and her parents' death are tied together. Bolstered by a strong narrative, this is one of the very best entries in the series. After the special effects laden, sci-fi approach of the previous entry MOONRAKER, director John Glen (whose feature film debut this is) and the film editor of three previous Bonds including MOONRAKER, grounds the film in a harsher, less cartoonish, reality closer to the early Connery Bonds. The film is still elegant with glamorous locales in Spain, Italy and Greece and two marvelous set pieces. One involving a chase through the Spanish mountains and the other a ski chase in Cortina, Italy which push the film's precision drivers and stuntmen to their limits. The bouncy score is by Bill Conti and the Oscar nominated song is sung by Sheena Easton, the only Bond singer who actually appears in the film's credit sequence. With Topol, Lynn Holly Johnson, Julian Glover, Jill Bennett, Charles Dance, Geoffrey Keen, Lois Maxwell, Desmond Llewelyn and Cassandra Harris, whose husband Pierce Brosnan would later play Bond.