The Gay Desperado (1936)

Set in Mexico, an opera singer (Nino Martini) is kidnapped by a gang of bandits and forced to become a member of the gang. When an American girl (Ida Lupino) and her rich fiance (James Blakeley) are kidnapped by the bandits, the singer finds himself falling in love with the girl. Directed by Rouben Mamoulian (BLOOD AND SAND). Mamoulian is no stranger to musicals having directed such movie gems as LOVE ME TONIGHT and SILK STOCKINGS as well as the original Broadway productions of OKLAHOMA! and PORGY AND BESS. This musical comedy, however, is a curiosity. Widely admired on its original release, Mamoulian even won the New York Film Critics best director award for his work here. While it still retains some of its offbeat charm, posterity has not been kind to the film. Its bandido stereotypes doesn't sit well with 21st century sensibilities. That being said, the movie is stolen by Leo Carrillo's soft hearted bandit leader murdering the English language. Hollywood made several opera singers into movie stars in the 1930s, 40s and 50s such as Mario Lanza and Grace Moore. Martini was a leading Metropolitan opera tenor occascionally dipping his toes into films but I found his breaking into arias about as appealing as Kathryn Grayson doing the same in an MGM musicals. With Mischa Auer and Harold Huber.

L'Etranger (aka The Stranger) (2025)

Set in French Algeria, an office clerk (Benjamin Voisin) is detached from his surroundings and the people who inhabit it. He is indifferent to the suffering of others. A neighbor (Denis Lavant) beats their dog, another neighbor (Pierre Lottin) beats his mistress (Hajar Bouzaouit) and he is apathetic. When he is arrested for killing an Arab boy, he has no explanation or defense for his act. Based on the acclaimed novel by Albert Camus and directed by Francois Ozon (8 FEMMES). Camus' existential novel is one of those classic pieces of literature that is oft deemed unfilmable. Ozon's excellent film is probably as close to a cinematic equivalent as we're going to get. Shot in stunning B&W by Manu Dacosse (PETER VON KANT), it's an impeccably formulated adaptation. Ozon takes some liberties such as making the female roles more prominent and fleshed out but still holding the film firm to Camus' intentions. Previously filmed in 1967 by Luchiino Visconti, I haven't seen that version since (the film has long been out of circulation in the U.S.) and my memories are too vague to make a fair comparison. With Rebecca Marder and Swann Arlaud.

Is There Life Out There? (1994)

A housewife (Reba McEntire), who's married to a carpenter (Keith Carradine) works part time as a waitress to make ends meet. She sacrificed her college education to get married and have a family. But both she and her husband agree that the time is right to go back to school and pursue her dream. Based on the song Is There Life Out There? written by McEntire and directed by David Jones (84 CHARING CROSS ROAD). Typical "inspirational" 1990s TV movie fare but well done for what it is. While it's message is positive, it's a little too obvious and some subtlety would have been appreciated. Fortunately for the movie, Reba McEntire brings some real authenticity to the project while avoiding the actress-y performance that another actress might have brought to it (think Ellen Burstyn in ALICE DOESN'T LIVE HERE ANYMORE) and the screenplay doesn't condescend to its characters. With Donald Moffat and Mitchell Anderson.

The Last Tycoon (1976)

Set in the 1930s, the young production chief (Robert De Niro) of a major Hollywood studio runs the studio with an iron fist much to the chagrin of another studio producer (Robert Mitchum). A widower, the young studio head becomes obsessed with a young girl (Ingrid Boulting), who resembles his dead wife. Based on the (unfinished) novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald and directed by Elia Kazan (ON THE WATERFRONT) in his final film. A stiff of a movie! With an illustrious cast, produced by Sam Spiegel (LAWRENCE OF ARABIA) and Harold Pinter adapting Fitzgerald's novel for the screen, Kazan can't breath life into a deadly laborious elephant of a film that never gets off the ground. A major portion of the film is devoted to De Niro's fascination with Ingrid Boulting but she's not much of an actress and while pretty, she just doesn't justify the mogul's obsession with her. The movie briefly comes alive toward the end when a union organizer (Jack Nicholson in the film's best performance) enters the movie. Nicholson brings a much need vitality to the proceedings but alas, he's gone as quickly as he came in. The impressive cast includes Jeanne Moreau, Tony Curtis, Anjelica Huston, Ray Milland, Dana Andrews, Theresa Russell, Donald Pleasence, John Carradine, Peter Strauss, Jeff Corey, Rutanya Alda and Betsy Jones Moreland.

La Triche (aka The Cheat) (1984)

Set in Bordeaux, France. Investigating the murder of the owner (Michel Galabru) of a gay nightclub, the police commissioner (Victor Lanoux), who is a closeted bisexual, begins an affair with a musician (Xavier Deluc) who works at the nightclub. His involvement strains his marriage and blurs the boundaries between his professional and personal life. Written and directed by Yannick Bellon (LA FEMME DE JEAN). An interesting but not altogether successful crime thriller with its focus on the relationship of a bisexual man in a position of power and respect in society and his attachment to a homosexual which compromises him, socially and morally. How far will the protagonist go to protect his social status? He's a hypocrite, of course, even if his feelings for the gay boy is sincere. You can't really like any of the movie's characters, so I watched from a distant perspective, observing rather than getting involved. Definitely worth a watch but ultimately, too non committal to be effective. With Anny Duperey, Valerie Mairesse and Roland Blanche.

Stateline Motel (aka L'Ultima Chance) (1973)

Set in Quebec, Canada. After a deadly jewel heist, two robbers (Eli Wallach, Fabio Testi) split up to evade the police. Tasked with getting the stolen jewels across the border to the U.S., Testi holes up in a small border town motel. It's there he meets the sexy wife (Ursula Andress) of the motel owner (Massimo Girotti) and the trouble begins. Based on the novel by Franco Enna and directed by Maurizio Lucidi (THE DESIGNATED VICTIM). Although filmed in Canada, this is an Italian film and not a bad one at that. It's a nifty cat and mouse game with Ursula Andress especially good as the movie's ambiguous femme fatale. The film has slight echoes of THE POSTMAN ALWAS RINGS TWICE with Testi's drifter on the run drawn into a deadly web by the sexy wife of Girotti's kind hearted motel owner. There's a little twist at the end of the movie that I saw coming but unless you're a suspicious mystery addict, it might get past you. With Barbara Bach, Celine Lomez and Howard Ross.

Era Notte A Roma (aka Escape By Night) (1960)

Set in Nazi occupied Rome, a beautiful black marketeer (Giovanna Ralli) gives sanctuary to three escaped POWs: an American pilot (Peter Baldwin), a Russian sergeant (Sergei Bondarchuk, who would go on to direct the 1966 WAR AND PEACE) and a British major (Leo Genn). By taking them in, she jeopardizes the safety of her communist lover (Renato Salvatori). Directed by Roberto Rossellini (OPEN CITY). Since its debut at the Cannes film festival, Rossellini's film has seen several versions of various length: 157 minutes, 145 minutes, 114 minutes. The transfer I saw was 135 minutes. Slightly overlong, it's a riveting glimpse of Roman life during the waning days of Rome under the Germans before it was liberated by the allies. Rossellini captures the chaos and intense pressure that ordinary citizens lived under while keeping the suspense quotient high. Surprisingly, it was not successful either artistically or commercially at the time of its original release. I found it held my interest in both departments. With Sergio Fantoni, Enrico Maria Salerno, Paolo Stoppa, Laura Betti and Rosalba Neri.

Crime Against Joe (1956)

Set in Arizona, an innocent man (John Bromfield) with a drinking problem is accused of murdering a cabaret singer (Alika Louis). A girl (Julie London) secretly in love with him provides a false alibi to keep him out of jail, if only temporarily. He uses the time to investigate and find the real killer. Based on a story by Decla Dunning and directed by Lee Sholem (TARZAN AND THE SLAVE GIRL). Bromfield's protagonist is rather unlikable and his problems are due to his excessive drinking. It's really hard to drum up much sympathy for him. He's aggressive and rude and seems to be asking for trouble. It doesn't help that Bromfield's performance is terrible, especially his "drunk" scenes. More interesting is a subplot involving an overprotective, repressive father (Joel Ashley) who suffocates his daughter (Patricia Blair) so much that she needs to escape him. With Henry Calvin, Joyce Jameson and Frances Morris.

13 Rue Madeleine (1947)

Set during WWII, a commanding officer (James Cagney) is in charge of training a small band of operatives as spies in the leadup of the invasion of Europe but one of the trainees is actually a Nazi spy! Directed by Henry Hathaway (TRUE GRIT). Although filmed after WWII, this still comes across as a WWII propaganda movie. While the film's producer Louis De Rochemont has a reputation for realism with films like THE HOUSE ON 92ND STREET and BOOMERANG, this one starts out in a semi documentary approach before going full tilt Hollywood in the movie's final third. James Cagney is parachuted into Vichy France and passes himself off as a Frenchman but he still sounds like James Cagney while others around him are either French or using French accents. If you can buy that then perhaps you'll find the movie more tolerable than I did. With Richard Conte, Karl Malden, E.G. Marshall, Annabella, Frank Latimore, Sam Jaffe, Melville Cooper and Ann Codee.

Io Semiramide (aka Slave Queen Of Babylon) (1963)

Set during the Neo-Assyrian Empire, its Queen (Yvonne Furneaux) gives an order to build a great city that she will call Babylon. Her political ambitions are hampered by her love for a prince (John Ericson), defeated in war and now a slave. Written and directed by Primo Zeglio (MORGAN THE PIRATE). A rather tired sword and sandal epic out of Italy. Shot in CinemaScope, this slice of peplum looks lavish but its storyline although using real historical characters is hackneyed. Yvonne Furneaux makes for a formidable heroine but John Ericson doesn't impress as the rebellious prince turned slave. If you're partial to the genre, you're probably immune to the triteness of the recycled plot. With Germano Longo and Renzo Ricci.

Letty Lynton (1932)

Living in South America, a woman (Joan Crawford) is seeking to escape from her toxic lover (Nils Asther). Fleeing to New York aboard a luxury liner, she falls in love with a passenger (Robert Montgomery) and sees a new beginning for her. Alas, when the ship docks, her obsessive lover is waiting to meet her. Based on the novel by Marie Belloc Lowndes (THE LODGER) and directed by Clarence Brown (NATIONAL VELVET). Out of circulation since 1936 due to a court decision that the screenplay plagiarized the play DISHONORED LADY. The play's copyright expired in 2025 and after years of unavailability, the film has been restored and made available. Its reputation has grown because of its being out of circulation for decades. The movie is far from a great movie but it still holds up as a pulpy pre code movie romance and being a pre code film, the heroine is able to get away with murder and live happily ever after. The young Joan Crawford is really marvelous here (and a knockout in her Adrian frocks), vibrant and sexy and not yet the iron maiden she would become over at Warner Brothers. With May Robson, Lewis Stone and Louise Closser Hale.

The Keyhole (1933)

A socialite (Kay Francis, gloriously overdressed) is married to an older wealthy gentleman (Henry Kolker) while not quite properly divorced from her sleazy ex husband (Monroe Owsley). She flees to Cuba to untangle her life but her suspicious husband hires a private detective (George Brent) to tail her. Based on the short story ADVENTURESS by Alice D.G. Miller and directed by Michael Curtiz (WHITE CHRISTMAS). This lively pre code dramedy is rather absurd in its complicated machinations that all come out well in the end but it's enjoyable in its romantic pulpiness nevertheless. There's an amusing subplot involving Glenda Farrell as a scheming scam artist bilking wealthy men out of their money who mistakes Brent's dull witted assistant (Allen Jenkins) for a rich man. With Helen Ware and George Chandler.