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Tuesday, January 31, 2017
Sabotage (aka The Woman Alone) (1936)
Marie Antoinette (1956)
Monday, January 30, 2017
Support Your Local Sheriff (1969)
Sunday, January 29, 2017
Paterson (2016)
La Ciociara (aka Two Women) (1960)
Set in the last days of WWII, a young widow (Sophia Loren) and the daughter (Eleonora Brown) she dotes on leave Rome to escape the Allied bombing. They leave for the rural mountain province where the mother has family. But they can't escape the horrors of war, no matter where they go. Based on the novel by Alberto Moravia and directed by Vittorio De Sica. War movies that aim to show the horror that is war usually focus on the battlefield where we're treated to soldiers killing and being killed, stuff like ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT and SAVING PRIVATE RYAN. De Sica's film is about the innocents caught in the morass of a war they most likely didn't want in the first place and the mother and daughter's story packs a punch and brings it all painfully home. Loren, who won the best actress Oscar for her performance, was around 26 and younger than the character she's playing (Anna Magnani was originally cast) but she once and for all proved that she was more than just an international sex symbol. A poignant and devastating film experience. With Jean Paul Belmondo, Raf Vallone and Renato Salvatori.
Friday, January 27, 2017
7th Cavalry (1956)
Dave (1993)
Thursday, January 26, 2017
Bad Girl (1931)
Suddenly (1954)
Wednesday, January 25, 2017
Change Of Habit (1969)
Three nuns (Mary Tyler Moore, Barbara McNair, Jane Elliot) are involved in an experimental community outreach program by a diocese of the Catholic church. However, they choose to wear secular clothing so their vocation won't impede them. But this causes misunderstanding, especially when a young doctor (Elvis Presley) falls for one of the nuns (Moore). Directed by William A. Graham, this is an updated version of those awful Bing Crosby priest movies from the 1940s. Only this time, the crooner is Elvis and Mary Tyler Moore (who passed away this week) dons Ingrid Bergman's habit. It's updated, of course, though I remain perplexed that a film featuring an attempted rape of a nun got a "G" rating! This was Presley's last film as an actor but really, he'd just stopped caring at this point and his "performance" consists of expressionless reciting of lines. The most interesting character and story line are Barbara McNair's as the black nun who must question using her habit to hide from the realities of where she came from and her place in an emerging world of black power. Moore was trying to transition from TV to films at this stage of her career but with material like this, it was never going to happen. With Edward Asner, Leora Dana, Richard Carlson, Ruth McDevitt, Regis Toomey, Robert Emhardt and Darlene Love.
The Wild One (1953)
A motorcycle gang rides into a small California town and it isn't long before the bikers and the citizens clash. But the charismatic biker leader (Marlon Brando) finds himself drawn to the small town girl (Mary Murphy) working in the local diner. Based on THE CYCLISTS' RAID, a short story by Frank Rooney which was in turn based on an actual incident. In 1947, thousands of bikers descended into a small California town called Hollister and riots and destruction ensued. Directed by Laslo Benedek but produced by Stanley Kramer, so we get the cautionary moralizing that's typical of his product. Like most topical films, THE WILD ONE hasn't aged well and its "juvenile delinquents" come across as almost a satire (Gene Kelly did parody the film in LES GIRLS). But the film does have its moments, there's the iconic line: "What are you rebelling against?" "What have you got?". But there's a reason the film is highly watchable even today and that's Marlon Brando. It's as much an iconic performance of misunderstood youth as James Dean in REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE. Brando's tough bravado masking the boy looking for affection underneath. Brando turned film acting on its ear and it's all on display here. I seriously doubt if we would be talking about the film today if Robert Wagner or Jeffrey Hunter played the lead. With Lee Marvin, Robert Keith, Jay C. Flippen, Peggy Maley, Timothy Carey, Ray Teal and Yvonne Doughty.
Tuesday, January 24, 2017
Maybe I'll Come Home In The Spring (1971)
A disillusioned young runaway teen (Sally Field) returns to her middle class home after spending a year away at a "hippie" commune. But things haven't changed at all and she finds herself between a rock and a hard place. Directed by Joseph Sargent (TAKING OF PELHAM 123), this made for TV film is one tough little cookie of a movie and takes no prisoners. The film doesn't see the alternative lifestyle of the hippie community as an answer and it portrays them as lazy thieving parasites eating out of garbage cans, promiscuous sex and drug taking. But the "squares" are portrayed as uptight monsters, boozing and wife swapping and refusing to even understand their kids. See what I mean by between a rock and a hard place? The telefilm doesn't give us any pat answers or any hope for that matter. Everyone points to SYBIL as the beginning of Field's maturity as an actress but really, she already shows her acting chops here. Perhaps not fully developed but clearly ready. The cinematography by Russell Metty (ALL THAT HEAVEN ALLOWS) is a far cry from his work with Sirk. Plain and rather ugly but I take that as an intentional reflection of the conventional and restrictive lifestyle it portrays. With Eleanor Parker and Jackie Cooper as the parents, David Carradine and Lane Bradford.
Monday, January 23, 2017
Easy Living (1949)
The star halfback (Victor Mature) of a New York football team discovers that he has a heart condition and it could be fatal if he continues to play professional football. But his social climbing wife (Lizabeth Scott) likes being married to a football hero and she's not ready to become Mrs. Nobody. Directed by Jacques Tourneur (CAT PEOPLE). I'm not a big fan of sports movies but the film focuses on the dark side of professional football, the politics and the money rather than the cheering crowds. Pauline Kael once referred to Jane Russell as a female Victor Mature and said that one would have to work hard to dislike them. They're not great actors (and they know it) but they're pros and so unpretentious in their "acting" that we don't really care. Which is a roundabout way of saying that Mature not so much gives a performance as takes space up on the screen and that's okay with me. He gives the movie what it needs and who can ask for more. Granted, Lizabeth Scott is playing a self centered bitch but I still think the film makers are rather cruel in her "comeuppance". With Lucille Ball as the team secretary secretly in love with Mature, Lloyd Nolan, Sonny Tufts, Jeff Donnell, Paul Stewart and Audrey Young (who would soon become Mrs. Billy Wilder) who sings the title song.
I'll Take Sweden (1965)
Sunday, January 22, 2017
Julieta (2016)
Taxi Driver (1976)
A lonely and depressed 26 year old ex-Marine (Robert De Niro) with chronic insomnia takes a job driving a cab all night. When his attempts to reach out to a pretty political campaign worker (Cybill Shepherd) is a failure, he decides to rescue a 12 year old prostitute (Jodie Foster). It's difficult to describe the powerful impact certain films had when they opened to people who weren't there. PSYCHO (1960) comes to mind, LAST TANGO IN PARIS of course and absolutely Martin Scorsese's TAXI DRIVER is another. Certainly the graphic violent content (Scorsese had to desaturate the color of the bloodbath that ends the film in order to get an R rating) pushed the envelope, the relationship of the child prostitute and her pimp would have a hard time making it to the screen today. And no one was prepared for De Niro's stunning performance, so raw and visceral that he made his character of Travis Bickle into an iconic figure of 70s cinema. Amazingly, nearly 40 years later, the film has lost none of its power and Bickle's genuinely frightening skewered mindset seems as topical today as ever! The word masterpiece is overused and thrown around so much at good but hardly masterpiece movies that it hardly seems relevant anymore. That being said, TAXI DRIVER is a masterpiece. And mention must be made of Bernard Herrmann's brilliant score. With Albert Brooks, Harvey Keitel, Peter Boyle, Diahnne Abbott and Leonard Harris.
Saturday, January 21, 2017
The Teckman Mystery (1954)
A crime novelist (John Justin) is commissioned by his publisher (Raymond Huntley) to write the biography of a test pilot (Michael Medwin) who died while testing a new plane. But when he suddenly receives a job offer that would make him postpone the book, his apartment is ransacked and people involved in Teckman's story start turning up dead ... he begins to suspect someone doesn't want this book written! Directed by Wendy Toye, one of Britain's rare woman directors. This cold war thriller may be second tier but if you're a sucker for mysteries (as I am), it proves to be a diverting puzzle. The mystery's resolution is a bit muddled and the final confrontation rings false but I suspect the film makers painted themselves into a corner and wanted to go out with a splash (literally). John Justin (1940's THIEF OF BAGDAD) is a rather dull leading man but fortunately there's Margaret Leighton as the pilot's sister who brings a quiet authority and necessary ambiguity to her role. With Roland Culver and George Coulouris.
Friday, January 20, 2017
Damien: Omen II (1978)
Since the death of his parents, a 12 year old boy (Jonathan Scott Taylor) has been in the care of his uncle (William Holden) and his second wife (Lee Grant). The circumstances regarding his parents' deaths were suspicious and as he approaches his teen years, he will soon discover who he really is. This sequel to the huge hit THE OMEN (1976) is, like most sequels, a pale imitation of the original. The original may not have been a great film but it was focused on its tight narrative and didn't have time for any distractions and it provided a genuine sense of horror and doom. DAMIEN spreads itself too thin with unnecessary characters and its grisly deaths are just that ..... grisly without any sense of true horror. The leads (Holden, Grant) are underwritten and just aren't as interesting as Gregory Peck and Lee Remick were in the first movie. It doesn't help that Scott-Taylor as Damien is about as malevolent as a tepid drink of water. Even Jerry Goldsmith's score (the first won got him an Oscar) seems tired. There is is one compelling sequence with Lew Ayres trapped under a frozen river and the film could have used more moments like that. With Sylvia Sidney, Leo McKern, Robert Foxworth, Lance Henriksen, Ian Hendry, Nicolas Pryor and Elizabeth Shepherd (TOMB OF LIGEIA).
El Amor Brujo (1986)
A man (Antonio Gades) is wrongfully sent to prison for killing the husband (Juan Antonio Jimenez) of the woman (Cristina Hoyos) he's loved all his life. When he returns, he attempts to rekindle that love and she's willing but the ghost of the husband literally stands in their way. Based on the 1915 ballet by Manuel de Falla and directed by Carlos Saura. This is my favorite of the three flamenco musicals directed by Saura. Saura and Gades have added dialog to the ballet to give it a more cinematic narrative but dance (choreographed by Gades) is always at the forefront. The film is highly stylized and Saura sets the film on an obvious sound stage with makeshift shacks where the dance drama is played out. The film's musical highlight is the spellbinding Ritual Fire Dance beautifully danced by Hoyos and company. Special note must be made of Gerardo Vera's colorful art direction and costumes which only add to the mystic quality of the whole enterprise. With Laura Del Sol (THE HIT).
Thursday, January 19, 2017
Our Man In Marrakesh (aka Bang! Bang! You're Dead!) (1966)
The Mirror Has Two Faces (1996)
A mathematics professor (Jeff Bridges) has been burned too often in relationships and he blames that on the sex. So he seeks a relationship based on friendship and respect and no sex. Enter an English literature professor (Barbra Streisand) and they're off to the races. But how long can a loveless, sexless relationship work? Loosely based on the 1958 Andre Cayatte film LE MIROIR A DEUX FACES and directed by Streisand. The premise is intriguing and the screenplay by Richard LaGravenese (THE FISHER KING) isn't bad at all but I wish Streisand had just directed and cast another actress in the lead role so it didn't come across as such a vanity project. Streisand's Rose is supposed to be a lovable quirky character but when her mother (Lauren Bacall in an Oscar nominated performance) says, "You need a therapist", I'm inclined to agree. Amazingly, Bridges manages to not let Streisand hog the show and it's rather nice to see him as a romantic leading man instead of the recent grizzled rural types he's concentrated on lately. Streisand also miscalculates her character's "makeover". Sure there's a new hairdo and she wears high heels but there isn't a hell of a difference between the before and after. I suppose it sounds like disliked the film but I didn't. I just wish it weren't so Cinderella formulaic. There's a wonderful underscore by Marvin Hamlisch and Streisand. With Pierce Brosnan, George Segal, Brenda Vaccaro, Mimi Rogers, Elle Macpherson, Austin Pendleton, Taina Elg and Leslie Stefanson.
Wednesday, January 18, 2017
The Great Ziegfeld (1936)
Tuesday, January 17, 2017
The Sleeping Tiger (1954)
After a petty criminal (Dirk Bogarde) attempts to rob a renowned psychiatrist (Alexander Knox) and fails, he's given the option of going to jail or submitting to a rehabilitation experiment at the psychiatrist's hands. This necessitates moving into the doctor's home. But the doctor didn't count on his wife (Alexis Smith) and the thug falling in love. Directed by Joseph Losey in Great Britain, who used a pseudonym since he'd just been blacklisted in America. I found the film to be disturbing in its attitude and borderline misogynistic. Bogarde's thug is a bully, a liar and a thief and Knox's psychiatrist comes across as an enabler who excuses his bad behavior because the criminal had a bad childhood. Meanwhile, he ignores his wife to devote his time to the young man. In the end, the men emerge unscathed while Smith's (going all Joan Crawford on us!) wife is turned into a "hell hath no fury" shrew. Having expended all their empathy for the two men, the film makers have none left and make her the villain. It just left a bad aftertaste in my mouth. With Billie Whitelaw, Hugh Griffith and Maxine Audley.
The Boatniks (1970)
Monday, January 16, 2017
Another Part Of The Forest (1948)
Sunday, January 15, 2017
Neon Signs (1996)
Passengers (2016)
Saturday, January 14, 2017
Suna No Onna (aka Woman In The Dunes) (1964)
A school teacher (Eiji Okada, HIROSHIMA MON AMOUR) spends his time off exploring the sand dunes near the sea. When he misses the last bus, the local villagers find lodgings for him with a young widow (Kyoko Kishida) who lives at the bottom of a sand dune. But the morning after, he finds himself a prisoner trapped at the bottom with the woman and no way out. Based on the book by Kobo Abe (who adapts his novel for the screen) and directed by Hiroshi Teshigahara (who received an Oscar nomination for his work here), this is the kind of bold and provocative avant garde film making that stimulated art house audiences in the 1960s. 20 minutes were cut from the U.S. release at the time which have since been restored. The film does seem overly long but an argument can be made that the film's excess length only helps the audience feel the tedium of the protagonists monotonous day to day existence. As an allegory, some of the symbolism may be a bit too obvious. Like Okada's hobby of collecting insects and putting them in jars for observation, only to find himself in a similar position. The atonal score by Toru Takemitsu contributes immeasurably to the unsettling situation.
Carnal Knowledge (1971)
Thursday, January 12, 2017
Steaming (1985)
A disparate group of women from different classes in society gather together at a rather shabby rundown Turkish bathhouse. They include a well off divorcee (Vanessa Redgrave), a high powered attorney (Sarah Miles), a topless dancer (Patti Love), a sheltered girl (Felicity Dean) and her mother (Brenda Bruce) as well as the bathhouse manager (Diana Dors). When they hear the news that the bathhouse is being shut down, they decide to do something about it. Based on the play by Nell Dunn that was a hit in London but flopped on Broadway, this was the final film of both the director Joseph Losey (THE SERVANT) and Diana Dors. I've not read the play but based on the movie version, I can understand why it tanked on Broadway. It's a dialog driven piece with the actresses in various states of undress but not even nudity can help when the dialog is this trivial. I don't think I've seen the great Vanessa Redgrave give a worse performance though she's not as bad as Patti Love's cacophonous character. By the time I was finally getting into it, the film only had 20 minutes to go before the end. Losey's direction seems limp so along with Redgrave's performance, I'll chalk it up to their lack of enthusiasm for the material though Dors manages to emerge unscathed in a rather touching performance.
Three Hours To Kill (1954)
Wednesday, January 11, 2017
The Rape Of Richard Beck (1985)
An arrogant and insensitive cop (Richard Crenna) often ignores procedure and acts on his own. Victims of violent crime take a backseat to his own "rules". But when he's off duty and decides to bust two thugs (Nicolas Worth, M.C. Gainey), the tables are turned when they take his revolver away from him and beat and rape him. With his world turned upside down, he must re-evaluate his mindset. The subject of male rape is rarely, if ever, the focus of a film. Usually, it's incidental as in DELIVERANCE or I'LL SLEEP WHEN I'M DEAD. Unfortunately, this was made for TV and it plays out like a TV movie. It's weakly written and certainly its portrayal of police is one dimensional. All the cops in the movie are neanderthal, crude types. If they had only balanced it with at least one sensitive and normal policeman, it might have gone a long way in at least appearing to be realistic. As a movie, it might do some good as mandated viewing for sensitivity training for police. But what is genuinely good, better than good actually, is Richard Crenna's performance. Crenna is one of those generic TV actors (like David Janssen, John Forsythe or James Franciscus) who seemed to thrive on TV but never quite seeming to belong on the big screen. Here, Crenna gives a beautifully modulated performance far above the material he's given and gives an indication that he's a far better actor than he's credited with. Directed by Karen Arthur. With Meredith Baxter, Pat Hingle, George Dzundza, Frances Lee McCain and Joanna Kerns.
Tuesday, January 10, 2017
Doctor X (1932)
The Barefoot Contessa (1954)
While touring Spain with a film director (Humphrey Bogart) and a public relations man (Edmond O'Brien in an Oscar winning performance), a wealthy millionaire (Warren Stevens) dabbling in the movie business discovers a flamenco dancer (Ava Gardner). With the help of the director, she will soon become a world famous movie star. But it's not fame and fortune she's seeking. Written and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz, this roman a clef (Rita Hayworth is the template) doesn't have the acidic wit of Mankiewicz's other show business movie ALL ABOUT EVE. It's darker in tone and while it skewers Hollywood and the film industry, there's not much affection shown for that world as there was for Broadway in EVE. But in perhaps her most iconic role, Gardner dazzles as she inhabits the free living independent actress constantly searching for that elusive thing called love. Unfortunately when she finds it, it's anything but happily ever after. If you know someone who doesn't "get" Ava Gardner, this is the movie to show them. Handsomely shot by the great Jack Cardiff (THE RED SHOES) in Italy (even the Hollywood sequences) who does the exterior locations justice as well as Gardner, looking stunning in her Fontana frocks. With Rossano Brazzi, Valentina Cortese, Marius Goring, Elizabeth Sellars, Mari Aldon, Bessie Love, Gertrude Flynn and Franco Interlenghi (SHOESHINE).
The 3 Worlds Of Gulliver (1960)
Monday, January 9, 2017
Sitting Pretty (1948)
When a young mother (Maureen O'Hara) has trouble keeping a nanny because of her three rambunctious boys, she advertises in a national magazine. When she accepts an application, she is shocked when the new nanny arrives ..... he's a guy (Clifton Webb)! Based on the novel BELVEDERE by Gwen Davenport and directed by Walter Lang (THE KING AND I), this proved to be a turning point in Webb's career. Prior to this film, Webb had been in darker dramas like LAURA and THE RAZOR'S EDGE and his acerbic tongue was used more venomously. This was his first movie comedy and his deadpan delivery still had a sting but it wasn't as mean spirited and proved the perfect antidote to the wholesomeness surrounding him. Not only did he receive his only Oscar nomination but he became a bona fide box office star. His character was popular enough to spawn two more films with him playing the character of Belvedere. It's a comedy but it still has something to say about mindless small town gossip and its damaging effects. I wouldn't go so far as to call it a classic comedy but it's quite fun! With Robert Young as the husband, Richard Haydn as the neighborhood gossip, Ed Begley, Louise Allbritton, John Russell and Cara Williams.
Sunday, January 8, 2017
The Murder Of Sherlock Holmes (1984)
A recent small town widow (Angela Lansbury) writes a murder mystery to pass the time. Without her knowledge, her nephew (Michael Horton) submits the novel to a publishing house. To her surprise, the book becomes a huge best seller and she finds herself an instant celebrity. When her publisher (Arthur Hill) invites her to his posh country estate for a costume party, things turn ugly when a murdered body turns up in the pool and she finds that writing about murder and confronting a real murder is a very different thing. Back in the "old days", TV networks would make full length movies as either a pilot (if it got ratings, it got greenlighted) or a way of introducing a forthcoming TV series. THE MURDER OF SHERLOCK HOLMES heralded the introduction of Lansbury's Jessica Fletcher and the show that followed MURDER SHE WROTE ran for 11 years! As expected, the telefilm plays out like an extended episode of the show but the extra length allows time for a little more character developments like the mutual attraction between the author and her publisher that appears headed for a romantic involvement. As for the mystery itself, it's cleverly done and Lansbury's Fletcher is such an ingratiating presence (like a more sophisticated Miss Marple) that it's quite easy to see why viewers were entranced for 11 years. Directed by Corey Allen (he played James Dean's rival in REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE). With Andy Garcia, Anne Francis, Brian Keith, Ned Beatty, Raymond St. Jacques, Richard Erdman and Billie Hayes.
Saturday, January 7, 2017
Courtship Of Eddie's Father (1963)
Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory (1971)
The mysterious and reclusive chocolate manufacturer Willy Wonka (Gene Wilder) hides five golden tickets in his candy bars. The five children who find them will be allowed inside his chocolate factory and experience the magic and wonder. Directed by Mel Stuart with Roald Dahl adapting his book CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY for the screen (with a little help from David Seltzer). This charming and delightful musical fantasy is witty enough to retain its hold on adults who saw it as children without nostalgia entering the picture. I'm not a big fan of THE WIZARD OF OZ (1939) but I would imagine that WONKA has some of the same pull that OZ has for its legion of admirers. Beautiful to look at courtesy of Harper Goff's art direction and gorgeously shot by Arthur Ibbetson (ANNE OF THE THOUSAND DAYS) in what could pass for the gorgeous three strip Technicolor process used prior to 1954. But it's almost impossible to imagine what this movie would be like without Wilder's sterling performance. An inspired piece of casting because Wonka is essentially unlikable but there's a twinkle in Wilder's performance that clues us in that he's not really as "bad" as he'd like us to think he is. The lovely songs are by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley. With Jack Albertson, Roy Kinnear, Leonard Stone, Julie Dawn Cole, Denise Nickerson and Peter Ostrum as Charlie.
Friday, January 6, 2017
Suspect (1987)
When a woman (Katie O'Hare) is murdered in Washington D.C., a homeless deaf mute (Liam Neeson) is arrested for her murder. An overworked public defender (Cher) is assigned to defend him. But what looks like a simple murder case soon turns out to have a motive that reaches the highest levels of the federal government. Directed by Peter Yates (BULLITT) from an original screenplay by Eric Roth and Roth's screenplay is the culprit here. It's so sloppily written and preposterous that it's amazing how entertaining the movie is anyway. If you can get past Cher as an oveworked public defender and the film's appalling premise: Cher's attorney and a jurist (Dennis Quaid) on her case unethically colluding to solve the murder, the script's coincidences and plot holes shouldn't bother you though I couldn't help wondering if anybody in D.C. locks their car doors. 1987 was a busy year for Cher and she fared better with MOONSTRUCK and WITCHES OF EASTWICK but if there's ever a true guilty pleasure, this film defines it. Still, despite the red herring provided, the film's reveal of the killer is a real eye roller. The Herrmannesque score is by Michael Kamen. With John Mahoney, Joe Mantegna, Philip Bosco and E. Katherine Kerr.
Thursday, January 5, 2017
Beachhead (1954)
Set in 1943 WWII on a Japanese held Pacific island, four marines (Tony Curtis, Frank Lovejoy, Skip Homier, Alan Wells) embark on a mission to verify a report about a secret Japanese minefield which came from a French planter (Eduard Franz). But after verifying the report, there is still the arduous and dangerous trek through the jungle for the survivors to rendezvous with U.S. forces if they are to be rescued. Directed by Stuart Heisler (THE GLASS KEY), this is a standard WWII actioner whose chief attraction is the lush island of Kauai which stands in for Bougainville Island, nicely shot by Gordon Avil (THE CHAMP). Drawbacks include the ingenue played by Mary Murphy (THE WILD ONE). Not that she's bad but as "the girl", she provides the usual romantic conflict as Curtis and Lovejoy fight over her and, of course, while fleeing the Japanese she sprains her ankle thus slowing them down. For a moment, the film seems like it might surprise us and have the girl end up with the older Lovejoy but it follows the usual path. There is a disturbing sequence involving a Japanese prisoner of war (Akira Fukunaga) that raises questions that are never addressed. With John Doucette.
Place Vendome (1998)
Wednesday, January 4, 2017
Moby Dick (1956)
Safe In Hell (1931)
Tuesday, January 3, 2017
In Search Of America (1971)
When a college student (Jeff Bridges) announces to his family that he's dropping out of college to "find himself", he convinces his family to accompany him on a cross country journey in a bus to discover his generation and their unconventional lifestyle. Directed by Paul Bogart, this film is the perfect example of how topical movies that are "now" and "relevant" become irrelevant in the ensuing decades. It's almost impossible to take the film seriously with dialog like "That sure is a groovy looking pad", "Can you dig it?", "Coming and going are the same thing, it just depends where you are in the circle" and this beaut "We don't really exist. We're just stream particles in the great cosmic jellyfish" which is said in dead earnestness. The telefilm even gives us a "hip" granny (Ruth McDevitt) who says things like "Right on!". To the movie's credit, the older generation aren't all portrayed as "squares" though the mother (Vera Miles) is pretty uptight and the hippies are shown to be as rude and self involved as anyone else. As an archival curiosity of a certain time in our culture and how Hollywood viewed that culture, I suppose it has its place. Bu oh, that ghastly "folk pop" underscore which is about as hip as Three Dog Night. With Sal Mineo, Kim Hunter, Carl Betz, Howard Duff, Tyne Daly, Michael Anderson Jr. and Glynn Turman.
The Bridge Of San Luis Rey (1944)
Monday, January 2, 2017
Guns Of The Timberland (1960)
Sunday, January 1, 2017
2001 A Space Odyssey (1968)
At the dawn of man, a group of apes discover a giant monolith. Millions of years later, the same monolith is discovered buried beneath the surface of the moon. Shortly thereafter, a spacecraft is on its way to the planet Jupiter with its true mission only known by the ship's computer HAL 9000. Nearly 50 years after its original release, it's difficult to convey the enormous impact Stanley Kubrick's sci-fi masterpiece had on 1968 audiences. Sadly, I don't think a film like this would ever get greenlighted today. It's too cerebral and Kubrick's precise pacing is too methodical for today's audiences swooning over the latest Marvel action adventure. The movie's special effects while cutting edge for its day, now seem rather simplistic. Yet for some of us, it hasn't lost its power to captivate with its still unanswered questions about where we came from and where we're going. It's not the kind of movie where the acting matters at all. While the bland Keir Dullea and Gary Lockwood are nominally the movie's "stars", the true star of the film is Stanley Kubrick himself. This is a director's film all the way. The computer HAL 9000 (voiced by Douglas Rain) is a wonderfully scary creation and his dismantling by Dullea is both tense and touching. A true masterwork of the sci-fi genre. With William Sylvester, Robert Beatty, Leonard Rossiter and Margaret Tyzack.
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