修羅雪姫 怨み恋歌 (aka Lady Snowblood: Love Song Of Vengeance) (1974)

Set in 1906 Japan, the head of the secret police (Shin Kishida) saves the notorious outlaw known as Lady Snowblood (Meiko Kaji) from the executioner and allows her to go free if she will obtain a secret document from a known anarchist (Juzo Itami). Based on the manga series of the same name and directed by Toshiya Fujita (LADY SNOWBLOOD). This is a sequel to the 1973 LADY SNOWBLOOD and frankly, it's just not as good. Its interesting narrative gets lost in the gratuitous violence where the camera lovingly lingers over every mutilation, wounds and plague ridden flesh. In this movie, the Lady Snowblood character seems supporting rather than a lead character. With Kazuko Yoshiyuki and Yoshio Harada.

In Which We Serve (1942)

Set during WWII, the surviving crew of the destroyer HMS Torrin desperately cling to life after being attacked by German bombers during the battle of Crete. As the men await their rescue, they reflect on their lives prior to the attack. Written, produced and co-directed (with David Lean, who directed the actions scenes while Coward focused on the actors) by Noel Coward, who also plays the film's lead and composed the film's score. WWII propaganda films were prolific during the war years (1941-1945). I can understand the necessity of such movies during the trying time of a world conflict, hoping to keep the morale up while so many lives were being destroyed. But posterity has not been kind to most of them because, well ..... they weren't very good. Most of the Hollywood product were jingoistic but some of the films showed the hardships and bravery of the men in battle and of the homefront where (especially in England with the blitz) civilians were touched by the war. In that respect, IN WHICH WE SERVE holds very well in spite of the distance of 80 plus years. With Celia Johnson, John Mills, Richard Attenborough, Kay Walsh, Bernard Miles, Michael Wilding, Joyce Carey, James Donald, Daniel Massey and Juliet Mills.

Making Of A Male Model (1983)

A young ranch hand (Jon Erik Hexum) in Nevada is discovered by a seductive modeling agent (Joan Collins), who owns her own chic Manhattan modeling agency. She persuades him to leave his quiet life and begin a modeling career in New York. Directed by Irving J. Moore (DYNASTY: THE REUNION). This should have been a trashy fun piece of "camp" but it takes itself so seriously as if it were a hard hitting look into the decadence of Manhattan's modeling scene that it's just ludicrous. Every cliche is on display and you just know where it's going. It's the kind of obvious movie that when Jeff Conaway as a fading male model gives a big speech about how his career is going down the drain, you immediately know he's going to die (either by suicide or an overdose) before the final credits appear. Trash like this makes Jacqueline Susann look like Carson McCullers! With Kevin McCarthy, Robert Walker Jr., Jennifer Edwards, Roxie Roker, Rosemarie Bowe Stack, Michael Anderson Jr. and Arte Johnson.

On The Avenue (1937)

A wealthy New York socialite (Madeleine Carroll) is furious when a Broadway musical ridicules her. With dubious intentions, she makes a date with the show's star and producer (Dick Powell) but they end up falling in love. This doesn't sit well with the show's female star (Alice Faye) who plots to destroy the budding romance. Directed by Roy Del Ruth (BROADWAY MELODY OF 1936). 20th Century Fox wasn't known for their musicals and most of them aren't very good but this movie is one of their rare good ones. It's nothing special in the creative sense, it doesn't come near the RKO Astaire and Rogers films or the great MGM musicals from the Freed unit but it's undeniably charming and it has a solid Irving Berlin score. The standouts are the Ritz Brothers, who had me cracking up a few times and for me, a little Alice Faye goes a long way but she's in a supporting role here so I enjoyed her work here. With  Cora Witherspoon, Alan Mowbray, Joan Davis and George Barbier.

Lady Of Vengeance (1957)

When his petty young ward (Eileen Elton) throws herself in front of a London bound train, an arrogant international publishing magnate (Dennis O'Keefe) sets out to discover exactly what - or who - drove the young woman to kill herself. Directed by Burt Balaban (STRANGER FROM VENUS). I'm somewhat taken aback at the negative reviews this low budget B movie received when first released. Certainly not a major film or a particularly good one but I still found it fairly compelling and its surprise "twist" at the end did take me by surprise. However, this being a 1957 film, fifties morality didn't allow its act of revenge to come to fruition and instead lets "fate" take its course. With Anton Diffring, Ann Sears, Patrick Barr and Vernon Greeves.